B.C.’s addictions and mental health ministry taking on a daunting, and worthy, challenge
OTTAWA—John Horgan, the new premier of British Columbia, made history last week when he took office. He fulfilled a campaign promise and created a full ministry responsible for mental health and addictions. Establishing a stand-alone department like this one was welcomed by many mental health advocates, not just in British Columbia but across the country. […]
Conspiracy theories could spark Conservative feud
OAKVILLE, ONT.—Canadian conservative politics is irredeemably dull, unless that is, it becomes embroiled in some sort of conspiracy theory, at which point it can be fun to watch. This is why I read with interest a recent Hill Times article in which two prominent Conservatives MPs—Brad Trost and Erin O’Toole—suggested that a newly formed group […]
Is CSIS a den of racism and Islamophobia? No, but…
OTTAWA—Ever since The Toronto Star’s Michelle Shephard broke the news of a $35-million lawsuit by five CSIS employees, I have agonized over what to write and even whether to write about this issue. I turned down several requests for interviews from major Canadian TV networks and a few radio stations since I did not know […]
U.S. demand for major changes to NAFTA big implications for our economy, negotiations will be difficult
TORONTO—Make no mistake. The U.S. demand for major changes to NAFTA has big implications for our own economy and the negotiations will be difficult. So much for “tweaking” the agreement. This being the case, Canada should make it clear, from day one of the negotiations, that we won’t be pushed into a fast agreement just […]
‘We’re moving in with the bees,’ Senators to share headquarters with colony of honeybees
PARLIAMENT HILL —There’s a buzz in the air about the Senate’s temporary headquarters next year. Literally. The Government Conference Centre at 2 Rideau St. will become the Senate’s new interim home beginning in 2018 and will soon after also become home to a colony of honeybees, with plans to install hives on the building’s roof. […]
Former NDP staffer Lavigne takes on western role for Counsel Public Affairs
This just in: former veteran NDP strategist and top staffer Brad Lavigne has joined Counsel Public Affairs as its principal and vice-president of its western division. Starting July 17, Mr. Lavigne said as vice-president he is in charge of “overseeing the expansion [of Counsel] into British Columbia,” and later in Alberta. “There’s a tremendous opportunity in the […]
Provincial ministers’ summer gabfest hands Trudeau a gift he could not refuse
OTTAWA—The pot thickens. The provincial ministers annual summer gabfest handed the prime minister a gift he could not refuse. A political pot fight is just what Justin Trudeau needs to shore up his left flank. Traditional New Democratic voters across the country fled their party to support the Liberals in the last election. Some simply […]
Quebec ‘crucial’ for NDP, an ‘enormous opportunity for growth’ in 2019 election, says NDP MP Angus
NDP leadership candidate Charlie Angus says his party can win back all 59 Quebec seats it won in the 2011 election, after losing a crushing 43 seats in the 2015 run, and says it’s both “crucial” and an “enormous opportunity for growth” for the party in the next election. “Quebec is crucial for us,” said […]
Why we should recognize Nanjing Massacre Commemorative Day in Ontario
TORONTO—As I reflect on the Asian Heritage Month that just passed I am reminded of the great need to ensure Ontario youth receive an education reflective of the histories and communities they grow up with at home, and to lessons they’ll be exposed to as they begin navigating their lives as global citizens in an […]
Famous Canadians shouldn’t behave badly abroad
TORONTO—Dear Famous Canadians: Canadians behaving badly in the United States: you could practically write a book about the subject, couldn’t you? On the Right side of the spectrum, there was the time that former Toronto mayor Rob Ford was arrested in Miami, mugshot and all. Ford told a Miami police officer to “go ahead take […]
