Thinking Out Loud with Sheldon MacLeod

The Mass Casualty Report calls out the use of Non-disclosure Agreements (NDAs) that are often used to silence victims of gender-based violence. And it’s a topic that has boiled over into the Nova Scotia Legislature. While the NDP have introduced a bill that would end the abusive use of confidentiality agreements, the Progressive Conservative government has deferred the issue saying they’re looking...

It’s been more than two years of community consultation with ANS communities, building on the diverse history and lived experiences of African Nova Scotians. The program launched in 2021 has just been given provincial funding of $150,000 in support of the African Nova Scotian Road to Economic Prosperity Plan. Dolly Williams and Irvine Carvery are the Co-chairs of the Economic Prosperity Advisory C...

Even municipalities are feeling the financial squeeze these days. That’s one of the reasons HRM voted to start charging for on-street parking on Saturdays in downtown Halifax and Dartmouth. And it’s not going over well with an agency representing businesses. Paul MacKinnon is the CEO of the Downtown Halifax Business Commission. He and others are hoping it doesn’t keep out of town visitors from vis...

There was a point during the Inquiry where there was a crisis of confidence in the process. Family members had walked out on the Commission in protest over the way it was being conducted. On Thursday, some family members were pleasantly surprised with the commission’s harsh assessment of the RCMP response and the 130 recommendations. Dr. Wayne MacKay is Professor Emeritus of the Schulich School of...

The Mass Casualty Commission has released its report almost three years after the rampage that left 22 Nova Scotians dead, including an expectant mother. In this conversation, we hear from Commissioner Leanne Fitch. And also from Erin Breen KC, Counsel for Avalon, LEAF, and Wellness Within, groups that gave testimony at the inquiry about gender-based violence.

This Friday, a candle-light vigil is being held in Lunenburg. It is to show support for the Second Story Women’s Centre , a not-for-profit group that’s been operating on the south shore for the last 40 years. Or at least it was until recently. Sue Bookchin is with the Be the Peace Institute. It is a feminist group working to address the roots and consequences of gender-based violence and advance s...

There have been lots of changes to help move buses around Halifax Regional Municipality more efficiently in the past few years. But in spite of the dedicated lanes and turning signals, Halifax Transit has been reducing services because of labour issues. They are about 100 operators short of meeting their optimal numbers and the union has some thoughts. Shane O’Leary is the President of Amalgamated...

A week ago, Nova Scotia Health announced a problem with some of the take home naloxone kits they’d received. They didn’t actually contain any of the drug that can reverse an opioid poisoning. And on Friday, they said there were new kits being made available to replace the incomplete overdose reversal ones. Ashlie Cormier is the Provincial Manager of Prevention and Health Promotion. She explains wh...

Lucky fans in Truro are about to be treated to back-to-back shows from Country Music performer Brett Kissel. The Alberta-born singer-songwriter is performing the concerts at the Rath Eastlink Community Centre in tribute to the essential and frontline workers. And the tickets for both shows were handed out for free earlier this year. Kissel describes his start in the music business getting to hear...

While they are rarely as serious as the stabbing at Charles P. Allen High in Bedford, violent acts are on the rise in Nova Scotia schools. And some people predicted this after changes to scheduling enacted by the previous Liberal government. How does unscheduled instructional time and a shortage of teachers fit into the current situation? It’s something the Nova Scotia Teacher’s Union (NSTU) is ho...

While the year-over-year inflation rate slowed to just over 5 percent in February, food inflation is double that. And that’s cutting into everyone’s budget these days. Last month, the CEO’s of Canada’s major food retailers were called to testify in front of a Parliamentary committee. It was an event labelled by some as little more than political theatre. Sunil Sarwal is a bit of an insider in the...

An incident at a Halifax area high school sent two staff members to hospital and a 15-year old student in custody. Along with serious criminal charges, he was also injured in the incident that is highlighting the concerns over violence in schools in Nova Scotia. It’s one of the areas of concern for members of the group known as Nova Scotia Parents for Public Education. Stacey Rudderham is one of t...

Premier Tim Houston announced a $10,000 retention incentive for nurses on the eve of the spring sitting of the Legislature. And with the upcoming provincial budget, this session will be all about funding, healthcare and priorities. And both opposition parties are ready. Zach Churchill is the leader of Nova Scotia’s Liberal Party. And Claudia Chender is the head of the New Democratic Party in Nova...

The head of the association representing thousands of Nova Scotia firefighters had no idea what the announcement was for. But Chief Greg Jones says the $10-thousand one-time grant for all volunteer, First Nations and Ground Search and Rescue operations is certainly welcome. This is the second consecutive year the Progressive Conservative Government has handed out the money for First Responder agen...

It’s part of a plan to address both a shortage of essential workers and the lack of housing, especially in rural Nova Scotia. The government has announced a total of $20 Million dollars to buy modular housing and move it on to provincially owned land. This will provide temporary housing for health care and other skilled workers that are in high demand right now. Stephan Richard is Executive Direct...

It’s not about influencing politicians. It’s about showing Nova Scotians there are different ways to look at how tax dollars are spent based on what our goals are as a society. Dr. Christine Saulnier is the director of the Nova Scotia Chapter of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. And she’s also a co-author of a document called the Nova Scotia Alternative Budget 2023: Leave No One Behind....

At the end of March, a request for proposals for development of Blockhouse Hill in Lunenburg will close. And Mayor Matt Risser says there has always been the intention of sharing those plans with residents before any approvals are given. Some residents say there hasn’t been enough consultation or transparency throughout the process. They’re also asking for a plebiscite or a public meeting over the...

A piece of legislation passed in 2002 called The Lunenburg Commons Act was helped clarify the public use of a 22-acre parcel called Blockhouse Hill. That was property set aside after the settlement of the town in 1753. In 2017, the Liberal MLA for Lunenburg introduced amendments to that act, allowing the elected representatives to make the property available for development. And not surprisingly,...

Part A of a project that has been years in the making was given the go-ahead by Halifax Regional Municipality this week. It’s an initiative to address the fact that HRM has a household food insecurity index that is higher than the provincial and national average at 18.6 percent. This Action Plan for Food is about helping producers and consumers come together in a time where there are supply chain...

On the surface, it looks like a great news headline about the reduction of child poverty in Nova Scotia. The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives in Nova Scotia revealed the data in its annual report card. But co-author Dr. Lesley Frank says it’s the result of bold and direct financial assistance that came from the federal COVID measures. And those were temporary, just like the reduction in chi...

Serial abusers grabbed on to a practice that started out as a way to protect intellectual property in the tech industry. A pattern started emerging where victims of sexual assault or human right’s abuses were told they would need to sign an NDA to get a legal settlement. That Non-Disclosure Agreement prevents them from speaking about their case to anyone who isn’t their lawyer or accountant. And L...

A few weeks ago, an agreement was announced that would allow licensed doctors to move freely between the Atlantic Provinces. Dr. Gus Grant says it likely won’t have a huge impact on recruitment or retention. But the Nova Scotia College of Physicians and Surgeons CEO says this latest move might. The licensing and regulatory body is the first in Canada to recognize credentials of US licensed doctors...

Later this week, the Chief Executive Officers of Canada’s major grocery chains will be in Ottawa to testify before the Standing Committee on Agriculture. And Professor Sylvain Charlebois says it is little more than political theatre . The head of the Agrifood Analytics Lab at Dalhousie says he spoke with that same committee and he says he didn’t feel they really wanted answers. He says food inflat...

It’s a bit ironic that the Newfoundland cod moratorium helped expose the songs of fishing communities to the rest of the world. Con O’Brien and the original members of The Irish Descendants were all working in the fishing industry when they started playing together. And after the collapse of the cod stocks in 1992, the members moved full time into the music industry. An international recording con...

As an editorial cartoonist, Michael de Adder says there’s been an evolution when it comes to what people find offensive. And because that line keeps moving, he’s had to adapt and reframe some of his work. But he says art and the artist are intrinsically linked, so he wasn’t entirely surprised when Dilbert creator Scott Adams was fired from newspapers, including the Chronicle Herald, for what he wa...