Your World Tonight - U.S. asking for trade talk ‘entry fee’, another ceasefire extension, UK smoking ban, and more

Episode Date: April 22, 2026

Prime Minister Mark Carney says the U.S. won’t dictate terms when the two countries meet to talk trade.And: U.S. President Donald Trump has indefinitely extended the U.S. ceasefire with Iran. It was supposed to end today. Despite the truce Trump says the U.S. blockade of Iran's ports in the Strait of Hormuz will continue. And Iran fired on and seized several ships in strait.Also: Children in Britain, and anyone born in the future, will never be able to legally buy cigarettes there. Lawmakers have voted to ban the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after January 1, 2009. The goal is to create the first smoke-free generation.Plus: Gene therapy for deafness, Ottawa considers turning the former Kingston Penitentiary into housing, Air Transat and Lufthansa cut thousands of flights as jet fuel prices soar, and more.

I'm Lisa Yuso, a digital producer at Ideas, the podcast that likes to feed your curiosity. I ask my colleagues why they think you should listen. Ideas can make you the smartest, most interesting guest at your next dinner party in less than 60 minutes. It's got the best of a storytelling podcast with the best of a great lecture. You can pretty much never predict where an episode will take you, but you can count on every episode to shift your perspective. even just a little. Find and follow ideas wherever you get your podcasts. This is a CBC podcast. There are two countries that have retaliated economically against

the United States in the past year. The People's Republic of China and Canada. So that's kind of the company that they're running in. As Donald Trump's trade representative testifies before a congressional committee, word the administration is demanding what amounts to an entry fee. Economic concessions from Canada before the U.S. will be in any trade talks. This is your world tonight. I'm Dave Seglins. It is Wednesday, April 22nd, coming up on 6 p.m. Eastern. Also on the podcast. We might experience security of supply problems on jet fuel. We already see airlines starting to reduce their demand by by closing down different routes. A warning from the EU about long-term energy shortages due to the U.S. war with Iran.

Lufthansa has cut 20,000 flights, and Air Transat is also altering its schedule just ahead of the busy summer travel season. We start with that apparent wrench the U.S. has lobbed into Kuzma talks. All day, the Kearney government has been batting down claims that Ottawa is on the back foot with Trump's trade team, and the Canada needs to give up a lot more just to get a seat at the table. Rafi Bujican takes us through today's drama and reaction. We understand what the Americans would call trade irritants or trade issues are. Prime Minister Mark Carney not quite in denial trade talks with the U.S. or Rocky, but insisting they have not stopped.

We have multiple levels of contact. Multiple sources of told Radio Canada the Americans consider getting rid of some of these irritants as entry fees, the starting formal talks about Cozma, the free trade deal between Canada, the U.S., and Mexico, citing long-standing complaints from U.S. officials like supply management protections, digital sovereignty legislation, or how some liquor boards have stopped selling American booze. Insulting our closest ally. The disputes between Canada and the U.S. now coming into political focus as the latter heads toward midterm elections. Democrat Senator from New Hampshire, Jean Shaheen,

grilling Howard Lutnik, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce during a hearing in D.C. on Wednesday. all those Canadian visitors who are not coming because of your comments and comments by the administration. How does that help our economy? It is outrageous that Canada will not put U.S. spirits on the shelf. It is insulting. It's also a decision by provinces which run liquor boards. And today, Ontario Premier Doug Ford again says he has no intention to budge. You never roll over to a bully. Speaking at a Globe and Mail conference, Ford revisited the tariffs the U.S. has in place over sectors that are key to Canada's largest province like Otto and Steel, then added... We have to wait until USMCA is renewed. Jameson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, picked at the alcohol scab today as well, saying it's about time. The boycott stopped.

We're kind of at the end of our rope in just asking for them to do this. Think about this way. There are two countries that have retaliated economically against the United States in the past. year, the People's Republic of China and Canada. Canada has made concessions, getting rid of multiple counter tariffs, dumping digital sales tax on tech giants. Dominic LeBlanc, the Minister for Canada-U.S. trade says there are some red lines for the country. We're not going to make a series of concessions or agreed to a series of things that aren't in the

interest of the Canadian economy. Mexico was scheduled to start its two-way talks with the U.S. in May. If Canada can't join them in a three-way agreement on how to review Kuzma by Canada Day, the existing treaty remains in effect, but with no end insight to the volatility that's defined relations south of the border for more than a year now. Rafi Buccan, Yom CBC News, Ottawa. With more, we turn to Catherine Cullen, host of CBC Radio's The House. Catherine, this trade war with the U.S. It was a central issue in the last election.

