World Report - March 31: Tuesday's top stories in 10 minutes

Episode Date: March 31, 2026

Federal government accused of giving in to pressure from the airline industry over passenger complaint fee.US President Donald Trump tells other nations to buy oil from the US or go get it from the Strait of Hormuz themselves in social media post. Kuwaiti officials say one of the country's oil tankers was hit by Iranian drone off coast of Dubai.A group of researchers at Dalhousie University express concerns over Halifax staff lack of planning for future mass evacuations.Canada's economy edges up 0.1 percent in January.CBC takes a look at what's driving China's success as global leader in EV manufacturing.

This is really shaping up to be an incredibly consequential and potentially fast-moving week in Canadian politics. I'm Jamie Poisson, host of the Daily News podcast Front Burner and will be all over this story. The Liberals could lock a majority conservative leader Pierre Pahliav is struggling to control an insurrection in his party ranks. Can he remain party leader? Follow Frontburner for all the analysis you need to understand the moment. This is a CBC podcast. This is World Report. Good morning. I'm Angie Seth.

The federal government is accused of giving into pressure from the airline industry. Critics say backroom pressure is leading the Canadian Transportation Agency to move away from the fee forcing airlines to pay for passenger complaints. Internal documents obtained by CBC's Gold Public Team reveal intense lobbying to reduce and delay that fee. Erica Johnson has more. Three years ago, Parliament ordered the Canadian Transportation Agency to implement a fee for airlines to help cover the cost of passenger complaints

for things like denied boarding, cancelled flights. Government records go public obtained under the Access to Information Act show Transport Canada and then Minister of Transportation, Anita Onond, encouraging the CTA to back down from its proposed $790 fee. In an email from WestJet, The airline urges Minister Anand to indicate her disapproval of the fee. Days later, she writes the CTA, echoing WestJet's concerns, even using similar language. Gabr-Lukatch heads up the advocacy group, Air Passenger writes.

The minister is acting as the mouth piece forward industry. Duff Conacher of Democracy Watch says he's not surprised by the lobbying. The system is all rigged in favor of protecting big business interests. The CTA then said it was considering lowering the fee to $450. Not low enough, said Anand, who pushed for a maximum of 250 for larger carriers. Minister Anand did not reply to questions. Transport Canada said it didn't intend to fetter the CTA's independence. WestJet said its goal was improving affordability for Canadians. In 2023, Ottawa earmarked almost 76 million in taxpayer dollars for the CTA to clear the backlog,

now almost 100,000 complaints, that funding expires today. Erica Johnson, CBC News, Vancouver. U.S. Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, is warning other nations that the Strait of Homoos is not just a U.S. problem. I think other countries should pay attention when the president speaks. He's proven that when he speaks, he means something. And he's pointing out, you know, might want to start learning how to fight for yourself. It's something some of us have been saying for quite some time.

You can't just have flags. You have to have formations. You can't just have a few ships. You have enough to affect change. Hegg Seth, referring to an early morning social media posed by U.S. President Donald Trump. In it, Trump told other nations, including the U.K., to either buy oil from the United States or to get it from the Strait of Hormuz themselves. Despite another day of tough language from both the White House and the Pentagon, both maintain that talks are ongoing and progressing, something officials in Iran deny. meantime, several Gulf states say they were targeted in overnight strikes, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, all reporting drone attacks. And authorities in Dubai say a Kuwaiti crude oil tanker was hit off its shores by an Iranian drone. Here's the latest from Megan Williams. Just after midnight here in Dubai, a Kuwaiti oil tanker fully loaded with crude, anchored just off the city's port, was hit by what Kuwait Petroleum is calling a direct Iranian drone strike.

The Al-Salmi was bound for China, carrying oil from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Authorities say there's damage to the hull, but all 24 crew are safe. And so far, no oil has spilled. It's been far from quiet here. Six loud booms resonated in pairs this morning, minutes apart, sounding as if they were moving closer to the city center. Authorities confirmed those sounds were interceptions of incoming missiles and drones. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait also reported into... interceptions overnight with some damage in Saudi Arabia.

As Washington tries to navigate a way out, Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, told Al Jazeera deciphering Iran is difficult with its new supreme leader Ayatollah Mashab Bahamanei in hiding. No one has seen him. No one has heard from him. It's very opaque right now. Still, Rubio confirmed there are talks underway with Iran through intermediaries. Even if the Strait of Hormuz stays closed, a significant shift to Chinese container ships. successfully sailed through the strait on a second attempt. A rare sign of movement in waters largely paralyzed for weeks. Oil prices remain above $115 a barrel.

