#one nation under jagmeet singh | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

roseshadedsunglasses · 10 months

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A meme committing the whole #selloutsingh hash tag, as it is misinformed and outright idiotic.

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atlanticcanada · 1 year

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Liberals to go after predatory lending in today's budget, invest in dental care plan

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is set to table a federal budget in the House of Commons on Tuesday afternoon, which a federal source says will include plans to go after predatory lending and more details on dental care as part of a pitch to make life more affordable.

The government official, who was granted anonymity to discuss matters that will not be public until the budget is released, said the federal Liberals intend to amend the Criminal Code to lower the amount of interest legally allowed to be charged.

Predatory lending often involves short-term loans at sky-high high interest rates. Often marketed to people in financially precarious situations, they can create a cycle of debt tough to escape.

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The Criminal Code currently caps the legal interest rate at 60 per cent effective annual interest, which has been the case since it was set in 1980 -- a time when the key overnight rate set by the Bank of Canada was 21 per cent, compared to the 4.5 per cent it is today.

There is an exemption in most provinces for payday loans of up to $1,500 for 62 days or less, which means in some provinces the maximum annualized percentage rate is over 400 per cent.

The source said the 2023 budget will propose the criminal interest rate be lowered to 35 per cent, which is what it is in Quebec, where courts have ruled anything higher would violate provincial consumer protection legislation. As a result, payday loan options there are limited.

The move grows out of consultations announced in the 2021 budget, which did not address payday loans directly. The source said Tuesday's budget will propose consultations on narrowing the exemptions to the criminal interest rate when it comes to payday loans.

Getting tough on predatory lending is one way the Liberals are expected to portray this budget as offering to help vulnerable Canadians struggling with the cost of living, while balancing the need -- as strongly signalled by Freeland in her pre-budget speeches -- to show fiscal restraint.

Another will be offering more details on the dental-care plan, with the federal government source confirming Tuesday's budget will include a "meaningful" investment on that front.

Last year, the Liberals committed to some form of federal dental-care coverage for low-income Canadians in its confidence-and-supply agreement with the New Democrats.

The deal means the NDP agreed to support the minority Liberal government through key votes until 2025 -- including on federal budgets -- in exchange for movement on shared priorities.

The Liberals were unable to set up a federal dental-care program in time for the first deadline, but brought in an interim benefit last fall for children under the age of 12 in low-income households.

The confidence-and-supply agreement stipulates that dental care must be expanded to those who are under the age of 18, seniors or people with disabilities in low-income households by the end of this year -- and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said he expects the money in the budget.

The deal also commits the Liberals to passing legislation on a national pharmacare program by the end of 2023 -- although there's been no sign of movement on that yet.

Lower-income Canadians can expect another cash benefit to help them pay their bills, while companies looking to mine critical minerals, make batteries and electric vehicles or produce clean electricity will see a host of measures to incentivize investment in their projects.

The budget will also extend the temporary boost to the GST rebate for low-income Canadians, but will frame the payment as help with the rising cost of groceries.

It would provide up to $234 for a single person with no children, $467 for a couple with two children and $225 for a senior citizen, the same amounts as the government offered with the temporary doubling of the GST rebate last fall.

The budget is also expected to increase the withdrawal limit for a registered education savings plan from $5,000 to $8,000.

As The Canadian Press first reported last week, the budget will also outline the federal government's plan to work with regulatory agencies to go after hidden or unexpected surcharges tacked on to the prices of goods and services.

The Liberals are also expected to make significant investments in clean energy and technology.

The Fall Economic Statement in November began Canada's attempt to respond to the Inflation Reduction Act in the United States. That policy, pushed by President Joe Biden, injects more than US$370 billion into clean technology and climate change policies, including some significant subsidies for companies that make renewable energy and carbon capture and storage systems.

In November, Freeland promised investment tax credits for hydrogen production and some clean tech, such as renewable electricity like solar and wind power, heat pumps and industrial electric vehicles.

Several sources, who were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the budget, said there will be new tax credits for the green economy. One of those sources described the tax credits as "significant."

They are intended to spur investment in the critical mineral industry and along the electric vehicle supply chain. That would include, for example, battery components and assembly.

During her pre-budget speeches, Freeland insisted the budget will show fiscal restraint and warned the government won't be able to compensate every Canadian for the rise in prices.

She has to balance all the spending demands with the risk the economy is going to take a turn for the worse this year. High interest rates could push Canada into a recession, which would affect tax revenues the government relies on to finance spending.

And with inflation a top concern for the Bank of Canada, the federal government is facing pressure to not fuel it further with high spending.

Freeland is expected to table the budget in the House of Commons at 4 p.m. EDT and deliver remarks on the document.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 28, 2023.

