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Monday, July 14, 2025

$106 million for Trudeau government bungling of COVID protective gear

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

The Public Health Agency of Canada’s (PHAC) bungling of personal protective equipment supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic has cost taxpayers over $106 million. 

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, PHAC reported the loss in an Inquiry of Ministry response tabled recently in the House of Commons. 

“Despite the Agency’s best efforts in ensuring value for money and minimizing risks associated with purchasing such a large amount of goods, some vendors did not provide deliverables,” PHAC officials wrote. 

“The Agency is reporting a loss of $105 million due to advanced payments made to suppliers for orders that will not be fulfilled. These cases relate to goods purchased as part of the Agency’s Covid-19 response.”

Another $1.2 million of supplies was written off as losses after being stolen, although PHAC did not elaborate on the circumstances of the theft. 

At the onset of the pandemic, Global Affairs Canada sent 16 tonnes of personal protective equipment (PPE) to China. 

“To support China’s ongoing response to the outbreak, Canada has deployed approximately 16 tonnes of personal protective equipment, such as clothing, face shields, masks, goggles and gloves to the country since February 4, 2020,” wrote the department at the time. 

Following the shipment, Canada was forced to buy PPE at an inflated price and to rely on subpar donations from China and elsewhere. 

PHAC has also been blasted for mishandling Canada’s emergency stockpile prior to the breakout of COVID-19. According to reports, the Trudeau government tossed millions of N95 masks and other protective gear into the trash. 

A total of 8,839,942 masks, gowns and other PPE were disposed of one year before the pandemic. 

“I would say the national emergency stockpile is probably the largest failure as far as our response goes to date,” said Executive Director of the Public Health Association Ian Culbert in 2020. 

PHAC also shut down several warehouses that contained emergency materials. To date, nobody has been fired or reprimanded for the stockpile debacle. 

The $106 million cost is just the latest in a series of government mismanagements over PPE. Until recently, Parliament had continued to dole out Chinese-made masks despite giving hundreds of millions of dollars to local suppliers.

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) has entered into long-term contracts with two corporations to make masks, awarding a five-year, $250 million contract to American industrial goods company 3M to produce N95 masks while Montreal-based mask-manufacturing company Medicom received a 10-year, $382 million contract to make N95 and surgical masks. 

3M and Medicom also received financial support from the Canadian government to expand their facilities. 3M collected $23.3 million meant to upgrade a plant in Brockville, Ontario. Medicom obtained a subsidy of $29 million.

Trucker shortage to triple by next year: National Cattle Feeders’ Association

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

A trucker shortage worsened by the Trudeau government’s cross-border vaccine mandate is expected to triple by next year, and an interprovincial mandate “would be just catastrophic,” a livestock industry leader has warned.

Chair of the National Cattle Feeders’ Association James Bekkering told parliamentarians during a Mar. 24 Commons agriculture committee meeting that farmers were wondering whether they would be able to feed their livestock as a result of transportation bottlenecks. 

“Agricultural supply chains are under tremendous pressure and are negatively impacting national food security. In the beef industry, much of the current stress stems from two challenges: securing critical farm inputs, especially feed, and keeping cattle and beef products moving smoothly through the supply chain,” said Bekkering. “Transportation bottlenecks are magnified by a severe trucker shortage, which is expected to triple by 2023.” 

When asked by Conservative MP John Barlow whether the Trudeau government’s international trucking mandate has had an impact on the agricultural supply chain, Bekkering confirmed that the mandates caused the amount of truckers available to dwindle even further.

“You talked about the blockades,” said Barlow, “but I would assume that the trucking mandates have also had an impact on your ability to move grain and cattle. Now there’s some potential for an interprovincial trucking mandate. What kind of an impact has the international trucking mandate had on your industry, and what implications could an interprovincial mandate have on the cattle feeders and the cattle industry?” 

“The international mandate has definitely had an effect,” said Bekkering. “It has taken another portion of the workforce out of what is already an industry with a short supply of truckers. I can’t even imagine what an interprovincial mandate would do. So much cattle flows between provinces. To my mind, that would just be catastrophic.” 

