Your World Tonight - Alberta and Ottawa shake hands on an energy agreement, former Liberal environment minister quits cabinet, Quebec beefs up its secularism law, U.S. National Guard shootings, and more

Episode Date: November 27, 2025

Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith agree to a pipeline proposal that could flow oil through British Columbia to the Pacific Coast. The partnership is billed as a win for cooperation between Alberta and Ottawa, but it’s already creating some political loss, in the form of pushback from B.C., and a resignation from the Carney cabinet.And: Quebec extends its religious symbols ban to include public prayer, funding for private religious schools, and ‘exclusively’ religious menus at public institutions, like hospitals or daycares.Also: Authorities in the U.S. up their investigation into Wednesday’s National Guard shootings in Washington, D.C., while calling the incident an ‘ambush-style’ attack. The victims — both in their early 20s — remain in critical condition. The suspect is reportedly an Afghan national.Plus: Hong Kong fire aftermath, Gaza’s ongoing aid needs, and more.

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This is a really great day for Albertans. We have been working for some time. In effect, it creates an energy transition, but really sets the stage for an industrial transformation. Alberta and Ottawa appearing to bury old hatchets and break new ground with a sweeping new deal aimed at a new age for Canadian energy, centered on an oil pipeline to the West Coast. Maybe, because along with the hype, some big hypotheticals.

There is no proponent. There is unlikely to be a proponent. We already have a publicly owned pipeline. It is not a capacity. It is for sale. Nobody wants to buy it. Reaction from BC and beyond, industry and indigenous leaders, the environmental concerns, and the political risk as a former liberal environment minister resigns from Mark Carney's cabinet. Welcome to Your World Tonight. I'm Susan Bonner. It is Thursday, November 27th, just before 6 p.m. Eastern,

also on the podcast. We think that when the state is neutral, Quebecers are free. Quebec tables new legislation to further limit religious symbols, activities, even menu items in public institutions, strengthening secular rules. Critics say are anything but neutral. It is a big deal with some big questions. A memorandum of understanding signed today by the Prime Minister and Alberta's Premier is a serious reset to a tense relationship. And perhaps the first step in building a new pipeline.

But it's already prompted a liberal cabinet minister to resign. More on that in just a moment. First, Olivia Stefanovic, with details of this MOU that leaves a lot, TBD. It's a pleasure to be here. Shall I say it to you start? You want me to start? You're hosting. Well, thank you to the prime minister.

It looked and sounded like a friendly chat between colleagues. This is Canada working. This is cooperative federalism. Prime Minister Mark Carney extending an olive branch to Alberta. At the core of the agreement, of course, is a priority to have a pipeline to Asia. Signing a memorandum of understanding with Premier Danielle Smith, declaring a new bitumen pipeline, the first project of national interest, allowing Ottawa to greenlight the project no matter what. This Prime Minister has made it clear to me that he is willing to work with me and Alberta's government to accomplish that shared goal.

And that, my friends, is something that we have not seen from a community. Canadian Prime Minister in over a decade. But Carney's support doesn't come without a catch. The agreement ties the approval of one or more privately financed pipelines to Alberta boosting its industrial carbon price, from $95 to $130 per ton, and building Pathways Plus, the world's largest carbon capture project, aiming to make the oil sands the least emissions intensive in the world. The solution for reducing emissions does not entail capping product.

growth or innovation in oil and gas development. In exchange, Ottawa will scrap its oil and gas emissions cap, immediately suspend clean electricity regulations in the province. And if a new pipeline is approved, the federal government would temporarily lift the oil tanker ban along the B.C. coast so Alberta's product can get to Asian markets. We need to make sure that this project doesn't become an energy vampire. Left out of MOU negotiations, British Columbia,

Premier David Eby says he learned of the details, including private financing from Smith and Carney yesterday. I don't think one taxpayer dollar should go into this project, and I'm glad to see in the agreement that that is a condition, and I think that that is probably fatal. The MOU requires Alberta to collaborate with BC and share financial benefits. It also says those profits should be shared with First Nations, and the pipeline must offer opportunities for indigenous co-ownership. The Conservatives are skeptical. Carney can see the project through. We only need him to do one thing for this pipeline to happen.

