Your World Tonight - Quebec’s premier quits, Greenland annexation talks, telco complaints rising, and more

Episode Date: January 14, 2026

Saddled with controversies, and lagging in the polls, Quebec Premier Francois Legault is stepping down. The announcement triggers a leadership race for the Coalition Avenir Quebec party, just months before a provincial election. Legault says he’ll stay in his post until his replacement is picked.Also: ‘Agree to disagree.’ Officials from Greenland and Denmark meet with members of the Trump Administration and politely push back against U.S. annexation threats, while NATO leaders pledge to boost security in the region.And: ‘Thank you for holding. What is your gripe?’ The new data that shows more Canadians than ever have a bone to pick with their telco providers.Plus: Concerns of U.S. strikes in Iran, PM Carney lands in China, Earth’s blistering heat-streak, and more.

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This is a CBC podcast. Writing was on the wall and it was time for him to go. Very happy. Honestly. I would understand that most Quebecers are asking for a change. I just wonder what this change will bring. I hope it's for the good. From the streets of Quebec, reaction to a resignation,

with the province facing an uncertain road ahead. After turning an upstart party into a political powerhouse in building a nearly decade-long legacy of leadership. Quebec Premier Francoislegoe is stepping down just months ahead of a provincial election. Welcome to Your World Tonight. I'm Susan Bonner. It is Wednesday, January 14th, just before 6 p.m. Eastern, also on the podcast. The president has made his view clear, and we have a different position.

It is a diplomatic divide for now, with the United States threatening to take over, Greenland and not ruling out using force, some European countries vowed to defend the territory as Danish and Greenlandic officials politely push back in Washington. For a time, Francois Legoe is Canada's most popular premier, winning consecutive majorities and giving voters a viable alternative to the Federalist Liberals and Sovereignist Paltese-Kebecua that governed the province for decades. But with his popularity slipping away and an election set for this fall, Legault says it's time for him to step down. Rafi Bougicannian has more.

Hello, all right. Quebec Premier Francois Lego with one of his last greetings to a province he led for seven years. A province with big challenges, he says, like revamping its economy, but also admitting he's no longer the choice voters want in tackling those issues. announcing he will step down as premier and leader of the party he co-founded and turned into a political force, the Coalition Avene Quebec, as soon as it chooses a successor. Legault and the CAQ first came to power in 2018, ending a nearly five decades stranglehold by the Quebec liberals or the sovereignist Party Quebecois. He shook things up right away.

Legault passed law 21 in his first mandate. Secularism legislation banning public sector workers in positions of authority from wearing overt religious symbols. Popular in Quebec, but so controversial, it still faces court challenges to this day. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, his approval surged. That led to a second majority mandate in 2022. Saying the electorate sent him a clear message. message, but that message quickly changed. Lago's government began facing fights with doctors after trying to change rules about how

they're paid. He also came under fire last year after he and his ministers testified at a public inquiry about a half-billion-dollar cost-over run linked to a new website for Quebec's Auto Insurance Board. And as as parties, poll numbers fell, the party Quebecois rebounded with a new leader. The more popular they were, the more they were trying to double down. on issues that are very polarizing in Quebec as a way to maybe jump back from that. Emily Nicola is an opinion columnist for Le Dovoire. Talking about the dangers of radical Islam, talking about immigration. To little success, she says.

A couple of Lago's ministers resigned last year for shadowing his announcement today. In new polling this week by Palace data, three quarters of Quebecers view Lago unfavorably. Polster Philippe Vournier says the odds of a CAQ comeback are long. pointing out even a referendum promised by the PQ is not making anyone budge. Many voters in Quebec, even though they're against sovereignty, are not scared of a referendum. And so this fear of referendum will not work that much in a campaign. And with the provincial election expected on October 5th,

Logos party is running out a runway to figure out what will. Rafi Bucanian, CBC News, Montreal. As concerned about a potential U.S. takeover rises in Greenland. Officials from the Arctic territory were in Washington today trying to get the Trump administration to back off, all while some of Greenland's NATO allies are making moves just in case. Katie Simpson reports. Denmark's foreign minister led out an exasperated sigh as he delivered a remarkable update following a high-level meeting with members of the Trump administration.

