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Saturday, September 27, 2025

School board collecting photo ID, personal data of concerned parents

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
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A British Columbia school district has quietly changed the rules for those wishing to attend their public board meetings in person and will now require people to submit photo ID and other personally identifiable information. 

The move comes after weeks of delegations by parents concerned with the Chilliwack School District (SD33) for allegedly making sexually explicit material available for children. 

As reported by Fraser Valley Today on Wednesday, the school district confirmed that anyone wishing to attend a meeting in person will have to submit a valid photo ID, a phone number and fill out a form. 

SD33 Superintendent Rohan Arul-pragasam claimed that the requirement aligns with school board policies on publicly recorded meetings. 

“There shall be no recording of tablet screens or digital resources used at the Board of Education table, excluding public presentation materials,” cited Policy 170 states.

“While it is the Board’s intent to live stream and make available recorded Regular Public Board meeting proceedings, the Board, at its discretion, may discontinue the recording of a meeting at any time at the discretion of the Board Chair, if recording is creating any impediment to conducting the meeting in an efficient or orderly fashion.” 

At the same time, Chilliwack City Council, Cultus Lake Park Board and the Fraser Valley Regional District don’t have any such requirements for anyone attending a board meeting in person. 

This comes after several heated meetings at the board in which parents and other community members attended to raise concerns about allegedly sexually-explicit materials made available to students at schools in the district. 

Former board trustee Dr. Darrell Furgason claimed that the school had broken the law by allowing such materials and was shut down by board chair Willow Reichelt, claiming that such allegations were defamatory. 

“What legal grounds does SD33 stand on in regards to books with explicit sexual material?” asked Furgason. 

“I’ve turned off your mic, just so you know. Have a seat Dr. Ferguson,” Reichelt eventually interjected. 
A recent RCMP investigation prompted by a complaint from a parent about books that allegedly contained child pornography led to the police declaring that the material did not break the law.

China Hearings | CSIS Director David Vigneault questioned on foreign interference

By
True North Wire
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CSIS Director David Vigneault testifies in the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs to discuss continuing revelations on reports of foreign interference in Canada’s 2019 and 2021 elections.

CAMPUS WATCH: uOttawa excludes white scholars to “combat systemic racial discrimination”

By
Elie Cantin-Nantel
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The University of Ottawa is excluding white scholars from professor positions in order to “combat systemic racial discrimination.”

The Ontario university joins a growing list of post-secondary institutions taking part in controversial “Equity, Diversity and Inclusion” (EDI) practices.

A job posting for a tenure-track Assistant or Associate Public Management Professor position in the University of Ottawa School of Political Studies notes that hiring “will be done in accordance with the University’s initiatives to combat systemic racial discrimination.”

“Only qualified applications from racialized or Indigenous peoples will be considered and evaluated for the position,” the posting adds.

The university says its new hiring initiatives seek to “remedy the under-representation of racialized peoples and Indigenous peoples within the ranks of its faculty members” and “accelerate the hiring of Black, Indigenous and racialized professors in the coming years.” 

Other job postings with race-restrictive hiring criterias can be found on the University of Ottawa’s website. A past posting from fall 2022 for an Anti-Racism Education Assistant Professor position also notes it was only open to racialized and Indigenous applicants. 

Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship (SAFS) and Saint Mary’s University professor Mark Mercer previously criticized race-based hiring practices in an interview with True North, saying “EDI initiatives and EDI ideology are fundamentally anti-academic. They don’t embody academic values and they don’t serve academic goals.” 

“What we want as professors are the people who combine teaching and research to the highest degree. So by bringing in something irrelevant, such as ethnicity or race, the university is cutting itself off from potentially the best scholars,” added Mercer.

Other Canadian universities that have been taking part in race-based EDI hiring practices include Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly known as Ryerson), the University of Calgary, Dalhousie University, Laval University and Halifax’s NSCAD University – as previously reported on by True North’s Campus Watch series.

