Five stories in the news today, July 20

Five stories in the news today from The Canadian Press:

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MAN ACCUSED IN DEATH OF MOM, CHILD IN COURT

The man accused of killing a Calgary woman and her five-year-old daughter is scheduled to appear in court today. Edward Delten Downey had not retained a lawyer when he was charged with two counts of first-degree murder last Thursday. A memorial service for Sara Baillie, 34, and her daughter Taliyah Marsman will also be held today.

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NATIONAL TRADE PACT ON TABLE IN WHITEHORSE

The provinces and territories are committed to freer trade within the country’s borders, says Yukon Premier Darrell Pasloski as provincial and territorial leaders gather in Whitehorse. Pasloski says the leaders are focused on a free-trade agreement that would allow provinces and territories to do business with each other in the same way Canada trades with other countries with which it has free trade deals.

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OIL AND GAS RESULTS TO SEE WILDFIRE BOOST

Analysts predict oil prices driven higher by production stoppages during the Fort McMurray, Alta., wildfires in May will bolster the bottom lines of Canadian oil and gas companies as they report financial results starting this week. Reporting season for major Canadian oil and gas producers starts today with Encana, a company whose production was unaffected by the fire.

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CSE MUM ON TORTURE-RELATED INFO SHARING

Canada’s electronic spy agency won’t say how often it shares information that could lead to someone being tortured in an overseas prison. The Communications Security Establishment — which monitors threats from foreign terrorists and spies — has censored documents that spell out the figures, even though the RCMP and Canadian Security Intelligence Service have revealed such numbers in the past. The reticence has prompted Amnesty International Canada to say “much greater transparency” is needed from the Ottawa-based CSE.

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PILOTS ARRESTED FOR SUSPECTED DRINKING ON SUSPENSION

Air Transat says two of its pilots arrested in Scotland Monday on suspicion of being impaired prior to a flight from Toronto say the men are being represented by their own counsel. The airline says it is “not involved in these proceedings” and that the two Toronto men — Captain Jean-Francois Perreault and co-pilot Imran Zafar Syed — are suspended until the investigation comes to a close.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY:

— Statistics Canada’s releases today include May travel between Canada and other countries and police-reported crime stats for 2015.

— Canadian Pacific Railway will release its second-quarter results.

— A federal three-person panel reviewing the Kinder Morgan pipeline project holds a public roundtable in Kamloops, B.C.