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Saturday, October 4, 2025

Surging rents in Canada set new record as Alberta leads increase: report

By
Isaac Lamoureux
-
Source: Facebook/Facebook/Facebook

The average rent in Canada increased 9% in 2023 to a record high of $2,178 in December 2023.

Across the country, average rents for apartments increased 12.8%, condominiums 6.9%, and houses/townhouses 5.9%, totalling an 8.6% increase across all home types, according to data released Wednesday by Rentals.ca and market research firm Urbanation.

The 8.6% increase in rents in 2023 followed a 12.1% increase in 2022 and a 4.6% increase in 2021. The five-year average annual growth in rent is 4.9%, including a 5.4% decrease in 2020 due to Covid.

Over the past two years, asking rents in Canada have increased by 22%, an average of $390 per month. 

Among Canada’s largest municipalities, Calgary posted one of the fastest increases in annual rent growth, rising 14% from last year to an average of $2,071. This increase follows Quebec City at 18.9%. Calgary’s rent also increased by 22.6% in 2022. 

Edmonton had average rent prices much lower than Calgary, at $1,467, but rose by 13.5%.

In Canada’s two most expensive cities to rent, Vancouver and Toronto, rental price changes were reasonable. Average asking rents for apartments in Vancouver decreased by 0.7% and increased in Toronto by 2.1% since last year.  

Canada faced another unprecedented record in 2023, as rental vacancies dropped to a historic low of 1.5%, according to a study released by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

The study highlighted that rent prices have increased faster than wages, making it harder for tenants nationwide.

“Lower-income renters have been disproportionately impacted by the below-average vacancy rates, exacerbating the affordability crisis,” said the corporation. 

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation attributed the demand for rental housing to employment growth, demographic growth, and the low affordability of homeownership — leading to a higher tendency for people to rent. 

While supply increased, it lagged behind the increase in demand, leading to a more competitive rental market and decreased affordability overall.

In 2023, individuals ages 15 to 24, who represent a substantial portion of renters, experienced significant population growth. Alberta saw more than twice the national growth average in this age demographic. Alberta also attracted more interprovincial migrants due to employment opportunities and affordable housing.

Alberta was the province with the fastest-growing rents for purpose-built and condominium apartments in 2023, increasing 15.6% since last year, reaching an average of $1,691. This follows an increase in Alberta of 16.8% in rents in 2022.

While British Columbia remained the most expensive province, the average asking rent decreased by 1.4% since last year to an average of $2,500.

Average listed rents by apartment and condo listing in January increased 11% across the country compared to last year. 

The outlook for 2024 should be better, according to Rentals.ca. The rental market will remain undersupplied, said the report, but rent growth should creep closer to the five-year average of around 5%. Creeping closer towards the five-year average is thanks to a slowing economy, a reduced number of non-permanent residents, and an improvement in homebuying activity thanks to a decline in interest rates.

“Relatively affordable markets, such as those in Alberta, should continue to experience above-average rent increases, while more expensive markets, such as those in B.C. and Ontario, should continue to experience rent increases below the national average,” said the report.

Pierre Poilievre commented on the rents increasing to a new record high, reaching an average of $2,196 in January 2024.

“While Justin Trudeau and his housing minister were busy doing photo-ops for fake housing announcements, asking rents up 10% to $2,196/mo for Canadians.”

$11M seized in biggest contraband tobacco bust in B.C. history

By
Quinn Patrick
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Source: RCMP

A months-long investigation has led to the arrest of four people in what is now the largest contraband tobacco bust in British Columbia’s history.  

The estimated retail value of the cigarettes seized is about $11 million.

The investigation began on suspicion of an alleged drug and contraband network in August 2023 and spanned across multiple jurisdictions. 

The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, responsible for tackling gang-related crimes in the province, searched seven properties between Jan. 24 and 25 in Abbotsford, Langley, Surrey and Victoria, according to a press release from the unit on Tuesday.

