fbpx
Thursday, July 10, 2025

Aylmer, Ont. asks provincial government to require proof for mask exemptions

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

An Ontario town has called on the provincial government to allow communities to demand proof from people exempt from mandatory mask orders, currently prohibited because of human rights concerns. This comes as the town pushes back against a planned anti-lockdown protest scheduled for this weekend.

In an Oct. 27 letter to Ontario Solicitor General Sylvia Jones, the town claims the protests “put lives at risk including those of our local emergency responders who must attend to ensure public safety.”

“The Provincial Orders and local letter of instruction does (sic) not require proof of medical condition that would exempt an individual from wearing face coverings. Without proof of exemption, the orders and by-laws are not enforceable,” writes Aylmer Deputy Clerk Jennifer Reynaert. 

“We encourage the Ministry of the Solicitor General to reconsider the orders in the context of requiring proof of medical condition for exemption from the donning of face coverings. While most of our community has been respectful of the advice being recommended by medical officials, there are some that remain dismissive and put the larger community at risk. This risk is both medical and financial.” 

True North reached out to the town’s deputy clerk for comment on the request but had not heard back by the time of publication.

As it stands, provincial guidelines do not require those with medical exemptions from mask-wearing to provide any documentation to support their claims.

The health accommodations listed by the Ontario government as valid exemptions include: any medical condition that inhibits the wearing of a mask, those unable to wear a mask without assistance and anyone receiving accommodations in line with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 or the Human Rights Code. 

Aylmer was launched into the national spotlight this week after the town declared a state of emergency ahead of a planned “Freedom March” on Nov. 7. 

Mayor Mary French cited “the potential for civil unrest and service disruptions relating to protests and demonstrations regarding COVID-19 directions…” as a reason behind the all-encompassing emergency order. 

Posters advertising the protest on Facebook describe the gathering as a “peaceful family-friendly event.” 

A similar gathering  in October attracted several hundred people to Aylmer’s downtown core in protest of coronavirus restrictions.

A spokesperson for and the husband of Saturday’s rally organizer, Kimberly Charlton Neudorf told True North that the mayor’s request to the solicitor general was “audacious” and ignorant of Canadian privacy laws.

“What it reveals is striking: governments at all levels, even small municipalities, are so quick and eager to trample freedoms and rights like medical privacy under the guise of an emergency.  Privacy laws have been hard-won over many decades. The audacity of our mayor to write such a letter, because the Town has been inconvenienced by a mom putting on a freedom rally in town, should reveal exactly what we’re dealing with in Aylmer,” said Terry Neudorf.

“It only takes a quick glance at the provincial mask order, which superseded Aylmer’s own order, to see that a medical exemption is but one exemption out of many with regard to not wearing masks.”

“To plead with the province that your town’s citizens should forego those rights, including those of privacy, is an affront to good governance.  This letter has exposed that, and the town should be ashamed,” he continued.

Rally organizers plan on following through with the march despite the mayor’s state of emergency declaration.

Rural Alberta crime bust recovers $250,000 in stolen firearms, vehicles

By
True North Wire
-

Alberta police authorities arrested two suspects and retrieved $250,000 in stolen goods on Tuesday.

The RCMP along with the Eastern Alberta District Rural Crime Reduction Unit (EAD) conducted a search warrant on a home near Boyle, AB, where they recovered stolen licence plates, an SUV, a truck, trailers, a motorcycle, stolen identification, credit cards and two firearms. 

Nicole Murphy of Athabasca and Travis Overton of Fort McMurray were taken into custody as a result of the investigation. 

The pair were wanted for prior warrants and are now facing charges for failing to comply with a release order, possessing ammunition contrary to an order, numerous counts of possessing property obtained as a result of a crime and for possessing a controlled substance.  

Data from Statistics Canada shows that rural communities, especially those in the prairies, are plagued by a disproportionate crime rate when compared to urban ones. 

“As with most property crimes, rates of break and enter and motor vehicle theft were higher in the Prairie provinces, especially Alberta. In 2017, police reported 978 break and enter incidents per 100,000 population in rural Alberta,” claimed a 2017 Statistics Canada report.

Only a few weeks prior, the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) announced the arrest of five suspects alleged to have been  involved in a firearm trafficking and stolen property rural crime ring.  

“ALERT worked hand-in-hand with our policing partners to disrupt a group of individuals who were terrorizing small communities with thefts and property crime offences,” ALERT Communications Director Michael Tucker told True North at the time.  

