This Matters

Being indoors is a well-known recipe for COVID-19 transmission: poor ventilation, aerosol particles in the air and prolonged exposure. But more than a year into the pandemic, the evidence is clear that the risk of outdoor transmission, especially when distanced, is extremely low. This is likely welcome information to golfers missing the golf course, and other athletes missing outdoor recreation fa...

Canada's vaccine has been plagued by problems. Fast-changing rules, buggy websites and last minute openings have turned finding a jab into a holy grail-like quest. Through it all, Vaccine Hunters Canada have been a lifeline to get a vaccine appointment for thousands of Canadians. They are a group of volunteers who have managed to spread information quicker and more efficiently than official govern...

As we all struggle with the weight of what we have lost during the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists say you can measure that loss by calculating the years of unlived life that COVID took from those who died. Toronto-based science and business journalist Kat Eschner wrote about it for the New York Times and she joins "This Matters" to talk about it.

The minute you mention Unidentified Flying Objects or UFOs, there are some who are ready to custom fit you for a tin foil hat. But the truth is there are more people who are taking this very seriously. Daniel Otis, a freelance journalist has been looking into how the Canadian Governments tracks unidentified flying objects joins "This Matters" to discuss what's he found. If you would like to suppor...

A new pathway designed for recent international graduates and essential migrant workers already in Canada is offering permanent residency to 90,000 people. There is a limited time window for applications and specific eligibility requirements, so the heat is on because for many, it is their only chance to make their immigration dreams come true. Immigration reporter Nicholas Keung talks to "This Ma...

Just as Gen X went from being slackers to pragmatic when the vaccine eligibility hit the 40+ age demographic in Ontario and they rushed out to get jabbed, the AstraZeneca vaccine has gone from being selfie-worthy to the shot that no one wants. Alex Boyd is a Star reporter who has been covering vaccines during the pandemic and joins us to talk latest AstraZeneca news. If you would like to support t...

Despite more vaccinations around the world, infectious disease experts are coming to a consensus that COVID, as a viral strain, isn't going anywhere soon. Instead, it's likely to be endemic, meaning the virus will become a constant in our lives like seasonal mutations of the flu. A major factor in how well we control COVID in the years to come will be dependent on herd immunity. What does this mea...

Ask any parent with young children in daycare and they'll have plenty of COVID-19 testing stories for you. With higher rates of COVID transmissions, many parents and families have caught the virus through their child's daycare or opted for trips to testing centres with the appearance of every sniffle or fever. Some experts have advised people to pull their kids from daycares, but that is just not...

To many doctors across Canada, the latest statement from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) left a lot to be desired. NACI's guidance on mRNA vaccines (Pfizer, Moderna) being "preferred" over viral vector vaccines like AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson seemingly contradicts the messaging from public health officials who say the best shot is the first one you can get. On "ThisMa...

The Canadian government is mired in controversy over Bill C-10, an attempt to modernize regulation of streaming services and social media companies. Facing backlash, the government has promised to amend the bill and in the process has shown how difficult regulating online content can be. Emily Laidlaw, a research chair in Cybersecurity Law and an associate professor in the Faculty of Law at the Un...

Alberta's COVID case numbers per capita are the worst in Canada and higher than almost every U.S. state. The test positivity rate in the province has reached 12 per cent. While Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has announced new restrictions to combat these trends, what decisions led up to this crisis? Why has Alberta resisted stronger restrictions, and how does political culture and industry play into...

Guest: Ashleigh Tuite, infectious disease epidemiologist, mathematic modeller and assistant professor at the University of Toronto Ontario's third wave is being fuelled by variants of concern (VOC), which make up more than 70 per cent of the cases in the province right now. The B.1.1.7 variant is the most common one in Ontario, but the other variants are here as well. Tuite joins us to discuss how...

After a year of racial reckonings against growing police brutality and a string of deaths involving Black and other racialized people in crisis, the City of Toronto is investigating a new model for frontline, non-police response to mental health crisis calls. On today's episode of "This Matters," we discuss this radical shift in how such crisis calls are carried out in hopes that they do not becom...

The pandemic lead to one of Canada's worst economic years on record. Millions of Canadians have lost their jobs and been put in dire financial circumstances. An emergency fund may seem like a solution, and according to the Bank of Canada, household savings have hit an all-time high of $180 billion. With that said, what are the smartest ways to put those savings to work? Can we invest and get out o...

Peel region is a gateway to Ontario and a manufacturing hub. The region also has one of the highest COVID case rates in the country. Freelance journalist Fatima Syed joins "This Matters" to trace the story of Peel region during a pandemic, explaining how residents were neglected at every step and how this is the result of factors including racial discrimination, disparity and difference when it co...

Guest: Rosa Saba, business reporter for the Toronto Star The big three of Canada's grocers: Loblaw, Metro and Empire created "hero pay" for cashiers, shelf stockers and other essential working staff at the start of the pandemic last year. But the pay bumps didn't last long and most grocers got rid of it by June (Empire Co., which owns Sobeys, has since brought it back). But there is one major reta...

Guest: Robert Benzie, Toronto Star's Queen's Park bureau chief Paid sick days has arguably been the number one political issue that has continually dogged Premier Doug Ford's provincial government through the pandemic. The premier was resolutely against them initially, but last week he changed his tune and promised the "best paid sick days program in North America." It sounds great, but it may not...

It's 2021 and many people in Canada's First Nations still do not have clean drinking water. The startling fact is laid bare in "Clean Water, Broken Promises," an extensive report from Concordia University's Institute of Investigative Journalism which brought together 70 students from 10 universities, professional journalists from six news outlets across Canada for two years of extensive reporting...

Toronto Star partner SCOREGolf's new podcast Next Round's on Me sat down with LPGA LA Open champion Brooke Henderson. Subscribe to their podcast wherever you get your podcasts .  Adam Stanley is joined by Brooke Henderson for an exclusive conversation after her win on the LPGA Tour at the Hugel-Air Premia LA Open. Brooke talks about her 10th LPGA victory – a record for Canadians – and how she was...

Guests: Natasha Calvinho, criminal defence lawyer, and Toronto Star reporters Alyshah Hasham and Jim Rankin "This Matters" takes a look at the Ontario government's confusing flip-flop messaging on police enforcement of COVID-related, stay-at-home orders. Although the province backed down from last Friday's controversial announcement granting police powers to arbitrarily stop and question anyone, t...

Guests: Kenyon Wallace and May Warren , Toronto Star reporters The Ontario Science Advisory Table has given scientific data, modelling projections and recommendations to the Ontario government since the beginning of the pandemic. But in the midst of a worsening third wave, there is concern the advice is not being taken by the provincial government who, in several instances, have instituted policy...

Today we speak with Dr. Homer Tien, the new head of Ontario's vaccine task force. This is the first time Dr. Tien is talking about vaccines for the province on Ontario since he assumed the lead of the task force. He's served 25 years as a trauma surgeon with the Canadian Forces, worked as a trauma surgeon at Sunnybrook Hospital and is now the president and CEO of Ornge, Ontario's air ambulance ser...

Healthcare professionals have been sounding the alarm about over-crowded Intensive Care Units and hospitals as Ontario is gripped by the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fuelled by the more virulent variants of concerns, hospital patients are tending to be younger, with many families arriving sick with the disease. Ontario's hospitals are already taking extraordinary measures, like transfering...

Canada's vaccination program has been plagued with problems across several provinces, ranging from delayed shipments, supply chain problems, uneven distribution, communication and booking issues. While our case counts are less in comparison, many Canadians are feeling pangs of jealousy watching the United States vaccinate an average of more than 3 million people per day. Deep into a third wave, it...

A serial killer who preyed on men for almost a decade. A daughter whose body was found by her mother 100 feet from where she went missing. A woman whose remains could have been identified sooner. These are some of the cases retired justice Gloria Epstein took a look at in her just released Independent Civilian Review into Missing Person Investigations, which took a deep dive into the work of the T...