Get out of the way. As it stands, the project has no route and no company behind it. But Alberta is planning to submit its pipeline proposal to the major projects office by Canada Day, with the intention of getting shovels in the ground by 2029. Olivia Stefanovic, CBC News, Ottawa. To Calgary now, where Paula de Hatchek reports on how this agreement is going over with people in the industry and places it would impact.

Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in warmly welcoming the right Honorable Mark Carney, 24th Prime Minister of Canada. After signing the MOU with Danielle Smith, Carney was greeted at the Calgary Chamber of Commerce with two standing ovations. It's a scene that would have been hard to imagine this time last year, but Deborah Yedlin, the Chamber's president, says, the most surprising part of the day was the announcement itself. If you asked any of us in this room 12 months ago whether the Prime Minister of Canada would be in Calgary to sign an MOU that will remove regulatory barriers to energy and related infrastructure development,

kickstart the largest CCUS project on the planet, and expand our ability to sell to new markets, no one would have taken that bet. For years, the oil patch has completed, that federal rules have made it too difficult for the industry to grow. Brian Schmidt, CEO of Tamarack Valley Energy, says today is a turning point. The elation is that, you know, we believe that Canada can work together and I'll make us stronger. But before a pipeline can break ground, it needs a private sector proponent.

Bemo Capital Markets analyst Randy Olinberger says pipeline companies are probably still haunted by the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion. Costs ballooned from an estimated 7.3 billion dollars to more than $34 billion. I don't think any private sponsor is going to be prepared to just have a blank check. From Ottawa's perspective, there's another box that needs to be checked before a pipeline can move forward, a massive carbon capture and storage project near Cold Lake Alberta. So far, the oil sands companies behind the Pathways project haven't made a final investment decision, though Michael Bernstein, with the climate think tank clean prosperity, thinks the

incentives in today's MOU could push the project toward the start. starting line. It gets it very close, if not over the line. Still, there are challenges ahead that could derail the Pathways Carbon Capture Project, including opposition from indigenous communities. Chief Kelsey Jacko of Cold Lake First Nations says his community has questions about the safety of the project that haven't yet been answered. It's frustrating when people are having talks and we're absent at the table.

At the end of the day, I just want my people to be safe. A new pipeline project could also face protests and court challenges, meaning that if today was step one on the road to building a new pipeline, there's still plenty more ground to cover. Paula Duhatchewa, CBC News, Calgary. For more on the politics of all this, we turn to Catherine Cullen, the host of the House on CBC Radio. Catherine, a cabinet minister has quit,

though he says he will stay on as a liberal MP. What is he saying about why? Susan, in a statement, Stephen Gilbo is very clear that this is all about Mark Carney's deal with Alberta. Gilbo says he strongly opposes it. He is a lifelong environmentalist, a former activist. He warns in this statement that a new pipeline would have major environmental impacts and increased climate pollution. He calls other tradeoffs where Alberta gets to drop clean electricity regulations in exchange for other measures, quote, a serious mistake.

This dramatic departure from Cabinet sends a loud message that a prominent liberal thinks Kearney is getting it wrong on climate. Interesting to note, though, Susan, that Gilbo's resignation was a plight. plotted by Danielle Smith party in the Alberta legislature. This resignation was talked about as a possibility before. Carney knew the risk. What other risks is he gambling with here? Well, he has upset the BC government, some coastal first nations, environmental groups, too. One called this a betrayal.

He is betting the carbon capture and storage technology he expects to be used here. It's going to work on a massive scale. But Carney obviously believes this is all worth the gamble because of the potential payoff. That includes improving the relationship with Alberta. He believes he can get them stepping up on some emissions goals. And look, Kearney wants to make Canada an energy superpower, and he has made it a condition of this agreement that the focus here be selling the oil from this new potential pipeline to Asia.

Right now, most Canadian oil goes to the U.S. How far is he willing to go to get this done? That's the big question, Susan. In the lead-up, it sounded like maybe he was just trying to have the federal government get out of the way of a new pipeline, not be a barrier. Today it sounds more like they're willing to be a cheerleader, calling it a priority, making it a project of national interest, meaning they could bypass some rules and regulations to get a pipeline built.

What about his relationship with British Columbia? It's a huge question. Carney keeps saying this will be done in partnership with BC. Daniel Smith says she doesn't see BC as having a veto here. The idea is that BC would see some profit from a new pipeline. but the BC's Premier has been pretty clear. He is not interested. And what about First Nations

and the relationship with the federal government on this? That's right. The agreement put a big emphasis on consulting First Nations meeting constitutional obligations, even getting indigenous co-ownership, and it is likely that there will be indigenous communities on side who would want a piece of this potential pipeline. But what about the ones who don't, who are opposed?

