Ending TB among Canada’s Indigenous peoples: treat the fundamental causes, not just the disease
Last year, the federal government announced it would spend $27.5-million over five years on an ambitious plan to end tuberculosis (TB) across Inuit Nunangat, Inuit regions of Canada, by 2030. The plan’s specific objective was to reduce rates of TB to levels lower than are seen currently in the rest of Canada. This is an […]
Report, like northern infrastructure, does not go far enough
A House of Commons committee report intended to take a comprehensive look at northern infrastructure needs was released last week. The House Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs report comes at a critical time; the government’s new Arctic Policy Framework is set to be released in the coming weeks. The future of northern infrastructure, […]
Canada’s Arctic needs investments in infrastructure, health, economic development, education
What if someone came into your home, took away your food, your livelihood, your kids, your land, lied to you, told you to move, abused you, assigned you a racially based identification number and commanded you to wear it at all times, eliminated your only means of transportation and hunting for food for your family […]
Budget bill completes INAC split, but union says transition still ‘in flux’
A year and a half after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised the dissolution of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada into two separate departments, the government has put forward legislation to make it official. But First Nations and employees’ advocates say there wasn’t nearly enough consultation about how the split would play out. About 10 per […]
If his strategy is to declare war on everyone, Scheer will pay a price in next election
OTTAWA—Conventional wisdom dictates that Jason Kenney’s Alberta victory will boost the fortunes of Andrew Scheer in the upcoming federal election. I beg to differ. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau now has two aggressive, anti-environmental foils to run against in an election. The more Kenney fights with the rest of the country, the more people will worry […]
Kenney’s Alberta win both good, bad for Trudeau, Scheer, say strategists
Alberta premier-designate Jason Kenney’s victory may deliver the political boogeyman Prime Minister Justin Trudeau needs to ward off the federal Conservatives, but it will also further test his—and the official opposition’s—ability to manage dynamics with the provinces, say political observers. Tuesday’s election capped the end of Alberta’s four-year flirtation with the NDP and return to […]
The North needs more infrastructure to unlock its wealth potential
Few industries come to mind that have a stronger connection and reliance on infrastructure than the mining sector. Frequently situated in remote and northern regions, mines are often located in areas without any roads, telecommunications services, or easily accessible transportation, all essential to getting goods to market. Nowhere is Canada’s infrastructure deficit more acute than […]
Territories spent less on infrastructure than without feds’ funding boost: PBO report
The territories spent $111-million less on infrastructure projects in the past two fiscal years than they would have without the federal government’s funding boost, according to a report released April 9 by the parliamentary budget officer. For every federal infrastructure dollar that, on average, they received, the three northern territories spent $3.70 in 2017-2018, a […]
Bill 21: a return to Quebec’s dark past
In the 1930s, the start of a time referred to in Quebec as “la grande noirceur” (the great darkness), the government of premier Maurice Duplessis passed the Padlock Law, otherwise known as An Act to Protect the Province Against Communistic Propaganda. Under the law, authorities could shut meeting places of anyone suspected of being a […]
Infrastructure is Canada’s backbone
Critically important infrastructure is too often poorly maintained or lacking in sufficient future planning. Delaying maintenance is a misplaced budgetary economy. Insufficient planning is symptomatic of a lack of realistic forethought. Both represent a much greater cost than is often acknowledged. The railway to the northern port town of Churchill, Man., is a prime example. […]
