First, do no harm: Canada’s COVID-19 crisis management
At a certain point in the saga of the 2008-09 financial cataclysm, I ran out of synonyms for cataclysm—calamity, catastrophe, disaster—as nothing seemed to capture the rolling tsunami of that contagion and the same inadequate words became repetitive very early on. Writing about it weekly from Washington between the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September […]
Prison farm program should be broadened to increase prisoner distancing amid COVID-19, advocate argues
Prison farm programs in two Ontario institutions could be broadened to help alleviate the impact of COVID-19, says an advocate whose call is bolstered by two Parliamentarians, who say the Correctional Service of Canada needs to do a better job protecting prisoners from the virus. Between the two southern Ontario prisons in question—Collins Bay Institution […]
The post-COVID Canada faces many challenges
OTTAWA—Last week, I wrote about international policy in the post-COVID time. Now I want to examine how Canada should respond to the major domestic challenges it will face. First of all, the debt: there will be mountains of it. A debt and deficit like nothing most Canadians have experienced in their lifetimes. At the latest […]
Nunavut politicians say feds must ‘step up’ prevention measures, fearing COVID-19 could spread ‘like wildfire’
Nunavut politicians are calling on the federal government to put aside more funds to prepare the territory, saying the $30.8-million promised last week is “a drop in the bucket” and not near enough to prepare for COVID-19 cases, which they warn could spread like wildfire in small communities. As the lone MP representing the largest […]
Armenian Embassy moves commemorations online to mark 105 years since genocide
Every year at this time, hundreds of Armenian Canadians gather on Parliament Hill to honour the more than one million people who died a century ago, but this week’s genocide commemoration in the midst of a pandemic has forced the country’s new ambassador to Canada to help her community mourn differently. April 24 marks 105 […]
Accountability matters, but Conservatives should reconsider clumsy crusade
OTTAWA—Normally it is not my wont to quote leaders of the Bloc Québécois, but I must admit a bit of personal fondness for Yves-François Blanchet. He just comes across as likeable and can be funny. He nailed the sentiment of many of us this week when he described the days of negotiating over the return […]
Electronic voting still remote possibility in ‘near future,’ House Speaker Rota tells committee
With Parliamentarians encouraged to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a House committee tasked with studying how virtual sittings can be held in the interim, House Speaker Anthony Rota says there are still hurdles to overcome before the prospect of holding electronic and remote votes can even be considered. “Voting is something I […]
House votes to meet in person once a week, despite Conservatives’ push to expand sittings
The government won a vote in the House of Commons Monday that will cause MPs to meet in the Chamber on Parliament Hill once a week. The Liberals had the support of the Bloc Québécois and the NDP for their motion, and won the vote 22-15, with just a small number of MPs on the […]
‘Heartbreak on top of heartbreak’: Trudeau addresses the Nova Scotia shooting
A “senseless tragedy” that left 19 people dead, including an RCMP officer in Nova Scotia, unfolded during a time the federal government would have introduced legislation to ban assault weapons across the country, says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Mr. Trudeau (Papineau, Que.) offered his condolences to those who lost loved ones over the weekend to […]
Nursing-home care aides are the real heroes
There will be many heroes in the coming days, some already rising to the challenge of COVID-19, including nurses, doctors, paramedics and hospital cleaners, as well as delivery drivers, grocery store workers, and warehouse staff. But there’s one critical occupation that is routinely forgotten when we champion the heroes: nursing home care aides who stayed […]
