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Winnipeg Free Press
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Journalism committee seeks public input
The Manitoba government's all-party committee on local journalism is holding public hearings starting in Gimli next week. The committee, chaired by New Democrat MLA Robert Loiselle, will hold public consultations across Manitoba. 'A healthy democracy relies on strong local journalism,' Loiselle said in a government news release Friday. 'Consultations will focus on rural and northern media and cultural media such as French, Filipino, Punjabi and Chinese language publications, with the mandate to explore the future of local journalism.' The all-party committee consists of three other government MLAs — Diljeet Brar, Jennifer Chen and Eric Redhead — and two Progressive Conservative MLAs, Konrad Narth and Greg Nesbitt. The meetings are in: For more information and to register, visit the province's website.
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- Health
- Hamilton Spectator
Union says private surgical clinics move the wealthy to the front of the line
As the province expands use of private surgical clinics , a union is raising alarm about research showing wealthy Ontarians going to the front of the line for cataract operations. 'The wealthiest have increased access to surgeries and middle-class and lower-class people do not,' Michael Hurley, president of the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU), said during a recent stop in Hamilton to raise awareness. 'What we're trying to do is deepen public understanding of the consequences of these surgeries. They redirect access to those who can afford it the most.' The union's claims are backed up by a study — involving a McMaster University researcher — that found the rate of cataract surgeries rose 22 per cent for patients with the highest socioeconomic status at private for-profit surgical centres. Meanwhile, the rate fell 8.5 per cent for those with the lowest socioeconomic status, concluded the study led by Ontario research institute ICES and published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) in August 2024. In stark contrast, no difference in access between the wealthy and the poor was found in public hospitals by the research that examined 935,729 cataract surgeries in Ontario from January 2017 to March 2022. 'We observed a large difference in socioeconomic status of patients undergoing cataract surgery in private for-profit surgical centres compared with those treated in public hospitals,' concluded the study. The researchers stated that addressing this difference is 'vital to ensure access to surgery and maintain public confidence in the cataract surgery system.' Expanding the role of private for-profit surgical centres is one way the Progressive Conservative government is addressing surgical backlogs created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, 32,000 Ontarians got their publicly-funded cataract surgery at a private clinic. Ontario's May budget earmarked $280 million over two years to further increase care paid by OHIP but provided at private clinics, including diagnostic imaging, endoscopy procedures and orthopedic surgeries. 'The business models of such centres in Canada have traditionally involved billing public insurance programs for the surgeon fee and also charging patients for extra services that are priced to offset overhead costs for operating rooms and generate profit,' the study stated about cataract surgeries. 'Consequently, moving surgical cases out of public hospitals and into private for-profit centres could have a negative effect on access to surgery for patients who are unable to pay.' An investigation by the Toronto Star published on June 7 found patients going for cataract surgery at private clinics felt they had to pay between a couple of hundred and thousands of dollars out of pocket to bypass reportedly long wait times or receive better treatment such as upgraded lenses. The story raised questions about whether there are sufficient guardrails in place to make sure patients don't feel pressured to pay out of pocket for upgrades they may not need. The ICES study also spoke about the need for increased 'safeguards' to ensure patients don't miss out on the chance to get timely care in a private facility because they can't afford to pay for extras and upgrades. 'Surgeons and private for-profit centres also have financial incentives to prioritize patients paying for extra services,' stated the study. 'Finally, surgeons working in private for-profit centres may have practices that focus on referrals for patients with a greater ability to pay for extra uninsured services.' Ontario has provisions through legislation that prohibit a patient from being charged for an OHIP-covered service. In addition, Bill 60 passed in 2023 with the aim of increasing transparency and ensuring there are no extra charges for OHIP-funded procedures. 'People are accessing the care they need with their OHIP card, never their credit card,' Ema Popovic, spokesperson for Health Minister Sylvia Jones, said in a statement. 'If someone has been charged for an OHIP-covered service, they can contact the Commitment to the Future of Medicare Act program to open a review. Those who have been charged for an insured service will be reimbursed in full.' But many people have been 'manipulated' into paying for extras at private clinics, said OCHU, which is part of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE). 'I strongly suspect that a big part of the factor of why there has been such inequality in access at the for-profit clinics is that there are these various charges that come along and that just naturally weeds out people,' said Doug Allan, a researcher with CUPE. The union commissioned Nanos Research to do an online survey of 1,017 Ontario adults between May 27 and June 1 that found two-thirds of respondents from the Golden Horseshoe West, which included Hamilton, agreed that expanded for-profit cataract surgeries will have a negative impact on access to care for the poorest people. The survey is accurate within 3.1 percentage points, plus or minus, 19 times out of 20. 'In Ontario public hospitals, it didn't matter what your income was in terms of treatment,' Hurley said. 'The whole point is supposed to be that irrespective of income, we're making decisions based upon medical need.' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. 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Toronto Sun
3 days ago
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
GOLDSTEIN: David Peterson proved no political dynasty lasts forever
