5 Things posted Jun 25, 2025 @ 08:00am by Iain Burns

5 things you need to know this morning: June 25, 2025

Start your day off right with five things you need to know this morning.

Five things you need to know

1. Carney agrees to aim for defence spending of 5% of GDP by 2035

Mark Carney has joined other NATO leaders in agreeing to aim for a defence spend target of five per cent of GDP by 2035 (estimated to be about $150 billion). Only 3.5 per cent of members' GDP would be on military spending, according to NATO, with 1.5 per cent spent on the likes of infrastructure. Carney, speaking in the Netherlands this morning, said previous leaders had failed to spend enough cash on defence, adding: "If we want a more secure world, we need a stronger Canada that works with our allies."

Carney says Canada to spend 5% of GDP on defence by 2035 https://t.co/2FuqwhtuIX
— AM800 CKLW (@AM800CKLW) June 25, 2025

2. Liberals aiming to strengthen bail, sentencing with fall bill: Fraser

Justice Minister Sean Fraser has promised to introduce a bill in the fall designed to strengthen bail conditions and sentencing for certain crimes. Fraser, who was previously in charge of housing and immigration, said "reforms are in order" in the criminal justice system, particularly related to punishments for people involved in human trafficking, car theft, home invasion and organized crime.

The Liberal government will table a bill this fall introducing stricter bail conditions and sentencing for some crimes, particularly those involving organized crime, human trafficking, home invasion and car theft, Justice Minister Sean Fraser said.#crime https://t.co/NvwHpzWlrQ
— 650 CKOM (@CKOMNews) June 25, 2025

3. Gruesome Nanos polling for Poilievre and the Tories, but Abacus offers hope

The tough times continue for Tory Leader Pierre Poilievre, who not only lost the election – and his seat in the House of Commons – but is now losing in the polls in a quite dramatic fashion. A Nanos survey released this week reckons the Liberals are 13 points ahead of the Conservatives among voters, with Poilievre trailing Carney by 29 points as preferred PM. There is a sliver of hope for the blue team, however, as an Abacus Data poll shows the party just three points behind the Grits.

Either Nanos or Abacus is the worst pollster in Canada because they both can't be right.

This explains why so many people don't believe polls or feel like they are intentionally cooked. https://t.co/UlBsyoqMjK
— Brad Zubyk (@Bzubyk) June 25, 2025

4. Young socialist wins Democratic mayoral primary in New York

A 33-year-old socialist Muslim who became an American citizen in 2018 looks set to become the Democratic Party's mayoral nominee in New York City. Zohran Mamdani's platform includes universal childcare, city-run grocery stores, free public buses, rent freezes in subsidized properties and new taxes on the wealthy.

Left-wing Democrat stuns former governor in NY mayor primary https://t.co/0CD2TPj0Lw
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) June 25, 2025

5. Economists not predicting rate cut from BoC on July 30

Economists at some of Canada's biggest banks reckon there's little chance of a rate cut from the Bank of Canada on July 30 after Statistics Canada this week said inflation was 1.7 per cent in May. BMO's chief economist said further data "will ultimately drive the decision," but the chances "are lower now" following the release of the inflation numbers. TD Bank senior economist Andrew Hencic, meanwhile, said he thinks there'll still be two more cuts later this year.

Steady May inflation figures don't make the case for rate cuts: economists https://t.co/TW6UydDWn6 #CRE
— Western Investor (@westerninvestor) June 24, 2025