10/3: Canada Covered

Amid a summer of troubles in Canada’s airline industry, Calgary and Vancouver staff of big player WestJet could soon walk off the job. The strike would be the latest in a line of disruptions Canadian travellers have faced this summer as they take to the skies after two years of pandemic restrictions. Calgary Herald business reporter Josh Aldrich joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss why these WestJet...

The leader of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics arrives in Canada in the coming days, with a focus of the trip being reconciliation with Indigenous peoples and an apology for abuses committed at church-run residential schools. The visit comes amid declining influence and attendance for the church, a change that has been happening over decades. National Post reporter and Michelle Lang Fellow Jessic...

In recent weeks on 10/3, we've highlighted a new true crime podcast from Postmedia and Antica productions, called True Crime Byline. The show looks at some of the biggest criminal cases in the country, and what it was like for the journalists who covered them. True Crime Byline is available now, wherever you find this podcast, but have a listen to the first episode right here: This isn't a story a...

The race to replace Erin O’Toole as leader of Canada’s Conservatives took a surprising turn with the party’s leadership committee removing Patrick Brown as a candidate. It’s alleged that a private corporation had paid members of Brown’s campaign staff, which would be a violation of Canadian election law. National Post political reporter Ryan Tumilty joins host Dave Breakenridge to discuss how thes...

As candidates duke it out over who is best to lead the Conservative Party of Canada, many in the conservative movement are asking what the party itself should look like, and how to best position itself to beat the Liberals in the next election. After three straight losses, many see the next campaign as being mission-critical for the party. Tasha Kheiriddin, principal at Navigator LTD and author of...

The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade has set off a spate of controversy over whether access to abortion will be severely limited or outright banned in many states. And, as their closest neighbour, the issue has spilled over into Canada.  National Post columnist Sabrina Maddeaux joins Dave to discuss why the fallout from the Roe decision could have ramifications for Canadian women who wor...

The inquiry into Canada’s worst mass shooting has developed into a political scandal, with allegations the head of the RCMP interfered with the investigation to help push Liberal firearms policy. In notes uncovered by the Mass Casualty Commission, it appears that Commissioner Brenda Lucki demanded Nova Scotia RCMP release the types of guns Gabriel Wortman used to kill more than 20 people in advanc...

Early in the race to replace Jason Kenney as leader of Alberta’s conservatives, the conversation has turned to the province’s place in Confederation, with one frontrunner pushing an aggressive strategy. Danielle Smith is proposing an Alberta Sovereignty Act, which would allow the province to supersede federal law deemed not to be in Alberta’s interests. National Post reporter Tyler Dawson joins Da...

Openness and transparency are key tenets of our justice system. But what happens when more and more information is locked behind a publication ban? In a first-of-its-kind investigation, reporters Adrian Humphreys and Talha Hashmani looked into the rising number of discretionary publication bans in both criminal and civil cases. Adrian joins Dave to discuss why more publication bans are being grant...

What is it like to cover some of the most notorious criminal cases in Canadian history, to dig into a story, and follow the details as it winds through court? How do the really big cases affect the reporters on those stories? Kathleen Goldhar, host of True Crime Byline, a new podcast from Postmedia and Antica Productions, joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss the new show, what listeners can expect,...

A decade after she died by suicide, the case against Amanda Todd’s alleged tormentor has landed in a B.C. courtroom. Dutch national Aydin Coban is facing a number of charges in what the Crown prosecutor is calling a horrific case of sextortion. Vancouver Sun reporter Susan Lazaruk joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss what the Crown is alleging Coban did to Amanda Todd, how they’re trying to prove th...

A Canadian airline crew has been stuck in an ongoing nightmare, ever since they alerted police in the Dominican Republic to the presence of cocaine in a compartment on their charter aircraft. For their efforts, they were jailed, subject to threats and have been ordered to stay put in the Caribbean nation. National Post reporter Tom Blackwell joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss how the crew found th...

Ontario voters handed Premier Doug Ford and the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario a renewed mandate with even more seats than the last election. The PCs managed a strong win despite the fact that less than 50 per cent of voters turned up at the polls. The loss also has both main opposition parties looking for new leaders. National Post politics reporter Bryan Passifiume joins Dave Breakenr...

