The Big Five Podcast

David Heurtel welcomes back Paul Gott, Lead singer and guitarist for Montreal Punk Rock band the Ripcordz and a journalism professor at Concordia, and Jimmy Zoubris, special advisor to the Mayor.

• The Plante administration dreams of crisscrossing the city with a gigantic tram network by 2050 so that three out of four Montrealers will have access to structuring public transportation near their homes
• The U.S. government has raised concerns about Quebec's Bill 96, which aims to strengthen the use of French in the province
• Montreal's McGill University is proposing to review its investments in weapons manufacturers and grant amnesty to protesting students

David Heurtel is joined by Neil Drabkin, ia lawyer and a political commentator who was a chief of staff in the Harper government, and Andrew Caddell, a town councillor in Kamouraska, columnist for the Hill Times in Ottawa and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy.

• The federal government is offering 750 million to Quebec to compensate for the costs incurred in managing the influx of asylum seekers into the province
• 2 Montreal fire service employees have been suspended in wake of the fiasco over terrace closures on Grand Prix weekend
• Hydro-Québec will no longer need homeowners' permission to cut down trees on their property if the trees pose a threat to power lines

David Heurtel is joined by Trudie Mason - Veteran Newscaster here at CJAD 800 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 today's Big 5.

• “Ashamed for my city” - that’s what the owner of restaurant Ferreira had to say on social media after fire prevention officers closed down her terrace on Grand Prix weekend.
• Faced with a “worrying trend toward centralization and encroachments” in Ottawa, Prime Minister François Legault created a committee to find ways to “increase Quebec’s autonomy” within Canada.

David Heurtel caps off the week with Gabriel Retta, Chief of Staff to the Official Opposition at Montreal City Hall, and Dan Delmar, Co-founder of the PR and content firm TNKR Media.

• Montreal police used tear gas to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters at McGill university after they barricaded themselves in the administration building
• Quebec's new energy bill would cap residential rate hikes at three per cent per year until 2026
• Children will need a municipal permit to play hockey or ball in the streets of Les Cèdres, in Montérégie

David Heurtel is joined by Catherine Hogan, high school teacher at Westwood Senior High in Hudson, and Anne Lagace-Dowson, political analyst.

• The Legault government calls on English-speaking CEGEPs to "reconcile with reality" when they claim that the law on the protection of French undermines the success of Aboriginal students
• The Montreal Immigrant Community Support Center says they cannot cope with the volume
• France has adopted an anti-prostitution plan in view of the Paris Olympic Games
• The growing popularity of Pierre Poilievre's Conservative Party among immigrants and non-Francophones could give it a historic breakthrough on the island of Montreal

David Heurtel is joined by Neil Drabkin, is a lawyer who served as federal prosecutor and a political commentator who was a chief of staff in the Harper government, and Paul Gott, Lead singer and guitarist for Montreal Punk Rock band the Ripcordz and a journalism professor at Concordia.

• The CAQ gets a little bump up as we get ready for a National Assembly summer break
• A Quebec legislature has unanimously condemned the idea of making the province bilingual
• Bernard Drainville seems to have responded to one mother who bought over 40 A/C units for her children’s classrooms

David Heurtel welcomes in Anthony Koch, Former National Spokesperson for Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre and current managing principal at AK Strategies, and Jimmy Zoubris, special advisor to the Mayor.

• The Legault government amends its bill to protect elected officials against intimidation
• Could we be making a move towards nuclear energy?
• Involuntarily or consciously, Canadian parliamentarians may have contributed to the interference efforts of foreign actors
• Hate crimes, assaults and vehicle thefts are on the rise in Montreal

David Heurtel is joined by Political analyst Karim Boulos, and Christina Chough, Spanish teacher and Chair of the modern languages department at Dawson College.

• Bloc Quebecois and Conservative leaders of Quebec are outraged at the idea of making Quebec bilingual
• Donald Trump found guilty: Canada has “nothing to add.” 
• A ridiculous or justified restaurant charge? 

Elias Makos caps off the week with Andrew Caddell, a town councillor in Kamouraska, columnist for the Hill Times in Ottawa and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy, and Jonathan Kalles, Senior Director at McMillan Vantage, a national public affairs firm, and former advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

• The Bloc Québécois is proposing to invoke the notwithstanding clause to prevent judges from dismissing cases involving violent and serious crimes
• Liberal MP and Health Minister Mark Holland suggests taking your kids on a road trip this summer means you don’t care about the future of the planet
• Donald Trump has been found guilty on all 34 counts of his hush-money trial
• The Parti Quebecois wants each classroom to have a Quebec flag in it

Elias Makos is joined by Meeker Guerrier, Weekend News Anchor at Noovo and a commentator at RDS, and Justine McIntyre, Strategic consultant and former city councillor.

• Murders, stabbings and shootings in and around Montreal on Wednesday have many questioning how safe we are
• McGill has sent a letter to the police asking for more action to prevent hate at encampment
• The number of Canadians moving to the United States has reached a ten-year high
• Children are being harassed at a playground near Montreal’s safe drug-use site