Your World Tonight - Canada invited to be associate EU member, U.S. lawmakers push back on tariffs, Bishnoi gang threats, and more

Episode Date: September 16, 2026

European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says she wants Canada to be the first “associate” member of the EU. What that means is still undefined, but it’s being envisioned as stretching beyond the existing (but still not fully ratified) Canada-EU trade agreement.And: As Canada pursues closer ties with Europe, one Republican senator says that will hurt the chances of a deal with the U.S. At the same time, some American lawmakers are planning a trip to Canada to try to mend fences amid the trade war.Also: CBC News has access to documents that suggest the India-based Bishnoi gang feels emboldened in its operations in Canada. The trove of documents shows how law enforcement here is responding.Plus: Alberta separation costs, Conservative caucus meeting, and more.

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the road less traveled. After all the awkwardness, disasters, and family drama, Mark Critch, is finally graduating. Maybe it's about not settling for the way things are, but making your own way. No, it's both jobs. And to move forward, he must hold on to what matters most. Don't give up on your dreams. Say goodbye to a Canadian comedy we've grown up with. Son of a Critch, the final season.

Stream now on CBC Jam. This is a CBC podcast. We want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible. We are not looking to be a member of the European Union. We're not Europeans. We don't see the world the same way. A new alliance. Canada is offered an unprecedented relationship with the European Union. It's part of the Prime Minister's plan to broaden this country's trade and security relationships. But the terms of such an arrangement aren't yet clear,

and some fear it could pose a threat to Canadian sovereignty. This is Your World Tonight. I'm Salima Shivji. It's Wednesday, September 16th, coming up on 6 p.m. Eastern. Also on the podcast. I do think it was unfortunate that Canada's turning to the European Union. One Republican senator tells CBC News, the EU plan is not helpful. At the same time, there's talk on Capitol Hill,

of a bipartisan mission aimed at mending relations with Canada. It is a first for the European Union and Canada too. Today with Mark Carney in the audience, the EU's chief offered Canada a seat at the table as the bloc's inaugural associate member. So far, it's only a title, and few, including the Prime Minister, can explain what it means.

But there's already pushback, both across Europe and here at home. Evan Dyer is traveling with the PM tonight. he has more on this historic invite in our top story. We want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was effusive in her praise of Mark Carney and Canada, but surprised many with the terms of her offer. So I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada

to being the first associate member of the European Union. Euro-parliamentarians in Strasbourg, France, mostly applauded with enthusiasm, but the choice of words, associate membership, seemed at odds with how the Prime Minister himself had described his vision on the weekend. Look, we're not looking to become a member of the European Union. What we are looking and will begin discussions for unique alliance

with the European Union. It's not just semantics. A new alliance between equals is not the same as Canada seeking membership in an example. existing alliance, one that until now has always required members to surrender some of their sovereignty. Munderlander Lain used both terms in her speech. At home, Conservative leader Pierre Poliev said on social media that the PM can't seem to get his story straight on what he's negotiating. Some European diplomats also expressed confusion about what associate membership means.

I think we're still a ways away from actually landing on what we think is the best way to describe. Carney's incoming ambassador to the EU, Jonathan Wilkinson, suggested that Canada isn't keen on the term either. You've heard Prime Minister Carney talk about it as an alliance of the future. You heard that from President von der Leyen. You heard her also mention the idea of associate membership. We're not there. We're now dealing with an openly hostile world.

The EU, von der Leyen says, can work with Canada as it not only faces US tariffs, but also soaring energy costs and a one billion euro a day deficit with China. have too many dangerous dependencies. We are more than 80% dependent on China for many critical raw materials. She also spoke about a shared belief in democracy, never mentioning the U.S., but leaving no doubt that Europe no longer sees it as leader of the free world. And here, too, only Europe, with its size and power, can take the lead.

But for Canadian officials, Europe's size and power are a double-edged sword, as they seek to draw closer without becoming too much of it. of a junior partner. Carney also paid a flying visit across the channel to watch a soccer match with new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, whom he met for the first time. Tomorrow, Carney is back in Strasbourg to address the European Parliament himself. Evan Dyer, CBC News, Strasbourg, France. Canada's plan to deepen ties with Europe is sparking backlash in Washington. One prominent U.S. lawmaker now warning it could hurt the chances of a new Canada-U.S. trade deal.

Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, there are new efforts to end the trade war. Katie Simpson reports. I do not support this tariff war. A blunt warning from a prominent Republican lawmaker. Canada's efforts to deepen trade ties with Europe could cause new problems with the U.S., according to Susan Collins, an anti-tariff senator who wants the trade war against Canada to end. I do think it was unfortunate that Canada is turning to. the European Union, that doesn't help rebuild the good relationship that we once have and that I

want us to have again. Does that make it harder to get back to the negotiating table with Canada turning to Europe? Yes, I think it does. The Canada-U.S. relationship is already in a difficult spot, hitting another low point last month after trade talks dramatically broke off, and both countries introduced new punitive measures. The ongoing uncertainty that has upended the relationship has some on Capitol Hill understanding why Canada is looking elsewhere. It is embarrassing to be an American senator at a moment when our president continues to impose reckless and unfounded costs on the trusted deep relationship between the United States and Canada. Democratic Senator Chris Coons is calling for a trade war de-escalation and says he's organizing

a trip to Canada with lawmakers from both parties in the hopes of lowering the temperature. frankly, heart-sick at this moment in our relations and hope that Canadians can see past the failed leadership of President Trump. He is also supporting bills before the Senate and the House that would repeal the new 50% tariffs against Canada and issue refunds, moves that are more symbolic than substantive, since there's little chance right now that either will pass. Given the makeup of Congress and the fact that Speaker Johnson has basically seated his authority to President Trump, It's a long shot.

Congressman Brad Schneider is a Democrat who co-sponsored the House bill, and he's focused on the long game. If the Democrats win the midterm elections and take control of Congress, bills like these could be passed as early as next year. One of the ways we can ease the burden on American families is reining in the administration and restoring the trade relationships we have with allies. But the president is not likely to cooperate. Trump has already said he'll become a block.

using his veto power to stop legislation that does not support his agenda, which means the uncertainty underlining the Canada-U.S. relationship is here to stay. Katie Simpson, CBC News, Washington. The U.S. Federal Reserve is raising its benchmark interest rate by one-quarter of 1% to 3.9%. It's the first time the rate has gone up since 2023. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh says, while many economic indicators are strong, there is one indicator which is not.

The plain fact is that inflation is too high and has been for too long. Today's policy action will support a timelier return to the committee's 2% goal. This committee will deliver price stability. President Trump has strongly opposed rate hikes. Double digits behind a summer of infighting in the rear view and a trade war he can't seem to get a word in on. Tonight, conservative leader Pierre Palilev tries to push the reset button and find his footing with Canadian voters. He's gathered in B.C. with his caucus right now as they prep for a return to Parliament.

Rafi Bougiqanian is also there and has this report. We have a duty to fight for the people who are struggling here at home. Pierre Pahliav singing a familiar tune to his caucus as they gather in Penticton, BC. I spoke to loggers about losing their jobs and their kids. The entire community is vanishing. Should we shut up about their stories until Donald Trump goes away? No. But the political landscape keeps shifting under the conservatives, poised to form government when

Justin Trudeau was heading the liberals and Donald Trump had yet to return to the White House as U.S. president and start a trade war with Canada, now severely lagging in polls. How united as caucus right now? As united as I have ever seen them before. So no talks about leadership. going on? I haven't heard any. And I would know. A starker admission on the state of things from the party's deputy leader, Melissa Lansman. Look, I think, I mean, I think you have to be quite honest. This is not the position that we want

to be in at this juncture. There's no question about that. And I think that it's retreats like this and moments like this where a caucus comes together and figures out what happens next. Poilier passed a leadership review in January with 87% of delegates. supporting him. But three of his MPs had defected to the Liberals when that happened. Another followed suit later, with two more MPs leaving in the summer and another resignation expected this fall. Then there is this. And you have people who should be offering an alternative to the Liberals instead going out there to appease people in positions of power. Jamil Giovanni, the Conservative MP for Bowmanville, Osshua North,

a former university roommate of U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, issuing a video on social media last week, suggesting Canada should try harder to re-establish a relationship with the U.S. And though not naming names, hinting the official opposition may not be pushing the government hard enough. We need you to stay strong. maintain your resolve. Exemplifying the division, says Abacus Theta pollster David Colletto, within the party's electorate. I think this is a situation that the conservatives find.

