Ottawa Observations: Monday, February 1, 2021

Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Federal scene for  Monday,  February 1, 2021

Canadians held in China / China tensions

Can Biden rescue Canada from our China crisis? This Australian PM thinks so

A Canadian diplomat ordered "Wu-Han' T-shirts. Now China is furious

Canada urged to create dedicated asylum pathway for Hong Kongers fleeing political persecution

Kamala Harris tells Trudeau US will do 'everything it can' to free two Michaels

Kamala Harris pledges 'solidarity' over 2 Michaels detained in China in call with Trudeau

The Global Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Britain tops vaccination charge as Canada falters

Mandatory COVID-19 testing for International travellers begins at Toronto's Pearson airport

Things are looking up in our pandemic fight. So keep locking down

Now we know why we need a vaccine industry in Canada 

No written guarantee on EU vaccine shipments, says international trade minister

How a consortium of Canadian companies is bringing rapid COVID-19 testing to the workplace

'We're very highly vulnerable': MPs hear just 1.5 per cent of Canadians show immunity to COVID-19, antibodies last up to eight months

Saskatchewan vaccination efforts at 'standstill' as federal delays mount, provincial health minister says

BC announces 1, 158 new COVID-19 cases, 21 deaths over 3 days as infection rate drops

'Hold off on the Super Bowl celebrations,' BC health officials  say amid COVID-19 restrictions

New highly contagious COVID-19 variant identified in BC Interior for first time

What an EU crackdown on COVID-19 vaccine exports could mean for Canada

21 deaths, 18 variant cases, 13 flights and one Whistler pub with cases

Globe and Mail

PMO e-mails reveal frustration with Public Health Agency as pandemic worsened

Sunwing taps emergency financing program for $375 million

Ottawa wants airlines to give us refunds. Ten months after Air Canada cancelled my flight, I can't even get my voucher

Facing insolvency, Laurentian University files for creditor protection

Calgary oil company files $400 million lawsuit against Alberta Government over proposed Rigel oil sands project

Alberta at standoff with church over COVID rules as top doctor says she can't intervene

Keystone XL may be dead but Canada's interprovincial trade barriers are alive and well

A bit more boring, please: What makes a good governor-general

CBC
  

Justice Minister David Lametti doesn't rule out referring assisted dying bill to Supreme Court

Conservatives, Liberals and Bloc end 2020 with record-breaking fundraising quarter

Canada mulls new travel restrictions to close land border loophole: Transport minister

Ottawa launches new loan program of up to $1M for firms walloped by COVID-19

Why we need to sue the government more often

Toronto Star

       

School reopening plans to be unveiled Wednesday, Education Minister Stephen Leece says

Ontario confirms first case of South African coronavirus variant in Mississauga man

COVID-19 'was the last straw that broke the camel's back' for Laurentian U, which has filed for creditor protection

Ontario businesses will stay locked down until COVID-19 patients in ICU drop by more than half

Donald Trump stalled America's climate change efforts. Will Joe Biden look to Canada for inspiration?

Tripping hazard: Protest penguins destroyed at Alberta legislature grounds

Federal government provides $15 million for safer drug pilots programs in BC

Toronto Sun

Canada remains in lockdown as the US opens up

Civil Liberties vs. COVID: Shocking new poll

EU vaccine threat shows we need to produce them in Canada

Mayor's call for 'soon-as-possible school re-openings

Groundhog Day and Ian McCowan gets down to work

'Virus has run rampant': Barrie's Roberta Place faces class-action lawsuit

Octogenarian church-goer hit with lockdown ticket

Elites who have it easy want everyone else to stop complaining

Pandemic civil liberties abuses most popular among Liberal voters, poll shows

Vaccine failure is Trudeau's greatest scandal

COVID-19 calls for kindness

National Post

Criminal rings are selling fake COVID-19 test certificates at International airports, police warn

Canadians should brace themselves for higher borrowing costs earlier than expected, economists warn

Trickster's Michelle Latimer serves CBC with a notice for libel after Indigenous ancestry controversy 

$6 billon and counting: Tax battle between the CRA and Canada's big banks shows no signs of abating

Ottawa has its own problems. Let the provinces decide their own COVID measures

With new legislation, Steven Guilbeault will make few friends in Big Tech

Universal Basic Income won't cut poverty better than less expensive options

Lots of pandemic cash for teens, not so much for starving artists

What could be better than a Newfoundland election to take our minds off winter?

Criminalizing "Pretendians" is not the answer; we need to give First Nations control over grants

Air Canada, Suncor and other companies launch 'rapid screening consortium' to test for coronavirus

Maclean's

The life and death of HMCS Cormorant  - the legendary ship you've never heard of

20,000 Canadians have died of COVID-19. Each of their stories teaches us about life

Global

No Canada Line strike yet as negotiations continue into Monday evening

BC government urged to officially add Black history to education curriculum

Federal government to fund safer drug supply projects in Vancouver, Victoria

North Westside residents concerned after two fire officials travel to Mexico

Canada's School systems are failing to address colonial past: educators

ICBC customers set to get COVID-19 rebate due to fewer crashes during pandemic

Internal  emails reveal tensions with PHAC, provinces as Trudeau's office responds to COVID-19

Woman whose life was upended by child porn video testifies about Pornhub at ethics committee

Rideau Hall won't say how much Canadians paid for travel by spouses of former GG's

Bankruptcies and bailouts: What will Newfoundland and Labrador do about its finances?

Miscellaneous

City of Vancouver marks Black History Month with interactive photomap, Give Them Their Flowers

Pioneering Black British Columbians cited in BC statement for Black History Month

Professor Handel Kashope Wright: To celebrate Black History Month run BC, we must connect the past with the present

Two male suspects posing as Vancouver police assault 78 year old woman at home

TransLink warns of possible labour disruption to Canada Line service

Four new Safer Drug Supply projects to launch in BC

Less Money, more danger: How the Pandemic Changed Sex work