The investigation led to the seizure of “32 firearms, a large quantity of ammunition, body armor, 10 pallets of contraband liquor, 35 pallets of contraband tobacco, 8 vehicles, 1 speedboat, half a kilogram of cocaine, and other items consistent with suspected drug trafficking,” reads the release. 

Four suspects have been arrested and all have been released pending the judicial process. 

“Organized Crime groups support their criminal enterprise in various ways including by dealing in illicit commodities,” said Sergeant Brenda Winpenny, Media Relations Officer for CFSEU-BC. 

“This investigation resulted in the largest one-time seizure of contraband cigarettes in B.C. and speaks to CFSEU-BC’s dedication to fulfilling its mandate to disrupt and support the prosecution of those gang-involved individuals who impact public safety and seek to make profits off of illegal commodities.”

Head of External Affairs for Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. Kory McDonald praised the work of the CFSU-BC for their work on the record breaking seizure. 

“Firstly, on behalf of RBH, I applaud the work of the CFSU-BC and its partner agencies on this historic action against contraband tobacco,” said McDonald.

“Today’s seizure of cocaine, guns, ammunition, eight vehicles, drug paraphernalia and a speedboat is yet more evidence that contraband tobacco is not a victimless crime. Organized crime directly benefits from contraband with profits helping fund gun, drug and human trafficking. Criminals are not checking ID when selling contraband tobacco, making it more likely tobacco will fall in the hands of kids and youth.”

It’s estimated that the province of B.C. alone has lost as much as $591 million in tax revenue between 2019 and 2022 due to contraband tobacco sales, according to a report from Ernst and Young and the Convenience Industry Council of Canada. 

“Our government is taking action to fight gangs, organized crime, and the criminals who are making and trafficking deadly drugs and firearms,” B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth told CTV News. 

“This significant seizure, which includes drug manufacturing equipment, a speedboat, stolen vehicles, and assault rifles, is a result of multiple police agencies and the Province coordinating their efforts.”

The issue of contraband tobacco was also raised during Ontario’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs last month, where it’s estimated that anywhere between 39% to 50% of all cigarettes smoked in the province are contraband.

The CICC published a report last September that revealed sales of legal tobacco have been on a downward trend since 2019 in tandem with the skyrocketing illegal tobacco market. 

This influx is costing the federal government billions in lost taxes every year.

“Illicit cigarettes are a threat to both public finances and community safety. Industry, retailers, the federal and provincial governments across the country need to work together to reduce the demand for contraband tobacco and increase enforcement efforts. Only then will we be able to reduce organized crime and keep our communities safe,” said McDonald. 

OP-ED: Horrific murder of five people in Manitoba sadly not unexpected

By
Hymie Rubenstein
-

A 29-year-old man accused of killing his common-law wife, their three young children and a female relative in a crime spree on Sunday was charged the next day with five counts of first-degree murder, according to Manitoba RCMP.

All five victims and the accused lived together in the community of Carman, 75 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg. Four of the bodies were all found in various locations in southern Manitoba on Sunday.

Ryan Howard Manoakeesick is in custody after being charged with the first-degree murders of his spouse Amanda Clearwater, 30; Bethany Clearwater, 6; Jayven Clearwater, 4; Isabella Clearwater, 2 ½ months; and Amanda’s 17-year-old niece, Myah Gratton.

This one of the biggest homicide cases in Manitoba in more than a decade.

The victims and suspect are all Indigenous, as confirmed by the RCMP and the Garden Hill Indian Reserve.

It is not known why this family was living so far from Garden Hill, a reserve 610 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.

Though the RCMP did not provide a motive for the homicides at a Feb. 12 news conference, Manoakeesick, who had been in foster care since the age of eight, has a history of addiction and mental health issues.

Court records show Manoakeesick has a limited criminal record, with one conviction in 2019 for mischief to property for which he received a conditional discharge and 18 months supervised probation.

He was under the influence of methamphetamine and “confused and delirious” when he entered a garage in downtown Winnipeg in July 2019, accidentally locking himself inside and causing damage.

