Good afternoon. It’s currently ZERO degrees and snowing at the Loyola Campus of Concordia University.I’m Camille Perrin-Ridgway. AND HERE ARE TODAY’S HEADLINES. The Jean-Talon Market is losing popularity. The Quebec Government is reducing English services in the province. And Immigration Quebec is under fire for changing their policies.
01/CHANGES TO PEQ/ SCOTT/POUNDER/LIVE TAG
The P-E-Q is facing a lot of backlash. They recently attempted to change the policies which prevents Foreign students and short-term workers the opportunity to quickly get permanent residency. Now, there is a sense of worry in the community. Our reporter Luca Scott has more.
02/ NEW CAQ RULES/ HONIGMAN/HENRIQUES/ LIVE TAG
The Quebec Government is trying to force stricter French language laws. Last week they announced only historical Anglophones whose parents went to English school in Canada will have the right to English services going forward. This stirred an outcry among the English and immigrant communities. Brittany Henriques has the story.
03/ METRO SANITATION/ HAGUENAUER/ VO
If you think metros aren’t very sanitary, you’re right. In fact, you may be more right than you’d like. A microbiologist went into the metro and the samples he got showed traces of pathogens, fungal infections and more. According to the study, the bars in the metro should be cleaned every day. When in fact, they are only cleaned by the STM every five to six weeks, making it anything but sanitary. The STM maintained that cleaning that often would result in a lower quality of service. However, the STM did want to remind the public to take regular precautions in public transports, such as coughing in your elbow and sneezing with your hand in front of your mouth.
04/ METRO BUG INFESTATION/ PERRIN / COPY
Unfortunately, it’s more than just the poles that are dirty. In fact, the STM is more concerned with the presence of bed bugs and cockroaches in some of their Montreal buses. The STM maintains that as soon as an unusual situation is brought to their attention, they remove the vehicle from service immediately and complete a specialized treatment. They also added that the news buses that have plastic seats will reduce the presence of bedbugs. So, if you are a commuter in Montreal, you’ll want to pay extra attention to where you sit in the bus today.
05/ LEAD IN WATER/ BARRASSO/COULOMBE / LOOKLIVE
Montreal has a very high amount of lead in its water. More than three quarters of the city’s boroughs are affected, but how exactly is this affecting landlords and tenants? Our reporter Deborah Barrasso has more on the story.
06/ OLD METRO CAR DISPLAY/ HAGUENAUER / VO
After decades of service to the city, an old STM metro car has found a second home at Polytechnique Montreal. The set-up is in the atrium of the Lassonde-Mckay pavilion. The inside of the car has been re-arranged and re-decorated for students to study in or hang out between classes. The project was three years in the making and a team of eighteen students helped to make the move possible.
07/ ANOREXIA IN SOCIAL MEDIA/ DEROUCHIE/RAMNANAN / LIVE TAG
Two Concordia graduates have created a deep-learning algorithm that can potentially detect anorexia in young people based on their social media activity. Ocean DeRouchie has more with the story.
08/ SYSTEMIC RACISM/ MCKENNA / LIVE
Last spring, Montreal en Action began pursuing a petition to get the government to address systemic discrimination in Montreal. The group gathered twenty-two thousands signatures, seven thousand more than needed to oblige a response from the city. Now that hearings have begun, many wonder if the government will actually produce anything. Our reporter Tristan Mckenna is live with us today. Q1. TRISTAN, YOU HAVE BEEN DOWNTOWN FOLLOWING THE PUBLIC CONFERENCES, WHAT ARE PEOPLE SAYING?
Q2. WOW, THERE ARE SO MANY VOICES BEING SHARED, WHERE DO THEY ALL GO AFTER BEING HEARD?
Q3. ARE PEOPLE HOPEFUL? DO THEY THINK THESE CONSULTATIONS WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
09/ DELIVERY TRUCK CLOGS/ HAGUENAUER / VO
Thank you, Tristan. The city’s latest idea in terms of delivery trucks to make green choices all while reducing traffic, is the concept of electric cargo bikes. The bikes would be able to carry heavy loads all while being compact and not adding to the city’s carbon footprint. Delivery trucks all over Montreal have been clogging the crowded city streets at all times of the day. Not to mention that the constant deliveries are adding to the greenhouse gas emissions. Whether it be massive trucks taking forever to turn a corner, or smaller vans taking up bus lane, the delivery system the city has now, is not working.
10/HOUSING MARKET SPIKES/ RAINVILLE/ COCKRELL/ RANT
Living in Montreal isn’t cheap, but it has now simply become unaffordable. Millenials in particular are finding it increasingly difficult to become homeowners on the island of Montreal and surrounding areas. Between the tax hikes, low home vacancy and the rising costs of homes across the city, millenials are running out of answers. Our reporter Samsara Rainville has more.
11/ JEAN TALON MARKET/ BRISSON DUBREUIL-BERTOIA / PAK
Are public markets in Montreal changing? Markets such as the popular Jean-Talon Market used to be filled by Montrealer’s in search of fresh, locally grown produce. Today, we’re seeing a decline in not only the number of shoppers, but also in merchants. Our reporter Laurence Brisson Dubreuil has more on the story.
12/ REDHEAD PARTY MONTREAL/PERRIN/ COPY
A lot of Montrealer’s are seeing red this month but it’s not actually a bad thing. The city celebrated its first Red Head festival on November seventh at the Miles Public House. The Montrealer behind the event, initially created it to convince one of his Toronto friends, who happens to be a redhead, to come celebrate their birthday in Montreal. The Facebook event quickly blew up when more than one thousand people showed interest in the festival. Given the success, the team behind hopes to make this event a yearly celebration. So next time you are on Facebook keep an eye out for the Festival de Roux 2020.
13/ FIRST SNOWFALL/ COMPTON/BEAUDOIN / LIVE TAG
Winter has come early this year, with over twenty centimeters of snow falling over the city of Montreal last week. Despite two rough winters in power, Valerie Plante and the city of Montreal seem to have it mostly under control this time around, Ireland Compton reports.
14/EXRO/ PERRIN-RIDGWAY/ LIVE
And That’s your news to 1 pm, thanks for listening. For Concordia News, I’m Camille Perrin-Ridgway. [Main Newsbed Theme]