Blacklock's Reporter

In 1937 Canada had a higher infant mortality rate than South Africa and Ireland. Until 1919 all national medical services were managed by the Department of Agriculture. Child deaths were such an inescapable horror in family life that Prime Minister John Thompson (1892-4) lost four of his nine children in infancy. Historian Mona Gleason documents the dawn of awareness that Canada’s infants could not be left to sicken and die in an expression of survival of the fittest: “Merely being small and young, in other words, required medical attention.” Small Matters: Canadian Children in Sickness and Health is a compelling social history that chronicles the country’s struggle towards the light. READ MORE

A federal memorial to Afghan War dead will be inscribed with an Algonquin land acknowledgement in the name of “supporting reconciliation,” says an internal memo. Veterans Affairs Minister Jill McKnight’s department would not say how many of the 2,229 Canadian casualties in Afghanistan including 158 killed in action were Algonquin: 'It's to recognize the Indigenous peoples on whose traditional territory the Monument stands.' READ MORE

The Federal Court yesterday in a rare order suspended all constitutional challenges of an immigration law passed March 12 by Parliament. All plaintiffs were ordered into case management on complaints that repetitive claims were clogging the docket: "New immigration proceedings have increased for a fifth record-breaking year and may exceed 30,000 files in 2026." READ MORE

Cabinet takes Canadian democracy as it is and will not pursue electoral reform, Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon yesterday wrote the Commons. The remarks followed Justin Trudeau’s lament that dropping a 2016 proposal for a national referendum on reform was his greatest regret: "I do wish we had been able to." READ MORE

Workers whose jobs require sound judgment, physical contacts or special skills have little to fear from artificial intelligence, the Bank of Canada said yesterday. While AI to date had limited impact on jobs in Canada, analysts warned some occupations were vulnerable: "Exposure is lowest in occupations that rely more heavily on judgment." READ MORE

A Nova Scotia Court has ordered the eviction of a Halifax tenant over derogatory remarks against his South Asian neighbours. A “good behaviour” clause in tenancy laws of most provinces applies to rudeness, a Small Claims adjudicator ruled: "Good behaviour extends beyond merely refraining from threatening to commit physical or property damage." READ MORE

Opposition parties yesterday demanded Prime Minister Mark Carney disclose to Parliament the secret terms of a cross-border trade pact. A draft agreement outlined by U.S. authorities would end 61 years of tariff-free Canadian auto exports to the U.S. and grant unprecedented Canadian market access for American farmers: "We have the right to know what concessions are being granted to Donald Trump." READ MORE