Evening Update: Anand, Joly, Guilbeault handed key cabinet posts in Trudeau’s major shuffle

Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shuffled the key chairs in his cabinet on Tuesday, placing some experienced ministers into some of his government’s most important and contentious portfolios.

Highlights of the retooled 39-member cabinet (including Trudeau) include Mélanie Joly as the new Foreign Affairs Minister, Anita Anand as Minister of Defence, environmental activist Steven Guilbeault as the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Patty Hajdu to Indigenous Services.

Three former ministers were dropped from cabinet: Marc Garneau, who had held the Foreign Affairs portfolio; Bardish Chagger, who was the minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Youth; and Jim Carr, the former special representative for the Prairies.

Anand, who had held the procurement portfolio and oversaw Canada’s acquisition of COVID-19 vaccines, is taking on a critical role at the defence ministry, which has been reeling over allegations of sexual misconduct in the military.

Trudeau also added a number of new faces to his cabinet, including six women and one of the Liberal Party’s two MPs from Alberta.

This is the daily Evening Update newsletter. If you’re reading this on the web, or it was sent to you as a forward, you can sign up for Evening Update and more than 20 more Globe newsletters here. If you like what you see, please share it with your friends.

Edward Rogers asks B.C. court to have newly formed Rogers board of directors declared valid

Ed Rogers, the son of late Rogers Communications Inc. founder Ted Rogers, is asking the British Columbia Supreme Court to legitimize a company board of directors he formed by replacing five of its members. His mother, Loretta Rogers, and sisters Melinda Rogers-Hixon and Martha Rogers claim the board is illegitimate and does not comply with laws in B.C., where the company is incorporated.

They and several other associates say the only legitimate version of the Rogers board is the one that existed last week, before Edward Rogers replaced five directors with people of his choosing. Edward Rogers was ousted from his role as board chair, but he remains at the helm of his family’s trust, which controls 97 per cent of the firm’s Class A voting shares.

He has been at the centre of a power struggle since The Globe first revealed he was plotting to give Rogers’ former chief financial officer Tony Staffieri the job of CEO Joe Natale, a move some family and board members oppose.

How sea otters led a green revolution on the B.C. coast – and played a part in climate-proofing the Pacific

Sea otters, hunted for their valuable pelts, had been wiped out in B.C.’s coastal waters by the end of the 1800s. The disappearance of these voracious and abundant predators led to a cascade of changes on the coast: long-lived geoduck clams flourished, while sea urchins, unchecked by predation, destroyed undersea kelp forests.

When the United States was preparing to conduct underground nuclear tests at Amchitka Island in Alaska in 1969, a romp of resident sea otters was relocated to Checleset Bay, on the northwest coast of Vancouver Island. The offspring of those 89 Alaskan transplanted to B.C. waters today number more than 8,100.

Scientists are now charting how the descendants of those marine refugees are restoring ecological balance to a broad swath of B.C.’s coastline. research has found that their messy foraging habits improved the genetic mix of eelgrass meadows, making them better equipped for changing temperatures and acidity.

Related:

• What is COP26? A Globe guide to the Glasgow climate talks
• At COP26, let’s not repeat our failed climate strategies

ALSO ON OUR RADAR

Albertans vote to end equalization in ballot question designed to pressure Ottawa: About 62 per cent of voters – with a turnout estimated at 39 per cent – voted in favour of removing equalization from the Constitution in a referendum that Premier Jason Kenney says is designed to put pressure on Ottawa to address the province’s many grievances. Voters also narrowly rejected a proposal to switch to permanent daylight time. The referendums were held alongside municipal elections last week.

Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman resigns in wake of probe into sexual assault allegations against ex-coach: An investigation commissioned by the team found he was among a group of leaders who failed to respond promptly to allegations that an assistant coach sexually assaulted a player in 2010. The results of the independent review were handed over to the Blackhawks on Monday, and team CEO Danny Wirtz said the report “is both disturbing and difficult to read.”

