Linden MacIntyre wins Giller Prize

Linden MacIntyre, co-host of CBC's The Fifth Estate, has won the Giller Prize for his book The Bishop's Man, which deals with the sensitive topic of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests.

The winner of the major literary award, with a $50,000 cash prize, was announced at a gala in Toronto on Tuesday by Jack Rabinovitch, founder of the award.

"It's just a huge honour to be here," MacIntyre said, adding a tribute to the people of Antigonish, N.S., and the priests struggling to work within the Catholic Church today when trust has been shattered by abuse.

"I thought it was time for someone to take a deep look at the impact of sexual abuse on a lot of people, not the least of which are the priests who have to continue to represent this church, in spite of the bad behaviour and deviance of other priests," he said in describing the inspiration for his book.

The Bishop's Man is about "a priest who goes into the business idealistically, who realizes that priests also have feet of clay, and it leads him to a personal crisis," MacIntyre said.

Father Duncan, the first-person narrator, has been his bishop's dutiful enforcer, employed to check the excesses of priests and to suppress the evidence, but he is forced to examine his own past under the strain of suspicion, obsession and guilt. The book is set in Antigonish, a place that MacIntyre calls one of most religious communities in Canada.

The community was shaken this fall when Catholic Bishop Raymond Lahey was charged with possessing and importing child pornography. Lahey resigned just before the charges against him became public.

The prize jury called MacIntyre's book "a brave novel, conceived and written with impressive delicacy and understanding."

MacIntyre said he was raised as a Catholic but slowly became agnostic. Everyone in his family is more faithful and he was worried as he wrote the book that it might offend them.

"When they read the book, they had to admit it is not an anti-Catholic book. It’s not an anti-priest book, but it’s about moral and ethical problems that we all have to deal with," he said.

The Bishop's Man is MacIntyre's second novel. He won in a field that included two first-time novelists and the hotly anticipated second book by Anne Michaels, author of Fugitive Pieces.

Established by Toronto businessman Rabinovitch to honour the memory of his wife, the literary journalist Doris Giller, the annual prize is one of Canada's most prestigious and lucrative literary awards. It celebrates the best Canadian novel or book of short fiction published in the past year and results in a spike of sales for the winner.

The other finalists were:

• The Winter Vault, by Michaels, which tells a love story set against the displacement caused by the construction of Egypt's Aswan Dam and Canada's St. Lawrence Seaway.
• Toronto writer and teacher Kim Echlin, nominated for her third novel, The Disappeared, about a young Canadian woman who follows her exiled Cambodian lover to his homeland as he searches for his family amid the killing fields.
• New Westminster, B.C.-based short story author Annabel Lyon, for her novel debut The Golden Mean, which shines a light on history in its exploration of the story of Aristotle and his one-time pupil, Alexander the Great.
• Montrealer Colin McAdam, nominated for his second novel, Fall, a boarding school tale about two roommates — one outgoing and popular, the other a loner — enamoured of a beautiful schoolmate who then, mysteriously, disappears.

This year's jury included Britain's Victoria Glendinning, Canadian writer Alistair McLeod and American writer Russell Banks. Each finalist receives $5,000.

Abortion could roil Senate health care debate

WASHINGTON — Abortion opponents in the Senate are seeking tough restrictions in the health care overhaul bill, a move that could roil a shaky Democratic effort to pass President Barack Obama's signature issue by year's end.

Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., said Monday he could not support a bill unless it clearly prohibits federal dollars from going to pay for abortions. Nelson is weighing options, including offering an amendment similar to the one passed by the House this weekend.

"I want to make sure something comparable ... is in there," Nelson said.

The House-passed restrictions were the price Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., had to pay to get a health care bill passed, on a narrow 220-215 vote. But it's prompted an angry backlash from liberals at the core of her party, and some are now threatening to vote against a final bill if the curbs stay in.

Obama said the legislation needs to find a balance.