Lars Lach-Rasmussen acknowledged he and his Greenlandic counterpart were unable to convince American officials to end their annexation threats. And here our perspectives continue to differ. It's clear that the president has this wish of conquering over Greenland. Locke Rasmussen called that a red line for both Denmark and Greenland. Ideas that would not respect territorial integrity are of course totally unacceptable. During the meeting, he says Donald Trump's claims about Arctic security were met with a reality check of sorts, an acknowledgement that more can be done, while pointing out the U.S. already has the power to increase its military presence on the island,

saying that Trump's claims about hostile warships in the region are not accurate. Greenlands Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeld asking for the reference, and temperature to be lowered. How important it is from our side to strengthen our cooperation with the United States, but that doesn't mean that we want to be owned by the United States. Both ministers say they'll continue to have high-level talks with Trump officials in the weeks ahead, even as the U.S. president maintains his position. We need Greenland for national security, so we're going to see what happens.

Trump diminished the military capabilities of Denmark and NATO at large, as he says Greenland is vulnerable to possible attacks by Russia and China. I can't rely on Denmark being able to offend themselves off. Before the meeting, Sweden, France, Germany, Norway and Denmark all announced modest plans to provide additional supports for Greenland. While Denmark's defense minister tried to downplay growing fear, the U.S. will try to take Greenland by force. I can't imagine and I don't want to speculate

whether a NATO country would attack another, he said. Amid the uncertainty, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, delivered a message of support. We respect the wishes of the Greenlanders and their interests and that they can count on us. Von der Leyen insisted Arctic security is a priority in an attempt to address the U.S. concerns as she urged all members of the NATO Security Alliance to remain united. And we know that the glue between the Allies is the fact that there's always the clear motto, one for all, all for one. Trump's language suggests the U.S. views things differently

as he embraces an emboldened, imperialistic tone. Katie Simpson, CBC News, Washington. Iranian officials are calling for fast trials and executions for thousands of detained protesters. The first of those executions was expected today. President Trump says he's been told they will not happen. But there is growing fear for the safety of Iranians who have been arrested since protests began and growing outrage over the killings that have already

happened. Senior international correspondent Margaret Evans has the latest. Coffins draped in the Iranian flag are carried through the streets of Tehran on the backs of big open-air trucks, crowds surging forward in a bid to touch them. This is the send-off Iran's leadership is arranged for security forces, said to have been killed in the recent demonstration. Protestants blamed by Iran on what it calls outside agitators and terrorists. Mourners in the crowd believe their government when it says Iran's recent troubles have been sent from abroad. People who shoot others from their own country are not one of us, says this young woman, suggesting their U.S. or Israeli agents who deserve capital punishment.

The mass funerals are in operational. opportunity for the regime to get its supporters out on the streets in a show of force, says Skander Sadiki from the School of International Relations at the University of St. Andrews. It's concerned with showing to the world that it is in a strong position, that it's not sort of ripe for the picking. They're also busy with internal messaging. The NGO Iran Human Rights, based in Norway, says the number of protesters its confirmed killed is now over 3,000.

