In this edition:
Government of Ontario highlights Strong Mayors at AMO, Niagara mayors remain skeptical
At the 2022 Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference in Ottawa, Steve Clark, Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, underscored the government’s introduction of the Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, among other items. If passed, the legislation would “put trust in local leadership” by giving the mayors of Toronto and Ottawa more responsibility to deliver on shared provincial-municipal priorities, including the government’s commitment to build 1.5 million new homes over the next 10 years to address the housing supply crisis.
Niagara Mayors Frank Campion, Jim Diodati, and Walter Sendzik, representing Niagara’s three largest municipalities of Welland, Niagara Falls, and St. Catharines respectively, expressed concerns. Sendzik, who will not seek a third term this fall, said if the province wants to address housing, it should “stop focusing” on expanding the powers of mayors and instead “strengthen” its own provincial policies, which municipalities design official plans around.
“I don’t think it’s a great idea,” said Diodati. “I don’t think mayors need any more authority. Their job is to create a vision, along with council, and then try to foster it and see it through by being inclusive.”
Welland Mayor Frank Campion said he doesn’t agree with the “strong mayors” approach, “particularly for municipalities our size.”
Ontario extending $10/day child-care opt-in deadline in hopes of more operators
Ontario is extending the deadline for child-care operators to apply for the $10-a-day program and standardizing the process in an attempt to get more providers to sign up.
The Canadian Press has obtained a letter sent today to municipalities informing them that the deadline is being extended from Sept. 1 to Nov. 1, to allow operators more time to make decisions and ensure more parents can see savings.
Many child-care operators, particularly for-profit ones, have said they want to sign up in order to issue rebates to parents, but are hesitant about the implications to their business, and have expressed concern that each municipality has a different process.
One in four Canadians now have mother tongues other than English or French
English and French remain by far the most commonly spoken languages in Canada. More than 9 in 10 Canadians speak one of the two official languages at home at least on a regular basis.
The 2021 Census also found that 4.6 million Canadians speak predominantly a language other than English or French at home (in other words, they speak this language most often at home, without speaking other languages equally often). These individuals represent 12.7% of the Canadian population, a proportion that has been increasing for 30 years. By comparison, the proportion was 7.7% in 1991, when immigration levels were rising.
In addition, one in four Canadians in 2021—or 9 million people—had a mother tongue other than English or French. This is a record high since the 1901 Census, when a question on mother tongue was first added.
The growing diversity of Canadians illustrates the need for businesses to embrace diversity and inclusion themselves to tap into new markets and new workforces. The GNCC offers advice on equity, diversity, and inclusion policies – click here to contact us.
Canada supports Ukrainians with $450m loan
Today, the Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, announced the disbursement of $450 million in loans to Ukraine to support the purchase of necessary heating fuel before winter. With today’s disbursement, Canada has now disbursed the complete $1.95 billion in loans it has committed so far this year to support Ukraine in the face of Russia’s brutal invasion.
Canada Summer Games continue
Click here for a list of events, times, and locations.
Focus on Climate
Biden signs climate, tax and health bill into law
BBC
US President Joe Biden has signed a $700bn (£579bn) bill that aims to fight climate change and healthcare costs while raising taxes mainly on the rich.
The act includes measures to make good on decades of congressional promises to curb the price of prescription drugs.
The final version is more modest in scope than the $3.5tn package first envisaged by Democrats.
Canada eyes cash for critical minerals in Biden’s big new climate bill
CBC News
A historic climate bill just passed by the U.S. Congress could have implications in entrenching Canada’s role in the shift toward clean transportation.
The legislation that passed last week established preferential tax treatment for electric vehicles assembled anywhere in North America.
That made-in-North-America approach generated some news headlines by bringing an amicable resolution to a months-long Canada-U.S. irritant.
Less noticed in the bill was a pot of money containing hundreds of millions of dollars to jump-start a new domestic industry in components for electric-vehicle batteries.
Through the Daily Updates, the GNCC aims to deliver important business news in a timely manner. We disseminate all news and information we feel will be important to businesses. Inclusion in the Daily Update is not an endorsement by the GNCC.