Bekkering went on to say a border open to the free flow of goods between the two countries was critical and that grain was being prevented from coming into Canada by truck. 

Farmers and ranchers also faced increased uncertainty due to the recent threat of a CP Rail strike. Fortunately, CP Rail and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference were able to reach a deal to end a brief work stoppage that threatened to upend supply chains nationally. 

Last month, the Liberals indicated that they would scrap a proposal to require transport truck drivers to show proof of vaccination when crossing into other provinces. Liberal labour minister Seamus O’Regan dismissed the idea but said that things could change depending on public health advice. 

The Dec. 7 decision to require COVID-19 vaccination for truck drivers led to the ongoing Freedom Convoy protests calling for an end to all pandemic related restrictions across Canada. 

Ontario braces for the “sixth wave”! (Ft. Sue-Ann Levy)

By
Candice Malcolm
-

The Covid-hypochondriacs are pushing more fear and compliance in the face of a supposed “sixth wave” of Covid. Will we ever let it go? Or are we doomed to repeat the same dreadful Covid policy mistakes that we’ve been making for the past two years? 

On today’s episode of the Candice Malcolm Show, Candice is joined by True North investigative reporter and columnist Sue-Ann Levy. 

They talk about the fear-mongering, the failed policies, the arrogance from policy makers and the difference in policies between Florida (where Sue Ann is now) and Ontario. 

They also talk about out-of-touch politicians like Toronto Mayor John Tory (who Sue-Ann spotted in Palm Beach) and where there is such a backlash against them.

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Pierre Poilievre cross-Canada leadership rallies “off the charts”

By
Harrison Faulkner
-

Conservative leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre is crossing the country, and his campaign rallies have been drawing huge crowds.

Around 1000 people attended a rally in Lindsay Ont. on Sunday to hear Poilievre speak, filling the venue to capacity.

Joining Poilievre was Conservative MP for Peterborough Kawartha Michelle Ferreri, who announced she was endorsing Poilievre for the party’s leadership.

Poilievre has travelled across Canada in recent weeks, meeting with Conservative Party members and other supporters. His events have attracted large numbers of attendees – a rare sight for leadership events in Canada.

Global News correspondent David Akin took notice of the crowd’s size on Sunday and wondered how Poilievre’s political opponents would respond.

“I’ve been covering leadership races, provincial and federal elections for nearly 20 years. The crowds Pierre Poilievre is attracting to his rallies — they’re off the charts, folks,” Akin tweeted.

“Do his opponents in (the Conservative leadership race), let alone his (Liberal and NDP) opponents have an answer to this?”

The sizes of the gatherings even prompted one former Liberal MP to accuse Poilievre’s campaign of photoshopping attendees to make the rallies look bigger than they were.

Ballots for the leadership race will be sent to Conservative Party members in the summer, and a new leader will be announced on Sept. 10. 

Other candidates include Brampton mayor Patrick Brown, Conservative MP Leslyn Lewis, Ontario Independent MPP Roman Baber and former Quebec Liberal premier Jean.

Poilievre has made several major policy announcements since declaring his bid to become Conservative leader. These include a plan to scrap the federal carbon tax and another to ban overseas foreign oil imports within five years of being elected Prime Minister of Canada. 

On Saturday, the Carleton MP announced he would also “unlock the potential of Canada’s Arctic Ports and get Canadian oil moving through the Port of Churchill in Manitoba.” 

In addition, he has committed to repealing Bills C-48 and C-69, which critics argue have stifled Canada’s energy sector. 

Poilievre has also committed to defunding Canada’s state broadcaster, the CBC. 

Fake news about pipeline protest nominated for journalism “excellence award”

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

The Canadian Journalism Foundation (CJF) has nominated a report full of misleading claims about a pipeline protest for a journalism “excellence award.” 

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the CJF would not answer questions about misinformation in Narwhal journalist Amber Bracken’s report.

