Well its that time of year again.

As we close out 2025 we look back at what was.

And what a year it was.  Two general elections to start us off.  The political landscape shifting dramatically for two major parties.  One at the federal level and the other at the provincial.

And of course all of this under the threat of tariffs aimed at crippling our economy.  Brought on by our once most trusted and valued ally.  What will 2026 look like with America under the rule of the impulsive Donald Trump? 

I think it’s easy to say that 2025 has been a change year.  No matter what, from here on out, things aren’t really going to be the same.

So all that being said, what was the greatest story of 2025?  The biggest scandal? And what should we expect for the future?

Well to dive into these questions and more, I asked a few friends back to the podcast to discuss the year that was.

Joining me today are Theresa Lubowitz, former Queen’s Park staffer, principal of Lightbulb Narrative and host of the Progress Canada Podcast

Opposite her, is Nathaniel Arfiin, one of the key organizers of the New Leaf Liberals  who challenged former Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie’s leadership and forced her resignation.

I invited them to join me today and look back on the year that was and what we should look forward to in 2026. 

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Nicholas Paul: sound editing.

The Quadrafonics: fantastic opening and closing tunes!

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Last week, the Ford government passed Bill 60. The Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act.

According to the Ontario government, this will grow the rental supply in Ontario and take care of bad actors in the rental market.

Critics, however, say all this will do is hasten evictions and exacerbate the homeless crisis in our cities.

One organization is Acorn Canada. Who had one of their members infamously ejected from the legislature with Doug Ford calling on him to 'Get a Job'.

I reached out to Acorn to invite them on to this episode to talk about why they think that Bill 60 will make the housing situation in Ontario even worse than it already is.

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing
what we do, but please consider supporting us if you can, so we can keep
improving and keep paying the bills.

⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠.
We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’
website, so we created our patron system. Become a patron, get member
benefits and our eternal gratitude, and know that you’re not mainly
funding some crummy web company in the US. Win-win!

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠?

Nicholas Paul: sound editing.

The Quadrafonics: fantastic opening and closing tunes!

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The falls as seen the Doug Ford government defend itself from scandal after scandal.

Elected board trustees are being replaced with hand-selected Tory loyalist supervisors, who are being promised $350,000 a year. The Skilled Development Fund is being turned into a transfer of tax dollars to whoever donated the most to the Ontario PC's coffers. Recently, $75 million was spent on an ad campaign that ended up derailing the Tariff talks.

All of these issues should be enough to brand the Ontario PC party in scandal for a generation. However, according to the polls, they are riding high. Where is the opposition on this? Have they given up?

We asked Frank Domenic to return to the podcast to discuss what's going on at Queen's Park and just where exactly the opposition is in Ontario politics.

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing
what we do, but please consider supporting us if you can, so we can keep
improving and keep paying the bills.

⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠.
We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’
website, so we created our patron system. Become a patron, get member
benefits and our eternal gratitude, and know that you’re not mainly
funding some crummy web company in the US. Win-win!

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠?

Nicholas Paul: sound editing.

The Quadrafonics: fantastic opening and closing tunes!

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Earlier this summer, we presented an episode on the Sound of Music festival. The free music festival is held each Father's Day weekend in downtown Burlington. The event has attracted big names in the past, like The Trews and The Arkells, to grace their stages. However, since COVID, the costs have risen steadily, and sponsorships have not kept pace. The festival is in dire straits, with 2025 possibly being the last unless a new model is discovered.

To that end, the Festival went to the City of Burlington council to find a way to preserve the funding in some capacity. The City voted down the proposal. At the same time, the City has reached out to citizens to see what they want in a new Festival organizer going forward.

What is the future of the festival in Burlington? Is there enough time to find a new organizer for next year? Is the Burlington City Council willing to let this icon of the community die?

To answer these questions and more, I invited Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns to explain the city's decision-making process and what the city is hoping for going forward.

Our previous episode with Brent Kinnaird from the Sound of Music Festival can be found here:

https://905er.ca/2025/09/who-will-save-the-sound-of-music-festival/

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing

⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠?

Nicholas Paul: sound editing.

The Quadrafonics: fantastic opening and closing tunes!

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The embattled Marineland, a Niagara Falls theme park, made news again this month. As we discussed in our previous episode on the matter, Marineland is nearing the end of its existence. Brought down by animal welfare scandals and changing perceptions of animal attraction parks.

Currently, the park is closed, no longer generating revenue, and, according to its remaining shareholders, it is unable to pay its bills. But it's one valuable asset remains, it's real estate. The only problem is that real estate could be worth billions if it were not for the animals remaining on the property.

Marineland sought to fix that by transferring thirty beluga whales to China, where they would live out the remainder of their lives. However, the federal Liberal government decided otherwise. The Minister in charge of that decision denied Marineland's request.

In response, Marineland cited that the deaths of said belugas would be on the Mark Carney government's hands. St. Catharine's MP, Chris Bittle, though, took issue with that statement and issued his own response. Citing Marineland as a stain on Niagara Falls, and putting the welfare of the animals back on the park's ownership.

As a follow-up to our previous episode on the matter, Joel reached out to Chris Bittle to invite him on to discuss the government's reasoning in denying the request, and his views on the state of Marineland as it stands currently. Furthermore, we explore what options are available to ensure the welfare of the remaining wildlife at the park.

