Top News Advisory at 9 p.m. Thursday, March 21, 2013

(Canadian Press DataFile Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) TOP NEWS ADVISORY 9 p.m.

Here are the latest Top News stories from The Canadian Press. All times are Eastern unless otherwise stated. Coverage plans are included when available. Entries are subject to change as news develops. Contact the National Desk at 416-507-2150.

TOP NEWS AT THIS HOUR Feds hope spending brake accelerates growth FedBudget-Main-Lockup OTTAWA _ When Jim Flaherty was a young man, they called it a brake stand _ one foot on the gas and one on the brake, creating lots of noise and plumes of blue smoke but moving the vehicle sideways if at all. Stephen Harper's finance minister is banking that all the torque in his eighth federal budget, delivered Thursday, will propel the Canadian economy forward in a burst sometime next year. With VARS FedBudget; moves Business and National ____ Canada's international aid agency to close FedBudget-CIDA-Lockup OTTAWA _ A 45-year-old federal agency that's spent billions improving the lives of people around the world is closing.The Canadian International Development Agency will be merged into the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Thursday's federal budget announced. PHOTO. With VARS FedBudget ____ Cost of becoming Canadian set to rise FedBudget-Immigration-Lockup OTTAWA _ The cost of coming to Canada _ and becoming a Canadian citizen _ is set to rise.Thursday's federal budget suggests the government is eyeing fee hikes to cover the ballooning cost of processing hundreds of thousands of visa and citizenship applications each year. PHOTO. With VARS FedBudget ____ See also: _ FedBudget-Housing-Lockup (Ottawa commits to long-term social housing) _ FedBudget-Aboriginals-Lockup (First Nations youth get $241M for training) _ FedBudget-Border-Lockup (Budget confirms border projects with U.S.) _FedBudget-Defence-Lockup (Fed budget endorses military job creation) _ FedBudget-Highlights-Lockup _ FedBudget-Speech-Lockup ____ OTHER NEWS Accident on snowy highway sends 300 to hospital WEA-Prairies-Storm More than 300 people have been injured following a multi-vehicle crash in snowy conditions on Highway 2 south of Edmonton.Alberta Health Services says four people have been seriously hurt and the others suffered minor to moderate injuries.

____ Harper aide testifies at Magnotta hearing CRIME-Magnotta MONTREAL _ A senior confidante to Prime Minister Stephen Harper has testified at the preliminary hearing in a gruesome killing-and-dismemberment case.Jenni Byrne has held various high-ranking roles under the Harper Tories and is now the director of political operations for the Conservative Party of Canada. PHOTO.

___ Bank overtime class-action cases to go ahead SCOC-Bank-Overtime OTTAWA _ The Supreme Court of Canada has cleared the way for a pair of class-action lawsuits against CIBC (TSX:CM) and Scotiabank (TSX:BNS) seeking hundreds of millions of dollars for unpaid overtime to go ahead.The banks had sought leave to appeal a lower court decision allowing the cases, but the Supreme Court dismissed the application.

___ Group makes reality-TV raids complaint Reality-Raids VANCOUVER _ A B.C. civil rights group has filed a complaint with the federal privacy commissioner saying Canada's border agency broke the law with a reality TV show.The B.C. Civil Liberties Association's complaint, filed on behalf of a migrant worker who was removed from Canada yesterday, says the reality show violates the federal Privacy Act.

___ VimpelCom to sell Wind Mobile: source Wind-Mobile-Sale TORONTO _ Small wireless carrier Wind Mobile is being put up for sale by its Dutch telecom owner VimpelCom.Canaccord Genuity analyst Dvai Ghose says he's heard from several sources that VimpelCom has started the process to sell Wind Mobile, launched in December 2009. PHOTO.

____ Toews willing to discuss aboriginal policing Toews-Aboriginal-Police OTTAWA _ The federal public safety minister says he's open to talking about more money for aboriginal policing in northern Ontario. Vic Toews told a House of Commons committee there needs to be a discussion about ways to improve the federal First Nations policing program _ which covers about half the cost of policing in aboriginal communities.

___ Funeral held for Guelph cop killed in crash Officer-Killed-Funeral GUELPH, Ont. _ Thousands of mourners, many of them police officers, gathered in Guelph, Ont., Thursday to pay tribute to a policewoman killed in the line of duty last week.Const. Jennifer Kovach, 26, died a week ago today when her cruiser crossed the centre line and collided with a Guelph Transit bus. PHOTO. AUDIO.