Get the latest from Lorrie Goldstein straight to your inbox Former Ontario premier David Peterson, with member of the 2015 Pan Am Games committee, addresses the Toronto Sun's editorial board on Wednesday, April 22, 2015. Photo by Veronica Henri / Toronto Sun These are dark times for Ontario's Liberal party. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account It barely regained official party status in February's provincial election after seven years in the political wilderness. This after voters awarded Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford a third consecutive majority government since Ford defeated the ruling Liberals, led by then-premier Kathleen Wynne, in 2018. The Liberals remain in third place in the seat count behind the PCs and the NDP. Their current leader and former Mississauga mayor Bonnie Crombie, like Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre in the recent federal election, failed to win a seat, but like Poilievre vows to carry on. So it's not surprising the Liberals today are looking back wistfully to happier times. On Monday, 300 of them gathered in Toronto to celebrate the 40th anniversary, officially on June 26, of then-Liberal leader David Peterson's unexpected rise to power in the 1985 election. That ended what was then the 42-year political dynasty of the Progressive Conservatives in Ontario. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Peterson's surprise victory demonstrated that no political dynasty endures forever. Read More Which gives the Ontario Liberals — second in the popular vote behind the PCs in this year's election — hope for the future. The Progressive Conservatives in that 1985 vote entered the race with a 20-point lead over the Liberals — so, no, Poilievre isn't the only politician to have ever blown a huge lead. Several factors led to the PCs' shocking demise. Ontario's popular PC premier Bill Davis had just announced his retirement from politics after a successful 14-year run in the province's top job. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. He handed the explosive issue of extending full funding to Catholic schools to the party's chosen successor Frank Miller, 58 at the time, representing the rural riding of Muskoka. Miller, though an effective cabinet minister, turned out to be a politician who is competent as a second-in-command but not as a leader — think of Paul Martin federally. Then there was Peterson, 42 at the time and representing the urban riding of London Centre, who up to that point had been a workmanlike but uninspiring Liberal leader. Not so during the campaign. Peterson went through a dramatic image and progressive policy metamorphosis and ended up winning the popular vote while capturing 48 seats to Miller's 52. RECOMMENDED VIDEO This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Liberals then made a deal with the NDP, led by Bob Rae, given the similarity of their platforms. It was a two-year accord known as the 'agenda for reform,' in which the NDP's 25 MPPs agreed to support the Liberals in return for passing specific legislation. It worked like a charm for the Liberals, who for the next two years pursued an activist agenda on everything from banning extra billing by doctors to environmental reforms. Peterson was so popular in the ensuing 1987 election that even the Toronto Sun endorsed him. The Liberals captured an astounding 95 of the Legislature's 130 seats. But just three years later, Peterson succumbed to the hubris he accused the Tories of when they were in power, calling a premature election in 1990 without providing a credible reason for doing so. The Liberals were tossed from power by the NDP, Peterson lost his seat and resigned on election night. But his legacy is that he broke the back of the 42-year Tory dynasty in Ontario. Since that 1990 election, Ontario has had five years of NDP government (1990-95), 15 years of Liberal government (2003-18) and 15 years and counting of PC government (1995-2003 and 2018 to the present.) Because in politics, nothing lasts forever. NHL Canada Soccer Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto & GTA
CBC
4 days ago
- Politics
- CBC
Former Manitoba PC leadership candidate loses appeal of polar bear ecotourism permit cut
A Churchill ecotourism business has lost its appeal to keep its polar bear viewing vehicle permits this year. In February, the provincial Wildlife Branch informed Wally Daudrich that it was rescinding licences for his company, Lazy Bear Expeditions, to operate two tundra vehicles on the coastal plains of the Churchill Wildlife Management Area, where polar bears gather in large numbers each fall before the ice freezes up on Hudson Bay. The Wildlife Branch told Daudrich — a former candidate for leader of Manitoba's Progressive Conservative Party — that the continuing decline in the number of polar bears on the western side of Hudson Bay, based on a 2021 aerial survey, was the reason for the decision. The branch said the province was reducing the number of vehicles allowed to traverse the tundra in the management area from 20 to 18. That was the number of vehicles permitted to carry tourists to see polar bears prior to 2020, when the provincial government granted two vehicle allocations to Lazy Bear. Last March, Daudrich asked the Manitoba Court of King's Bench to review the Wildlife Branch's decision, declare it invalid and restore his permits for two vehicles. Daudrich also asked the court to declare the decision was unreasonable and made in bad faith. A judge dismissed Daudrich's motion for an injunction in April. In a decision dated June 9, the three justices of the Manitoba Court of Appeal dismissed Daudrich's appeal of the April decision. "What Lazy Bear is actually seeking is not an injunction prohibiting the minister from acting," the decision says. "Rather, it is an injunction requiring the minister to act — to issue a new permit when an earlier permit expired — something the minister is not obligated to do." The Wildlife Branch inaccurately told Daudrich that it was "rescinding" Lazy Bear's vehicle licences, but its intention was to let Daudrich know that his business would not receive a permit in the 2025-26 season, the appeal court's decision says. Established precedent has proven there's no automatic right to licence or permit renewals, the appeal court decision says. The judge who heard Daudrich's injunction motion also said Daudrich did not prove that he'd suffered irreparable harm without the vehicle licences that couldn't be recovered as damages from the province if his lawsuit were successful, according to the appeal court decision. A provincial spokesperson said they could not comment on a matter before the courts.