Manoakeesick was taken to hospital in a state of psychosis and released later that day. That evening, he was at an inner-city Tim Hortons restaurant when he threw a glass mug at an electronic display, shattering it. Fearing for their safety, staff locked themselves in a back room and called 911.

His lawyer blamed mental health issues causing anxiety and depression.

The judge ordered that Manoakeesick undergo addictions and mental-health assessments while on probation.

“At the end of the day, if you don’t do something, it is going to cost you your family,” the judge said.

And so, it did.

Cathy Merrick, the top indigenous leader in Manitoba as grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, said, “It’s not our way as a people, it’s not our way in our culture and our language… violence is something that we have learned as a people,” she told the news conference.

Where this was learned from will soon be bandied about by the usual activist suspects who will use settler colonialism, cultural genocide, racism, the residential schools, and the foster care system as the main villains for Manoakeesick’s vile actions.

Since Manoakeesick has never been incarcerated, the criminal justice system will be exempt from explicit blame.

Contrary to the prevailing activist narrative, why people impulsively commit murder is poorly understood by scientists, but it is likely related to a neurological inability to control feelings of anger as they interact with those around them, especially under the influence of alcohol or drugs. For mass murderers, the trigger sometimes arises from years of personal disappointment and failure that results in a combination of profound hopelessness and deep-seated resentment.

Manoakeesick was charged in 2021 with two counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm after a vehicle he was allegedly operating collided with a passenger van east of Carman.

Manoakeesick was arrested and released on a summons to appear in court. His case was set for trial last August, but after his lawyer reported in April they had lost contact with him. A warrant was issued for Manoakeesick’s arrest.

He was taken into custody July 14 and released on bail four days later despite opposition from the Crown, who argued detention was necessary to “ensure he attends future court dates.”

Manoakeesick’s lawyer said he was on long-term disability due to his “mental health struggles.”

“I am being told he is doing much better,” the lawyer told the court, which released Manoakeesick on bail with the requirement he live at the rented Carman home he shared with his common-law wife.

Manoakeesick is now accused of attacking his own family. This serves as a sad reminder that a preponderance of the violence suffered by Indigenous people in Canada, particularly by women, comes by the hand of other Indigenous people. A criminal justice system that is deliberately lenient towards Indigenous offenders puts Indigenous communities at greater risk.

Refusing to incarcerate Manoakeesick using racist Gladue sentencing principles restricted to Indigenous people, despite evidence suggesting he would never show up for trial, is not improving conditions for Indigenous people. In fact, it is increasing the quantum of Indigenous suffering. If Manoakeesick were still in jail, he would not have been able to murder these five precious people.

What caused these murders wasn’t generations of trauma based on colonialism, cultural genocide, racism, the residential schools, and the foster care system. It was a criminal justice system that puts Indigenous people at risk by failing to appropriately sentence indigenous criminals or releasing them too soon.

Hymie Rubenstein, a retired professor of anthropology, the University of Manitoba is editor of REAL Israel & Palestine Report and REAL Indigenous Report

Ratio’d | Justin Trudeau SUED for freezing bank accounts during Freedom Convoy!

By
Harrison Faulkner
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To mark the two-year anniversary of the invocation of the Emergencies Act, Freedom Convoy organizers and protesters who had their bank accounts unlawfully frozen by the government have served Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland with lawsuits. Tamara Lich and other Convoy organizers are seeking $2 million in damages each from the government after a judge ruled Trudeau’s emergency measures in 2022 to be unconstitutional.

In addition, another lawsuit on behalf of several other protesters who had their accounts frozen was served against Trudeau, Freeland, other cabinet ministers and the RCMP on the same day.

Violating the constitution, it turns out, comes with consequences.

Watch the latest episode of Ratio’d with Harrison Faulkner.

Gov data shows zero net reduction in emissions from fertilizer target by 2030

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

The Liberal government’s fertilizer emission reduction target will lead to zero net change in emissions by the year 2030.

Environment Canada’s recently published “Greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions projections – 2023“ report has raised eyebrows regarding the effectiveness of certain federal government climate policies, particularly in the agricultural sector.

