The latest survey on debt levels in Canada found that half of Canadians are $200 away from insolvency and not being able to pay their monthly bills. 

According to the MNP Consumer Debt Index, 50% of survey respondents claimed they were on the brink of bankruptcy, while 49% were not confident in their ability to cover expenses without accumulating more debt. 

“Our findings may point to a shift among some Canadians from debt apathy to debt hopelessness. Feelings of hopelessness can make people feel like giving up on ever paying down their debt or, worse, ignoring the debt as it piles up higher,” said MNP President Grant Bazian in a news release.

The number has grown by 4% since January 2019, when 46% of Canadians reported being $200 away from insolvency.

According to an Ipsos poll, a majority of Canadians reported that they thought 2019 was a bad year for Canada. 54% of Canadians agreed with the statement that “2019 was a bad year for my country.” 

The last quarterly report by Statistics Canada found that the country’s household debt went up to $28.5 billion in the third quarter of 2019 with seasonal adjustments, meaning on average, Canadians owe $1.76 for every dollar they earned. 

The Liberal cabinet is currently on a retreat to discuss its mandate, including a plan to grow the middle class.

Despite a relatively stable economy, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has received backlash for his government’s ballooning spending and deficit levels. 

The latest announcement by Finance Minister Bill Morneau reported the Liberal government’s expected deficit for 2019 to be at a whopping $26.6 billion, exceeding a past predicted deficit of $19.8 billion. 

You can’t fight for the middle class on an empty stomach.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cheerily tweeted a photo of him hauling seven boxes of doughnuts from a Winnipeg bakery to “keep us going through another full day of Cabinet meetings.”

Trudeau’s bakery of choice, Oh Doughnuts, specializes in gourmet doughnuts that can cost upwards of $47 per dozen – nearly five times the price of the standard Canadian office fare, a $9.99 box of twelve doughnuts from Tim Hortons.

According to the shop’s website, regular doughnuts, including some vegan options, can be purchased for $35 a dozen while speciality doughnuts run $47 for 12. You can also “upgrade” beyond that for $1.25 each. No word yet on whether Trudeau splurged for the extra sprinkles.

The Liberal cabinet is currently on a three-day retreat in Winnipeg where the Trudeau team is expected to discuss such things as growing the middle class, gun control and reconciliation.

As part of his new cabinet, Trudeau appointed Mona Fortier as the new Minister of Middle Class Prosperity.

Both Trudeau and Fortier have had trouble with providing a definition for the term “middle class.”

In one year-end interview on Breakfast Television, Trudeau said only that “Canadians know” what middle class is when asked what it means.

During her first interview as minister for the middle class, Fortier said sending your kids to play hockey was part of it.

“I define the middle class where people feel they can afford their way of life, they have quality of life and they can send their kids to play hockey or even have different activities,” said Fortier.

The Special Committee on Canada-China Relations had its inaugural meeting Monday, electing former Speaker of the House Geoff Regan to share the committee.

The meeting comes as diplomatic tensions rise between Canada and China. The committee was established by way of a Conservative motion passed with support from all parties but the Liberals.

The committee consists of six Liberals, four Conservatives, one Bloc and one NDP. 

Conservative MP Chris Warkentin was named as one of the vice-chairs during Monday’s meeting, alongside NDP MP Jack Harris, and Bloc MP Stéphane Bergeron.   

According to the committee’s mandate, members are expected to “examine and review all aspects of the Canada–China relationship, including, but not limited to, consular, economic, legal, security and diplomatic relations.” 

During the meeting Conservative deputy leader Leona Alleslev brought forward a motion to call Canada’s ambassador to China Dominic Barton to testify before the committee no later than Feb. 7.

“We do want to hear from the ambassador, he is the most senior official,” said Alleslev.

“We are asking for a briefing, for him to give us an overview of all aspects of the consular, diplomatic, trade, security as it applies to his position. And we want to have that sooner later than later.” 

Due to the fact that the chair is a Liberal MP, it places the ruling Liberals at a disadvantage for votes since the chair is only allowed to vote in the case of a tie. 

The committee met as Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou appeared before the BC Supreme Court for an extradition hearing. 

Meng is at the centre of a diplomatic dispute between Canada and China which erupted after Canadian authorities arrested her at a Vancouver airport on behest of the U.S. who are seeking to prosecute her for alleged fraudulent dealings with Iran. 

In response to Meng’s arrest the Chinese government detained two Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig who have been held in the country for over a year without access to legal representatives. 

