The Big Five Podcast

Elias Makos is joined by Meeker Guerrier, Commentator at Noovo and Anne Lagace-Dowson, political analyst.

• Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Deputy Minister Chrystia Freeland pledged to increase funding for border security and the Canada Border Services Agency 
• Canada's Immigration Minister Marc Miller plans to propose reforms to the refugee system, potentially fast-tracking refusals for claims deemed unlikely to succeed
• The Liberal government has pulled the $250 cheque from its bill for a GST tax holiday
• The Quebec Liberal Party has proposed a bill to ban supervised drug consumption sites within 150 metres of schools and daycare centres in Montreal and 250 metres elsewhere in Quebec

Elias Makos is joined by Gabriel Retta, Chief of Staff to the Official Opposition at Montreal City Hall, and Jonathan Kalles, Vice President at McMillan Vantage and former advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

• Prime Minister Trudeau will meet with Canada’s Premiers today, as the Canadian federation collectively loses its mind over the threat of massive tariffs on Canadian goods from soon-to-be-president Donald Trump
• The Lacolle border crossing has seen a sudden spike in asylum seekers, with over 80 migrants arriving last weekend compared to the usual daily average of about 12
• The Mount Royal Cemetery has filed a legal challenge against Montreal's plan to close Camilien-Houde Way to cars by 2027, citing historical access rights granted in 1928

Elias Makos is joined by Justine McIntyre, Strategic Consultant and former City Councillor and  Akil Alleyne, Reporter and Commentator with extensive experience analysing legal, political, and social issues and Manager of the GemStar Circle of Excellence Scholarship Program on The Big 5.

• U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to impose sweeping tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China, escalating trade tensions with America's largest trading partners.
• Two-month GST holiday to combat "vibecession," says Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland.

Elias Makos starts the week off with Political analyst Karim Boulos, and Jimmy Zoubris, special advisor to the Mayor.

• On Friday, a pro-Palestinian, anti-NATO protest led to arrests, property damage, and accusations of antisemitism by politicians, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Quebec Premier François Legault
• Second Cup has terminated the franchise agreement for its café at the Jewish General Hospital after the franchisee was filmed making hateful remarks and inappropriate gestures
• Paul St-Pierre Plamondon predicts that Quebec’s youth will soon become the strongest proponents of sovereignty

Elias Makos is joined by Jonathan Kalles, Vice President at McMillan Vantage and former advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Neil Drabkin, is a lawyer who served as federal prosecutor and chief of staff in the Harper government.

• The Canadian government is offering a two-month GST/HST holiday on a variety of items this holiday season to help ease cost-of-living pressures
• The Royal Canadian Navy will replace its official march with a new composition after deciding the lyrics are outdated and offensive
• Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will “abide” by an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

Elias Makos welcomes back Paul Gott, Lead singer and guitarist for Montreal Punk Rock band the Ripcordz and a journalism professor at Concordia, and Bonnie Feigenbaum, Conservative Party of Quebec candidate in last provincial election and a lecturer at Concordia & McGill University.

• The Globe and Mail first to report that the Liberals will announce a GST holiday on certain items
• Randy Boissonnault has stepped down from his position as Minister of Employment in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's cabinet amid controversy over his claims of Indigenous heritage and other allegations
• The Haroun Bouzzi affair continues to make news at the National Assembly. But yesterday, a new target from the PQ’s Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, saying that the problem with Québec solidaire isn’t Bouazzi, it’s wokeism

Elias Makos is joined by Andrew Caddell, a town councillor in Kamouraska, columnist for the Hill Times in Ottawa and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy, and Raphaël Melançon, a political analyst for Noovo and CTV Montreal News at 5. He is also the president and founder of Trafalgar Strategies.

• Quebec solidaire MNA Haroun Bouazzi has issued a partial apology for his comments about racism in the National Assembly
• Under Valérie Plante's administration, Montreal saw a 33% increase in taxes between 2018 and 2024
• The illegal tobacco industry is now bigger than the legal one in some parts of the country

Elias Makos is joined by Dan Delmar, Co-founder of the PR and content firm TNKR Media and host of the Inspiring Business Hour - Saturdays at noon on CJAD and Akil Alleyne, Reporter and commentator with extensive experience analysing legal, political, and social issues and Manager of the GemStar Circle of Excellence Scholarship Program on The Big 5.

• A new Léger poll reveals that a majority of Quebecers oppose public funding for religious schools and religious education in primary and secondary schools.
• In Quebec, 3,034 public health workers are in "double employment" situations, with 1,307 of them required to choose between two positions by December 1st.

• Should Liberal MP Randy Boissonnault resign?

Elias Makos is back and kicks off the week with Justine McIntyre, Strategic consultant and former city councillor, and Jimmy Zoubris, special advisor to the Mayor.

• Elias offers up an explanation as to why Donald Trump won every single swing state and the Presidency
• Justin Trudeau says that the federal government could have acted more quickly to reform Canada's immigration programs
• Ruba Ghazal has officially been elected as Quebec solidaire’s co-spokesperson with 91% of the vote
• Do you think that homelessness in the city should be declared as a state of emergency?
• Montreal is considering banning cars from parts of Sainte-Catherine Street to create pedestrian-only zones, but opposition voices are growing

Filling in for Elias Makos, Trudie Mason is joined by Andrew Caddell, a town councillor in Kamouraska, columnist for the Hill Times in Ottawa and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy, and Bonnie Feigenbaum, Conservative Party of Quebec candidate in last provincial election and a lecturer at Concordia & McGill University.

• Despite polling showing only 37% support for Quebec sovereignty, Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon remains confident that he can win a third referendum if elected.

• The Quebec government is considering extending the state's secularism law to private schools, following an investigation into 17 public schools for potential breaches of religious neutrality.

• Canada Post workers have gone on strike after failing to reach a new agreement with their employer, with approximately 55,000 workers involved.