Evening Update: Canada relocating some diplomats from ‘volatile’ Haiti

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

Canada has reduced the number of diplomats at its embassy in Haiti to less than half the normal amount, saying security in the Caribbean country is becoming increasingly unpredictable.

Most Canadian staff at the Port-au-Prince embassy were airlifted in a chartered helicopter today to neighbouring Dominican Republic, where they will work remotely, said Sébastien Beaulieu, Global Affairs Canada’s chief security officer.

Other countries made the same move about a week ago.

• Explainer: What’s going on in Haiti? Latest news from a Caribbean nation in crisis

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Ottawa reveals it ordered national security review of TikTok in September

The federal government ordered a national security review of popular video app TikTok in September, 2023, but did not disclose it publicly.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner sells its stake in the business.

The Canadian review is not related to the proposed U.S. bill, which is driven by concerns that the company’s current ownership structure is a national security threat.

• Former U.S. treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin says he’s putting together investor group to buy TikTok
• Opinion: First they came for TikTok. Then they might come for everyone else

GCStrategies co-owner says he hasn’t read report about his company’s ArriveCan work

GCStrategies co-owner Darren Anthony said that the Auditor-General got it wrong as to how much the company was paid to work on the ArriveCan app, but also said he never read the report.

Anthony appeared today before the government operations committee to answer questions about Auditor-General Karen Hogan’s findings regarding his company.

The committee has held months of hearings into federal procurement practices, the cost of the ArriveCan app, and why the federal government leaned so heavily on the two-person company.

ALSO ON OUR RADAR

Gaza war: Israeli bombardment killed six Palestinians and wounded dozens as crowds were rushing to get aid supplies in northern Gaza City, Gaza health ministry officials said today. The conflict has displaced most of the enclave’s 2.3 million population, and there have been chaotic scenes and deadly incidents at aid distributions as desperately hungry people scramble for food.

• U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer calls on Israel to hold new elections
• Yemen’s Houthis reportedly have hypersonic missile, possibly raising stakes in Red Sea crisis

Space travel: SpaceX’s Starship rocket was destroyed during its return to Earth after nearly completing a test flight to space on its third try today. The rocket is designed to eventually send astronauts to the moon and beyond.

Famous letters: Pattie Boyd is selling personal letters and handwritten lyrics from late Beatle George Harrison, and singer and guitarist Eric Clapton. Boyd was married to both musicians and inspired songs such as Harrison’s Something and Clapton’s Wonderful Tonight and Layla.

Happy Pi Day: Math enthusiasts around the world, from college kids to rocket scientists, are celebrating Pi Day today – March 14 or 3/14 – the first three digits of an infinite number with many practical uses. Around the world many people will mark the day with a slice of pie or even pizza.

MARKET WATCH

Canada’s main stock index was pulled down today by falling telecom, financial and utilities stocks. The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed down 0.64 per cent to 21,829.85. The Canadian dollar traded for 74.01 US cents.

On Wall Street, U.S. stocks dropped as falling shares in chipmaker companies extended losses for a second day, and as a jump in producer prices left investors wondering if the U.S. Federal Reserve might wait longer than expected to cut interest rates. The S&P 500 lost 0.27 per cent, to end at 5,150.59 points, while the Nasdaq lost 0.30 per cent, to 16,133.55. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.32 per cent, to 38,906.71.

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TALKING POINTS

We all deserve affordable homes and a stable climate – and that is achievable

“Canada is projected to be short by roughly six million homes come 2030, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., if we hope to achieve affordability. … These homes must get built. But if they are built to poor standards, or in areas with high climate risks areas, or using carbon-intensive techniques and materials, it could lead to 100 megatonnes of new, entirely unnecessary climate pollution per year.” – Mark Carney

A defeat for Putin in Ukraine will improve the chances for the Other Russia

“We are at the beginning of a new period of European history and what we do this year will have consequences for decades to come. Enabling Ukraine to win this war is not just the only way to secure a democratic, peaceful future for Ukraine itself. It’s also the best thing we can do to improve the long-term chances for a better Russia.” – Timothy Garton Ash

The ArriveCan of worms: Public-service problems spill out

“Shaking the ArriveCan tree has made a lot of other things fall out. And the world of government contracting looks a lot like a place where the system is made for gaming.” – Campbell Clark

LIVING BETTER

The best ways to renovate your home with a $10,000 budget

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With household budgets squeezed like never before, home renovators are looking carefully at their choices, and ways they can save money on their next project. For ideas on how to spend a budget of $10,000, we asked five experts in real estate, interior decoration, sustainability, kitchens and landscaping. See how far a relatively small budget can go.

TODAY’S LONG READ

The rise of ‘Sephora kids’ and the tween obsession with pricey skincare products

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The world of fashion and beauty has never been low on status symbols, but for younger generations those symbols run skin deep. With a universe of “get ready with me” videos, or GRWMs, available on TikTok and other social-media platforms, skin-care influencers have built large audiences, including tweens who are willing to spend big on cosmetics. “Children are now imitating their favourite internet personalities, versus their parents or celebrities,” says Eric Li, a University of British Columbia professor who specializes in consumer culture. “So skin-care knowledge itself has become a sort of status symbol.”

But not everyone is convinced that teens and tweens are driving skin-care sales without some heavy encouragement from brands. Amina Mire, a researcher in the department of sociology and anthropology at Carleton University, says women have always been interested in beauty products, but suggests that brands have repackaged marketing tactics to target women at younger ages.

Read the full feature story.

Evening Update is compiled and written weekdays by an editor in The Globe’s live news department. 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.