The Wednesday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

Highlights from the news file for Wednesday, Aug. 3

FEDS HAND OVER LONG-SOUGHT INQUIRY TO 5 COMMISSIONERS: Family members wiped away tears as the federal government outlined the terms of an inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women. Three cabinet ministers were on hand inside the Museum of History’s great hall to hand the reins of the nascent inquiry to independent commissioners. Those commissioners will provide concrete recommendations to federal, provincial and territorial governments about how to deal with the disproportionate rates of violence and crime against Canada’s indigenous women and girls.

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$299 MILLION RAISED FOR FORT MCMURRAY: The Canadian Red Cross says $299 million has been raised to help with recovery from the Fort McMurray wildfire. It says Canadians have donated $165 million and the federal government is giving $104 million in matching funds. The provincial government says it is also matching $30 million in donations made by individual Albertans. Red Cross CEO Conrad Sauve says that to date almost $200 million has been allocated for people of Fort McMurray, including direct cash payments of $84.4 million. There will be further help for residents who were uninsured or didn’t have enough insurance to cover their losses. He says another $50 million will be given to local charities, such as food banks.

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MAN CHARGED WITH THREATENING TRUDEAU ON SOCIAL MEDIA: A Saskatchewan man has been charged with uttering threats against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Christopher Hayes appeared briefly in a Yorkton, Sask., courtroom. RCMP say the 41-year-old allegedly made threats against Trudeau on social media. Investigators received two complaints about the threats in March and July. Hayes was arrested Tuesday at a home in the village of Grayson, northeast of Regina. Police say several electronics were seized from the house.”We take all complaints of this nature very seriously, no matter who the victim is or by what means the threat is conveyed,” Supt. Rob Cameron said in a news release.

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TORY LEADERSHIP HOPEFUL TARGETS AIR TRAVEL: Conservative leadership hopeful Maxime Bernier is appealing to innate Canadian frustration with the stresses of air travel by promising to shake up the country’s airline industry, should he become prime minister. The Quebec MP, who has made privatization and deregulation a central theme in his campaign to take over as Tory leader, said Wednesday he would ease foreign ownership restrictions on airlines and privatize Canada’s major airports. “Canada has a relatively strong air transportation industry and good infrastructure,” Bernier told a news conference. “But like many other sectors of our economy, such as telecommunications and supply management in agriculture, it suffers from a lack of competition and from prices that are too high.”

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AIR CANADA WORKS TOWARD ACCESSIBLE IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT: A human rights complaint filed against Air Canada has been resolved with the carrier promising to make its in-flight entertainment systems accessible to visually impaired passengers. Two Ontario residents filed a complaint against Air Canada with the Canadian Human Rights Commission after finding they were unable to use the airline’s touchscreen system to access movies and other diversions during their flights. The complainants contended they were being deprived of a service that was available to other passengers and urged Air Canada to adopt a system with push buttons and other tactile indicators.

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BONES IN GASPE COULD BE FROM 1847 SHIPWRECK: Parks Canada says it is investigating whether human remains found in Quebec’s Gaspe region belong to victims of an 1847 shipwreck. Archaeologists found bones and skeletons of at least eight individuals near Cap-des-Rosiers, Que., late last month. The federal department says the remains will be analyzed to see if they can be linked to victims from the Carricks of Whitehaven, a ship carrying Irish immigrants fleeing the potato famine, that sank nearby while on its way to Quebec City almost 170 years ago. Historians believe more than 80 people died when the ship sank in a storm.

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VANCOUVER HOME SALES FALL IN JULY: Greater Vancouver’s real estate board says homes sales last month fell to their lowest level since January, a sign that one of North America’s hottest housing markets may be slowing down. A total of 3,226 residential properties were sold in July, down 26.7 per cent from June and an 18.9 per cent drop from July 2015. The decline in sales didn’t dampen prices, with the benchmark price climbing 1.4 per cent in July from a month earlier to $930,400 for Metro Vancouver. That also represents a 32.6 per cent spike compared to the same month last year.

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REPUBLICAN FRUSTRATION WITH TRUMP MOUNTS: Their party in crisis, Republicans’ frustration with Donald Trump reached new heights on Wednesday as GOP leaders scrambled to persuade the presidential nominee to abandon divisive tactics that have led to sinking poll numbers and low morale. Party chairman Reince Priebus appealed to the New York billionaire’s adult children to help. Priebus joined a handful of high-profile Trump allies in considering whether to confront the candidate directly following a series of startling stances and statements with Election Day quickly approaching. Trump has exposed deepening party divisions by refusing to endorse GOP House Speaker Paul Ryan’s re-election and continuing to criticize the family of a slain U.S. soldier.

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BUBBLE BATH PROBLEM IN SOME NEWFOUNDLAND WATERWAYS: People have been creating elaborate bubble baths in Newfoundland waterways, and the government wants it to stop. Photos on social media show a half-dozen young people surrounded by thick, deep bubbles in a natural pool at the bottom of a small waterfall at a park south of St. John’s. “They’re having parties on the river and sometimes they just get carried away,” Rod Taylor, a lead science interpreter at the Manuels River Interpretation Centre, said Wednesday.”It’s frustrating, it’s a real shame to see.”