"I want to make sure that the provision that emerges meets that test — that we are not in some way sneaking in funding for abortions, but, on the other hand, that we're not restricting women's insurance choices," Obama said in an interview with ABC News.

Senate Democrats will need Nelson's vote — and those of at least a half-dozen other abortion opponents in their caucus. They face a grueling debate against Republicans who are unified in their opposition to a sweeping remake of the health care system. It's unclear how the abortion opponents would line up; the pressure on them will intensify once the legislation is on the floor.

Former President Bill Clinton, whose failed effort to revamp the health care system contributed to the Republican takeover of the House and Senate in 1994, was expected to speak to Senate Democrats about health care legislation during their weekly caucus on Tuesday, officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss his schedule.

An intraparty fight over abortion is the last thing that Majority Leader Harry Reid needs. Reid, D-Nev., is already facing a revolt among Democratic moderates over the government-sponsored health plan that liberals want to incorporate in the legislation as a competitor to private insurance companies.

Reid, who is himself opposed to abortion, will have to confront the issue directly as he puts together a Democratic bill for floor consideration. The committee-passed Senate versions differ on abortion, but none would go as far as the restrictive amendment passed by the House.

The House bill would bar the new government insurance plan from covering abortions, except in cases or rape, incest or the life of the mother being in danger. That's the basic rule currently in federal law.

It would also prohibit health plans that receive federal subsidies in a new insurance marketplace from offering abortion coverage. Insurers, however, could sell separate coverage for abortion, which individuals would have to purchase entirely with their own money.

At issue is a profound disagreement over how current federal restrictions on abortion funding should apply to what would be a new stream of federal funding to help the uninsured gain coverage.

Abortion opponents have sought to impose the same restrictions that now apply to the federal employee health plan, military health care and Medicaid, the federal-state health program for the poor. Abortion rights supporters say such an approach would threaten women's right to a legal medical procedure already widely covered by private insurance.

The Senate health committee bill is largely silent on abortion, a stance that abortion opponents interpret as permitting coverage by private insurance plans that would receive federal subsidies.

The Senate Finance Committee bill attempts to craft a compromise, as the House unsuccessfully tried to do before this weekend's vote tightened restrictions.

The Finance plan would require insurance carriers to separate federal subsidy moneys from any funds used to provide abortions, and it would prohibit abortion coverage from being included in a minimum benefits package. It would require that state and regional insurance markets offer one plan that covers abortion, and one plan that does not.

Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., said he had thought the issue was settled. His panel rejected a number of Republican amendments to toughen abortion language.

Abortion opponents — including U.S. Catholic bishops — disagree. They spurned a somewhat similar approach to Baucus' bill in the House, saying that the approach of keeping federal funds separate amounted to little more than an accounting gimmick.

For now, the liberals are saying they will fight. Abortion rights supporters in the House were circulating a letter to Pelosi, threatening to vote against a final bill that restricts access to abortion coverage. At least 40 lawmakers had signed by early Monday.

"I, along with the other pro-choice members in the House, intend to push very hard to ensure that language is not included in the final conference product," said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla.

They're likely to have help in the Senate from two Republican women who support abortion rights, Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine. Collins indicated Monday that she thinks the House went too far.

"I think the Senate Finance Committee did a good job of putting up a firewall that would prevent federal funds from being used for abortion," she said. "Generally, I prefer the Senate approach."

AP Special Correspondent David Espo contributed to this report.

Enbridge boosts 2009 outlook, expects growth 'well into next decade'

CALGARY — As Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) glides through what it anticipates will be "the strongest growth year in the company's history," the pipeline and gas distribution firm has increased its 2009 guidance and is exuding confidence it can maintain steady growth into the next decade.

Calgary-based Enbridge reported Wednesday that third-quarter profit more that doubled from a year ago to $303.8 million, up from $148.4 million in the comparable period of 2008. Net earnings per share rose to 83 cents from 41 cents.

"It's safe to say that we are on track to deliver a record growth year for Enbridge," president and CEO Pat Daniel said on a conference call with analysts.