A University of Ottawa spokesperson told True North “the hiring for this position will be done in accordance with the University’s initiatives to combat systemic racial discrimination as announced by the University President in January 2021.”

Majority of Canadians believe Chinese election interference a “serious issue”

By
Noah Jarvis
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A poll conducted in late February has found that a majority of Canadians believe that Chinese interference in the 2019 and 2021 general elections is an issue to be taken seriously. 

The Angus Reid Institute poll conducted between February 23-25, found that 53% of Canadians perceive the allegations of China’s interference in Canadian elections to be a serious issue while 23% of Canadians believe that the situation is being overblown.

Along party lines, 72% of Conservative voters agreed that Chinese election interference is a serious issue, 60% of Bloc voters agree with the sentiment, and a plurality of Liberal and NDP voters agree with 43% and 39% confidence respectively. 

This poll comes after a series of reports from The Globe & Mail and Global News that revealed the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) has documented alleged interference into Canadian elections and candidate nomination races in 2019 and 2021. The reports claim that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was made aware of this intelligence, drawing scrutiny over his government’s lack of action.

By-in-large, Canadians want PM Trudeau to take a tougher stance on China, as 53% of Canadians believe that Canada hasn’t done enough and needs to take further action. Nearly 80% of Conservative voters agree with this sentiment, while 66% of Liberals believe that Trudeau has done enough. 

While a majority of Canadians believe that the federal government should stand up to China, an even larger majority of 69% believe that the Trudeau government is afraid to stand up to China, a sentiment that a plurality of Liberal voters agree with. Over 90% of Conservative voters agree, nearly 80% of Bloc voters, and 62% of NDP voters. 

However, Canadians are of split mind on the economic consequences that standing up to China may have. 46% of Canadians say they are worried about the economic consequences of challenging China, while an equal share are not concerned with the consequences. Canadians are becoming far less concerned with the economic consequences of such action, as only 37% of Canadians weren’t worried in Angus Reid’s January poll. 

The polling period was conducted as major reports on the Chinese election interference story were being revealed, as a Global News report outlining allegations against Liberal MP Han Dong was published on February 24, the second day of Angus Reid’s polling period. 

The Angus Reid poll surveyed 1622 Canadian adults. A survey with a probability sample of this size would carry a margin of error of +/- 2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The Andrew Lawton Show | Trudeau wants Big Tech to subsidize Big Media

By
Andrew Lawton
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Through Bill C-18, the Trudeau government trying to force technology companies to pay news media companies for using their content. Except news companies willingly use tech platforms to share and promote their content. In response to Bill C-18, Google is trying out ways to limit access to news content, similar to what Facebook and other companies did to protest a similar law in Australia. Former CRTC vice-chair Peter Menzies joins The Andrew Lawton Show live to discuss.

Plus, Trudeau’s national security advisor has testified that the prime minister was briefed multiple times on Chinese interference into Canadian elections, despite downplaying such briefings.

Alberta Finance minister says provincial policing service off the table

By
Rachel Parker
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Alberta Finance Minister Travis Toews says the province is looking for the most affordable way to increase safety across the province, and for now, that means a provincial policing service is off the table.

Alberta’s budget delivered on Tuesday, just four months after Danielle Smith became premier and three months before a spring election, would leave the province with a $2.4-billion surplus by March 2024.

The budget provided cash for municipalities to provide their own police service, but no money for the provincial policing service Smith said she supported during the UCP leadership race last summer.

Toews said the government is increasing spending in public safety by 13%, but the plunge to a provincial service “is off the table.”

“We’re looking for the best bang for our buck to increase safety (and) reduce crime,” he told Global News.

“It’s not been budgeted in this plan… in the meantime, we’re investing in additional enforcement officers, more boots on the ground.”