Carney may wind up in a position where he has to decide what constitutes sufficient support, that could get messy. And at the end of this day with this deal, where is Daniel Smith? She is claiming a big win today, although it is worth noting there is no company that has come out and publicly said it wants to build this pipeline. In fact, her federal counterpart, Pierre Pollyev, is out there saying this pipeline is never going to be built. Smith has put a lot of energy into trying to get to this moment, so perhaps she's convinced that there's a company we, in the wings, or maybe she too is just trying to show she is giving this her all. Susan?

Catherine, thank you. Thank you. Catherine Cullen, the host of CBC Radio's The House in our Parliamentary Bureau. Coming right up, Quebec wants to tighten the rules around religious expression with new proposals for daycares, hospitals, schools, even public parks, and new information about the National Guard members ambushed in. Washington, D.C. and more details about the man who allegedly shot them. Later, we'll have this story. I'm Cameron McIntosh. A desperate search is underway for hundreds of missing people as Hong Kong's Wong-Fook Court apartment complex continues to smolder. We will not give up any chance to pick up to save life. Coming up, who authorities alleges

responsible and promises to make sure it doesn't happen again. From face coverings to food, the Quebec government wants to expand its secularism laws and further limit religious symbols and activities in public institutions. Prayer rooms, halal and kosher meals could be banned. The province says it will ensure equality. Religious groups argue the opposite is happening. Alison Northcott has that story. The Quebec government tabled Bill 9 in the National Assembly this morning,

saying it will reinforce religious neutrality in Quebec. We are simply moving forward. Jean-François-Roberge is the minister responsible for secularism. When the state is neutral, Quebecers are free. The bill expands on previous legislation, which ban some public sector workers from wearing religious symbols at work. That rule would apply to any new public daycare workers if the bill passes. Those already employed are exempt.

Maria English runs five daycares, several of her employees wear hijabs. She worries about being able to hire enough workers under the proposed law. A religious symbol is not determined how you will be with the children, so it will take away some very nurturing educators. The bill will also forbid religious practices in public spaces like parks unless municipal permission is granted. And public institutions offering food based in religious tradition like halal or kosher meals would have to ensure they have other options.

too. Sijps and universities are not temple or church. Roberz says prayer rooms in colleges and universities would also no longer be allowed. As a Muslim student here on campus, I do go to the prayer space every day. Mohamed Amin Ben Zaid, a fourth-year student at McGill University,

says closing prayer spaces for Muslims and other religious communities will have an impact on students' well-being. He wonders why it's necessary. It's a bill that is coming a bit from nowhere. nowhere. I don't think there's any problem that happened with the prayer space. The government says its bill is another step forward in its decades-long work to build a more secular society. Christian Pelscha co-authored a recent government commissioned report on secularism.

It is important to have this framework to work together in order for us to protect some values like the separation between the church and the state. Quebec's existing law, Bill 21, is being challenged in court with opponents arguing it violates charter rights. Harney Civilingham with the Canadian Civil Liberties Association says the new bill is an infringement too. And this is just another desperate move by the government that is floundreating the poll. These measures are based on a distorted view of what secularism is that puts everyone's rights and freedom in Quebec in grave danger.

The Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Quebec said it was astonished by the government's proposals, calling them radical infringements on the rights and freedoms of the Quebec population. The government has used the notwithstanding clause to try to protect the bill from court challenges. It says the bill is moderate and will improve social cohesion. Alison Northcott, CBC News, Montreal. New details are emerging about a Washington, D.C. shooting that sent the U.S. Capitol into panic mode and left two national guards critically injured. Officials say the alleged shooter is an Afghan national who once worked with the CIA. Hey, Rafi Bujikanyan is in Washington with more.

