The Line

In this episode of The Line Podcast, recorded before the Thanksgiving long weekend on October 10, 2025, your hosts Matt Gurney and Jen Gerson put forward something of an unusual episode.This episode ofThe Line Podcast is brought to you by Forestry For The Future. Canada’s housing crisis demands bold, scalable solutions. Build Canada Homes is an opportunity to leverage Canadian wood in modern construction. Wood-based methods like mass timber and modular construction can significantly reduce build times, waste, and carbon emissions, while supporting local economies. Expanding building codes, streamlining approvals, and prioritizing domestic wood in federal projects could double demand and foster job creation in rural and northern communities.Despite trade challenges and market volatility, a partnership between industry and government is vital to stabilize the sector, enhance competitiveness, and deliver innovative, sustainably sourced Canadian wood products for homes across Canada and abroad. With capacity growing across provinces, stable demand and predictable financing are key to unlocking the sector’s potential.We need to Build Canada Homes with Canadian wood. To learn more, visit ForestryForTheFuture.ca.They start with a quick recap of some of the big political stories of the week. Mark Carney’s trip to Washington is at the top of the list — how it went, what it means, and why, even though they don’t have much criticism to offer, both Matt and Jen think time might not be on his side.This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.From there, the podcast takes a different turn. In a long and emotional conversation, Matt and Jen talk about the ongoing Alberta teachers’ strike. They start with the logistics — how Jen and her family are coping — but the conversation quickly deepens into why she’s so angry and frustrated with everyone involved. She doesn’t go into detail about her family’s situation for privacy reasons, but what she says will likely resonate with thousands of parents who are just trying to do right by their kids in a system that refuses to make hard decisions because it would be politically incorrect to do so. The result? We are abandoning kids, and wasting their potential, because of adults who don't want to ever admit that they were wrong about anything.It’s a different kind of segment — we admit it's not our usual content. But we think it’s worth your time. And we suspect a lot of parents out there have been waiting to hear someone finally say it.Please enjoy, if that's the word, this unusual episode of The Line Podcast. Like and subscribe and all the rest. And just as a programming note, since it's the long weekend, we won't be publishing a dispatch. So we'll talk to you next week. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

This week on On The Line, host Jen Gerson has Globe and Mail columnist Tony Keller to discuss his new short book, Borderline Chaos: How Canada got Immigration Right, and Then Wrong. This episode of the On The Line Podcast is brought to you by Forestry For The Future. Canadian forestry supports 200,000 workers, generates $87 billion in annual revenue, contributes $21 billion annually to our nation’s economy, and provides the products we need to build homes and drive economic growth. While trade barriers from the U.S. are siphoning jobs and investment away, Canada’s own approval processes and regulations are preventing critical projects that both prevent wildfires and boost our economic self-reliance.We can and should have programs that expand domestic wood use, advance biomass use and pulp market opportunities, and cut red tape and regulatory barriers. The government of Canada has a clear opportunity to stand up for Canadian forestry at a time of growing global uncertainty. We need real action that puts Canadians first — supporting employees and their families, securing stability for our businesses, and protecting the long-term potential of our sector and its people. To learn more, visit ForestryForTheFuture.ca.They discuss the pan-partisan immigration consensus; why the federal Liberal government began to ratchet up immigration numbers; the impact on social services and social cohesion; and what the country needs to be doing to fix what we broke.This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.Tony Keller is a long-time Globe columnist whose work can be seen here. He is this year's Max Bell School of Public Policy lecturer, and will be travelling across the country to talk about these issues in coming weeks. 

