Ford gov't gives politicians a 35% pay raise, new pension benefits

https://www.rebelnews.com/ford_gov_t_gives_politicians_a_35_pay_raise_new_pension_benefits

MPP base salaries will increase from $116,550 to $157,450, effective February 27. Cabinet ministers and the premier will pocket thousands more annually.

New legislation tabled late yesterday proposes a new pension plan and a 35% pay raise for MPPs, angering taxpayer advocates.

"While families are tightening their belts and the province sinks deeper into debt, Ontario politicians are stuffing their own pockets," said Nicolas Gagnon, communications director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. "They're voting themselves a raise and a taxpayer-funded pension, and they expect Ontarians to just smile and pay for it."

MPP base salaries will increase from $116,550 to $157,450, costing taxpayers at least $6 million in the first year, plus ongoing pension expenses.

That number is higher for those with a cabinet post, and the premier, with the latter receiving an increase from $209,000 to about $282,000. Cabinet ministers would pocket an additional $58,000, bringing their total to around $224,000, before taxes.

Gagnon condemned the Province for approving the pay raise, amidst increasing provincial debt and household financial struggles.

"This sends the wrong message to taxpayers who are already under pressure from inflation, taxes, and high living costs," said Gagnon, citing upcoming fiscal projections.

Ontario's escalating debt is projected to reach $500 billion by 2027 and cost taxpayers $16 billion in interest this year. The Province said it expects to see a surplus in fiscal year 2027/28.

A 2009 MPP salary freeze was set to end when the provincial budget had a surplus for two consecutive years. Although a surplus occurred in 2022, the government introduced legislation to pause the automatic pay increase, stating that politicians should not receive raises during times of financial struggle for the public.

"Every MPP who supported this bill just told taxpayers that they [came] first," Gagnon said. "If politicians want to attract talent, they should lead by example and start by fixing the province's finances instead of lining their own pockets."

Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said the bill has all-party support, ending a 16-year pay freeze. A previous pension plan was axed three decades ago.

The adjusted pay increase takes effect on the date of the 2025 election, February 27, with the pensions starting next calendar year.

Currently, MPPs may contribute 10% of their salary to a retirement savings plan. As of January 1, 2026, MPPs can enroll in the Public Service Pension Plan and access supplemental benefits after six years of service.

Ontario MPPs are now the highest-paid provincial politicians in Canada.

How black do you have to be for Toronto's black-only homeless shelter?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrY-_cZmqAU

Watch new episodes every weeknight when you subscribe!

Ezra Levant looks at a new race-based homeless shelter planned for Toronto and is left wondering: just how black does an individual have to be to use this black-only homeless shelter?

Visit Rebel News for more on this story ► https://rebelne.ws/3Fs1G3c

Inside the Push for Stronger Safeguards on Sexually Explicit Content in Canadian School Libraries

https://www.theepochtimes.com/world/inside-the-push-for-stronger-safeguards-on-sexually-explicit-content-in-canadian-school-libraries-5864389?ea_src=ca-frontpage&ea_cnt=b&ea_med=more-top-news-0

Two years ago, Raelyn Fox found a book in her daughter’s bedroom that caused her concern. Her 11-year-old always kept a stack of library books on the dresser, and until then, Fox hadn’t thought much about what was in them.

But after hearing news about parents raising concerns over age-inappropriate content in school library books, and coming across online lists of flagged titles, Fox, who lives in southern rural Manitoba, decided to take a closer look. Two of the flagged books were in her daughter’s bedroom.

The issue of age-inappropriate books in schools regained attention this week after Alberta said it would develop school library guidelines upon finding “sexually explicit” content in some Edmonton and Calgary K–12 libraries.

Fox told The Epoch Times that after finding the books in her daughter’s bedroom in May 2023, she looked online to see which other titles that had been flagged by parents were in the school library. She arranged a meeting with the principal and toured the library, where she found several of the books, including some with sexually explicit content.

She says she took her concerns to the school board, but it decided not to remove the books. So Fox, a mother of four, withdrew her three school-aged children from the education system and began homeschooling them.

Over the past two years, Fox has taken to social media to raise awareness about the content in some of those books, saying she wants parents to learn of the “vulgarity” in them first hand. Continue…

As Legal Battle Over US Tariffs Unfolds in Courts, What Does It Mean for Canada?

https://www.theepochtimes.com/world/as-legal-battle-over-us-tariffs-unfolds-in-courts-what-does-it-mean-for-canada-5865301?ea_src=ca-frontpage&ea_cnt=b&ea_med=medium-2

Ottawa is paying close attention to the legal battle over tariffs in U.S. courts that could have major implications for Canada.

A day after the United States Court of International Trade struck down parts of U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade agenda, a federal appeals court temporarily reinstated the tariffs on May 29.

The New York-based federal trade court had ruled on May 28 that Trump exceeded his authority when he placed tariffs on other countries using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). That legislation, enacted in 1977, gives the president the authority to regulate foreign commerce after declaring a national emergency.

The Trump administration announced shortly after the trade court’s ruling that it was appealing the decision.

