Morning Brief: Grocery Rebate Announced, A First Trip To Walmart & More

Happy Hump Day — Andrew from Narcity here. ☕

Off The Top: Canadian pop star Grimes says her daughter with Tesla founder Elon Musk will no longer be called Exa Dark Sideræl (no, that's not a typo). Instead, Grimes says the young tot will be called "Y," "Why" or simply "?" — definitive proof that our society learned nothing from the works of Abbott and Costello.

You'll recall that Grimes and Musk have another child — X Æ A-12. It's becoming quite clear that Grimes missed her true calling as the person who comes up with names for new computer viruses.

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In Case You Missed It

What Grocery Rebate Did The Government Announce?

Peace Tower of the Centre Block in Ottawa, Ontario. Right: Canadian Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland.

Gints Ivuskans | Dreamstime, Boonsom | Dreamstime

As anticipated, the federal government's unveiling of the 2023 budget brought forth a one-time "grocery rebate," now officially dubbed the Goods and Services Tax Credit (GSTC). The credit will pay out a max of $153 per adult, plus $81 per child or $81 for a single adult without children. MTL Blog's Willa Holt breaks down the announcement now that the dust has settled.

• In Her Own Words: "For 11 million Canadians and Canadian families, a new Grocery Rebate will help make up for higher prices at the checkout counter — without adding fuel to the fire of inflation," said Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland.
• By The Numbers: Freeland's figure is the number of Canadians Ottawa estimates will qualify for the credit, costing the government $2.5 billion. To receive the full rebate, one must have made less than $39,826 in 2021.
• READ THE FULL STORY HERE

How Much Did Ontario's Top Officials Make In 2023?

Ontario Premier Doug Ford. Right: Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore.

@fordnationdougford | Instagram, Legislative Assembly of Ontario

Ontario released its "sunshine list" for 2022, the annual roundup of public sector workers who earned more than $100,000, revealing what several of the province's most prominent figures took home. For starters, Premier Doug Ford took home a shade under $209K, while ex-Toronto Mayor John Tory made just under $203K from his city hall gig. Dr. Kieran Moore, who helped lead Ontario's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, pulled in $466K last year as Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health. Stuart McGinn helps us make sense of the numbers.

• Cream Of The Crop: Leading the pack was Ontario Power Generation CEO Kenneth Hartwick; of nearly 277,000 public sector workers, Hartwick's $1,726,068.02 was unmatched.
• My Take: Making the cut-off for the list $100,000 is antiquated.
  
• READ THE FULL STORY HERE

What Is Walmart Like In Canada?

A Walmart in Ontario. Right: Janice Rodrigues in a Walmart store.

Niloo138 | Dreamstime, Janice Rodrigues | Narcity

When Janice Rodriguez relocated to Canada last year, she couldn't wait to experience one of our most cherished local retail attractions: the, uh, humble Walmart Supercentre. From the sheer size of the stores to the variety of products, Walmart proved to be the one-stop-shop for a recent Dubai transplant. Even the furniture stacked up fairly well compared to pricier options at IKEA or HomeSense. Here's what Janice's first trip to Walmart revealed to her.

• READ THE FULL STORY HERE

What Else You Need To Know Today

🌸 CHERRY BOMB
With warm weather coming to Toronto, it won't be long until locals and tourists alike flock to the west end's High Park for the annual "Running of the Cherry Blossom Photographers." The High Park Nature Centre recently gave an update on the state of the park's blossoms and based on recent history, we're likely still a few weeks away, writes Madeline Forsyth.

🚆 TRAINING DAY
Amtrak plans to upgrade the trains on its Montreal–New York route, installing the faster and spacier Airo trains on the Adirondack Line. The new trains top out at up to 200 km/h, which should make what is currently a 10-hour, 613-kilometre trip far breezier. There will also be a host of new amenities, including a new business class and an improved café car, per MTL Blog's Sofia Misenheimer.

🥾 TAKE A HIKE
The Loss Creek Suspension Bridge is a great destination for B.C. adventurers looking for a new trail to explore. The 100-foot bridge will give you Indiana Jones vibes while the 10-kilometre trek through the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail system on Vancouver Island is decidedly more Jurassic Park. Morgan Leet breaks down what you can expect to discover.

📌 JOB BOARD
Hey, fancy post-secondary degrees are nice, but sometimes all you really need to take on a new job is some requisite experience. Patrick John Gilson scoured the local job boards and found six remote jobs based in Ontario that pay up to $100,000 — no degrees required whatsoever. Check out the listing here.

🎂 BIRTHDAYS
Stand-up comedian Chris D'Elia turns 43 years old today. Ready Player One author Ernest Cline is 51. Xena star Lucy Lawless is 55. Oscar-winning director of The Artist, Michel Hazanavicius, is 56. Moneyball mastermind Billy Beane is 61. The Mandalorian actor Amy Sedaris is 62. Irish actor Brendan Gleeson and Houston Oilers legend Earl Campbell are both 68. Monty Python's Eric Idle hits the big 8-0. The late Walmart founder Sam Walton was born on this day in 1918.

Thanks for reading Narcity's Canada Morning Brief — the newsletter that Grimes affectionately described as "unabashedly ¿."

Have a question or comment about today's edition? Let me know at andrew.potter@narcity.com or hit me up on Twitter if you'd prefer at @andrewjoepotter.

Have a great day and I will see you back here tomorrow!