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Harper shuffles his team and welcomes a defector

By JIM FOX
Published January 7, 2007

Prime Minister Stephen Harper kicked off 2007 with a fresh look for his Conservative team and welcomed a surprise Liberal defector.

After Harper shuffled his Cabinet and took embattled Rona Ambrose out of the environment portfolio, Toronto-area politician Wajid Khan "crossed the floor" to join his party.

Although a Liberal, Khan, a Canadian Muslim, has been Harper's special adviser on the Middle East and Afghanistan.

Stephane Dion, new leader of the Liberals, ordered Khan to quit the Conservative post.

Khan's defection will help the Conservatives in the 308-member Commons, where they have 125 members. They need the cooperation of the 29-member New Democratic caucus to pass legislation to avoid being driven from office.

The Harper shuffle included creating five new junior cabinet positions and switching the roles and duties of eight ministers.

Ambrose was replaced as Minister of the Environment by John Baird, former Treasury Board president, who was succeeded by Vic Toews.

Unusually mild weather in east

One of the mildest winters - so far - on record has people still golfing in Toronto and eastern Canada while ski hill operators are looking at green only on the hills.

With temperatures in the low 50s, letter carriers were wearing short-sleeved shirts in southern Ontario. But near-freezing mornings caused havoc on roads when black ice formed.

It's a different story in the west, where there's plenty of snow to keep skiers happy and allow the early harvest of Ice-wine from grapes frozen on the vine in November.

"Here we are heading towards the middle of winter and it hasn't even begun yet," said Environment Canada's David Phillips.

With Ottawa's Winterlude festival starting in four weeks, the Rideau Canal - billed as the "world's largest skating rink" - still hasn't frozen over.

News in brief

-Good morning, Afghanistan, as the Canadian military starts radio broadcasts in Kandahar. It won't be like the movie Good Morning, Vietnam as Canada's RANA-FM will broadcast to Afghan residents, "playing a lot of music and promoting the Afghan way of life," said Capt. Robin Thibault.

-Canadian Olympic champion Myriam Bedard was granted bail in Quebec City for allegedly breaching a custodial order involving her 12-year-old daughter Maude. Bedard had been in jail in Maryland for almost two weeks awaiting extradition. Her lawyer said she has full custody of the girl.

-Police say they've made the third major crackdown on a theft ring operating on the inside at Toronto's Pearson Airport. A supervisor is among seven baggage handlers arrested for stealing cameras, camcorders, cell phones, jewelry and clothing.

Facts and figures

Canada's jobless rate eased to 6.1 percent in December from 6.3 percent a month earlier, while the economy created 345,000 new jobs last year, a 2.1 percent increase.

The Canadian dollar is at a one-year low of 85.08 cents U.S. while the American greenback returns $1.1753 in Canadian funds before bank exchange fees.

The Bank of Canada's trendsetting key interest rate is unchanged at 4.25 percent while the prime-lending rate is 6 percent.

Lower world oil prices drove down stock markets, with the Toronto exchange index at 12,466 points and the Canadian Venture Exchange at 2,803.

Lotto 6-49: Wednesday 4, 14, 17, 20, 38 and 48; bonus 7. (Dec. 30) 10, 14, 18, 40, 45 and 49; bonus 1.

Regional briefs

-Thomas Svekla, 38, is being held in Edmonton in the slayings of two women. His arrest follows a Mountie investigation into the disappearance of dozens of prostitutes in Alberta over the past 15 years.

-Nova Scotia cabinet minister Ernie Fage has resigned after allegations he left the scene of an accident and had been drinking. A witness told police he has photos and video of Fage at a car crash in Halifax and followed him home.

-Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. said it will stop making tires at its Valleyfield, Quebec, factory. The closing affects 1,000 workers but Goodyear will create 200 jobs by opening a materials mixing center near Montreal in June. Valleyfield also recently lost T-shirt maker Gildan Activewear.

-A conflict over fees has forced a new private health clinic in Vancouver to treat only injured workers and foreigners. The False Creek Urgent Care Center is turning away patients with government medical cards because it is being reimbursed only about $35 each. The clinic wants $199 up front but the Canada Health Act doesn't allow fees for medical services covered by the public system.

[Last modified January 7, 2007, 00:42:09]