Survey says: health care, COVID benefits, affordability, and climate change top of mind for voters
OTTAWA—Over the past two weeks, I have had the great pleasure of guest hosting VOCM’s Openline program in Newfoundland and Labrador. Openline is a long-standing platform for all manner of discourse in my home province. It can often be a useful barometer of which issues are top of mind for the people of the Rock […]
Sharp-witted ISG Senator Keating remembered as a ‘relentless champion’ with an ‘insatiable intellect,’ sardonic sense of humour
Sharp, devoted, and extremely funny, Independent Senator Judith Keating is being remembered by her Red Chamber colleagues as a passionate advocate for New Brunswick. Throughout her life and after she was appointed to the Senate in January 2020, she advocated for women, people living in rural areas, access to medical health, and access to abortion […]
A dose of optimism—and realism—to decarbonize Alberta
An economically viable path to decarbonize Alberta’s oil and gas sector is starting to look much less like fantasy and a whole lot more feasible. Five recent announcements show that the pieces are coming together: plans for a new $1.3-billion net zero hydrogen plant in Edmonton; an announcement from Alberta Energy to facilitate creation of […]
Quebec’s anglophones have been cast adrift by the Trudeau government
KAMOURASKA, QUE.—It is tough being abandoned. On June 16, virtually the entire House of Commons dropped any historical commitment to the anglophone minority in Quebec, as it supported a Bloc Québécois motion recognizing Quebec’s “right” to unilaterally amend its provincial Constitution. This was effectively an endorsement of Quebec’s plans to enshrine French as its official […]
NDP’s Qaqqaq says nearly two years as MP an ‘isolating’ experience, did not ‘belong’
When NDP MP Mumilaaq Qaqqaq delivered her farewell speech remotely to the House of Commons on June 15, she called out Canada for its treatment of Indigenous communities, saying the country’s history “is stained with blood” and urged immediate action. “It is the blood of children, youth, adults, and elders. It is time to face […]
Community-centred, Indigenous approach needed for mental health in the North, say territory denizens
Although the recent federal budget included some new provisions for mental health in Canada, it fell short in addressing the pressing needs in the North, says Nunavut’s representative in the House of Commons. NDP MP Mumilaaq Qaqqaq (Nunavut) said she less pleased with broader efforts outside of the “bare minimum” of government apologies. “They keep […]
The notwithstanding clause has long passed its best-before date
KAMOURASKA, QUE.—“An abject failure.” These were the words Pierre Elliott Trudeau used to describe the new Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, when asked for an assessment by reporters in November of 1982. He did not elaborate, but many experts speculate it was the inclusion of Section 33, the notwithstanding clause, which offended […]
Quebec premier changing Constitution unilaterally starts ‘slippery slope,’ say some Liberal MPs
Quebec Liberal MPs representing anglophone ridings are staying mum on the Quebec government’s controversial attempt to unilaterally change the Constitution, but some Liberal MPs from other regions of the country are warning that the move sets Canada down a “slippery slope” with unintended consequences that will set a precedent for other provinces to do the […]
More than a game: hockey fans in stands offer post-pandemic hope
OTTAWA—The healing and hope that sport provides was on full display over the last week. In both Montreal and Toronto, people, in small numbers, got to watch the Stanley Cup playoff series between the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs in person. Elsewhere, column miles are being laid down extolling the failure of the […]
Trudeau proving heir apparent of Mulroney, not his father, on constitutional issues
The recent tempest over Quebec’s proposed amendment to the constitution to recognize Quebec as a nation revealed an important detail about Justin Trudeau’s leadership: he will not be defined by his father’s ideology. When Premier François Legault announced his intentions to modify the Constitution, many expected the spirit of Pierre Trudeau to speak through his […]
