Start your day off right with five things you need to know this morning.
Five things you need to know
Birthday boy Mark Carney is in London today as he meets with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer once again. Carney condemned Iran's use of missiles and drones to attack energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf, but Starmer said the UK will not be sucked into a "wider war" involving Iran. Instead, he said he is "working with allies" to figure out how to make the Strait of Hormuz safe for energy shipments.
Two people are set to appear in court this morning after they were charged with the murder of a vocal critic of Iran's theocratic regime in British Columbia. Masood Masjoody, a mathematician who once worked as an instructor at Simon Fraser University, was found dead in Mission on March 6. Police said they believe the killing was "targeted" and related to "ongoing disputes."
Suspects in B.C. killing of vocal Iran critic to make Vancouver court appearancehttps://t.co/ESl8aEwp8n
— Global BC (@GlobalBC) March 16, 2026
In more – and much stranger – Iran news, the New York Post newspaper has published a story alleging that President Donald Trump has been told by intelligence officials that Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, could be gay. According to the report, Trump "couldn’t contain his surprise and laughed aloud" after being presented with the information. Homosexual relations are illegal in Iran.
Trump briefed that Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei is probably gay - and president has priceless reaction https://t.co/FoqZWam61y pic.twitter.com/iJNEfe9zuP
— New York Post (@nypost) March 16, 2026
The Liberal government has been under fire from energy industry experts and political opponents after claiming Canada could contribute 23.6 million barrels of oil as part of the International Energy Agency’s pledge to release 400 million barrels to stabilize prices amid the Iran conflict. The federal government has since explained that Canadian oil production is set to increase by 140,000 barrels a day starting in April, but that this is not courtesy of any emergency production. Instead, it will come from planned increased in production in Alberta. Canada does not, like the US and all other G7 countries, maintain a strategic oil reserve.
The 23.6 m barrels of oil that Canada will release as a part of the IEA plan will come from already planed production, not an emergency increase
— Mackenzie Gray (@Gray_Mackenzie) March 15, 2026
It will be a 140k barrels a day, starting in April, as per the Natural Resources Ministers office #cdnpoli https://t.co/dFu7zcHU3q
The Fraser Institute has accused Mark Carney and his Liberal government of "economic nonsense" because of their plan to "dramatically" increase carbon taxes on Canadian oil production and push for expensive "carbon capture" projects in Alberta. The think tank's article, written by its president and vice president, highlights RBC research estimating that "decarbonizing" oil in Alberta with carbon capture would cost around $17–$23 per barrel and separate research claiming a $120 per tonne industrial carbon tax would add another $20 per barrel. They add: "Why would an investor, a pension fund or any other investment firm choose to allocate their funds to Alberta or Canada more broadly if our costs are higher, which means their returns (i.e. income) is lower? ... The prime minister and his minister of energy and natural resources surely understand these basic economic laws and the implications for higher costs for Canada’s energy sector."
Federal government peddling economic nonsense https://t.co/4tTmzYMCIw
— Mark🇨🇦 (@MRH_1984) March 16, 2026
