Improved mental health access tied to workforce capacity
Canadians’ mental health has faced significant challenges during the pandemic. Stress has gone up, whether from uncertainty or from very serious problems such as job loss and the dramatic rise in violence against women, which the UN has called the shadow pandemic. Canadians are drinking more and the opioid crisis has gotten worse despite the […]
Redrawing the political landscape as COVID becomes a way of life
OTTAWA—Throne Speeches are always aspirational, but the blueprint for the future that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has rolled out goes a step beyond. It stands as the kind of comprehensive policy wish list political parties normally accumulate over the course of an entire election campaign. Touching on the full spectrum of social and economic policy, […]
If we are truly ‘strong and resilient’ the government should act on the debt
OTTAWA—Like many Canadians, I skipped watching the Speech from the Throne and the prime minister’s “non-political chat” last week. It was unusual, as I have always been interested in the speech, especially as a public servant when I contributed a sentence or two. This time, I thought it was a waste of time, as I […]
Parliament returns with the theatre of building back better
CALGARY—It’s Fall 2020 and we still have a government. That’s nice. It’s the best one can hope for in the midst of a global pandemic, economic disintegration, and a society that is held together, not by a common purpose, but the tenuous glue of predictable racial fragmentation. A lot of people are telling on themselves […]
It’s time to bridge our country’s great digital divide
If you’re of a certain age, chances are you’ll never forget the screeching symphony of sounds your computer once had to perform just to get online. Today, dial-up internet is a relic of the 90s for most—something many reminisce and chuckle about. However, for many rural Canadians, particularly farmers, lack of broadband internet is still […]
Throne Speech a missed opportunity to signal real action on tackling systemic racism
A Throne Speech isn’t meant to be much more than a high-level outline of what the government intends to do in the coming session of Parliament. But there is room for specificity, and the government has taken advantage of that for other initiatives. For example, this time around, the Liberals zeroed in on the creation […]
Throne Speech fails to set out a credible plan for the future economy
TORONTO—Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had been promising an ambitious Throne Speech. For those of us hoping he would include bold plans for building back better—a stronger, more innovative economy with good jobs and the prosperity needed to fund the things we would like to do as a country—there was far too little ambition. We face […]
Liberal fall agenda takes shape: what’s new, and what has to go through the House
A concrete legislative agenda for the government is finally beginning to take shape for the first time since last fall’s election, after the Sept. 23 Throne Speech highlighted at least 20 commitments that will have to go through the House of Commons in the new session of Parliament. Most of the nearly 7,000-word Throne Speech […]
Trudeau says some promises ‘clearly’ touch provincial jurisdiction after premiers slam Throne Speech, but calls for unified approach
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau acknowledged Friday that, while the Liberals’ Throne Speech waded into areas that fall squarely in provinces’ jurisdiction, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for all levels of government to work together. Speaking to reporters Friday afternoon, Mr. Trudeau (Papineau. Que.) brushed aside suggestions that he had lost the co-operation and […]
Throne Speech’s climate promises draws mixed reviews, with NDP saying it’s a rehash of old pledges
The Liberal government’s anticipated “ambitious green agenda” in its Throne Speech is garnering mixed reviews among environmental and political experts, with some saying it was stuffed with recycled pledges. “It felt like it was copy and pasted from a year ago,” said NDP MP Laurel Collins (Victoria, B.C.), her party’s critic for the environment, in […]