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/lmZX5xd

#new brunswick #prince edward island #nova scotia #news #politics #canada #CTVAtlantic

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college-girl199328 · 1 year

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Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is forcing MPs to debate and vote on a motion instructing an opposition-dominated House committee to strike its own review on foreign interference in the 2016 election.

Poilievre has proposed a motion to have the House of Commons Access to Information, Privacy, and Ethics Committee conduct a foreign interference study.

The motion calls for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's chief of staff Katie Telford to testify under oath, followed by other officials and players believed to have insight into allegations of interference by China in the last two federal elections.

The Conservatives are pushing to have Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, authors of the Critical Election Incident Public Protocol reports, and former Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation officials testify.

The list of witnesses includes federal security officials, ambassadors to China, past national campaign directors, and representatives from each major party on the SITE task force.

Trudeau's name is not on the witness list, but that could change depending on the trajectory of the testimony and how the story evolves. The motion prescribes that the committee meet at least one extra day each week regardless of whether the House is sitting, and have priority access to House resources.

The Globe and Mail and Global News reported that Beijing is attempting to influence the outcomes of the 2019 and 2021 elections, leading to criticism of the Liberal government's response.

Officials have repeatedly asserted the integrity of both elections, despite China's interference, despite Poilievre's opposition to staff testifying at committees.

Poilievre argued that Telford's involvement with Trudeau's campaigns makes it important for her to be aware of the intelligence briefings, but he did not acknowledge that she would be restricted in speaking publicly about them.

Poilievre called on her to come forward and testify about Beijing's role in supporting Justin Trudeau and how to prevent this from happening again.

Trudeau's appointment of former governor general David Johnston as special rapporteur to investigate foreign interference and provide recommendations to shore up Canada’s democracy has been highly politicized due to his connections to the Trudeau family and foundation.

Trudeau defended his pick as "absolutely unimpeachable and sought to explain why he tapped an independent investigator and asked for closed-door national security bodies to review the facts.

Trudeau warned that Canadians are not sure if the government is focused on their best interests or is in the pockets of a foreign government and that the partisan nature of politics is making it difficult to trust the government.

Trudeau noted that Poilievre was responsible for ensuring the integrity of Canada's elections and that he understands how important this is.

The NDP must vote in favour of the motion, as the Conservatives and the Bloc cannot pass it. Conservative MPs are pressuring them to do so.

The New Democrats have been pushing for an investigation into Liberal interference in the Procedure and House Affairs Committee but have been stymied by Liberal filibustering.

Poilievre's motion to create a new committee is expected to pass and spark a new committee.

Poilievre's motion to create a new committee could be declared a confidence motion and tie NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh's hands unless he agrees to end the confidence-and-supply agreement.

Trudeau must decide whether to risk an election over the interference controversy, as the Conservative motion makes it clear to Canadians that Poilievre's party is "more interested in political theatre than in providing real answers."

The prime that calling staffers who can't answer more detailed questions won't help assuage Canadians' concerns over China's interference.

Trudeau accused Poilievre of creating a partisan circus to attack our institutions with a flame thrower and urged Canadians to stand up for their institutions.

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kayla1993-world · 2 years

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Vancouver-Granville Liberal MP receives threat from person known to police

Vancouver-Granville Liberal MP Taleeb Noormohamed says he received a serious threat from a man in July that caused him to involve the Vancouver Police Department, RCMP and Canada Border Services Agency in an investigation.

Noormohamed took to Twitter July 8 to reveal some details of the threat but shared more last week in an interview with Vancouver Is Awesome, including the fact that no charges were laid against the person in question.

The first-term MP said the threat came July 7 via email and included a video. “When you are a Muslim, or a certain group, or minority, there are lots of messages like this that we get pretty regularly,” he said. “But this one in the tweet was specific…it was very different because it actually contained a desire to do harm.”

Noormohamed said the person lives close to his constituency office and was known to the police. He declined to discuss the contents of the video.

Const. Tania Visintin, a Vancouver police media relations officer, said Wednesday via email that officers apprehended the man under the Mental Health Act and transported him to hospital for assessment.

Why the Canada Border Services Agency was involved is not clear. The agency has yet to respond to the request for more information about the case and whether it involved someone illegally in the country.

As a politician of color, who is also Muslim, Noormohamed said it is not uncommon to receive angry emails daily in which an author uses a racial slur. His colleague, Vancouver-South Liberal MP Harjit Sajjan, has also been a target of such racism, he said.

"That when we can normalize racism, or normalize this type of behavior in a way that says we are going to just go at people because they are different is something that is now, unfortunately, part of the life of being elected,” he said, noting female colleagues have also had inappropriate comments directed at them.

Noormohamed serves on the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security — a group that recently targeted the rise of ideologically motivated extremism in Canada.

In a report released in June, the standing committee traced the rise of a diffused Canadian far-right movement, one that allows adherents to cherry pick what they hate, including Muslims, immigrants and women.

Jessica Davis of Insight Threat Intelligence told the committee that laws are not applied evenly across the ideological spectrum, leading to a “certain sense of impunity.”

A 2021 Canadian Security and Intelligence Service report found the COVID-19 pandemic has “fueled an increase in extreme anti-authority and anti-government rhetoric often rooted in the weaponization of conspiracy theories.”

In May, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh faced protesters shouting expletives at him and calling him a “traitor.” Singh has said the experience in Peterborough, Ont., was one of the worst incidents of aggressive behavior he is experienced in his political career.

Last month, an increase in threats against federal parliamentarians prompted the Parliamentary Protective Service — which safeguards security on Parliament Hill — to hand out personal panic buttons or “mobile duress alarms."

MPs can carry them around to alert the Parliamentary Protective Service or local police for a rapid response. The device can be used across Canada, including in the home constituencies, according to a June presentation made by Sergeant-at-Arms Patrick McDonnell to Liberal MPs.

In an interview with the Canadian Press, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino revealed he has been the subject of death threats on social media in recent weeks after presenting a bill curbing gun ownership.

Mendicino said he, police and the Parliamentary Protective Service are reassessing the security of MPs after a series of threats and intimidating incidents.

Alex Cohen, the director of communications, said in an email there has been an alarming rise in hateful rhetoric in recent years, which has resulted in an unacceptable level of threats and intimidation against elected officials.

"It affects people across the political spectrum–it is not a partisan issue," Cohen said. Most notably, Cohen continued, the mandate letter includes specific instructions to “work with the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities to bolster the security of ministers and Parliamentarians.”

"This work is well underway, in collaborating with the Sergeant at Arms of the House of Commons, colleagues from other parties and law enforcement from across the country," Cohen said.

In July 2020, Vancouver city councilors Melissa De Genova and Sarah Kirby-Yung announced at a council meeting that they had been harassed via emails, social media and phone calls. Both are married to police officers and the topic before the council at the time was police "street checks."

“These have included calls for me to commit suicide and threats of violence to me and my family,” De Genova wrote in an email to Glacier Media. “l am targeted because of the employment as a police officer. I suspect the ways I have been targeted are because I am a woman.”

The level of hate against women politicians is documented in a report released in April 2019 by the standing committee on the status of women. The title is "Elect her: A roadmap for improving representation of women in Canadian politics."

The report noted that gender-based violence or harassment against female elected officials can take many forms, including sexist comments or insults, sexual harassment, sexual assault and death threats.

A survey referenced in the report revealed that over 80 percent of respondents showed having experienced a psychological violence during their parliamentary terms, and 20 percent reported being victims of physical violence.

Statistics Canada released new data Tuesday that showed the number of police-reported hate-motivated crimes in Canada increased by 27 percent, up from 2,646 incidents in 2020 to 3,360 in 2021.

This follows a 36 percent increase in 2020. The number of police-reported hate crimes rose 72 percent from 2019 to 2021. “Higher numbers of hate-motivated crimes targeting religion, sexual orientation and race or ethnicity accounted for most of the increase,” the Statistics Canada report said.

In Vancouver, it has been well-reported that hate crimes against Asians increased substantially since the pandemic was declared in March 2020, with police reporting a 717 percent increase between 2019 and 2020.

Police have been clear they don’t believe all victims are reporting the incidents, as was confirmed by Fred Kwok, chairperson of the Chinese Cultural Center and president of the Chinese Benevolent Association.

Kwok suggested a Vancouver Police Board-sponsored forum in May 2021 that reported hate crimes over the past year only accounted for one-third cases, saying, “I know many friends of mine who never reported the incidents.”

A survey conducted in April and May 2021 by the BC Center for Disease Control found 20 percent of South Asian respondents reported experiencing racism during the pandemic, with 43 percent experiencing discrimination in the workplace.

The Statistics Canada report confirmed the negative effect on racialised groups, noting they were more than twice as likely to report having experienced discrimination since the beginning of the pandemic, compared with the rest of the population.

Jewish people in Vancouver have been the primary targets of racists for years, with the Jewish community center forced to beef up security, add panic buttons and install blast film on its windows.

Vancouver police have conducted “active shooter” training at the center. Noormohamed wouldn’t discuss whether the recent incident targeting him translated to increased security measures for him, his staff, and family.

“Obviously, you have to be careful and be vigilant, and particularly when you have family,” he said. “These things are top of mind, and so you take the steps to make sure everyone is safe.”

In his series of tweets last month, he wrote: “This is another reminder that we cannot ignore the actual threat of ideologically motivated violent extremism and of the harmful rhetoric of the far right. Islamophobia and hatred in all its forms exist in Canada and we to need to work together to protect one another and make our communities a safer place to live for all.”

