Not long after I was elected to Parliament, I attended the unveiling of a commemorative plaque acknowledging the internment of Ukrainian Canadians during the First World War. Despite coming to Canada to help build our country, they were considered to be "enemy aliens" and thousands were interned in camps across...

Like many Canadians, I have been following the promotion of the Bell Let's Talk campaign in lead up to today. Let's Talk is an innovative public service campaign that has created a meaningful conversation about mental health. Like I do each year, I was planning to do some...

In my final blog on electoral reform I will share my most serious concern with a move away from our long standing electoral system. In previous blogs I highlighted that this electoral reform exercise was a solution in search of a problem and how the limited debate and...

The term "gerrymandering" is rooted in the 1812 state elections in Massachusetts when Governor Elbridge Gerry tried to manipulate the outcome by redrawing electoral district boundaries to give his party an unfair advantage.

The new borders were not drawn using any discernible logic based on counties, population or geography,...

This will be my first of three blogs outlining the troubling exercise being conducted by the Trudeau government under the guise of "electoral reform."

After watching this issue unfold in Ottawa, I firmly believe that this exercise is motivated by calculated political advantage...

The last week saw the transition of power in Great Britain, as the office of prime minister passed from David Cameron to Theresa May. Cameron dutifully and appropriately resigned after leading the unsuccessful Remain campaign during the referendum on the U.K.'s membership in the European Union. I always liked David...

I write this column in the shadow of Canada Day, a time when politicians like me remind Canadians that we live in the greatest country in the world. Our country is great because Canada provides tremendous freedom and opportunity for people to grow pursue their dreams. Dreams are achieved through a...

One generation plants the trees, so that another will get the shade. The simple wisdom of this Chinese proverb perfectly describes the inheritance one generation accepts from those who came before. The Canada we enjoy today was forged by the men and women who came before us. Our connection to...

In the first year of law school I remember learning one of the most well-known axioms about the law. "The Law," Aristotle once said, "is reason devoid of passion." That might be the case for the laws of the land once they are codified and in force, but it is...

"Canada has a good reputation...in the world, but let's make no mistake about it: Canada does not have a history as a pacifist or a neutralist country. Canada has soldiers who are buried all over Europe because we fought in defence of liberty."

This quote by former Liberal deputy prime...

The diversity of the Canadian economy is a critical part of our economic success as a nation and this diversity is particularly important when the global economy slows. We saw this during the 2008-09 global recession, and we are witnessing this now amid a major drop in global commodity prices....

There has been much talk in the election and the time since then about Prime Minister Trudeau's desire to emulate the "sunny ways" approach of Prime Minister Wilfred Laurier. Laurier's sunny ways philosophy is often attributed to his approach to the challenges of linguistic and religious differences facing a young...

The 2015 election featured a wide-ranging debate on a number of issues facing Canada and our role in the world and while I am disappointed in the final result I was happy to see an incredibly smooth transition of power. The will of the people gets expressed in an election...

The Toronto Star published an op-ed by Tom Beaver and Ron Clarke, the leaders of the so-called Anybody But Conservative (or "ABC Veterans") Facebook, on Aug. 31, 2015.

On Sept. 2, 2015, I respectfully asked for equal space and submitted the following op-ed in response. Nearly two weeks...

This week many Canadians young and old have been upset by news that 90-year-old veteran, Art Boon, was not permitted to have his son serve as a caregiver travel companion for the 70th Anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands. The Avon Maitland District School Board would not grant the...

I would like to thank Paul Franklin for his blog post and sharing his personal story with Canadians, including frustrations related to access to service and benefits from Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC).

Paul is an outstanding Canadian and an inspirational veteran. His participation in the Soldier ON...