The Decibel

Ontario’s securities watchdog is facing pressure from the Ontario government to open up access to high-risk investments, called private asset funds, to regular, retail investors, according to exclusive reporting by The Globe and Mail. Industry experts warn that this unusual move could lead to investors’ money being locked up for years in long-term real estate or infrastructure projects that have extremely complex fee structures.

Report on Business reporters Clare O’Hara and Jameson Berkow explain how this new proposal from the Ontario Securities Commission came about and what might be driving the Ford government to change the rules.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games begin on Friday. The Olympics are always a time to rally behind your country, but this year cheering on Team Canada takes on a different meaning. At a time when Canada is asserting itself as a “middle power,” how will that translate on the podium?

Cathal Kelly is a Globe and Mail columnist who writes about sports. Today, he joins the show to prime Olympics superfans and casual watchers alike for what you need to know about the Milan Cortina Winter Games, where Canada is likely to excel, and how politics could shape the narrative of these Winter Olympics.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Canvassers are currently collecting signatures for a petition in Alberta that could trigger a referendum on whether Albertans want to remain a part of Canada. The volunteers are with a group called Stay Free Alberta, whose leaders are Mitch Sylvestre and Jeffrey Rath.

Matthew Scace is a staff reporter for The Globe and Mail based in Calgary. He has been reporting on the separatist movement in Alberta and shares interviews he conducted with the leaders, and some supporters, on how they feel about recent U.S. comments about their movement and why they’ve given up on Canada.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The federal government’s Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program was meant to bring child care fees down to $10 per day and create 284,000 new daycare spaces by the end of March this year. A recent report found the program is expected to miss that goal by 90,000 spaces – and many places haven’t reached the initial $10 a day goal. But this program has made a huge difference for families.

Today, we’re doing a daycare check in with the Globe’s education reporter Dave McGinn. He’ll walk us through what’s worked with the program, what hasn’t, and when we might expect more affordable child care in Canada.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Over the last few weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened military intervention in Iran – first over the Islamic Republic’s treatment of protesters, and now, over the country’s nuclear ambitions. U.S. military warships have moved toward striking distance of Iran; meanwhile, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that a strike on Iran would spark a regional war.

Thomas Juneau is a professor at the University of Ottawa’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. He’s here to talk about how close Iran and the U.S. are to re-entering diplomatic talks, how other countries in the region are working to mediate the situation, and where this is leading for the people of Iran.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Snow and ice is a fact of life in a long, Canadian winter. So are the millions of tonnes of salt that is used to combat it on roads across the country. But there is a cost to all that salt: damage to property, waterways and other parts of the environment and infrastructure – totalling billions of dollars annually.

Patrick White, reporter for The Globe, explains the science behind why Canada is the biggest consumer of road salt in the world and why the same chemical that is necessary for a winter climate is also endangering water systems.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Inflation in Canada has stabilized, but food inflation is continuing to rise. Food prices rose 5 per cent in 2025, and some items saw much larger increases – such as beef and coffee. Prime Minister Mark Carney announced some affordability measures this week – like an increase to the GST credit – aimed at lowering grocery bills.

Today, food economist Mike von Massow explains why food prices remain so high, what’s driving the increase of specific items and what can be done about it.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

British Columbia’s drug decriminalization pilot program will end on January 31st. The controversial program was introduced in 2023, but was criticized by advocates and political opponents alike. Parts of the policy had already been rolled back as public pressure mounted. The pilot’s cancellation was met with disappointment, especially from First Nations leaders, over the lack of consultation. What does the ending of this policy signal about the B.C. government’s approach to the toxic drug crisis? And what does it mean for Canadians living with addictions?

Andrea Woo, the Globe’s staff reporter covering health and drug policy, gives us a retrospective on what exactly B.C.’s pilot was trying to fix, whether that worked, and what comes next as decriminalization ends in the province.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Some of the 3,000 federal agents in Minnesota are set to leave following the killings of U.S. citizens Renee Nicole Macklin Good and Alex Pretti. ICE and U.S. Border Patrol officers have been in the state enforcing U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda since December amid growing unrest. Now, Minnesota is suing the federal government, arguing that the Trump administration is breaching people’s rights and acting beyond its powers. And what happens next on the ground and in the courts could set a precedent, as ICE operations continue throughout the U.S.

Globe staff reporter Joe Friesen was in Minnesota and he’s on the show today to explain what life is like for people there, how the ongoing fight between the state and federal governments is unfolding, and where the situation could go from here.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ryan Wedding, former Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug lord, is pleading not guilty to U.S. federal charges of leading an international drug trafficking ring and orchestrating the murders of multiple people. Wedding had been on the run for more than a decade and was on the FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted list. But the sprawling criminal investigation crosses borders and legal experts are now questioning what lawful norms and treaties may be overridden in the race to prosecute Wedding and his associates in the U.S.

Colin Freeze, crime and justice reporter for The Globe, talks about the manhunt for Wedding, the laws around extradition and why this case could turn into a test of Canada and Mexico’s legal sovereignty.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.