News
All schools in Belleville, Prince Edward County and Quinte West are closed to students and staff today, January 26, 2026, due to the high snow accumulation and poor driving conditions. Students and staff should not go to school.
Canadians from the Prairies east are digging out from yesterday’s storm that swept across most of the country. Environment Canada issued an orange warning for most of Saskatchewan, where the agency said many towns in the province broke cold weather records and Saskatoon is executing its emergency response plan through Wednesday. In Ontario we were expecting up to 60 cm of snow in places, along with blowing winds. We were advised to stay home, though the OPP reported they attended more than 50 collisions in Southwestern Ontario alone. In Quebec the Canadian Red Cross had to open an emergency warming centre in the Montreal suburb of Cote St-Luc after thousands of residents lost power. Some of those outages could last into today. And, in the Atlantic provinces, a team of divers armed with air compressors were forced into action after the intake at Newfoundland’s Bay d’Espoir powerplant was blocked by ice. The operation was termed a success, but power warnings remained in place on Sunday, with both N&L Hydro and Newfoundland Power continuing to ask customers to conserve electricity and prepare for the possibility of rotating outages.
Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada has “no intention” of pursuing a free trade agreement with China, as U.S. President Donald Trump threatens to impose crippling tariffs if Canada “makes a deal with China.” “What we’ve done with China is to rectify some issues that have developed in the last couple of years,” Carney told reporters yesterday morning in Ottawa, referring to trade items like Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs), agriculture and fish products. Carney said Canada “respects our commitments” to the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement, which requires any of the three countries to notify the others ahead of time if they want to pursue a free trade agreement with a non-market country like China. Trump continued to voice his displeasure on Sunday afternoon, arguing on his Truth Social account that “China is successfully and completely taking over the once Great Country of Canada. So sad to see it happen.”
Sticking with Carney, the Prime Minister will try to reset his domestic agenda today with an affordability announcement that will include generous top-ups to the GST credit this summer, impacting approximately 12 million Canadians – this according to the Toronto Star. Carney is set to announce that the quarterly GST payments will increase in July by 25 percent over the next five years — providing approximately an additional $130 for a low-income single person and $270 for a couple with two kids for the 2026-2027 benefit year. The government will also provide a one-time special payment in June, equal to a 50 percent increase in the value of the GST credit, meaning a family with two kids could receive more than $800 in combined relief. The move is part of a larger plan to address high grocery prices, with increased assistance to food banks, efforts to expand local production, and longer-term goals to increase competition in the sector.
Saturday evening was the opening of the first-ever Square Foot Art Show and Sale taking place in the Backroom at Arts on Main. The south shore Joint Initiative group partnered with local artists who created a wide variety of works measuring 12 inches square with images inspired and in support of the preservation, protection and restoration of the South shore. Proceeds from the fundraiser are shared between the artists and the SSJI who will fund upcoming educational programs. The show and sale run until the 18th of February.
Sports
After the AFC and NFC conference championship games yesterday Super Bowl 60 is set. In the early game, New England travelled to snowy Denver for a lacklustre battle that ended 10-7 for the visitors. In the late game, the Seattle Seahawks beat the LA Rams in a 31-27 thriller. This will be the Seahawks 4th and the Patriots 12th visit to the Super Bowl, and a rematch of Super Bowl 49, won by the Pats. Super Bowl 60 will be played Sunday, February 8th.
Brock Nelson scored goals 72 seconds apart early in the first period before sealing his fifth career hat trick into the empty net as the Colorado Avalanche cruised to a 4-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs in a rare Sunday afternoon game for the Buds. The loss is the 6th of the Leafs last 7 games.
In soccer news, resurgent Manchester United have now won two games straight, beating league leaders Arsenal 3-2 to move the Red Devils to 4th in the English Premier League. Gunners still have a 4-point lead at the top of the table, 50 points to Manchester City’s 46.
In NBA action, the Toronto Raptors travelled to Oklahoma to meet Canadian league MVP Shai Gigeous-Alexander and the Thunder. Thanks to balanced scoring across the team, the Raps won a close game 103-101.
And, sorry if you’re waiting for yesterday’s Wellington Dukes or Picton Pirates scores – because of the snow, yesterday’s games were postponed. No word yet on makeup dates.
