Experts, Liberal MP hope for full ban on sports betting ads as advocates cite mental health decline

This article is new today!

Source: CBC Politics
Date: 2026-10-30 14:50:39.0
Tags: [National, Ontario, Alberta, Quebec, Healthcare, Social Services, Governance]

Bill S-211, introduced in May 2025 by Senator Marty Deacon and sponsored in the House by MP Bardish Chagger, is currently before the House standing committee on Canadian heritage to restrict sports betting ads across Canada. Supporters including Liberal MP Michael Coteau and public policy think-tank Cardus cite a University of Toronto study showing gambling-related emergency room visits nearly doubled in Ontario, alongside a 161 per cent increase in helpline calls among males aged 15-24 since single-game betting was legalized in 2021. Provincial officials from Ontario, Alberta, and Quebec, along with the Canadian Association of Broadcasters, have raised concerns regarding provincial jurisdiction, overlapping regulations, and economic impacts on commercial operators like FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM.

S-212 (45-1) - National Strategy for Children and Youth Act

This article is new today!

Source: Parliament of Canada (LEGISinfo)
Date: 2026-10-30 13:30:58.0
Tags: [National, Governance, Social Services]

Senate Public Bill S-212, titled the National Strategy for Children and Youth Act and sponsored by Senator Rosemary Moodie, progressed through the Senate during the 45th Parliament, 1st session, before being received in the House of Commons for first reading on March 12, 2026. The legislation aimed to establish a national strategy for children and youth in Canada but was ultimately not proceeded with in the House of Commons on October 30, 2026. This bill is a successor to Bill S-282 introduced during the 44th Parliament. The initiative builds upon advocacy frameworks such as the Canadian Children’s Charter and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

2 years on, the Nunavut government is still trying to get elder mobility vans on the road

This article is new today!

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-30 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Transportation, Seniors, Social Services, Infrastructure]

Two years after the Government of Nunavut spent $1 million purchasing five elder mobility vans for Iqaluit, Cambridge Bay, Coral Harbour, Pangnirtung, and Rankin Inlet, the vehicles remain parked and unused due to a failure to secure operational funding. The initial pilot project contract with the non-profit Northern Future Skills Development expired after the territorial government budgeted only for vehicle purchases and shipments without providing management funds. Premier John Main announced that the government has now approved $1.25 million in funding for the current year to establish an operational policy and seek new organizations to run the transportation service.

Five more public housing units open in Behchokǫ̀, N.W.T.

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 23:15:30.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Indigenous, Social Services, Infrastructure]

Housing N.W.T. has completed and turned over keys for five new public housing units in Behchokǫ̀, consisting of a four-unit building and a three-bedroom single-family home. The modular units were built in Hay River, shipped to Behchokǫ̀ for assembly in April, and are designed to replace older public housing units that have reached the end of their usable life. This deployment follows a territorial needs assessment released in March by Housing N.W.T. indicating that over half of households in Behchokǫ̀ face housing challenges, alongside the recent arrival of eight additional public housing units and one more duplex expected by the end of the year.

Anxiety grows as Yukon Health Minister moves to crack down on tents outside shelter

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 17:02:35.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Social Services, Public Safety]

Yukon Health and Social Services Minister Brad Cathers has announced steps to crack down on tents set up outside the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter, citing concerns over illicit drug dealing. The territory is coordinating actions with shelter management, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Fire Marshal’s Office, and bylaw services. The crackdown unfolds amid soaring living costs in Whitehorse, where the latest inflation rate stands at 6.1 per cent and the living wage has risen to $32.43 per hour for a single-person household, while the shelter operates at 64 per cent capacity.

Canada Dental Care Plan working but costing more than expected: auditor general

Source: CBC Politics
Date: 2026-10-29 14:50:35.0
Tags: [National, Healthcare, Affordability, Finance, Social Services]

A report by Auditor General Karen Hogan found that Health Canada's Canadian Dental Care Plan exceeded its initial budget commitments by $1.1 billion during the 2024–25 and 2025–26 fiscal years, with an anticipated further shortfall of $2.4 billion by 2032 due to higher-than-anticipated claim payments per member. While the program successfully reduced average household out-of-pocket dental expenses from $536 in 2023 to $264 for users, the audit revealed persistent public confusion, with 560,000 members (16 per cent of those accessing services in 2025) receiving full coverage, while dental providers spent roughly an hour a day addressing coverage ambiguities and call centres struggled to meet quality metrics. In response, Health Canada engaged the Office of the Chief Actuary to provide quarterly actuarial forecasts to improve claim payment projections and financial planning.

N.W.T. premier commits to transferring child and family services to Akaitcho First Nations

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 12:24:40.0
Tags: [National, Indigenous, Social Services, Governance]

Northwest Territories Premier R.J. Simpson has committed to transferring jurisdiction over child and family services to the Akaitcho First Nations following concerns raised at their annual general assembly regarding foster children being separated from their culture. The Yellowknives Dene First Nation has already indicated its intent to pursue the process, prompting the Department of Health and Social Services to initiate work on establishing a coordination agreement under the federal Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families. Previous audits by the Office of the Auditor General of Canada highlighted major failings in the territorial system, including unverified foster home safety, missed welfare checks, and excessive caseworker loads surpassing the internal maximum of 11 cases.

S-253 (45-1) - Making Child Care More Affordable for Canadian Families Act

Source: Parliament of Canada (LEGISinfo)
Date: 2026-10-29 00:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Taxation, Affordability, Social Services, Governance]

Bill S-253, titled the Making Child Care More Affordable for Canadian Families Act, was introduced and read for the first time in the Senate on October 29, 2026. The Senate Public Bill proposes to amend the Income Tax Act specifically regarding the child care expense deduction indexation. The legislation is currently at the second reading stage in the Senate during the 1st session of the 45th Parliament.