___ Cop killer clearly 'psychotic,' court hears Police-Death-Trial TORONTO _ The lawyer for a man who ran down and killed a Toronto police officer with a snowplow says his client was clearly psychotic.In closing arguments, lawyer Bob Richardson said Richard Kachkar had shown signs of a major mental disorder for years. PHOTO. AUDIO.

___ Obama urges Israelis to compromise for peace ML-Obama JERUSALEM _ President Barack Obama delivered an impassioned appeal Thursday for Israel to recognize that compromise will be necessary to achieve lasting security and to take steps to reverse an "undertow" of international isolation that is worsened by its failure to make peace with the Palestinians. Militants again underscored Israel's vulnerability by firing rockets into a southern border town.Obama declared anew that Israeli expansion of housing settlements in disputed territory only hinders chances for fruitful negotiations with the Palestinians, but he did not say as he has in the past that they must be halted. PHOTO. AUDIO.

___ Cyprus has 4 days to find bailout solution EU-Cyprus-Financial-Crisis NICOSIA _ Cyprus has four days to agree on a new plan to raise funds to avoid bankruptcy after the European Central Bank warned Thursday it will pull the plug on the country's banks at the start of next week if no bailout deal is agreed.Facing the ultimatum, the Cypriot government was racing to cement a new package that will please both Parliament and the country's potential international creditors. PHOTO. AUDIO.

___ Private papers show Thatcher's Falklands isolation EU-Britain-Thatcher-Falklands CAMBRIDGE _ Margaret Thatcher felt betrayed by close ally President Ronald Reagan over the Falkland Islands, according to newly released papers that reveal how isolated Britain's prime minister was in her determination to repel the Argentine invasion by force.When Argentina seized the British territory off the South American coast in April 1982, Thatcher's government presented a united front in public. PHOTO.

____ ND officials: Permanent flood protection needed US-Fargo-Flood-Outlook FARGO, N.D. _ With its ominously titled slideshow, "Get ready for a big one," the National Weather Service told flood-weary residents in the Fargo area Thursday to prepare for one of the Red River's five largest crests this summer, an outlook that prompted city and county officials to plead for permanent flood protection.The latest weather service flood outlook for Fargo and neighbouring Moorhead, Minn., includes a 50 per cent chance that the river would top 38 feet later this spring, which would surpass the fifth-highest crest of 37.34 feet in 1969. There's a 10 per cent chance of an all-time record. PHOTO. Mba note ___ BUZZ Justin Bieber's adult problems US-Music-Justin-Bieber NEW YORK _ In just four years, Justin Bieber has gone from fielding innocuous questions about his haircut to denying that he's in desperate need of rehab. Bieber's grown up and into tabloid territory, with his recent troubles making some question whether he's just the latest teen star gone wild.In what could have been his worst week ever, the 19-year-old pop star struggled with his breathing and fainted backstage at a London show, was taken to a hospital and then was caught on camera clashing with a paparazzo. Days earlier, he was booed by his beloved fans when he showed up late to a concert. PHOTO.

___ Game showing pipeline bombing raises concerns Gas-Pipeline-Game TORONTO _ Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne says she'll be looking into an online game promoted by a taxpayer-funded broadcaster that shows the bombing of a gas pipeline.A blog post supporting the game appeared on the website of the provincially funded broadcaster TV Ontario.

___ Universe ages 80M years; Big Bang gets clearer Birth-of-the-Universe PARIS _ New results from a look into the split second after the Big Bang indicate the universe is 80 million years older than previously thought but the core concepts of the cosmos _ how it began, what it's made of and where it's going _ seem to be on the right track.The findings released Thursday bolster a key theory called inflation, which says the universe burst from subatomic size to its now-observable expanse in a fraction of a second. PHOTO.

___ Many UK doctors give useless drugs, treatments EU-MED-Britain-Placebos LONDON _ More than three-quarters of British doctors prescribe a treatment they know probably won't work at least once a week, like low-dose drugs, vitamins, nutritional supplements or an unnecessary exam, according to a new survey.This use of placebo treatments directly contradicts advice from the British Medical Association, which deems them unethical.

___ Influential pediatricians group backs gay marriage US-MED-Pediatricians-Gay-Marriage CHICAGO _ The nation's most influential pediatrician's group has endorsed gay marriage, saying a stable relationship between parents regardless of sexual orientation contributes to a child's health and well-being.The American Academy of Pediatrics' new policy, published online Thursday, cites research showing that the parents' sexual orientation has no effect on a child's development. Kids fare just as well in gay or straight families when they are nurturing and financially and emotionally stable, the academy says.

(c) 2013 The Canadian Press

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