Murray Wood: Community spirit alive and well in small-town Saskatchewan
Murray Wood says he's noted a decline in community spirit in some parts of the province recently, but a train ride betwe...
Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…
Canada in “investment crisis” business leaders say
The Business Council of Canada says Canada is in an “investment crisis” but warns prosperity can’t be achieved by taking on more debt.
In a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney, the council’s president and CEO Goldy Hyder said if the federal government intends on financing investment by incurring more debt, then it better have a plan to bring it down.
“We recognize the difficult starting point and the need for upfront investments, but that should be underwritten by meaningful year-over-year reductions in the absolute deficit,” Hyder wrote, saying at the very least the government should halve this year’s deficit within three years.
The council’s submission is one of nearly one thousand the government received in recent weeks, ahead of the Liberals’ budget tabling on Nov. 4.
Half of Canadians have seen systemic racism: poll
Almost half of Canadians polled say they have observed evidence of systemic racism in their province, a new survey suggests.
The Leger poll of 1,627 people, conducted between Aug. 29 and 31 for the Association for Canadian Studies, says 49 per cent of Canadians reported having observed evidence of systemic racism — racism embedded in government and social systems and laws — in their province.
The poll, which was conducted online and can’t be assigned a margin of error, suggests that 37 per cent of those polled said they hadn’t observed evidence of systemic racism in their province, while 14 per cent said they didn’t know or preferred not to answer.
Jack Jedwab, president and CEO of the Association for Canadian Studies, said the number of people reporting systemic racism was “a bit higher” than he had expected, because he wasn’t certain that Canadians had a good understanding of systemic racism.
Credit card fraud rising in Canada: Equifax report
A new report says the second quarter of the year brought a sharp rise in credit card fraud.
Equifax Canada says the rate of credit card fraud jumped to 0.75 per cent in Q2 compared with 0.44 per cent a year earlier.
That means out of every 10,000 credit cards, about 75 are fraudulent compared with 44 last year.
The consumer credit reporting agency says the spike came despite application fraud rates across Canada falling to their lowest point since the third quarter of 2022.
Rob Ashton to announce NDP leadership run
Rob Ashton, president of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, is scheduled to announce his intention to run for the NDP leadership this morning in Toronto.
Ashton is billing himself as the “the first working-class labour candidate” in the race.
He will join Alberta MP Heather McPherson, documentarian Avi Lewis and activist Yves Engler as declared candidates in the race.
Tanille Johnston, a Campbell River B.C. city councillor and former NDP candidate, recently launched a website to gauge potential support for a leadership bid.
Toronto Climate Week conference launches
A new climate conference is kicking off in Toronto that’s aiming to highlighting Canada’s clean tech and climate innovation sectors.
Toronto Climate Week comes on the heels of Climate Week NYC, which bills itself as the largest climate gathering outside of the United Nations climate conference.
Becky Park-Romanovsky, founder and executive director of Toronto Climate Week, says the new event is meant to help Canada distinguish itself in the space, especially as the U.S. government actively works against climate action.
She says she’s been running smaller climate events in the city for years, but has never seen this much engagement, including from climate-related companies operating in the U.S. and seeking a more welcoming environment.
Four books vie for increased Balsillie Prize
Authors of books on corporate consolidation and intimate partner violence are among the finalists for an increased Balsillie Prize for Public Policy.
Writers’ Trust of Canada says this year’s winner will get $70,000, up from $60,000, in recognition of the prize’s 5th anniversary.
Runners-up will get $7,500, up from $5,000.
The annual award recognizes non-fiction books that advance policy discussions on social, political, economic and cultural topics.
The four finalists include Vince Beiser of Vancouver for “Power Metal: The Race for the Resources That Will Shape the Future” from Riverhead Books; and co-authors Vass Bednar of Ancaster, Ont. and Denise Hearn of New York for “The Big Fix: How Companies Capture Markets and Harm Canadians,” from Sutherland House Books.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 1, 2025
The Canadian Press
