Your World Tonight - Carney in England, Russia at UN Assembly, Canada loses Women's Rugby World Cup Final, and more

Episode Date: September 27, 2025

Mark Carney is wrapping up an official visit to the United Kingdom - his second since becoming Prime Minister. And while Carney goal there was to discuss trade and security with allies, his opposition back home says the Prime Minister has nothing to show for his travels abroad.Also: Moscow's top diplomat Sergey Lavrov took to the podium at the United Nations General Assembly. Russia's foreign minister insisted the country has no intention of attacking Europe. But his comments come after NATO shot down drones over Polish airspace and Estonia said Russian jets flew over its territory.And: Canada lost out to England at the Women's Rugby World Cup Final. But even though the team missed out on the top prize, Canadian rugby fans are still proud of what they accomplished. And the game brought out the largest crowd in women's rugby history.Plus: Canada Post strike update, bugs eating Hungary's oldest books, One man's journey to escape Gaza, and more.

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Give Credit Counseling Society a call today. Visit no more debts.org. This is a CBC podcast. Hello, I'm Stephanie Skanderas. This is your world tonight. It's not just you sign a nice agreement and then something happens. No, you actually have to do the work. You have to meet with the leaders to make sure the work's being done.

The prime minister pushes back on criticism over trips. overseas, saying he's pursuing opportunities, including economic ones for Canada, as the opposition demands results. Also on the podcast, you've not got mail. Canada post workers are back on strike. You'll hear what that could mean for the future of home delivery. Plus, I think what we've accomplished this workup is very powerful, especially for rugby in Canada. How Canada's women's rugby team defied the odds and funding limits to reach the biggest stage in the sport. Mark Carney is wrapping up an official visit to the United Kingdom, his second to London, and his 13th foreign trip since becoming Prime Minister. And while Carney is there to discuss trade

and security with allies, his opposition back home says the Prime Minister has nothing to show for his travels abroad. Olivia Stefanovic reports from London. In a sea of white Team England jerseys, Prime Minister Merck Kearney stuck out, wearing a red shirt and matching hat while he cheered on Team Canada in a sell-out crowd of 82,000

as the underdogs faced off against England in the Women's Rugby World Cup final. Canada didn't win. And during his time across the pond, the Prime Minister didn't land any major deals either. But Carney says flashy announcements weren't the point of the trip, his second official visit to the United Kingdom. It's not just you sign a nice agreement and then something happens.

No, you actually have to do the work. You have to meet with the leaders to make sure the work's being done. You have to mark progress as it's being done. The Prime Minister held a series of bilateral talks with global leaders over the last two days, along with some of the world's largest energy and infrastructure firms. I think the first step is to go and crystallize these relationships, but I think what everybody will be waiting for is more news on what is being offered. Anne Fitzgerald is a professor of political science at Wilfred Laurier University.

She says Carney has limited time to show results for his travels. I think people are waiting to hear what is being offered to these new partners that will bring tangible benefits. The Conservatives are asking that question too, while Carney is signaling future trade and security agreements are forthcoming. I'm more certain than ever that there are endless possibilities for Canada. It's not only economic opportunities that Carney is after. During discussions with his counterparts, Carney says he saw clarity on what more Canada can contribute to Ukraine, through the group of countries known as the Coalition of the Willing. In a ceasefire situation, one of the most important things will be to scale up that activity even more.

Carney says Canada will need to increase training missions for Ukraine. Meanwhile, on Gaza, Carney is reiterating Canada's long-standing position on a two-state solution. despite an impassioned speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the United Nations on Friday, slamming nations that recognize a Palestinian state, including Canada. There will never be a durable peace for Israel unless those rights of self-determination are respected for the Palestinian people. Carney returns to Ottawa on Sunday, bringing his focus back to domestic issues, and convincing Canadians why his latest four-day trip abroad was worth it. Olivia Estevanovich, CBC News, London.

For the second time in less than a year, Canada Post workers are back on the picket line. 55,000 workers walked off the job after the federal government lifted restrictions, allowing Canada Post to take cost-cutting measures, measures that could include the closing of post offices and the end of home delivery. Philip LeShanock has more. Canada Post is part of our fabric. In London, Prime Minister Mark Carney says he's committed to the promise and potential of Canada Post. But he painted a picture of a broke corporation with a broken business model.

