Report calls for immigration system overhaul; ‘elbows up’ Canadian celebrities in the U.S.; and more

It’s Thursday, October 15. Here are the top stories we’re following today.

The C.D. Howe Institute report argues that Canada should go back to assessing skilled immigrant applicants based on key metrics such as education, work experience, language skills and a demonstrated ability to earn a living. That system was quietly dropped by former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s government in 2023 in favour of other metrics, such as preferences for certain professions and applicants who could speak French.

Just six months after declaring “This man is a blessing,” referring to Prime Minister Mark Carney, singer Joni Mitchell officially announced this week that she has finally obtained her U.S. citizenship. In doing so, Mitchell joins a coterie of Canadian-born celebrities who are known to be loudly Canadian when politically convenient, but are otherwise taxpaying, full-time residents of the United States, Tristin Hopper writes.

Grewal is facing a dramatic new wave of legal pressure, with police asking for help investigating alleged fraud and other wrongdoing by the lawyer and his colleagues, Ontario’s legal regulator moving to take over the law firm Grewal founded — and even his own father-in-law accusing him of multi-million-dollar fraud and forgery.

Nearly two years after her shocking resignation from cabinet that shook the halls of power in Ottawa, Freeland’s new book, “Unreliable Boyfriend,” tells her side of the story of how she was about to get dumped by Justin Trudeau as finance minister.

A growing luxury segment of the tourism market in Nova Scotia is experiencing an unprecedented boom. Out-of-country visitors are escaping crowded noisy cities in exchange for a cheaper dollar and high-end vacation experiences in the province. Some are buying up oceanside villas as getaways to ski or golf, prompting investors to pump millions into expansion projects over the next several years.