Most of us had a virtual health care appointment sometime during the pandemic. Those of us that didn't have almost certainly encountered virtual care of some form or another—whether that's a follow-up phone call from your doctor, or post-surgery instructions emailed to you. As we enter the post-pandemic era, there is a push in some quarters for more virtual care—it can improve access, speed things up and give people more control over their own care and medical records. But will it also...

Today, evacuation alerts for several communities in BC and Alberta are in effect. You may not have noticed, because there are always evacuation alerts in effect now, and there are always fires burning, some of them out of control. When the whole country takes notice is when the skies over entire provinces go dark, the air turns bad or a blaze like the Fort McMurray fire in 2016 blitzes through a city. All of that will probably happen this year. The conditions are ripe for it, and there's not...

In 2022, the Doug Ford government opened parts of Ontario’s protected Greenbelt for housing development, touching off a massive political scandal. But long before that, tensions over the green space outside of Toronto had been quietly simmering for nearly two decades. What is the Greenbelt? How did it end up becoming such a flashpoint for fights over the housing crisis and the climate crisis? And who stood to benefit when the Ford government tore it up after 20 years?

On Saturday's we normally drop the newest episode of In this Economy?! in the feed, but this week we wanted to spotlight another Frequency Podcast Network production that we thought you'd enjoy. Here's the first episode of the sixth season of Laura Palmer's acclaimed show, Island Crime, and we think it might be best one yet. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ORIGINAL SHOW NOTES For three decades, Rhonda has wondered why someone killed her high...

This is one that even the police say will be a Netflix miniseries someday. On April 17, 2023, more than $20 million in gold was stolen from Pearson airport in Toronto. Nobody was hurt, and the crooks got away. It was one of those kinds of thefts. You can picture the scene in your head. Exactly one year later though, police announced arrests, including those of two Air Canada employees, making clear they believe it was at least partly an inside job. How did the crooks pull off the initial...

By far the biggest part of the federal budget is an ambitious plan that the Liberal government claims will not only hit the targeted estimate of homes Canada needs, but will blow right past it. You'd be forgiven some skepticism, since the Prime Minister stated less than a year ago that housing "isn't a primary federal responsibility." A lot has changed since then, especially the government's polling numbers. But politics aside, what's in this plan? How exactly does the government think it...

In the weeks leading up to Tuesday's budget announcement, the federal government has been hammering a message that this document would make life more affordable for Canadians. Does it accomplish that? What's in here that will matter to your wallet in the months to come? What takes aim at trying to bring down the cost of living over the next several years? And who's going to end up paying for all this? GUEST: Jim Stanford, economist and Director of The Centre for Future Work

The former Calgary mayor is beloved by many in the province. He might well be the favourite in the race to succeed Rachel Notley as leader of the Alberta NDP. But he's never really been involved with the party, and his trademark 'purple' comes from blending Liberal red and Conservative blue. No orange in sight.But his campaign will force some fascinating questions onto the party, both in Alberta and nationally. Questions that have been bubbling just below the surface for the past couple of...

It can be easy, given our changing climate, not to worry much about events that aren't extreme. It's not flooding? No hurricanes or heat waves or wildfires? Just a little rain?! Well, we can live with that. And maybe we can, but in the Arctic, a lot of things can't. In recent years, snowfall has been replaced with rainfall more and more often. And sure, they're just different types of moisture, but the impact is fascinating and profound. And has a ton of implications for both Canadians in...

It was one of the strangest scandals in recent Canadian history, located right at the spot where the housing crisis collides with the climate crisis. From allegations of political corruption and RCMP investigations to endangered species and Las Vegas massages. Every Monday for the next three weeks, The Big Story, in partnership with The Narwhal, will take you into the heart of the Greenbelt scandal that rocked Ontario, speaking to the people who broke the story and people who lived it. If...

More and more Canadians are struggling to afford the costs associated with the death of a loved one. In Newfoundland, a recent news report reveals bodies are piling up in a freezer outside of a morgue for this reason. Jordan talks to Erin Bury, CEO and co-founder of Willful, a digital estate planning app that aims to make estate planning more accessible and affordable. Do you have a money problem? Call us and leave a message at 416-935-5935. Or email us at [email protected]. You can also...

Over the past few weeks, there have been hundreds of questions, plenty of notes and briefings, dozens of hours of testimony (including from the Prime Minister himself) and no shortage of references to classified intelligence—all this during an inquiry aiming to help the foreign interference commission, and the Canadian public, learn exactly who knew what about efforts to impact Canada's elections, and what they did about it. If that sounds like a mouthful, well, it is. The inquiry is...