Megan Williams, CBC News, Dubai. A group of researchers at Dalhousie University is sounding the alarm. They say the Halifax Regional Municipality is not factoring in the possibility of a mass evacuation in its city planning. And as CBC's Ben Dernan reports, it's causing major concerns, given the city's growth over the past decade. I haven't seen much bold or actionable items yet. Asan Habib is a professor and transportation expert at Dalhousie University.

He says on an average workday, commuters flood into the Halifax Peninsula, pushing the population to roughly 100,000 people. That's a massive concentration for a municipality of over half a million residents. He warns that it adds a greater risk in the event of a disaster. We have seen that, of course, like with the time and with the different kinds of travel activity, the evacuation time has increased to 23 hours. Almost an entire day for everyone to get out safely. He says one of the major factors is that the peninsula only has five exits.

In 2017, his estimate was 15 hours. Habib says a decade of growth without much consideration by the city of a potential mass evacuation is to blame. He says hurricanes, floods, and wildfires are among the biggest threats in the area. Halifax Regional Council voted unanimously in 2024 to update the municipality's evacuation plan. Imau disease is the municipality's director of emergency management. It's a multi-year plan, but the strap plan itself will be presented in its final form later in the year. Professor Habib is happy about the work that's happening, but says there's much more to be done before he'll be confident that everyone will get out safely if disaster strikes. Ben Dornan,

CBC News, Halifax. Statistics Canada has just released its report on gross domestic product or GDP for January, and it shows the economy edged up 0.1%. Here's more from CBC's senior business correspondent, Peter Armstrong. The number itself may not be something to write home about, but the fact that the Canadian economy was able to eke out some growth in January definitely is a nice surprise. The growth is largely driven by mining and quarrying and oil and gas extraction.

Not surprisingly, the wholesale trade sector, the manufacturing sectors, they both took big hits in January. As a whole, manufacturing was down 1.4 percent, but the specifics here tell the bigger story. Motor vehicle manufacturing was down 23.5 percent, the biggest pullback we've seen since 2021. Now, part of that was retooling in winter for factories, but it's been a very rough year for that sector and that industry. Statistics Canada's preliminary estimate for February shows the economy likely expanded further. Statkan says it's expecting 0.2% growth. So a decent start to the year. Peter Armstrong, CBC News, Toronto. Jewelry Giant Pandora says it's opening a distribution center in Ontario.

The Danish company says the move will reduce its exposure to U.S. tariffs. The jewelry maker makes its products in Thailand, but it has been hit hard by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on that country. Going forward, jewelry ordered in Canada won't have to pass through U.S. customs. And finance minister Francois-Ferlis-Champin heads to China today to forge new investment partnerships. He's following up on Prime Minister Mark Carney's January visit. Among the deals is Canada's plan to import thousands of Chinese electric vehicles. The CBC's Lisa Xing is in Shanghai with this look at what's driving that success. Hundreds of robots weld together different models of.

custom-ordered EVs on the factory floor of Zeker, a Chinese luxury electric vehicle brand. Known as a dark factory, because the level of automation is so high, the machines can largely work without lights. Automated manufacturing has helped reduce costs significantly, but also ensures quality, says the plant's general manager, Sri Niping. China is leading the globe in EV manufacturing. It makes more than 70% of the world's electric cars, a result of a heavy push in research bolstered by sizable government subsidies. In downtown Shanghai, Cao Xing Yu drives into a parking lot and backs into what looks like a car wash. The floor opens up and robots swap out his depleted battery for a new one. In three minutes, he's on his way to work.

It's better than charging my battery because it saves more time for me. There are more than 3,000 of these battery swapping stations across China, an emerging competitor to the traditional charging market. Wang Kun Pung is vice president of China's biggest charging company, for EVs to develop, there must be charging infrastructure first, he says. This kind of mindset would be welcome by some Canadians now that Canada is letting in 49,000 Chinese EVs. Lisa Xing, CBC News, Shanghai. And that's the latest national and international news from World Report.

I'm Angie Seth. This is CBC News. For more CBC podcasts, go to cBC.ca.com.