"Our solid growth comes from a combination of a number of things, firstly new assets which we have placed into service in 2009, also improved results from our existing businesses, and our increased investment in Enbridge Energy Partners and then finally... from assets that are currently under production."

Daniel predicted the company will "grow at an average rate of 10 per cent per year well into the next decade, even when using this record year of 2009 as the base year."

"We're not only bringing projects in on budget and on schedule but we're also building a very strong portfolio of commercially secured projects across our liquids our gas and our green energy businesses."

Adjusted earnings, which Enbridge says is a more accurate reflection of its profitability, rose to $152.3 million or 42 cents per common share, from $85.8 million or 24 cents.

The Calgary-based company said the strong third quarter has prompted it to raise its full-year guidance to a range of $2.30 to $2.36 in adjusted earnings per share, which would be up 20 per cent from last year.

Enbridge's profit far exceeded analyst estimates. According to Thomson Reuters, a consensus of 12 estimates had been for adjusted earnings of 38 cents per share, although at least one analyst had accurately predicted they'd be 42 cents.

For the full year, analysts had been expecting adjusted earnings in a range of $2.24 to $2.34.

On the downside, Enbridge revenues were down substantially in the third quarter from last year and missed analyst expectations by a wide margin.

Revenue declined to $2.63 billion from $4.37 billion, as a drop in commodity sales offset a gain in transportation and other services.

Four analysts who provided estimates to Thomson Reuters had, on average, called for revenue to be nearly $4 billion in the third quarter.

Shares in the company were up 88 cents or 2.1 per cent at $42.83 in early trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Prince Charles says Canadians serve with great distinction in Afghanistan

ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Prince Charles said Monday that Canadians are serving with the "greatest possible distinction" in Afghanistan and that his heart goes out to the family of the latest soldier killed there.

Charles, speaking at a welcoming ceremony as he started an 11-day tour of the country with his wife, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, said Canadians are remembered on famous First and Second World War battlefields, and for their peacekeeping efforts in places like Sudan, Lebanon and the Middle East.

"These acts, these universal values, for which Canada stands up and is counted have echoed right across the 20th century and into the 21st," he added.

He said Canadians have brought "the light of freedom and justice to the darker corners of the world."

"I need hardly say, therefore," added Charles, "how much my heart goes out to the family of Pte. Steven Marshall, who was killed in action only last week and who will make his final journey home to Canada tomorrow, taking his place among those who have made the ultimate sacrifice."

Marshall, 24, was killed Friday when an improvised explosive device detonated southwest of Kandahar City.

The family of Marshall said he died doing what he loved.

The military in Edmonton, where he was based, issued a statement from Marshall's family Monday in which he was remembered as a "soldier's soldier." The statement was issued before Prince Charles arrived in Canada.

The family said Marshall was excited about military life and had found his niche in the army.

"Steven was very excited about what the military had to offer," they said. "While he was training for his tour, he would talk endlessly about what he learned and he would eagerly say, 'I wonder what I will get to do next?"'

As a sapper, Marshall was on the front lines of efforts to minimize the threat presented by improvised explosive devices. He was working in an area of Afghanistan thought critical for the future success of a counter-insurgency strategy devised earlier this year.

He was so eager about his work that his family expected he would teach others in the military some day.

Marshall, a member of 11 Field Squadron, 1 Combat Engineer Regiment, had been in Afghanistan less than two weeks when an explosion hit his patrol in Panjwaii district, 20 kilometres southwest of Kandahar City. He was the only person killed in the blast.

Marshall grew up in Calgary and was a passionate fan of the Flames hockey team. His family said he was "undeniably in love with the game" and was himself a competitive and skilled player.

He also had a flair for storytelling and was quick with a laugh or a joke.

"His trademark was certainly his ability to tell stories and show off his impersonation skills that always made us laugh. Not only could Steven brighten up a room, he was the life of it, too."

But he was most remembered as a loving brother and son, who was devoted to his family and friends.

