Latest news with #DavidBaxter
Vancouver Sun
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Vancouver Sun
'Growing number' of state threats from Iran concern Canada and NATO allies
OTTAWA — Canada and many of its NATO allies released a joint statement Thursday condemning a 'growing number' of state threats from Iranian intelligence services. The joint statement said the countries are united in their opposition to attempts to 'kill, kidnap and harass' people in North America and Europe. The statement was also signed by the governments of Albania, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. It said Iranian intelligence services are increasingly collaborating with international criminal organizations to target journalists, dissidents, Jewish citizens and current and former government officials. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. The statement did not cite any specific incidents but said the attacks violate the countries' sovereignty and calls on Iranian authorities to 'immediately' put an end to illegal activities. The Canadian Press has reached out to Global Affairs Canada for comment but has not yet received a response. In 2022, Ottawa declared Iran's leaders — including senior government and security agency officials — inadmissible to Canada due to involvement in terrorism and human rights violations. The Canada Border Services Agency said last month that three people were found ineligible to remain in Canada in recent years because they were senior officials of the Iranian regime. Deportation orders were issued for all three and one has been removed from Canada. Hostilities in the Middle East have drawn more attention to the possible activities of Iranian regime representatives in Canada. The border agency has said it works very closely with domestic and international partners by sharing relevant information on border and national security issues. Canada has not had a diplomatic presence in Iran since 2012. — With files from Jim Bronskill, David Baxter and Dylan Robertson Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
Hamilton Spectator
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Canada, NATO allies warn of ‘growing number' of state threats from Iran
OTTAWA - Canada and many of its NATO allies released a joint statement Thursday condemning a 'growing number' of state threats from Iranian intelligence services. The joint statement said the countries are united in their opposition to attempts to 'kill, kidnap and harass' people in North America and Europe. The statement was also signed by the governments of Albania, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. It said Iranian intelligence services are increasingly collaborating with international criminal organizations to target journalists, dissidents, Jewish citizens and current and former government officials. The statement did not cite any specific incidents but said the attacks violate the countries' sovereignty and calls on Iranian authorities to 'immediately' put an end to illegal activities. The Canadian Press has reached out to Global Affairs Canada for comment but has not yet received a response. In 2022, Ottawa declared Iran's leaders — including senior government and security agency officials — inadmissible to Canada due to involvement in terrorism and human rights violations. The Canada Border Services Agency said last month that three people were found ineligible to remain in Canada in recent years because they were senior officials of the Iranian regime. Deportation orders were issued for all three and one has been removed from Canada. Hostilities in the Middle East have drawn more attention to the possible activities of Iranian regime representatives in Canada. The border agency has said it works very closely with domestic and international partners by sharing relevant information on border and national security issues. Canada has not had a diplomatic presence in Iran since 2012. — With files from Jim Bronskill, David Baxter and Dylan Robertson This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2025. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Winnipeg Free Press
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Canada, NATO allies warn of ‘growing number' of state threats from Iran
OTTAWA – Canada and many of its NATO allies released a joint statement Thursday condemning a 'growing number' of state threats from Iranian intelligence services. The joint statement said the countries are united in their opposition to attempts to 'kill, kidnap and harass' people in North America and Europe. The statement was also signed by the governments of Albania, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. It said Iranian intelligence services are increasingly collaborating with international criminal organizations to target journalists, dissidents, Jewish citizens and current and former government officials. The statement did not cite any specific incidents but said the attacks violate the countries' sovereignty and calls on Iranian authorities to 'immediately' put an end to illegal activities. The Canadian Press has reached out to Global Affairs Canada for comment but has not yet received a response. In 2022, Ottawa declared Iran's leaders — including senior government and security agency officials — inadmissible to Canada due to involvement in terrorism and human rights violations. The Canada Border Services Agency said last month that three people were found ineligible to remain in Canada in recent years because they were senior officials of the Iranian regime. Deportation orders were issued for all three and one has been removed from Canada. Hostilities in the Middle East have drawn more attention to the possible activities of Iranian regime representatives in Canada. The border agency has said it works very closely with domestic and international partners by sharing relevant information on border and national security issues. Canada has not had a diplomatic presence in Iran since 2012. — With files from Jim Bronskill, David Baxter and Dylan Robertson This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2025.
