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May 16 2025

The Roundup: Prices rising. Toughest task. Ontario budget.

FRI MAY 15 2024
David Akin's Roundup
Prices rising. Toughest task. Ontario budget.
Canada
Canadian shoppers to see higher costs amid trade war: ‘No alternative’
Some retailers say due to their profit margin, they have 'no alternative' but to pass on the costs resulting from the trade war with the U.S. onto consumers. [Global]

The last time the federal government failed to deliver a budget around the start of the fiscal year was in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. [Global]
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke by phone with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, the Mexican government said on Thursday in a post on social media. [Reuters]

Canada’s Catholic PM will attend Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural liturgy alongside global leaders — and use the trip to prep for next month’s G7 summit. [Politico]
While Hajdu was known for having a good working relationship with Indigenous communities, some Indigenous leaders — frustrated with the slow pace of change in the Crown-Indigenous relationship — accused her of doing too little to build consensus on those files. "I personally, as an Indigenous person, felt that I was handed probably one of the toughest tasks because all eyes are on the first Indigenous person to do the role," Gull-Masty said. "The expectation is going to be very high." [CP]
“I am thrilled to be trusted with the very important portfolio of seniors,” McLean told the Times Colonist. “I’m looking forward to hearing from seniors as to how we can to get together and ensure that Canada works for them.” [Times-Colonist]
Elections Canada admits that a misprint on an envelope used to mail a special ballot from Terrebonne led to one Bloc voter’s mail-in ballot being returned to her. Despite the error, Elections Canada spokesperson Matthew McKenna said yesterday “the result of the recount is final.” [Global] 
Coach Carney
Click through to watch the PM in the dressing room of his favourite team ahead of the win that put them into the next round. - DA
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The Provinces
U.S. tariffs cast pall over Ontario budget with $14.6B deficit, slower growth
"Ontario and all of Canada are at a precipice and we need to take serious steps to make sure we do not find ourselves anywhere near the bottom," Bethlenfalvy said as he tabled his $232.5-billion budget. [CP]

From tariff relief to plans to remove two new bike lanes and build a new police training college. Here are some of the things to know about Ontario's 2025 budget. [Global]

The 2025 Ontario Budget: A Plan to Protect Ontario outlines the government’s plans to unleash Ontario’s economic potential while keeping costs down and to protect Ontario workers, businesses and jobs in the face of U.S. tariffs and economic uncertainty. By investing in infrastructure, critical mineral and resource development and boosting interprovincial trade capacity, Ontario will be a competitive place to invest, create jobs and do business. [Government of Ontario]

The latest housing starts data, based on private-sector analysis, revises down already grim estimates from previous budgets. Ontario wants to build 1.5 million homes by 2031. [Global]
Nancy Southern says Asian partners in a major hydrogen project have said they won't make final investment decisions unless there is certainty around the Alberta separatism question. She says the prospect of Alberta independence is raising too many questions for companies to feel confident making big investment decisions [CBC]

Marshall Smith (no relation to the premier) filed a statement of claim in Edmonton Court of King’s Bench Wednesday against the Globe, Mentzelopoulos and an unidentified person Smith claims is a former member of the AHS board of directors. [Edmonton Journal]

The spring sitting of the Alberta Legislature wrapped up Wednesday evening under a cloud of separatist controversy and allegations of government wrong-doing. [Global]
Aurora
Elsewhere
Walmart Warns of Price Hikes on Food, Tech and Toys, Blames Tariffs
CEO Doug McMillon commented on the price hikes on an earnings call on Thursday. He said the big box retailer is unable to absorb the costs of higher import taxes, despite the recent reduction of duties on Chinese goods. Earlier this week, President Donald Trump made a temporary 90-day truce with China to lower the 145% tariff to 30% on goods and products sent to the US. [CNET]
Note to Readers
This newsletter is curated by me,  David Akin, the chief political correspondent at Global News, but I put it together every day independently of my employer. And there are costs associated with using this platform to deliver more than 60,000 e-mails a month.

You can help keep this newsletter going with a monthly pledge -- Just $5 would do it -- via Patreon or, if you want to make a one-time donation, send an e-transfer to jda@davidakin.com.

Who writes this stuff?:  The headlines, excerpts, and photos here are generated by the publishers of the clipping. The publisher is at the bottom left of the clipping. If I've got a comment, you''ll see that in italics. But if I've generated the headline and the excerpt, you'll see me taking attribution by finishing with -DA in bold. The stamp stuff at the bottom are scans from my collection and, if there’s a stamp blurb, I’ve written that bit.  -DA
Media
Kevin Newman: Here’s why we’re doing all this. The part that keeps us up at night: fact-based information isn’t just a civic nice-to-have. It’s the foundation. It shapes how we vote, how we invest, how we related to one another. When that foundation cracks—or worse, gets manipulated at scale—nothing works. Not democracy. Not markets. Not community. [Substack]
Science and Technology

The company says that its customers “may want to consider” using Azure AI Agents, which can use Bing Search on the user’s behalf to generate responses. This likely won’t work in all cases, though, especially if the goal was to bring back links rather than text answers. It all depends on the developer’s use case, but it’s a big shift in functionality.

Waymo Recalls 1,200 Robotaxis to Stop Them From Crashing Into Barriers
The recalls arrives after the NHTSA initiated a probe last year and reported incidents of Waymo cars crashing into chains and gates. [PC Mag]
The Calendar
  • 1900 : Ottawa, - PM Carney departs for Rome.
Issued this day ...
… in 1973: Sc 616: Joseph Howe. Design: Allan Robb Fleming.

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