Most last Thursday and Friday just after Iran imposed its internet blackout. Mahmoud Amiri Mogadam is the director. Right now a major concern is the possibility of hasty executions of those who are arrested. Thousands have reportedly been detained and today Iran's

Supreme Court Justice called for trials to be held as soon as possible. A 26-year-old man named Erfan Sultani has already reportedly been sentenced to death. But in Washington, U.S. President Donald Trump announced he's been told executions are on hold. We have been informed by very important sources on the other side, and they've said they're killing us out, and the executions won't take place. Trump has been threatening to intervene in Iran for days now if protesters were harmed, yesterday encouraging demonstrators to take over government institutions. Amiri Mogadam says Trump's inaction in the face of so many deaths already

renders any threat meaningless. You know, these words will lose their significance. Iran has threatened to retaliate if the U.S. takes action. Today, Britain and the United States withdrew some of their military personnel from the Udaiad base in Qatar. The United Kingdom has also reportedly closed its embassy in Tehran temporarily. Margaret Evans, CBC News, London. President Trump's mid-east envoy has announced phase two of the plan to end the conflict in Gaza. It includes the creation of a technocratic Palestinian government in the territory,

the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the full disarming of Hamas. Trump unveiled the 20-point plan in October. It led to a ceasefire and the release of the remaining living hostages. Gaza health officials say nearly 450 Palestinians have died since then. Both sides allege violations of the agreement. Coming right up, setting up the stakes of a critical trade trip as the Prime Minister prepares to meet with Chinese leaders in Beijing. And after record-setting heat in previous years, 2025 was a bit cooler, but the forecast still is not good.

Later, we'll have this story. With the cost of seemingly everything up, complaints to Canada's telecom watchdog are at record levels two, with sky-high bills topping the list of gripes. Do you find it pretty expensive? The cost, really, it's like a lot. Everybody should just have cheaper plans. that's way more accessible. I'm Erin Collins in Calgary. I'll have the nearly unlimited data on that story.

Later, on your world tonight. In a few hours, Prime Minister Mark Carney begins his much-anticipated diplomatic and trade talks with Chinese officials. He is the first Canadian Prime Minister to visit Beijing since 2017. And Carney is hoping for a reset of relations between the two countries. The CBC's Tom Perry is in Beijing.

Tom, it was just a couple of years ago in 2024 that the liberal government said China was an increasingly disruptive global force. Now the prime minister is there at Xi Jinping's invitation. Break down for us what has changed. Well, Susan, you know, a couple of things have changed. One, Donald Trump is back in the White House and his second term has been even more erratic, turbulent than his first. Trump has imposed tariffs on Canada. and on other allies. He's talked about Canada becoming America's 51st state. He sent troops into Venezuela. He's threatened Greenland. And so he's really just upset, really, the whole world order that's been in place since the Second World War.

And Canada isn't the only country looking around for new partners. And China is as seen as one new potential partner. The other thing that we've seen is the government in Ottawa changing under former Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau. as you mentioned, we saw China detain Michael Cobring and Michael Spavour in retaliation for Canadian police arresting Meng Wangzhou, the Huawei executive. We saw allegations of China interfering in Canada's elections, a whole public inquiry into that. Now, Carney has also called China a threat. He said there's some areas like artificial intelligence, critical minerals, defense where Canada likely won't cooperate with Beijing. But we heard from Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand not long after we landed here, and we asked her about all this. And here's

some of what she had to say. This is a new government with a new prime minister, a new foreign policy, and a new geopolitical environment. In this moment of economic stress for our country, it is necessary for us to diversify our trading partners. So that was foreign affairs minister, Anita Anon, with a pretty clear message that this is a new government and that it wants to reset relations with China. Okay, so a reset, but still pretty clear potential pitfalls here. Realistically, what can we expect from these meetings? The biggest irritant between China and Canada right now is over trade. China has imposed tariffs on Canadian canola, pork, seafood. That's after Canada joined the U.S. and slapping a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles. It's going to be a tough one for the prime minister

to navigate because, you know, seafood and agriculture producers, they want to see tariffs on their products dropped. But Canada's auto sector and Ontario Premier Doug Ford, I say those EV tariffs need to remain in place to protect the Canadian auto sector from a flood of cheap Chinese EVs. Tom, thank you so much. Thank you. Tom Perry, reporting tonight from Beijing. The results are in, and if there were a grim competition for hottest year ever, 2025 would win bronze. A new report shows last year's global average temperatures were the third warmest on record, a slight cooldown from previous years. That was still destructive and deadly in some regions. Science and climate reporter Anand Ram explains. A man runs out of breath, filming a river of ice chunks, rushing down from the mountains of Tajikistan last October.

