The Decibel

Justin Trudeau and the Liberals appear to be in big trouble. Following a stunning loss in the Toronto-St. Paul’s by-election to the Conservatives – a riding they’ve held handily for the last 30 years – the federal government is at risk of losing big in the next federal election, currently set for October 2025. As the Liberals grapple with where to go from here, Prime Minister Trudeau also faces qu...

The U.K.’s Conservative Party is in deep trouble. Britons are heading for a general election on July 4 and polls indicate the ruling Tories are headed for electoral disaster. From Brexit, to COVID and betting scandals , financial panic, and a nation-wide joke involving a head of lettuce – voters appear ready to oust the deeply unpopular party led by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Paul Waldie , The Gl...

Over the weekend, the Alberta NDP elected former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi to lead the party into the 2027 provincial election. With membership numbers at an all-time high , the future looks bright for the provincial party. But Nenshi will face many challenges before meeting Danielle Smith in the next election – including trying to unite the party while considering whether to sever ties with the...

For the first time in almost a century, North America’s busiest border crossing – between Detroit and Windsor – is expanding. The Gordie Howe International Bridge is finally connected after six years of construction and a slew of delays , cost increases and political woes . The bridge is expected to improve trade between Canada and the U.S., while bolstering Windsor’s economic revitalization . The...

It’s hard making friends as an adult. Time to build new relationships becomes scarce. And despite many ways to keep in contact, people are lonelier than ever – new data from Statistics Canada shows that 47 per cent of Canadians feel lonely always, often, or some of the time. Zosia Bielski is a national reporter for the Globe and Mail whose work often examines relationships. She’s on the show to ta...

Introducing ‘Lately’: a new weekly podcast from The Globe and Mail about the intersection of business and technology. Every Friday, host Vass Bednar dives into the defining trends that shape our lives. This episode’s guest is author and Polaris Award-winning artist and producer producer Cadence Weapon  – the tech skeptic behind the new album Rollercoaster – who breaks down the depressing economics...

Last week, Tesla shareholders voted to approve a huge pay package for CEO Elon Musk that a judge previously struck down. If the payout is approved, Musk will receive company shares worth around US $50-billion . Last year, Loblaw’s CEO was paid more than $22-million. These pay packages are supposed to act as incentives for reaching company targets, but most executives can still receive these massiv...

Artificial Intelligence has been creeping into our lives more and more as tech companies release new chatbots, AI-powered search engines, and writing assistants promising to make our lives easier. But, much like humans, AI is imperfect and the products companies are releasing don’t always seem quite ready for the public. The Globe’s Report on Business reporter, Joe Castaldo is on the show to expla...

Point Pelee National Park juts out into Lake Erie like a finger, as every spring thousands of birds touch down on it. It’s a key stop along their migratory routes from the southern U.S., Central and South America to northern Canada. But climate change has been shifting the conditions of migration, making it harder for some birds and ultimately affecting bird populations, which are already in steep...

Canada’s newest law school is in crisis . After an open-letter called for the Lincoln Alexander School of Law at Toronto Metropolitan University to drop its neutral position on the Israel-Hamas war, donors pulled funding and law firms withdrew summer internship placements – leaving students feeling ostracized and abandoned. The fallout has left the law school asking questions about who and what th...

Yesterday on The Decibel , The Globe’s senior international correspondent Mark MacKinnon told us about the top commanders and soldiers he’s been following and speaking with in the Ukrainian army. These soldiers have been in incredibly dangerous situations, many at the centre of the major battles in the war against Russia. Today, Mark joins us for the second part of that conversation. He’ll tell us...

For the past few years, The Globe’s senior international correspondent Mark MacKinnon has been building relationships with some of the top commanders and soldiers in the Ukrainian army, following them in the war against Russia . These soldiers have been in the midst of major battles – Kyiv , Mariupol , Kharkiv , Bakhmut – and many have been fighting Russia since long before the full-scale invasion...

