Enbridge to build US$900M solar project to power Meta data operations in Texas
The Calgary-based company, best known for its vast network of crude oil pipelines, said Tuesday that construction is underway on the 600-megawatt Clear Fork project near San Antonio.
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17 minutes ago
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Trump says U.S. will sell ‘so much' beef to Australia
Steaks and other beef products are displayed for sale at a grocery store in McLean, Va. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo) WASHINGTON/CANBERRA — The United States will sell 'so much' beef to Australia, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday after Canberra relaxed import restrictions, adding that other countries that refused U.S. beef products were on notice. Australia on Thursday said it would loosen biosecurity rules for U.S. beef, something analysts predicted would not significantly increase U.S. shipments because Australia is a major beef producer and exporter whose prices are much lower. 'We are going to sell so much to Australia because this is undeniable and irrefutable Proof that U.S. Beef is the Safest and Best in the entire World,' Trump said in a post on Truth Social. 'The other Countries that refuse our magnificent Beef are ON NOTICE,' the post continued. Trump has attempted to renegotiate trade deals with numerous countries he says have taken advantage of the United States – a characterization many economists dispute. 'For decades, Australia imposed unjustified barriers on U.S. beef,' U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement, calling Australia's decision a 'major milestone in lowering trade barriers and securing market access for U.S. farmers and ranchers.' Australia is not a significant importer of beef but the United States is and a production slump is forcing it to step up purchases. Last year, Australia shipped almost 400,000 metric tons of beef worth US$2.9 billion to the United States, with just 269 tons of U.S. product moving the other way. Australian officials say the relaxation of restrictions was not part of any trade negotiations but the result of a years-long assessment of U.S. biosecurity practices. Canberra has restricted U.S. beef imports since 2003 due to concerns about bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease. Since 2019, it has allowed in meat from animals born, raised and slaughtered in the U.S. but few suppliers were able to prove that their cattle had not been in Canada and Mexico. On Wednesday, Australia's agriculture ministry said U.S. cattle traceability and control systems had improved enough that Australia could accept beef from cattle born in Canada or Mexico and slaughtered in the United States. The decision has caused some concern in Australia, where biosecurity is seen as essential to prevent diseases and pests from ravaging the farm sector. 'We need to know if (the government) is sacrificing our high biosecurity standards just so Prime Minister Anthony Albanese can obtain a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump,' shadow agriculture minister David Littleproud said in a statement. Australia, which imports more from the U.S. than it exports, faces a 10 per cent across-the-board U.S. tariff, as well 50 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminum. Trump has also threatened to impose a 200 per cent tariff on pharmaceuticals. Asked whether the change would help achieve a trade deal, Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell said: 'I'm not too sure.' 'We haven't done this in order to entice the Americans into a trade agreement,' he said. 'We think that they should do that anyway.' (Reporting by Kanishka Singh, Ismail Shakil and Peter Hobson; Editing by Ross Colvin, Christian Schmollinger, Jamie Freed and Lincoln Feast.)
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Montreal group takes campaign to restore U.S. foreign aid to Times Square
Montreal-based eQualitie has partnered with the American branch of Transparency International to post a message, seen here in this handout photo on July 8, 2025, urging Americans to "support foreign aid" on a video billboard in New York's Times Square. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout — Transparency International US (Mandatory Credit) A Montreal-based organization promoting democracy and digital rights is using a billboard in New York's iconic Times Square to urge Americans to resist cuts to U.S. foreign aid. 'A retreat by the United States will mean that the weight balances in favour of digital authoritarianism, and away from what are essentially Canadian values,' said Alex Dalessio, executive director of eQualitie. The organization works to advance digital security for civil society and media around the world, allowing people in oppressive states to circumvent censorship and surveillance to communicate securely. Dalessio's group has partnered with the American branch of Transparency International to post a 10-second message urging Americans to 'support foreign aid' on a video billboard in the heart of Manhattan over 90 days. 'Instability abroad puts American jobs and safety at risk,' the billboard message says, adding that foreign aid builds 'a stronger America.' The message will be displayed more than 11,000 times. Dalessio said the campaign isn't 'targeted' at the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump and noted that European countries are also cutting back on foreign aid. His organization says it's politically neutral but wants Americans to think about the impacts of the U.S. pulling back from foreign aid after decades of funding development work that has helped spread democratic values around the world. 'Regardless of who made these changes to foreign aid, we would have made this message,' Dalessio said. 'The role of foreign aid, in the advancement of tools that support informed and educated democracies around the world, cannot be overstated.' Trump tasked billionaire Elon Musk with gutting the United States Agency for International Development earlier this year, slashing its workforce and eliminating 83 per cent of USAID's programs. The cuts have led to sudden halts in medical trials, hunger in refugee camps and cutbacks in access to HIV treatment and contraceptives in poorer countries. Dalessio said it's not clear yet what kind of impact those cuts have had on efforts to fight political repression abroad. Washington subsequently restored funding to some of the programs it had cut, while others went through what Dalessio described as 'significant' layoffs. 'We felt to some extent like there were a lot of articles about it, but there wasn't a lot of action being taken,' he said. Transparency International fights corruption abroad by assessing governance in various countries, while eQualitie works to empower those trying to build strong civil societies. Their work involves training locals to use technology to hold their governments to account and push back on repression. Dalessio said that repressive states have been using technology to surveil citizens and block their access to outside news 'as an extension of state power … to manage dissent, to direct election outcomes, or to influence the population at large.' 'This is certainly becoming normalized,' he added. 'We're seeing it in on every continent.' Dalessio said he hopes the U.S. reverses the cuts and that Canada joins its peers in 'leaning in and supporting some of these programs.' He argued that foreign aid spending could even count toward NATO's military spending target for defence-related infrastructure, since instability leads to costly conflict. NATO itself has said that hostile states are actively undermining democracies and neighbouring states. 'What's going on in the U.S. will have implications for democracy worldwide,' Dalessio said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 25, 2025.
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Astronomer chief people officer, Kristin Cabot, resigns after viral Coldplay video
Kristin Cabot and Andy Bryon on the "kiss cam" at a Coldplay concert at Gillette Stadium, Massachusetts. (@calebu2/TMX via CNN Newsource) Kristin Cabot, the chief people officer of Astronomer, has resigned, the company confirmed to CNN Thursday. The resignation comes after Cabot, who oversaw the organization's human resources, and Andy Byron, the then-chief executive of the New York-based tech company, were spotted embracing at a Coldplay concert earlier this month. Byron resigned last week after being placed on leave, according to an earlier statement shared with CNN. The two were seen on a Jumbotron screen – a so-called 'kiss cam' – at a Coldplay concert at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, last week, embracing before separating and ducking out of view. 'Whoa, look at these two,' Coldplay frontman Chris Martin quipped at the time. 'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy.' The video of the two quickly went viral online, along with alleged statements from the ex-CEO acknowledging the situation. Astronomer, however, said on LinkedIn that Bryon had not put out any statement and 'reports saying otherwise are all incorrect.' That statement also addressed the misidentification of a third person seen in the viral clip. 'Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,' the statement also read. The data operations company, founded in 2018, acknowledged in a separate statement that 'awareness of our company may have changed overnight,' but its mission would continue to focus on addressing data and artificial intelligence problems. The company said Astronomer's co-founder and Chief Product Officer, Pete DeJoy, would serve as interim CEO. Byron's LinkedIn account is no longer public, and he was removed from the company's leadership page following the announcement, which now lists co-founder DeJoy as CEO. By Luciana Lopez, Karina Tsui, CNN