It's part of the Dadaal glacier and its sudden melt was triggered by hotter than usual temperatures. What researcher Arnod Kayserman calls a striking and rapid impact of climate change. We say it's surged, which means that you can see the glacier moving from top to valley bottom very rapidly, several meters per second. Based in the capital, Dushan Bay, Kayserman, saw how hotter temperatures last year had serious impacts on the land and on those who depend on it. We cultivate a lot of wheat, a lot of cotton, and a direct impact of this heatway was a decrease of the yields of this year. It's been estimated at minus 50%, so half of the harvests. For farmers in northeastern Senegal, the heat was inescapable, says Khadhi Kamara, a climate activist based in Dakar. It particularly affects the women, the brave women, who have no choice in that hot season but to go into the fields,

and stay out there. That extreme heat was felt in Canada too, Toronto, going through double its usual summer days over 30 degrees, and Lytton, BC, once erased by wildfire, notching several days above 40 degrees at the end of August. This is not good news, it's quite concerning. Florian Pappenberger led the European organization that released new data on the year that was.

2025 was the third warmest year on record just after 24 and 23. The heaviest thumb on the scale of all this is climate change. The report says humans burning fossil fuels accounts for the bulk of all that added heat. We certainly are in the hottest decade at the moment. Fahad Saeed is a scientist with climate analytics, a think tank. He says the solution is renewable energy and the world is investing in it twice as much as coal, oil and gas. So we are convinced that renewable is the future and we can phase out fossil fuel. It is making economic sense, but the scale and the speed at which it is needed, that is not happening.

And consider that there are signals that El Nino may be back by year's end, the warming climate phenomenon that gave 2024 and 2023 the mantle of the hottest years ever, at least so far. Arndram, CBC News, Toronto. Nearly two weeks after the U.S. capture of Venezuela's president, it still is not clear what's next for the country and its massive. oil reserves. Some in Canada's energy sector see the potential per opportunity. Kyle Bax explains. There is a network of friends, of parents, that you never saw again.

Pedro Pereira Al-Mao left Venezuela 20 years ago amid escalating government corruption, hostility, and state control. He moved to Calgary, becoming a university professor and co-founding an oil technology company. Now, he and others, involved. in the industry are intrigued by the potential resurgence of Venezuela's energy industry. We can go to Venezuela and contribute. Perreira Almo is a chemical engineer who began his career with Venezuela's state-owned oil company. Recent U.S. intervention and pledges by the Trump administration to rebuild the oil industry has him considering the idea of lending a helping hand. We need technology, what type of technologies, who are the best providers? The country,

need substantial infrastructure improvements. For foreign companies, that represents an enticing investment opportunity, along with Venezuela's vast energy reserves. Amit Monkaker operates consulting businesses in Canada and Colombia. We in Alberta have strong amount of knowledge in heavy oil and the viscosity in general of the oil between Alberta and Venezuela is similar. Obviously, a change is coming. We just not sure what it is yet. Calgary and Barry Blacklaw, was a permanent resident in Venezuela in the late 1990s, working in the energy sector. He's now in talks with oil companies, keen on Venezuela, since President Nicholas Maduro was removed by U.S. forces.

Even that night, I was getting emails from friends in Canada, and then since then 50, 60 different WhatsApp messages, emails, phone calls. But that excitement comes with caution. The U.S. will have to convince its own companies to invest, tens of billions of dollars. Those companies will also need to see government stability, new legal protections, and certainty that contracts will be honored. It's going to be difficult to feel safe in Venezuela.

