Five stories in the news today, Oct. 20 – CP

Source: The Canadian Press
Oct 20, 2015

Five stories in the news today, Oct. 20 from The Canadian Press:

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TRUDEAU MUST NOW TURN TO IMPLEMENTING PLAN

Justin Trudeau is expected to give his first press conference today as prime minister-designate, hours after he steamrolled his Liberal party to a stunning majority victory. Trudeau will no doubt be riding on an electoral high from the 184 seats the Liberals captured _ an increase of a whopping 149 ridings from the last election _ but he will already be facing tough questions on how and when he will implement his plan.

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HARPER TO STEP DOWN AS LEADER BUT CONTINUE AS MP

Stephen Harper’s tenure as Canada’s sixth-longest serving prime minister came to an abrupt end Monday night as his party was reduced to opposition status and he prepared to step down as its chief. Harper didn’t tell supporters at the Calgary Convention Centre of his decision, instead using his final public remarks of this campaign to celebrate the legacy of the party he built nearly from scratch a decade ago.

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CONSERVATIVES BEGIN SELF-ANALYSIS, LOOK TO FUTURE

On his final campaign flight from Abbotsford, B.C. to Calgary, Stephen Harper sat with his closest friends and began putting together the plan for his exit from the Conservative Party leadership. That plan will unfold this morning, as Conservative politicians and the party’s rank-and-file look to a future leadership race _ only the merged party’s second _ putting the pieces in place to move forward and rebuild from a devastating election loss.

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NDP HEARTENED BY DEFEAT OF HARPER

The so-called “orange wave” created in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada by former NDP Leader Jack Layton went down the drain Monday night, taking much of the left-leaning party’s political strength with it. A visibly deflated Tom Mulcair, who prevailed in a long, difficult fight for his own riding of Outremont, delivered a subdued but gracious concession speech to a few hundred supporters at Montreal’s Palais de Congres.

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JOURNALIST WON’T APPEAL LOST FURLONG RULING

A freelance journalist who lost her defamation lawsuit against former Vancouver Olympics CEO John Furlong says she will not appeal the ruling. Laura Robinson said she reached the decision after reflection and discussion with her family and in spite of advice from independent legal counsel who say the judge made errors in fact and law. Robinson had accused Furlong of defaming her in public statements he made after she wrote a 2012 article that contained abuse allegations from First Nations students at a B.C. school where he taught more than four decades ago.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY …

_ A ceremony will be held in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., for Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, one year to the day he was run down and killed by jihadist sympathizer Martin Couture-Rouleau.

_ A trial is expected to resume for Toronto Police Const. James Forcillo, charged in connection with the shooting death of 18-year-old Sammy Yatim on a streetcar in 2013.

_ The New Brunswick Police Commission holds a news conference in Fredericton.

_ Statistics Canada will release August figures for wholesale trade and travel between Canada and other countries.

INDEX: NATIONAL