Air Canada criticized and Atlantic Canada health-care: In The News for July 4, 2022

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Millicent Wong
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The Canadian Press

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Publication date:

July 04, 2022 • 26 minutes ago • 4 minutes read • Join the conversation

In The News is a compilation of stories from The Canadian Press to help you start your day. Here’s what our editors have on their radars for Monday morning, July 4th, 2022…

What we are seeing in Canada…

Air Canada is being severely criticized by a New Brunswick cabinet minister for canceling a Monday flight that would have taken him and four officials to a meeting in Regina.

In a series of tweets posted on Saturday, Dominic Cardy, the province’s education minister, described the airline as incompetent, adding that the cancellation announced earlier that day means New Brunswick will not be represented at this year’s Education Council meeting becomes.

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He then called for the deregulation of Canada’s airline industry.

His comments sparked an online debate, with some people asking the minister why his delegation needed to attend in person rather than join a Zoom call, which would save taxpayers money.

In response, Cardy said he doesn’t chair the council, and he double-crossed by suggesting that “incompetent and coddled airlines” that take money for services they know they can’t provide could be committing fraud .

While Air Canada was not immediately available for comment, the national carrier announced last week that it would cut more than 15 percent of its July and August schedule — more than 9,500 flights — as an air travel system was bogged down by rising demand.

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Also these…

Across Atlantic Canada, calls for all levels of government to address healthcare workforce shortages have increased as hospitals are forced to close emergency rooms as tired employees take summer vacations to recover from pandemic-related stress.

In Prince Edward Island, Green Party health critic Michele Beaton said the staffing shortage at Alberton’s Western Hospital was so acute that the emergency room could be forced to close if one person was ill. Difficulties in recruiting and retaining health workers have been growing in the province for years, she added.

Health care workers in New Brunswick are leaving the province because of poor working conditions, uncompetitive salaries, and unreasonable workloads, according to liberal health critic Jean-Claude D’Amours.

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Last week, New Brunswick Health Secretary Dorothy Shephard said the province is recruiting traveling nurses and encouraging retired nurses to rejoin the workforce to cover the vacations.

In Nova Scotia, provincial nurses called for action to address chronic staffing shortages that they say have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nova Scotia Nurses’ Union states that there are approximately 1,400 registered nurse positions and 250 licensed practical nurse positions.

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What we are seeing in the US…

Officials across the US are preparing for a potentially tumultuous 4th of July.

Independence Day comes at a time when the United States is rocked by hearings on the January 6 insurgency, is in turmoil over abortion and guns, and is struggling to maintain the common ties that bind them together.

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But many also see cause for celebration: the pandemic continues to recede and, despite its shortcomings, America’s democracy is surviving. July 4th marks the nation’s 246th birthday and the anniversary of independence from English rule.

It’s a day when people of all stripes flock to parades, devour hot dogs at backyard barbecues, and gather under a canopy of stars and exploding fireworks.

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What we are observing in the rest of the world…

Danish police say the gunman who opened fire at a Copenhagen shopping center most likely acted alone and randomly selected his victims.

Copenhagen police said on Monday that investigators do not believe the previous day’s attack was terror-related.

Three people were killed – a 17-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl, both Danish and a 47-year-old Russian – when the gunman opened fire on Sunday afternoon at Field’s shopping centre, one of Scandinavia’s largest.

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Two Danes and two Swedes were also hospitalized with serious injuries.

Investigators said police had no indication anyone helped the gunman, identified as a 22-year-old Dane, during the attack.

They add that while the motive was unclear, nothing pointed to terrorism and that the suspect would be charged with preliminary murder charges later Monday.

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On this day in 1849…

Four Montreal English newspapers backed the Annexation Association, a group of Tories that proposed Canada join the US

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While entertaining…

Puerto Rican superstar Ricky Martin on Sunday denied allegations that led to a restraining order being issued against him, with police noting he has not been charged with any crime.

Police said Saturday that a judge issued the order against Martin, but authorities trying to fulfill the order were unable to locate the singer in the Puerto Rican city of Dorado, where he lives.

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The order was filed under the Puerto Rico Domestic Violence Act

Police spokesman Axel Valencia said he could not provide any further information

Details, including who requested the order.

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Did you see that?

Tropical Storm Bonnie has strengthened into a hurricane in the Pacific, just over a day after crossing Central America from the Caribbean, dropping heavy rain but causing little damage.

Forecasters believe the hurricane will remain well out at sea and not pose a threat to land as it moves generally northwest off the coast of southern Mexico.

The US National Hurricane Center says Bonnie experienced maximum sustained winds of 80 mph late Sunday.

Its center was 335 kilometers south of Salina Cruz, Mexico, and moving west-northwest at 28 km/h.

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This report from The Canadian Press was first published on July 4, 2022

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