A company is not viable if it has cost $5 billion over the course of the last decade, if it's losing $10 million a day. So he says the corporation should be able to make changes that could lead it to financial sustainability. but it has to include the union as part of the solution. Canada Post says regulatory restrictions in place for decades have not allowed it to make needed reforms to its business model. Spokesperson John Hamilton says now the Crown Corporation can look at cost-saving measures.

And will allow us to finally try and align the postal system to where Canadians are at today, not where they were in 1994. He suggests some rural routes could be cut and post offices closed with door-to-door delivery possibly giving way to community mailboxes. Hamilton says without continued subsidies, the company faces an existential crisis. Taxpayer injections to keep the lights on at the Canada Post, that is not going to be a long-term solution. Andy says survival could mean job losses from top to bottom, management included.

But that attrition will help. He estimates 14,000 people are eligible to retire over the next five years. The problem is Canadians as taxpayers are paying more and more for a system they're using less and less. Across the country, Canada Post customers say that with email and online banking, they're less reliant on home delivery, but many still defended as a public service. A good portion of the mail that I get is flyers kind of junk mail, to be honest. But the stuff I do need in the mail is important to me. I mean, paperless is great, but unfortunately a lot of people will lose their job.

That's a service that's for the people and also jobs and livelihoods that would be, you know, gone. On the picket line in Calgary, Wycliffe O'Dore of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers says the public wants home delivery. The announcement would reduce services that Canada Post provides to our public, and that is not acceptable. The union also warns the corporation's plan could lead to privatization. Canada Post has 45 days to come up with a modernization plan. and it wants the union to have a say. Philip LeShannock, CBC News, Toronto.

A community in Nunavut is closing schools and government offices until further notice after three days without water service. Pangertung, home to 1,500 people on Baffin Island, has been under a state of emergency since Thursday. That's when the local water treatment plant had to shut down after a pipe failure. Local officials say a plumber is now on site. Engineers are expected to arrive by Monday. to resolve the issue. The Nunavut government is sending shipments of bottled water to the area,

along with steel pumps to draw water from the reservoir. A boil water advisory is also in place. More crews and more police will search for a six-year-old Alberta boy who's been missing since Sunday. 60 RCMP tactical support group members are joining the search. Adam Kennedy, with Alberta's search and rescue, says the search radius is expanding with the additional help. There has been no change since yesterday, honestly. The mood on ground, everybody is still very optimistic. They are still out searching and aren't giving up to. Darius McDougal was last seen walking with his family at a campground south of Calgary.

Police have not said how he got separated from the group. Kennedy says crews are still confident Darius will be found alive. Still ahead, some of Hungary's oldest books dating as far back, as the Middle Ages are stored in an ancient abbey. They've survived fires, wars, but now they're facing a new risk, being eaten. You'll hear about the creepy, crawly threat coming up on your world tonight.

U.S. President Donald Trump is directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegeseth to send U.S. troops to Portland, Oregon. In a social media post, he advised the military to use full force if necessary. Trump says troops are needed to protect the city from domestic terrorists and ice facilities from attack. Last night, Portland Mayor Keith Wilson warned of a sudden influx of federal agents across the city, but Wilson also dismissed the increase as just a big show.

Russia's foreign minister says his country has no plans to start a war with EU or NATO countries. Speaking to the United Nations General Assembly, Sergei Lavrov's comments came after NATO forces shot down drones over Polish airspace, and Estonia said Russian jets violated its airspace. As Anise Haydari reports, Lavrov says Moscow is prepared to defend itself. I now give the floor to his excellency, Sergei Lavrov. Russia's foreign minister addressing the United Nations General Assembly. Russia is being accused of almost planning to attack.

attack the North Atlantic Alliance and the European Union countries. President Putin has repeatedly debunked these provocations. Those accusations come after NATO took down drones above Poland. And Estonia claimed Russian jets flew into its airspace. But at the UN on Saturday, Sergei Lavrov was blunt. However, any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response. His speech coming three years into Russia's war on Ukraine. And, just days after a speech from Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky saying Russia must be stopped. And now Russia drones are already flying across Europe. And Russian operations are already spreading across countries. And Putin wants to continue this war by expending it. And no one can feel safe

right now. Russia denies they entered Estonian airspace and said drones weren't targeting Poland. Russia isn't interested in backing down or showing NATO that it is weak. Christine Brzeena is a senior fellow of U.S. Defense and Transatlantic Security with the German Marshall Fund think tank. She says some of these actions could be tied to a more pro-Ukraine shift in Donald Trump's messaging. President Trump is certainly being very provocative. Instead, we're looking at a different strategy, which is the United States running out of patients and NATO running out of patients. And again, we can be coming into a situation where you see more military pressure being put on Russia. Days ago, President Trump said he thought Ukraine could regain all of the territory it lost to Russia.

Noted as a shift in messaging, weeks after Russian President Vladimir Putin said he felt the White House was listening to the Kremlin's arguments on Ukraine. We have some hopes for the continuation of the Russian-American dialogue. A message echoed on Saturday by Sergei Lavrov. In the approaches of the current U.S. administration, we see a desire not only to contribute to ways to realistically resolve the Ukrainian crisis, but also a desire to develop pragmatic cooperation without adopting an ideological stance. However, his speech also comes as Ukrainian officials say Russia attacked with 115, drones overnight, though no casualties were reported.

Enis Hadari, CBC News, Washington. In India, at least 36 people are dead and dozens more injured after a stampede broke out at a political rally. Hundreds of people surround the entrance of a hospital in the southern state of Tamil Nadu rushing injured people inside. Earlier today, tens of thousands had gathered in support of Vijay, a popular actor-turned It's not clear how the stampede began. Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X that the incident is deeply saddening and he is praying for a swift recovery to all those injured. The U.S. President seems

optimistic about resolving the Israel-Hamas war. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Donald Trump said a ceasefire deal is very close. But despite Trump's words, Hamas says it has not yet received his ceasefire plan. militant group made the comments Saturday, just hours after Israeli newspaper Haretz reported Hamas had agreed in principle to the plan. Now that plan would see Hamas release all remaining Israeli hostages. In exchange, Israel would release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and gradually withdraw its forces from Gaza. In the meantime, as the war in Gaza continues, one Palestinian man has managed a daring escape to Italy. As Megan Williams reports, it involved money, tenacity, and a jet ski.

Inside a tent in the sprawling Juan Yunus refugee camp, a mother's tears of relief. In Tezhar Houdar Abu Dacha's son, 31-year-old Mohammed, disappeared more than a year ago. Now she watches him on a video chat as he tells her he's safe. in Italy. He never talked about the idea at all. Never said he was going to Italy, she says. In fact, going to Italy was never Mohammed's plan. When he managed to cross from Gaza into Egypt for $7,000 in April 24,

he went to China, where he tried and failed to get refugee status. Back in Egypt, then Libya, the former internet shop owner, scan his quest to cross the Mediterranean. Attempting no less than 10 times to cross in boats steered by human traffickers. Each time blocked. Then he found a jet ski online in Libya. Outfitted it with a GPS, satellite phone, life jackets, he says.

And with two other Palestinians set off, documenting their odyssey with smartphone, videos and photos. For 12 hours, they sped over the waves, running out of gas about 20 kilometers from the southern Italian island of Lampedusa, where an EU patrol border ship picked them up and brought them to Italy, three of some 47,000 migrants who have made it to Italy this year so far, though no one else, by Jetsky. From Italy, Mohamed and the other two managed to make it to Germany, jumping out of a migrant bus, hiding in bushes along the way.

It's there that they've requested asylum, and where Mohammed, now in a refugee center, hopes to bring his wife and two young children, one suffering from a brain disorder. Back in the tent in Gaza, his parents thank God their son is alive. When the Israelis destroyed his shop and home, Mohamed said, I cannot live here, says his father, Abraudu Salimam Abu Daka. Mohamed was never one to sit still, he adds. He would have been out moving around and likely killed. The Israeli bombardment of Gaza has displaced more than 2 million people with some 250,000 people fleeing the strip,

according to Israeli authorities. More than 65,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, according to Gaza health authorities. After Muhammad's extraordinary journey, he's now safe in Germany, hoping his family survives their own ordeal in Gaza. Megan Williams, CBC News, Rome. According to the World Meteorological Organization, Asia is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average.

and in places like Hong Kong, the increasingly hot weather is hitting low-income families and elderly people the hardest. Freelance reporter Laura Westbrook tells us why. 47-year-old Dund Chan lives with her 15-year-old son in a tiny room, paying around $880 a month for 82 square feet. There is an air-conditioning unit, but she only turns it on at night to save money. The apartment faces the sun. and the whole place turns into a sauna.

It's impossible to sleep without air conditioning. A survey by the non-profit Society for Community Organization found temperatures in substandard housing in Hong Kong can reach 40 degrees, higher than temperatures outside. I think people they complain are getting hotter every year. Social worker Zilai Shan says more than 200,000 people in Hong Kong live in inadequate housing, some in spaces smaller than a parking spot. because the area is small, there's no ventilation.

And besides, the hygiene is a problem. Many of them are in the old buildings. For example, they are complaining about many mosquitoes, those reds that affects their sea. Miss Wong, who asked to be referred to by her last name for privacy reasons, lives with her 14-year-old son. They sleep on a bunk bed to save on space. There is a toilet, right next to the kitchen.

It costs more than $130 a month to use the air conditioning. And so keeping cool is a challenge. I sometimes shower in the afternoon with cold water. I try to stay out of the house as much as possible. Last year was Hong Kong's warmest year since records began. That heat puts added stress on the body and can be deadly. Young people in the elderly are among the most at risk. Professor Ben Horton from City University of Hong Kong says due to the impact of climate change,

governments need to realise temperatures will keep on getting hotter. There is this disparity between people who live in luxurious accommodation to other high urban areas where there isn't the access to ventilation. So if we're going to adapt to a future that is warmer and is wetter, We need to make sure those adaptions are focused on those less fortunate than ourselves. Hong Kong's leader John Lee has pledged to improve livelihoods, and the government is increasing the supply of public housing. In the meantime, residents like Dundan and her son will have to endure a warming city.

Laura Westbrook for CBC News, Hong Kong. In Hungary, the warming climate has unleashed an unusual enemy inside an ancient Abbey. A beetle infestation is threatening thousands of priceless books. Freelance reporter Pablo Gutierrez brings us that story from Budapest. At the Penangoma Arch Abbey, the library shelves are bare. More than 100,000 volumes have been removed after an infestation by the drugstore beetle, an insect thriving in Hungary's warmer summers. The drugstore beetle is only a few millimeters long. The lavi bow through covers and glue, living behind holes that eat history. Dawson's entomology cell Gioso.

He says climate change is speeding up the Beatles' life cycle. In normal conditions, one generation grows in 200 days, but with constant heat, you can have four or five generations in a single year. The result is centuries-old bindings turned to dust. To save the collection, every book is sealed in nitrogen. chambers for weeks, then cleaned by hand with soft brushes and vacuums. The shelves are disinfected and reinforced before the volumes can return. Father Conrad Deiches is the Abbe's cultural director.

Today we hold 18 codices, hundreds of early printed books, and one-of-a-kind manuscripts written here over a thousand years. Among the library's treasures are a 12th century Bible, and the Tejani Charter of 1055. That's the oldest surviving text written in Hungarian. Both survive thanks to climate control storage, but thousands of Renaissance and Enlightenment-era works remain under restoration.

The cleanup is expected to cost more than $1.7 million US dollars. Government support covers only a fraction, leaving most of the bill to donations. The Abbey hopes to finish the restoration work by December. Dianchi says the infestation is only the latest in a long history of challenges for the Abbey's collection. Across Hungary's history, wars and fires have devastated this library. After every disaster, we rebuilt the collection. When the library reopens new safeguards, we'll greet visitors, insect nets on windows,

restricted climate controls, and an airlock entrance that blows insects of clothes. For now, the abyss shelves remain empty, but monks and scientists say every book returned is more than a page preserved. It is history saved one fragile volume at a time. Pablo Gutierrez for CBC News, Budapest. 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. England's national women's rugby team celebrates their first World Cup win in over a decade.

The Red Roses defeated Canada's Maple Leafs in England. A disappointing loss for Team Canada, still plenty to cheer about. The Canadians stunned the rugby world after their tournament wins over powerhouse countries, Australia and New Zealand. And even though Canada didn't take home the top prize, these fans say they're beyond impressed by their team.

I am so proud of our girls. They aren't funded. So you know what, girls? You've been amazing. And it definitely showed that Canada is a powerhouse and rugby. So really, really happy with today's results. Just a couple of the nearly 82,000 fans who were at the match, the largest crowd in women's rugby history.

For more on the World Cup final, I'm joined by freelance sports reporter, Ed Klyman. So, Ed, not the result Canadian rugby fans wanted, but also not unexpected. What stood out to you from today's match? Stephanie, this was number one, England versus number two, Canada. and I think we got to see why Canada is so highly ranked at number two and so highly everyone's so excited about what this team could do and how much potential they had. But we also saw why England is number one

and was on this monstrous 32 match winning streak had not last since the last World Cup and had torn through all of the competition to get to Canada. So Canada was competitive and they made this interesting in the second half actually getting reasonably close at one point, but really when England had to, they really bore down. They were the deeper team, the better team, the more deserving team in the end. But it took so much for Team Canada, the Maple Leafs, as this team is called, to get to this point.

They beat New Zealand six-time world champions, like just an amazing, amazing run. And even though they didn't win today's match, they did win a lot of praise in this tournament for their playing style. What's so unique and special about this? This is what's really cool about this team. The way they play is different than any other team, male or female, in the world. Everything is at high speed. They go at a frenetic pace. All the players can play all the different positions.

So they kind of throw specialization out the window, which allows them to go so fast. It's high risk, it's high reward. And in this tournament, we saw that the rewards certainly outweigh the risks. It really took England at its very best to finally stop the way this team plays. And I think teams everywhere in the world have paid close attention. And I think we're going to start seeing teams copy what this women's national team is doing. Wow. Extraordinary. Even considering that, I mean, it took them crowdfunding nearly a million Canadian dollars to get to this tournament. Like just what they have accomplished on and off this field is incredible.

And one player in particular also being highlighted Canada's secret weapon, I guess, Sophie de Goody. She's been called the Swiss Army woman. Today, she was named the World Player of the Year. Tell me more about her. Wow. I mean, talk about the last two months for Canadian female athletes. Summer Macintosh breaking world records in swimming and Vicki and Boko and tennis having a dream run. And then, you know, we had Brooke Henderson, the Canadian Open Golf Champion.

And now I'm going to put Sophie to Goody right in that category. Player of the Year. Why is she Player of the Year? So many reasons. She is, when you describe her as being this multifaceted player, somebody who is, you unique. No one else is like her. It's, I think Shoi Otani in baseball, who pitches and hits is the closest thing. She kicks, gets all the points for Canada on kicking converts and kicking penalties. And then she's right in the thick of it offensively, right in the thick of it

defensively. She's everywhere all the time. And it was great to see her rewarded. You know, what a great backstory she has. Her mother was a captain of the Canadian women's national team. Her father, the captain of the men's national team. Talk about being born to play this sport. raised in Victoria, came to Queen's University in Kingston, won every award you could possibly win at the university level, played basketball as well at a super high level. And then when she went over to play in Europe, had a very, very serious knee injury,

not long before the Olympics, and she would have been won Canada's Olympic stars, missed out on that, took her pretty much a year to come back, and how does she come back? Being named the best player on the planet for 2025. So way to go, Sophie de Goody. Wow, incredible stuff.

good things seen from this team. Ed, thanks so much. Thanks, Stephanie. That's freelance sports reporter, Ed Klyman, in Toronto. Now there's another major sporting event happening this weekend. It's a high-flying tournament, or should I say, corn, ornament. And Prince Edward Island has it in the bag. Singing, cornhole. The first Canadian cornhole tournament is in Charlottetown.

If you don't know the game, maybe that's because you call it a beanbag toss when you were growing up, as most of us here at Your World Tonight did. As that name implies, two players tossed beanbags into a sloped platform, trying to make it into the hole with a satisfying thud. It's big at barbecues, backyard. campgrounds, is also a pro league. The American Cornhole Organization is behind the tournament. Frank Gears is the founder and president.

He told CBCPEI's Island Morning that he saw the game at a football tailgate and knew it could be a big hit. The first thing I did was I went out to find a way to manufacture the best boards and bags in the industry. At the time, everybody was building them in their backyard. You know, grandma is making the bags. You know, dads in the garage building the boards. but I went out and I found a furniture manufacturing business

that standardized the equipment itself. That's where I got started with the idea of taking it to the next level. 20 years later, the ACO does 43 tour stops in the U.S. plus the U.K. And now it's going to spend at least three years in Canada, playing PEI every September and May. Dozens of professional players travel to take part, but anyone is invited. There's prize money on the line and even maybe,

a chance to meet a soulmate. My doubles partner is my husband, and we actually met through Cornhole. Now we travel the world playing cornholes together. So our whole kind of story has revolved around Cornhole. Cornhole. And if you need an extra push to pick up a beanbag, here's an inspirational and definitely not corny tune.

This is Rhett and Link with the Cornhole song on your world tonight. I'm Stephanie Skanderas. Thanks for listening. Thank you.