Pereira Almo knows the violence all too well, painful and emotional memories from when he had to leave Venezuela under the dictatorship of Hugo Chavez. You have family that have died, people that were with you and were killed. decades of hostility needing to be resolved for Venezuela to forge a different future, one some Canadians are keen to help provide. Kyle Backs, CBC News, Calgary.

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. A new report on the Canadian telecom industry, shows customers are not putting their dissatisfaction on silent. They've dialed up complaints about their phone, internet, and television services. Erin Collins has more on the frustration and what experts say could fix it. Well, it's quite frustrating. Consumers should definitely be more taken care of.

Annoyed. Yeah, definitely annoyed. It's a familiar refrain, Canadians unhappy with their telecom providers. I do find it pretty expensive. The cost, really, It's like a lot. Everybody should just have cheaper plans. That's way more accessible. And a report released today quantifies those gripes. The Commission for Complaints for Telecom and Television Services Annual Report says complaints were up 17% last year.

Nearly 24,000 complaints were accepted by the CCTV, a record. A CCTV, says nearly half of those complaints involved billing. You know, the economic difficulties that a lot. lot of us are facing the increased cost of living. And so on the one hand, it's not incredibly surprising to see an increase in billing complaints. And that price pinch, a growing worry for many Canadians. Well, I mean, cost of living has just been going up these days. I've been falling behind on my payments, so trying to make arrangements has been challenging. Well, just everything's so expensive. I kind of had to find some. It wasn't the only thing that we cut, you know,

like at this time of year. Canada's cellular and internet prices long. seen as high compared to other countries. For many, many years, Canadians have been concerned about the prices they pay. Michael Geist is the Canada Research Chair in Internet and e-commerce law. He says the federal government has failed to increase competition in the telecommunication sector. In some ways, we've stepped back. The mergers that we've seen over the last number of years may have the effect of less competition, not more competition.

Two of Canada's biggest players came together in 2023. Rogers and Shaw merging despite concerns from the Federal Competition Bureau. The CCTS says it fielded more complaints about Rogers than any other company last year. Keldin Bester is the head of the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project. I think we really need to focus on how do we bring more competitors into the mix without forcing them to duplicate the billion-dollar investments that other companies have made. For its part, the group representing Canada's telecom company says that despite the rise in complaints, most Canadians are happy. In a statement, the Canadian Telecommunications Association

says less than 0.1% of Canadians complained about their telecom service last year. Aaron Collins, CBC News, Calgary. We closed tonight with a big honor for a Canadian-made car coming the day after this country's auto industry took another shot from Donald Trump. We don't need Canada product. That's the thing. You know, I want to be a nice person, but we don't I want to build the cars here, not in Canada. The U.S. President speaking yesterday in Detroit, questioning the need for Canadian auto production

and North American free trade. Fast forward to today, still in the Motor City, and one of those cars the president is not interested in took home one of the biggest prizes at the prestigious Detroit Auto Show. The winner of the North American car of the year is the Dodge Charger. The 2025 Dodge Charger is a gas, powered muscle car produced over the river from Detroit in Windsor, Ontario.

Dodge's CEO thanked workers at the Windsor Assembly Plant in his acceptance speech. James Stewart is the president of the local auto workers union. He says the award is a testament to Canadian workers and North American free trade. A Canadian assembled car, but the parts in that car are made all across North America and the trade agreements are what allow that to happen. So certainly that's important, and I know it's a little push on the trade issue, but really this is a fantastic thing for Salandis and for the workers of the Windsor Assembly plant

and for the onto industry here in Canada. The Canadian-made Charger was not the only winner. Detroit's truck of the year went to the 2025 Ford Maverick Lobo. It's Ford's only model of truck that isn't produced in the United States, proudly assembled in Mexico. Thanks for joining us for Your World Tonight for Wednesday, January 14th. I'm Susan Bonner. Talk to you again. For more CBC podcasts, go to cBC.ca.com.