Your World Tonight - Carney goes abroad, Extreme weather in the U.S., Changes to Jordan's Principle and more

Episode Date: March 16, 2025

Prime Minister Mark Carney has inherited a trade war with Canada's closest ally and threats of annexation straight from the White House. All while facing down the reality of an election in the near future. You'll hear all about the challenges facing the new prime minister, and his upcoming international tour in Europe.Also: Severe weather has created a path of destruction across the central and southern U-S. Dozens of people have been killed across six states after high wind gusts, hail, and a string of tornadoes.And: The federal program known as Jordan's Principle is meant to provide supports for First Nations children. But recent changes to the program are creating uncertainty and anxiety for many families.Plus: A nightclub fire in North Macedonia, Italy divided over support for the European Union, and more.

In Scarborough, there's this fire behind our eyes. A passion in our bellies. It's in the hearts of our neighbors. The eyes of our nurses. And the hands of our doctors. It's what makes Scarborough, Scarborough. In our hospitals, we do more than anyone thought possible. We've less than anyone could imagine.

But it's time to imagine what we can do with more. Join Scarborough Health Network and together, we can turn grit into greatness. Donate at lovescarborough.ca. This is a CBC podcast. Hi, I'm Stephanie Scanderis, and this is your World Tonight. We're in a wartime footing right now. We have to strengthen the Canadian economy like never before. It's only been a few days, but the challenges faced by the new Prime Minister are piling

up. Plus, you'll hear about why Mark Carney is on his way to Europe. Also on the podcast, the Trump administration gives more details about the goals behind its economic threats to Canada and... And so we loaded up and we left leaving the cats and dogs. We just got out of here. As soon as we got up there, it was hit. Hit with wind, hail and tornadoes.

Days of extreme weather kills dozens in the US. Prime Minister Mark Carney has inherited a trade war with Canada's closest ally and threats of annexation straight from the White House, while also facing down the reality of an election in the near future. As JP Tasker reports from Ottawa, there are both challenges and opportunities for the new Prime Minister. Canada's new Prime Minister taking part in a centuries-old St. Patrick's Day parade in Montreal. It's a rare moment of joy for Mark Carney as he grapples with a national crisis. And to be honest with you, Canada only works as a state.

Carney takes the reins of power as President Donald Trump ramps up the rhetoric against Canada, threatening to torpedo the country's economy with even more tariffs. We can't control President Trump's behaviour. We can control our behaviour. Kirsten Hillman, Canada's ambassador to the US, says Carney has a plan to save the country from economic ruin and annexation. But she says a Carney-Trump call to discuss those tensions won't come right away. Of course he should talk to the president, and I hope that they do talk. Does it have to be in the next 12 or 24 hours?

No, it doesn't have to be. Instead, Carney is headed to the UK and France this week to meet with what he calls reliable trade partners. We're in a wartime footing right now. Anina Onin, the new industry minister, is promising to overhaul the economy. She wants to immediately reduce Canada's dependence on the Americans, no matter what comes out of the White House. We need to build Canadian industry. We need to build Canadian industry,

we need to build Canadian supply chains, and we need to buy Canadian. And in order to do that, we have to strengthen the Canadian economy like never before. Polls show the Liberals are backing contention for power. Their support? Surging. Late last year, Conservative leader Pierre Pauliev was clamouring for an election.

Now is the time for a carbon tax election. Now, as an election looms, there's talk of bringing parliament back first. These doors have been padlocked by the Carney-Trudeau Liberals, trying to avoid the accountability and the scrutiny that comes with a sitting parliament. Carney already put his assets in a blind trust. The Conservatives want him to go further. The party's ethics critic Michael Barrett wants the Prime Minister to release more details about his finances in past corporate work.

Mr. Carney needs to be transparent with Canadians. Now if he wants to avoid the conflict of interest, he should divest and not divest into a blind trust. The NDP is also losing ground. To fight back, leader Jagmeet Singh says Carney's more moderate brand of liberalism could lead to government cuts. The choice is you have Mark Carney, who has shown you through his track record that he will make lots of profits for billionaires but will throw workers to the side.