Forbes
13-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Meet Your Customers Where They Live: On Their Mobile Phones
People are connected, if not addicted, to their phones. A recent research report about Smartphone addiction finds that the average person checks their phone 80 times a day, which is approximately every 12 minutes. And age makes a difference. Gen-Z numbers are significantly higher than Baby Boomers'. The point is, people are connected, if not addicted, to their phones. With that in mind, when communicating with customers, why consider any other way than through their mobile phone? According to David Baxter, CEO of Solutions by Text, the preferred communication channel is messaging. I had a chance to interview Baxter on an episode of Amazing Business Radio, and he described how messaging done well creates a better customer experience. Here are some of the main themes and ideas he shared in the interview: The History of Text Messaging Text messaging has come a long way. Originally, it was developed for person-to-person communication. It's now a viable channel for businesses to communicate with their customers. While Baxter related the origin of his company, Solutions by Text, he noted that the real story is 'solutions by mobile device,' moving from simple communications to transacting business in the modern era of smartphone technology. The Power of Text Messaging Baxter's research finds that 95% of text messages are opened and read in under five minutes. Emails can go unanswered and are eventually deleted, having never been read. Direct mail pieces (postal mail) often end up in a trash can. Regarding the 'open rate,' one of the main success measurements in advertising and marketing, messaging blows away these other forms of communication. Texting for Business While most people send text messages to friends and family, over the past few years, businesses have been connecting with customers via text. Traditional SMS (Short Message Service) messaging is evolving into more advanced communication with RCS (Rich Communication Services), which can send encrypted messages with embedded media content. Baxter's company focuses on financial services and takes advantage of the RCS technology. Even in a heavily regulated industry with stringent compliance requirements, customers can make payments, qualify for loans and more using the device they carry with them every day. That's easy and convenient—and customers love convenience. Imagine using messaging for industries in which compliance is much less stringent, making it convenient for both the company and the customer. Don't Break the Rules While the financial services industry is regulated by banking-related laws, that doesn't mean the average business doesn't have any rules. There are strict rules from both the government and phone carriers to protect consumers from spam and unwanted messages. Break the rules and you get shut down. Phone carriers don't want messaging to turn into a spam problem similar to email. Trust Is in a Phone Number When a customer gives a company their mobile number, it's a strong sign of trust. Baxter emphasizes that a mobile number is a customer's personal identity. It's almost as personal as sharing a home address or Social Security number. Abuse the customer's trust by sending irrelevant messages (similar to spam email), and they can block you forever with the tap of a button. The customer's permission to text is a privilege. Protecting this privilege is the key to building trustworthy and loyal customer relationships. Once you lose the customer's trust, they move on to your competition. Just as a phone carrier can 'cancel' your ability to message, so can your customers. Self-Service Customer Support More and more, customers are embracing customer support channels that don't include human-to-human phone calls, especially among younger generations (Gen-Z and Millennials), who value ways to solve problems without speaking to a person. My customer service research confirms that not offering alternatives to phone support can cause about one-third of your customers to leave. The Customer Always Wins Baxter's final comment was simple: 'The customer always wins.' That's his mantra, and he shared it several times in our interview. We live in a mobile-first world. Winning and keeping customer loyalty means respecting customers' preferences, guarding their trust and delivering seamless, real-time experiences directly into their hands (their mobile phones). Businesses of every type and size should ask, 'What if we could meet our customers where they truly want to be met?' The answer defines the current and future customer experience.
ABC News
11-07-2025
- General
- ABC News
Residents 'outraged' by appeal over rejected Plasrefine plastic recycling factory
Community members on the New South Wales Southern Highlands say they are "outraged and distressed" a decision not to allow a plastics recycling facility to be built in Moss Vale will be appealed. Plasrefine, now rebranded as Repoly, commenced an appeal in the Land and Environment Court on Thursday against the Independent Planning Commission's (IPC's) decision to reject its recycling facility in January. The proposed factory was recommended for approval by the Minns Labor government, and would have aimed to process 120,000 tonnes of plastic per year, about 10 per cent of the state's total plastic waste. It was ultimately rejected by the IPC, which found the negative impacts outweighed the benefits, and received almost 3,000 submissions from the community, On Friday, dozens of residents gathered in Moss Vale, saying they were blindsided by news of Plasrefine's challenge, lodged just 15 days before the appeal process was due to expire. "I was completely gutted, astounded, I couldn't believe it," said David Baxter, who has lived at a property adjoining the site for more than 50 years. "We were going to have a celebration picnic at our place because we thought it was over, that we had won and then bang, one email and we're back to square one." Anna Phillips, one of the main organisers of opposition group Moss Vale Matters, broke down in tears. "Our community is outraged, we are absolutely distressed that this is what Plasrefine has done," she said. "It's really, really hard because now everyone has to rally again. "The state government has done this to us and someone will be accountable because it's not fair." In a statement, a spokesperson for the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure said it was aware of the appeal and would not make further comment while the matter was before the court. In its decision to shut down the state significant project, the IPC drew particular attention to the risk a fire at the plant would pose to the neighbouring Australian BioResources medical research centre. Plasrefine relaunched as Repoly on a new website set up this year. The company declined the ABC's request for comment. In a mission statement on its website, the company described its plastics recycling process, which converts waste into products like flakes and pellets, as "a necessary waste management infrastructure to meet Sydney's future waste management requirements". The IPC issued a statement confirming the appeal, in which it indicated impacted parties could join the legal process if they wished. Ms Phillips said Moss Vale Matters was seeking legal advice and considering its next steps. "We are here to fight, and we are here to win, and they are absolutely never ever going to be bringing Plasrefine to Moss Vale," she said. Local MPs including the Member for Wollondilly Judy Hannan, Goulburn MP Wendy Tuckerman as well as the Wingecarribee Council all formally opposed the planned facility and on Friday reaffirmed their support for the community in opposing the project. Wingecarribee Mayor Jesse Fitzpatrick said he was optimistic the appeal would not be successful. "The case was so strong against [it] we really did think it wasn't coming back up," he said. "People have been fighting this for many years and hopefully this is the last hurdle."