What are the politics at play for the liberals? Well, the liberals are setting some political expectations here, Dave, for yet another challenging road ahead with the United States. They are at once trying to reassure Canadians, suggesting the number of areas of concern is finite, that there's less work to do than there is with Mexico, but also a warning, as Rafi said, of bumps ahead because even after several significant concessions that Canada has made to the United States,

It seems the U.S. still wants more, this sort of entrance fee in the form of further concessions. And that has the potential to be politically risky for Mark Carney. There were a couple of moments during the election campaign this time last year, where Carney said Canada was going to win the trade war with the United States, that he was going to get a deal. Well, we know there is no new deal, and it's pretty hard to argue that Canada has won. But public support for Carney is even higher now, than a year ago because he has repeatedly insisted he will be strong in the face of pressure,

be pragmatic, and ceding too much ground to the U.S. would violate that pretty central part of his appeal. How do we make sense of that, that Carney continuing to have success on this file, even though he hasn't lived up to that high bar promise that he set for winning the trade war? I think there's a few things going on. One is that Donald Trump has proved to be so much more disruptive and erratic than many people bargained for. Canadians are perhaps willing to stomach some level of tariffs when they see that pretty

much the whole world is also facing tariffs. Carney likes to say that Canada has the best deal in the world. Well, that deal is Kuzma, the new NAFTA. It's not a deal he struck. But countries that did make specific new deals on tariffs, in some cases those deals don't look so great right now. So there's perhaps some virtue in not having a bad new deal. Okay, that's the politics for the liberals.

What about the conservatives? If you're pure Polyev, you thought you had a walk on becoming prime minister and you lost the job because Mark Carney came along and promised he could save this country from Trump. But Carney hasn't gotten a deal. So Poliiev continues to hammer home the idea that Carney isn't living up to his own high rhetorical bar. He's not getting the job done, hoping that a growing number of Canadians will run out of patience. with Carney, perhaps come to feel that Carney has failed at the most important part of the job he was hired for. Right now, though that is clearly not the case, Dave.

All right, Catherine, thank you. Thank you. Host of CBC Radio's The House, Catherine Cullen in Ottawa. Coming right up, the end of smoking. That's the UK government's goal. It's just passed a bill to make it illegal for anyone born after 2008 to buy cigarettes, now or at any time in the future. And a new treatment targets a hereditary form of hearing loss.

We'll tell you about the science that some experts say is groundbreaking. And later, we'll have this story. Canada's most notorious prison survived riots, fires, and escapes, all while holding infamous criminals. Now there are questions about who could be living there next. The federal government has added Kingston Penitentiary to its list of properties with housing potential, and locals have strong opinions.

I think they should just burn it to the ground, get rid of all the evil spirits. I'm Dan Takima in Kingston, Ontario. Later on your world tonight, imagine if the big house was your house. President Trump has indefinitely extended the U.S. ceasefire with Iran, which was supposed to end today. Despite the truce, he says the U.S. blockade of Iran's ports in the Strait of Hormuz will continue putting pressure on peace talks. Iran says it won't resume negotiations until the blockade ends. Paul Hunter has the latest from Washington. In and around the Strait of Hormuz, confusion, frustration, and now, even with the U.S. extending its ceasefire, more conflict. Iran, today, firing on three ships in the strait, seizing two of them.

With apparent anger that despite the ceasefire, the U.S. is still blockading Iranian ports, Iran's president posting on social media, bad faith, siege and threats are the main obstacles to genuine negotiation, slamming stalled peace talks as hypocritical and empty. We did not request a ceasefire. We were never seeking a ceasefire, said Ibrahim Azizi, chair of Iran's National Security Commission. We will not leave this battlefield, he said, until the aggressor is seriously punished. We have abundant. capabilities. On the streets of Tehran, those capabilities underlined as Iranian authorities paraded a giant, long-range ballistic missile through the capital's packed and cheering

Revolution Square. This is a regime that has survived sanctions for decades, crippling sanctions. Sajun Goal is International Security Director at the Asia Pacific Foundation, telling CBCC news this morning, Iran is eminently capable of outlasting the U.S. Yes, the blockade is going to hurt them, but in many ways that pain is going to be transferred to the ordinary people of Iran, not necessarily to the regime. All of this as Israel continues to strike at Lebanon, despite a ceasefire in that region. Today, targeting a vehicle in the southern part of that country, killing two people, the latest of several such strikes since the ceasefire began last week.