Hospitals across Canada have long been overwhelmed by patient demand and staff shortages . But another category of medical experts, specializing in childbirth and pregnancy care, has been growing to lift the weight – midwives . In 2021, midwives oversaw more than 48,000 live births. So why aren’t they recognized as other health professionals are? Carly Weeks , the Globe’s former health reporter jo...

Canada’s ‘green energy’ transition has begun. By 2035, the federal government is aiming to achieve a net-zero electricity grid. But is it possible? And is one of the answers to help in that transition in front of us right now? With an expected increase in energy demands, how does the aging technology of hydroelectric power plants factor in and how essential are they now to keep everything running?...

A national watchdog report says some parliamentarians in Canada are ‘semi-witting’ or ‘witting’ participants in foreign efforts to interfere in our politics. The report from NSICOP says that the parliamentarians (whom are not named) may have collaborated with foreign actors to advance their own interests. This is the latest information around concerns of foreign interference in Canada since The Gl...

Canada’s cultural institutions are coming up against serious economic challenges. Theatre companies say they’re facing a crisis as they struggle to recover from pandemic closures. The Montreal-based ‘Just For Laughs’, one of the world’s biggest comedy festivals, has canceled their 2024 festival and filed for creditor protection. In May, Hot Docs, an international documentary festival, announced th...

The Bank of Canada lowered the interest rate to 4.75 per cent on Wednesday – the first rate cut in four years . As the country’s central bank aims to get the inflation rate closer to 2 per cent, further cuts could be on the horizon. Realtors are hoping the rate cut will reignite a stagnant housing market , by possibly allowing more people to qualify for mortgages and increasing the number of poten...

Last week, former U.S. president Donald Trump was found guilty on 34 felony counts. In speeches and interviews following the decision, he used religiously-charged language and called on supporters to get revenge at the polls. This isn’t the first time Trump has utilized evangelical references, but his 2024 election campaign is increasingly relying on apocalyptic rhetoric. U.S. political analyst an...

It’s been more than a month now since the pro-Palestinian protests started up at campuses across Canada, protesting the war in Gaza and calling for the universities to make changes . There’s been a wide range of responses to these protests . So today, The Globe’s postsecondary education reporter Joe Friesen is here to explain where the campus protests are now, what the students are asking for, and...

Ontario Premier Doug Ford recently announced that beer and wine will soon be available for purchase in convenience stores and big-box stores across the province, fulfilling an election promise from 2018. The controversy? This deal means that people will have greater access to alcohol — for better or worse — and it will cost taxpayers $225-million . Jeff Gray , one of The Globe’s Ontario politics r...

Open banking could eventually be available to Canadians, which would change how we access our personal finances. This style of banking is consumer-driven and would bring transparency to a customer’s information . but despite the talk, Canada is lagging behind other Western countries when it comes to implementing open banking. The Globe’s personal finance reporter, Salmaan Farooqui , breaks down th...

Social media use among students is a big concern for schools across Canada. Ontario school boards and educators are taking matters into their own hands by suing social media companies like Meta, Snap and ByteDance for allegedly harming kids and disrupting education. And educators have had to devise creative methods to keep students engaged . The Globe’s education reporter, Caroline Alphonso , expl...

Recently we’ve seen a shift in the national conversation around how to deal with Canada’s ongoing opioid crisis. B.C. all but cancelled their decriminalization trial . And the federal government rejected Toronto’s request to decriminalize possession of drugs. Decriminalization is part of a harm reduction strategy which advocates argue is the best short-term solution to save lives. Alberta is also...

The PWHL is wrapping up a successful inaugural season, with the three Canadian teams boasting big crowds for most games. The WNBA is adding a 14th team; this one’s in Toronto . And there’s a push from a group called Project 8 to launch a professional women’s soccer league in Canada by 2025. There’s an undeniable momentum in the realm of women’s professional sports in Canada right now. Rachel Brady...

When nature calls, you have to answer, and quickly. The last thing you’d want is to walk several kilometers to find a public toilet.. And yet, public bathrooms aren’t easy to find in many cities across Canada. Overall, Canada has 18 public toilets per 100,000 people , which puts it in 15th place globally. And for those facing homelessness or a medical condition, public toilets are crucial for thei...