In November, Bracken and others documented an RCMP raid in northern British Columbia while holed up in a cabin with anti-pipeline protesters. Bracken was detained by police, and her ensuing report – which a federal memo found had one-sided and omitted key information – led to the arrest being labeled as unlawful by journalists including the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ).

“Police put me in handcuffs when I should have been doing my job,” wrote Bracken. “I felt kidnapped. Having never been arrested before, it is the best word I can think of to describe being taken so abruptly out of my life and work in violation of Canadian Charter rights protecting freedom of the press.”

“No one in Canada should tolerate police efforts to intimidate journalists or limit news coverage. My arrest actually makes me a big part of a national reckoning with press freedoms,” she added.

If one were to believe Bracken’s account, the RCMP forcefully moved in to arrest protestors and journalists inappropriately. However, according to the national police force and the Department of Public Safety, the RCMP were legally enforcing a court order, and journalists present did not identify themselves until police had already forced their way into the building. 

“On November 25 a journalist released a video showing the arrests. However the video does not show what occurred preceding RCMP members’ breach of the structures,” the department stated in a memo. 

“RCMP officers read the injunction at each structure and made several calls over the course of more than an hour for occupants to exit the structure. The only response from inside the structures were derogatory in nature and refusals. It was not until RCMP officers entered the structures and arrested the individuals that they identified themselves as journalists.”

The official account is contrary to Bracken’s claim that the RCMP “cut all communications” and arrived “all at once.” 

When confronted with the opposing account, the CJF stated that it stood by its decision. 

 “Bracken has considerable experience covering protests and demonstrations at natural resources project sites,” said CJF president Natalie Turvey. “The awards committee has confidence in the quality of her journalism.”

The excellence award is meant to recognize news outlets that embrace “accuracy” and “accountability” among other things. 

Similarly the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) has refused to retract a statement that called the arrests “illegal,” “an absolute disgrace” and an “audacious subversion of Canadian law” that was “outside the norms of a democracy.”

Northwest Territories touts Indigenous operated natural gas, critical mineral projects

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

While Canadian companies struggle to attract investment in the critical minerals industry due to government regulations, the Northwest Territories are making headway through Indigenous involvement in Canada’s first rare earth minerals mine.

Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment Caroline Wawzonek highlighted the Nechalacho rare earth mining development and the Inuvialuit Energy Security Project natural gas well at the 21st annual Arctic Energy & Resource Symposium in Calgary this week. 

“On the mineral resource side, the federal government has identified 31 minerals that it believes will position Canada as a leading supplier of critical minerals.  Many of these minerals are present in the NWT,” said Wawzonek. 

“The successful debut of the Nechelacho mine sets the stage for work on the larger multigenerational Tardiff deposit planned for 2024… It sends a signal that Canada is indeed a serious player in the international drive toward a sustainable, reliable, responsibly mined source of critical rare earth elements independent of China and also of Russia.” 

The one-of-a-kind mine is currently operating. Last summer, it had already mined 5,000 tonnes of rare earths, which were then shipped to Saskatchewan for processing. 

“The project features an agreement with Det’on Cho Nahanni Construction Corporation, owned by the Yellowknives Dene First Nation to provide mining services. It is the first project in the country in which an Indigenous group has been contracted to extract minerals in its own territory,” said Wawzonek. “Seventy per cent of the Nechalacho workforce last summer was Indigenous, and 85 per cent were NWT residents.”

As reported by True North, leaders in Canada’ critical mineral industry have blasted the Liberal government for “changing goal posts” when it comes to emission standards that are standing in the way of making the country a leader in the development of green technology. 

Earlier this week the federal government revealed its 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan which called for a 42% emission cut in the oil and gas sector by 2030. Critics have called the goal unachievable and a fantasy. 

Wawzonek also spoke about the Inuvialuit natural gas project currently being implemented by the Inuvialuit Petroleum Corporation. 

“The project is set to tap the M-18 natural gas well that exists in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region near the Arctic coast; and to build a plant that will convert the gas into Liquefied Natural Gas, or LNG, and synthetic diesel for distribution by road to homes and businesses in Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk,” explained Wawzonek. 

