Our goal should be to improve health outcomes for all Canadians
TORONTO—Just three days after the recent federal election, Canada’s provincial premiers issued a demand that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau immediately call a first ministers meeting to provide them with unconditional, long-term funding of health costing billions of dollars. They wanted the federal share of health spending to be raised from 22 per cent now to […]
Conservatives should embrace vaccine mandate now, not wait to be forced
OTTAWA—This isn’t a column calling for Erin O’Toole to resign. To the contrary, Conservatives should give him the opportunity to move forward and bring more contemporary change to the party. Conservative parties win when they are consistent on values and contemporary with policy for the times. Frankly, I have some empathy for O’Toole’s challenges, having […]
Three years on, cannabis is the ‘new oil’
The legalization of recreational cannabis in Canada is fast approaching its three-year anniversary, and while the sector is seen to have behaved responsibly, volatility and uncertainty remains in both the market and how it operates, as well as in the long-term mental and public health impacts of legalizing the substance. Cannabis was officially legalized on […]
New Aislin book uses humour to blunt COVID’s impact
KAMOURASKA, QUE.—COVID-19 is no laughing matter. With four million dead from the virus worldwide, 28,000 in Canada, anti-vaxxers abusing medical professionals, social media lies abounding of alternative therapies, and celebrities refusing the jab, it is a grim story. And yet, humour is a saving grace. Much in the same way the black humour of wartime kept […]
Facing economic ‘headwinds,’ Senators look to spark Canadian offensive
With post-COVID recovery, a shift to net-zero emissions, an aging population, and the onset of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Canada is at a pivotal moment of transition, and it’s time for political and government leaders across the country to put partisanship aside and collaborate to find inclusive, long-term solutions for the challenges that face us, […]
‘It just seems so rushed’: federal public service unions express concerns over government’s call for workers to be vaccinated by end of month
Three of Canada’s federal public service unions representing hundreds of thousands of employees have all expressed concerns over the federal government’s announcement on Oct. 6 that all public service workers must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of the month. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Papineau, Que.), alongside Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister […]
‘A work in progress’: after 50 years Canada’s multiculturalism policy a ‘model,’ but must shift to ‘dismantling’ discrimination, say panellists
Fifty years after Canada made multiculturalism an official policy, Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi contrasted his life under the system to another political figure who, like him, was born within months of its enactment in 1971: the prime minister. Both men turn 50 within a matter of weeks of each other, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Papineau, […]
Hill vaccine mandates: how it could be done, and where things stand
As Parliament readies to make its return, the question of whether a vaccine mandate will—or can—be imposed on Parliamentarians, staff, and other Hill occupants looms large, with the privileges enjoyed by MPs and Senators raised as a possible impediment. But parliamentary experts who spoke with The Hill Times say it’s the prerogative of the House […]
What’s ahead for small government crusaders in the wake of COVID-19?
OTTAWA—Sometime last year, people started joking about the “before times” and “the after times” of COVID-19. Now, with the second anniversary of the arrival of the virus coming into sight at a time when the fourth wave is far from under control, the concept of a return to post-pandemic reality continues to recede. On the […]
We need all hands on deck to address Canada’s mental health challenges
Hopeful. This is how I feel. Why am I hopeful amid Mental Illness Awareness Week? The political winds around mental health policy in Canada seem to be shifting, with all federal parties making significant strides during the election campaign toward recognizing mental health as a priority. The COVID-19 pandemic has been casting a stark light […]