Meanwhile, in the U.S. I'm not going to set a timetable for the president. White House press secretary Caroline Levitt telling reporters Donald Trump has set no deadline for hearing back from Iran regarding next steps and that the U.S. blockade is, in her words, strangling the Iranian economy. And she would not say how long Trump will let the ceasefire continue. He will dictate the timetable and the cards are in President Trump's hands right now. But back on the streets of Tehran signals Iranians see no short-term solution.

The U.S. never backs down, said this man, adding, unless U.S. policy changes, it's a matter of whichever country shows greater resilience. Paul Hunter, CBC News, Washington. Air Transat and Lufthansa are grounding planes and cutting thousands of flights as jet fuel prices soar and supplies plummet, all due to the war in Iran and the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz. As Nisha Patel reports, they are just the latest carriers to slash schedules all ahead of a turbulent summer for travelers. The coming months will be filled with uncertainties. Most of Europe's jet fuel is imported from the Middle East.

Now European Commissioner for Energy, Dan Jorgensen, says the Iran War is putting pressure on those supplies. We will step up action to ensure that the supply of fuels, including four planes, are adequate across the whole Union. The International Energy Agency warning Europe could see jet fuel shortages by May or June. Commodities analyst James Noel Beswick says countries are scrambling to find replacements from the U.S. and West Africa. The supply chains, the stocks are just getting worse and worse. The only solution to this now is a resolution in the straits that will, will take months to have effect. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz is driving up the price of jet fuel to 188 US dollars a barrel.

That's doubled from the same time a year ago. Now, German airline Lufthansa is slashing 20,000 European shore haul flights over the summer because they're too expensive to operate. There is not enough time to fix this for some holiday season as we think of it in Europe. Canada's domestic supply of jet fuel is considered stable, but airlines here pay global prices and are also facing soaring costs. Air Transit is cutting capacity by 6% from May to October on some routes to Europe and the Caribbean. Air Canada and WestJet have also moved recently to drop less profitable flights.

Travel advisor Mackenzie McMillan says it means fewer options for travelers. Instead of having five flights a day that are 80% full, they'll have four flights a day that are all completely sold out. Airlines are required to rebook passengers that are affected by flight cancellations, though McMillan's says getting travel insurance is always a good idea. It's just a lot of what-ifs right now. And so to that, what I can say is just make sure that you plan ahead and make sure that you keep your trips flexible. He says he's still seeing huge demand for summer travel,

with many airlines raising ticket prices, passing on some of their costs to passengers. We don't see any situation where we think we're going to see last-minute deals or any price drops over this summer. It's going to be an expensive summer to travel. And unless the straight opens, These disruptions may be just beginning. Nisha Patel, CBC News, Toronto.

Former Toronto homicide inspector Hank Idinga is accusing the city's police service of allowing anti-Semitism and anti-black racism to fester. Edzinger led high-profile murder investigations before leaving the service two years ago. He says during his time there, he witnessed multiple examples of internal anti-Semitism and racism toward other members of the force.

In an interview with CBC, He says some calls from the public may not be taken as seriously as others. If you call to make a complaint about anti-Semitic behavior, let's say just to package that in a nutshell, you need to be aware that the person you're making that complaint to, the very well might be an anti-Semite themselves. That's why you have to constantly stay on top of that complaint that you've made. The Toronto Police Service says it cannot substantiate his claim. and that allegations of discrimination are taken seriously.