In the latest episode of The Line Podcast, recorded on October 3, 2025, Matt Gurney and Jen Gerson dive right into the top stories of the week — and a few other ones, too.They start in Alberta, where Matt argues that Premier Danielle Smith has set a trap — and he says that with admiration. Jen agrees, but also notes how wearying it is to live in a province where recycling old grievances has become a stand-in for actual governance. Matt points out that many Albertans have long since insisted they need to be more like Quebec … and, well, they’re succeeding. Unfortunately, Alberta is turning into Quebec in all the worst ways.This episode of The Line Podcast is brought to you by Forestry For The Future. Canadian forestry supports 200,000 workers, generates $87 billion in annual revenue, contributes $21 billion annually to our nation’s economy, and provides the products we need to build homes and drive economic growth. While trade barriers from the U.S. are siphoning jobs and investment away, Canada’s own approval processes and regulations are preventing critical projects that both prevent wildfires and boost our economic self-reliance.We can and should have programs that expand domestic wood use, advance biomass use and pulp market opportunities, and cut red tape and regulatory barriers. The government of Canada has a clear opportunity to stand up for Canadian forestry at a time of growing global uncertainty. We need real action that puts Canadians first — supporting employees and their families, securing stability for our businesses, and protecting the long-term potential of our sector and its people. To learn more, visit ForestryForTheFuture.ca.From there, the conversation shifts east to Toronto Metropolitan University (yes, formerly Ryerson), where there’s some drama in the progressive camp. A group of students is suing the school both for making them look anti-Semitic and for not being progressive enough, despite promising it would be. As you might imagine, Matt and Jen have some fun with that one.This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.Last but not least, Matt shares — with absolute delight — another gem of Canadian military procurement excellence. But behind the humour, he offers a more serious warning: Canada is drifting toward a two-tier system of governance, and the irony is that it’s the Liberals who are making that happen.All that and more in the latest episode of The Line Podcast. For more, check us out at ReadTheLine.ca.

This week on On The Line, Matt Gurney is joined by Clayton Campbell, president of the Toronto Police Association, for a frank conversation about the state of law and order in Canada’s biggest city — and beyond.They start with morale inside the force, the kinds of work officers are being asked to do, and the kinds of work no one ever wants to do again. They also talk about ways to prevent people from entering the criminal justice system in the first place.This episode is brought to you by Universities Canada. Canada’s prosperity is built on people with ideas — researchers, scholars and students and the universities that support them in shaping our future. Budget 2025 is an opportunity to advance that momentum. Global uncertainty and shifting geopolitics have made this vision even more urgent. A vibrant Canadian research ecosystem is essential — one that generates made-in-Canada solutions, retains top talent and preserves our technological independence in critical fields.Federal grants and scholarships must be safeguarded. Because this isn’t just about campuses. It’s about made-in-Canada solutions for our economy, our health care system and our national security. Supporting researchers today secures the talent pipeline and innovation we need for a stronger Canada.Learn more at univcan.ca.From there, the discussion shifts to eroding public confidence in law and order — a trend that’s driving some Canadians to arm themselves or hire private security firms to patrol wealthy neighbourhoods. Bail reform inevitably comes up, as does sentencing, and the challenge of deterring young offenders from doing the dirty work of organized crime groups that see underage recruits as an asset.This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.And, because it’s Matt, the episode wraps with a look at the federal government’s gun confiscation plans. Clayton doesn’t like them any more than Matt does, and he isn’t convinced Ottawa can actually make the program work if it ever goes forward.New episodes of On The Line drop every Tuesday. Subscribe at ReadTheLine.ca, follow us on your favourite podcast app, and don’t forget to leave us a nice review. Audio drops every Tuesday morning, with video rolling out Tuesday evening on YouTube and our social channels. Catch it wherever you listen or watch.

