The Big Story

For months now, recent polls have been terrible for the federal Liberals—and specifically so when it comes to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. A recent survey found that a majority of Canadians want him to step down before the next election in favour of a new lIberal leader, and a longtime Liberal senator recently called for him to do the same.Surveys and suggestions are a long way from reality, though, and there's no clear idea if Trudeau will walk away, or if he does if any member of his cabinet would perform any better. There are rumours, though, about an outside who wants the job—a non-politician with an impressive resume and the credibility to be an instant contender. So who is he? And have we seen this movie play out before?GUEST: Stephen Maher, writer, reporter, political commentator at ipolitics.ca We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

Airline passengers in Canada have rights. They're called the Air Passenger Protection Regulations, and they determine how much you're owed if your flight is delayed, overbooked or cancelled for various reasons. The problem is, the compensation is often tough to get, and there's very little incentive for the airlines to simply pay it every time.In an effort to simply get what they are owed, some Canadians take the airlines to small claims court. Sometimes they settle, and sometimes they even win. But the process is long and difficult and doesn't result in punitive action. Why is it so hard for some Canadians to get what they're owed when the airline gets it wrong? And what should you do if it happens to you?GUEST: Gabor Lukacs, president of Air Passenger Rights We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

Regulating short-term rentals like AirBnB to ease the housing crisis isn't a new idea. It's been tried in plenty of cities in North America and beyond. But British Columbia's new legislation goes much further than most, and though it was just announced two weeks ago, a glance at apartments on sale in Victoria and Vancouver show that it's having an impact already.What's in the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act that makes it a step beyond other North American efforts. Has it gone too far, or not far enough? And if it works, could it become a model for other provinces to follow?GUEST: Ryan Hook, writing for Ricochet We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

Jane Doe was assaulted by a police officer. That's never an easy case to win, but she wasn't without allies. Even still, her case was lost. At least, at first.This is a story of what happens when you don't stop fighting for justice. When you end up at the Supreme Court, with an officer from a 300-year-old police force on the other side, and you don't waver. It's a story about how you change more than just the outcome of your own case...GUEST: Lindsay Jones, Atlantic Canada reporter, The Globe and Mail (Writing in The Walrus) We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

The podcast explores the concept of co-ownership as a path to home ownership in expensive cities. It discusses the housing crisis and challenges facing buyers in Canada's banking system. The benefits of partnering to buy a home are explored, including an interview with a couple who bought a house with another couple. The financial aspects of co-ownership and advice for getting started are also discussed.

One hundred years ago, raccoons were so rare in Toronto, that a mysterious creature rummaging in a garbage bin warranted a newspaper report. Today, raccoons are basically the city's mascot—literally, the creatures are on all sorts of Toronto memorabilia. The war Toronto waged on raccoons spanned decades, with no end of amusing skirmishes. But it's abundantly clear that it's over. The raccoons won, the people lost, and now we just try to protect our garbage and hope the mess isn't too bad.This is how Toronto became the raccoon capital of the world—gradually, then suddenly.GUEST: Amy Dempsey, senior writer, The Toronto Star(Looking for a new podcast? Have a listen to the team behind The Big Story's newest show, In This Economy?! The first episode is out right now, with new ones arriving each Thursday.) We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

Quebec's government is doubling tuition fees for out-of-province English students, sparking protests. The policy aims to change downtown Montreal's linguistic makeup. Concerns over French language decline and impact on universities are discussed. Language restrictions also affect international students. The government's response to opposition and potential changes to the policy are explored.

The podcast discusses the recent announcement of a three-year pause on the carbon tax for home heating oil in Canada, sparking mixed reactions and concerns about the credibility of the carbon pricing plan. It analyzes the government's decision and explores potential political motives behind the move. Additionally, it highlights the challenges and consequences faced by the Liberals in relation to their carbon tax policy and upcoming pharmacare legislation.

It can be difficult to sort fact from fiction, or anecdotes from data, when it comes to a subject like assisted dying. The topic itself is so emotional. The stories of those who don't qualify or from family left behind, can be heartbreaking. And the terms and conditions used to assess someone's eligibility for the process are complex and opaque.All of that is an environment ripe for misinformation—or for potential disasters to be imagined. Next year, restrictions on the MAiD law will fall away, allowing mental illness to be a sole condition for MAiD applicants. substance use disorders may qualify under mental illness, so ... yes, drug users may be able to apply for MAiD. But that's a long way from saying their application will be granted. Today, a trip through the subtlety often missing in discussions of this controversial policy.GUEST: Jocelyn Downie, Professor Emeritus at the Faculties of Law and Medicine, Dalhousie University; works at the intersection of health care ethics, law, and policy We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

Depending on where you live, there's a between one-in-three and one-in-six chance that you don't have a family doctor. And the number of Canadians without one is rising rapidly. Now, at a time when older doctors are leaving the profession, the College of Family Physicians of Canada has announced plans to increase the time would-be family doctors are required to train from two years to three.Even if it's well-intentioned, the move has sparked opposition from experts and health ministers, who say we're in a crisis and desperately need new doctors. So just how rapidly is the problem escalating? What does the research tell us about the health of people with and without family doctors? Why raise the years required to become a family doctor now? And what could we do that would help encourage young students to choose this path?GUEST: Dr. Cathy Risdon, family doctor and Chair of Family Medicine at McMaster University We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky