News

Copy by Lawrence Zwer

Loyalist College President and CEO Mark Kirkpatrick said yesterday the college is announcing an indefinite intake suspension for 30% of their program offerings starting in the fall of 2025. Students currently enrolled will be able to finish out their diploma, but no new students are being accepted in those programs. Loyalist is also reducing staff levels by 20%, starting with a voluntary exit plan that began Wednesday and is available for three weeks. As part of the restructuring, the Toronto Campus will close after students currently enrolled complete their courses, while the Port Hope site will stay open as will the HRAC program in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory. The changes at Loyalist are due to the Federal Government changing their policies toward international students, which lead to a 90% drop in enrollment applications, as well as the tuition freezes for domestic students, going back to 2019. Combined the college has been left with a $40m shortfall this fiscal year and a projected $8m next fiscal year. Kirkpatrick says estimates are that Loyalist directly and indirectly is a factor in about 4% of the GDP of the region. These changes could knock a full percentage point off that number as it impacts areas from people available in the local workforce (which could decline by 1,000 or more) and a stoppage of the college’s current revitalization work.
Public Safety Minister David McGuinty told reporters yesterday that he will be heading to Washington on Thursday to make Canada’s case to U.S. officials that we take border security seriously. McGuinty said the federal government will launch this week a new regulatory process to increase the control and oversight of precursor chemicals in Canada, which are used to produce synthetic opioids like fentanyl. He also said the government is currently negotiating with American authorities to stand up a joint North American fentanyl strike force targeting organized crime, including cartels. Ottawa announced earlier this month that it is sending a slew of drones and two leased Black Hawk helicopters to the shared border to begin beefed-up patrols.
It does look like our politicians efforts are having an effect. At the Senate confirmation hearing for leader of the Commerce Department, nominee Howard Lutnick recognized that Canada and Mexico are toughening border policies in response to Mr. Trump’s demands, saying… “as far as I know, they are acting swiftly. And if they execute it, there will be no tariff. And if they don’t, then there will be.” Mr. Lutnick indicated that Canada could expect significant trade demands from U.S. negotiators in the months to come, including greater access to Canadian dairy markets.
Finally, people who bought event tickets through Ticketmaster in 2018 are now eligible for compensation. A $6-million settlement that could see around a million Canadians eligible for a credit with Ticketmaster was finalized last week at Regina’s Court of King’s Bench. The lawsuit, launched by plaintiff Crystal Watch, took Ticketmaster to court for hiding the prices of ticket fees in 2018. Ticketmaster refused to agree to any wrongdoing on their part, but the case never went to trial and the company agreed to settle. In order to be eligible, customers need to have purchased tickets through Ticketmaster for Canadian events between Jan. 1 and June 30, 2018. Eligible Ticketmaster users should get an email shortly from Ticketmaster with a link to receive their credit, which can be used one time for money off a new event ticket.

Sports

The Toronto Maple Leafs welcomed the Minnesota Wild to the Scotiabank Arena last night, but went down 2-nothing in the first and after a William Nylander goal in the 3rd, couldn’t complete the comeback, losing 3-1. That’s the Buds 3rd straight loss, and during the streak they’ve only scored three goals.
According to ESPN, Monica Wright Rogers has been hired as the first general manager of the Toronto Tempo WNBA expansion team Wright Rogers joins the franchise after serving as assistant general manager for the Phoenix Mercury since January 2023. She was drafted No. 2 overall by the Minnesota Lynx in 2010, and spent all but one of her seven seasons in the WNBA with them, winning titles in 2011 and 2013. She played her final WNBA season in Seattle in 2016.

Sticking with basketball, the Raptors travelled to Washington last night, looking to win their 5th straight – and they couldn’t have picked a better opponent than the 6 and 39 Wizards. Toronto scored 31 in the first and never looked back, winning 106-82. 8 Raptors were in double digits in scoring, lead by Scottie Barnes with 24.

Finally, voting opened last night for fans of the Utah Hockey Club to pick their team name and logo. The three options are Utah Hockey Club, Utah Mammoth and a new entry, Utah Wasatch, representing the mountain range to the north and east of Salt Lake City. Fans attending Utah’s next four home games are able to vote at the Delta Center, though the results will not be made public this season. In case you’re wondering, Yeti was eliminated from contention because of the cooler brand with that name.

Just a reminder, to get your community scores and results on the air… simply email the details to sports@993countyfm.ca