TPS also says there are clear mechanisms for members to report concerns about the conduct of other employees. The full interview will be on the national on CBC TV tonight. A Quebec City resident is facing terrorism charges in connection with the 764 extremist network. The 26-year-old is accused of promoting and publishing graphic and violent content. In December, Canada became the first country to designate 764 as a terrorist entity. The group uses social media and online networks to extort and manipulate young people into committing violent and sexual acts. The RCMP says the alleged victims are mainly teenagers. Justice Minister Sean Fraser announced the government is moving forward with $50 million annually to fund services for victims and survivors of crime.

proposed legislation aims to protect children and survivors of sexual and intimate partner violence. We're also moving to address gaps in the law when it comes to using AI deepfakes to circulate intimate images without a person's consent, addressing delays in the justice system because we are seeing too many cases being dismissed without them coming to a final verdict. And we are restoring mandatory minimums in the criminal code to ensure that where serious crimes are committed, there will be serious penalties. Fraser says he's hoping to see cross-party collaboration to allow these bills to advance quickly. The UK has passed a law making it illegal to sell cigarettes to anyone 17 and younger, from this year on and then for the rest of their lives. It's pitched as a way to help ease the burden on the health care system and to save lives,

but as Breyer Stewart reports, not everyone is convinced this ban will work. On a Linden University campus, students sit on the ground. and outside at tables enjoying the sunshine. And some do it with a cigarette in hand. Many of those taking a smoke break became addicted in their teens. An age group, the UK government, hopes to deter by restricting the sale of tobacco products.

It wouldn't stop people from doing it. Count Yiju Wang and her friends among the doubters. I think it might be effective, but only on a very superficial level because people would be, like, getting them from some black markets. Do you think if you were younger, it would have stopped you from smoking or no? No. No. I still did anyway underage. You know, you find a way. If you want to and you're a rebellious teenager, you know, you'll find a way.

Studies estimate that as many as one in seven adult smoke in Britain and that more than 60,000 die each year in England from smoking. Jillian Maren is a member of the House of Lords and is talking about what's being described as landmark legislation. Once the bill receives Royal Ascent next week, it will mean that anyone born in 2009 and later will never be legally able to buy cigarettes in the UK. It will create a smoke-free generation. It is, in fact, the biggest public health intervention in a generation. Part of the legislation will also tighten rules around the marketing and sale of vapes, which are popular among younger age groups. The Maldives has already passed.

a similar law and so did New Zealand, but it ended up being repealed after a new government came to power. The British law will be watched closely by other countries, including Canada. Both PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador are studying whether to ban the sale of cigarettes to those born after a certain year. The British legislation is significant and historic. Rob Cunningham is a senior policy analyst with the Canadian Cancer Society. There's never going to be 100% compliance. You know, for speeding laws on the highway, there's not 100% compliance, but it makes a difference. Back in London, Sarah Kasam, who's studying law, says she understands why the British government wanted to act,

but isn't sure about the legislation. I don't think it's necessarily fair to limit a whole generation. Instead, she thinks the focus should be on even more education. Breyer-Stewart, CBC News, London. There is some optimism tonight surrounding a new treatment for some people with hearing loss. The procedure targets gene mutations passed down through generations. Lauren Pelley takes us through the science and the surprising results. Three months after having a gene therapy treatment, a young study participant was able to hear music and dance to it.

Yeah, Mama. Seven months later, that same toddler could hear and repeat his mother's words. The significance of this really cannot be underestimated. Harvard University researcher Zenyi Chen led a new study that's published today in the journal Nature. His team recruited people in China with a specific type of hereditary hearing loss caused by a mutated gene. Each participant was given an injection that delivered a new healthy gene right into their inner ear. The study found some level of hearing was restored for most of the participants, who ranged in age from eight months to 32 years old.

He's a life-changing experience. Infants and teens had the best results. A young patient who got the treatment at the age of one is still able to hear three years later. This study is showing longer-term benefits, so it's groundbreaking in that respect. Robert Harrison is a professor at the University of Toronto and senior scientist emeritus at the hospital for sick children.

He did flag some key limitations to the new research. The gene being studied only causes a small percentage of cases of hearing loss at birth, meaning most people wouldn't benefit. And some study participants didn't show any improvements. And the question remains, why do some patients with this gene mutation benefit from the therapy and why do some not? Some adults with lifelong deafness say not everyone wants to restore their hearing. I had my first hearing age when I was like five or six months old. Anya career was born deaf after. having congenital rubella, a viral infection that can cause hearing loss in infants.

The Toronto resident now has a cochlear implant for one ear and a hearing aid in the other. She uses a mix of speaking, lip reading, and sign language to communicate. It has just challenges, definitely. Like, I'm not going to lie. It's not easy. Being as a deaf person, it's not easy at all. Technology can help, she says, but career worries these advancements may diminish the unique identity and culture of the deaf community. As someone with a different type of hearing loss, she also wouldn't benefit from gene therapy.

But I do know that some of my deaf friends who have that gene, some of them will go for it. But some of them would not go for it because they support the deaf world. They're happy being deaf. For the families in the latest study, gene therapy has offered new pathways to communicate and the possibility of a lifetime full of sound. Lauren Pelley, CBC News, Toronto.

It has been called the Alcatraz of the North and Canada's most notorious prison. The Kingston Penitentiary in Ontario has held some of the country's worst offenders. Now the federal government is considering a new life for the former prison, turning it into housing. Dan Takima details what Ottawa has in mind and the pushback it's generating. Kingston Penitentiary, scene of the worst prison riot in Canadian history. Inmate escapes, fires, and yes, even riots. Over 178 years, Kingston Penitentiary survived it all. Today, it's open for tours, but before that, the prison was home to many of Canada's most notorious criminals,

from serial killer Paul Bernardo to child murderer Clifford Olson. Now there's the chance it could be your home, too. Last January, the pen was added to a list of federal properties with housing potential. When I first learned about it, I was like, what the heck? Kingston and the island's MP, Mark Gerritsen, is among those who find it hard to imagine. Conversion of a property like this is, in my opinion, just wildly unpractical. Documents obtained by CBC News show the federal government envisions up to 700 units, some in high rises looking out over Lake Ontario.

But that would require knocking down the cells, walls and guard towers that cover half of the National Historic Site. At least two developers have already expressed interest in building there, including one that pitched apartments and condos with commercial space on the ground floor. I think they should just burn it to the ground, get rid of all the evil spirits. Kingston residents, including Karen Toffalo, have strong opinions about the prison, and what should become of it? There's been a lot of bad stuff that happened in there, and so we don't need that around anymore,

make it into a nice park or something nice for everybody. That reputation has drawn more than 680. thousand visitors since tours began in 2016 and millions in tourism dollars to Kingston, Ontario. The city is trying to protect the site and its heritage value. It was really, really housed the full spectrum of the human experience here. Life and death to fear and jubilation and everything in between. Dave Saint-Age is curator of Canada's penitentiary museum. People would have to question investing significant amounts of money into place with,

believe in it, the spirits that may be lingering around this site. So if the day ever arrives where walls come down and the prison trade cell blocks for condo towers, would the area's MP consider moving in? No, I wouldn't. I don't think I could ever come to terms with living here. A sentiment that might have been shared by many of those who were locked up inside. Dan Takama, CBC News, Kingston, Ontario. And finally tonight, a tale of survival. in Nunavut, where a spring blizzard this month put a man from the hamlet of Tolodewak in serious peril.

Peter Kotonok was traveling by snowmobile with four teammates to a volleyball tournament, 140 kilometers from home. With a storm threatening, he urged the others to go ahead without him, while he followed to keep them safe. But the weather turned fast, and Kotonak was stranded. As soon as they left, my skidu got stuck. I had no shelter, but I would use my feet. back to cover the wind. That was one of the teachings passed on to Kotonok by his parents and grandparents, something

he credits for helping him survive alone in the snow for three days. I was mainly thinking of my family and my friends and my people back home that really look up to me. Kotonok started walking at night hoping to see the lights of his destination, Joe Haven, but there was a power outage and it had left the community in darkness. Meantime, his friends had called in rescuers. A Canadian Air Force search plane eventually spotted him and a ground crew was sent to the rescue. Now safe and well, with no frostbite,

Kotenuck offers this advice. If you're lost, try to stay positive and always keep moving and keep moving your hands and your feet to stay warm. Oh, and one more thing. Right after his ordeal, Kotonuck was reunited with his teammates, where they went on to win gold in that volleyball tournament. Thanks for being with us. This has been your world tonight for Wednesday, April 22nd.

I'm Dave Seglance. Thanks for listening. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca slash podcasts.