Business Brief: The road to rate change is paved with protectionism - The Globe and Mail

Sometimes, anti-free-trade politicians tell on themselves. President Trump and other so-called “America First” Republicans are the clearest examples. When “tariff” is literally your favourite word, it’s pretty clear where you stand. But irresponsible appeals to economic nationalism aren’t always so overt. Indeed, in Canada today, harmful economic nationalism is masquerading as patriotism, and it threatens to undermine a cross-partisan, pro-growth consensus. Prior to the emergence of the 1980s free trade consensus, leaders from across the political spectrum were very comfortable openly arguing for protectionism. This was useful in Canada because it meant that we could have an honest  conversation. Economists, business leaders, and other free traders could make the argument against protectionism when it reared its ugly head, and Canadians could decide. Indeed, such a debate transpired in the years leading up to the ratification of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Canadians had a choice—they could choose free trade, or they could choose insularity. They chose well.

TorontoPublished: October 17, 2026 at 2:31p.m. EDTThe next Lotto Max draw is on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026. The largest lottery prize ever offered in Canada is still up for grabs after there were no winners for Friday’s Lotto Max draw. The winning numbers were 01, 11, 13, 36, 41, 43, 51. The next draw for the $90 million Lotto Max will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 20. The jackpot is unchanged, as $90 million is the cap. While no one claimed the jackpot on Friday, the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation said four Maxmillion tickets worth $1 million each were sold in Ontario. Fourteen other tickets won $100,000 each, including seven in the Greater Toronto Area. Tuesday’s draw will also feature 20 Maxmillions prizes worth $1 million each and at least 90 Maxplus prizes worth $100,000 each. How to set CP24 as your preferred source on GoogleHow to set CTV News as your preferred source on Google

Browse this and many other websites without banner ads, personalized tracking and video ads. Mercedes-AMG is bringing its sports car DNA to the full-size electric SUV segment. The new GT SUV is officially here with up to 1,153 horsepower, a 0-60 mile-per-hour time of 2.4 seconds, and DC fast charging at up to 710 kilowatts.

The Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador has certified a class action on behalf of passengers on board Air Canada Flight AC 2259 which landed hard at Halifax in December of 2025 after the plane’s landing gear collapsed. The flight had taken off from St. John’s International earlier that evening, and officials at YYT later confirmed that debris was found on one of its runways after the flight took off. They wouldn’t say at the time whether the discovery was related to the incident at Halifax. The class action names Air Canada, Provincial Aerospace Ltd, St. John’s International Airport Authority and the Halifax International Airport Authority, all of whom have consented to certification. Stephen Barnes of Bob Buckingham Law says they want to understand what went wrong that night and make sure that passengers have an opportunity to be fairly compensated for what they went through. The case will examine whether the defendants met their responsibilities for aircraft safety, runway safety and emergency response, and whether any failures caused injury or loss to passengers.