In 2021 the federal government vowed to create a pathway to allow thousands of migrants to remain the country. Instead, deportation levels the past two years are higher than they've been in more than a decade. And we've spent more than $100 million on the deportation process. How did we end up with the opposite of what the government promised? Given Canada's shortage of housing and the health care crisis, how should the government handle the hundreds of thousands of migrants in the country?...

Recent weeks have seen gruesome and tragic incidents in both Toronto and Edmonton involving dogs attacking children, leaving one child dead and another with life-changing injuries. Those stories are backed by numbers from many Canadian cities—including Toronto and Edmonton—showing a surge in attacks or dangerous incidents over the past couple of years. What's behind the spike in attacks? Is it pandemic puppies, as some suggest? Lax enforcement? Incompetent owners? All of those and more? And...

In a 12-month span from 1990-1991, three teenaged girls were murdered in Victoria, BC. All three had been sex trafficked and were working on what was then the city's "stroll" where sex workers solicited clients. All three were found separately, and the ensuing investigations were a jurisdictional mess. The crimes are unsolved to this day, though some with knowledge of the cases believe they may have been committed by the same person. Who were these girls and how did they find themselves on...

In response to sky-high grocery costs, Canada's Competition Bureau recently issued a report calling for more competition in the sector. That call was echoed by the federal government, who had hoped to lure a foreign chain, such as Germany's Aldi, to Canada to give consumers options. But Aldi won't be coming, and neither will anyone else, at least not anytime soon. Why is it so hard for companies to enter the Canadian market and compete against homegrown companies like Loblaw, especially in...

Should I put my savings into an RRSP? If I do that, will I pay less taxes? What happens if I want to access that money before I retire? These are just a few of the RRSP-related questions we've received lately. So, here's everything you need to know about RRSPs in one episode. Just in time for tax season! With Jackie Porter, certified financial planner and ambassador for FP Canada, a national not-for-profit organization dedicated to championing better financial wellness for all Canadians....

Do you miss that beloved cat or dog that passed away? Good news! For only tens of thousands of dollars, and probably a few failed attempts, you can have an identical genetic replacement. Years ago Barbara Streisand made news for cloning her dog. But since then the technology has become much more accessible. A woman in BC made Canadian headlines in March for her two kittens, cloned from a deceased cat named 'Bear'. But these pets can't consent to being clones--which come with more risks than...

It's a case that sparked protests, made national headlines and may have swung a provincial election. And it's about to head to trial. You probably know it best for the fight over whether or not police would search Winnipeg's Prairie Green landfill — but at its core this story is about vulnerable women and the system that forgot them. As Jeremy Skibicki's trial begins this month, the landfill search has not. Why not? How did the alleged killer find his victims, and why was he free to find...

It can be confusing. Depending on which party you listen to, the carbon tax—or "price on pollution"—will either cost you or save you money. And both sides are using accurate information, just differently. But what isn't debatable is that the government's signature policy has been under unprecedented attack over the past year, and the increase that kicked in on April 1 was met with protests and scorn around the country. But will you actually feel it, and if so, when? Where does the policy...

You know how your iPhone uses a different charging cable than your friend's Android? Well, imagine you've just bought a $50,000 tractor ... that only works with parts from the company you bought it from. Or an expensive printer that only takes one kind of ink. Welcome to the fight for interoperability, a battle against the plans of companies to use digital technology to lock customers into their platforms, forever. How did we let things get this far? Who's fighting back and what regulations...

Maple syrup isn't just a staple of Canadian culture. It's big business, especially in Quebec, where the sugary liquid is so vital to the economy that the province keeps a special syrup reserve on hand to control price fluctuations. Except that reserve is running low, dangerously low, after a couple of warm winters coupled with increased demand ate up most of the excess. And with climate change bringing even warmer winters in the years to come, the syrup industry is on alert. Is this a...

Frozen bank accounts, financial chaos, job loss, poverty. Those are all things Gonzalo witnessed while living through the largest foreign default in world history. Other than putting our current financial crisis into perspective, he wants to know if there’s anything we can learn from living through challenging times. Jordan speaks with David Coletto, founder and CEO of Abacus Data, and Tanya Woods, Head of Government and Regulatory Affairs and Policy Council at Questrade Financial Group, to...

It's time again for us to dip into our trove of listener emails and voicemails and share with you some of our favourite pieces of feedback we received over the past month or so. A special thanks to everyone who's taken the time to tell us how you feel. Even if your submission didn't make it into this episode, please keep writing and calling in. Your input helps us make the show better. Have a great long weekend!