Opposition warns against “bankrupting” $85 billion guaranteed income plan

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

A Conservative MP is blasting a basic income plan making its way through the Senate, saying it’s a disaster in the making for the Canadian economy. 

If passed, Bill S-233 – otherwise known as “An Act to develop a national framework for a guaranteed livable basic income” – would task the Minister of Finance with creating a national framework to give a guaranteed basic liveable income to people over the age of 17, temporary workers, permanent residents and refugee claimants. 

“The framework must include measures to determine what constitutes a livable basic income for each region in Canada, taking into account the goods and services that are necessary to ensure that individuals can lead a dignified and healthy life, as well as the cost of those goods and services in accessible markets,” the law reads. 

Bill S-233 was introduced to the Senate on Dec. 16 by Trudeau-appointed senator Kim Pate and is currently on its second reading. It has yet to reach the House of Commons. 

Conservative MP for Prince George–Peace River–Northern Rockies Bob Zimmer has called the law part of the federal government’s “bankrupting economic policy.” 

“The Parliamentary Budget Officer released a report in 2021 saying that the cost of this type of program would be a staggering $85 billion in 2021-2022; this is twice as much as our federal contribution to our health care system,” wrote Zimmer in a statement. 

“With the inflation rate reaching 30-year highs, our economy under extreme pressure, and record high gas prices, we must implement policies that promote economic growth, rather than short-sighted policies that weaken the economy and only serve to increase our already substantial national debt.”

Zimmer went on to say the plan would sap people’s motivation to get a job.  

“At the end of the day, Canadians must ask themselves: Where is this money going to come from? And who will ultimately pay the price for these expensive policies? We must think of future generations of Canadians,” wrote Zimmer. 

“If our children and grandchildren are to inherit a strong and prosperous economy, which has a wide array of employment opportunities, we must stand against the bankrupting policies of the NDP-Liberal government.”

A national framework for a guaranteed livable basic income has been floated by the NDP before. A separate bill in the House of Commons completed its first reading on December 16, 2021. 

B.C. Supreme Court refuses to stop province from firing unvaxxed employees

By
Harley Sims
-
Source: Wikipedia

After deferring her decision for a week, a B.C. Supreme Court judge has refused to grant an injunction preventing the government from firing suspended public servants for not providing proof of COVID vaccination.

Justice Carol J. Ross dismissed a petition on Friday brought forward by four non-union B.C. public servants to temporarily pause their imminent terminations. The group had requested the injunction to keep from being fired before their constitutional case against the province’s vaccine mandate could be heard in May.

The decision comes not only as vaccine passports have been dropped in every other province, but also as unvaccinated public workers are being welcomed back to workplaces across Canada. The city of Victoria – where Friday’s court decision was made – also announced last week that it was lifting its vaccine mandate and inviting suspended municipal employees back to work.

The original four petitioners include Philip Davidson, Karine Bordua, Zoran Boskovic and Clinton Chevrier. At least five others have since been added.

The not-for-profit society BCPS Employees for Freedom – which says it represents 500 members including union and non-union personnel both vaccinated and unvaccinated – released a statement after the decision.

“While we are disappointed with today’s ruling, which now removes any legal impediment for the BC Public Service to terminate employees for cause and deny them severance pay and Employment Insurance, we look forward to the full constitutional case to be argued in B.C. Supreme Court the week of May 16, 2022, against this heavy-handed mandate.”

Umar Sheikh, a lawyer for the petitioners, also issued a brief statement, saying, “(w)e look forward to bringing forward this very important constitutional case and seeking full damages for our clients.”

The decision comes as B.C. government workers continue to be terminated after being forced onto unpaid leave in November for not complying with the province’s vaccination mandate. HR Policy 25 – which effectively made two COVID shots a retroactive condition of hire – was established almost a month after the vaccination requirement was announced.

The policy was put into law by the Horgan government on the evening of Nov. 19 – a Friday, and only three days before it forced workers onto unpaid leave the following Monday. The order allows noncompliant employees to be fired “with cause” – a designation traditionally reserved for the severest professional offences, offering no entitlement to severance, employment insurance and other benefits.