In the latest episode of The Line Podcast, recorded on Sept. 26, 2025, Jen and Matt start off by digging into the reckless and needless fight Mark Carney and his attorney general, Sean Fraser, have decided to pick with the Constitution. Jen has some strong words about the notwithstanding clause, while Matt has some blunt advice for the guy who just destroyed Canada’s multi-decade immigration consensus: maybe don’t bring your special brand of talent to the highest law of the land next.This episode of The Line Podcast is brought to you by Universities Canada. From cancer treatments and clean water technologies to quantum computing and AI, university research is driving discoveries that change lives. These breakthroughs start in Canadian university labs, but their impact is felt in every community. Universities carry out nearly 40 per cent of Canada’s research and development, generating more than $55 billion in economic impact each year. Every dollar invested returns benefits for Canadians: new treatments, stronger industries, and thriving communities. But research requires sustained federal support. Without it, Canada risks losing talent and ideas abroad. To learn more, visit Univcan.ca.From there, they turn to Washington. U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra made an interesting comment about what the Trump administration’s next pressure point on Canada will be. It’s a predictable one, but it could hurt. Jen also flags a news story out of D.C. that seems to have left even people who usually rush to dismiss Trump-related criticism as alarmism feeling uneasy.This episode of The Line Podcast is also brought to you by Forestry For The Future. Canadian forestry supports 200,000 workers, generates $87 billion in annual revenue, contributes $21 billion annually to our nation's economy, and provides the products we need to build homes and drive economic growth. While trade barriers from the U.S. are siphoning jobs and investment away, Canada’s own approval processes and regulations are preventing critical projects that both prevent wildfires and boost our economic self-reliance.We can and should have programs that expand domestic wood use, advance biomass use and pulp market opportunities, and cut red tape and regulatory barriers. The government of Canada has a clear opportunity to stand up for Canadian forestry at a time of growing global uncertainty. We need real action that puts Canadians first — supporting employees and their families, securing stability for our businesses, and protecting the long-term potential of our sector and its people. To learn more, visit ForestryForTheFuture.ca.Finally, Matt makes the case for why they may need to accelerate their timelines on the Carney government. He’s driving over political landmines a lot faster than his predecessor did, and that can catch up with a leader in a hurry.This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.All that and more in the latest episode of The Line Podcast. Check us out and like and subscribe at ReadTheLine.ca and follow us on YouTube or your favourite podcast app.

This week on On The Line, Jen Gerson sits down with Philip Ball, one of the world’s most respected science writers, for a wide-ranging conversation about the state of modern science and the art of explaining it. Ball reflects on his journey from laboratory scientist to science communicator, and what it means to challenge old assumptions about the world around us.This episode is brought to you by Universities Canada. From cancer treatments and clean water technologies to quantum computing and AI, university research is driving discoveries that change lives. These breakthroughs start in Canadian university labs, but their impact is felt in every community. Universities carry out nearly 40 per cent of Canada’s research and development, generating more than $55 billion in economic impact each year. Every dollar invested returns benefits for Canadians: new treatments, stronger industries, and thriving communities. But research requires sustained federal support. Without it, Canada risks losing talent and ideas abroad. To learn more, visit Univcan.ca. Gerson and Ball talk about how the science many of us learned in high school is being reconsidered — from the Big Bang to the origins of life — and how even the most fundamental ideas are far less settled than they once seemed. Along the way, the discussion touches on the mysteries of consciousness, the shifting relationship between science and culture, the role of critics in keeping the field honest, and the challenge of making complicated ideas understandable without losing their meaning.This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.It’s an engaging conversation about curiosity, humility, and why the pursuit of knowledge never really ends.New episodes of On The Line drop every Tuesday. Subscribe at ReadTheLine.ca, follow us on your favourite podcast app, and don’t forget to leave us a nice review. Audio drops every Tuesday morning, with video rolling out Tuesday evening on YouTube and our social channels. Catch it wherever you listen or watch.