The prime minister is expected to call an election sometime in the next week. That means voters are likely headed to the polls in late April or early May. JP Tasker, CBC News, Ottawa. Mark Carney is also heading out on his first international tour as Prime Minister, meeting officials from the UK and France. Catherine Cullen is covering the tour and tells us a little more about it. So Catherine, why is travelling internationally so high on Mark Carney's priority list? Well, Stephanie, like so much in Canadian politics right now, this is also about Donald

Trump. The US is, of course, traditionally Canada's closest ally. So the new Prime Minister is leaning into other important relationships, maybe to try to get a bit closer, in fact, emphasizing trade and support for Canadian sovereignty. This will also emphasize Carney's resume and connections to Canadians in the likely lead up to a federal election. Carney is the only non-Brit ever to have been made governor of the Bank of England. He guided the UK's economy through Brexit. Carney has argued his experience makes him the man for this moment because he has connections and

has dealt with crises, but the Conservatives have tried to emphasize that he has previously described himself as European. Okay, so what is on his agenda? The Prime Minister starts the trip in France where he'll meet with French President Emmanuel Macron. They're supposed to talk about trade and the potential of AI. Then it's off to London where he'll meet with French President Emmanuel Macron. They're supposed to talk about trade and the potential of AI. Then it's off to London where Carney will meet with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, again talking trade, growing AI, but also transatlantic security. Just yesterday, Carney was part of a world leaders call hosted by the UK, focusing on shoring up support for Ukraine.

Carney's office also says the new prime minister will have an audience with the king and Carney wraps up with a stop in Iqaluit to emphasize Canada's Arctic sovereignty. And what should Canadians expect to hear from our allies, particularly there in the UK? Well, the King is an interesting place to start. He has offered to host Trump at one of his castles. He has made small potential shows of support for Canada, like wearing Canadian military decorations. So there's likely to be a lot of scrutiny of this meeting and what signs it sends about the King's support

for Canadian sovereignty. As for the UK government, they have taken a bit more of a charm offensive approach to Trump, not retaliating on steel and aluminum tariffs, for example. So there's the question of just how far the UK will go in standing up for Canada. I had an exclusive Canadian interview this week with the UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy. I asked him repeatedly if he was worried about a tax on Canadian sovereignty. He would not say that he was. Canada is a sovereign nation and will continue to be a sovereign nation. Of that I have no doubt, I recognize that there has been anxiety here in Canada and in the coming days, as the new Prime Minister, Mark Carney, meets Keir Starmer, our Prime Minister, I'm quite sure

that that will be underlined. Still, standing side by side with these leaders will send a message about the friends Canada does have in the world and for Mark Carney it will also be about sending a message to Canadians about his pitch in the next election. Stephanie? Okay Catherine, thanks so much. Thank you. The host of CBC Radio's The House, Catherine Cullen, in Ottawa. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he and Prime Minister Carney have spoken on the phone.

He posted online that the two talked about increasing pressure on Moscow, in part by imposing all-out sanctions on suppliers of Russia's war on Ukraine. Zelensky says he also thanked the Canadian PM for the support Canada has provided over the years. Well, the world is now getting a better understanding of what exactly Donald Trump is trying to accomplish with his tariff agenda. Key members of his administration are sharing expanded details of what the president's plan will look like. And Canada's not the only country bracing for more tariffs next month. Katie Simpson reports from

Washington. We don't like the status quo. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio explained in some detail exactly what it is the Trump administration is trying to achieve with its protectionist trade policies. During an interview that aired on CBS Face the Nation, Rubio said the U.S. is looking to establish new deals with all of its trading partners. We're going to reset the baseline and then we can enter into these bilateral agreements,

potentially, with countries, so that our trade is fair. The baseline will be reset April 2nd, when President Donald Trump is expected to impose new tariffs based on what he calls fairness. Reciprocal tariffs for countries that tax US goods and or have trade policies the Trump administration does not like. Canada will be included in this as Rubio took another shot at Canada's retaliation plan. I mean Canada's going after a whiskey and orange juice that sounds pretty petty to me as well.

Members of Trump's cabinet are defending the strategy, including Treasury Secretary Scott Besant. And President Trump's created a win-win situation here. Either the tariff barriers come down, the U.S. can export more, trade is fairer, it's always been free but not fair, and then we, or if they don't do it, we'll take in substantial revenues. Besant is dismissing concerns about tariffs triggering stock market volatility

and fears that life in America is going to get even more expensive. What I was saying is the American dream is not let them eat flat screens. The American dream is not contingent on cheap baubles they have from China. That it is more than that. And we are focused on affordability. Republicans, largely, continue to stand by the president and his push to upend established trading relationships. You know, our friends up north, and they are our friends in Canada, they are, as the president

says, they are nasty negotiators. South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds echoed Trump's argument that the Canada-U.S. relationship is unfair. He thinks they did a heck of a job in terms of taking advantage of the United States and the trade agreements that have been established so far. He wants to redo them. And this is the first shout over the bow. But it was, of course, Trump himself who renegotiated the current free trade agreement between the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Kuzma is set for a review this year, and it appears the Trump administration is trying to speed up that process to establish more favorable terms for the U.S. as quickly as possible. Katie Simpson, CBC News, Washington. Katie Simpson, CBC News, Washington. Still ahead, a federal program meant to make sure First Nations kids don't face barriers to government services has recently had some changes. Families who use it say those changes haven't been for the better and they're now anxious funding for things like specialized education will be cut off. That story and Ottawa's response is coming up on your World Tonight. A series of deadly tornadoes in the U.S. is leaving a path of destruction through the

South and Midwest. At least 35 people are dead across multiple states and the extreme weather is not over. Philipp Lee Shenok takes us through what's happened. Outside her trailer in Tylertown Mississippi, about a two hours drive north of New Orleans, Jericho McCoy wasn't sure her family would escape the tornado that hit Saturday night. All I could hear is my six-year-old screaming that she didn't want to die. You know, you don't want to hear that coming out of your baby's mouth. The tornado killed three in the area, including a seven-year-old.