Winnipeg Free Press
7 days ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
The end of a raucous legislature session
Opinion On June 2 at the end of the spring session of the Manitoba legislature, the two main parties issued duelling press releases, each claiming they were listening and responding to the needs and concerns of Manitobans. The NDP government boasted it had delivered 'a strong, ambitious legislative agenda' of 39 bills that would improve health care, remove interprovincial trade barriers, make groceries more affordable, enhance public safety, and act on many other matters. The Progressive Conservative (PC) opposition countered with the claim that several of the more important bills were based on ideas stolen from them. This credit claiming by the parties has become an annual ritual. Over the past five decades, the proceedings of the legislature have increasingly come to resemble a permanent election campaign in which the parties spend more time seeking to score political points against their opponent than using questions of the premier and ministers and debating bills for the constructive purpose of improving public policy. The just-finished session featured too much shouting and name calling across the aisle and several unfortunate episodes of disorderly conduct. It was not, however, the most raucous session that has happened in the modern era of Manitoba politics, which I date from the breakthrough victory of the NDP in 1969. For observers of my generation, it is impossible to forget the French language crisis of 1983-1984 during which then-PC leader Sterling Lyon and his MLAs ferociously fought a NDP government bill entrenching language rights by using prolonged bell-ringing which paralyzed the legislature and brought angry, screaming crowds into building. I recognize that partisan competition provides the motivation and energy which drives the institution. The clash between opposing philosophies and policy perspectives helps to define what actions are in the public interest. Criticism from the opposition is the main way that the government is made to answer and to be held accountable through the media to the electorate. It would be impossible, and wrong, to seek to drive disagreement, emotion and passion entirely out of the proceedings of the legislature. The legislature actually has two modes of operation: most often it is adversarial between the parties, occasionally it demonstrates the capacity for cross-party collaboration. Because media coverage focuses mainly on the partisan clashes in Question Period, many members of the public sees the legislative process as only games-playing by the parties. In my view partisanship has become excessive, unduly negative and personal in content. There is throughout the legislative process too much rude heckling, personal attacks, bullying, inflammatory rhetoric, defensiveness and feigned indignation. Women MLAs are targeted disproportionately. Two episodes in the past session illustrate the problem. On April 22, PC MLA Greg Nesbitt questioned the NDP government about a contract for mental health therapy, suggesting, without providing any evidence, that it may have been for the personal benefit of NDP Finance Minister Adrien Sala. Either this was a cheap ' gotcha' question or Nesbitt had failed to do his homework to learn that the contract was actually for mental health support to landfill searchers. It strained credulity for the PC interim leader Wayne Ewasko to claim that his MLA was simply seeking information. In the shouting match which ensued, the Speaker, Tom Lindsay lost his cool and threatened to toss Nesbitt from the chamber, a threat he apologized for the next day. He also expressed frustration with the lack of decorum and the refusal of MLAs to immediately obey his calls for the heckling to cease. There is only so much the Speaker can do under the rules to maintain civility and to curtail belligerent language. The deeper problem is the culture of the institution which is shaped by many factors, most importantly by the words and actions of the party leaders. This brings me to the second episode which happened in the committee of supply on May 21 when the spending estimates of the executive council (which includes the premier's office) were under review. Proceedings of the meeting can be found on a YouTube stream. Both Premier Wab Kinew and Opposition Leader Obby Khan were in attendance and the meeting turned ugly almost immediately with the two MLAs showing intense dislike and disrespect for one another. A backbench NDP MLA serving as committee chair was hard pressed to maintain order. During Khan's opening statement on economic indicators, he was constantly heckled by Kinew, who at one point described the opposition leader as 'a joke.' Khan responded by bringing up Kinew's encounters with the law as a young adult and described him as a 'toxic, bullying leader' (echoing allegations from a former NDP MLA banished from that caucus). Kinew fought back by accusing Khan of being part of the ethics scandal involving violations of the caretaker convention during the final days of the former Heather Stefanson government. Fostering a more respectful and constructive culture starts with the leaders who must model more responsible behaviour and encourage their MLAs to restrain their outbursts and personal attacks when emotions rise in the chamber and in the committees. Paul G. Thomas is professor emeritus of Political Studies at the University of Manitoba.