“Widespread theft like this, has a huge impact on community safety. Especially in rural communities – it shakes the sense of security amongst the victims. ALERT will continue to work alongside our partners to deliver a swift, robust response.”

In another incident, the rural home of Alberta Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Devin Dreeshan was recently targeted by burglars. Dreeshan’s truck was stolen and torched as a result of the theft. 

Liberals propose bill to regulate internet and streaming services

By
True North Wire
-
Source: pm.gc.ca

The Trudeau government has proposed a bill which would regulate the kind of content streaming services can show Canadian audiences.

On Tuesday, Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault introduced Bill C-10, An Act To Amend The Broadcasting Act. Under C-10, streaming services will have to“contribute significantly to the creation and presentation of Canadian programming.” 

“Online broadcasters, web giants if you prefer – the Netflix, Spotify and Apple Music and Amazon Prime of this world – need to be brought under Canadian regulation. That is exactly what we are doing,” he said.

“We are asking these large and wealthy companies to invest in Canadian stories, in Canadian music, in Canadian artists in the same way that Canadian companies like Bell, like CBC, like Corus and so many others already have regulatory spending obligations in Canada.” 

According to the Wall Street Journal, up to $1 billion may be extracted from streaming services to produce Canadian content. Bill C-10 also allows the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to fine companies up to $10 million for breaches of their licenses.

Guilbeault says that content by private citizens will not be affected by C-10, adding that the bill is only targeting large players in the media.

“User-generated content, news content and video games will not be regulated, only broadcasters that have a significant impact in Canada will be subject to this regulation.”

“This legislation is about our cultural sovereignty. It is about investment in jobs. It’s about equity.”

Heritage Canada says streaming services have grown by about 90% per year over the past two years. Traditional TV and radio has an average decline of 1.8% per year over the past five years.

Meanwhile, traditional media continues to decline in Canada. According to the CBC’s latest annual report, only 0.8% of Canadians tuned in to watch CBC nightly and CBC’s English-language TV ad revenue fell by 20% over the first three months of 2020.

Bill C-10 partially follows the recommendations of a federal commission which in January recommended the Trudeau government force media companies to prioritize Canadian content and increase funding to the CBC.

Ontario town declares “state of emergency” ahead of anti-lockdown protest

By
True North Wire
-

The town of Aylmer, Ontario declared a state of emergency on Monday afternoon in anticipation of future anti-lockdown protests.

An official statement signed by the town’s Mayor Mary French cites “the potential for civil unrest and service disruptions relating to protests and demonstrations regarding COVID-19 directions…” 

“An emergency declaration may extend to all, or any part of the geographical area under the jurisdiction of the municipality,” claims the announcement. 

The municipality outlined the following four reasons verbatim as being behind its decision to declare a state of emergency:

1. It protects our Volunteers. Anyone assisting citizens or the Municipality during a State of Emergency are blanket covered by this declaration.

2. It further protects Staff and Elected Officials from litigious situations that may arise as a result of the emergency.

3. It assists with applying or receiving any availability of funding that may come about as a result of the emergency and further it provides our private citizens more flexibility with claims etc. that may come about, during the designated emergency timeline.

4. Above all, declaring a State of Emergency conveys the serious of the circumstance to not only the residents of the Municipality, but also creates awareness to the levels of Government and Officials that are so willing to assist.

Following the announcement, Aylmer Police also declared the state of emergency citing an Anti-Masking Freedom March planned for November 7, 2020. 

“We have been working with the protest organizer to try to get her to change her mind on the actual demonstration,” Aylmer’s Chief of police Zvonko Horvat told Global News.

“Certainly, looking at it from our perspective, we’ve been communicating to her about the necessity to ensure that peace is kept and that people in the community don’t appreciate what’s happening.”

In October, several hundred people turned out for a local “Freedom Rally” in downtown Aylmer in protest of coronavirus restrictions. 

Taxpayers billed half a million dollars for renovations to Rideau Hall

By
True North Wire
-

Taxpayers were billed over half a million dollars for Governor General Julie Payette to renovate her residence at Rideau Hall.

According to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF), the cost of renovations totalled $502,395. The newly released figure is significantly higher than the $250,000 first reported by the CBC in August. 

Documents show a total of 15 different projects at the residence, including $139,000 to design a private staircase that never reached the construction stage. 

Taxpayers also footed $108,000 for a multimedia study room and another $104,000 for a security project in one of Rideau Hall’s wings. 

