ETA Canada Travel Pass News

On November 25, US President-elect Donald Trump mentioned on his social media that if he takes office, he will impose a 25% tariff on all imports from Canada and Mexico. He said that unless Canada and Mexico take measures against illegal drugs and illegal immigration, the tariffs will start on January 20, 2025, the day of the presidential inauguration.

Furthermore, under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, many imports and exports are duty-free in trade between the three countries. Therefore, the announcement of the 25% tariff came as a shock to Canada. The Canadian dollar temporarily plummeted, and experts are concerned about accelerating inflation, suppressing growth, and affecting the supply chain.

Crude oil and gas, which account for Canada’s top exports to the United States, and auto parts, which travel frequently between the two countries, are expected to be hit hard.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau revealed that he had spoken by phone with Trump. He also spoke by phone with Ontario Premier Doug Ford and others and held an emergency meeting with the premiers of each province on the 27th. Premier Ford expressed his anger at the move, saying, “It’s like a stab to the heart of my family.”

A man has been given conditional release after being convicted of driving his car into Burrard Inlet in Port Moody, a suburb of Vancouver, British Columbia.

In March this year, Jowan Fowaz drove his car into the ocean from a boat launch ramp at Rocky Point Park in the city. The incident was live streamed by popular American streamer Aidin Ross, who made Fowaz state his full name before the incident and then said: “Aidin Ross is not responsible for this.”

Fowers escaped before the car went under, and Ross said he would send money to a tow truck when it arrived. He was later arrested at the scene.

In September, he was convicted of criminal damage to property under $5,000. At the time of the incident, he said that the brakes on his car hadn’t worked, but police investigations revealed that he had been offered $10,000 by Aiden Ross and had knowingly driven his car into the road.

On November 20, the court granted Fowers a conditional release, which allows him to have no criminal record if he meets court-imposed conditions. He was placed on one year of probation, fined $100, and ordered to pay approximately $3,000 in repairs to the City of Port Moody and complete 30 hours of community service by May of next year.

The defendant’s lawyer said his client is “ashamed and remorseful” about the incident.

On November 21, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced two measures to help Americans struggle with rising prices ahead of the holiday season. One is the tax exemption measure called “GST/HST Holiday”. The 5% GST (Good & Service Tax) or HST (Harmonized Sales Tax: a tax system that combines federal and provincial consumption taxes, with tax rates differing by province) is exempt for certain products only. This is limited to the period from December 14th to February 15th of next year. The items covered are as follows: Prepared foods: vegetable trays, salads, sandwiches, etc.

Restaurant menu: Dine-in, take-out, and delivery are all included

Confectionery: chips, candy, etc.

Alcoholic drinks: beer, wine, cider, etc.

Children’s clothing, shoes, car seats, diapers

Children’s toys

Books, newspapers (paper), puzzles

Christmas Tree This means that all food in Canada will be GST-free. According to government estimates, this will result in a savings of about $100 for every $2,000 spent on eligible products. The government expects to make $16 billion from the GST/HST holiday.

The other is a $250 subsidy called the “Working Canadians Rebate.” It is for Canadians who earn less than $150,000 in 2023 and is expected to be received by about 18.7 million people around spring 2025. The “rebate” is estimated to be worth $4.68 billion.

The federal government is stepping in to resolve the prolonged shutdowns at ports in British Columbia and Montreal due to Labor negotiations.

At a press conference on November 12, Minister of Labour Stephen McKinnon announced that he had ordered the Canada Labour Relations Board to immediately resume operations at each port and to begin binding arbitration negotiations. The minister said that negotiations at both BC’s ports and the Port of Montreal have reached an impasse and expressed concern that the suspension of operations is not only having a serious impact on supply chains and employment, but is also undermining Canada’s credibility as a trading partner.

A partial strike had been ongoing at the Port of Montreal, Canada’s second-largest port, but the facility had been closed since November 10th after Labor unions rejected a proposal put forward by the company.　In BC, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 514, a Labor union representing about 700 site supervisors, had notified them of a strike starting November 4, but the BC Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), which represents the company, blocked the facility in retaliation.

Mediation talks were held on November 9, but broke down within a few hours, and no schedule for further negotiations has been set.

According to the Greater Vancouver Chamber of Commerce, the impact of the closure of British Columbia’s ports is estimated to be about $800 million per day, or about $6.1 billion as of November 12.

The ILWU, however, opposes the move, calling it a one-sided government defence of the BCMEA, and is threatening to fight the move in court, arguing that government intervention violates the right to collective bargaining and the right to strike as guaranteed by the Constitution.

Mail collection and delivery in Canada has been completely halted. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), the labour union for Canada Post, which handles Canada’s postal service, went on strike on November 15th.

The Labor union had given 72-hour notice of the strike on the 12th of this month, but negotiations continued until the last minute, and there was a possibility that a strike could be avoided. But the CUPW says Canada Post’s proposed conditions, which include an 11.5% pay increase over four years, pension guarantees, job security and benefits, are not enough. “Canada Post needs to demonstrate its willingness to resolve our new outstanding issues,” the union said in a statement.

Federal Labour Minister Stephen McKinnon told reporters in Montreal, Quebec, on the morning of the 15th that “there are no plans for government intervention.” Canada Post is a trade union that represents about 55,000 employees, with a federal election coming up next fall.

The complete suspension of postal services will have a major impact on businesses and citizens during Black Friday and the Christmas shopping season. On November 12, the government finally intervened to lift the suspension of operations at the Port of Vancouver and the Port of Montreal due to the facility blockade, and cargo has just started moving from the port.

Canada Post released a statement, “During the strike, mail and parcels will not be processed or delivered and some post offices will be closed. Items already posted will be affected and no new items will be accepted.”

With approximately 150 of the original SkyTrain Mark 1 cars due for retirement soon, TransLink, Metro Vancouver’s public transportation operator, is now soliciting “innovative retirement plans” for the cars.　The Mark 1, with its white, red and blue design, is a train for SkyTrain, Vancouver’s first rapid transit system, which was introduced in time for the Vancouver International Transport Expo ’86 held in Vancouver in 1986.

Since then, it has been used by millions of Metro Vancouver residents for about 40 years. However, this train, reminiscent of the 1980s, will retire in the next few years and will be replaced by the new train, the Mark 5, by 2027.

TransLink is now inviting proposals for a new home and reuse for the Mark 1’s “next life.” Companies, organisations and individuals are welcome to submit ideas. Some carriages have already been purchased by production companies with plans to use them in future television programmes.

TransLink is also inviting submissions for other projects, such as personal use by train enthusiasts or display in local museums.　When we checked with TransLink, spokesman Theo Diako said that reuse proposals can be submitted from overseas as well. Those interested in purchasing a Mark 1 can apply for a reuse plan through an online form. If they purchase, they will be responsible for the cost of moving the vehicle from its garage in Metro Vancouver, repairs, and other costs associated with the reuse plan.

Applications are open until December 6th of this year, but applications will be reopened after that when the vehicle is retired.

A woman from Langley Township, a suburb of Vancouver, British Columbia (BC), has been missing since October 25th. The woman is Jane Whitehouse, 82.

According to Langley RCMP (Federal Police), Whitehouse went missing after leaving her home around 10 a.m. on the same day.

On the 27th, the car Whitehouse was driving was found in Agassiz, an hour and a half’s drive from his home. The car was found on a forest road in East Harrison with little traffic, and Whitehouse was not familiar with the area. Police have released a photo of Whitehouse and are asking for information. Also, on November 1, images of two vehicles captured by a camera were made public.

One was taken by a camera installed on a forest road at around 4:10 pm on October 25 and shows Whitehouse wearing a green jacket driving his own car (a grey Dodge Grand Caravan).

The other image shows a white Mercedes SUV driving in the opposite direction a few seconds later, and police would like to question the driver of that car about the situation at the time.

A 72-hour search of the remote area where Whitehouse’s car was found was called off on the 30th, but the investigation continues.

For any information, please contact your local police or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).

Metro Vancouver officials released images on October 25th of a giant “fatberg” being removed in the city of Richmond, British Columbia (BC).

Fatberg is a portmanteau of fat and iceberg, and refers to a mass of fat, oil, etc. Fatbergs that form in sewer pipes turn into a concrete-like substance through a chemical reaction, causing pipe blockages.

According to reports, the images were taken in mid-October during a cleanup operation in a sewer near Holly bridge Trunk and Lansdowne Road in the north of the city. Several large yellowish chunks of oil were lined up in front of the workers, amounting to about 50 tonnes.

The work began in July and was removed using high-pressure steam and vacuum trucks. Officials say buildups of this magnitude are rare, but that Metro Vancouver and other municipalities spend $3 million a year trying to remove them, and that preventing them will require everyone’s help, urging residents to dispose of fats and oils in their food recycling instead of pouring them down the sink.

The British Columbia (BC) Ministry of Health announced on October 22nd that vaccinations for this season have begun. BC residents aged 6 months or older are eligible to receive the COVID-19 and influenza vaccines.

Dr. Bonnie Henry, British Columbia’s Chief Medical Officer, said, “In British Columbia, we are experiencing an increase in viral respiratory diseases such as influenza and COVID-19 at this time of year, so it is necessary to take measures to stay healthy,” and encouraged people to continue to follow the recommendations they have made so far, such as disinfecting their hands, wearing masks when necessary, and getting vaccinated.

Vaccinations for seniors over 65 years old, residents of long-term care facilities, people at high risk such as those with chronic diseases, and medical workers have already begun on October 8th. Vaccinations are available at more than 1,300 pharmacies and clinics across the state.

Those who have already been vaccinated will receive notifications of vaccination in sequence via text or email.

According to the BC Ministry of Health, pharmacies set a record for the number of vaccinations administered in a single day on the 15th of this month: 45,831 for influenza and 24,908 for COVID-19.

On October 23, the Bank of Canada announced that it had lowered its policy interest rate by 0.5% to 3.75%. Governor Tiff McCarthy announced in a statement that “We have made this larger decision as inflation has returned to our target of 2%. We will continue to maintain the rate within our target.”

Statistics Canada announced on October 15 that inflation in September was 1.6% compared to the same month last year, slowing further from 2% in August. This was driven by a 10.7% drop in gasoline prices. Excluding gasoline prices, inflation in September was 2.2%.

By comparison, food prices rose 2.4%. The central bank explained the reasons for the cut, saying, “Inflation has fallen significantly in recent months, from 2.7% in June to 1.6% in September. Recent indicators suggest that inflation is expected to be around 2% in October, with upward price pressures no longer broad-based and core inflation now below 2.5%.

Surveys also show that business and consumer inflation expectations have fallen and are closer to normal, all of which suggests a return to low inflation.” The central bank raised the policy interest rate to 5% in July 2023, then cut it by 0.25% in June 2024, making it four consecutive cuts – by 0.25% in July of the same year, by 0.25% in September, and again this month.

Looking ahead, the Fed said, “The timing and pace of further rate cuts will depend on future information and our assessment of their impact on the inflation outlook. We will take one monetary policy decision at a time.” The next report is due to be released on December 11th. By then, the Statistics Bureau will be releasing August GDP, October inflation, and October employment statistics.