The Alex Pierson Show

It's no secret that Toronto loves its trees, but did you know that there is a very invasive species of tree in the city? Acer platanoides, more popularly known as the the Norway maple, is an invasive species. The Ontario Invasive Plant Council calls these trees “a serious threat to woodlands across Ontario” because of their aggressive spread into forests and ability to suppress native species. The City of Toronto has actively stopped planting these trees, but they're already one of the most popular trees in the city. Françoise Cardou, an urban ecologist at the University of Toronto Scarborough, joined Alex to talk about them and how difficult it would be to just replace them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's becoming all too common for teenagers in Toronto to be exposed to gun violence. On Halloween day, a shooting outside of a Toronto high school, killing an 18 year old, and injuring a 15 year old. The shooting was witnessed by dozens of kids who took out their phones to record it and put it on social media. What is the Toronto Police doing to help curb any of this needless violence? We turn to Jon Reid, President of the Toronto Police Association every Thursday to break down all things policing, and get his take on the case at hand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It is that time of the week where we do a deep dive on all things Ottawa. Today, we talk about how the Department of Canadian Heritage bought maple leaf flag pins from China even as the Commons voted to condemn the People’s Republic for crimes against humanity, records show. Federal contracts for patriotic paraphernalia were worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. For this we speak to Tom Korski, Managing Editor of Blacklock's Reporter about all of this and many other of the big headlines out of Ottawa. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deputy Prime Minister, Chrystia Freeland, is expected to make an announcement late on Thursday, updating Canadians on the fiscal outlook going ahead. But will she use the word 'recession' at all in her announcement? For that, we ask Moshe Lander, an Economist with Concordia University, and find out if Freeland will say we're going into a recession, or not. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Heritage Minister’s parliamentary secretary accused Facebook of threatening Canadians’ safety, after the company said it could pull news off its platform if it’s forced to share revenue with news publishers. We spoke with Dr. Michael Geist, Canada Research Chair in Internet and e-Commerce Law. Geist says this will have a huge impact on what we consume on the internet and freedom of expression. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the teacher's union ready to strike on Friday, the question is being asked about whether or not teachers should be considered an essential service. But another question that sprouts from that one is what rights do kids have to education? And whose rights come first? Labour or kids? John Schuman, Family, Children’s Rights and Education Lawyer joined us and said it would be difficult to make this issue a charter right. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tensions are continuing to rise in the fight between the Ontario government and CUPE workers in what appears to be a never-ending labour dispute that has lasted for decades already. The province is tabling legislation that would impose a contract onto teachers, but also plan on using the notwithstanding clause, which is causing a lot of alarms to be sounded. Dr. Charles Smith is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at St. Thomas More College and University of Saskatchewan, and he joined Alex to discuss it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Canadian Dairy Commission says the farm gate price for dairy will increase by another 2.2 per cent starting in February, as the supply managed industry says its costs continue to rise. This could mean that the price of your milk and dairy purchases at the grocery store could go up to match the increased costs. We spoke with Dr. Simon Somogyi, a Professor at the University of Guelph and Arrell Chair in the Business of Food, to talk all about it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chris Barber, who was the initial organizer of the Freedom Convoy, took the stand during his testimony into the usage of the Emergencies Act, and he said that there was no intention of doing anything illegal or parking on main streets. Most people who attended the protest were ordinary people, so why did they jump on the bandwagon? Joining Alex to talk to the psychological aspects of the protest is Dr. Marnie Wedlake, Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Studies at Western University and a Registered Psychotherapist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Tuesday, daycare operators in the province of Ontario had the deadline to opt into a program which would allow parents to only pay $10 a day. Approximately 85% of providers opted into the program, leaving 15% who did not choose to opt in. The question is why though? Amanda Munday is the CEO of The Workaround, A Childcare and Co-Working Space, and she joined Alex to talk about the struggles, and unknowns of the program, and why she didn't opt in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices