Your World Tonight - First Ministers meeting, divorce bill, frozen juice freeze, and more

Episode Date: January 29, 2026

The Prime Minister gathers the nation’s Premiers in Ottawa for crucial talks on U.S. tariffs, interprovincial trade, and tensions over Canadian separatism.Also: Ottawa’s push to change the country’s divorce laws, and why children may get a bigger voice.And: Getting canned. How consumer habits are putting the squeeze on frozen concentrate juice in Canada.Plus: Pierre Poilievre’s big leadership test, U.S. Border Czar in Minneapolis, U.K.’s Starmer in China, E.U. designates Iranian Revolutionary Guard as terrorist entity, and more.

The Alto High Speed Rail Project is on track. Expected travel time from Toronto to Montreal, three hours. Next stop, public consultations in your community. Make your voice heard. Visit altotrain.ca for more information. This is a CBC podcast. To go to a foreign country and to ask for assistance in breaking up Canada, there's an old-fashioned word for that. And that word is treason.

They crossed the border wanting American support for, Alberta independence. BC's premier says that crossed a line. At a meeting, bringing provincial and territorial leaders together, a movement to separate stole the political spotlight. Welcome to your world tonight. I'm Susan Bonner. It is Thursday, January 29th, just before 6 p.m. Eastern, also on the podcast. I'm not getting up. I don't quit. So I'm going to keep on fighting for the Canadian people and their chance to have an affordable safe future. Pierre Pauliev asking for a second chance, as the federal conservatives gather in Calgary,

the leader is under review and facing a critical vote that will determine his and his party's future. Also, the mission is going to improve because of the changes we're making it internally. The Trump administration admitting its Minneapolis crackdown needs to be fixed, and that could mean pulling back federal agents. It was a meeting aimed at projecting a united front, but as Prime Minister Mark Carney sat down with provincial and territorial premiers in Ottawa, they were forced to confront a divisive issue, a potential referendum on Alberta independence and the role Americans may be playing. Tom Perry reports.

The focus of the meeting last night, today, the meeting of the Council Federation before that, was how we come together and build. Coming out of their meeting, the message from Prime Minister Mark Carney and Canada's premiers is that they are united. Focused as a team on growing the economy at a time when the U.S., Canada and Mexico are set to review Kusma, the North American Free Trade Agreement. And we agreed that we will meet monthly once those discussions begin. But cross-border trade wasn't the only topic up for discussion. Going into today's meeting, BC Premier David Eby raised the alarm about another potential quarrel with the U.S. administration. A report that members of an Alberta separatist group had traveled to Washington to meet with representatives of the U.S. State Department. To go to a foreign country and to ask for assistance in breaking up Canada, there's an old-fashioned word for that.

And that word is treason. The State Department says it meets with all kinds of what it calls. civil society groups. But U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besson recently called Alberta a natural partner for the U.S. And U.S. President Donald Trump has made no secret of his wish to see Canada become America's 51st state. Ontario Premier Doug Ford wouldn't go so far as to call these meetings an act of treason, but says they are unacceptable. But this is an opportunity for Premier Smith to stand up and say enough is enough. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she wants Alberta to remain in Canada, but won't demonize

or marginalize people who she says have legitimate grievances with the federal government. As for the U.S. and whether it's offering covert support to secessionist forces, Smith says she expects Washington to respect Canadian sovereignty. And I will raise that with my delegate and in Washington so he can raise it with members of the administration. And I will raise it with my delegate in Ottawa so he can raise it with the U.S. ambassador. Prime Minister Mark Carney echoed that, saying he's always been clear in his dealings with Donald Trump he expects the U.S. to respect Canada's sovereignty. The prime minister today, however, seeking to focus more on his message of unity,

pledging to work with the premiers to build Canada. Even as some inside and perhaps outside the country seek to break it apart. Tom Perry, CBC News, Ottawa. There was also some levity at the Premier's meeting when Manitoba's Premier addressed his ongoing rivalry with Ontario's Doug Ford, prompting the Prime Minister to interject. We come out here at every press conference, and there's always, you know, trying to find the divisions. They want there to be a heated rivalry between Doug Ford and I.

But we're on the same team. I want you to just... I want you to just take that image. The heated rivalry between Doug Ford and Woff Canoe. The steamy Canadian series heated rivalry is about two gay professional hockey players who fall in love. Canoe and Ford are at odds over Crown Royal Whiskey. Ford wants it pulled from provincial shelves

because the company is moving a bottling plant to the U.S. Canoe says Ford's actions will affect jobs in Manitoba, where the whiskey is distilled. Federal Conservatives kick off their party convention in Calgary tonight, and there is a lot at stake. Pierre Pahliav is facing a vote on whether he should stay on as leader after losing the last election. As Olivia Stefanovic reports,

Pauliev's future will come down to the numbers. I'm not getting up. I don't quit. In a social media video released just before a crucial vote that will determine his future, Pierre Pollyev makes it crucial. clear. He won't back down from being conservative leader easily. So I'm going to keep on fighting for the Canadian people and their chance to have an affordable safe future. Polyev's fate lies in the hands of conservative delegates, who the conservative leader has been

courting over the last few months. I think for this party to move forward, we have to continue supporting the leader that is in front of us. I would be surprised if he gets less than 90%. Polster David Coletto says Pauliev's fixation on lowering crime, and the cost of living is paying dividends. I kind of believe he will do okay. The question is, you know, can he find a way to take that energy he's still held within the base of the party and convince Canadians outside of it that he's the best person to lead the country in the future? Even though he led his party to historic gains in the last federal election, the conservatives

came in second and Pahliav lost his own riding, forcing him to be absent from the spruce. sitting in the House of Commons and win a seatback and a conservative-friendly Alberta by-election. When it comes to Pauliev's personal favorability now, Coletto, the CEO of Abacus Data, says Pauliev trails far behind Prime Minister Mark Carney. I think it's in part because the question that a lot of Canadians are answering when they are asked, who do you think would make the best Prime Minister, is being framed around international stability? Who do we think has the experience to handle the moment? Pauliev is also struggling to get the backing of big-name conservative premiers.

Well, I'm really focused on Ontario. We're having our convention the same time they are. When asked if Pauliev is the national leader conservatives need right now, Ontario Premier Doug Ford avoided giving a direct answer. That's going to be up to them to determine. Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, who has said the federal conservatives needed to do some soul-searching after the April election loss, also didn't comment when asked whether Pollyev should continue to lead the party. It's not something that I've been focused on.

I mean, I won't be attending the convention. I'm not a member of the federal party, so I've kind of been focused on my Nova Scotia priorities. One source tells CBC News, Pollyev will have to score 84%. The same number former Prime Minister Stephen Harper got during a leadership review in 2005. To silence questions about his future,

future and viability as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. Olivia Estevanovich, CBC News, Calgary. Coming right up, it's not something you hear very often from the Trump administration, admitting it has a problem and promising to fix the situation in Minneapolis. And the European Union further isolates Iran as the regime says it is ready to respond to a U.S. attack. And later we'll have this story. They've been in thousands, if not millions of Canadian freezers for generations. But those frozen cans of concentrated juice may soon be impossible to find in supermarket.

Older clientele know what it is. The newer clientele just goes, why is it frozen? Why would I buy it? I'm Niz Hadari in Toronto. Coming up on your world tonight, how shifting tastes in Canada mean your glass of once frozen OJ may not be half full, just empty. It's the clearest admission yet from the Trump administration. that its immigration crackdown in Minneapolis is getting out of control. There is growing public outrage over the operation and the killing of two protesters.

Now the president's new point person in the city is promising change. Katie Simpson reports. President Trump wants this fixed, and I'm going to fix it. The U.S. borders are Tom Holman, the new head of immigration operations in Minneapolis, conceding this project has not gone as planned. I'm not here because the federal government has carried this mission out perfectly. Holman pledged to work with local and state leaders to start winding down operations as long as there is cooperation. We are not surrendering our mission at all. We're just doing it smarter.

For example, he wants federal agents to have access to jails to make it easier to pick up wanted individuals already in custody. And he says ICE agents will focus on more targeted missions for specific people. There have been widespread complaints that Americans have been questioned after being racially profiled by federal officials. For those of you that have been watching the news and what's happened in Minneapolis, I'll tell you, it is that bad. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Fry, who is strongly opposed to the surge of federal agents in his city, is trying to maintain pressure on the Trump administration to end the operation altogether immediately. At a summit for mayors held in Washington, he delivered a stark warning to his peers. This is not a time to bend our heads in despair or out of fear that we may be next,

because if we do not speak up, if we do not step out, it will be your city that is next. Protesters yell at vehicles that come and go from the federal building where ICE operations are being managed. Demonstrators, including Douglas Johnson, say they're skeptical of the new tone from the Trump administration. Well, they perpetually lie, so I don't have any trust in... What they say, basically. Another protester, who would only give her first name as Harris, says she also doesn't believe the Trump team, though she is inspired by the pushback from her community.

It's something that I hope I get to teach my nieces about as just a brief moment in American history when the country came to its senses and put an end to this. There are also calls for the international community to get involved. Ted Margotten says Canadians should continue boycotting the U.S. I don't understand why anybody would come and want to visit and spend money in this country with how they're treated. Another general strike-type protest is being organized for Friday. Local demonstrators hope Americans across the country will join in.

Katie Simpson, CBC News, Minneapolis. The European Union has designated Iran's Revolutionary Guard, a terrorist organization after its deadly crackdown against Iranian protesters. All the while, rhetoric from the regime is heating up. and so are the military threats from the U.S. Senior international correspondent Margaret Evans has the latest. That's the sound of an American fighter jet taking off from the USS Abraham Lincoln. File footage of the aircraft carrier finding its way

onto newscasts around the world as tensions ratchet up in the Middle East. The carrier, the centerpiece of what U.S. president, Donald Trump, is called his beautiful armada, floating towards Iran. A negotiating tactic, a genuine threat, or maybe both. Iran insists if the U.S. does attack, it will answer with everything it has. Hi, Larson.

How are you? In Brussels, the European Union's foreign policy chief, Kayakhalis, said the region doesn't need a new war. But foreign ministers did agree to put Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the EU's list. of terrorist organizations. This will put them on the same footing with Daesh, Hamas, Hezbollah, Al-Qaeda. The Revolutionary Guard is the most powerful of Iran's myriad security forces, accused of orchestrating the attacks on anti-government protesters that have left many thousands dead.

Canada designated it a terrorist group in 2024. Iranian expats. demonstrating in Brussels largely welcomed the decision, criticized by some as merely symbolic. Ali Bagheri is one of the organizers. It's a very, very strong signal from the European Union in supporting of the Iranian people. Iranians inside and out of the country

are divided over U.S. military intervention. Niku Abu Talabi is a legal professional in Brussels. For America to bomb us, we don't ask, all of that. The rest is up to the people of Iran inside Iran. Dr. Massa Mouin al-Sadat left Iran in 2009, just after the Green Revolution, another uprising put down by the regime. Watching from Canada, she says the diaspora feels helpless. We are a country with 2,500 years of being a country. So when we are asking for help, from foreigners to come and help us, we are desperate.

It is by no means certain a U.S. strike would guarantee regime change in Iran. Washington's allies in the Gulf are warning against it, and Donald Trump is now talking more about a deal to limit Iran's nuclear capabilities than the recent crackdown. Mark Redevins, CBC News, London. Less than two weeks after Mark Carney visited China, Britain's Prime Minister is now in Beijing. Kier-Starmer is meeting with Chinese officials. with uncertainty and unpredictability coming from Washington, Western countries are hoping to reset their relationships with the world's second largest economy.

Chris Brown has more from London. Chinese State TV showed a video of a smiling Kier Sturmer in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, moving along a receiving line of soldiers from the People's Liberation Army. British media report that the first visit by a UK Prime Minister in eight years is getting lots of coverage in the Chinese media, and Starmor's host, President Xi Jinping, appeared to confirm that. Your visit has received high attention, said Xi,

as he went on to say, if their countries respect each other, they can deliver results that can withstand the tests of history. The UK and Canada both have a recent history of troubled political relations with Xi and China, and both countries are also being buffeted by Donald Trump's terror, and his unpredictability. We had a very good productive session with real concrete outcomes. Starrmer left Beijing with a deal to cut Chinese tariffs on whiskey,

build new drug-making facilities in China, and an agreement for more visa-free access to China for UK citizens. China also got what it wanted with approval just prior to Starmor's trip of a huge new embassy in North London. Britain's conservative opposition was unimpressed, saying Starmor shouldn't have even gone that Chinese hacking and security risks outweigh anything good he might come home with. But Jai and Chong with the National University of Singapore says re-engaging with Beijing makes sense for both sides. Middle powers who for a long time have been staunch allies of the U.S.

figure that they need to, you know, have more options at their fingertips. China also needs new export markets as its slumping domestic economy has led to overcapacity. Shan Chan Mei is with the Rand Corporation think tank in Washington, D.C. So China wants to expand access to markets, right? I mean, European consumers, UK consumers and Canadian consumers as well. And all of these, I think, tells a coherent strategic thinking from Beijing's perspective. On the touchy issue of China's human rights, record. Starmer says he raised a case of Jimmy Lai, a 78-year-old dual Hong Kong

British citizen and pro-democracy crusader. Lai has been in solitary confinement in prison after being found guilty of organizing protests against China's Communist Party. Starmor said the discussion with Xi was respectful, but he wouldn't say in public, what, if anything, was agreed to. Chris Brown, CBC News, London. People leaving abusive relationships escape physical and emotional pain, not just against them, but often also against their children. The divorce process can put kids back in harm's way.

Now, a liberal MP wants to fix that, with changes to divorce laws that could give children more say. Jamie Strachan has more. As a young child, I did not understand what was happening to me because I had no... 15-year-old is Mina Tascan says she was. was sexually abused by her father for years. Something began to feel wrong, even if I did not yet have the words for it. And when I started to question what was happening, I was met with control and intimidation. After her parents separated, Tuscant says her father was able to stay in her life,

claiming parental alienation. A private member's bill, the Keeping Children's Safe Act, aims to amend parts of the Divorce Act and give a stronger voice to children like Tuscan, says it's author Liberal MP Lisa Hepner. going to be transformative to our family court system. It is going to treat children like people, rather than like property that must be split equally in a divorce. The bill would require lawyers to screen for signs of domestic violence during divorce proceedings, and judges could in some cases speak directly with children.

Something long overdue, says family lawyer Susan Barry. What I see in my practice is children do express. their concerns the first time they speak to professionals. But that information is immediately released to the parents who then use that information to manipulate the children. Toronto family lawyer Jared Grossman says he's supportive of many of the bill's aims but is wary of the proposed additional roles for lawyers and judges. I was not trained as a social worker.

I was not trained as a therapist or a psychoanalyst. My job is a lawyer and I went to law school to become a lawyer. And I get nervous about this onus for us to do something, and God forbid if something happens, well, does that create an extra liability on me as the lawyer or the judge for that matter? The more than 300 groups nationally backing the bill also point to the proposed changes that would address stereotypes surrounding family violence. Suzanne Zaccour is the Director of Legal Affairs at the National Association of Women and the Law. Every other day, we have another survivor that reaches out.

and they all share the same story. They left an abuser. They discloses violence. And then they got punished for being labeled, you know, difficult, vindictive, an alienator. Hapner's private member's bill has gone through second reading and is set for a final vote next week. Jamie Strasson, CBC News, Toronto. New research suggests polar bears in the Arctic

are finding new ways to hunt and survive despite shrinking sea ice. John Ors leads a team tracking the animals on Norway's northern islands. I was quite surprised because we have lost so much sea ice only since I started, you know. As a fat bear is the healthy bear. Traditionally, the bears hunt on ice for seals. But Orr says many are now catching prey on land, like reindeer and walruses. More research is needed to learn how bears and other parts of the Arctic are adapting. Scientists warn their findings may be temporary as the climate continues to warm.

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. For millions of Canadians, a glass of juice started in the freezer, whether it was OJ or a... a sweet fruit punch. The recipe was simply adding water to a frozen can of concentrate. Anise Hedari reports now on how the once popular product is getting squeezed out of the juice market.

It's been a dying category for a few years. Munther Zeed owns and manages food fair in Winnipeg. The grocery store still carries frozen juice from concentrate, but he says it's not very popular anymore. The frozen juice is a lot of people in today's age, the older client, know what it is. The newer clientele just goes, why is it frozen? Why would I buy it? It used to take up a full cabinet in his freezer section. Now, just a few shelves, and that's about to change. We know that it's being discontinued. We sort of had a feeling of it because the generic brands were being discontinued. So we were curious of when it's going to be gone

completely. It'll be gone once the last cans are sold because the Coca-Cola company is discontinuing frozen canned juice in both the U.S. and Canada by the end of March. Did I ever think it would disappear off the shelves? No. But now that we know that it is, it really does make sense from an industry streamlining perspective and from a consumer demands perspective. Emma Balmint is a director with market research firm Ipsis Canada, who focuses on the food and beverage industry. She says juice overall is becoming less popular. And frozen concentrate only accounted for 7% of all the juice. juice Canadians drink. So if this category is forced to reassess itself and streamline

itself for profitability in a market where profitability is a challenge, Frozen Concentrate is really just the one that is going to get the chop. It's not just orange juice. Frozen 5 alive? Also dead. But alternatives like Old South or generic store brands are also unavailable. After investigating, CBC News found they were discontinued by the other company that makes frozen concentrate last year. In a statement, juice manufacturer Lassonde said demand was steadily declining. Sobe's Safeway

and Loblaw did not answer questions about the future of frozen juice at their stores. Metro said it was looking at how to fill the gap. But Je Jong says the money is likely squeezed out. He's with the Ivy Business School in London, Ontario. When a dominant player like

Coke shuts down production, the scale that supports the entire supply chain in the region, the cartons, aluminum lids, specialized packaging will all disappear. So production costs will increase, and retailers have little reasons to keep the category alive. Without any reason to bring back frozen juice, over in St. John's Newfoundland, shopper Jenna Hopkins realized she needs to change one tradition. Oh, we have to change our slash recipe.

I have to figure out something new to use. That's so sad. New recipes, since the future. of frozen juice in Canada might just be a pulp fiction. Anishead R.CBC News, Toronto. Finally tonight, they put their stamp on Canadian music. Now their faces are being put on Canadian stamps. Maestro Fresh West is among three Canadian hip-hop artists featured on postage stamps, unveiled this week, by Canada Post. The rapper and producer is a pioneer of Canadian hip-hop and the first to attract a major.

mainstream audience with his 1989 hit, let your backbone slide. I never thought we had her own stamps, but how cool is that. I feel great because my parents are still alive to watch me being acknowledged, you know what I'm saying? My mom and my dad, you know what I mean? My whole family. So it's a beautiful thing.

Toronto's Mishy Me broke into the music scene with her 1987 song elements of style. She's considered the godmother of Canadian hip-hop and a trailblazer for black women in music. I feel so good that in Black History Month, we have a reputation, specifically of a female artist, on a stamp, we did it. We did it. Hip-hop, its richest level, and now we're here. The other stamp honors Mazion, a Quebec-based group that layered lyrics in French, English, and Haitian Creole.

The stamps are part of Canada Post's Black History Month collection. Thanks for joining us on this edition of Your World Tonight for Thursday, January 29th. Honor. Talk to you again. For more CBC podcasts, go to CBC.ca.ca.ca.