Front Burner

It’s no secret the Liberal Party is Canada is unpopular. Poll after poll shows the Liberals between 15 to 20 points behind the Conservatives, led by a surging Pierre Poilievre. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau isn’t faring any better, hitting record low approval ratings after nearly ten years in power. Is it time to replace him? And if so, who can take over the sinking ship? David Herle, a partner at...

Four years ago, George Floyd was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His death sparked a massive movement in the U.S. and around the world as protestors passionately rallied against police violence and systemic racism. Not only that, but companies and politicians promised to enact change. But since that reckoning, has progress really been made? Or is there now a cultural backlash...

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has announced the province will pay at least $225 million to get beer and wine into corner stores over a year ahead of schedule. But why does the province need to pay at all, and why has Ford spent so much time and energy on this issue over his six years in power? Our Ontario provincial affairs reporter Mike Crawley joins us to explain the massive payment, Ford’s politica...

A New York jury has found former U.S. president Donald Trump guilty of 34 charges of falsifying business records to conceal payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels. This makes Trump the first American president to be found guilty of a felony. Just six months out from election day, voters are left with an unprecedented scenario in which a convicted felon could become the next President of the Unite...

Earlier this week, an Israeli airstrike that set off a huge blaze in a tent camp in Rafah killed dozens of Palestinians and prompted outrage around the world. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the incident a “tragic mistake,” and promised a thorough investigation. His words echoed previous pledges of investigations and accountability, after past incidents involving the Israel Defens...

You might be hearing some positive-sounding headlines about Canada's economy recently. Inflation is coming down, and we've (so far) managed to avoid the recession many were predicting following the pandemic. So why do so many Canadians still feel like they're struggling to get by? In a word: productivity. The Bank of Canada has called the country's economic productivity situation an "emergency," a...

It’s been six years since Jaskirat Singh Sidhu crashed a truck into a bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos hockey team — killing 16 people, injuring 13 others and forever changing the victims’ families. Sidhu, a former permanent resident of Canada, has spent years in prison. Now, he’s been ordered to be deported to India — which critics say is a systemic problem in our legal and immigration systems t...

As Alberta struggles to navigate several years of dry conditions in the province, its historic water license system has come under scrutiny. In short, whoever got water rights first has first dibs on the water today. One of the small towns that really benefits from this system is Magrath, established in 1899 by Mormon settlers from Utah and Idaho. But its senior water rights are becoming more cont...

Standing in the pouring rain, and drowned out by protest music, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stood in front of 10 Downing street with an announcement: the British public would be heading to the polls for a snap election on July 4th.  British Politics has been a whirlwind for the last decade, with several conservative governments, and the polarizing passage of Brexit. And after nearly 15...

For months, Haiti has been ravaged by out-of-control gangs, especially in the country’s capital of Port-au-Prince. But international forces are expected to arrive any day now, led by Kenya. Getting in and out of Haiti is dangerous — and for many, impossible. But CBC’s Paul Hunter managed to go inside the gang-controlled capital and tells us what life is like for Haitians struggling to escape the b...

Red Lobster used to be one of the biggest names in the world of casual dining — but now the restaurant chain is on the brink of collapse as it files for bankruptcy protection. Was its famous "endless shrimp" promotion really too much for the restaurant to handle? Or is this more about the business decisions of a private equity firm and a major Thai seafood company? Business Insider senior correspo...

The International Criminal Court’s top prosecutor is requesting arrest warrants for top Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defense minister. Officials on both sides are being accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity — claims they strongly deny and argue benefit their enemies. Could these requests make a difference in the war? And what go...

Europe has a reputation as a place that is generally ahead of the curve on things like social housing. So it might surprise some Canadians to learn that much of the EU is well into the throes of a full-blown housing affordability crisis — and the general patterns bear a striking resemblance to our own. Senior Politico reporter Aitor Hernandez-Morales explains just how bad things are getting, and w...

How did Narendra Modi, the son of a humble tea seller rise up the political ranks to become one of the most powerful leaders India has ever seen? And did bloody religious riots damage his political future, or turbocharge it? This is episode 1 of Modi's India: Understood. Hosted by Salimah Shivji. More episodes are available here .

OpenAI is showing off the latest version of its ChatGPT software in a new set of promotional videos, sounding almost human in the way it talks to users, inviting all sorts of sci-fi comparisons. But AI chatbots are already here, using large language models to simulate human speech, emotion — and even relationships. As this technology goes increasingly mainstream, what will it mean for our "real li...

CBC’s chief political correspondent, Rosemary Barton, returns to explain the latest dust-ups in Ottawa. Will the tax changes the Liberals are promising impact only Canada’s richest? Why is a fight over public service workers returning to the office three days a week leading to threats about government services? And why are the NDP accusing the Conservatives of attacking women’s reproductive health...

The Women's National Basketball Association has been around for 30 years now, but has long struggled to stand out in an increasingly busy marketplace. The league has also struggled with viewership, and pay equity.  But they may have finally found a star transformative enough to break out of the pack. Her name? Caitlin Clark.  Just before Clark's professional debut with the Indiana Fever,...

Eurovision might best be described as “the Olympics meets American Idol”: a singing contest where countries face off for the number one spot in musical glory. It’s incredibly campy, silly, and mostly very fun. But this year’s Eurovision — which wrapped on the weekend — was dogged by controversy, as organizers faced protests for allowing Israel to compete amid the ongoing war in Gaza. The European...

There were scenes of celebration in Gaza last Monday, as word spread that Hamas had accepted the terms of an Egyptian-Qatari ceasefire proposal. But the same day, Israel rejected the deal. Its military has since ordered more evacuations and pushed further into Rafah, considered a last refuge for over 1 million Gazans displaced by the war.   So what would it take for Israel to agree to a...

Whether it’s a complex network of fake online designer shops set up to get your credit card details, a scammer impersonating your bank’s fraud department to get more personal information, or a simple “How are you today?” text that might lead to asking you to invest in a crypto scheme…scams are on the rise. And they are getting more sophisticated. Today on the show, David Reevely, who covers cybers...

On Friday, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre published an op-ed criticizing Canadian businesses’ use of lobbyists. He’s also called out the Liberals for high-priced fundraisers and "undue handouts” to the business lobby. But since Poilievre became leader, dozens of federal lobbyists have also paid to attend the roughly 50 private fundraising events he’s spoken at. So despite all the critiques o...

In June of 2023, Sikh activist and Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar was gunned down outside a gurdwara in Surrey, B.C., after evening prayers. Three men have now been arrested and charged with his murder, and all three are affiliated with a gang with ties to Punjab. But sources close to the investigation believe these men were just hired guns, acting on orders from the top levels of the India...

Unless it was dismantled last night after we put this podcast to bed, the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University is now entering into its 11th day. It's just one of several across Canada, and one of many more across North America. So last Tuesday, we headed to Montreal to check out the McGill encampment for ourselves.  We went to speak to students there about their central demand: di...

On May 1st, the people behind a subreddit called r/loblawsisoutofcontrol launched a nationwide boycott of Loblaw-owned stores for the month. The very same day the boycott began, Loblaw Companies Limited released its first quarter earnings numbers. Its profits went up by almost 10%, and its revenue by over $13-billion. Today on Front Burner, why did Loblaw become the primary target of Canadians’ gr...

A long-simmering feud between Toronto's Drake and Compton's Kendrick Lamar has finally erupted into open lyrical warfare. The bars being traded on diss tracks like "Push Ups" and "Euphoria" bring to mind some of the most iconic rap beefs in history — and it's far from the first time the 6 God has found himself in the crosshairs. Shadrach Kabango — you may know him as the rapper Shad — weighs in on...