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The Ford government needs to press pause on plans to permanently expand online education
Wednesday, April 14th, 2021
Ontario has needed remote learning in the pandemic but it’s a long way to go from saying online education is better than no education to deciding that it’s so good it should be permanently expanded. Most especially if doing so risks destabilizing or further underfunding the school-based system that the vast majority of students will continue to need… the province needs to review what worked well with online learning and figure out how to address the shortcomings…
Tags: budget, ideology, participation, youth
Posted in Education Delivery System | No Comments »
The Ford government’s second pandemic budget is another missed opportunity
Thursday, March 25th, 2021
The budget unveils plans to “establish a task force to advise the government on how to address the unique and disproportionate economic barriers women face.” It’s ridiculous — the government already knows what to do. It should be making meaningful changes for women and other vulnerable workers now, not delaying action with a task force that will repeat what has been said before.
Tags: budget, child care, economy, Health, ideology, participation, rights
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »
Youth ‘aging out’ of care deserve better. The Ford government needs to deliver real reform
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2021
Some 12,000 children and youth live in foster homes and group homes in Ontario. About 2,000 of them turn 18 every year at which point they are usually forced to move out of their foster or group home to live independently, whether they’re ready or not. (There is financial assistance and other supports beyond 18 for some youth but it’s not universal and it’s not enough.)
Tags: child care, ideology, youth
Posted in Child & Family Debates | No Comments »
The Ford government can’t leave Ontario universities in this financial mess
Wednesday, March 10th, 2021
Increased costs and reduced revenues due to COVID has left Ontario universities scrambling to fill a billion-dollar hole… The crisis at Laurentian is the most visible manifestation of a longstanding structural and funding crisis that has simply been exacerbated by the pandemic… this government has made things worse, not better, for universities and colleges. In 2019, it cut tuition by 10 per cent and then froze it for two years.
Tags: budget, ideology, jurisdiction
Posted in Education Policy Context | No Comments »
It’s time to move ahead on a national child-care system
Sunday, February 21st, 2021
… new money for child care must support programs. That is the only way Ottawa will be able to lower parent fees and raise wages, which in turn, will attract and retain well-trained staff who are the foundation of high-quality child care. That should be the starting point as Ottawa negotiates bilateral funding agreements with provinces and territories… Provinces that are ready to sign-on should get started immediately. But under no circumstances should Ottawa ink funding deals with provinces that don’t embrace this new federal vision.
Tags: budget, child care, economy, featured, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, standard of living, women
Posted in Child & Family Policy Context | No Comments »
Still not the handgun ban Canada needs
Wednesday, February 17th, 2021
Canada’s gun problem is overwhelmingly a handgun problem. So if the government wants to limit gun violence in this country, it can’t just take on the multi-shot, rapid-fire weapons that are too often the instrument of death in mass shootings, it must also tackle the issue of proliferating handguns. Bill C-21 falls well short. It’s an ineffective gesture on handguns at a time when cities desperately need help to curb rising deadly gun violence.
Tags: crime prevention, ideology, jurisdiction
Posted in Child & Family Policy Context | No Comments »
‘Basic income’ isn’t the ticket to a fairer society
Sunday, February 14th, 2021
… what sense does it make to give everyone the same amount when some already have property and some don’t? When some live with disabilities or other problems, and others don’t? When some live in areas with a high cost of living, and some can live quite well on a lot less? … The authors of the B.C. report make a powerful case for working towards greater equity (including less poverty) through smarter, targeted measures.
Tags: budget, economy, featured, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, poverty
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
The Ford government needs to treat child care as the essential service it is
Monday, February 1st, 2021
Ontario was one of the first provinces last spring to offer emergency workers free, around-the-clock child care with enhanced safety protocols. But since then, the Ford government has reverted to type… Many have had enough… more than 200 centres across the province have closed since the spring – at least 133 of them permanently… A child care crisis… does not bode well… for the province to “build back better” once the health crisis lifts.
Tags: budget, child care, economy, featured, Health, ideology, participation, women
Posted in Child & Family Debates | No Comments »
For-profit or not, there aren’t any shortcuts to decent long-term care
Saturday, January 30th, 2021
Collectively, through our taxes, we’re going to have to commit a lot more to ensure seniors can live in acceptable conditions. And we’re going to have to spend more on inspections to make sure homes live up to those standards — regardless who owns or runs them… there aren’t any shortcuts to the kind of long-term care that we can be proud of.
Tags: budget, disabilities, Health, ideology, Seniors
Posted in Child & Family Policy Context | No Comments »
Ontario should mandate paid sick days for all workers
Friday, January 29th, 2021
The Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit isn’t working well. It has delivered benefits to just over 337,000 people when it was expected to reach nearly 5 million workers… Labour laws and standards, but for a handful of federally regulated industries, are a provincial responsibility… They have left workers, especially those in the gig economy and low-wage industries, at the mercy of companies who are predisposed to cut all the corners they can when it comes to providing benefits to workers.
Tags: economy, featured, Health, jurisdiction, rights, standard of living
Posted in Policy Context | No Comments »
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