"Steven was an attentive listener, sensitive, bold and goofy at times. He was truly a breath of fresh air. His family was of utmost importance to him, and he always made an effort to put us first.

"The slightest gestures, such as letting him sit in the comfy chair or taking him out for lunch, would be met with a big glow of appreciation."

The family also recognized Marshall's fellow soldiers serving in Afghanistan.

"We would like to express our thanks for their friendship to him and their continued service in a mission in which he believed. You were his family, too, and he held you close in his heart."

Family members said they are immensely proud of "such an incredible young man."

"We looked up to you and will strive to live our lives as you did, with courage, dedication and an uplifting spirit."

The statement was signed off with the word "chimo," the cheer of Canadian military engineers.

Marshall's body is to arrive Tuesday at CFB Trenton in Ontario for a repatriation ceremony attended by Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean, Defence Minister Peter MacKay and other dignitaries.

His casket will then be taken along the Highway of Heroes to Toronto, where an autopsy will be performed.

He is the 133rd Canadian soldier to die during the mission to Afghanistan and one of two to be killed last week.

Lt. Justin Boyes died Wednesday in an explosion that also injured two other soldiers. His body arrived at CFB Trenton on Saturday.

Man accused of attacking MLA appears in court

A man accused of attacking a Saskatchewan Party MLA while trying to steal his car will spend the weekend in jail as he waits for a bail hearing.

Clayton Friday, 45, made a brief appearance in front of a judge in Regina provincial court on Friday, charged with robbery with an offensive weapon, assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and impaired driving.

The charges stemmed from a incident involving Thunder Creek MLA Lyle Stewart on a road west of Regina the morning before.

Stewart said a man said he had a knife and tried to steal his car. Stewart struggled with the man for some 30 minutes, receiving minor cuts to his hand, but he overcame the attacker and held him until police arrived.

Friday is from the Pense area, which is in Stewart's constituency. In the prisoner's box Friday, he spoke briefly to a legal aid lawyer before the case was adjourned.

Michael Jackson set to rule U.S. pop chart

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - Michael Jackson is on track to score his sixth No. 1 on the U.S. pop chart next week with the companion album for his new concert movie "This Is It."

Industry prognosticators suggest the album -- which was released on Monday -- could shift between 300,000 and 350,000 copies by Sunday night. Sales data for the week will be released next Wednesday by tracking firm Nielsen SoundScan.

Jackson already owns the year's best-selling album with his 2004 hits package "Number Ones" -- 2 million and counting. Additionally, his 1983 blockbuster "Thriller" is the year's 11th best-seller (1.1 million) and 2005's "The Essential Michael Jackson" is the 15th biggest (986,000).

"Thriller" marked his first No. 1. The follow-ups, "Bad," "Dangerous," "HIStory" and "Invincible," also hit the top.

The "This Is It" album contains 14 studio recordings of Jackson's hits like "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" and two versions of the from-the-vaults title track, which plays over the film's end credits. It also includes three demo recordings and a spoken word poem titled "Planet Earth." The film opens worldwide on Wednesday.

Simon's "Brighton Beach Memoirs" get darker reading

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) – New York theater insiders have been wondering for months exactly how Chicago director David Cromer -- currently hotter than hot thanks to the transfers of his acclaimed productions of "Adding Machine" and "Our Town" -- would handle the high-profile assignment of staging the Broadway revivals of "Brighton Beach Memoirs" and "Broadway Bound," which will run in repertory under the heading "The Neil Simon Plays."

"Brighton," which opened Sunday night ("Bound" will follow in a few weeks), won't fully satisfy the director's fans in that he has imposed no new spin on Simon's nostalgic comedy-drama. But the production does illustrate Cromer's particular talent for getting to the emotional heart of whatever he tackles.

This mainly well-acted production is a more sober rendition than the original 1983 Broadway staging, which starred Matthew Broderick and ran for more than three years. While not neglecting the laughs, this is a harsher, darker version that might not prove as crowd-pleasing.