Despite the implementation of the federal government’s goal to reduce fertilizer emissions, Ottawa’s projections suggest that there will be no net reduction in emissions by the goal year.

The key focus lies on the “Additional Measures Scenario,” which encompasses the Liberal government’s ambitious target to slash fertilizer emissions by 30% below 2020 levels by the end of this decade.

A deeper dive into the data reveals an inconvenient reality for the federal Liberals: the projected emissions for 2030 under this scenario remain stagnant at 48 million metric tons of CO2, the same level historically recorded in 2020.

This prompted inquiries from True North to Environment Canada seeking clarification on the apparent lack of progress despite the government touting the so-called effectiveness of agriculture emission reduction targets.

Samuel Lafontaine, a spokesperson for Environment Canada, defended the projections, asserting that while the absolute emissions remain the same, he insisted there was a four million metric tonne reduction in carbon dioxide when compared to an alternative scenario.

“In the Emissions Projections Report EPR emissions reductions of policies and measures are estimated as a difference in projected emissions in a specific year (e.g. 2030) between a ‘business as usual’ scenario where the program is not implemented versus a scenario where the program exists, rather than a difference in sector’s emissions in a projected year versus sector’s current emissions,” said LaFontaine. 

“Thus, the estimated emissions reduction impacts referred to in the ERP for the Agriculture sector are simply the difference between projected 2030 emissions in the Reference Case and Additional Measures Case.”

Essentially the federal government is attributing a four-metric-ton reduction in emissions to the difference between two of its contrived models and not the historical 2020 emissions – on which the fertilizer target is based. 

“These 4 Mt of reductions are collectively attributable to the Agricultural Clean Tech Program and methane emissions reductions from the On Farm Climate Action Fund that were modelled, as well as the fertilizer emissions reductions,” explained LaFontaine.

When True North attempted to request further clarification on why the data showed a 0% reduction in emissions by the year 2030 under the scenario which includes the fertilizer target, Environment Canada did not respond further. 

Environment Canada’s latest data seems to confirm what some experts have been telling the federal government all along: that the fertilizer emission reduction target was an unnecessary burden on farmers that would have virtually no benefit for the climate.

Agrologist and CEO of AgvisorPRO told the House of Commons Environment Committee in Oct. 2022 that a 30% reduction in agricultural emissions, if achieved, would amount to a reduction of only about 0.0028% of 1% to global greenhouse gases. 

“It’s recognized that Canada produces about 1.6% of the global emissions. Agriculture is about 10% of Canada’s emissions, and fertilizer is 17% of agriculture’s emissions or 1.75% of Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions,” explained Saik. 

“So, if we reduced our emissions by 30% in Canada from all fertilizer sources, it would amount to 0.0028%.”

Farmers groups have even gone so far as to warn that the fertilizer emissions plan would have a devastating effect on economic viability. 

In November 2023, the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities estimated that Western Canadian farmers could lose out on $841 million in revenues should the target be met. 

Alberta slams Ottawa’s “act of desperation” to rebrand carbon tax

By
Isaac Lamoureux
-

Alberta government calls on Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault “to end his relentless pursuit of a more expensive Canada.”

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz issued a joint statement rejecting the rebranded federal carbon tax.

“The federal government, in its flawed environmental activism, imposed a punitive carbon tax that did not reduce emissions, but instead, raised the cost of everything,” said the province. 

Previously known as the Climate Action Incentive Program, the Liberals have renamed the carbon tax the Canada Carbon Rebate. The announcement of the rebate program’s new name initially came from a Finance Canada press release, which highlighted the reimbursement amounts for Canadians this year. 

Several ministers subsequently confirmed the announcement in Ottawa on Wednesday.

The rebranding of the carbon tax changes only the name, not how the federal fuel charge system or corresponding refund works.

“The name was updated to the Canada Carbon Rebate to clarify its function, and make its meaning and relationship to the carbon pricing system more intuitive for Canadians,” reads the federal government’s press release.

Smith said that a rebrand would not save the federal government from its dwindling poll numbers when she posted her full statement to X.