Our previous episode on Marineland is here:

https://905er.ca/2024/10/does-marineland-have-a-future-in-ontario/

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing
what we do, but please consider supporting us if you can, so we can keep
improving and keep paying the bills.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’
website, so we created our patron system. Become a patron, get member
benefits and our eternal gratitude, and know that you’re not mainly
funding some crummy web company in the US. Win-win!

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠?

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Here we are with part two of our series examining school board reforms.

The Ford Government is keen on eliminating trustees from Ontario school boards. As of the recording of this episode, Minister of Education Paul Calandra has removed elected trustees from four school boards in the province. Appointing a supervisor to oversee decision-making at the board level.

In our previous episode, we had Nokha Dakroub explain why she thought trustees ought to be appointed rather than elected in the province.

For this episode, we have Andrea Grebenc, former Chair of the Halton District School Board, to explain why electing our School Board Trustees ought to remain an important part of our democracy. And to help ensure a better education system for all of our children.

Our previous episode with Nokha is here:

https://905er.ca/2025/10/do-we-need-school-board-reform-with-nokha-dakroub/

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing
what we do, but please consider supporting us if you can, so we can keep
improving and keep paying the bills.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’
website, so we created our patron system. Become a patron, get member
benefits and our eternal gratitude, and know that you’re not mainly
funding some crummy web company in the US. Win-win!

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠?

Nicholas Paul: sound editing.

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The Ontario government has been busy over the last few weeks. Many wheels are in motion, including traffic cameras being forcefully removed from municipalities, as well as another brewing scandal involving the Skills Development Fund.

However, there is one that we wanted to focus on for the next two episodes, and that is the question of the removal of school board trustees from multiple boards in Ontario. Minister of Education, Paul Calandra, has hinted that he might remove the positions from all school boards in the province. This, of course, has sparked a bit of debate.

The elimination of a democratically elected position is indeed something that should not be taken lightly. However, is it the right one regardless? That's something we're going to examine over the next two episodes. We'll interview two former school board trustees from the 905. Each with opposing views on the matter. The hope is that you'll be able to come up with your own opinion, free from spin.

Today's episode is with Nokra Dakroub, who wrote an Op-Ed in the Toronto Star, advocating for the elimination of elected trustees. Instead, advocating for an appointed board, akin to that of a police board. Responsible solely for making decisions on the application of tax dollars towards local schools' needs.

You can find Nokra's Op-Ed here:

I was a school trustee. The role isn’t working as it should

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’

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For years, the Labour movement has struggled to find its footing. For decades, governments have compelled unions to return to work or to mediation. All the while, eroding the strength of both public and private sector unions. This has happened concurrently with diminishing buying power and wages for workers across Ontario.

That trend has stopped, though.

The recent actions of Doug Ford's invocation of the Notwithstanding Clause to force CUPE back to work, as well as the Federal government's legislation mandating flight attendants to mediation, were met with a defiant no. This line in the sand has sparked a revival of the labour movement in the province drawing a line in the sand.

I reached out to discuss this newfound confidence with the President of the Ontario Federation of Labour, Laura Walton. I speak with her about the new strength the movement has found, as well as LiUNA's parting from the OFL over their treatment of Doug Ford. As well as the future of labour in general in Ontario.

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing what we do, but please consider supporting us if you can, so we can keep improving and keep paying the bills.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’ website, so we created our patron system. Become a patron, get member benefits and our eternal gratitude, and know that you’re not mainly funding some crummy web company in the US. Win-win!

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠?

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We all know how difficult it can be to focus on the day ahead of us when we don't have a full belly. Hunger is a pretty good distraction from us succeeding in our day.

Imagine if you're a kid, then, trying to focus on learning math, science, history, geography, as well as participating in phys-ed on an empty stomach? Too many kids go to school hungry, for multiple reasons. Which is why the federal government created the National School Food Program. Where federal tax dollars are sent to the provinces and territories, who in turn pass it along to third-party providers to ensure our kids start the day with full bellies.

However, does it work? Or work well? We asked Sarah Keyes and Heather Thoma from the Ontario Chapter of the Coalition for Healthy School Food if the money we are sending to Ontario is getting where it's supposed to go. As well, if it's doing what we expect it to.

https://www.healthyschoolfood.ca/

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠?

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Why settle for a cramped home office when you can take your Zoom calls beside a roller coaster? Digital strategist and content creator Ryan Zeitz joins Joel to share how he turned Canada’s Wonderland—the GTA’s iconic amusement park—into his summer “home office.”

Ryan walks us through:

How a spur-of-the-moment season-pass purchase became a full-blown remote-work experiment

The hacks that make a theme park surprisingly productive (yes, reliable Wi-Fi and quiet corners do exist)

Why breaking routine in a post-pandemic work world can spark fresh energy and creativity

What his viral TikTok series reveals about the future of flexible work and the places we choose to call an office

Whether you’re curious about hybrid work culture, love a good behind-the-scenes amusement-park story, or just want inspiration to shake up your own nine-to-five, this episode is a ride worth taking.

Follow Ryan and his projects:

ryanzeitz.ca

Mental HELLth Comedy Night in Support of CMHA Toronto tickets are here:

It takes money and time to do this podcast. We love doing what we do, but please consider supporting us if you can, so we can keep improving and keep paying the bills.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’ website, so we created our patron system. Become a patron, get member benefits and our eternal gratitude, and know that you’re not mainly funding some crummy web company in the US. Win-win!

Or, why not ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠buy us a coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠?

Nicholas Paul: sound editing.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices