The Decibel The Globe and Mail

The housing affordability problem in Canada continues, and people are desperate for solutions. The federal government is handing out billions of dollars as part of the Apartment Construction Loan Program intending to create more affordable housing. But, a Globe analysis found a disconnect between what’s considered affordable in this program, and what renters can actually afford.

The Globe’s real-estate reporter Rachelle Younglai explains why these units aren’t actually attainable to many Canadian renters and looks at the concerns with the program’s definition of affordability.

After more than a decade, the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project (TMX) has finally been completed. One of the country’s biggest infrastructure projects is seen as a major win for Albertan oil producers, with nearly 600,000 extra barrels shipped daily, ready for international buyers.

But the future ownership of the pipeline remains up in the air. Many of the issues and questions that delayed the project – concerns over its safety and the environment, fights over Indigenous land rights, long-term economic risks – remain.

Jeffrey Jones, The Globe’s sustainable finance reporter, explains the ballooning costs of the TMX and why one of Canada’s top exports is creating tension with its future climate targets.

Tension is ratcheting up in the Gaza Strip as the Israeli military descends on the southern city of Rafah. This move has forced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sheltering there to flee yet again. All of this has been happening this week against the backdrop of ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and the Israeli government and souring relations between Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Joe Biden.

The Globe’s Senior International Correspondent Mark MacKinnon brings us up to speed on the many developments, breaks down what happened in the ceasefire talks this week, and what this means for the people in Gaza and the remaining Israeli hostages.

TD Bank has been plagued by concerns about its anti-money-laundering capabilities for over a year. In March 2023, they tried to acquire the U.S. based bank First Horizon Corp. Regulatory issues delayed the acquisition, and in May 2023, the deal fell through.

The extent of TD’s anti-money-laundering issues weren’t clear until now, when it’s revealed that TD is involved in a U.S. investigation of a US$653 million money-laundering and drug-trafficking operation. Tim Kiladze, financial reporter and columnist for the Globe, is on the show to talk about TD’s alleged lack of oversight and what this means for the bank – and its customers – going forward.

175 countries are in the midst of tense discussions around a UN treaty to reduce plastic pollution. The second-last negotiation session wrapped up in Ottawa last week, but there are still significant hurdles to getting it done, including disagreements about whether to include a production cap.

Today, The Globe’s environment reporter Wendy Stueck joins to explain what this treaty could change, and how countries are thinking about how to balance our reliance on plastic with its effects on our environment.

Campus protests are spreading across Canada including at the University of Toronto and McGill. It comes after high profile demonstrations in the United States where students are demonstrating against the war in Gaza. And when police were called in to disband these protests, sometimes things got violent.

The protests and tensions with police call back to student movements of the past. Dr. Roberta Lexier is an associate professor at Mount Royal University, and her research focuses on social and student movements. She’s on the show to explain the tensions between campus protesters and police and what history tells us about the protests today.