In the news today: Tariff deadline looms, B.C. wildfires, Tumbler Ridge demolition

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed …

Deadline looms as Trump’s 50 per cent tariffs set to take effect

There are less than 24 hours left until U.S. President Donald Trump’s high-stakes tariff deadline. 

Trump signed an executive order to impose 50 per cent tariffs on Aug. 19 that would apply to a variety of goods from cement to hockey sticks — set to take effect just after midnight on Wednesday.

Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Janice Charette, the chief trade negotiator, have been in Washington since last week and sat down with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Monday. 

Prime Minister Mark Carney said Monday he expects to speak with U.S. President Donald Trump before the Wednesday deadline, saying Ottawa has a plan that “will cover all eventualities” if the latest round of tariffs is imposed.

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Feds move to repeal EV sales mandate without new stringent emission rules in place

The federal government moved last week to formally repeal the electric vehicle sales mandate, but the stringent emission standards Prime Minister Mark Carney promised to replace it with aren’t close to ready. 

The mandate is among a growing list of climate policies introduced by former prime minister Justin Trudeau that Carney is dismantling, including scrapping the emissions cap on oil and gas production.

Carney promised more stringent tailpipe standards when he announced the plan to repeal the mandate in February, but on Monday said that consultations on the new standards are set to begin in the fall.

A senior government official, speaking on background, said Ottawa is aiming to have draft regulations in place by early 2027.

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B.C.’s provincial health officer to hold news conference amid wildfire smoke warnings

B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry is set to hold a news conference today as much of the southern half of the province remains blanketed in wildfire smoke.

Orange and yellow air quality warnings cover a large swath of the province, as major fires burn near Boston Bar and in the Cariboo and Okanagan regions.

Agriculture Minister Lana Popham says British Columbians should support businesses affected by the fires.

She says this is the most important time of the year for businesses that have instead faced evacuations, road closures, smoke and other disruptions to operations.

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Demolition underway at Tumbler Ridge school, site of B.C. mass shooting

Demolition is underway at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in northern British Columbia, the site of a deadly mass shooting earlier this year. 

Photos posted to social media show excavators clawing at the building, tearing down the outside walls and revealing pink insulation, with scraps of metal piled to one side of the school. 

Eight victims died in the Feb. 10 mass shooting by 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, including her mother and brother, before she killed herself as officers closed in.

The demolition comes after the provincial and federal governments pledged funding for a new secondary school at a different location.

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Fewer people running for trustee in some of Ontario’s supervised school boards

The slate of municipal election candidates for school trustee in some boards under provincial supervision is set to be thinner than in the past, as would-be contenders face the prospect of running for a job they may not be able to do.

Ontario’s upcoming municipal elections now fall in the midst of that indefinite supervision period for those eight boards, and some of them have far fewer candidates than usual.

In the York Catholic District School Board, about half of the positions so far have only one candidate registered.

Yan Zhou, one of those set to be acclaimed, says the difficult circumstances make good governance, accountability, and community representation even more important.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 18, 2026.