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lonita · 2 years

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Letters to Jagmeet - PWD

Last year, just before the federal election, Jagmeet Singh made a cell number public that he said was his, and welcomed people to text him. I have done so, multiple times. Is it doing anything more than datamining? Who knows. But I do have a reasonable belief he might actually be seeing at least some of the texts, but it would be impossible for me to explain that without live action/video, which I'm not going to provide because I hate being recorded. If I ever meet you in person, I'll display.

Today's text to Jagmeet:

You're not a leftie. The NDP are no longer left. That saddens me, but it is what it is. And if that's the way it is, use the power you have to stick the knife in to the Liberals as much as you can and squeeze as much juice out of the fruit as you can. Don't wither, be a force. Be a power.

Given the continued shoving of the disabled under the rug - and you can't convince me anyone actually cares about them as anything more than an electoral talking point, despite them being one fifth of the population - your next move should absolutely be to force the Liberals' hand on the federal disability benefit. And when you do, try to get it expanded to be no age limit.

It makes me ashamed and vomitous that a country as rich as ours, that so widely decries human rights violations in other nations, treats disabled people the way they do. It's vile. And we should be ashamed.

If you can do nothing else with the power you have, at least be morally upright on this.

#pwd #canada disability benefit #cdnpoli #journal

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allthecanadianpolitics · 3 years

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A one-per-cent tax on some of Canada's wealthiest residents would be enough to fund the start of a national dental care program, the leader of the federal NDP said Saturday as he filled in details on a key plank of his party's election platform.

The plan outlined by Jagmeet Singh revisited a frequent theme of his electoral campaign as he insisted Canada's ultra-rich should be paying more to cover the cost of a host of social programs.

Funding for government-subsidized dental care, he said, would come from a one-per-cent tax on Canadians with a net wealth of $10 million or more.

Singh said the resulting cash would provide full dental coverage for uninsured families earning less than $60,000 a year and partial coverage for families with less than $90,000 in annual income, noting the measures would take effect immediately under an NDP government.

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

#Dentalcare #NDP #Jagmeet Singh #Healthcare #cdnpoli #canada #canadian politics #canadian news #canadian #Wealth Tax

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dicknouget · 4 years

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Platform Analysis: Jagmeet Singh

Country: Canada

Party: New Democratic Party (NDP)

Economic Policy:

Supports a progressive tax system

A system in which your tax rates increase the more you earn

Clarification: Your rate goes up after your income reaches a new bracket, and any money you make in that bracket is taxed by that amount.

Example: There are four tax brackets: 1-$99 inclusive is taxed at 0.5%, $100 - $199 inclusive is taxed at 1%, and $200-$299 inclusive is taxed at 1.5%, and $300+ taxed at 2%. This is just an example keep in mind. If you make $120 then you are being taxed 0.5% for the 1-$99 inclusive. Any money you make above 99 dollars, as long as it’s less than $200 will be taxed at 1%. Any money you make above $199, as long as it’s less $300 will be taxed at 1.5%. Any money you make over $300 will be taxed at 2%. A progressive tax system means that the tax rates do not stack and rather your salary is being taxed certain amounts under certain brackets

Supports eliminating tax deductions on the highest-income earners and redirecting that money to low-income workers, seniors and disabled Canadians

Wants to create new tax brackets for the upper class and raise Canadian Corporate Tax (CCT). The current CCT changes on each type of Corporation but the net tax rate is 15%.

Supports $15/hr min wage.

Supports sales tax on SVOD providers (i.e. Netflix)

Supports UNIVERSAL PHARMA-CARE!!!

This part’s important because not every Canadian can afford certain medicines, especially the lower income Canadian.

The NDP has stated that by closing tax loopholes on the top 1% of Canada, they would be able to properly fund the universal pharmacare program

Promise to incentivize building 500,000 units of affordable housing by removing the federal tax burden on new affordable housing projects

Energy:

Wants to reduce carbon emissions of Canada to 30% of 2005 by 2025.

Implement a zero emissions vehicle agenda

Work on a “coal phaseout” program

Add tax subsidies to companies supporting ecology

Building renewable energy grid

Wants dedicated parliament officers to keep mandated reports on the provinces and territories emissions use

Opposes the Trans Mountain Pipeline (TMP)

Environment:

Build charging stations for electric vehicles at federal buildings and Canada Post locations

$600 incentive to install their own plug-in charger at home.

Social Issues:

Advocates for equality

Supports the legislation for a federal ban on carding

For those who don’t know what carding is: here is a link

Wants to ban the mandatory minimum sentencing rules introduced by the Conservatives, saying that the law has not reduced crime in the slightest and has a disproportionate impact on racialized communities

Wants to allow cities to ban handguns, something neither the Liberals or Conservatives have worked towards

SUPPORTS THE LGBTQ and LGBTQ RIGHTS

Wants the RCMP to include an LGBTQI2S+ competency training to ensure that any interaction with an officer is not stigmatizing or traumatizing.