themselves in, in which they are not united themselves around an issue that most Canadians are. And that misalignment is just a problem. I'm not sure Mr. Polly of or any conservative leader could actually solve in the moment. The problem the conservatives hope to put behind them as the fall sitting starts next week, and they focus on affordability issues with the federal budget around the corner. Rafi Bjiqan. On CBC News, Pentechton, British Columbia. Coming up, a new report commissioned by the Alberta government says separating from Canada will cost the province tens of billions of dollars and bring years of economic disruption and uncertainty.

Plus, the criminal Bishnoi gang claims it is powerful enough to rule Canada, that written threat included in documents obtained by CBC News. And later, we'll have this story. A for-profit plasma centers under scrutiny again. Newly obtained Health Canada inspection documents flagged more concerns at great. This time in vagina, where Griffles allowed someone who reported sexual contact with an HIV positive person to donate. Of course, it concerns me to know that there might not be sufficient controls and selections of the donors. I'm Michelle Allen in Winnipeg. More on one inspectors found later on your world tonight.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has said she wants Albertans to have all the facts before voting on separation. Tonight, weeks out from the referendum, she gave them a big one. A new report ordered, by the province that puts the price on independence in the tens of billions per year. And it says those costs could extend well beyond the wallets of Alberta taxpayers. Erin Collins explains. The numbers confirm why I'm voting on October 19th to remain in Canada. It's a report finance minister Jason Nixon has been waiting for, a study that his government commissioned from the University of Calgary's School of Public Policy,

laying out the financial consequences of Alberta independence, And Nixon says that in the short term, at least, it'll be a painful experience for Alberta. The reality is to go down the separation road would mean it would be harder for people to pay their mortgages, it would be harder for people to retire, it'd be harder for people to save for their kids to go to college. The report lays out two scenarios for Alberta independence, a smooth path and a rockier one. The paper suggests that in the first five years of independence, Alberta's GDP would plunge from between 2 and 10%. Taxes would increase by $800 to $5,500 per person, and provincial debt would skyrocket by between $200 and $320 billion.

The hard version doesn't imagine near enough what it could be like. For Stephen Carter, those numbers aren't dire enough. The veteran political strategist is one of the leading voices campaigning for Alberta to remain in Canada. The entire report was based on the idea that resources would remain high. What if they don't? What would it be like for an independent Alberta to face a downturn in the oil and gas market? The study suggests that the longer term impacts of separation are less clear.

After 20 years, Alberta's GDP could be up by 3% or down by 16. Not surprisingly, those numbers don't add up for Alberta's separatists. Mitch Sylvester is the head of the Alberta Prosperity Project and Stay Free Alberta, the group behind Alberta's independence petition. He says the report underestimates how. a sovereign Alberta's economy would fare. If we expand our pipelines and if we don't have government regulations, you never know what kind of a deal we could come up with.

And I really believe that without government overreach and regulation from Ottawa, I think Alberta's economy will thrive. I really do believe that. Polling suggests that about 30% of Albertans are open to the idea of separation. And political scientist Lisa Young says this report is unlikely to cause many people to change their minds. Lots of people have made their decision. They have reasoned this out, you know, based on their own feelings or analysis, and they're not going to move based on this report. The report may not sway voters, but its conclusion is clear.

Alberta independence will be financially painful in the short term and at best uncertain in the long run. Erin Collins, CBC News, Calgary. has obtained a copy of a letter the Bishnoi gang sent to police in British Columbia last year, addressed to the Army, the police, and Canada's defense minister. It was part of evidence introduced at an immigration and refugee board hearing. In the letter, the gang boasts of its growing strength and threatens to take over Canada. Jason Proctor has been reviewing it and has details. So, Jason, CBC reported on the existence of this letter a few months ago, but now we have a copy. Walk us

through what exactly the letter says. So it's framed as a warning and a challenge from the Lawrence gang, claiming they have more than 5,000 gang members in Canada who can carry out shootings for only $1,000 and threatening that very soon every business owner will have to pay protection money to the gang that is like a tax. So the letter says, you will see, we will take over Canada soon. As you say, news of this letter first arose in the summer at an immigration hearing for what's believed to be a bishnoy linked cell of young men. linked to arson's shootings and extortions in Alberta, Ontario, and BC. It was delivered to Abbotsford Police, who then shared it with other agencies, including the Edmonton Police Service, you know, who were investigating this particular group. Okay, well, what about the police officers investigating that group? How seriously are they taking this letter?

