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Gas Is Still $1.81 a Litre: Why Pump Prices Won't Fall (and What to Do Before Winter)

  Canadians hoping for relief at the pump got bad news heading into this week: it isn't coming soon. The national average for regular gas was $1.81 a litre on Friday, according to Kalibrate, with provincial averages ranging from $1.557 in Alberta to $2.156 in Newfoundland, per GasBuddy. That's after a big policy move. On Friday the G7 announced plans to release 100 million barrels of oil right away, starting with diesel. Brent crude dipped on the news, then climbed back to about US$102 a barrel by the afternoon. Don't expect the release to show up at your station, because crude is only half the story. Crude oil explains only half your pump price Wood Mackenzie's Jim Mitchell says crude makes up 50 to 60 per cent of the retail price of gas. The rest is the cost of refining it, and that's where the squeeze is. Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem pointed to damaged refining capacity worldwide in a Sept. 21 speech, noting that pump prices reflect crude roughly US$40 a ...

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Doug Ford Reverses Plan to Issue Work Permits to Asylum Seekers

 

                                             Ontario Premier Doug Ford has walked back a plan 
                                             for Ontario to begin issuing work permits to asylum seekers.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has walked back his recent pledge to issue provincial work permits to asylum seekers, a move that had stirred debate over jurisdiction and immigration policy. Less than a week after declaring Ontario would take matters into its own hands due to what he described as federal delays, Ford reversed course, saying he does not intend to take over responsibilities that fall under federal jurisdiction.

Ford initially claimed that asylum seekers were waiting up to two years for work permits, prompting his proposal to use Section 95 of the Constitution to justify provincial action. However, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada countered that the average processing time is just 45 days.

At a press conference, Ford acknowledged that his figures were anecdotal and emphasized the need for federal cooperation. “We want to work with the federal government,” he said, adding that Ontario lacks the capacity to take on the full burden of immigration processing.

Critics, including Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles, accused Ford of political flip-flopping and urged him to focus on provincial responsibilities such as healthcare and infrastructure.

The reversal highlights ongoing tensions between provincial and federal governments over immigration control, and underscores the challenges asylum seekers face in navigating Canada’s bureaucratic systems.


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