He'd give the short office back to somebody. For Michael Langon, American Thanksgiving has come to a standstill. After learning his neighbor, Andrew Wolfe, was shot. Just really good guy. We always looked out for each other. Best neighbor you could ask for, really. It really caught us off guard. Really close to home. 24-year-old Wolf was one of the two national guards

a suspect shot yesterday in D.C., the other 20-year-old Sarah Bextram. American officials say both are in critical condition in hospital after undergoing surgery. The alleged shooter, Ramatullah Lakanwal, apprehended after he was shot himself, is in hospital too. It is an ongoing investigation of terrorism. Make no mistake about it. Cash Patel is the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It says Lacanwal lives in Washington State that he, his wife and five children moved to the U.S. from Afghanistan in 2021, under the Biden. administration. The FBI has already combed through their home. During that process, we seized

numerous electronic devices to include cell phones, laptops, iPads, and other material that is being analyzed as we speak. Four years ago, thousands of Afghans sought to leave their country after U.S.-led forces retreated in the wake of the Taliban regime taking back power. Americans under former President Joe Biden developed special immigration programs. for Afghans who would help them out. The CIA says Lacanwal worked with them. But according to U.S. media reports, he only obtained his asylum status this year. President Donald Trump is blaming his predecessor for not properly vetting new rivals.

His government is now reviewing all asylum cases approved under Biden and is temporarily suspending immigration requests of Afghan nationals. Afghans didn't commit a crime. One lone deranged gunman committed. the crime. Sean Van Dyver is with Afghan Evac, an advocacy group for Afghan migrants. He says Trump is scapegoating them and former wartime allies deserve better. They undergo more vetting than the U.S. military than the police officers and certainly more than politicians. Wednesday's events have also cast a spotlight on the controversy of the National

Guard's deployment in D.C. Trump now saying he wants 500 more troops on the ground in addition to the 2,000 sent to the Capitol last August. His attorney for D.C., Janine Piro, pushing back on any criticism. We had to kiss the ground and thank God that the president said, it's time to bring in more law enforcement to make sure that a city that had the fourth highest homicide rate in the country was that that violence was quelled. A U.S. District Court judge deemed the presence of the guards illegal just a week ago, a decision challenged by Trump's administration.

Rafi Bucanian, CBC News, Washington. In Hong Kong, the number of people killed at that massive high-rise fire is now more than 80. Hundreds are still missing. As the search continues, authorities are laying blame and promising changes to prevent another tragedy. Cameron McIntosh reports. Worst fears confirmed. A grieving woman cries as pictures of the dead pulled from Hong Kong's Wong-Fookport apartment complex are posted at a nearby community center for identification.

I cannot describe my feelings, there are children in the photos, I can't describe it, says Chung, only giving her first name. She's looking for her sister and brother-in-law. I can't find my family members in the photos, she says. Seven, high-rise apartment buildings stand smoldering, charred black. The fire's now under control, but more than 200 people are still missing. firefighters struggle to reach residents, believe trapped on higher levels. We will not give up any chance to pick up to save life.

Wang Ka Wing is Hong Kong's Deputy Director of Fire Services. Our major challenge is the temperature is very high, and the inside layout is very compact. The towers, which were under external renovations, were draped in massive green tarps, held up by bamboo scaffolding. Police allege the scaffolding and foam cladding on the buildings caught fire, rapidly spreading and engulfing the towers. Hong Kong's chief executive, John Lee, says three executives of the company doing the work have been arrested. He's ordering inspections of all of Hong Kong's public housing undergoing significant renovations. As officials pledge an end to bamboo scaffolding.

For safety reasons, the government considers an imperative to expedite the full transition into metal scaffolding, says Eric Chan, Hong Kong's chief secretary for administration. Starting and spreading on the building's exteriors, the fires were out of reach of the complex's internal sprinkler systems. Like the 2017 London Grenfell Tower Fire that killed 72 people, questions are being asked about flammable building materials. Lessons aren't learned unless you apply what you've actually seen. Surveyor, Arnold Tarling, is a fire prevention specialist. We can avoid these catastrophes by building correctly with the correct materials and always asking,

is what I'm doing to that building, making it more dangerous, even if it's short term. Officials are providing an immediate $10,000 emergency aid payment to each apartment, about $1,800 Canadian. Wang Sick Cam was displaced by the fire and is scared what his firefighter's son may find inside the buildings. the buildings. He's going up to the higher floors and fears that over 100 people may have died, he says. The sheer magnitude of this tragedy, still unknown. Cameron McIntosh, CBC News, Winnipeg. This is Your World Tonight from CBC News. If you want to make sure you stay up to date and never miss one of our episodes, follow us on Spotify, Apple, wherever you get your podcasts.