Queen will not attend COP26 after advice to rest: The Queen has been advised to rest and will not travel to Glasgow next week. Buckingham Palace said Tuesday the Queen will deliver an address to the assembled delegates at the global climate conference via a recorded message.

George Weston to sell bakery businesses for $1.2-billion: Brands that include Wonder Bread, ACE Bakery and Country Harvest are being purchased by Toronto-based FGF Brands Inc. George Weston, which is also the controlling shareholder of Loblaw Cos. Ltd., first announced its intention to sell its foods business last March, in order to focus on its real estate holdings and retail operations.

GM to boost electric vehicle profile with 40,000 charging stations in U.S., Canada: Announcement is part of the automaker’s US$750-million commitments to bolster its presence in the sector. GM says it will expand home, workplace and public charging infrastructure through its Ultium Charge 360 ecosystem, adding that it would focus on installing them in rural and urban areas with limited access to support widespread adoption of EVs.

MARKET WATCH

Canada’s main stock index ended a 14-day winning streak of daily gains as it moved off record highs ahead of Wednesday’s economic update from the Bank of Canada.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 111.39 points to 21,173.45. In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 15.73 points at 35,756.88. The S&P 500 index was up 8.31 points at 4,574.79, while the Nasdaq composite was up 9.01 points at 15,235.71.

The Canadian dollar traded for 80.80 cents US compared with 80.78 cents US on Monday.

Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com. Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop.

TALKING POINTS

Ontario’s tentative end date for vaccine mandates will disincentivize new vaccinations

“With no specific end date, individuals have faced the prospect of being excluded from recreational activities indefinitely. ... But the uncertainty of when that will happen has compelled some to get the shot, despite their reservations. Mr. Ford’s announcement of a speculative date to phase out vaccine requirements replaces that uncertainty with a finite period for which the unvaccinated merely have to sit tight.” - Robyn Urback

The shocking transformation of Hillbilly Elegy author J.D. Vance

“Mr. Vance is now authoring one of the more bewildering and cynical transformations we have witnessed in recent years, from Trump critic to cheerleader. Politics often has that corruptible effect on people.” - Gary Mason

LIVING BETTER

How to find ESG investments that align with your social views

Experts says younger investors are starting to think differently about the way they spend their money, driven largely by heightened public awareness of social issues brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and high profile movements such as Black Lives Matter and #MeToo.

When it comes to responsible investing – which takes environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into consideration – many people want to know more about the people behind the companies they are investing in.

One of the first things experts say you should do is ask ask your adviser if they have comprehensive knowledge on what the “S” in ESG stands for. Read more here for more ESG investing advice.

TODAY’S LONG READ

Montreal pianist Bruce Liu rockets to stardom after winning Chopin competition

Open this photo in gallery:

Just days after winning the prestigious 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Bruce (Xiaoyu) Liu says the sudden leap from near obscurity to rock-star status in the classical music world won’t change his demeanour.

“I have a title, but I’m still me,” Mr. Liu told The Globe and Mail’s Brad Wheeler on a video call. “I will find inspiration as I’ve done before. This will never change.”

Liu, 24, is the first Canadian to take the top prize in a competition that is held every five years and is akin to the Olympics for piano prodigies. Fans watching his livestreamed performances online have already dubbed him “Bruce Almighty.”

The graduate of the Montreal Conservatoire defeated 87 competitors over a pressure-packed series of main stage rounds from Oct. 3 to 21 that eventually pooled him against 11 other finalists. Previous winners of the Chopin competition who went on to became superstars include Poland’s Rafal Blechacz and Krystian Zimerman, Argentina’s Martha Argerich and Italy’s Maurizio Pollini, who famously didn’t perform publicly for more than a year after winning because he didn’t feel ready.

Read Wheeler’s full story here.

Evening Update is presented by Rob Gilroy. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.