A 2021 PricewaterhouseCoopers report, commissioned by the province, said the RCMP costs Alberta about $500-million a year. Those costs would rise to $735-million annually for a provincial service, on top of $366-million in startup costs, the report found.

A provincial police service has long been debated as a means to give Alberta more autonomy. It was recommended in the provincial government’s Fair Deal Panel Report released in June 2020.

The province has begun work to ensure Alberta can transition to a provincial service in case the federal government ends RCMP contract policing or reduces subsidies when current policing agreements expire in 2032.

Ottawa contributes $170-million to the Alberta RCMP under the current agreement. Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are also studying the feasibility of a provincial service.

In his new mandate letter, Public Safety Marco Mendicino has been directed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to conduct an assessment of RCMP contract policing in consultation with provinces, territories, municipalities and Indigenous communities.

And in June 2021, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security  released a report  recommending that the federal government explore the possibility of ending contract policing and work with the provinces and municipalities to help those interested establish their own services.

Toews also said the UCP “inherited” a government with a spending problem. Alberta in 2022-23 is no longer a “spending outlier” among Canadian provinces, he said, allowing the province to spend more on healthcare.

“We’ve done the heavy lifting fiscally, which allows us to make strategic reinvestments in health (and) education.”

If passed, the $68.3 billion budget would raise expenses by $2.6 billion to $68.3 billion, marking an approximately 4% increase in spending from its forecasted expenses for the current fiscal year. New funds will result in 7,600 new government workers, mostly in health care and education.

BC’s $4.2 billion deficit budget splurges on bike lanes, free contraception

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

British Columbia’s NDP government is preparing to turn a $3.6-billion forecasted surplus into a whopping $4.2-billion deficit by spending on programs like bike lanes and free contraception. 

On Tuesday, finance minister Katrine Conroy presented the Budget and Fiscal Plan 2023/24-2025/26. 

Contained within are a series of hefty commitments including a $4.2 billion renters rebate in the form of a $400 tax credit, a $2.3 billion healthcare top up and $867 million in funding on addictions and mental health treatment.

“We know there are some economic headwinds ahead of us as the global economy shifts in
response to the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and rising costs,” said Conroy in a press release.

“That’s not a signal for our government to pull back and cut services – it’s a signal that we need to keep making smart investments so that we can continue to be there for British Columbians and build the stronger, more secure future we all want.”

The BC government will also make contraception free throughout the province which will cost taxpayers $39 million beginning in 2023. The program will cover oral contraception, injections, intrauterine devices and Plan B. 

Also $100 million will go towards “active transportation” initiatives like new bike lanes, multi-use paths and cleaner modes of transportation. 

Other investments include a $9 million fund to establish the province’s fledgling Anti-racism Data Act, which was first introduced last year. 

“These steps further B.C.’s progress toward dismantling systemic racism and discrimination in British Columbia,” read the budget. 

BC director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) Carson Binda said that it’s unfair that taxpayers will be expected to pay for the government’s pet projects for years to come. 

“People who are struggling to afford groceries need tax relief, not a government spending money it doesn’t have on bike lanes,” Binda told True North. “The government should prioritize making life more affordable. But the government is making life more expensive with carbon tax hikes.”

“Eby is spending more money on everything forever, not actually picking or choosing what to prioritize. And that’s dragging taxpayers into more debt. A good magician can make a person vanish, but Eby is making a $3.6-billion surplus vanish,” he continued. 

BC’s budget came out on the same day as Alberta’s which earned praise from fiscal conservative groups.

China Hearings | National Security Advisor Jody Thomas questioned on foreign interference

By
True North Wire
-

Jody Thomas the National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister is testifying in front of the Committee on Procedure and House Affairs to discuss reports of foreign election interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.

Taxpayers federation praises Alberta’s pre-election budget

By
Rachel Parker
-

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation has given the stamp of approval to Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s first budget.

In Tuesday’s budget, introduced just four months after Smith became premier and three months before a spring election, the United Conservative Party government signalled it would bring back legislation requiring balanced budgets, save for exceptional circumstances.