In this week's episode of The Line Podcast, recorded on Sept. 19, 2025, Matt Gurney and Jen Gerson open with Canadian federal politics. Mark Carney is clearly cleaning house. We talk about why Chrystia Freeland may actually be entering her best years as a political force, share a laugh about our backstory with Canada’s new ambassador to the UN, and ask whether Carney will use by-elections or the Senate to get his people in. This episode of The Line Podcast is brought to you by Universities Canada. Across Canada, university campuses are more than classrooms – they’re community hubs. From gyms and pools, to theatres, health clinics and labs, campus spaces welcome everyone. Whether it’s a hockey tournament, daycare, or a summer camp, investing in campuses means investing in the communities we share. But years of underfunding have left a $17 billion maintenance backlog, with one in three campus infrastructure projects now critical or near-critical. Campus infrastructure is community infrastructure. To keep building communities, the federal government must make campus infrastructure eligible in federal programs. To learn more, visit UnivCan.ca.They then turn south, where the fallout of the Charlie Kirk assassination lingers. Jen has some tough words for people you’d normally think of as her allies, and Matt lays out the conditions under which he’ll take anyone’s views on these matters seriously. They also touch on the Jimmy Kimmel situation.This episode of The Line Podcast is also brought to you by Forestry For The Future. Canadian forestry supports 200,000 workers, generates $87 billion in annual revenue, contributes $21 billion annually to our nation's economy, and provides the products we need to build homes and drive economic growth. While trade barriers from the U.S. are siphoning jobs and investment away, Canada’s own approval processes and regulations are preventing critical projects that both prevent wildfires and boost our economic self-reliance.We can and should have programs that expand domestic wood use, advance biomass use and pulp market opportunities, and cut red tape and regulatory barriers. The government of Canada has a clear opportunity to stand up for Canadian forestry at a time of growing global uncertainty. We need real action that puts Canadians first — supporting employees and their families, securing stability for our businesses, and protecting the long-term potential of our sector and its people. To learn more, visit ForestryForTheFuture.ca.Finally, Matt turns the tables and asks Jen about her recent trips to other spiritual realms. If you’ve read her piece on her visit to the Monroe Institute, this segment will make sense — and if you enjoyed that article, you’ll get some extra value from hearing her describe it in her own words.This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.All that and more in the latest episode of The Line Podcast. Check us out and like and subscribe at ReadTheLine.ca.

This week on On the Line, Matt is joined by two familiar voices. First up, P.J. Fournier from 338Canada.com and 338Canada.ca drops in with a quick update. He’s been tracking the polls as Parliament gets back to work, and his verdict is that not much has shifted since the election. Still, he lays out the opportunities and headaches facing Mark Carney and the Liberals, Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives, and what's left of the NDP as it tries to figure out what exactly it wants to be ... and what leader will help get them there.This episode of On The Line is brought to you by Universities Canada. Across Canada, university campuses are more than classrooms – they’re community hubs. From gyms and pools, to theatres, health clinics and labs, campus spaces welcome everyone. Whether it’s a hockey tournament, daycare, or a summer camp, investing in campuses means investing in the communities we share. But years of underfunding have left a $17 billion maintenance backlog, with one in three campus infrastructure projects now critical or near-critical. Campus infrastructure is community infrastructure. To keep building communities, the federal government must make campus infrastructure eligible in federal programs. To learn more, visit UnivCan.ca.After that, Matt is joined by a friend of the show, Jamie Carroll of Carroll & Co. Consulting. You’ll remember him from our anti-panel during the campaign, and this time he sticks around for a longer chat about what’s happening inside Liberal circles. Why is the caucus already grumbling? What’s keeping Mark Carney awake at night? And why does poor Michael Sabia seem to have been left with a to-do list that might as well include stopping a Russian offensive in eastern Europe all by himself?We’re (mostly) joking about that last part, but it’s fair to say it’s been a strange few weeks, hasn't it?This episode is also brought to you by the Daily Bread Food Bank. Working-age Canadians with disabilities experience poverty and food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. The Canada Disability Benefit was designed to address this, but at $6.67 a day, it fails to cover essentials like food, housing, and medication. Daily Bread Food Bank and coalition partners urge the federal government to fully fund the benefit to lift those it was meant to serve out of poverty. Join thousands of Canadians calling for change to help ensure people with disabilities can live a life of dignity. Take action at FundTheBenefit.ca.Subscribe at ReadTheLine.ca, follow us on your favourite podcast app, and don’t forget to leave us a nice review. Audio drops every Tuesday morning, with video rolling out Tuesday evening on YouTube and our social channels. Catch it wherever you listen or watch.

