TORONTO (AP) — Toronto Mayor Rob Ford continued to duck questions Tuesday about a video that purportedly shows him smoking crack cocaine despite calls by allies and rivals for further comment.

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Europe could face a decade of stagnation unless it makes big reforms and should heed the lessons of Japan, Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney said on Tuesday as he highlighted Japan's bold moves to bolster growth. In his final speech as Canadian central bank chief before taking over the Bank of England on July 1, Carney noted that Europe's recessionary economy is being held back by fiscal austerity, low confidence and tight credit conditions. "Deep challenges persist in its financial system. ...

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper dismissed a mushrooming expenses scandal in the Senate as a distraction on Tuesday and urged his Conservative legislators to focus on the economy. But Harper, facing the biggest crisis since he won power in early 2006 with promises to clean up government, also said he was "very upset" by the behavior of some parliamentarians and officials in his office. ...

(Reuters) - Canada's main stock index looked set to open slightly higher, catching up with gains in global equity markets following a Canadian long weekend, as investors cautiously awaited the release on Wednesday of minutes from the latest U.S. Federal Reserve meeting. TOP STORIES * British inflation fell twice as fast as expected last month, giving incoming Bank of England governor Mark Carney more leeway to support the economy with more stimulus should the recovery weaken. ...

By Randall Palmer OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada's Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper was under intense pressure on Monday to reassure voters that his administration is above reproach amid questions surrounding a secret check paid to Senator Mike Duffy. "There's been nothing under this prime minister's watch that's tied him so closely to such a massive ethical scandal. We need to see him show leadership," opposition New Democratic Party Member of Parliament Charlie Angus told a news conference. ...

FRANKLIN, Wis. (AP) — Milwaukee Pug Fest, billed by organizers as the largest such event in North America, had its best year yet.

By David Ljunggren OTTAWA (Reuters) - The top aide to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper abruptly resigned on Sunday over his role in a mounting expenses scandal which is threatening to undermine the Conservative government. Nigel Wright, Harper's chief of staff, quit after secretly giving a C$90,000 ($87,000) check in February to Mike Duffy, a member of the upper Senate chamber, to help him cover living expenses he had improperly claimed. News of the gift leaked late on Tuesday. ...

They battle it out weekly on the Billboard charts, and now they're competing at the Billboard Music Awards.