The CTF praised the budget for focusing on paying down the debt, balanced budgets and saving for the future.

“You can’t provide for your family if you’re counting on winning the lottery every year,” said CTF Alberta Director Kris Sims.

“Committing to balanced budgets, debt repayment and saving for a rainy day shows this government is serious about not repeating the mistakes of the past.”

If passed, the $68.3 billion budget would raise expenses by $2.6 billion to $68.3 billion, marking an approximately 4% increase in spending from its forecasted expenses for the current fiscal year. New funds will result in 7,600 new government workers, mostly in health care and education.

The health budget will reach a record high of $24.5 billion, an increase of 4.1%. Smith campaigned on fixing surgical backlogs and ambulance and emergency room wait times. The budget would leave the province with a $2.4-billion surplus by March 2024, following a surplus of more than $10 billion last year.

At a news conference on Tuesday, Finance Minister Travis Toews said the province is securing the health and education of Albertans by increasing access to family doctors, surgeries and emergency services.

“And making sure our children and grandchildren have the education system they need to reach their full potential.”

The government has promised billions in affordability measures to lower Albertans’ skyrocketing utility bills, for example. Another $23-billion is pledged to infrastructure over the next three years to improve highways and hospitals.

Oil revenues continue to provide a massive windfall for the province. The UCP will lower the province’s debt by about $15 billion from 2021-22 to 2023-24, leaving total provincial debt at $75 billion.

Sims said former Alberta premier Ralph Klein committed to putting 75% of the province’s surplus towards debt in 1999.

“That rule kept his government from blowing the surplus each year and remaining committed to making Alberta debt free,” Sims said. “Following Klein’s lead is a strong showing that this government is committed to debt repayment as well.”

Greta is protesting wind turbines in Norway. Will she come to Canada next?

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

In a surprising turn in her career as a world-renowned climate advocate, Greta Thunberg has joined a protest calling for the demolition of wind turbines in Norway.

Lying at the heart of the matter is the claim that the two wind farms in question were built directly on reindeer grazing lands used by the country’s Indigenous Sámi people. 

Thunberg, who is from neighbouring Sweden, demonstrated in Oslo last week joining calls for the removal of the 151 wind turbines from the Fosen region – a homeland for Europe’s only recognized Indigenous group. 

In 2021, Norway’s Supreme Court ruled that the project violated the human rights of the Sámi. Despite this the wind farms have continued to operate over the past few years. 

Thunberg charged the Norwegian government with “colonialism” while speaking at the demonstration last Wednesday.

“We cannot use the so-called climate transition as a cover for colonialism,” said Thunberg.

“A climate transition that violates human rights is not a climate transition worthy of the name and therefore we must stand up against the human rights violations that are happening here.” 

In response, the Norwegian government has said it is investigating avenues for the wind turbines to co-exist with the Sámi’s reindeer grazing practices but activists have refused the suggestion.

Thunberg’s latest stunt raises questions about whether Canada could become her next target, considering the fact that the Swedish climate activist has endorsed Canadian climate issues in the past, including by directly challenging Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. 

First Nations have disputed the construction of wind farms in Canada before. 

In 2012, Ontario’s the Anishinabek Nation Northern Superior Chiefs charged the government with ignoring their traditional territorial claims by moving forward with a project to build 36 wind turbines near Sault Ste. Marie. 

“There was no consultation with the developer BluEarth Renewables,” said Chief Buckell of Michipicoten First Nation at the time. 

“It seems that Batchewana First Nation has made a deal with BluEarth Renewables and Batchewana claims that they consider it their area which is a least 50 Kilometres from their reserve.  They are ignoring the Robinson Huron Treaty of 1850 where the boundaries are clearly stated.  This needs to be addressed by the Federal government.”

The project was eventually completed in 2015 and currently has 36 operational wind turbines.

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