Miller named new culture minister as Carney fills gaps left by Guilbeault
By Anja Karadeglija Prime Minister Mark Carney named Montreal MP Marc Miller as the new minister of Canadian identity and culture on Monday in a small cabinet shuffle to fill holes created when Steven Guilbeault resigned from cabinet last week. Guilbeault will remain a Liberal MP but submitted his resignation on Thursday after Ottawa signed an energy pact with Alberta that paves the way for a new oil pipeline to the British Columbia coast. Miller was in former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet between 2019 and 2025 but was not included in Carney’s cabinet until now. In addition to culture and identity, he was named minister for official languages. Government Transformation Minister Joël Lightbound replaces Guilbeault as Carney’s Quebec lieutenant, while Environment and Climate Change Minister Julie Dabrusin assumes responsibility...
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Province takes control of Near North school board, sparking local backlash
By David Briggs, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, BayToday.ca The Ministry of Education assumed control of the Near North District School Board (NNDSB) earlier today, and union leader Rob Hammond has concerns, stating Minister Paul Calandra’s decision amounts to “A direct assault on our local democracy.” Hammond is president of the Near North Teachers’ Local, part of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, and he sees today’s decision as the tip of the spear, with more takeovers to come. For Hammond, the stakes are high. He predicts funding cuts to students with special needs and, eventually, the removal of all elected trustee positions. See: BREAKING: Province seizes control of troubled Near North District School Board With no trustees, local voices will be silenced, warned NNDSB trustee Ashley St. Pierre. As for...
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Search of Winnipeg landfill for woman killed by serial killer starts: Kinew
By Brittany Hobson Searchers began combing through the first truckload of material at a Winnipeg landfill on Monday morning in hopes of finding the remains of a woman killed by a convicted serial killer more than three years ago. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew confirmed that the official search of Brady Road landfill for the remains of Ashlee Shingoose began after a First Nations ceremony took place with the woman’s family. “I was there this morning to smoke the pipe with her parents, Albert and Theresa, as well as her sister…who is working on the search,” Kinew told reporters at an unrelated event later in the day. “It’s an important bond that these parents have with their child that they’re trying to bring home in a very tragic situation as a...
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Activists, politicians mark World AIDS Day calling for criminal law reform
By Dylan Robertson AIDS activists are calling on the Liberals to stick with a Trudeau government promise to reform the laws on HIV disclosure, and to get Canada’s efforts to end the pandemic back on track. The HIV Legal Network says Canada’s stalled progress on preventing new HIV cases — especially among Indigenous people in the Prairies — is driving up government spending by millions of dollars. The group is calling on Justice Minister Sean Fraser to take up the Trudeau government’s stalled plan to reform laws used to prosecute people with HIV who don’t disclose their status to sexual partners, even when it’s impossible for them to transmit the virus. To mark World AIDS Day, MPs and senators who are part of the Global Equality Caucus are asking Ottawa...
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Kugluktuk emergency food bank will serve up to 250 residents
By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News The Hamlet of Kugluktuk has opened an emergency food bank courtesy of funding from the Nunavut Food Security Coalition and Food Bank Canada, senior administrative officer Kevin Niptanatiak said. On Nov. 19, the hamlet registered 89 community members for the emergency food bank, a service which Niptanatiak said can feed a total of 250 residents. Until March of this year, the Inuit Child First Initiative fed over 550 Kugluktuk residents, he said. “The reason we wanted to open the food bank was to give help to people with food security that did not have enough to fill those gaps but also struggle to put food on the table,” Niptanatiak said. Every Wednesday from 10 a.m. to noon at the back...
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Generations of Indigenous leaders brace for a new battle over another pipeline
By Alessia Passafiume For some First Nations leaders, the prospect of conflict with provincial and federal governments over plans to send another pipeline to the B.C. coast brings back vivid memories of years past. For many First Nations youth, it’s a whole new call to action. “My ancestors — all the ancestors of every First Nations person here in what is now called British Columbia — have stories about our people having to stand on the front lines, rain or shine,” said Katisha Paul, the youth representative for the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs and co-chair for the United Nations’ Global Indigenous Youth Caucus. “It’s our responsibility to continue on this journey.” Longtime Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Grand Chief Stewart Phillip has been around for many of those acts...
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Activists mark World AIDS Day by calling for criminal reform, prevention funding
By Dylan Robertson Activists marked World AIDS Day on Monday by calling on the federal government to honour a Trudeau government promise to reform the laws on HIV disclosure, and to provide enough funding to get Canada’s efforts to end the pandemic back on track. The HIV Legal Network says Canada’s stalled progress on preventing new HIV cases — especially among Indigenous people in the Prairies — is costing governments millions of dollars. “We have failed to meet these targets by virtually every metric,” the group’s co-director Sandra Ka Hon Chu told a news conference last Thursday on Parliament Hill. She cited data from the Edmonton-based Institute of Health Economics, which pegged the average lifetime cost of a new HIV infection at roughly $1.44 million. While that sum is mostly...
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Province takes control of Near North school board, sparking local backlash
By David Briggs, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, BayToday.ca The Ministry of Education assumed control of the Near North District School Board (NNDSB) earlier today, and union leader Rob Hammond has concerns, stating Minister Paul Calandra’s decision amounts to “A direct assault on our local democracy.” Hammond is president of the Near North Teachers’ Local, part of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, and he sees today’s decision as the tip of the spear, with more takeovers to come. For Hammond, the stakes are high. He predicts funding cuts to students with special needs and, eventually, the removal of all elected trustee positions. See: BREAKING: Province seizes control of troubled Near North District School Board With no trustees, local voices will be silenced, warned NNDSB trustee Ashley St. Pierre. As for...
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Miller named new culture minister as Carney fills gaps left by Guilbeault
By Anja Karadeglija Prime Minister Mark Carney named Montreal MP Marc Miller as the new minister of Canadian identity and culture on Monday in a small cabinet shuffle to fill holes created when Steven Guilbeault resigned from cabinet last week. Guilbeault will remain a Liberal MP but submitted his resignation on Thursday after Ottawa signed an energy pact with Alberta that paves the way for a new oil pipeline to the British Columbia coast. Miller was in former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet between 2019 and 2025 but was not included in Carney’s cabinet until now. In addition to culture and identity, he was named minister for official languages. Government Transformation Minister Joël Lightbound replaces Guilbeault as Carney’s Quebec lieutenant, while Environment and Climate Change Minister Julie Dabrusin assumes responsibility...
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Activists mark World AIDS Day by calling for criminal reform, prevention funding
By Dylan Robertson Activists marked World AIDS Day on Monday by calling on the federal government to honour a Trudeau government promise to reform the laws on HIV disclosure, and to provide enough funding to get Canada’s efforts to end the pandemic back on track. The HIV Legal Network says Canada’s stalled progress on preventing new HIV cases — especially among Indigenous people in the Prairies — is costing governments millions of dollars. “We have failed to meet these targets by virtually every metric,” the group’s co-director Sandra Ka Hon Chu told a news conference last Thursday on Parliament Hill. She cited data from the Edmonton-based Institute of Health Economics, which pegged the average lifetime cost of a new HIV infection at roughly $1.44 million. While that sum is mostly...
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New HIV prevention guidelines say doctors should not be ‘gatekeeping’ PrEP Slugline: HIV-Prevention-Guidelines
By Hannah Alberga A coalition of doctors across Canada is releasing a new guideline for prescribing medications that can prevent HIV infection, with a strong focus on increasing the promotion and awareness of the expanding class of drugs. The clinical guideline published Monday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal provides 31 recommendations and 10 good practices for prescribing antiretroviral medication before and after a potential HIV exposure to prevent infection. Lead author Dr. Darrell Tan said 19 physicians volunteered their time over the last three years to review the latest research and write the new guidelines, as the range of available pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) options has expanded since the last guidance was released in 2017. The recommendations are aimed at reducing the rise of HIV infections...
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As the Similkameen River runs ‘black,’ regional leaders plan future of watershed protection
By Aaron Hemens, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews y̓ilmixʷm (Chief) kalʔlùpaɋʹn Keith Crow says the Similkameen River is being failed by those tasked to care for it, and more must be done to protect the waterway for future generations. The river “has been black for the last month,” he told a room full of regional officials in smǝlqmíx and syilx homelands on Nov. 21. “(The Similkameen River) is where our name comes from. It’s who we are,” Crow added. “And we’re failing it.” Crow — the chief of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band (LSIB) — made the comments during a meeting of the Okanagan Similkameen Collaborative Leadership Table. The group consists of more than 20 elected syilx leaders, mayors and other regional government officials from throughout the region. It was...
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BC Coastal First Nations vow to fight pipeline pact
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer Coastal First Nations are vowing to use every legal tool to stop the proposed Alberta-to-BC pipeline deal and tanker ban changes. Marilyn Slett, president of the Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative and elected chief of the Heiltsuk Nation, said in a news conference that her nations “cannot support and will not support” the pipeline agreement signed by Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith that would see bitumen shipped from Alberta’s oilsands to BC’s northwest coast. In a memorandum of understanding (MOU), the federal government has agreed to pause its oil and gas emissions cap and loosen clean-energy rules in Alberta. It might even consider restructuring the federal tanker ban to allow bitumen tankers off BC’s coast —...
