CBC Radio's The House: Lock down, open up, repeat
CBC Radio | Posted: April 3, 2021 8:00 AM | Last Updated: April 3, 2021
Here is what's on this week's episode of The House
Battling a variant-driven third wave of COVID-19
A third wave of COVID-19 is rising in several provinces across the country, driven by more transmissible variants of the virus.
As British Columbia begins a three-week "circuit breaker" and as Ontario heads into four weeks of lockdown, The House checks in with Dr. Lisa Salamon, an emergency room physician with Toronto's Scarborough Health Network who is seeing ICU admissions increase first-hand.
Then, Marc-André Langlois, a University of Ottawa professor leading Canada's new Coronavirus Variants Rapid Response Network, talks to host Chris Hall about what the future of coronavirus variants might look like.
How will the NDP define itself amid duelling conventions?
The NDP is set to kick off its policy convention next weekend and mark the 60th anniversary of its founding. The event also happens to be scheduled for the same weekend as the Liberal convention.
Wielding the balance of power in Parliament, the NDP has pointed to concessions drawn from the government on pandemic relief measures as proof of the party's effectiveness. But will those actions — and party leader Jagmeet Singh's personal popularity — be enough to increase the NDP's support and break through in the next election?
Singh joins The House to discuss the convention, the upcoming budget and the potential for a 2021 election.
Looking ahead to the looming shutdown of Line 5
Last November, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer ordered Enbridge to close its Line 5 pipeline, which carries an estimated 540,000 barrels of oil and natural gas liquids daily between Western Canada and refineries in southern Ontario. The line runs under Michigan's environmentally sensitive Straits of Mackinac.
Enbridge is fighting the shutdown order in U.S. federal court, but lawmakers on both sides of the border are keeping a close eye on that looming May 12 deadline. Chris Hall speaks with Michigan State Senator Wayne Schmidt, a Republican representing the area in question, to hear about the impact of a shutdown beyond Canada's borders.
Is it time for a Universal Basic Income?
The Liberal grassroots has made Universal Basic Income (UBI) one of the top issues on the agenda for the governing party's convention next weekend. It's also the subject of a Liberal MP's private member's bill.
Some say it's the way forward in a changing world, but others say it's too costly, and that there are better ways to help the poor. The House looks at the arguments around UBI.
The rich Canadians who want higher taxes — on themselves
The NDP wants to use a wealth tax on the richest Canadians to help pay for the cost of the pandemic — an annual tax of 1 per cent on accumulated wealth above $20 million. And recent polls suggest a strong majority of Canadians support the idea.
A wealth tax also has been floated as a way to help pay for things like a Universal Basic Income and the transition to a greener economy. The House speaks with Jon McPhedran Waitzer, who is part of a group of wealthy millennials who want to be taxed more.