Wants to bring in a form of affirmative action for hiring LGBTQ people and supports more inclusive shelters and transitional housing spaces in service of the LGBTQ youth

Wants to Health Canada to research the needs and experience of LGBTQ patients and advocated for policy changes allowing people to self-declare their gender

WANTS TO REPEAL THE BAN ON BLOOD, TISSUE AND ORGAN DONATION BY MEN WHO HAVE MLM INTERCOURSE OR TRANS-WOMEN WHO HAVE INTERCOURSE WITH MEN

Final Thoughts:

I support Singh and the NDP with every fiber of my being. While I will concede that they do not have a foreign policy, I will argue that taking care of the problems of Canada, such as the social issues of systemic racism, poor pharma care, and unaffordable housing take more priority of foreign policy.

That is not to say that foreign policy is not important, it is something that can be addressed along national policy as long as we are helping the less fortunate Canadians.

I will argue that the TMP will help the Canadian Economy one hell of alot, however, given the current global climate situation, I don’t think now is a good time for it. I’m not saying we CAN’T, I’m say that now is not the right time.

My respect for Singh skyrocketed after he called out a Bloc-Quebecois member for being racist in parliament. For context, Singh called upon parliament to recognize that systemic racism exists in the RCMP, and everyone except one Bloc member said yes. Singh called him a racist and was removed from the room.

Singh is the only leader in Canadian politics that I truly believe can fix alot of Canada’s problems, and can work with other parties to help ensure a Canada that lives up to what everyone thinks of it.

#canadian politics #polplatanal #new democratic party #ndp jagmeet singh #jagmeet singh

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pnwpol · 5 years

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When NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh visited a picket line outside the Westin Bayshore Hotel on October 14, it brought national media attention to a strike that had already entered its fourth week. Singh’s presence buoyed the spirits of members of Local 40 of Unite Here, who are also on strike at the Hyatt Regency, Rosewood Hotel Georgia, and Pinnacle Hotel Harbourfront.

One of those workers at the Westin Bayshore, Yleine Demasana, has been a room attendant since 2014.

In an interview with the Straight, she brought up one aspect of the strike that hasn’t attracted nearly as much attention as the union’s wage demands or court orders limiting workers from making noise on the picket line.

Marriott International, which is Westin’s parent company, offers guests vouchers and loyalty points if they decline housekeeping services under its Green Choice program. And it’s having a terrible impact on some housekeeping staff’s livelihoods, according to Demasana.

“As a room attendant, I was getting five days a week scheduled,” she said. “But two years after [being hired], it gets bad because of this Green Choice…where I’m only getting two days a week scheduled.”

Demasana, who immigrated from the Philippines in 2008, explained that guests who are enrolled in the Green Choice program might go three days or longer without having their rooms cleaned.

“Well in my opinion, it’s just money-making for the company,” she said. “Because with the Green Choice, the guest is still paying the same amount of daily rate for the room but the expense is lesser because [managers] don’t have to pay a room attendant to do their room.”

Demasana said that when the time comes for the room to be cleaned, it’s invariably dirtier and requires the use of more chemicals to get rid of any stains.

The president of the union, Zailda Chan, told the Straight that she’s very proud of her members for fighting for better working conditions.

“They could have chosen to settle for 50 or 60 cents,” she said. “Instead, they chose the difficult path of sacrificing in the short term for the long-term future. And they wanted to show these hotels that they want to be treated like human beings at the end of the day.

“They contribute to the prosperity of these hotels and they’re not feeling that,” Chan continued. “So they wanted to show these hotels what they’re capable of. And I’m very proud. This strike has changed all of us. It’s changed every striker on the picket line. It tells the hotel: don’t underestimate us.”

Oct 15, 2019

#cdnpoli #vanpoli #marriott int #workers rights #labour rights #cupe #canadian union of public employees

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el-trotamundos · 5 years

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Voting Feminist in the 2019 Federal Election

On any given day politics will either excite or exhaust me. In the case of this federal election, I am exhausted. It has been nasty, brutish and not short enough.

I have no party allegiance; I voted for different parties in the last two elections and likely will again. I have never voted with one single issue overshadowing my thinking. I also never expected our Prime Minister to be ignorant enough to dress up in blackface. Yet here we are. Although reproductive rights and access to all aspects of reproductive health care (read I support abortion) is my overarching concern, that doesn’t mean choosing a party has been easy.

The People’s Party of Canada is an immediate no. I find PPC Leader Maxime Bernier a detestable little man. When he’s not calling Greta Thunberg “mentally unstable”, he’s ranting against free menstrual products. He says “we cannot be racist when we are Canadian” and in the same breath spouts anti-immigrant/refugee rhetoric. As for abortion, PPC MPs would be allowed to present private member’s bills to restrict access. Bernier himself has said (incorrectly) that you can get an abortion until the last trimester “without any reasonable motive” and that abortions at these stages are “infanticide”. British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec are the only provinces that allow abortions up to 23/24 weeks and that’s a good month or so away from the start of the third trimester. Bernier conveniently leaves out the fact that abortions performed at a later gestation are largely due to the detection of a fatal fetal abnormality or the pregnant person’s health taking a drastic turn. Those sound reasonable to me. But that’s another post for another day!