“In an act of desperation, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have the audacity to try and ‘rebrand’ the carbon tax — a cynical and desperate ploy that will fail,” said Smith.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation joined the Alberta government in criticizing the federal government for rebranding its carbon tax rebate instead of providing relief by scrapping the tax altogether.

“Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s carbon tax rebrand is just lipstick on a pig,” said CTF’s Federal Director Franco Terrazzano in a press release on Valentine’s Day. 

Terrazzano said that Trudeau’s solution to Canadians realizing that the carbon tax is making their lives more expensive is to rebrand his carbon tax rebates.

“There’s not enough lipstick on planet Earth to cover up the pig that is Trudeau’s carbon tax,” said Terrazzano. 

Smith echoed Terrazzano’s points of Canadians not being fooled by this rebrand.

“Canadians will see it for what it is: a tax on the fuel they use to drive their kids to school, a tax on the food they buy, a tax on the businesses that they run, a tax on everything,” she said. 

On Thursday, Smith posted a poll on X, asking respondents what they thought the NDP-Liberal government should rename its carbon tax. The four options were: The No More Roads Tax, Guilbeault Super Fee, Carbon Tax Deux, and Ottawa Poverty Surcharge.

As of Thursday Afternoon, Ottawa Poverty Surcharge was in the lead with 47.4% of votes, followed by Guilbeault Super Fee at 32.8%, The No More Roads Tax at 11.7%, and lastly, Carbon Tax Deux at 8.1%. 

Guilbeault replied to Smith’s poll, though it’s not clear whether he voted in it.

“How about the ‘Alberta family gets $1800 a year’ payment?” he said.

As of Thursday, Guilbeault was getting ratioed on his post, with 870 comments to 313 likes. 

Many of the comments suggested that Guilbeault should double-check his math, or read the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s report.

The federal government claims that the rebate will cause eight out of ten families to receive more money back than they pay, with lower-income households benefiting the most.

The carbon tax will cost the average family in Alberta up to $710 this year after rebates, according to the Parliamentary Budget Officer. This cost is set to balloon to $2,773 by 2030-31. 

The federal government will increase the carbon tax again on April 1. Following the increase, the carbon tax will cost 17 cents per litre of gasoline, 21 cents per litre of diesel, and 15 cents per cubic metre of natural gas. 

CTF’s Alberta director, Kris Sims, described the carbon tax as a tax on everything. 

“If you tax diesel, you’re taxing pretty much everything because everything we eat and use is brought to us on a truck, and the truck uses diesel,” she said. “So if you’re taxing that stuff, you’re making that stuff more expensive for everybody. And that hurts the poor most obviously, because they have less money to spend.”

Alberta said it is confident it will achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 without a consumer carbon tax and continues to call on Guilbeault to end his relentless pursuit of a more expensive Canada and work with the province instead.

Critics call carbon tax rebrand ‘lipstick on a pig’

By
Quinn Patrick
-

The carbon tax rebate is getting a makeover from the federal government, who are now calling it the “Canada Carbon Rebate,” it had been previously known as the Climate Action Incentive Payment. Regardless of what it’s called, the price tag is still going up. 

The Trudeau government announced the change on Wednesday via a Finance Canada press release. However, the change in name doesn’t come with any changes to how the federal carbon pricing scheme actually works, nor the size of its rebates. 

“The name was updated to the Canada Carbon Rebate to clarify its function, and make its meaning and relationship to the carbon pricing system more intuitive for Canadians,” reads the release.

The Trudeau government felt that the previous language surrounding the policy may be too “complex” for some Canadians to understand.

“If we can speak the language that people speak because people say the words ‘carbon,’ they say the words, ‘rebate,’ right? And if we can speak that language that’s important, so people understand what’s going on here,” said Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan. 

However, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation Franco Terrazano equated the rebrand to putting “lipstick on a pig.”

“Trudeau’s real problem isn’t that Canadians don’t know what his government is doing, Trudeau’s real problem is that Canadians know his carbon tax is making life more expensive,” said Terrazzano in a statement. 

The carbon pricing program first took effect in 2019 and added a tax on greenhouse gas emissions, making it more expensive for Canadians to commute, aiming to have them drive less.

The pricing scheme allows for direct deposit rebates every three months. 

Beginning in April, a family of four will receive “Canada Carbon Rebates” in varying amounts, depending on the province they reside in. The provincial rebate breakdown is as follows: 

  •  $1,800 in Alberta ($450 quarterly);
  •  $1,200 in Manitoba ($300 quarterly);
  •  $1,120 in Ontario ($280 quarterly);
  •  $1,504 in Saskatchewan ($376 quarterly);
  •  $760 in New Brunswick ($190 quarterly);
  •  $824 in Nova Scotia ($206 quarterly);
  •  $880 in Prince Edward Island ($220 quarterly); and,
  •  $1,192 in Newfoundland and Labrador ($298 quarterly).

Several premiers have either asked for an exemption from the carbon tax or in some cases, outright opposed collecting it, like Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe.

The carbon tax has been increased numerous times since its implementation and is scheduled to increase again on April 1, 2024 by 17 cents per litre. 

Minister of Environment Steven Guilbeault said that his government is working with financial institutions to “make sure that it’s labelled properly so that people actually know what it is,” according to CTV News.

Poilievre voices support for Freedom Convoy lawsuit against Trudeau

By
Quinn Patrick
-

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said that he hopes courts will uphold the Charter of Rights and Freedoms regarding Canadians who had their constitutional rights violated for participating in the Freedom Convoy protest in 2022.

The almost three-week protest was in response to the federal government’s Covid-19 mandates and travel restrictions. 

Last month, the Federal Court ruled that the Emergencies Act measures invoked by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau were unconstitutional and unreasonable, based on a judicial review launched by the Canadian Constitution Foundation.

The ruling prompted several of the demonstration’s organizers including Tamara Lich, Chris Barber, Tom Marrazzo and Danny Bulford to sue the Trudeau government for damages.

“Sec. 24 of our Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives Canadians the right to sue their government for damages when Charter rights are violated. Doing so affirms the seriousness of respecting  Charter rights and is intended to deter future governments from breaching Canadians’ fundamental rights. The lawsuits seek $2 million in damages,” wrote lawyer Keith Wilson on X, who is representing the organizers in the case.

Poilievre held a press conference in Pointe-Claire, Que. Thursday to address Canada’s housing crisis.

Once the floor was open to questions from reporters, True North asked Poilievre what recourse Canadians should have going forward, if they had their rights violated by the government.  

“Well the courts should decide that and I hope the Charter of Rights (and Freedoms) is upheld,” responded Poilievre.

“Justin Trudeau divided the country. He provoked the crisis. He’s now been found to have violated the constitution. He did it without any scientific evidence. It was another example of how Justin Trudeau only has two principles; one is that the government should control everybody and two that he should control the government,” added Poilievre.

“The only way he keeps this control in light of the misery that he has unleashed, doubling housing costs, quadrupling carbon taxes, is by cracking down on the population and dividing people against each other.” 

The opposition leader went on to say that his administration would take the opposite approach if elected. 

“I will do the exact opposite. I will empower the people from the bottom up. I will unite for freedom, rather than divide and conquer,” said Poilievre.  

CSIS admits to monitoring parental rights activists, compares them to neo-Nazis

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

Canada’s top intelligence agency admitted it is closely monitoring the activities of activists and groups associated with the parent’s rights movement, particularly those opposing radical gender ideology.

Recent reports from CBC shed light on a document from the Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre, responsible for preventing terrorist activities in Canada.

The report lumped together the “Freedom Movement” with extremist groups like neo-Nazis and QAnon. 

“Anti-2SLGBTQl+ narratives remain a common theme in violent rhetoric espoused by white nationalists, neo-Nazis, the Freedom Movement, and networks such as Diagolon and QAnon,” the report reads. 

Despite the focus on monitoring such rhetoric, there was no mention in the report by CSIS regarding the violence often faced by those protesting against gender ideology. 