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Former Chief files judicial review over Blueberry River First Nations election
By Ed Hitchins, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Energeticcity.ca FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The saga surrounding Blueberry River First Nations (BRFN) had another wrinkle this week. Former Chief Judy Desjarlais filed another judicial review regarding the four councillors recently the subject of a separate review by BRFN Elders Clarence and Joe Apsassin. Desjarlais latest judicial review, filed on Wednesday, November 26th, concerns the date of an election – which councillors Wayne Yahey, Troy Wolf, Shelley Gauthier, and Sherry Dominic had previously announced as taking place in January. A legal document alleges the decision to push forth for an election date was contrary to BRFN election bylaws, and “without jurisdiction, unreasonable, unfair, through a closed mind, in bad faith, for an improper purpose and/or otherwise unlawful.” Desjarlais claims in the filing...
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First Nations call for protected area as Doug Ford signs Ring of Fire deal
By Fatima Syed Ontario Premier Doug Ford signed an agreement with the last of three First Nations along Ontario’s proposed road to the Ring of Fire last week, promising it would “change lives.” But the announcement comes as neighbouring nations urge the premier to balance his priorities with environmental protection and addressing long-standing issues in their communities. Marten Falls First Nation — a small fly-in Anishinaabe community approximately 400 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay — signed the agreement with the Ontario government on Nov. 27 to help manifest a more prosperous future, the chief said. Ford’s Progressive Conservatives will give the nation $39.5 million to address local infrastructure issues in exchange for Marten Falls submitting its environmental assessment for the 184-kilometre road to the Ring of Fire by Feb. 20....
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Search of Winnipeg landfill for woman killed by serial killer starts: Kinew
A search of a Winnipeg landfill for the remains of a woman killed by a convicted serial killer began this morning. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew says the first truckload of debris at the Brady Road landfill was transferred to a search facility where workers will comb through it for the remains of Ashlee Shingoose. The woman, originally from St. Theresa Point Anisininew Nation in northern Manitoba, was one of four First Nations women killed by Jeremy Skibicki in 2022. Kinew says he took part in a ceremony at the site with Shingoose’s parents and her sister to mark the start of the search, as well as offer support to the staff who will be leading the recovery. A search of another landfill for the remains of Morgan Harris and Marcedes...
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Activists, politicians mark World AIDS Day urging criminal reform, prevention funding
By Dylan Robertson AIDS activists are calling on the Liberals to stick with a Trudeau government promise to reform the laws on HIV disclosure, and to get Canada’s efforts to end the pandemic back on track. The HIV Network Legal Network says Canada’s stalled progress on preventing new HIV cases — especially among Indigenous people in the Prairies — is ramping up government spending by millions of dollars. The group is calling on Justice Minister Sean Fraser to take up the Trudeau government’s stalled plan to reform laws used to prosecute people with HIV who don’t disclose their status to sexual partners — even when it’s impossible for them to transmit the virus. To mark World AIDS Day, MPs and senators who are part of the Global Equality Caucus are...
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New HIV prevention guidelines say doctors should not be ‘gatekeeping’ PrEP
By Hannah Alberga A coalition of doctors across Canada is releasing a new guideline for prescribing medications that can prevent HIV infection, with a strong focus on increasing the promotion and awareness of the expanding class of drugs. The clinical guideline published Monday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal provides 31 recommendations and 10 good practices for prescribing antiretroviral medication before and after a potential HIV exposure to prevent infection. Lead author Dr. Darrell Tan said 19 physicians volunteered their time over the last three years to review the latest research and write the new guidelines, as the range of available pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) options has expanded since the last guidance was released in 2017. The recommendations are aimed at reducing the rise of HIV infections...
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Tuberculosis outbreak hits Labrador weeks after Inuit group decried funding loss
By Sarah Smellie Health officials in Newfoundland and Labrador have declared an outbreak of tuberculosis within the Inuit region of Labrador, just weeks after a national Inuit group had warned that funding was needed to eradicate the disease. The region is home to several small communities, and officials are not revealing the number of confirmed cases in order to protect peoples’ privacy, Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, the province’s chief medical officer of health, said Friday. However, she said the number of cases is small. An outbreak is declared when the number of cases is higher than expected and there is transmission of the disease, Fitzgerald said. “We’re always concerned when we see cases of (tuberculosis). It can be a pretty significant infection for the individual,” she said in an interview. An...
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Baby eel businesswoman ‘the most courageous person I know’: lawyer
By John Chilibeck, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Daily Gleaner A lawyer representing a New Brunswick businesswoman whose family has caught baby eels for 37 years says Ottawa is maliciously out to destroy her commercial enterprise and give it to First Nations. Solicitor Barry Morrison was in the Court of King’s Bench in Burton last week to argue against the federal government’s motion to toss out Mary Ann Holland’s latest lawsuit. “She’s a senior citizen and the most courageous person I know,” Morrison declared to Justice Thomas Christie. “In the dark, in the freezing rain, she approached masked men and pleaded with them to stop illegally fishing.” The legal gambit by the federal Justice Department is the latest salvo in a long-running battle between Holland, who owns Alder Seafood and...
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