By Canadian Press

In the news today, July 18

Jul 20, 2019 | 2:21 AM

Five stories in the news for Thursday, July 18

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SCHEER CALLS TRUMP’S COMMENTS OFFENSIVE

Federal Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer says there is no place in society for comments such as the ones U.S. President Donald Trump has made about four Democratic congresswomen. Scheer says he believes people should be free to criticize their governments without having their backgrounds questioned or being told to leave the country. Trump is being called a racist for suggesting on Twitter that the four congresswomen should go back where they came from if they don’t like America. Scheer didn’t go so far as calling the tweets racist when asked by reporters in Saskatoon, but he said they were offensive. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said Trump’s comments would not fly north of the border because diversity is one of Canada’s strengths. 

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MANY TSX 60 FIRMS’ OPAQUE ON DIVERSITY DATA

On Tricia Davis’s first day of work at a coal mine in B.C.’s Elk Valley, she says she spotted a heart and a penis scrawled on some dusty equipment. And on a bus ride home one day from the Teck Coal Ltd. operation, Davis — who started there as a truck driver in June 2017 — says two male co-workers insinuated she was working as a prostitute. They allegedly told her: “Oh look it’s your corner, that’s where you belong.” “I waited for two years to finally have the opportunity to work at Teck and have never been so humiliated in my life,” Davis, who quit that job, said in a complaint filed to the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal.

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CDN MILLENNIALS WANT ELECTION CLIMATE DEBATE

Several hundred Canadian millennials planned to rally in at least 30 cities across the country Wednesday, demanding a federal leaders’ debate on climate change. Emma Jackson, a field organizer with the group Our Time, said the science is clear that humanity only has 11 years to get a grip on greenhouse-gas emissions before global warming becomes catastrophic and irreversible. Last fall, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report warning that the world was nowhere near being on track to cut emissions enough to hit the Paris climate-accord target to keep global warming to as close to 1.5 C above pre-industrial times as possible. We are already close to 1 C of warming, and a recent report from Environment and Climate Change Canada warned this country is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world.

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STUDY DETAILS RENT AFFORDABILITY IN CITIES

A minimum-wage worker could afford to rent in just a few neighbourhoods in Canada, suggests a new analysis of the country’s rental market that also raises questions about a promised federal rent-supplement program. The report being released Thursday by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says someone earning minimum wage would only be able to afford a one-bedroom rental in nine per cent of 795 neighbourhoods in Canadian cities in the study. The figure drops to three per cent of neighbourhoods when looking at the affordability of two-bedroom units. The federal Liberals’ decade-long national housing strategy includes programs to build more rental housing, hoping a boost in supply will drive down costs.

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SUMMER TRAVEL DEALS REQUIRE FLEXIBILITY

As social media feeds fill up with pictures of friends and family on vacation and last-minute deals on flights become harder to score, the fear of missing out is real for procrastinators who have not yet booked their summer holiday. But Elyshia Derbach of Flight Centre says there are still deals to be had on great trips, if you are flexible and open to considering alternatives you might not have thought about. Being open to different styles of travel than what you’re used to, such as a cruise or tour, could also help score you a deal, she added. Before starting your search, Derbach says it is important to know when you are able to travel. Some deals come and go quickly, she says, so if you’re looking for a deal you might want to avoid having to check with your boss or travel partners before you book.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS:

— WTO panel holds its first substantive meeting with the parties Thursday and Friday, and then a third party-session Friday over Australia’s complaint in how B.C. governs wine sales at grocery stores.

— Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joins supporters for an armchair discussion at a Liberal fundraising event.

— Finance Minister Carole James releases the provincial public accounts for 2018-2019. The event starts with a presentation by James, goes to a non-for-attribution technical briefing and then James will be back for follow-up questions.

— Edmonton police media availability on fake Connor McDavid hockey jerseys being sold.

— The Tsilhqot’in Nation holds a ceremony to commemorate the wrongful trial and hanging of Chief Ahan.

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The Canadian Press