Five stories in the news today, Sept. 22

Five stories in the news today from The Canadian Press

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MOVING KEY TRUDEAU AIDES COST MORE THAN $200K: REPORT

A report in the Globe and Mail says taxpayers were billed more than $200,000 in moving expenses for two of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s top aides. A source told the newspaper that principal secretary Gerald Butts and chief of staff Katie Telford were reimbursed for moving their families from Toronto to Ottawa. The Globe says the costs were mostly for legal and real estate fees covering the sale of their million-dollar homes.

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CHINESE PREMIER’S CANADIAN VISIT CONTINUES

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang’s Canadian visit continues today. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will host a welcoming ceremony in Ottawa this morning before the leaders meet in Trudeau’s office. The key goal of the discussions is to deep economic co-operation between the two countries and build on Trudeau’s visit to China three weeks ago.

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CANADIAN FIRST NATION CHIEFS TO MAKE ANNOUNCEMENT ON OILSAND PIPELINES

Numerous First Nation chiefs from across Canada and U.S. tribal representatives will gather simultaneously in Vancouver and Montreal today to make an announcement on oilsand pipelines, tankers and trains. Legal battles have been waged in B.C. and Alberta by indigenous groups opposing various Canadian pipeline projects.

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B.C. RAMPS UP ASSAULT ON OPIOID CRISIS

British Columbia is bombarding the province with thousands of overdose-reversing naloxone kits as part of an all-out assault against a drug crisis that has killed 488 people so far this year. Health Minister Terry Lake says 13,000 life-saving kits have been distributed cost-free to nearly 300 sites across B.C., including emergency departments, public-health units and provincial and federal correctional facilities.

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ROYAL TOUR OPENS DOORS TO SOCIAL CAUSES

Royal watchers say the kindness and tolerance of Diana, the Princess of Wales, will play a supporting role in the Sept. 24-to-Oct. 1 visit to British Columbia and Yukon by her son William and his wife Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and their two young children. The royal couple’s visit will take them to remote First Nations communities and impoverished urban areas. The trip is destined to shed light on social issues and causes many Canadians have yet to fully consider, experts say.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY:

— Statistics Canada will release employment insurance figures for July.