Transparent public discussions are needed around how ‘sex,’ ‘gender identity’ and ‘gender expression’ are being defined and given effect in education, law, public policy and beyond.
As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faces questions about his own political future, it’s worth remembering his father’s famous walk in the snow 40 years ago — and what fuelled his decision to quit.
The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that the federal Impact Assessment Act needs amendments for Constitutional compliance, but the court’s recommended approach is no longer viable.
Justin Trudeau has been in power for almost a decade, achieving some of his objectives and stalling on others. What will be his legacy, and is constitutional reform in the cards in the next two years?
The notwithstanding clause is both historically appropriate and democratically desirable. Excising it would make our Charter of Rights and Freedoms more American. Is that really where we want to go?
The constitutional reform agreement reached in November 1981 has produced a bitterness in national relations that lingers to this day and imposes on Canada a cost that has weakened the nation.
Jennifer Quaid, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa
The Supreme Court of Canada’s recent ruling against a company that claimed a fine against it constituted cruel and unusual punishment will quell fears of weakening corporate law.
We have a serious deficit in legal protection for human rights in Australia, rights that have been in regression for 20 years. We need a legislated charter setting out the rights we care about.
Research shows therapeutic psilocybin to be a safe and effective antidote to end-of-life anxiety and depression. Does prohibition therefore violate our right to “life, liberty and security?”
Threats by two of Canada’s newest premiers to invoke the notwithstanding clause send a clear message to the federal Liberals: Ontario and Quebec do not play by the rules.
Ontario’s recent threat to use the notwithstanding clause to reduce the size of Toronto’s city council is a reminder that municipalities have little protection under the Constitution.
Doug Ford’s wielding of the notwithstanding clause is part of a broader opposition to judicial activism that has developed among right-wing politicians and academics in the post-Charter era.
The notwithstanding clause in Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms has seldom been used. But it’s not totally gathering dust, and now Ontario Premier Doug Ford is threatening to wield it.