A look at events in April 2023:
01 - The family of Vancouver radio personality Red Robinson says he died after a brief illness. Robinson began his radio career in 1954 at Vancouver's CJOR, and his website credits him as the first DJ in Canada to play rock 'n' roll music on a regular basis. He was 86.
03 - Dennis King led the Prince Edward Island Progressive Conservatives to a second majority government last night, securing 22 of the island's 27 legislative seats and 56 per cent of the popular vote.
03 - Canadian R-&-B singer Jully Black was honoured in Ottawa, at an Assembly of First Nations Special Chiefs assembly, for the minor change she made to our national anthem when she sang at the NBA All-Star Game in Utah in February. The Juno Award-winner swapped out one word in the opening line "O Canada! Our home and native land'' with “Our home 'on' native land'' to recognize the Indigenous peoples who lived on the land before European settlers.
07 - The final report of the public inquiry into Canada's worst mass shooting detailed troubling breakdowns in information sharing. The inquiry revealed that a decade before a Nova Scotia man used smuggled guns to murder 22 people in the province three years ago, police information systems had labelled him a firearms risk. But those records never found their way to the Canada Border Services Agency.
15 - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced federal funding of $8.2 billion over 10 years for the First Nations Health Authority in British Columbia.
16 - The federal government announced that Hockey Canada would be reinstated for funding. Hockey Canada made the announcement alongside Canadian sport minister Pascale St-Onge told reporters she set three conditions for the organization to meet if they wanted government funding and they've met those conditions.
16 – After 35 years, "The Phantom of the Opera'' ended its Broadway run. Original star Sarah Brightman took to the stage alongside the current cast and crew members for a reprise of "The Music of the Night".
19 – Tens of thousands of federal public servants went on strike for more money and clarity around remote work arrangements. The Public Service Alliance of Canada and the federal Treasury Board announced that a tentative contract agreement had not been reached by the union's 9 p.m. deadline. The union told a news conference in Ottawa that picket lines would be going up at more than 250 locations across the country overnight.
20 - German auto giant Volkswagen secured an exclusive contract with Canada to build an electric-vehicle battery plant in southwestern Ontario. Volkswagen announced last month it had chosen the town of St. Thomas to build its first overseas gigafactory. Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne says the contract is potentially worth more than $13 billion over the next 10 years.
20 - The Shishalh (sea-SHELT') Nation on British Columbia's Sunshine Coast says ground-penetrating radar has identified what are believed to be 40 unmarked graves of children on or near the site of the former St. Augustine's Residential School.
21 - The Toronto Raptors announced the team had fired head coach Nick Nurse after 10 years with the organization. He started as an assistant coach in 2013 before being named the ninth head coach in team history in June of 2018. Nurse led the Raptors to their first NBA title in 2019.
22 - (Cda-Sudan) (Audio: P03)
Canadian diplomats are being evacuated from Sudan after Ottawa suspended consular services. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the military would attempt to airlift Canadians out of Sudan using a C-17 transport plane in the region. Deadly armed conflicts erupted in the country 10 days after power-sharing negotiations between the country's armed forces and its paramilitary troops fell apart.
22 - (BC-Indigenous-Business)
British Columbia is providing about $2.3 million more to the B.C. Indigenous Cannabis Business Fund. B.C.'s public safety ministry said the one-time funding is in addition to the original joint contribution of about $7.5 million from the province and the federal government over three years. The ICBF was launched in December to support Indigenous businesses that want to join the regulated cannabis industry.
22 - (CN-Rail-Results)
Canadian National Railway announced a new North American container shipping service on the heels of record first-quarter revenues brought on by a bump in grain crops and higher oil prices. Dubbed Falcon Premium, the intermodal service connects CN's tracks, which stretch from Vancouver to Halifax, with the UPR line in Chicago and GMXT terminals north of Mexico City.
22 - (Ont-Toronto-Electric-Buses)
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said Ottawa will spend $349 million to help purchase 340 zero-emission transit buses and related infrastructure. The City of Toronto will pitch in $351 million. The funding is part of $2.75 billion Ottawa has promised over five years to help public transit and school bus operators electrify their fleets.
24 - (Trudeau-Foundation)
The federal auditor general will not investigate private donations received by the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. Donations to the foundation from two Chinese businessmen made in 2016 and 2017 have been under scrutiny for their possible links to the Chinese government.
26 - (SPORTS-HKN-Flames-Arena)
A deal was reached to replace Calgary's aging Saddledome with a new event centre and make improvements to the surrounding area east of downtown. Premier Danielle Smith said it won't get final approval until after the provincial election next month. The project comes with a $1.2-billion price tag, including $800 million for a new arena for the Calgary Flames.
25 - (US-Barbie-Down-Syndrome)
Barbie introduced its first doll representing a person with Down syndrome. Mattel worked with the National Down Syndrome Society to create the Barbie.
25 - (Child-Protection-Appeal)
Social workers in British Columbia will no longer be able to access a parent's medical records without their consent, a search warrant or a court order. The British Columbia Court of Appeal struck down the section of the province's child protection legislation allowing broad access to parents' medical history, calling it unconstitutional.
25 - (St-Viateur-Class-Action)
Quebec's Court of Appeal approved a $28-million settlement in a class-action lawsuit filed against the Clerics of Saint-Viateur of Canada by 375 sexual-assault victims. The 2017 lawsuit is about sex crimes committed since 1935 at more than 20 establishments run by the Quebec-based Catholic religious order.
25 - (Ont-Police)
Ontario is making the basic constable training program at the Ontario Police College tuition-free. Premier Doug Ford said the government is also expanding enrolment by as many as 550 recruits to try to get more police officers into communities and help push back against what he calls a rise in crime. Ontario is also planning to eliminate the requirement for post-secondary education to become a police officer.
25 - (US-Election-2024-Biden)
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the U.S. and the world need Joe Biden in the White House. On his way into cabinet, Trudeau told reporters he thinks it's great news that Biden formally announced he's running for re-election next year. Biden made the announcement in the morning in a three-minute video, on the fourth anniversary of the day he declared his intention to run for the White House in 2019.
26 - (Ont-First-Nations)
Ten northern Ontario First Nations are suing the province and the federal government, claiming the Crown tricked them into signing over their land in 1905 without their consent. The chiefs from Treaty 9 territory gathered at the Ontario legislature alleging the governments make decisions on their land without consulting or dealing with them as equal partners. The First Nations are objecting to mining, logging and developing the mineral-rich Ring of Fire region without their consent.
28 - (Online-Streaming)
A new federal law is set to require platforms like Netflix, YouTube and TikTok to contribute and promote Canadian content on the internet. The Liberals' Online Streaming Act passed its final vote in the Senate and received royal assent.
28 - (NS-Cormorant-Work)
A Halifax-based firm has been awarded a major subcontract as part of the $1.2-billion upgrade of the military's fleet of search-and-rescue helicopters. Defence Minister Anita Anand said IMP Aerospace is to deliver 13 upgraded Cormorant helicopters to the Canadian Armed Forces following work done at its Halifax facilities. The main contractor -- Leonardo U-K -- is to build three new helicopters to increase the size of the Cormorant fleet to 16.
The Canadian Press