The mandate is expected to be in place until “public health concerns regarding COVID are reduced to a level, prescribed by government, to enable workplaces to operate without COVID-related restrictions.”

According to court documents, the petitioners say the policy fundamentally altered their contracts “without proper notice or agreement or their consent, in order to terminate them without any sort of due process or procedural fairness, for just cause.”

As one employment law firm puts it, “a termination for cause is considered the capital punishment of employment law. It should be reserved for the worst aspects of workplace misconduct – think dishonesty, insubordination, assault or theft. Just cause for dismissal is considered punishment for the worst offenders.”

B.C. continues to uphold one of the severest vaccination policies in the world for its employees, offering no testing alternatives. The last province to announce its timeline for dropping COVID restrictions, it is also the only province with a vaccine passport still in place.

The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms has also brought legal action against the province over the vaccine mandate, and will represent several healthcare workers who have already lost their jobs.

The B.C. health ministry revealed last month that it had terminated thousands of healthcare workers, even as the system continues to experience crippling staff shortages. Health Minister Adrian Dix has admitted that one week in January saw 27,937 shifts unfilled, while on Feb. 3, a newborn child died at Lions Gate Hospital after staffing issues saw a potentially life-saving procedure delayed.

Senator sorry for saying former MP lied about Chinese influence on campaign

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

A senator has apologized for accusing former MP Kenny Chiu of lying after Chiu said he was the target of a Chinese disinformation campaign during the last election. 

Chiu, formerly Conservative MP for Steveston–Richmond East, was narrowly defeated in 2021 by Liberal MP Parm Bains. 

Following his defeat, Chiu – who immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong in 1982 – claimed that his campaign had been subject to a steady online assault from potentially foreign-directed sources. 

Victor Oh had told a fellow senator earlier this week that Chiu was “lying” to them about the incident, accusing Chiu of “going bizarre” and working for “foreign Affairs.” 

“Now you are claiming that you have Chinese agent influence that sabotaged you. I said that’s not true,” said Oh on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Oh rose in the Senate and made a formal apology to Chiu. 

“I disagree with Mr. Chiu and Senator Housakos about the allegation of disinformation during the last general election but should not have said that Mr. Chiu lied,” said Oh.

According to the Globe and Mail, Chiu has accepted Oh’s apology but still maintains that the campaign was a “contributing factor” in his losing campaign. 

Macdonald Laurier Institute fellow Charles Burton confirmed that false narratives about Chiu’s views on China spread like wildfire on popular Chinese-language media and messaging platforms including WeChat. 

“It spread like a cancer over his campaign. He just saw his campaign disintegrating over the last couple of weeks,” said Burton.

Posts at the time claimed that Chiu was engaging in an effort to “suppress” Chinese Canadians. 

“It’s very much organized,” said Chiu at the time. “They have chat rooms and chat groups dedicated to unseating Kenny Chiu.”

Other researchers including McGill University academics have said that the propaganda warfare was evidence that foreign actors were trying to interfere in Canadian democracy. 

According to Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong, the disinformation potentially cost the party three seats in the 2021 election, as well as played a role in a dozen other ridings.

Although both Oh and Chiu are members of the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC), they support rival candidates for the CPC leadership. Whereas Chong declared on Mar. 5 that he was backing Pierre Poilievre, Oh endorsed Patrick Brown last week. 

Woke ideology is ruining entertainment

By
Candice Malcolm
-

It’s Fake News Friday on The Candice Malcolm Show!

This week, Candice Malcolm and True North producer Harrison Faulkner discuss Will Smith’s violent reaction at the Oscars and highlight everything wrong with the entertainment industry.

Plus, as hundreds of people attended Conservative leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre’s campaign events, a former Liberal MP came up with a bizarre conspiracy that photos of the large crowds were somehow photoshopped.

And the Parliamentary Budget Officer debunked Liberal talking points about the carbon tax rebate scheme, revealing that 8 in 10 families would experience a net loss from Trudeau’s tax grab.

Candice and Harrison discuss these stories and more. Tune in now! 

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