Set in the titular Brooklyn neighborhood during the Depression, the autobiographical work centers on young Eugene Morris Jerome (Noah Robbins), who wants to be a writer someday but whose principal concerns at the moment are the New York Yankees and seeing a naked girl.

His relatives have greater problems on their minds. Father Jack (Dennis Boutsikaris), old before his time, is struggling to support his extended family even while holding down several jobs. Mother Kate (Laurie Metcalf) has her hands full caring for two sons and her asthmatic, widowed sister Blanche (Jessica Hecht) and her two daughters (Gracie Bea Lawrence, Alexandra Socha). Older brother Stanley (Santino Fontana) is in danger of losing his job after openly defying his boss.

Add to that an atmosphere of impending war and the unknown fate of the family's relatives in Europe, and you have the makings of a somber drama indeed.

Except, of course, that this is Neil Simon we're talking about, so the evening is filled with his trademark hilarious one-liners, many of them delivered by his young alter ego directly to the audience. But as is the case with so many of the playwright's works, most of the characters have a tendency to sound like seasoned vaudeville comics.

Cromer's staging downplays this aspect. Although Eugene's monologues still score big laughs, much of the rest of the humor has been toned down, giving the play a somewhat more realistic feel even while paradoxically exposing its essential lack of depth.

Still, the evening largely works, thanks in large part to the excellent ensemble. Robbins, whose credits include playing Max Bialystock in his high school production of "The Producers," is a real find as Eugene, managing to be touching and hilarious. Metcalf's harsh Kate takes some getting used to, at least until the actress slowly and cannily reveals the character's underlying vulnerabilities; Fontana is warmly engaging as Stanley; Boutsikaris is moving as the physically and emotionally exhausted Jack; Hecht, though sometimes mannered, is effective as Blanche, and Socha and Lawrence do fine in the relatively undeveloped roles of the daughters.

The production perfectly conveys the proper period atmosphere thanks to John Lee Beatty's fully lived-in, two-story-house set design and Jane Greenwood's appropriately drab costumes.

Michelle Obama's gripe: President's tennis game

BURBANK, Calif. - What's President Barack Obama's most annoying habit?

Practising his speeches for hours in front of the bathroom mirror? Talking too much foreign policy at the dinner table?

No - first lady Michelle Obama said Friday it's his tennis game. When they play, the president usually wins.

"He beats me quite often," she said on NBC-TV's "The Jay Leno Show," appearing via satellite hookup from the White House. "That gets to be pretty annoying."

The show was taped for airing later Friday evening.

In a brief skit, Leno pushed her to talk about her husband's flaws. At first, she sarcastically said he has none.

"He's perfect," she quipped.

Then she let it out: It's their battles on the tennis court that get her peeved.

It also looks like Bo - the Obamas' dog - is living like a king. The first lady said the presidential pooch celebrated his first birthday earlier this month with a Rose Garden party.

Bo, a Portuguese water dog, feasted on a cake shaped like a dog house that was made out of veal.

"We had a really sweet celebration," the first lady told Leno. "We had party hats."

The first lady told Leno there are White House secrets she will never reveal - she refused to divulge what daughters Malia and Sasha are wearing for Halloween.

"You need security clearance for that," she said.

Leno also wanted to know what she whispers to her husband after his speeches.

"I usually ask him, did he take out the garbage?" she said.

U.S. envoy says 'side letters' on labour and environment may benefit NAFTA

MONTREAL — The United States has no immediate plans to reopen NAFTA but remains interested in side deals related to labour and the environment, America's new ambassador to Canada affirmed Wednesday.

David Jacobson told a business audience in Montreal that President Barack Obama is a "strong believer" in free trade.

But he added that the White House remains interested in possible additions to the North American trade treaty that would benefit the environment and labour standards.

"I don't believe there is any interest at this point time in renegotiating the NAFTA treaty," he said.

