Five stories in the news today, Oct. 26

Five stories in the news today, Oct. 26 from The Canadian Press:

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FIVE DEAD, ONE MISSING AFTER WHALE WATCHING BOAT CAPSIZES NEAR TOFINO

Five people are dead and one is missing after their whale watching boat sank off the west coast of Vancouver Island. There were 24 passengers and three crewmembers aboard the Leviathan II when it capsized Sunday afternoon near the tourist community of Tofino. Twenty-one survivors were pulled from the water. Now the RCMP and Transportation Safety Board are trying to figure out how it happened.

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PAUL DEWAR NAMED NDP’S SENIOR TRANSITION ADVISER

New Democrat Paul Dewar has a new job after losing his Ottawa seat in last Monday’s election. NDP Leader Tom Mulcair has appointed Dewar as a senior transition adviser. His new mandate will include guiding the NDP in staffing and reorganization both at the party level and inside the parliamentary wing.

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FOREIGN INVESTORS LOOKING TO HELP GROW CANADIAN MARIJUANA INDUSTRY

Friendlier laws on medical marijuana use in Canada are already drawing American investment north or the border, and the trend is likely to further ignite if the incoming Trudeau Liberals honour their promise to allow recreational use of the drug. Poseidon Asset Management, a San Francisco-based hedge fund focused squarely on cannabis production, says that with a new sheriff in Ottawa it’s now considering boosting its Canadian holdings following.

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VALEANT TO DEFEND ITSELF AGAINST “PHANTOM” PHARMACY ALLEGATIONS

Valeant Pharmaceuticals will try this morning to extinguish concerns ignited by a short-seller’s report that compares Canada’s largest drug company to bankrupt energy giant Enron. The Montreal area company says top executives will refute allegations that Valeant created a “phantom” network of pharmacies to distribute its products and avoid the scrutiny of auditors.

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EX-WHITE HOUSE OFFICIAL TELLS CANADA TO TECH-UP

When Vivek Kundra worked at the White House he managed an $80-billion information technology portfolio for President Barack Obama. And during election week he was in Ottawa stressing how important it is for governments to keep up with the latest technology. Kundra says he hopes the new Liberal regime gets the message.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY ..

Trial resumes for Toronto police officer charged in shooting death of teen

Sentencing hearing in Vancouver for B.C. pimp convicted of luring teens into sex trade

Ethan Hawke the special guest today at a native water ceremony in Nova Scotia

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation releases its fourth-quarter housing market outlook