Payette, who is a former astronaut, also had a $60,000 “mission control boardroom” and a space exhibit added to the residence. 

“While various departments point fingers, the office of the Governor General has become a parade of wasteful spending stories,” said CTF Federal Director Aaron Wudrick. 

“Someone needs to be held responsible for this money being wasted. The Minister needs to stick up for taxpayers, and tell the NCC and the Governor General to get their houses in order.”

This isn’t the first instance where Payette has passed on a significant bill to taxpayers. 

In 2017, taxpayers had to pay $649,000 for her swearing-in ceremony as governor general, which was significantly over the $500,000 budget allocated for the occasion. 

Payette’s refusal to work with her RCMP security detail has also cost Canadians dearly. 

According to the CBC, Payette accrued a whopping $700,000 in additional security costs as a result of her difficulties and desire for privacy.

“It’s infuriating. She incurs costs that are unbelievable. It’s Canadians’ money that is not well spent because of someone who is difficult,” and RCMP source told CBC. 

Manitoba premier suggests a curfew to fight the coronavirus

By
True North Wire
-

At a press conference on Monday, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister suggested enforcing a curfew in the Winnipeg Metro Region might be necessary to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

“We’re giving serious consideration to implementing a curfew, a curfew that would be designed to restrict travel between key hours, when gathering sizes tend to be dangerously in excess of the rules, late-night hours obviously,” he said.

Pallister noted that he heard reports of many large Halloween parties over the weekend despite limits on social gatherings. On Saturday, Manitoba reported 349 new cases and four deaths, the highest since the pandemic began.

Pallister, citing Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam, said that Manitobans need to reduce the number of people they come into contact with by 75% to limit the spread of coronavirus.

“She said last week that the most significant thing Canadians can do to arrest the COVID curve and ultimately to flatten it is to reduce their personal contacts by half,” he said. 

“Here in Manitoba, I believe we need to drop those personal contacts by more than that.”

No details on what the proposed curfew might look like has been made public.

For over two weeks Winnipeg has been Code Red, the most extreme of Manitoba’s four-code Pandemic Response System. Under Code Red, schools and non-essential businesses may be closed and non-urgent surgeries and diagnostic procedures may be cancelled.

As a result of the lockdowns, economic turmoil and isolation lead to increases in mental health issues and drug overdoses. 

Under full lockdowns in Ontario, the number of crucial surgeries performed was decimated, including life-saving diagnostics and treatments for child cancer patients.

FUREY: It’s time to learn to live with COVID-19

By
True North
-

Ottawa’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Vera Etches is recommending a new approach to deal with the pandemic – learning to live with COVID-19.

Dr. Etches says we need to get on with our lives with care, protect the most vulnerable people and safely reopen the economy.

True North’s Anthony Furey praises Dr. Etches and hopes she’s a trailblazer to lead us out of this troubling chapter in our lives.

Omar Khadr’s sister sues Canada after being denied entry

By
True North Wire
-

Omar Kahdr’s sister is suing Canada after being denied entry into the country. 

Zaynab Khadr, who has expressed support for Islamist extremists in the past, wants a Federal Court to have her name removed from Canada’s no-fly list. 

In September, after failing to board a plane from Europe into the country, she sought to have her name struck from the list, but the request was denied by Public Safety Canada. 

Khadr claims that the department gave “no reasonable basis to suspect she would engage or attempt to engage in an act that would threaten public transportation or to suspect she was travelling by air to commit certain terrorism offences…”

While Zaynab Khadr has not been convicted of any terrorist offences, she has spoken in support of terrorism, including suggesting that Americans deserved the 9/11 attacks. 

“Sometimes innocent people pay the price. You don’t want to feel happy, but you just sort of think, well, they deserve it, they’ve been doing it for such a long time. Why shouldn’t they feel it once in a while?” said Zaynab Khadr in 2004. 

Like her brother, Zaynab Khadr was also accused by the RCMP of aiding al-Qaeda but she was never charged. 

She also welcomed Osama bin Laden at her second wedding and appeared in court to support the Toronto-18 terrorists. 

“The allegations against the Appellant are based on her history of speech and association,” her appeal to the federal court claimed.

“The Appellant has never engaged in or threatened acts of violence, and her words have never had the effect of compelling or encouraging acts of violence.”

Public Safety Minister Bill Blair responded to Khadr’s attempt to be removed from the no-fly list by saying that the list was in place to protect Canadians. 