Well, I mean, very seriously. It's part of hundreds of pages of records we received on the investigation of dozens of incidents and more than a dozen suspects. implicated in these crimes. And Edmonton police included a copy of the letter emailed to them into their ongoing investigative report, saying the threats it contained fit with what they were seeing in the course of investigating these crimes that were linked to the Bishnoy gang, where victims were getting WhatsApp messages before and after shootings and arsons, claiming to come from the Lawrence gang, you know, which they believe to represent Bishnoi's organization. And the police records detail the day-to-day progress.

of the investigation, which became known as Project Garter, involving threats for millions against business owners, multiple WhatsApp numbers being used to make these threats, some of which match extortion cases in Ontario, drive-by shootings and ballistics reports that link multiple files in Edmonton, Calgary and Surrey. And we also have videos of suspects showing off guns, driving around Edmonton while brandishing weapons. There's even one of a suspect who filmed himself in front of a burning house. And what is happening to these suspects? Well, many of the Edmonton-based suspects in these files have faced admissibility hearings

which have resulted in deportation orders against them. And I should say, at the hearings I've attended, they've said, you know, they were innocent to these allegations and have expressed fear about what could happen to them if they are returned to India and then publicly associated with the Bishnoy gang. Regardless, as of this month, the CBSA says 188 foreign nationals across Canada. have been ordered removed for links to extortion-related incidents, and 111 of those people have been removed. Okay, the CBC's Jason Proctor. Thanks for this.

Thank you. Health Canada documents reveal a series of mistakes by Griffle's plasma donation centers in both plasma collection and handling. At one location in Regina, a donor was allowed to give plasma despite reporting sexual contact with an HIV-positive person. As Michelle Allen reports, health experts say paid collection sites like these are at higher risk. Newly obtained documents reveal that a Regina plasma center allowed someone to donate twice,

even though they said they'd had sexual contact with a person who tested positive for HIV. CBC has now obtained their report from a health Canada inspection of a Griffles in Regina in January. It also says people who had punctured veins and bruising were allowed to give plasma. The for-profit company is Spanish-owned, with more than a dozen paid plasma centers in Canada. Griffiths told the federal regulator that it destroyed the two donations from the person who reported the HIV contact risk and rejected them when they came to donate a third time. Dr. Jacqueline Duffin is a haematologist and health historian. She says historically, paid sources of blood products have had a higher infection risk. People who are needing to sell their plasma are often in disadvantaged positions of poverty.

Sometimes they're drug users. These conditions make them vulnerable to having infection. Regina is one of multiple Gryffles locations to receive non-compliant ratings from the regulator, which found multiple issues with donor screening and staff supervision. Griffles says the plasma collects is safe, that it has to pass multiple levels of screening before it's processed. Canadian Blood Services made a deal with Gryffles in 2022, allowing them to pay people for plasma. In exchange, Gryffles agreed to use it to make medications for Canadians. Canadian Blood Services CEO Dr. Graham-Share says Gryffles has had some deficiencies that need attention.

But its layers of safety measures have kept donors and patients safe. At no circumstance would Canadian blood services continue business with a vendor of any sort, a partner of any sort, if the product we were getting from them was putting patients in harm's way. Sheriff says Canada needs griffles because CBS can't collect enough plasma on its own. Without it, we're reliant on buying American plasma. Public trust can be eroded if there is a suggestion that the observation, that occur through these regulatory audits and oversight mechanisms have, in fact, suggested product or donor safety issues when that is not the case.