The next day, on May 29, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued an immediate administrative stay of the decision while it considers Trump’s appeal. Continue…

Thousands of Canadian Parents Take Up Pledge to Delay Kids’ Smartphone Use

https://www.theepochtimes.com/world/thousands-of-canadian-parents-take-up-pledge-to-delay-kids-smartphone-use-5865299?ea_src=ca-frontpage&ea_cnt=b&ea_med=medium-1

‘We empower parents to unite in the creation of a smartphone-free childhood,’ says Unplugged Canada.

Over 3,000 Canadian parents have signed a pledge to commit to delaying smartphone access for their children until the age of 14.

The pledge, created by Unplugged Canada, says the action is meant to provide families with a community that supports each other in its commitment to prioritizing children’s mental health. The volunteer-run organization based in Vancouver seeks to “educate parents about the risks of early smartphone use and inspire a collective commitment to restore childhood.”

“The whole point of this pledge is to remember what it was to have community,” Jenny Perez, founder of Unplugged Canada, told The Epoch Times. “We have become so self-sufficient, independent, isolated, and we’re doing that to ourselves, and we’re doing that now with our children.”

Perez says she was inspired to start the initiative by a similar one in the United States, called “Wait Until 8th,” which has more than 106,000 parent signatures. She officially launched Unplugged Canada in September 2024.

Perez, a mother and an entrepreneur, says she is passionate about the impact technology has on the minds of children and did not want to accept that the only way for her child to be connected to other children was via smartphone and social media.

The biggest challenge for parents, she said, is the concern that delaying smartphone use may isolate their children. She notes, however, that this can be resolved through the strong community that the pledge builds by connecting parents with other like-minded parents in their local area. Continue…

Why Is No One Worried About a 5-Fold Increase in Terrorism Charges in Canada?

https://www.theepochtimes.com/opinion/why-is-no-one-worried-about-a-5-fold-increase-in-terrorism-charges-in-canada-5863587?ea_src=ca-frontpage&ea_cnt=b&ea_med=title-0

Remember when car thefts were all the rage? News story after news story told us that this form of crime was skyrocketing in Canada: almost doubling in Ontario and Quebec, up by a third in Alberta, and a fifth in Atlantic Canada in 2022. People were flocking to buy newfangled locking mechanisms, and some owners even put retractable steel or concrete bollards in their driveways!

This scourge was indeed worrisome and received significant media coverage, but it has been superseded by another, much more dangerous one that has not been given nearly enough attention: terrorism arrests in Canada.

According to a briefing the RCMP put together for former Public Safety Minister David McGuinty, under the Trudeau government last December, terrorism charges in 2024 jumped 488 percent—a five-fold increase over the previous year!

Now do I have your attention?

According to the RCMP, violent extremism (synonymous with terrorism) remained a “prominent national security threat” and the force had disrupted six terrorist plots in 2024 alone. Continue…

Halting of Spy Operation by Former PM Adviser Endangered Agents, Watchdog Says

https://www.theepochtimes.com/world/halting-of-spy-operation-by-former-pm-adviser-endangered-agents-watchdog-says-5865703?ea_src=ca-frontpage&ea_cnt=b&ea_med=lead-story-0

An active overseas Canadian Security Intelligence Service operation that was abruptly stopped at the direction of an adviser to the prime minister put agents in danger, a federal watchdog says.

The information was disclosed in a report from the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency (NSIRA) released publicly on May 29.

NSIRA conducted a review of an undisclosed CSIS operation following a referral by then-Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino in late 2022, who sought to know whether certain policies allowed him to fulfil his responsibilities of overseeing CSIS.

The heavily redacted 43-page report from NSIRA discusses an operation by CSIS in 2022 that involved domestic and foreign partners. It says that Mendicino and his department had been informed about the operation just over two weeks prior to its start, and neither had raised objections.

The redacted report says that “Government and political-level stakeholders” later met to discuss the operation with the ensuing debate resulting in CSIS having to “halt mid-operation [redacted] activities in [redacted].”

“This decision needlessly placed [redacted] officers in danger, and raises serious concerns regarding CSIS' accountability mechanisms,” the document said. Continue…

Ontario mayor more concerned about suspected teen killer than murdered elderly woman

https://thepostmillennial.com/ontario-mayor-more-concerned-about-suspected-teen-killer-than-murdered-elderly-woman

Pickering, Ont. Mayor Kevin Ashe has expressed concern for the suspected killer of a elderly woman who was gardening at the time of her murder on Thursday. She was stabbed repeatedly and was pronounced dead at a hospital. City Councillor Lisa Robinson told The Post Millennial that the mayor’s response was “just disgusting.”

Ashe said the boy, who was not named due to his age, was affected by the “burden of mental health” and added that the arrest was “very troubling” because of the effect it will have on the rest of his life. That comment appeared in an earlier edition of CTV's story. The boy has been charged with first degree murder. “I’m shocked that a person so young has so much hate in them,” Pickering Mayor Kevin Ashe told reporters Thursday.

“First of all, this suspect should be charged as an adult," Robinson said. "It was clearly a premeditated murder. He was searching through the neighborhood for potential victims. He was wearing a trenchcoat because he was obviously preparing to be covered with blood. This is absolutely insane for the mayor to be giving condolences to anyone but the family and friends of the victim." Continue…