Canada’s gun laws are facing a host of updates, including a freeze on new handgun sales and imports. The bill replaces an earlier version previously proposed by the feds, and also includes a mandatory buyback of assault-style guns previously targeted by the government. National Post political reporter Chris Nardi joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss what’s covered under the bill, how this could impa...

Quebec’s controversial new language bill was passed in the legislature last week. It governs wide swaths of Quebec life, including college spaces and in what language people can access healthcare. Montreal Gazette columnist Allison Hanes joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss why the bill is so controversial, how it could affect relations between Anglophones and francophones, and whether it offers Que...

Ontario voters go to the polls in just a few days, but it hasn’t exactly been a barn-burner of a campaign. Despite trying to make a dent in Doug Ford’s support in opinion polls, the Liberals and the NDP still trail the PCs. National Post columnist Sabrina Maddeaux and Toronto Sun columnist Brian Lilley join Dave Breakenridge to discuss why voters may be feeling disengaged, how the leaders have far...

The debate of whether mercy killing can be used as a defence in a murder case is once again in the spotlight after a domestic homicide in Ottawa. Richard Rutherford, a former principal dancer with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and officer with the Canada Council for the Arts, was found dead in his home Easter weekend. His longtime spouse Phillipe Hebert has been charged in his death. Ottawa Citizen re...

Alberta’s governing United Conservative Party is looking for a new leader after Jason Kenney announced he would be stepping down. Kenney made the announcement after receiving a bare majority of support in a scheduled leadership review. Calgary Sun columnist Rick Bell joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss why Kenney fared so poorly with members of a party he built, what’s next for the UCP, and how thi...

Canada’s top court has struck down a section of the criminal code that could allow for extreme intoxication to be used as a defence in violent crimes. The ruling upheld the acquittal of a Calgary man who attacked a university prof after consuming alcohol and magic mushrooms. Calgary Herald reporter Bill Kaufmann joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss the initial court case, the Supreme Court ruling an...

Ontario voters go to the polls June 2, and the much-anticipated election campaign got off to a slow start last week. Much debate centred around highways and transit, as the Liberals and the NDP tried to make a dent in the PCs polling lead. National Post columnist Sabrina Maddeaux joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss how the major parties have fared so far, why the province’s COVID-19 response has no...

Been feeling the pinch on your utility bills this year, or maybe at the grocery store? You’re not alone. Canada has been hit with rising inflation, which has meant people are paying more for, gas, food and just about everything else. Edmonton Journal columnist Keith Gerein, who has been exploring the impact of inflation on people’s day-to-day lives, joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss where people...

Devastating floods and fires in B.C. last year showed the havoc these disasters can bring to communities. But it also laid bare how vulnerable some communities are to widespread destruction from future emergencies. Vancouver Sun reporters Gordon Hoekstra and Glenda Luymes join Dave Breakenridge to discuss an investigation that reveals just how unprepared some B.C. communities are, what’s keeping c...

The Ontario election campaign is set to get underway this week, but the Ford government gave it the unofficial kickoff, with a campaign-style budget. Rebuilding the economy after COVID will likely be a key theme during the campaign, but so could the government’s response to the pandemic, which still looms over the political landscape. Toronto Sun columnist Brian Lilley joins Dave Breakenridge to d...

The NHL playoffs are set to kick off in a return to near normalcy after two years under the shadow of COVID-19. And as the post-season looms, many are wondering whether this is the year Auston Matthews or Connor McDavid will lead their teams to glory, whether the Calgary Flames will up their game, or if the Lightning is poised for a three-peat. National post sports writer Scott Stinson joins Dave...

Conservative leadership contestant Pierre Poilievre has wound up an early front-runner in the race to replace Erin O’Toole. The famously combative MP has played up the fight for freedom as one of his key messages, but he has also given a lot of focus to an issue gaining traction across the country: Housing affordability. National Post columnist Chris Selley joins Dave Breakenridge to discuss why h...