Huawei Canada, which is an affiliate of the Chinese tech giant is also currently seeking to gain access to Canada’s upcoming 5G network. 
Canada’s allies have warned that if Huawei were to be allowed onto the network, it could potentially give Beijing a backdoor into the information of millions of Canadians and potentially jeopardize intelligence sharing relationships among members of the Five Eyes community.

A hospice in Delta, BC will give up $750,000 in government funding to avoid complying with a rule requiring healthcare facilities more than 50% funded by the government to offer assisted suicide to people in their care.

The Delta Hospice Society says the BC government gave it until February to begin offering medical assistance in dying (MAID), commonly known as assisted suicide, at the ten-bed Irene Thomas Hospice centre.

Delta Hospice Society President Angelina Ireland says the organization is willing to lose enough funding to get under the 50% threshold, if it means staff will not be forced to help people kill themselves.

The hospice receives $1.4 million from the government, but Ireland says losing $750,000 is required to not offer MAID.

“We’re offering to give up $750,000. That’s how much it means to us to be a true hospice and palliative care facility,” Ireland said.

More than the money, it’s a matter of the core beliefs of the centre and its staff, Ireland said.

“MAID is completely incompatible with palliative hospice care. It’s diametrically opposed,” she said. “We believe that we haven’t done anything wrong … We believe we are following on what palliative hospice care truly is.”

Ireland added anyone in the community wanting assisted suicide can go to nearby Delta Hospital, noting it’s not a question of access.

Last week Conservative MP Tamara Jansen wrote to the BC government criticizing its treatment of the hospice service.

“I am very disappointed that the NDP government is threatening to shut down the Irene Thomas Hospice (ITH), unless medical staff are willing to betray their deeply-held personal beliefs and participate in the taking of patient lives through MAID [medical assistance in dying],” Jansen said.

While the future of the Irene Thomas Hospice remains uncertain, the federal government is asking the public for input on assisted suicide practices ahead of a planned reform of the current legislation.

Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou is appearing before the British Columbia Supreme Court Monday morning for a hearing that will determine the fate of the United States’ pursuit of extradition on fraud charges.

A spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry said in a press conference that Canada abused its bilateral extradition treaty with the US and that Meng’s arrest was a “political incident.”

“China’s position on the Meng Wanzhou case is consistent and clear. The US and Canada abused their bilateral extradition treaty and arbitrarily took compulsory measures against a Chinese citizen without cause. This is entirely a serious political incident that grossly violates the legitimate rights and interests of the Chinese citizen,” said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang.

“Once again we urge the Canadian side to take concrete measures to correct its wrongdoing and release Ms. Meng and ensure her safe return to China at an early date.” 

Meng is wanted by the US on several fraud charges related to millions of dollars worth of alleged business dealings with Iran, and skirting international sanctions on the Islamic dictatorship.

Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes oversaw Monday’s proceedings, where initially Meng’s defence lawyer Richard Peck sought to examine whether Meng’s conduct would be considered fraud in Canada.

Protestors stood outside of the court and held signs on both sides of the debate with some calling on Meng to be freed while others protested the captivity of millions of Uyghur Muslims in mainland China.

She was arrested by Canadian authorities in December 2018 and has since been held under surveillance in her Vancouver-area mansion.

Shortly after Meng’s arrest, the Chinese government arbitrarily detained two Canadians working in China. Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig have since been held in Chinese prisons for over 400 days without any access to legal representation.

The Chinese government has announced it will be prosecuting the pair on national security charges,  including for “covertly gathering state secrets and intelligence for foreign forces”  and “stealing and illegally providing state secrets to foreign forces.”

Huawei Canada issued a statement on the court case saying that it was “inappropriate” to give comments on the ongoing court case.

“We trust in Canada’s judicial system, which will prove Ms. Meng’s innocence,” said Huawei spokesperson Benjamin Howes.

“We hope Ms. Meng will be together with her family, and colleagues and friends as soon as possible.”

Parliamentarians are expected to meet Monday afternoon to convene the Special Committee on Canada-China Relations to discuss the ongoing diplomatic disputes between the two countries, including the imprisonment of the two Canadian nationals.

The chair of the UN’s anti-racism committee told reporters that they had no idea that 20 First Nation band councils support the Coastal LNG pipeline before directing Canada to halt construction. 

United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination Chairperson Noureddine Amir said that he had no knowledge of that fact before issuing the directive. 

“I did not know that most First Nations agree on that. This is something new that comes to my understanding,” said Amir.

