10/3: Canada Covered

The prime minister’s official residence is crumbling. Has been for years. There’s talk of potentially fixing or replacing it after a lot of political debate about it.

But is there actually the will in this country to replace it? And how much would it cost?

Independent journalist Tom Spears joins the show to discuss the problems plaguing the nearly 160-year-old home, the potential bill for the taxpayer, and why there seems to be little political desire to do anything about the property.

Background reading: Pierre Poilievre dismisses federal plan to replace or abandon 24 Sussex

Joseph Clarke: The case for keeping 24 Sussex

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Two Canadian provinces have sparked controversy with policies that would impact students who want to adopt a new name or pronouns at school.

Saskatchewan and New Brunswick have indicated that parents students under 16 have to be notified if their child wants to socially transition at school.

National Post reporter Tristin Hopper joins the show to discuss why they want to implement these policies, why groups are opposed to the move, and how Canadians feel about the issue.

Background reading: Canadian politicians stampeding away from policy of concealing gender transitions from parents

Saskatchewan LGBTQ group files legal action over government pronoun rules

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When a safe injection site opened in their Toronto neighbourhood, residents initially had to contend with just discarded needles.

But over the years, the streets around the South Riverdale Community Health Centre have become home to open drug use, fights and this summer saw an innocent bystander struck down by gunfire among drug dealers.

Independent investigative journalist Derek Finkle joins the show to discuss the impact the site has had on the neighbourhood, how police have been unable to respond to the issues, and why it potentially took the killing of a local resident to force authorities to act.

Background reading: The needles and the damage done: Inside our neighbourhood’s battle over unsafe injection, crime and murder

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Canada’s power couple, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Sophie Gregoire Trudeau announced they’re officially separating after 18 years of marriage.

This makes Justin Trudeau only the second prime minister whose marriage has ended in office, after his father Pierre. 

National Post political reporter Ryan Tumilty joins the show to discuss the announcement, why it has caught the attention of so many Canadians, and whether it has any political ramifications for the PM.

Background reading: Sophie Grégoire Trudeau has already moved out of PM's residence — how her life will change

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While the overwhelming majority of hospital visits in Canada go as expected, there are still thousands of errors every year that in some cases can have lasting, even deadly consequences for patients.

And while there are estimates, the true scale of medical errors is unknown.

National Post health reporter Sharon Kirkey joins the show to discuss what kinds of errors we’re seeing in hospitals, why issues in the health-care system could be contributing to the problem, and what recourse patients have.

Background reading: One in 17 Canadian patients harmed by mistakes that sometimes turn deadly

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With conflict raging between Ukraine and Russia, the role of NATO, and member states’ commitments have become top of mind for many.

One key issue is getting countries to meet defence spending targets, and one country missing the mark is Canada.

National Post politics reporter Catherine Levesque joins the show to discuss why Canada is falling short of its targets, why this is a problem that has plagued successive governments and why there’s pressure now to step up spending.

Background reading: Why Canada keeps missing its NATO spending target — and why Conservatives aren't promising to meet it

'Not for lack of trying': Peter MacKay on why Conservatives couldn't meet NATO's defence-spending commitment

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Canada has a reputation for being a welcoming place for people fleeing war or hardship in their home countries.

But scenes out of Toronto, showing refugees sleeping in tent encampments because there’s nowhere for them, are contradicting the image the federal government would like people to have.

National Post columnist Sabrina Maddeaux joins me to discuss why Toronto is struggling to help refugees and asylum seekers, what help is being offered to them and how the housing crisis is helping to make the problem worse. 

Background reading: Sabrina Maddeaux: Liberals 'resettling' asylum seekers by dumping them on the pavement

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The sky-high cost of real estate in the Vancouver area has people in the Lower Mainland looking at creative solutions to be able to afford their own homes. 

For some, that has meant going halfers on a house with total strangers, splitting the mortgage and the space.

Vancouver Sun reporter Lori Culbert joins the show to discuss why this is taking off in Vancouver, what some of the pros and cons are, and how co-homeowners are managing the arrangements.

Background reading: How pricey is Vancouver real estate? Strangers are pooling money to buy houses

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It’s a tale of two towns. Both nestled in the picturesque Rocky Mountains. Both a hot tourist draw in winter and summer alike. 

But Jasper and Banff, situated along Alberta’s western border couldn’t feel more different. 

National Post reporter, and producer of this podcast, Tyler Dawson joins the show to discuss the factors that saw Banff take off to become a glitzy destination for globe-trotters, why Jasper feels a little more rugged, and why locals in the smaller centre may prefer it that way.

Jasper versus Banff: Why one mountain town soared and the other didn't

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The $20 million gold heist at Pearson airport in April caught headlines because of the brazen nature of the crime, but it also struck some as eerily similar to another 70 years ago.

The theft of gold bars from Toronto’s airport had gone unsolved for seven decades, until now.

National Post reporter Adrian Humphreys joins the show to discuss how he was able to identify the culprits of the 1952 gold heist, how they likely got away with it, and why there probably wasn’t a happy ending to this underworld tale. 

Background reading: 'My dad got the gold': I solved the great Toronto airport heist of 1952

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