Five stories in the news today, April 27

By The Canadian Press

Five stories in the news today, April 27, from The Canadian Press:

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CANADA GEARS UP AID EFFORTS FOR EARTHQUAKE-RAVAGED NEPAL

Canadian military forces that specialize in disaster assistance are on their way to an undisclosed location where they’ll be on standby to go to earthquake stricken Nepal. Canada announced on the weekend that an assessment team is going to Nepal to determine how Canada’s Disaster Assistance Response Team can best help. Foreign Affairs spent the weekend trying to account for Canadians who are in Nepal, many of whom are trying to flee the earthquake-shattered country.

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ASSISTED-DEATH LAW NOT LIKELY TO BE PASSED BEFORE SUPREME COURT DEADLINE: MP SAYS

A Conservative MP who has championed legalizing medically assisted dying says it’s unlikely his government will come up with legislation before this fall’s election. Steven Fletcher notes with Parliament only due to sit a few more weeks before an election it’s likely they’re will be no new federal law. When the Supreme Court struck down Canada’s assisted suicide law in February it gave the federal government 12 months to draft a new law. Fletcher acknowledges that most politicians “would rather have their eyes scratched out” than deal with the issue of doctor-assisted dying.

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NEW BRUNSWICK MAN ACCUSED OF CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE IN SNAKE DEATHS APPEARS IN COURT

A man charged with criminal negligence causing death in connection with the deaths of two boys who were killed by a python in New Brunswick appears in court. Jean Claude Savoie was charged after the 2013 deaths of six-year-old Connor Barthe and his four-year-old brother Noah. The brothers were staying with Savoie when the snake escaped its enclosure and asphyxiated the two boys.

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PEI PARTY LEADERS HOLDING FIRST OF TWO DEBATES TONIGHT AHEAD OF MAY 4 ELECTION

PEI voters will get to see their provincial party leaders battle it out tonight in the first of two debates ahead of the May 4 election. Liberal Premier Wade MacLauchlin and Tory leader Rob Lantz are both brand new to their jobs. And the N-D-P and Green parties have also taken on new leaders since P.E.I. held its last provincial election in 2011.

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CANADA ABOUT TO SIGN TREATY THAT WILL HELP THE BLIND

Canadians who are blind or have difficulty reading published works will soon have a lot more to read. A senior government source says Industry Minister James Moore will announce today that Canada will join the Marrakesh Treaty, which is designed to make more reading materials available. It means Canadians who can’t read printed material or computer screens will have improved access to literature from around the world in a variety of languages.

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