Articles by Tonda MacCharles

Oct 16 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Hamilton Spectator — Canada’s Global Affairs officials summoned China’s top diplomat in Canada for a private dressing down Thursday after remarks he made warning Canada against offering political asylum to Hong Kong democracy activists. But Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole says if Ambassador Cong Peiwu does not publicly apologize for his “belligerent” comments, which O’Toole called a threat to […]

Sep 26 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Our Windsor — The Canadian government does not feel pressure from the United States to lift border restrictions despite comments by President Donald Trump that he expects the border to reopen soon, says Public Safety Minister Bill Blair. In an interview with the Star, Blair said he is aware of Trump’s remarks after the two countries agreed to […]

Sep 18 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — It’s a bit like speed-dating, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is looking for a dance partner. Trudeau is canvassing Opposition leaders about their priorities for a throne speech that kicks off a new legislative session next week and could tip Canada into an election without the support of one other major federal party. Yet Trudeau […]

Sep 16 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — St. Catharines Standard — Health Canada has started an internal review of how the government responded to the COVID-19 pandemic, says Health Minister Patty Hajdu. But Hajdu deflected questions about whether an independent review is warranted as a previous Liberal government did during the 2003 SARS crisis, telling reporters “We’re just at the beginning of this pandemic.” “We have […]

Sep 13 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — St. Catharines Standard — As Justin Trudeau drafts a new governing agenda to revive the Canadian economy from its pandemic-induced coma, one thing is absent from the debate around his Liberal cabinet table: the voice of a fiscal hawk. As the Trudeau government nears the second year of its second mandate, “there are a few voices of fiscal discipline,” […]

Sep 1 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — St. Catharines Standard — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is casting a wider than usual net to come up with what he promised will be a “bold” agenda for an economic recovery. Trudeau invited cabinet ministers to make submissions on what they want to see in a Sept. 23 throne speech — a move that a senior Liberal source said […]

Aug 26 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — The New Democrats believe their calls pushed the Liberal government of Justin Trudeau to pump an extra $2 billion into the safe reopening of schools. The Chamber of Commerce, often a conservative voice of business interests across the country, believed its advocacy made a difference. It welcomed new federal money for school resources, calling it […]

Aug 25 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — The federal government is planning to transfer $2 billion more to the provinces to pump more money into the safe reopening of schools, the Star has learned. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with the 13 premiers and territorial leaders on a conference call Tuesday, their first since July 29, and outlined his plan, which comes […]

Aug 25 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — “This is still a party that would rather fight than win.” That was the raw feeling inside Peter MacKay’s camp on Monday morning, hours after the Conservative Party co-founder suffered a stinging defeat to Erin O’Toole in the party’s leadership contest. Now that a hard-fought and at times nasty contest is over and O’Toole has […]

Aug 20 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — St. Catharines Standard — The mood was upbeat during a conference call that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held Tuesday night with Liberal caucus members just hours after he replaced Bill Morneau as finance minister and suspended Parliament ahead of a September reboot. “Surprisingly so,” said one participant who lamented that Morneau’s departure was “a significant loss” to the Liberals, […]

Aug 12 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — The beleaguered WE Charity says it has reimbursed about $22 million of the $30 million it received from Ottawa to mount the now-cancelled Canada Student Services Grant program. And in a statement to the Star on Wednesday, the charity said it intends to pay back the rest of the money as soon as the federal […]

Aug 8 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — The notion that a crisis shouldn’t go to waste but can be used to do big, bold things is attributed to Machiavelli or alternatively to Britain’s wartime prime minister Winston Churchill. Right now, it’s on the mind of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Inside Trudeau’s Liberal government an age-old debate is alive: how not to waste […]

Jul 2 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — China’s sweeping new national security law extending the Communist government’s control over Hong Kong takes aim not only at pro-democracy protesters but also non-residents, foreign governments, non-governmental organizations, and international media. It subjects all persons in Hong Kong, including non-residents acting “from outside the region,” to strict bans on political activities that Beijing deems to […]

Jun 29 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — Freedom for two Canadians held in Chinese prisons may well depend on the steps Ottawa now takes to redefine its ever-souring relationship with Beijing. The two countries have been locked in an increasingly tense impasse since December 2018, when Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were arrested in China, just days after RCMP detained Chinese tech […]

Jun 25 2020 — Tonda MacCharles — Toronto Star — Former top officials from Canada travelled to China last November in an attempt to free two Canadians detained there, the Star has learned. The “bipartisan and non-partisan” effort to win the release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor was part of a back-channel diplomatic effort at finding a compromise that its organizer, Gordon Houlden, believes […]