Small gestures can make all the difference to someone’s day
About one in 68 children has been identified with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) according to data collected by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (one in 42 boys). ASD often includes those with a wide range of challenges and abilities, including linguistic, social and sensory impairment, along with fine motor and gross…
U.S. households not only live with higher income inequality than in Canada but more than half are worse off in terms of purchasing power
Regardless of whether America is great, or about to be great again, a new analysis shows that Canadians outrank Americans on household income. The Economist magazine recently devoted a long section to a profile of Canada with frequent comparisons to the United States. Among the statistics highlighted were that Canadians’ life expectancy was three years…
But a study shows that residents in those regions are entering nursing homes with more complex care needs
By Matthias Hoben and Carole Estabrooks The most recent census, in 2016, showed that almost 17 per cent of Canadians are over age 65. In fact, those older than 85 have increased by almost 20 per cent since 2011, making it the fastest growing age group in Canada. We’re an aging populace, there’s no getting…
We need to plan better to protect vulnerable seniors from the impact of climate change
By John Muscedere and George Heckman Canadian Frailty Network An elderly man in Ottawa spent most of last winter snowed in, unable to leave his home, surviving on canned food. Last summer, 54 people died as a result of a heat wave in Quebec, many of them older adults. Seniors’ communities were quickly evacuated during…
Trudeau government’s global reputation at risk over how Canadian companies do business abroad
Earlier this year, Canadians were given a behind-the-scenes view on attempts by the federal government to ensure that SNC-Lavalin would escape potential criminal liability under the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act. What may be less clear is that the government’s stance in this case is reflective of its broader approach to corporate accountability. The…
The Senate has delayed for eight months its final vote on restrictions to food marketing to children
By Peter Mansbridge and Yves Savoie “Delay always breeds danger; and to protract a great design is often to ruin it.” Miguel de Cervantes put this astute observation in the mouth of his most famous literary character, Don Quixote. Though written more than 400 years ago, the lesson applies very well right now to the…
A bill that would protect children is languishing in the Senate. We need it to tackle childhood obesity and chronic diseases
If you’ve ever watched the hit TV series Mad Men, you’ll remember that everybody smoked. Everyone. Everywhere. It was a great show, in part, because it was like a trip back in time, showing us what life was like in the American advertising industry in the early 1960s. Smoking was just a part of normal…
Bill C-48 is the kind of extraordinary circumstance that requires the Senate fulfil its role as a regional counterbalance to the House
The Senate’s fundamental job is to review legislation while respecting its regions. In that sense, it is a unique part of Canadian Parliament. The Senate is a built-in safety valve to protect regional interests against the majoritarian impulses of the elected chamber. It ensures that all parts of this diverse country have a meaningful voice…
No child should die a preventable death. It's time Canada had a national vaccine framework
By Sen. Raymonde Gagné and Sen. Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia “As an infectious disease specialist, there is nothing sadder than standing at the bedside of a parent in an ICU with a child who’s got a vaccine preventable disease who is dying.” That’s what Dr. Noni MacDonald, professor of pediatrics at Dalhousie University, told us at a…
The place of French in Canada 50 years after the Official Languages Act was first enacted shows we can and must do better
By Sen. Raymonde Gagné and Sen. René Cormier To mark the 50th anniversary of the Official Languages Act (OLA) and the International Day of La Francophonie, an open caucus was held at the Senate of Canada to reflect on the place of French in Canada. Professors Stéphanie Chouinard, Michael MacMillan and Benoît Pelletier addressed the following question:…