The Conservative Party is another easy no. I don’t trust CPC Leader Andrew Scheer as far as I can throw him. He targeted others for holding dual citizenship all the while quiet about his own American citizenship. A whopping $14.4 billion of his proposed budget cuts are vaguely labelled as “operating expenses reductions”. He’s lying to Canadians when he says that the party that wins the most seats (but falls short of a majority) gets to govern. It’s the incumbent that gets the first try. I find the party’s stance on abortion equally worrying. Not only will a CPC government allow medical professionals to refuse to perform abortions, but it will also allow them to refuse to refer the patient to someone who will (this is also their stance on MAiD - medical assistance in dying). Scheer has struggled to articulate the Conservative’s position on abortion throughout the election. He has a long history of anti-choice voting and yet has said during the campaign that he would vote against attempts to restrict reproductive rights. He also said he will not reopen the abortion debate and yet his MPs will be allowed to introduce legislation restricting access. Not exactly reassuring.

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May has waffled on the topic of abortion. After doing an interview in which she said she wouldn’t whip votes or tell her MPs what to do when it came to this (or any issue), the party quickly clarified that candidates were expected to respect abortion rights. Some candidates were dropped when their anti-choice comments came to light but others said they didn’t remember and were allowed to continue running. It’s clear there is mixed messaging. To her credit, May does acknowledge that abortion access must be expanded in rural areas and recently showed up a rally to support Clinic 554 in Fredericton, which is going to close because the provincial government refuses to fund it for performing surgical abortions (as the Canada Health Act requires). Climate change is another big worry for me and I would love to send a message to the bigger parties by voting Green. But I’m not convinced the Greens have really thought through all of their policies. I think the only way I could vote for a Green candidate was if they said they were personally committed to standing up for women's and LGBTQ rights (and not just parroting the line about all candidates being expected to).

New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh has impressed me with his unapologetic pro-choice position. The party understands that the pressing issue is expanding access and that trans men and non-binary people need abortions too, not just women. Singh confirmed that he would enforce the Canada Health Act by imposing consequences on any provincial government that creates barriers to abortion access (although he didn’t share what those consequences would be). The proposed national pharmacare program would help ensure that abortions and birth control are accessible at no cost. While voting NDP is strategic in some ridings, mine is not one of them. Singh will not be the Prime Minister Tuesday morning but the more seats the NDP has, the more they will be able to push for expanded reproductive rights.

I’ve found Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau to be a disappointing Prime Minister quite frankly. Stepping back from electoral reform was particularly disheartening. The brownface photos were unacceptable. And you know things are bad when the foreign press is following the SNC-Lavalin scandal. For all the proclamations about gender equality “because it’s 2015″, I found Trudeau’s right hand man Gerald Butts to be very dismissive of Jody Wilson-Raybould and Jane Philpott as ‘women getting emotional over the way politics are just done’. Trudeau has always been vocal about a women’s right to choose and candidates/MPs must support that position. Under 4 years of Liberal leadership however, abortion access hasn’t gotten better. While the Health Minister wrote to all provincial premiers this summer to remind that abortions must be covered under the Canada Health Act, the government did not take any concrete action to enforce it. Because of that Clinic 554 in Fredericton will close.

So do I vote NDP knowing the candidate does not have a chance at winning in my riding? Do I look past the not so minor scandals of the Trudeau government and vote Liberal to block a Conservative majority? Or do I vote Green, a party that isn’t perfect when it comes to reproductive rights but does ambitiously address my other concern climate change? Hopefully I’ll come to a conclusion before I reach the polling station tomorrow.

#cdnpoli #exln43 #canadavotes #federalelection #abortionaccess #reproductiverights #prochoice #feminist

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roseshadedsunglasses · 10 months

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The Jaggernaut in the fight against Trumpism 💪🧡

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atlanticcanada · 2 years

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Feds calling for trucker convoy protest to end, propose special meeting to plan next steps

The federal government is calling for the trucker convoy protests to end, and are proposing a special meeting with provincial and municipal governments to plan next steps, including enforcing existing provincial sanctions, as the demonstrations stretch into their second week in the nation's capital.

“These blockades and occupations need to end. Unlawful activities are not the way to offer meaningful involvement in government policy development,” said Transport Minister Omar Alghabra on Monday.

Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair said during the federal update—the first of its kind since the convoy protests kicked off—that the federal government wants to strike a “trilateral table with municipal and provincial partners.” Blair said that this table would allow the various parties responsible for managing the standoff to keep lines of communication open and respond efficiently.

