Industry Minister Mélanie Joly says the government is still reviewing Stelco’s response to Ottawa’s legal threat over hundreds of layoffs, but warns a court could force the company to sell its Canadian assets, on Wednesday.

Stelco began issuing layoff notices this week after announcing plans to lay off up to 500 workers at its Hamilton and Lake Erie facilities.

On Oct. 5, Joly wrote to Stelco President Paul Simon, giving its American parent company, Cleveland-Cliffs, five business days to show how it would honour the legally binding commitments it made when it acquired Stelco in 2024, including maintaining unionized employment levels, or face possible legal action.

“A business decision, or even a change in market condition cannot be used to not follow the condition,” Joly said, adding that the government is still in the process of reviewing the letter.

Sydney Ko reports. 

U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra says American officials are “closely watching” Canadian politicians for signs of election interference.

During a recent interview on the “The Really Big Show” podcast, Hoekstra said political ads run by the province of Ontario last year could be interpreted as political interference.

He also cited recent comments by Industry Minister Mélanie Joly and former prime minister Justin Trudeau and suggested they also could amount to interference.

Hoekstra went on to warn Canadian politicians to keep their “nose out” of American politics in the weeks before the midterm elections.

The Canadian Press has more. 

Two Liberal MPs responsible for supporting Ottawa’s labour and industry agendas say Canada’s plan to fast-track major projects is putting mounting pressure on a workforce already struggling to meet demand.

Leslie Church, parliamentary secretary to the minister of jobs, says the federal government’s push to develop key nation-building projects is making long-standing weaknesses in Canada’s labour force harder to ignore.

She says there is a disconnect between workers looking for jobs and the industries struggling to find workers, including a mismatch of skills, training barriers and other challenges.

Church says the government is investing in apprenticeships and training incentives to accelerate workforce development, while employers and schools also need to work together to ensure training and labour needs are aligned.

CP’s got this one too. 

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Internationally

Elsewhere, Pope Leo XIV thanked fellow Catholics for their prayers on Wednesday in his first message since he underwent surgery for lung cancer in Rome.

“As you know, I have been unable to be among you during these days,” Leo wrote in a statement to Catholics participating in a symposium for the 10th anniversary of Amoris laetitia, a document written by his predecessor Pope Francis on the church’s work with couples and families.

“I thank you warmly for your prayers and for the work you have done together. Your sharing of experiences and attentive listening are indeed a gift to the whole Church,” he said. “I ask you please to pray for me, as I pray for you.”

CNN has that breakdown.

In Other International Headlines

The Kicker

This one’s for the shipwreck enthusiasts (yes, it’s a thing). 

Archeologists working off the coast of Turkiye have found a shipwreck dating back around 4,700 years, making it the oldest in the world.

A number of ancient storage vessels known as amphorae were recovered during excavations at the wreck, which was found at a depth of around 100 feet (30 metres) near Kekova Island off the coast of southern Turkiye.

Read more here.