What does Ford have to say about his MPP's university "slave auction"?

Plus, the teacher college's “inefficient” internal disciplinary system, and protecting Freedom Mobile.  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

First Up   By Manuela Vega   Good morning. Here’s the latest on Stephen Lecce’s fraternity “slave auction”, the lengthy process of stripping a convicted teacher of his licence, and why the Competition Bureau wants to protect Freedom Mobile.       DON’T MISS Canadian Press/Nathan Denette   ontario election Doug Ford is laying low while Stephen Lecce apologizes for taking part in a fraternity “slave auction” In 2006, Stephen Lecce participated in a fraternity “slave auction” — a fundraising event organized by the Sigma Chi fraternity that the now education minister was a member of, PressProgress first reported. Now, as the province’s New Democrats call for his resignation, Lecce says the event was “inappropriate” and that he apologizes “unreservedly.” Doug Ford has opted not to comment. Here’s what we know. More: “The trans-Atlantic slave trade is one of the most horrific chapters of human history… Mr. Lecce chose to lead and participate in events that mocked and trivialized this painful history,” the NDP Black caucus said in a statement. Meanwhile: The Liberals fired a candidate who baselessly claimed that “rebreathing” by infants causes “homosexuality.” Watch for: Who will win the election? Find the latest poll results here.   Giovanni Capriotti/The Star   courts A teacher was found guilty of sexual abuse, but he could retain his teaching licence for years Christopher Ng is no longer certified by the Ontario College of Teachers, and he can’t currently teach in Ontario public schools. But he remains a member of the college, his status listed as “Inactive/Non-Practising.” Despite pleading guilty in court and being criminally convicted of sexual assault of a student, the process to revoke his licence could take years. For Danielle Han, who said she endured his abuse for seven years beginning when she was 16, it’s frustrating. Here’s what we know about the “inefficient” internal disciplinary system. Go deeper: Ng appeared to be in “good standing” on the college’s website until 10 days after his conviction in April. Now, he shares the same status as retired teachers. ICYMI: Han lifted the publication ban on her name to share her story. She wanted to bring the abuse to light so that he could “never be a teacher again.”   Supplied Photo/Freedom Mobile   business Here’s why the Competition Bureau wants to save Freedom Mobile Rogers, Telus and Bell have a long history of “parallel co-ordinated behaviour,” the Competition Bureau laid out in court applications, and if Rogers closes a $26-billion deal to acquire Shaw and its Freedom Mobile wireless division, the tiny fragment of competition that exists will be no more. Rogers says it plans to sell off some of the businesses, but the independent enforcement agency says that’s not good enough, and aims to block the transaction altogether. Here’s how Freedom became a “disruptive force” to Canada’s big three national cellphone carriers. More: The Competition Bureau explained in hundreds of pages how the three carriers dominate certain parts of Canada and avoid aggressive competition outside those markets.         Get a front-row seat this provincial election. As the Ontario election heats up, you need This Week in Politics, featuring exclusive analysis from Queen's Park bureau chief Robert Benzie and columnist Susan Delacourt. Sign up here, and you'll start receiving their insight on what just happened, what it means — and what's coming next.         WHAT ELSE   Conservative leadership candidates were questioned about personal taste and political tactics at the first official debate.   Pierre Poilievre will say just about anything — and it’s opening the door to anger, conspiracies and extremism. Friend of First Up Lex Harvey is on fact-checking duty. Here’s how many false claims Mike Schreiner made in just one week.   Al Jazeera says reporter Shireen Abu Akleh was killed by Israeli forces. Here’s how world leaders are responding to her death. Dreams of a fully accessible Ontario by 2025 are out of reach, disability advocates say.   Toronto honoured longtime Star publisher John Honderich with a key to the city. Ontario residents are concerned about an explosion of opioid overdoses.   Toronto could soon allow booze in parks. Here’s how other cities have done it. Dad acted just “like every other day” the morning after killing my mom, a teen remembers at a Mississauga murder sentencing.   Jacob Hoggard’s defence revealed a 15-minute phone call and accused a complainant of making up the rape claim. Do the Leafs have The Passion? Here’s how the hockey world is reacting after the Game 5 win over the Lightning.   Millennials will boost rent prices in the suburbs, and four other take-aways from a new rent report.       POV Alexander F. Yuan/AP Photo For four short decades, people owned portable devices whose sole purpose was to play music. That era has come to an end.       PREVIOUSLY... Don Dutton/The Star   MAY 12, 1967: Bands from 17 Toronto secondary schools fill Nathan Phillips Square with their music as the Toronto Board of Education put on its Centennial Celebration Concert. Some 3,000 young musicians took part and another 3,000 people showed up to watch and listen despite low temperatures and chilling winds.     Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at firstup@thestar.ca. I’ll see you back here tomorrow.     If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below.   Unsubscribe From This Newsletter Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts Become a Star Subscriber View in Browser Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. One Yonge Street, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON M5E 1E6. 416-367-2000 PRIVACY POLICY