TORONTO -- Canada has surpassed 22,000 active cases of COVID-19, with more than 2,300 new cases added in the last day. Here's what else you need to know to start your day.

1. Taking chances: The federal government appears willing to go to the polls over the Conservatives’ proposal of a new parliamentary committee to probe Liberal controversies. 

2. Fishing rights: CTVNews.ca offers a comprehensive look at the legal history of the disputes over Mi'kmaq fishing rights in Nova Scotia that date back hundreds of years.  

3. Mask policy: Via Rail will soon require all passengers not wearing a mask to provide a certificate stating that they are medically exempt.  

4. 'Mixed messages': Canadians aren't just weary of restrictions the nearly eight-month long pandemic has imposed on their lives, experts say people's frustration with the way those restrictions are communicated is growing too.  

5. Lifesaving treatment: Thanks to generous donors, the family of a Canadian baby who suffers from spinal muscular atrophy has raised the $2.8 million necessary to get a lifesaving gene therapy treatment, considered the "world’s most expensive drug."  

One more thing…

Trick-or-treat: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his family will follow the advice of local public health authorities to skip out on Halloween trick-or-treating this year, amid mounting frustration over conflicting guidance.   

Trudeau