David Baxter, The Canadian Press

Safeguards have been written into the government's border bill to ensure civil rights and due process are upheld in proposed immigration regulations, Immigration Minister Lena Diab said Wednesday.

Critics and advocacy groups are calling the wide-ranging border security legislation a threat to civil liberties in the immigration and asylum system.

One proposed change in the legislation would prevent people from making asylum claims if they've been in Canada for more than a year.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre promised to strike down a key element of the Liberal government's environmental policy Friday as he and other party leaders got back on the campaign trail following the national leaders' debates in Montreal.

The campaigning Friday also coincided with the opening of the first of four days of advance polling across the country.

Both Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh stayed in Quebec to make announcements Friday morning, while Liberal Leader Mark Carney made his way to Niagara Falls, Ont.

"Freedom Convoy" organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber have been found guilty of mischief for their roles in the 2022 mass protest in Ottawa.

Lich and Barber were key figures and organizers in the protest that saw hundreds of vehicles and thousands of people occupy downtown Ottawa and insist they would stay until COVID-19 public health mandates were eliminated.

"Freedom Convoy" organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber have been found guilty of mischief for their roles in the 2022 mass protest in Ottawa.

Lich and Barber were key figures and organizers in the protest that saw hundreds of vehicles and thousands of people occupy downtown Ottawa and insist they would stay until COVID-19 public health mandates were eliminated.

Freedom Convoy organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber are set to hear a verdict today in the joint trial over their roles in the mass protest against pandemic health measures that rolled into Ottawa more than three years ago.

Lich and Barber were both charged with mischief, intimidation and counselling others to break the law in relation to their roles in the 2022 protest that drew thousands of demonstrators to Ottawa for three weeks.

Their trial wrapped up in September after hearing 45 days of evidence and legal arguments.

Hundreds of people gathered on Parliament Hill for the "Elbows up, Canada" rally as U.S. President Donald Trump threatens economywide tariffs and making the country into the 51st state. 

The "Elbows up, Canada" rally came together after four days of planning, drawing big name speakers including former foreign affairs minister Lloyd Axworthy, Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe and stand up comedian Shaun Majumder. 

The core message was simple, Canada is not for sale. 

Elbows up is a hockey term describing an effective way to protect yourself from an opposing player. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that freedom, democracy and Canada "are not a given" in his farewell speech to Liberals just before former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney was announced as the new Liberal leader. 

This comes as U.S. President Donald Trump threatens Canada with economic annexation and places tariffs on Canadian imports coming into the States.

"This is a nation-defining moment. Democracy is not a given. Freedom, it's not a given. Canada is not a given. None of those happen by accident. None of them will continue without effort," Trudeau said. 

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to escalate the trade war he launched with Canada even further Tuesday, just hours after imposing his first round of punishing import taxes on all Canadian goods.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called Trump's imposition of a 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy and 25 per cent tariffs on all other Canadian goods "dumb" and said Canada is fighting back.

The federal government is extending the timeline for Ukrainians in Canada who fled Russia's invasion to apply for new or renewed temporary visas by one year. 

The new deadline to apply for new or renewed work and study permits under the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel program is March 31, 2026.

Nearly 300,000 Ukrainians came to Canada under the program, which said they had to arrive by March 31, 2024. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has rejected NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh's call for the federal government to bar U.S. President Donald Trump from coming to Canada for the G7 summit this June.

At an event in Montreal Thursday, Trudeau said he sees the idea of banning Trump as an "irresponsible" approach to governance and relationships with other nations.

"It's easy for politicians these days to toss out easy and shocking things to say. We see a lot of it around the world these days. I'm not one of those Canadian politicians," Trudeau said when asked about Singh's comments.