Canada has suffered the worst record for COVID-19 deaths in long-term care homes compared with other wealthy countries
Shame on Canada. When it comes to quality of life, we rank very well in the world on many fronts. But the treatment of incapacitated seniors has always been our dirty little secret. COVID-19 has exposed the real story behind many of our long-term care facilities. Last week’s report on Canada’s global status in residential […]
A sustainable post-pandemic future for aerospace
The last year has been a very difficult one for the aerospace and aviation industries. Severe restrictions on travel have turned otherwise crowded airports into deserted landscapes due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most companies in the aerospace and aviation sector had to undertake difficult measures to be able to survive. On a positive note, a […]
Restart plan taking precedence over bailout in aviation sector’s recovery strategy
The Canadian airline industry is in dire straits a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, but some experts are questioning whether the long-promised bailout package for the sector would save any jobs or restore regional flight routes. Routes have been cancelled across the country, some planes still flying are near empty, and thousands of workers have […]
Canadian airlines: an industry in crisis
COVID-19 has tremendously affected the airline industry in Canada. As the COVID-19 crisis took shape airlines around the globe suffered and at one point were brought to a halt. For Air Canada this could not have come at a worse time, as it was experiencing at the same time a major crisis due to the […]
Failure to invest in government capacity is a luxury we can’t afford
After years of public concern about the largely unchecked spread of online hate and illegal content on social media platforms, the Canadian government is introducing new rules to govern online content. The legislation is expected to include a new regulatory body, new law enforcement powers, and the new ability to audit platforms’ algorithms—their valuable “secret […]
Why mental health policy must harness the non-profit sector
Last week, opposition leader Erin O’Toole announced his “Canada Recovery Plan” to the Conservative Party Convention. This plan contained five key points aiming to ensure that “no one is left behind” in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the five points he raised was on mental health. This is unsurprising, given O’Toole’s long-standing […]
Languishing in lockdown: mental strain ramps up as third wave of COVID crests
OTTAWA—Here we go again. Ontario is apparently being slammed by the third wave of this pandemic. And as surely as the sun rises, many medical professionals and others are calling for yet another lockdown. It is soul destroying and demoralizing. Perhaps by the time Easter is upon us we will know of our current fate, […]
April 19: next act in the politics of the pandemic
OTTAWA—Everything at the national political level seems obscured now by COVID-19, which belatedly registered here a little over a year ago with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s call for Canadians outside the country to come home because of the health emergency. In the long run, Trudeau and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland will be remembered not […]
Forewarned, forearmed: to be prepared is half the victory against the next pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us how ruefully unprepared we were. However, we must forgo the blame game. We must make sure we learned the lessons, have in hand what is needed, and protect those at risk. How a society treats its most vulnerable is the measure of its humanity. In the aftermath, we see […]
New contract for freelance interpreters slated for April release
New contract terms for federal freelance interpreters will be published in April, according to Public Services and Procurement Canada. Contract terms proposed by the department last year led the International Association of Conference Interpreters’ (AIIC) Canadian branch to raise the alarm, with rep Nicole Gagnon, who herself works as a freelance interpreter on Parliament Hill, […]