Outside what's left of his home in Calera, Alabama, Tim Streakland says he escaped to a friend's house just before the tornado struck. And so we loaded up and we left leaving the cats and dogs. We just got out of here. As soon as we got up there, it was hit. More than half a dozen states in the US, Southeast and Midwest were hit with destructive winds that spawned dozens of powerful tornadoes.

As of Sunday afternoon, hundreds of thousands are still without power. A state of emergency was declared in Arkansas, Georgia and parts of Oklahoma. In Butler County, Missouri, Tiffany Bowles says her gas station took major damage. I mean this is all a big loss. We've lost all of our pumps. They were pulled out of the ground. Not far away, Rick Brittingham says few in the neighborhood escaped unscathed. Everything around it

here is really bad. The trailer park up up the street had fatalities so I mean we don't have nothing compared to anything like that. I still have a home they don't. More than 50 tornadoes were reported nationwide according to the US National Weather Service. In Georgia, Paulding County Sheriff Ashley Henson says he's not waiting for a confirmation. You can see there's a lot of damage. I'm not a meteorologist but I'd say probably a tornado or something pretty doggone strong. The National Weather Service says extreme weather warnings remain in

place for Florida up through Pennsylvania Sunday as the massive storm moves eastward and out into the Atlantic Ocean. The powerful storm hit just as drastic budget cuts impact federal weather services. This is one of the best investments that we make. Jeff Schrader teaches public policy at Columbia University. He says cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which oversees the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center will cost lives. Two or three thousand people per year are probably being saved by those accurate forecasts. Hundreds of staff were cut last month and a further 1,000 jobs are expected to be slashed

as part of federal workforce reductions across the U.S. Philip Deschanoc, CBC News, Toronto. In North Macedonia, The country's prime minister says a nightclub that burned down overnight Saturday had a fraudulent license that was issued for a bribe. 59 people died after pyrotechnics set the venue's ceiling on fire. That fire spread rapidly as the more than 1,000 people inside rushed for the exit. Maria Tseva survived the fire, but says her sister did not.

Everyone started pushing each other, she says. I don't know how, but I ended up on the ground and people started stomping on me. Around 150 people were rushed to hospitals, some were taken to neighbouring countries for treatment. North Macedonia's Interior Ministry says about 20 people have been arrested, including government officials and the club's manager. In Rome, tens of thousands of Italians have shown their support for the European Union, taking part in a pro-EU march inspired by the growing rift between the bloc and the US. US support for Ukraine is also dwindling, leaving European leaders weighing the future of their own defenses. As Megan

Williams tells us, there's a growing divide between Italy's leader and her European partners on that front. In Italy's huge Piazza del Popolo, the People's Square, star-spangled magenta EU flags waved above the heads of thousands of citizens, chanting and cheering their support for the European Union. Writers and directors, students and mayors voice their commitment to the post-war project that has become the EU. With journalist Michele Serra saying he organized the event to help the majority of Italians who are pro-EU feel less alone. I'm here today because I want a Europe that promotes peace, says retiree Cipriano Crescione, who traveled from central Italy with a huge rainbow peace flag. But, he added, an essential part of that peace is a European shared system of defense.

Palestinian-Italian Dima Zakhar agrees. Europe cannot stay without defense, with China, Russia and Iran and everyone else getting more and more armed. So yes, in a way I'm supportive. France's Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Friedrich Merz and EU head Ursula von der Leyen are all on board to set up a common defence. And with the increase in spending that comes with it. Italy's right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Maloney, though, hesitantly backed the EU's rearmament plan this week, worried it could deepen Italy's debt and drain funds from essential services. She's been a stalwart supporter of

Ukraine but now finds herself between a rock and a hard place trying to keep up friendly relations with Trump. To that end her party abstained this week from an EU resolution on continued military support for Ukraine. A recent poll here in Italy shows support for the country has dropped, from almost 60% at the start of the Russian invasion to now just a third of Italians. That stance runs across both the opposition and the government, with Maloney's coalition partner Matteo Salvini opposing any rearmament. And Giuseppe Conte, former Italian Prime Minister and head of the opposition five-star party, calling increasing spending on weapons a disastrous prospect.

