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Eight stories in the news for today, Nov. 9

Nov 9, 2017 | 1:30 AM

Eight stories in the news for Thursday, Nov. 9

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PARENTAL LEAVE DETAILS SET TO BE UNVEILED

New mothers and fathers poised to go on parental leave before the end of the year will be able to spread federal benefits over a longer period of time starting next month. The federal government will today unveil the details of its long-promised changes to parental leave rules that will allow eligible new parents to take up to 18 months of employment insurance benefits after the birth of a child.

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HOSPITALS SOURCE OF MOST COMPLAINTS: WATCHDOG

Ontario’s Patient Ombudsman will deliver her first annual report today and it will outline how many patients, their families and caregivers fear reprisals if they file a complaint with her office. Christine Elliott’s report also says her office received about 2,000 complaints between 2016 and 2017 and the bulk of them — about 70 per cent — ere related to Ontario hospitals.

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PM TRUDEAU SPENDING SECOND DAY IN VIETNAM

It’s another busy day for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on his Asian tour. In Vietnam today, his itinerary included a roundtable with business leaders in Ho Chi Minh City. The heavy lifting comes Friday in Da Nang where Trudeau will join other leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit where a key issue is the future of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. U.S. President Donald Trump has pulled the his country out of the pact and the remaining members are trying to keep it alive.

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EX-OFFICER TO CONTINUE TESTIMONY AT BABCOCK TRIAL

A retired forensic officer is set to take the stand for a third day at the murder trial of two Ontario men accused of killing and incinerating a young Toronto woman. Jim Falconer spent much of Wednesday going over a massive haul of data retrieved from three computers seized by officers at Dellen Millard’s home. Both Millard and Mark Smich have pleaded not guilty in the death of Laura Babcock in 2012.

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MILITARY VEHICLE REPAIR IS GROUP THERAPY FOR PTSD VETS

A group of former Canadian Forces personnel are turning to tinkering with engines as a way to cope with the stress of leaving military life. About 20 individuals meet at The Military Museums in Calgary every week to work on decommissioned army vehicles. John Senior, the leader of the so-called Ghost Squadron, says hanging out with ex-military types is therapeutic and helps many having trouble with civilian life.

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B.C. CLIMBER FINISHES GLOBAL MOUNTAIN TREK

A young mountain climber from Vancouver has completed her goal of reaching the top of the tallest mountain on every continent. Liz Rose finished the feat this week when she climbed Mount Kosciuszko in Australia. About 400 people around the globe have successfully completed the so-called Seven Summits and at 26 years old, Rose is believed to be the youngest Canadian to finish.

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WINNIPEG MAYOR WANTS EDMONTON ESKIMOS TO PICK A NEW NAME

Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman thinks the CFL Edmonton Eskimos should change their team name to something more inclusive. Bowman, who is Metis, said he respects the Edmonton CFL club but would prefer a different name. The Eskimos said in a statement that it uses the name with “pride and respect” but is listening to any and all concerns. The issue arises ahead Saturday’s CFL western semi-final between Eskimos and Blue Bombers.

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STUDENTS CAPTURE PRIZE FOR CANCER-DETECTING DEVICE

A group of four McMaster University students has won a $50,000 prize to develop their idea for a handheld device that detects skin cancer. The recent grads in electrical biomedical engineering at the Hamilton university earned the International James Dyson Award for their final year project, called The sKan. They say the non-invasive device can diagnose melanoma by monitoring the heat emissions of various cells.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY:

— Statistics Canada will release the new housing price index for September.

— Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan takes part in events marking the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele.

— Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame will hold an induction ceremony for Carol Huynh, Cindy Klassen, Lanny McDonald, Mike Weir, Simon Whitfield, the late Gaylord Powless, Dr. Charles Tator, the late Dr. Robert W. Jackson and The Edmonton Grads basketball team.

 

The Canadian Press