Alghabra said that he will be speaking with his provincial counterpart to discuss enacting existing regulatory powers over the commercial trucking industry, including suspending commercial licenses and insurance for the owners of the equipment blockading streets for days on end.

“It’s clear, blockades of streets and bridges is against the law and should bring serious consequences for the owners,” the transport minister said.

This update comes as the pressure on the overlapping levels of government who have jurisdiction in and around Parliament Hill has been ramping up, with Ottawa residents growing increasingly frustrated as the protesters dig in on their demand for politicians to end all COVID-19 mandates.

So far, the federal government has largely taken the position that Ottawa police are the lead and would be working to meet any formal requests issued.

After a second weekend of protests and an uptick in tickets and arrests, the city of Ottawa declared a state of emergency on Sunday. As of Monday morning, trucks continue to clog streets throughout the city and organizers show no signs of packing up.

Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc, Treasury Board President Mona Fortier, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino, Ottawa-Centre MP Yasir Naqvi also took part in the press conference.

Trudeau, who tested positive for COVID-19 one week ago, is scheduled to be in “private meetings” throughout the day.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh suggested earlier Monday that it was time for the prime minister to sit down with the municipal and provincial governments to get on the same page and develop a plan to end the protest.

NDP WANT EMERGENCY DEBATE

Singh is also calling for the House of Commons to hold an emergency debate on the ongoing standoff in downtown Ottawa.

In a letter to House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota, Singh said later today he will be seeking approval for the special debate, which could happen as early as this evening.

“The situation has reached a crisis point. And in times of crisis, it is important for federal leaders to show leadership, to urge de-escalation, and to work together to find solutions,” Singh wrote in his letter, adding that an emergency debate would give parliamentarians the ability to “address the critical situation.”

CITY TO REQUEST MORE RESOURCES

Continuing to describe the city as under “siege,” Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson is once again suggesting that Trudeau should step in, something both he and Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly have suggested will be needed to see an end to the demonstrations now into their second week.

During a press conference ahead of the federal update, Sloly said his officers are “stretched to the limit,” and will be presenting to city council later today a series of resource requests they’ll be asking the mayor to send to the provincial solicitor general, and to Public Safety Canada.

The requests are for all levels of government to “bring whatever they can bring to bear” to help see a peaceful and sustainable end to the demonstration by “significantly” increasing police enforcement capabilities, Sloly said.

Ontario’s Solicitor General Sylvia Jones issued a statement over the weekend saying that police — including a contingent of OPP officers sent by the province — “have full discretion and extensive existing legislative authority” to respond and manage the situation.

Federally, 275 RCMP officers have already been called in to assist, though the Canadian Armed Forces has yet to indicate they have any plans to become involved. Calling in the military is a move that has rarely been taken in the history of civilian demonstrations in this country.

Watson also suggested on Ottawa’s CTV Morning Live that he wants the prime minister to appoint a mediator in an effort to end the “Freedom Convoy” occupation in the city's downtown.

The mayor indicated he’s suggested to federal cabinet ministers that a mediator could be "an honest broker on both sides to try to find some common ground, if that's possible."

"Someone of great stature in our community and the country who can actually open doors and bring some peace and calm to the situation," Watson said. "That’s one option that I think the federal government should pursue, because right now we’re at a complete standoff."

Singh said Monday that he doesn’t agree with Watson’s suggestion, because in his view, the organizers of the convoy have “made it clear their intention is to overthrow the government.”

And here’s the scene on Parliament Hill, on the eleventh day of this section of Wellington becoming home to #FreedomConvoy2022 truckers and their supporters. #ottcity pic.twitter.com/RG5lySocyY

— Rachel Aiello (@rachaiello) February 7, 2022

With files from CTV News Ottawa

More coming...

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/OGhYcyl

#new brunswick #prince edward island #nova scotia #news #politics #canada #CTVAtlantic

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kayla1993-world · 3 years

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Trudeau warns Canadians against splitting vote in dead heat federal election

With the Canadian election in a dead heat days before the Sept. 20 vote, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau and his Conservative rival implored supporters to stay the course and avoid vote splitting that could hand their opponent victory.

Both men campaigned in the same seat-rich Toronto region on Saturday as they tried to fend off voter defections to the left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP) and the populist People’s Party of Canada (PPC), both of which are rising in polls.

The latest Sondage Leger poll conducted for the Journal de Montreal and the National Post newspapers put the Conservatives one percentage point ahead of Trudeau’s Liberals, with 33 percent over 32 percent. The NDP was at 19 percent while the PPC was at 6 percent.

Trudeau, 49, called an early election, seeking to convert approval for his government’s handling of the pandemic into a parliamentary majority. But he is now scrambling to save his job, with Canadians questioning the need for an early election amid a fourth pandemic wave.