We need diplomacy, he said, not more war. We need diplomacy, he said, not more war. As NATO and EU countries, without the US, discuss sending peacekeeping troops into Ukraine once a deal is struck, Maloney has repeatedly said Italians won't be part of that contingent. Megan Williams, CBC News, Rome. In Yemen's capital, people dig through piles of rubble, searching for survivors after a series of missile strikes. The U.S. attacked Houthi rebel sites on Saturday, killing at least 53 people and injuring nearly a hundred others. It is vowing to continue its airstrikes until the Houthis stop attacking ships in the Red Sea. The US says it's also sending a message to Iran to end its support for the militant

group. In response, Houthi leaders say they'll target US ships in the area as long as the airstrikes continue. as long as the airstrikes continue. You're listening to Your World Tonight from CBC News. And if you want to make sure you 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. Recent changes to Jordan's principle are creating uncertainty and anxiety for many families. The federal program is meant to provide supports for First Nations children and prevent jurisdictional disputes between Ottawa and the provinces.

Brett Forrester has one family story. He is a little boy who is full of love, full of light. For eight-year-old Ethan Merical, Jordan's principle is more than a program. His parents, Murray and Katie, say it's his only shot at a true education. Ethan is a First Nations boy with severe non-verbal autism and epilepsy, but because of Ottawa's bureaucratic logjam it's an opportunity he may be at risk of losing. The invoices we received from Ethan's school are 14,000 a month. Without funding, if it's cut, we have no choice. So it's it's heartbreaking. Murray Merical is from the Mohawks of the Bay

of Quinte but the family lives off reserve in Aurelia, Ontario. Jordan's principal covers the cost for Ethan to attend a special school. The services include transportation, intensive clinical therapy, and one-on-one educational assistance, but that may all fall away. It's our biggest fear is who we have to put him

into the public system, he's gonna get lost. Last month, Indigenous Services Canada cut back coverage for off-reserve and private school related requests. Minister Patti Hyde who says provinces and territories need to do more. It is not okay for provincial partners to abandon their responsibilities to children with autism regardless of their indigeneity or not. Jordan's principal is supposed to prevent jurisdictional disputes but that's exactly what the miracles feel swept up in and their problems don't end there.

Amanda Becerowich, the miracle service provider, says Jordan's principal currently owes her more than $500,000 in unpaid bills. Becerowich is the founder and clinical director of IBI Behavioural Services and Unique Minds Academy in Barrie, Ontario. She used to have 17 Jordan's principal clients, but now less than six.

And they'll be out of funding by the end of the school year in June, leaving her with no choice but to drop them all. Your relationships with these families are so secure and so tight. So to be the one to have to pick up the phone and make Those calls or send those emails It's gut-wrenching. Becerra which isn't the only one dealing with financial issues in a March 7th report Indigenous services revealed it can't even say how big its backlog of outstanding payments is the data is simply not available Cindy Blackstock executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society,

calls it an astounding failure. Yeah, they're just funding cuts and they're also just a perverse deflection of responsibility. The government has behaved its way into this crisis. Blackstock denounces the changes as a bid to save money on the backs of kids. Still, the minister isn't backing down. Heidi acknowledges the difficulties for families when programs change, but she maintains provinces and territories must step up in areas like public schooling and autism funding, leaving parents like Murray and Katie waiting for the next funding decision, nervous yet hopeful Ethan doesn't become become another child left behind. Brett Forrester, CBC News, Ottawa.

That's the sound of Montrealers celebrating St. Patrick's Day. The annual parade made its way down de Maisonneuve Boulevard today. More than a hundred and twenty groups, twenty floats and 3,000 participants. And it's a big year for the Montreal Parade. It's 200th anniversary. Starting small in 1824 with just 30 local businessmen celebrating their Irish heritage. It kept growing. Historian Ken Quinn told CBC News Montreal. It started as an Irish nationalist sort of a demonstration.

Then it morphed into a more Catholic procession. But this outpouring of Irish pride isn't necessarily originally Irish itself. Montreal's St. Patrick's Day parade is actually older than Dublin's. Concordia University Irish Studies professor Ymir O'Toole says Irish parades weren't historically done in this way. In general it's not something that's native to the island of Ireland. It was originally a military tradition by Protestant Unionist regiments to commemorate the patron saint's day of their homeland. Now of course it's kind of associated with the wearing of the green, which would be a more nationalist Catholic symbol.

For Alan Hustak, who wrote a book about this parade, it also ushers in a new season. One of the great things about the parade, in my view, is that it has moved from a strictly religious observation into this great diverse festival that is really a rite of spring in Montreal. We'll leave you with a little more of the sound of St. Patrick's Day in Montreal on Your World Tonight. I'm Stephanie Scanderis. Thanks for listening. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca slash podcasts.