Today's letters: AI could radically alter bilingualism training in the public service

Article content
So, some seven country leaders plus the EC leader met in a nice place in Alberta, a tough job for Mark Carney. He wisely invited a few more leaders to try to get a bit more balance in this group where five of the eight guests come from western Europe, an area that has lagged economically for more than a decade and does not have a common foreign policy.
Article content
At present, their economies are barely equivalent to that of China who is not invited.
Article content
It is no wonder that Donald Trump does not pay much attention to that group since he does not care too much about western Europe. In fact, nobody really does except the media and some traditional protesters. This group now is mostly a pleasant outing for some European leaders, with Japan tagging along
Article content
And what did they do? They could not deal with the major conflicts in Sudan, Ukraine, Israel-Iran and Israel-Palestinians, because the leaders involved in these conflicts were not there (apart from Volodymyr Zelenskyy who usually come to beg for more money and arms). So, the European leaders could only demonstrate their weaknesses by once again using 'strong language' and offering 'unwavering support.'
Article content
Article content
The group did not achieve results in the trade war between the U.S. and the rest of the world either, because most of the rest of the world was not there and these trade issues are complex.
Article content
In contrast to his predecessor, Carney handled this social event smoothly and managed to get along with Trump, no mean task. This was the best that could be expected from a group clearly past its prime.
Article content
People who criticize inviting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the G7 fail to understand the purpose of diplomacy.
Article content
Canada does not need diplomatic relations to deal with friendly countries. The prime ministers of Canada and the United Kingdom, for example, can phone or visit each other any time, discuss how to advance shared interests and any problems, then hand the issues over to their public servants.
Article content
Article content
Diplomacy was developed so that the governments of countries that have real differences, that may be at war or drifting towards war, can communicate with each other frequently and safely. Then they can listen to each other, get a good understanding of the others' views instead of relying on rumours and the views of those who want confrontation, appreciate the dangers and seek solutions.
Article content
'Punishing' a foreign government by refusing to talk to its leaders or expelling its ambassadors may satisfy some citizens, but our government was right to invite Modi to the G7, to have discussions with him, to keep most of them secret, and to restore high-level diplomatic relations. All it took was common sense, courage, and a phone call.

Hashtags

Politics

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Canada, prepare for a decade of thrift and lower living standards

Globe and Mail

27 minutes ago

Globe and Mail

Canada, prepare for a decade of thrift and lower living standards

John Turley-Ewart is a contributing columnist for The Globe and Mail, a regulatory compliance consultant and a Canadian banking historian. We are poorer than we think. Canadians running their retirement numbers are shining light in the dark corners of household finances in this country. The sums leave many 'anxious, fearful and sad about their finances,' according to a Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan survey recently reported in these pages. Fifty-two per cent of us worry a lot about our personal finances. Fifty per cent feel frustrated, 47 per cent feel emotionally drained and 43 per cent feel depressed. There is not one survey indicator to suggest Canadians have made financial progress in 2025 compared with 2024. The federal government was elected this spring promising to mitigate the threat of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff war and implement a transformative economic agenda. If it succeeds, the effects will be felt in the medium to long-term. In the near term, Canadians know that their financial reckoning adds up to years of debt repayment, reducing expectations, making compromises, retiring later (or not retiring at all) and lower living standards. House approves Bill C-5 to fast-track projects, Carney pledges summer consultations with Indigenous leaders Our debt-to-household disposable income has bumped up against nearly 200 per cent for years now, putting Canada in first place among G7 countries. Canada's is 185 per cent; the average for all G7 countries is 125 per cent according to Statistics Canada. Canadian households collectively owe about $3-trillion, almost three-quarters of it is mortgage debt. Today's Canadian dream is to make the next mortgage payment without having to borrow it. The housing crisis hasn't just hobbled the hopes of many Canadians seeking affordable housing; it is undercutting middle-class living standards. Earlier this year at a conference with Canadian bank CEOs, Peter Routledge, who leads Canada's bank regulator, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, alluded to the bleak financial reality many Canadian are facing this year and next as the cost of high household debt will take a bigger bite out of their disposable incomes. Mr. Routledge said 2025 and 2026 will be challenging years. 'As of September 2024, 65 per cent or 3.8 million mortgages are set to renew by the end of 2026. Of these, approximately 62 per cent (or 2.4 million) have yet to experience increased payments.' With higher mortgage payments layered atop elevated living costs that Canadians have endured over the past five years, materially increasing the price of basics such as food, there is much less money to put aside for retirement. Using the Bank of Canada's inflation calculator, what cost $100 in 2020 now costs $120. Climbing costs associated with inflation and higher debt service payments are slowing savings and investment rates in Canada, which reduces funds available to pay for retirement. Statistics Canada's first quarter of its 2025 national balance sheet and financial flow accounts report, released on June 12, is a telling document. Household savings and investment rates are 'down for a second consecutive quarter' because 'household spending (+1%) outpaced disposable income gains (+0.8%).' The rising net worth of Canadian households is showing signs of stalling, up 0.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2025 versus 1 per cent in the last quarter of 2024. Opinion: A war-plan for Canada: Buy gold, sell oil, build But that growth is misleading, given that it is the wealthiest 20 per cent of households that own 68.1 per cent of all financial assets and 51.2 per cent of real estate. Even the rich are not getting richer at the pace they are accustomed to. We are starting to hit the credit wall in Canada. In the first quarter of this year mortgage demand declined as did demand for non-mortgage debt. Statistics Canada accounts for this by concluding that 'household borrowing slows as debt continues to outpace income growth.' Mortgage interest payments are up this year by 0.3 per cent as mortgage renewals push households into higher interest rates versus those that prevailed during the pandemic when they were running at historic lows. If there is a bright spot in 2025, it is that decreases in the Bank of Canada policy interest rate this year has helped reduce interest payments on non-mortgage loans, many of which are home equity lines of credit. This helps pay for higher mortgage payments. What all of this tells us, and what those wondering what retirement might look like are realizing, is that paying down household debt for the foreseeable future is where much of our disposable income as Canadians must go. That thinking of retirement provokes anxiety in surveys on the matter shouldn't be surprising. It is one more item on a growing list of aspirations many Canadians cannot afford.