Public patience wearing thin in labour dispute between Ontario government, teachers
OTTAWA—Another week goes by here in Ontario with another set of rotating strike actions by Ontario’s teachers, who are in a labour dispute with Doug Ford’s government. These groups have been out of sorts since the fall. To date, no full-on strike has occurred, but neither has a negotiated settlement been reached. For me, this […]
2019: the year of the unexpected
OAKVILLE, ONT.—One of the fun aspects about politics is its unpredictably. You just never know what’s going to happen next. And nowadays it seems, for whatever reason, politics is more unpredictable than ever. This is why I’ve decided not to write a “Here’s My Predictions For Next Year” column, since I’m sure 2020 will be […]
Premiers’ nuclear announcement a potential boon, but issues remain: experts
Canadian nuclear energy experts say the recent announcement by three provincial premiers of plans to develop small and modular nuclear reactor technology, which could provide large amounts of greenhouse gas-free electricity, but one environmental expert says serious issues with the technology remain. On Dec. 1, Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe, and New […]
Will Scheer take one for the team?
OTTAWA—The main question about Andrew Scheer’s leadership is shifting from whether he can survive a party-wide review of his role in April, to whether he should quit now and let the Conservatives get on with choosing a new leader. Scheer turned in a middling campaign. He helped his party surpass the Liberals in the popular […]
Political leaders need to negotiate in good faith
With a strong minority government, negotiating will be the most essential skill for everyone. Every party needs to ponder how they’re going to get what’s needed to be done. Political players should pack up and put away their anger, frustration, dislike, and even hatred because these things won’t solve anything. Politicians should take baby steps, they […]
Trudeau’s real job now: sparking national action on a post-carbon future
OTTAWA—Apparently Doug Ford didn’t really mean it when he said in the summer that he would let voters in the federal election decide whether he would continue with Ontario’s costly, and likely futile, legal offensive against Ottawa’s carbon levy. Ford, who was shut out of the less-than-stellar federal Conservative campaign, sounded a bit more co-operative […]
Election 2019: Revving up the base in the divisive post-truth era
OTTAWA—It’s obvious to everyone how populism south of the border, in the United Kingdom, and much of western Europe has thrived in the post-truth era. U.S. President Donald Trump’s ability to twist information and pour out torrents of lies has changed reality in the U.S., where the lifeblood of political discourse often no longer has […]
Conservative gains in Ontario before campaign due to ‘Ford being quiet,’ but pollster says Trudeau’s attacks may not be working
Many Liberal candidates say Ontario Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford’s unpopularity is still a significant issue at the doors more than halfway through the election campaign, with some political strategists saying that voters who backed Mr. Ford in 2018 are upset with the Ontario government’s record one year in, and may now look to back […]
When it comes to climate change, Scheer should ignore the media
OAKVILLE, ONT.—One fun thing about elections is how they suddenly turn journalists and columnists into masters of political strategy. Indeed, if you scan social media, or read newspaper opinion pages, or watch public affairs shows on TV, you’ll find legions of media pundits offering up their strategic advice to political party leaders as to how […]
Leadership contradictions, affordability, and a redefined Ford among election highlights so far
OTTAWA—How do you define excitement? Spoiler. Campaign 2019 is so far not the answer. But hope springs eternal as we hit the halfway mark of the election. If polls are to be believed, if the election ended today, we’d likely have a minority government, probably of the Liberal variety. Were that the case then the […]