Just find the follow button and lock us in. In Gaza, humanitarian groups say the amount of aid reaching the territory is still not enough. Assistance has been flowing since last month's ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. Commercial goods are also getting into Gaza, but accessing them is not easy in a society still in recovery. Tom Perry reports. In Gaza, an unfamiliar site, a marketplace brimming with fresh fruit, ripe vegetables, even sugary treats, all there for anyone who can afford it. Everything is available, but you can't get anything for your kids to eat, says Nariman al-Haloo. There's no cash, there's no liquidity. Everything we had is gone. We have nothing left.

Social goods have been arriving in Gaza along with food aid. Martin Penner of the World Food Program says not enough of that aid is getting in. And most people in Gaza simply can't buy what's for sale in the markets. The problem is that people in Gaza, they've been through a war of two years. Most of them don't have jobs, don't have incomes. So that's food that you can see, most people can't afford to buy it. Penner's group is urging Israel to open more crossings into Gaza and allow more aid to flow in.

We're not where we need to be yet. We are getting in about two-thirds of the food volume that we think is necessary right now, which is good, but we've got a long way to go. Food is not the only necessity still in short supply. With more than 80% of Gaza's buildings damaged or destroyed, according to the UN, many families have been reduced to living in tents

or other makeshift shelters, offering little protection from winter's cooler temperatures and heavy rains that once again flooded families this week. We're struggling and in a difficult situation, especially in winter, says Mohamed Jindaya. Look at the streets. Everything is destroyed. People can't move. Groups working on providing shelter in Gaza say thousands of tents and hundreds of thousands of tarps have been brought in. But Rachel Cummings with Save the Children says there are still many families in need. It's really a desperate, desperate situation. And, you know, parents have shared with us how deeply upsetting it is for their children to be crying because of the cold, because of the wet. And there is nothing for them to do.

Save the Children says it's still seeing children in Gaza who are malnourished. The numbers are dropping, the group says, but it would like them to drop much faster. World Food Program says hunger is still present, that despite some progress, the situation in Gaza remains a crisis. Tom Perry, CBC News, Jerusalem. A choir echoes through Turkey's presidential library as dozens of religious and political leaders welcome Pope Leo. The pontiff is on his first overseas trip as head of the Catholic Church. Today he met with Jirke's president in Ankara and addressed the suffering in Ukraine and Gaza. We are now experiencing a phase marked by heightened level of conflict and the global level,

fueled by prevailing strategies of economic and military power. We must in no way give in to this. The future of humanity is at stake. Leo is in the Muslim-majority nation until the weekend. the American-born Pope will lead mass before a crowd of thousands in Istanbul Saturday. He then heads to Lebanon for a three-day visit.

We close tonight in a BC provincial park with a group of young hikers who were not prepared for the outdoors and some even younger ones who definitely were. Regrettful that we didn't prepare and we decided to cross the river even. That's what we're most regretful of

and making that not very smart decision. 17-year-old Kyle Lee admits he was out for a hike last weekend with two other friends in Golden Ears Provincial Park when the weather quickly turned. They were stranded in torrential rain with no shelter, supplies, or survival training in need of help. And did they ever get lucky? Okay, love, we'll do our best. Will you dib, div, dip, do? We'll dog, dog, dog, dog. The first pit Meadow Cubs Scout troop just happened to be camping nearby, well prepared, well trained, and weathering the storm just fine.

The scouts noticed something coming from the other side of a river. I heard them like waving their arms and like, don't cross, don't cross. It was just the kind of situation Cub Scout training had prepared them for. They followed the cries, found the hikers, and could tell they were in trouble. They didn't have enough food, okay? And what else did they not have, Amelia? Water. We also found out that one that was actually wearing pajamas.

Yeah. He went on a hike in pajamas. The river was too dangerous to cross, but of course these scouts had rope and extra emergency supplies. They were able to rig up a supply line and sent the hikers food, thermal blankets, and hand warmers. It kept them comfortable while one of the leaders called in a rescue crew. After a few hours, the hikers got.

out safely, learning valuable lessons from some young scouts. Extra food and extra blankets so that we can always be prepared. And if there's any other people in need, like the ones we encountered, we can always help other people. Always be prepared. Thanks for being with us this evening. This has been your world tonight for Thursday, November 27th. I'm Susan Bonner.

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