Four stories in the news for Friday, Jan. 27
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TRANS RIGHTS ACTIVIST PREDICTS GENDER NEUTRAL ID COMING FAST
A trans rights activist involved in a recently settled human rights complaint says there is little question that the federal government will drop any mention of gender from government-issued identification. Christin Milloy and the federal government settled a long-running human rights complaint earlier this month. It came after the governing Liberals agreed the government doesn’t always need to know someone’s sex or gender before handing out a social insurance number.
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ATLANTIC PREMIERS TO TALK ABOUT ECONOMIC GROWTH
Atlantic Canada’s premiers meet with several federal ministers today to discuss how to expand the region’s economy. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil says the meeting in Wolfville, N.S. is important because many of the economic issues to be discussed require both levels of government to work together. He says the talks will touch on how to continue to grow immigration to the region and on ways the provinces can continue to co-operate in areas such as energy.
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TORY LEADERSHIP CANDIDATE PULLS OUT OF RACE
In a tumultuous day for the political right in Alberta, talk of merging the Wildrose and the Progressive Conservative parties ramped up Thursday while one of the contenders for the Tory leadership pulled out of the campaign, saying the race has “devolved into vitriol, anger and division.” Stephen Khan issued a statement on his Twitter feed announcing his withdrawal, saying the reputation of the party is “damaged so badly … that our credibility may be beyond repair.” The surprise announcement came the same day that Wildrose Leader Brian Jean said consolidating conservatives under a single banner is the best chance to defeat Premier Rachel Notley’s NDP.
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QUEBEC POLITICIAN BEING INVESTIGATED BY POLICE
The Quebec premier’s office is confirming that a longtime cabinet minister is under police investigation. In a statement Thursday, Premier Philippe Couillard says Pierre Paradis has been replaced as agriculture minister by Laurent Lessard. The 66-year-old Paradis, who has represented the riding of Brome-Missisquoi since 1980, has also been kicked out of the Liberal caucus.