“Despite what the NDP likes to say, the choice is between a Conservative or a Liberal government right now," Trudeau said in Aurora, Ontario. “And it does make a difference to Canadians whether we have got or not a progressive government.”

Trudeau has spent of the very final three days of his campaign in Ontario where polls show the NDP could gain seats or split the progressive vote.

A tight race could result in another minority government, with the NDP, led by Jagmeet Singh, playing kingmaker. It has also put a focus on turnout, with low turnout historically favouring the Conservatives.

With polls suggesting a Liberal minority may be the most likely result on Monday, Trudeau was pressed on whether this could be his last election. He responded: “There is lots of work still to do and I'm nowhere near done yet.”

If voters give Trudeau a third term, everything they dislike about him "will only get worse,” Conservative leader Erin O'Toole tol supporters on Saturday, saying his party was the only option for anyone dissatisfied with the Liberals, in a dig at the PPC.

The PPC, which has channeled anger against mandatory vaccines into surprising support, could draw votes away from the Conservatives in close district races, helping the Liberals eke out a win.

On Saturday, the Liberals announced they would drop a candidate over a 2019 sexual assault charge that the party said was not disclosed to them. Kevin Vuong, a naval reservist running in an open Liberal seat in downtown Toronto, denied the allegations on Friday, noting the charge was withdrawn.

"Vuong will no longer be a Liberal candidate and should he be elected he will not be a member of the Liberal caucus," the party said in a statement on Saturday.

Earlier this month, Liberal member of parliament Raj Saini ended his re-election campaign amid allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards female staffers.

O'Toole, 48, campaigned in Saini's district on Saturday, one of three Liberal ridings he is hoping to swing his way. Earlier, he appeared in a Conservative-held riding west of Toronto that was closely fought during the 2019 election.

The area's member of Parliament, who is not running again, came under fire last spring for saying COVID-19 lockdowns were the "single greatest breach of our civil liberties since the internment camps during WW2."

O'Toole, who said he wants to get 90 percent of Canadians vaccinated, he has refused to say who among Conservative Party candidates were.

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canada4news · 3 years

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Federal NDP leader touts pledge on long-term care: ‘We’re losing loved ones’

Federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh was in Winnipeg Thursday touting his party’s plan for the elimination of for-profit long-term care. Under the plan, Singh says an NDP government would work with provincial and territorial leaders, experts and workers to set national standards for nursing homes, and tether those benchmarks to $5-billion in federal funding. Read more: Maples Care Home report shows…

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allthecanadianpolitics · 3 years

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The five leading party leaders will face off on a debate stage twice this week, on back-to-back nights. First up is the French-language debate on Wednesday, Sept. 8. For all the details of how the evening will work and how you can watch, we have you covered.

Who’s debating?

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, Conservative Party of Canada Leader Erin O’Toole, Green Party of Canada Leader Annamie Paul, Liberal Party of Canada Leader Justin Trudeau and New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh.

Leaders’ Debates Commissioner David Johnston (you may remember him from such previous roles as governor general) determined that to be included, a leader’s party must meet one of the following criteria: on the date the election is called, the party must have one MP in the House of Commons who was elected under that party’s banner; the party must have received at least four per cent of the popular vote in the previous federal election; or, five days after the election is called, the party must hold at least four per cent national support, as determined by an average of the horse race results from leading polling organizations.

That leaves out, for example, People’s Party of Canada Leader Maxime Bernier.

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

#Quebec #Francophones #cdnpoli #canada #canadian politics #canadian news #canadian #canadian election

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pnwpol · 5 years

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Sep 5, 2019 | One day after New Democrat candidates in New Brunswick defected to the Green Party over the party’s “electability,” NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh addressed racism in Canadian politics head-on at a town hall Wednesday night.

Singh, the only person-of-colour running for Prime Minister in next month’s federal election, pledged to ban carding, tackle online racism, and boost funding to hate crime units at a panel organized by the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM). As his party struggles to fill its roster ahead of next month’s election, Singh positioned himself as the best candidate to address hate and division in the country, calling out the Green Party for its new members’ statements.

“I think the Green Party shouldn’t take in candidates who openly express their concerns about someone looking different,” Singh said Wednesday evening. “The Green Party has a lot to answer for.”

On Wednesday the National Council of Canadian Muslims’ executive director Mustafa Farooq grilled Singh on the rise of far-right extremism and Quebec’s ban on religious symbols for public workers.

Singh said he wants to address an “imbalance” in the way the government approaches national security. He noted that under the Liberals, Public Safety Canada—particularly in their latest threat assessment report—glosses over the threat of white supremacist groups while implicitly “designating the entire Muslim community a security threat.”

In response to a question about the infamous far-right “III%” paramilitary group in Canada, which VICE first uncovered in 2017, Singh said it’s not right that “groups like that are operating freely while Muslim university students across the country are being watched closely by CSIS.”