In this episode of The Line Podcast, recorded on Sept. 12th, 2025, Rob Breakenridge joins Matt from Calgary, filling in for Jen Gerson, who is on assignment out of town. The two men acknowledge — but deliberately steer away from — the emerging details of the rapidly unfolding Charlie Kirk assassination investigation. Instead, they focus on the bigger picture: the mood, the vibes, and why so many people on both sides of the border seem to be bracing for some kind of civil conflict against a vaguely defined “them.” Neither is certain how Canada, or the United States, can pull back from this trajectory. Or if people really even want to. This episode of The Line Podcast is brought to you by Universities Canada. Canada has promised millions of new homes, shorter waits in health care and stronger defence. But promises don’t design and engineer roads, staff clinics or secure networks — people do. That’s why we need a clear, coordinated system to attract and retain the world’s best talent, while creating more opportunities for Canadians. The best and brightest should always see Canadian universities as their first choice. It's time to put talent at the centre of Canada’s priorities. The path forward starts with training people — and Canada’s world-class universities are ready to lead the way.To learn more, visit Univcan.ca.After that, they turn to issues closer to home. The Carney government has officially launched its Major Projects Office and revealed the first programs slated for elevation. Rob breaks down what’s on the agenda and why, despite the office not explicitly mentioning a pipeline, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has responded positively. Matt, meanwhile, shares the part of the announcement he found oddly amusing — but also despair-inducing — in the way it revealed deeper national challenges. Both men agree that it might be better to just fix the problems with approvals, rather than creating a new, special unit that gives a few chosen projections the efficient treatment, while everything else suffers. Matt quips that this is Canadian health-care-style thinking applied to permit approvals. Should go fine.This episode of The Line Podcast is also brought to you by Forestry For The Future. Canadian forestry supports 200,000 workers, generates $87 billion in annual revenue, contributes $21 billion annually to our nation's economy, and provides the products we need to build homes and drive economic growth. While trade barriers from the U.S. are siphoning jobs and investment away, Canada’s own approval processes and regulations are preventing critical projects that both prevent wildfires and boost our economic self-reliance.We can and should have programs that expand domestic wood use, advance biomass use and pulp market opportunities, and cut red tape and regulatory barriers. The government of Canada has a clear opportunity to stand up for Canadian forestry at a time of growing global uncertainty. We need real action that puts Canadians first — supporting employees and their families, securing stability for our businesses, and protecting the long-term potential of our sector and its people. To learn more, visit ForestryForTheFuture.ca.Finally, Matt and Rob interview each other about their latest Line columns. Rob walks listeners through his piece on Alberta’s book ban that badly backfired, while Matt explains why he thinks Canadians are rightfully losing faith in their own safety — and why that needs to change if Canada is to avoid sliding down the same dangerous path already visible in the United States.Cheerful stuff, eh? If you need your mood lifted even further, check us out at ReadTheLine.ca. Like, subscribe, and pray.

In this week’s episode of On The Line, Matt Gurney is joined by Stephanie Levitz from Ottawa. Steph is a senior reporter in the Globe and Mail's Ottawa bureau. They break down the wave of Liberal announcements last week — and why the government will struggle mightily to turn promises into reality.This episode of On The Line is brought to you by Universities Canada. Canada has promised millions of new homes, shorter waits in health care and stronger defence. But promises don’t design and engineer roads, staff clinics or secure networks — people do. That’s why we need a clear, coordinated system to attract and retain the world’s best talent, while creating more opportunities for Canadians. The best and brightest should always see Canadian universities as their first choice. It's time to put talent at the centre of Canada’s priorities. The path forward starts with training people — and Canada’s world-class universities are ready to lead the way.To learn more, visit Univcan.ca.Then they turn to the Conservatives: Pierre Poilievre’s new self-defence and home defence plan is well timed, especially when contrasted with the Liberals’ clumsy response. But the party is also deliberately testing the waters on temporary foreign workers. Matt and Stephanie dig into how a modern Western conservative party can navigate the line between legitimate criticism of a specific policy and sliding into anti-immigrant hysteria — and why, so far, Canada's Conservatives have mostly avoided that trap.Finally, a brief check-in on the NDP … which doesn’t take long.Oh, and a lot of Ghostbusters references that go right over Steph's head. Matt couldn't help himself. They just ... popped in there.Subscribe at ReadTheLine.ca, follow us on your favourite podcast app, and don’t forget to leave us a nice review. Audio drops every Tuesday morning, with video rolling out Tuesday evening on YouTube and our social channels. Catch it wherever you listen or watch.