When asked why the committee didn’t research the issue before making a statement on the matter, Amir stated that the committee’s job was not to do investigations. 

The LNG project has the support of 20 elected First Nations bands along the pipeline’s route. A ruling by the B.C. Supreme Court also found that protests led by five hereditary Wet’suwet’en chiefs have caused “irreparable harm” to the project. 

The ruling by Justice Marguerite Church also stated that the band’s indigenous laws are not recognized as Canadian law.

“There has been no process by which Wet’suwet’en customary laws have been recognized in this manner. While Wet’suwet’en customary laws clearly exist on their own independent footing, they are not recognized as being an effectual part of Canadian law,”  wrote Justice Church. 

B.C. NDP Premier John Horgan spoke in support of the pipeline’s construction and called for the “rule of law” to be obeyed. 

The recently appointed B.C. Human Rights Commissioner Kasari Govender joined the U.N’s calls to shut down the pipeline in a statement issued on January 10. 

“I join CERD [Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination] in urging Canada to immediately cease the forced eviction of Wet’suwet’en and Secwepemc peoples, to prohibit the use of lethal weapons, and to guarantee no force will be used against them. This is a matter of fundamental human rights,” wrote Govender.

True North asked whether Govender was also aware of the wide Indigenous support for the project. 

“Commissioner Govender is well aware of the complexity of the situation, including the benefit agreements signed by band councils, divisions within the Wet’suwet’en nation themselves, and the complex interaction of provincial, constitutional, international, and Indigenous law which all come to bear on this situation,” said spokesperson Charlotte Kingston. 

“The complexity of this situation is why it is so important to return to fundamental human rights principles.”

RCMP are currently at the construction site and have set up a checkpoint in the area. Police officials are also criminally investigating several traps involving fuel-soaked rags and gasoline containers in the area. 

Liberal-appointed senator Yuen Pau Woo has agreed to speak at an event hosted by a group with links to the Chinese government on January 30th, according to Blacklock’s Reporter. 

The event is hosted by the Canada-China Friendship Society and is titled “Rethinking China Relations.” 

Woo was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. He is the current spokesperson of the Independent Senators Group, the largest body in the Canadian Senate. 

The society has connections with China’s communist state through the governmental body the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries. 

In 2015 the Chinese embassy in Canada wrote an endorsement of the club claiming it promoted “mutual understanding and friendship between the Chinese and Canadian peoples.”

Woo has also tweeted in support of Huawei, which is at the centre of an international relations dispute between Canada and China. 

“Thank you Huawei Canada for supporting next generation engineering and IT stars,” tweeted Woo on May 31, 2017. 

Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou is expected to appear in a B.C. court on January 20th for an extradition hearing. Meng is wanted by U.S. authorities for various fraud charges related to breaking international sanctions on Iran. 

In retaliation for her arrest, the Chinese government arbitrarily detained two Canadian citizens Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig. The pair have been held in detention for over a year since their arrest. 

An American civilian court has ruled that a military court does not have to hear the appeal of convicted terrorist Omar Khadr.

On Friday the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said Khadr had no right to force the military court to expedite his appeal before they are ready to hear it.

“At this time, (Khadr) has not demonstrated a ‘clear and indisputable right’ to the extraordinary remedy,” the court said.

In an attempt to escape his previous guilty plea for the murder of U.S. soldier Christopher Speer in Afghanistan, Khadr appealed his war crimes charges with a U.S. military court last year. The court has put his case on hold while it decides another unrelated case.

Last year while Khadr was attempting to force the military to hear his appeal, the U.S. government pointed to the fact that Khadr waived his right to appeal in his guilty plea and that he now lives freely in Edmonton as evidence that he does not need an expedited trial.

The U.S. government argues that Khadr is only trying to advance himself as he waited to appeal until “after he had pocketed the agreement’s benefits, received his 32-year sentence reduction and transfer to Canada, and was beyond the jurisdiction of U.S. courts.”

In his plea bargain, Khadr’s sentence was reduced from 40 years to just eight and was moved from Guantanamo Bay to a Canadian prison.

In March of 2019, a Canadian judge ruled that Khadr’s charges have expired and that he should be given all the same rights as ordinary Canadians, including a passport.

Along with being a free man, the convicted terrorist has also become a millionaire. 

In 2017, rather than fight Khadr in court, the Trudeau government settled with Khadr for $10.5 million for allegedly violating his rights during his time in Guantanamo Bay.

It would later be revealed that Khadr spent $3 million of the settlement payout to purchase a shopping mall in Edmonton.