“If someone objects to being on that list, there is a process for them to bring those concerns forward and if they don’t like that decision there’s another process that allows for that to be reviewed at the federal court level,” said Blair.

This is not the first lawsuit launched by the  Khadr family against the Canadian government. 

In 2013, Omar Khadr successfully sued and settled with the Canadian government for $10.5 million for allegedly violating his rights as a Canadian citizen. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suggested at the time that the settlement was the “best option.” 

“I can understand Canadians’ concerns about the settlement. In fact, I share those concerns about the money; that’s why we settled,” said Trudeau about the decision.

“The measure of a just society is not whether we stand up for people’s rights when it’s easy or popular to do so, it’s whether we recognize rights when it’s difficult, when it’s unpopular.” 

Khadr was originally imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay after pleading guilty to the murder of U.S. Army Sergeant 1st Class Christopher Speer. 

The Khadr family has a long history of associations with terrorist groups. The siblings’ father Ahmed Khadr was a top official and financier for al-Qaeda while still alive. 

In 2019, Omar Khadr was freed from any prior restrictions after successfully having an Alberta court declare that his war crimes sentence had expired. 

“All those conditions that were restricting his liberty up to this point are now gone, so for example he can apply for a passport, he can talk to his sister, he can travel around the world or around Canada without having to seek permission,” said Khadr’s lawyer, Nate Whitling.

NDP House Leader compares possibility of Trump win to Hitler’s 1933 election

By
True North Wire
-

An NDP MP compared the possibility of re-electing US President Donald Trump to the election of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in 1933. 

The comments were made on Twitter by NDP house leader and New Westminster—Burnaby MP Peter Julian.

“(The election) represents one of the most stark choices for a democracy since the March, 1933 elections in the Weimar Republic – Germany,” Julian tweeted about Tuesday’s presidential election.

In another tweet, Julian accuses Trump of “fascism” and “white supremacy” and makes a variety of other outlandish claims. 

“Donald Trump represents facism. He represents white supremacy & unbelievable patriarchy. He represents violence, toxic greed & unparalleled dishonesty. There are simply times when people have to take a stand to preserve what we have fought for and won over generations,” tweeted Julian. 

Despite Julian’s claims, polling shows that support for the president has grown among African Americans and Latin Americans when compared to his supporter base in 2016. 

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh also had some choice words for Trump in a tweet published on the day of the election, calling on people to “VOTE HIM OUT.”

Americans are voting Tuesday to decide between Trump and Democrat nominee Joe Biden.

Several US cities, including Washington, DC, have erected barricades and increased security measures in anticipation of possible post-election unrest. 

Federal authorities have erected a “non-scalable” fence around the White House, where only a few months prior left-wing rioters and Black Lives Matter activists surrounded the building and clashed with riot police. 
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that his government will avoid commenting on the potential results of the election until the votes are counted and a winner is announced.

Military drafted plan to “influence and alter beliefs and behaviours” of Canadians

By
True North Wire
-

The Liberal government wants the military to be involved in a propaganda operation targeting Canadians. 

A groundbreaking report by the Ottawa Citizen revealed a series of documents that outline a Canadian Forces operation intended to advance “national interests by using defence activities to influence the attitudes, beliefs and behaviours of audiences.” 

The Canadian Forces has already invested over $1 million in training its public affairs staff on the same techniques used by the controversial UK data-mining company, Cambridge Analytica.

According to the October 2020 document, the intended audiences are Canadians in their own country, as well as citizens of other countries abroad. The plan also details a new research body that would collect the personal information of Canadian, journalists and others from their social media accounts. 

“Defence StratCom will focus on effects and outcomes among key audiences and will provide clear direction on aligning actions, efforts and resources in pursuit of strategic objectives,” read the plan. 

While the above mentioned document remains in the draft stage, steps have been taken to turn the proposed operation into a reality. 

Earlier this year, it was revealed that military intelligence officers within the Canadian military were ordered to monitor and collect information on the social media activity of Ontarians. 

Once the project was revealed, the military then said that the information was being used to assist the army’s intervention in the province’s long-term care crisis. 

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan has stated that the operation has not received the necessary authorization required to be put into effect. 

“No such plan has been approved, nor will it be,” said Sajjan’s press secretary, Florianne Bonneville. 

Despite the denials, military personnel have already engaged with and met to discuss the tactics included in the documents in a series of town halls. 

1...1,1521,1531,154...1,460Page 1,153 of 1,460

Related stories

© 2025 True North | Privacy Policy