The Rundown

Nate Erskine-Smith is one of those rare members of parliament. He considers himself a loyal Liberal. But he will vote against his party when he thinks the leadership is wrong. That's ensured two things: first, he'll never be in Justin Trudeau's cabinet, and second, he gets a lotta props from people who aren't necessarily Liberals. In any event, it's prompted Erskine-Smith to take a look at the vacant Ontario Liberal leadership post and in fact, he was the first candidate to toss his hat into the ring. He talks to Steve Paikin about his plans.

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Depending on how you measure it, about one in 10 people in Ontario live in poverty. Though not everyone knows what that, assumptions are sometimes made. Journalist Deborah Dundas, books editor at the Toronto Star, does know what that's like, having grown up in poverty. Her new book, "On Class," invites readers to learn why hearing the stories from those who live them can be transformative.

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Yasir Naqvi has had some of the bigger jobs in cabinet: attorney-general, minister of community and social services, minister of labour. But like so many Liberal MPPs five years ago, he was a casualty of the province's desire to sweep the Grits out of power. A little over a year and a half ago, Naqvi made a comeback into public life, becoming the federal member for the same riding he represented provincially. Now, he's decided to enter the Ontario Liberal leadership race. He talks to Steve Paikin about his plans.

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Our week in review begins with a look at the special report on electon interference. Then, an update on the Ukraine-Russia war. Are bike lanes causing traffic conjestion? And, why are people feeling that they're missing out on reaching their life-stage milestones?

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Traffic and congestion has come up a lot in Toronto's mayoral byelection. Some candidates are pointing the blame at bike lanes, arguing that they're the cause of traffic getting worse in this city. For insights on whether Toronto has implemented bike lanes in the best way possible, we welcome: Eleanor McMahon, former cabinet minister, and president and CEO of the Trans Canada Trail;
Trevor Townsend, founder of Keep Toronto Moving; and
Alison Stewart, director of ddvocacy and public policy for Cycle Toronto.

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In a legal saga that spans more than two decades, all 10 Canadian provinces, including Ontario, have filed lawsuits against Canada's tobacco industry seeking a total of $500 billion in damages for tobacco-related health-care costs. It's the largest class action lawsuit in Canadian history by a long shot. And for the past fpour years, negotiations between the provinces and Big Tobacco have been taking place entirely in secret. Not one province has publicly released any information on those negotiations. No public documents, public statements or public involvement. In comparison, when the U.S. took Big Tobacco to court, within four years, they had reached a settlement, tobacco company documents were made public, and all the states involved had received funds. The Canadian Cancer Society, Canadian Lung Association, and Heart & Stroke have released a joint letter calling on Canada's premiers urging them to provide an update on the negotiations. Sarah Butson, who leads Advocacy and Public Affairs with the Canadian Lung Association, joins Steve Paikin to mark the WHO's No Tobacco Day and discuss the importance for the settlement to include tobacco reduction measures.

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Milestone timelines are changing and even disappearing, If the standard life-stage achievements for graduation, career, marriage, children, homeowning, and retirement created predictability and comfort, what happens when people don't meet those marks? Does it negatively affect their sense of self? Or are the outliers the new normal? How much does technology, religion, gender inequality, racial inequity, and a changing economy play into those milestones. What would it take to bring our ideas of social norms into the 21st century?

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Author Rona Maynard talks about how her dog Casey enhances her life, the topic of her new book, "Starter Dog; My Path to Joy, Belonging and Loving This World."

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Nothing matters quite as acutely for Canada's democracy as the integrity of its elections. For months now, Ottawa's been embroiled in controversy about foreign interference in the past, and whatever is still ongoing. The government appointed former governor-general David Johnson as a special rapporteur to look into all of this, and he issued his first report last week. For insight on that report, and what's needed to move Canada forward, we welcome:

Richard Fadden, former director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service; Akaash Maharaj, Ambassador-at-Large for the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption Affairs; Toronto Star national columnist Susan Delacourt; and Laura Stephenson, professor of Political Science at Western University.

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Does your financial adviser tell you to hold onto your investments and never sell? Or that markets recover in the long run? Does your adviser always have an optimistic outlook? Portfolio manager and author John De Goey explores the hidden relationship between bias and financial markets in his new book, "Bullshift: How Optimism Bias Threatens Your Finances."

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