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morning update

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi speaks after receiving an award from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the Public Policy Testimonial Dinner in Toronto on April 20, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher KatsarovThe Canadian Press

Good morning,

These are the top stories:

Nenshi vs. Smith: Calgary heads to the polls

It's municipal election day in Calgary and all eyes are on the tight race between two-term incumbent Naheed Nenshi and political newcomer Bill Smith. While earlier polls had Smith with a double-digit lead, a new poll released last week put Nenshi in front. Smith's low-tax, pro-business, anti-Nenshi campaign is finding an audience amid high unemployment and worries of tax increases. And as Nenshi engaged in a media war with the Calgary Flames over funding for a new arena, Smith has taken a much softer tone.

Critics have gone after Smith for his lack of policy detail and refusal to disclose campaign donors. Nenshi's biggest problem, Gary Mason writes, is his " 'smartest-person-in-the-room' aura."

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Faculty at 24 Ontario colleges have gone on strike

More than 500,000 students will be affected with 12,000-plus professors, instructors, counsellors and librarians walking off the job. The strike took effect after the Ontario Public Service Employees Union and the College Employer Council couldn't reach a deal by 12:01 a.m. ET Monday. The union wanted just as many full-time faculty as those on contract. All told, the council said the union's demands would have added $250-million in annual costs. The council also said its offer was "comparable to, or better" than recent settlements with teachers. It's not yet clear when talks will resume.

The Liberals are reworking their small-business tax changes

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to lay out the new plans today, which will include a promise to target only high-income Canadians (for subscribers). Among the expected revisions: Only those with large amounts of private investments in their corporations will be hit with a tax on "passive" income; female owners will be allowed to set aside money for maternity leaves; and a method will be found to ensure owners, namely farmers, won't be penalized for transferring their business to family members. Small-business owners and even members of Trudeau's caucus have criticized the government's original tax plan.

Bill Morneau didn't place his assets in a blind trust

The Finance Minister's decision goes against what Justin Trudeau considers the gold standard for avoiding conflicts of interest (for subscribers). Morneau, a former Bay Street executive worth tens of millions of dollars, said the Ethics Commissioner told him he didn't need to set up a blind trust. It's also not clear whether the minister sold his shares in Morneau Shepell or whether they're held in a family trust. If Morneau didn't sell his stake in the firm, he could face conflict-of-interest allegations because he's spearheading small-business tax reforms. While family trusts are typically managed by a member of the family, blind trusts place control in the hands of a trustee.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Somalia was hit with its worst-ever attack

More than 300 people were killed and scores injured after a truck bomb exploded in the centre of Mogadishu on Saturday. Islamist militant group al-Shabab is suspected of perpetrating the attack, but some analysts say it has yet to claim responsibility because of countrywide outrage. Western-funded peacekeeping forces have been fighting al-Shabab for years, but the militant group continues to carry out attacks and recently gained territory in parts of Somalia. The chair of the African Union commission called on the international community to boost support to combat terror.

MORNING MARKETS

Global stocks and commodities rose on Monday, boosted by upbeat Chinese data, while U.S. oil futures jumped to a near six-month high as escalating tensions between the Iraqi government and Kurdish forces threatened supply. Tokyo's Nikkei gained 0.5 per cent, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.8 per cent, while the Shanghai composite lost 0.4 per cent. In Europe, London's FTSE 100, Germany's DAX and the Paris CAC 40 were up by between 0.1 and 0.2 per cent by about 5:40 a.m. ET. New York futures were little changed, though up, and the Canadian dollar was at just about 80 cents (U.S.). Oil markets jumped as Iraqi forced entered the oil city of Kirkuk, taking territory from Kurdish fighters and raising concerns over exports from OPEC's second-largest producer.

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WHAT EVERYONE'S TALKING ABOUT

Which side is the NDP on in Quebec?

"Since 2005, the NDP has held the unacceptable position that a bare majority of 50 per cent plus one in a referendum would be enough to trigger negotiations on secession – making it easier to destroy Canada than to amend the NDP party constitution, which requires a two-thirds majority. But no NDP leader before [Jagmeet] Singh has expressed so much enthusiasm for the principle of Quebec self-determination, his weak platitude that he "would love us to stay together" notwithstanding. His suggestion that he would work on the Quebec side of the table during negotiations to break up Canada is astounding. Who needs the Bloc Québécois?" – Globe editorial

I brought a powerful sexual harasser down

"In the fall of 2015, I filed a formal complaint against the president of the Canadian Olympic Committee. The case was highly publicized, although I was never named. I am the unknown complainant. Seven days after I filed my complaint, the president resigned from the COC in disgrace. Years of bad behaviour finally caught up with him. … I was very lucky to have a handful of men who not only encouraged me to stand up and be brave, but promised they would not let me fall. You don't have to be a woman or have a daughter to be empathetic to the harm sexual harassment causes. I would offer this advice to my son: Collect the courage to listen, believe, and act. Dismantle this toxic boys club that has ruined too many lives." – Leanne Nicolle, president and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Toronto

France grapples with Macron-nomics

"[Emmanuel] Macron has not only moved to slash taxes for the wealthy and corporations, he has adopted a presidential decree to liberalize France's rigid labour code, long-considered a third rail in French politics. He has invoked economist Joseph Schumpeter's theory of creative destruction in his bid to spur French innovation, forcing French workers to give up hard-won privileges. While Mr. Macron's free-market orientation is hardly a revelation to anyone who has been following the former investment banker's career in recent years, it is nevertheless seen as a betrayal by many of those who voted for him." – Konrad Yakabuski

HEALTH PRIMER

When it comes to brain injuries, how dangerous is youth hockey?

There were more than 3,000 emergency-department visits for brain injuries from hockey in Alberta and Ontario in 2015-16 – and the majority of those injured were children ages 10 to 14. The primary culprit for concussions in hockey is bodychecking, according to a series of studies. Hockey Canada has eliminated bodychecking at the pewee level, with other organizations banning bodychecks until players are even older. Go here to read more about how to treat concussions and what kinds of questions you should ask your child's hockey coach.

MOMENT IN TIME

Alaska skips 11 days

Oct. 16, 1867: After the United States purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867, it made sense for the territory to switch from the Julian calendar (which was still used in Russia) to the Gregorian calendar that prevailed in North America and Europe. The Gregorian system – introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 – was more accurately linked to the seasons, and most Western countries had adopted it by the mid-1700s. To make the change, Alaskans went to bed on Oct. 6 and woke up the next day on Oct. 18. The shift actually required skipping 12 days, but only 11 were missed because at the same time the international date line was moved from the border with what is now Canada, to the other side of Alaska between it and Russia, thus saving one day. Russia didn't get around to adopting the Gregorian calendar until 1918. – Richard Blackwell

Morning Update is written by Arik Ligeti.

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