Instances of physical attacks and intimidation against parent’s rights protesters have been documented, including an incident involving teenage activist Josh Alexander in Calgary. 

A video circulating on social media at the time showed Alexander being surrounded and assaulted by a group of LGBTQ activists, leading to his arrest by Calgary Police Services. According to Alexander, he was told that charges were pressed against his assailants. 

Similarly, the Vancouver Police Department is investigating alleged assaults during a trans-visibility rally where Canadian parental rights activist Chris Elston, who is more commonly known as Billboard Chris, was violently confronted by a trans activist. 

In response to the CBC, CSIS spokesperson Eric Balsam emphasized the agency’s assessment of the ongoing violent threat posed by the anti-gender movement. 

Last year, a 24-year-old international student, Geovanny Villalba-Aleman, allegedly stabbed three people in a gender studies class at the University of Waterloo. 

Villalba-Aleman faces multiple charges, including aggravated assault and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.

Balsam expressed concern that such incidents could inspire further violence against the 2SLGBTQI+ community or those associated with what some perceive as promoting a “gender ideology agenda.”

Poilievre asks RCMP to expand probe into ArriveCan following Auditor General’s report

By
Isaac Lamoureux
-
Source: True North

In light of the Auditor General’s findings, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is urging the RCMP to expand its existing criminal investigation into the ArriveCan application. 

Poilievre sent a letter to RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme, highlighting egregious mishandling and potential corruption in the app’s development, which ballooned from a budget of $80,000 to nearly $60 million — 750 times over budget.

Poilievre’s letter comes two days after Auditor General Karen Hogan released a report showing that the ArriveCan app cost Canadian taxpayers an estimated $59.5 million. Hogan also stated that the final bill could be much higher, due to the government’s poor record-keeping.

“In this audit, we found disappointing failures and omissions everywhere we looked,” said Hogan. “I believe that this audit of ArriveCan shows a glaring disregard for basic management practices.”

A previous investigation by the Procurement Ombudsman showed that 76% of subcontractors that were part of the winning bid did no work on the contract. Poilievre added that there were also violations of the CBSA code of conduct, including failure to disclose whiskey tastings and dinners paid for by lobbyists and private interests.

“The application also didn’t work, as 10,000 Canadians were mistakenly forced into quarantine. This is completely unacceptable and reeks of corruption at the highest levels,” said Poilievre. 

Poilievre questioned how a company that had never before received contracts from the federal government started to receive an avalanche of contracts just three weeks after the Liberals took office.

“It’s obviously an unacceptable situation, which is why the relevant authorities are fully investigating exactly what went on here, particularly highlighted by the Auditor General’s recent report,” replied Trudeau. “The relevant authorities need to follow up on this and get to the bottom of exactly how this unacceptable situation happened.”

Hogan said that she met with the RCMP prior to publishing her report and talked to them in general about her findings. 

“[I] said to them, once it was made public, if they would like to have access to our file to see our evidence that they should send me a production order,” said Hogan.

An RCMP spokesperson confirmed that they had received Poilievre’s request, according to Global News.

“The RCMP is assessing the available information, including the Auditor General’s performance audit report and will take appropriate action,” said Sgt. Kim Chamberland. 

Originally designed to curb the spread of COVID-19, the ArriveCan app mandated travellers to submit personal and vaccination details before entering Canada.

Of all the contractors that worked on ArriveCan, GC Strategies had the biggest price tag at $19.1 million. 

GC Strategies has won approximately 140 federal government contracts totalling $258 million since Trudeau took office in 2015.

The company has four employees and operates out of a suburban basement. 

Public Services and Procurement Canada has suspended all contracts with GC Strategies at the Canada Border Service Agency’s request. The contracts awarded to this company are under review by the department. 

Certain employees and contractors have had their cases referred to the RCMP, according to the National Post.

A press release issued by the Conservative Party said that the ArriveCan scandal is just the tip of the iceberg.

“In 2022, third-party consultants like GC Strategies, were awarded $17.7 billion in contracts, while ordinary Canadians are struggling to pay for groceries or heat their homes.” 

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