"There may be, with respect to labour and the environment, side letters that may improve the situation from the perspective of all three countries.

"But fundamentally our view of NAFTA is that it is working very well. It is working very well for all sides."

Those words could reassure a business community unnerved by remarks about NAFTA by Barack Obama during last year's presidential campaign.

Obama talked about reopening the trade deal while campaigning during the Democratic primaries.

While Obama raised the issue of side deals on labour and the environment shortly after taking office, his administration has since sought to temper the volatile free-trade debate.

International Trade Minister Stockwell Day assured these types of side deals are no cause for concern.

In fact, the two countries have already signed agreements on energy and environmental co-operation that did not affect NAFTA, he said.

"We don't have a problem with looking at ways we can see improvement on the labour side and on the environment side," he said.

"We can do that without renegotiating NAFTA. That's the main thing where most people have (breathed) a great sigh of relief."

Jacobson also addressed the thorny issue of his country's Buy American provisions, which restrict Canadian companies' access to state and municipal public-works contracts.

The new diplomat, who assumed his post earlier this month, said he's well aware of Canada's concerns and that "constructive" talks are ongoing between the two countries to resolve the issue.

"I understand the concerns in this country about the Buy American provisions," he said.

"There have been a number of discussions as recently as Monday at very high levels between our government and your government in an effort to resolve these issues."

Day, however, warned the dispute shouldn't be allowed to drag out for too long and he used a Canadian hockey analogy to make his case.

He cautioned the U.S. against "ragging the puck" when it comes to resolving Canada's concerns.

"You can't do that and win," he said.

Day said the interconnectedness of the supply chain means policies that restrict Canadian companies from bidding on state and municipal public-works contracts do more harm than good.

Patents and components used in an American company's product, for example, often originate in Canada which means Buy American policies thwart business on both sides of the border, he said.

"We're in such a high-speed world with opportunities opening up globally," he said.

"Individual investors, workers, innovators, if they get frustrated waiting for a development, there's so many (other) opportunities. They will pursue those."

While progress is being made to resolve the Buy American impasse, Day said it's more a "marathon" than a "sprint" and he's hopeful an agreement can be reached before next year's construction season.

In the meantime, he said Canada is forging ahead with bilateral trade agreements with a myriad of other countries - something the U.S. is not doing.

"We're frankly ahead of the U.S. on many of these," he said. "Our business people will have a competitive advantage over the U.S. They do right now in some cases.

"We're on the move here. We're opening doors of opportunity," he added. "For the goodwill of our two countries, we need to settle this as soon as possible."

B.C. to deny welfare to alleged criminals

Critics are raising concerns about a new bill introduced by the B.C. government that would deny social assistance or disability benefits to anyone with an outstanding arrest warrant.

The provincial minister for housing and social development, Rich Coleman, said the bill is aimed mainly at people from other provinces who move to B.C., although it applies to anyone with an outstanding warrant for an indictable offence anywhere in the country.

"They will now be asked if they have an outstanding warrant," Coleman told reporters at the legislature Monday. "If they have, they will be advised that they won't be eligible for social assistance until they clean up the warrant."

Shane Simpson, the NDP's housing and social development critic, was concerned that the bill is too broad because it does not list the indictable offences covered by the legislation.

"So arguably here a single mom who shoplifts groceries out of a supermarket, this could constitute an indictable offence for warrant purposes," Simpson said.

Simpson also questioned whether the bill was even enforceable.

The government does not plan to search the national police database for warrants. It would be up to those applying for social assistance to come clean about outstanding arrest warrants.

"The self-reporting part of this legislation is absurd,' said Simpson. "Is somebody who has a warrant for sexual assault in Ontario going to come forward when they apply for welfare … I don't think so."

If they are in trouble in another province, they'll be sent back to face the law.

"We put a provision in the act that we would actually be able to pay for transportation and send them back to their jurisdiction to clean up the warrant," said Coleman.

Coleman said if applicants don't tell the truth on their forms, they can be charged with welfare fraud.