Sheriff says the fact that Health Canada didn't shut Griffles down proves it's safe. Griffles temporarily stopped collection in August amid what it called unfounded attention in wake of two donor deaths in Winnipeg in the past year. Michelle Allen, CBC News, Winnipeg. A diver in Quebec has been attacked by a great white shark. happened near the town of Perse in the Gas Bay region. The scuba diving shop organizing the dive says the victim

was treated at the scene before being taken to hospital. It is cancelled dives for the rest of the season as a precaution. The St. Lawrence Shark Observatory says shark attacks are extremely rare in Canada. Rescuers dig through rubble with their bare

hands and a pry bar, trying to rescue a child in a collapse building in Gaza. The building came down early this morning, killing at least 21 people, including 11 children. The multi-story structure was known to be unstable from strikes in the war between Israel and Hamas, but six Palestinian families were still living there. The UN Development Program says hundreds of buildings are at risk of collapse. There has been no reconstruction work since the ceasefire was agreed to nearly a year ago. Israel has said that can't start until Hamas disarms. It has been four years since the death of a young woman in Iran sparked nationwide protests

and a broader fight for women's rights in the Islamic Republic. The demonstrations were met with a violent crackdown that left hundreds dead. Now, in a new report, Amnesty International is calling for justice, saying the authorities responsible have not yet been held accountable. Senior international correspondent Margaret Evans has more. The sound of protests four years ago now. lit across Iran after the death in police custody of 22-year-old Masa Amini, sparking the woman life freedom uprising, soon snuffed out in a brutal crackdown by security forces.

It is a pattern destined to repeat, unless the world does more, says Amnesty International Secretary-General, Anies Kalamar. We are under no illusion. We know that the Security Council, is paralyzed by its own action. But we believe it is important to remind the world that Iran should be at the International Criminal Court. Today, Amnesty published a report. Naming 87 Iranian officials, it holds responsible for the deaths of hundreds killed

in the 2022 Woman Life Freedom protests. Masapirai's mother, Minou Majidhi, was one of them, just 62 years old when she was killed. When they killed my mother, my mother has got shot in the streets. I didn't lose Joseph's mother. She was my best friend, she was my teacher. Piray participated at a press conference for the launch of the Amnesty Report. It's obvious. We definitely need the international community

to stand with people of Iran. Our message to the international community is that the normalization of repeated protest killings in Iran must end. And for that to end, we need international criminal justice. Rahab Bahraini is one of the Amnesty reports main researchers. She says toothless condemnations of Iran's human rights abuses by the international community have served mainly to deliver a message of impunity. And it has emboldened the Iranian authorities to intensify the use of firearms

to crush dissent and to disperse and terrorize a civilian population that demands dignity, human rights and freedom, and has been met with massacres every time people have taken to the streets. She points to the thousands of anti-government protesters killed by Iranian security forces in January and their ever tightening grip on dissent. Amnesty says it will use its report to lobby governments for the creation of an international tribunal on Iran. Margaret Evans, CBC News, London. And finally, a new hotline has launched in southern Ontario with the goal of saving certain reptiles at risk.

Our eight species of freshwater turtles are in dire straits. They're on a rapid decline as a result of road mortality and habitat loss and illegal coaching. That's Sandy Nichols of the World's, Wellington Turtle Conservation Group. It's one of several organizations in the province trying to protect vulnerable turtles and save those that have been hurt on busy roads and highways.

She says turtle hotlines like hers make it easier for people to help. If anyone happens to find an injured turtle on the road providing it's safe to do so, if they can move the turtle, contain it, and call anywhere in Ontario, the Ontario Turtle Conservation Group can send a turtle taxi to pick up that turtle and take it up to the hospital. That hospital in Peterborough provides the usual veterinary care, but also functions as a kind of repair shop. They use pins and screws and they put them together. They use crazy glue and things like that. It's remarkable.

Even if the turtle is really badly injured, don't ever assume that it's dead. That's because turtles have very slow metabolisms, and that means they also die very slowly. Not only that, even if they are dead, Nichols says eggs can often be harvested from females and be successfully hatched. The hotline numbers can be found online, and Nichols urges people to use them. Not everybody cares about turtles or understands their importance. They're a keystone species, and they're extremely important to our wetlands. They keep our wetlands clean. So a lot of people don't understand why we care about turtles,

but there are very many reasons why we do. Thanks so much for being with us. This has been Your World Tonight for Wednesday, September 16th. I'm Selyama Shivji. Good night. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.com.