C-222 (45-1) - Relieving Grieving Parents of an Administrative Burden Act (Evan's Law)

Source: Parliament of Canada (LEGISinfo)
Date: 2026-10-27 19:44:40.0
Tags: [National, Labour, Social Services, Governance]

Bill C-222, titled the Relieving Grieving Parents of an Administrative Burden Act (Evan's Law) and sponsored by Liberal MP Terry Beech, proposes amendments to the Employment Insurance Act and the Canada Labour Code regarding the death of a child. The Private Member's Bill passed second reading unanimously with 331 votes in the House of Commons on February 4, 2026, received amendments from the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons and Disabilities (HUMA) in April 2026, and advanced to third reading debate on October 27, 2026.

Yukon minister directing ‘crackdown’ of tents outside Whitehorse shelter, but won’t say how

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-27 15:44:59.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Social Services, Public Safety, Governance]

Yukon Health and Social Services Minister Brad Cathers stated in the Yukon Legislative Assembly that he has directed his department to crack down on tents outside the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter at 405 Alexander St. The minister stated he instructed his department to collaborate with the Department of Justice, the Department of Highways and Public Works, the RCMP, and the City of Whitehorse bylaw services to remove the encampments. Liberal Party Leader and Vuntut Gwitchin MLA Debra-Leigh Reti criticized the lack of operational clarity regarding the plan and called for a dedicated task force to assess the needs of individuals outside the shelter. The announcement coincides with ongoing legislative debate surrounding proposed amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act and the elimination of rent control in the Yukon.

N.W.T. gov't working to reopen Yellowknife treatment centre for children with complex needs

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-26 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Healthcare, Social Services, Infrastructure]

The Government of the Northwest Territories' Department of Health and Social Services is working to reopen the Territorial Treatment Centre at 5218 52nd Street in Yellowknife, which has been closed since late 2021 due to staffing shortages under former operator Unlimited Potential Community Services. Three contractors have submitted bids ranging from $255,408 to $450,000 to complete necessary renovations to the nine-bedroom residential facility, including bathroom, kitchen, flooring, and furnishing upgrades. The initiative aims to provide local psychiatric and behavioural support for children aged eight to 12, thereby reducing the need to send vulnerable northern youth to out-of-territory facilities in Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan.

Auditor presses N.W.T. child and family services to assess its own needs

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-22 20:17:39.0
Tags: [National, Social Services, Governance, Indigenous]

Canada's Office of the Auditor General (OAG) criticized Northwest Territories Child and Family Services—housed within the Department of Health and Social Services—for systemic staffing shortages, unmanageable caseloads triple internal maximums, and failing to systematically assess its own human resource needs. Deputy Auditor General Andrew Hayes reported that 98 percent of children in care in the N.W.T. are Indigenous, and persistent job vacancies continue to compromise welfare checks and foster home safety evaluations. In response, executive director of child and family services Arijana Haramincic stated the department has added 56 positions, expedited hiring, adjusted cultural training, and implemented bi-annual internal audits.

MPs moving to restrict gambling ads in Canada amid mounting harms

Source: CBC Politics
Date: 2026-10-22 08:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Ontario, Alberta, Public Safety, Governance, Social Services]

Federal MPs and Senators are advancing Bill S-211, a national legislative framework sponsored by MP Bardish Chagger and Senator Marty Deacon to restrict widespread sports betting advertisements and gambling promotions across Canada. The legislation follows findings from an analysis conducted by the University of Bristol during the 2026 NHL playoffs that revealed up to three gambling messages per minute on televised broadcasts featuring Canadian teams. The push to curb online gambling marketing comes amid rising rates of gambling addiction and a tripling of gambling-related suicides in Ontario following the province's 2022 expansion of private online casinos and sports betting. The provinces of Ontario and Alberta, along with the Canadian Gaming Association representing 80 industry operators, have opposed the federal bill, arguing it infringes on provincial regulatory authority over gaming frameworks.

Unreliable safety inspections at N.W.T. daycares put kids at risk, auditors find

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-21 23:14:15.0
Tags: [National, Education, Social Services, Governance]

A report by the Auditor General of Canada revealed that the Northwest Territories Department of Education, Culture and Employment failed to fulfill key early learning and child care responsibilities, putting children at risk through unreliable safety inspections and a lack of follow-up on high-risk deficiencies such as missing smoke detectors. Auditors reviewed 44 inspection files and found that approximately 20 percent used outdated criteria, inspectors lacked formal standardized training, and the department disbursed funds to child care facilities without verifying enrollment reports or staff timesheets. Furthermore, the department fell short on monitoring inclusive child care spaces and failed to properly track recruitment and retention following the 2021 federal-territorial child care agreement.

Denny Rodgers named N.W.T.’s new health and social services minister

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-21 23:04:42.0
Tags: [National, Healthcare, Social Services, Governance]

Denny Rodgers, MLA for Inuvik-Boot Lake, was appointed as the Northwest Territories' new Minister of Health and Social Services by Premier R.J. Simpson following an acclamation to cabinet in the N.W.T. Legislative Assembly. Rodgers assumes the portfolio previously vacated by former minister and Inuvik Twin Lakes MLA Lesa Semmler following her sudden resignation in mid-September. Lucy Kuptana, who managed the department on an interim basis, will return solely to her duties as Minister for Housing N.W.T. and Minister responsible for the Status of Women. Meanwhile, a by-election to fill Semmler's vacant legislative seat in Inuvik Twin Lakes is scheduled for November 24.

N.W.T. expands home heating subsidy for seniors

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-21 18:06:17.0
Tags: [National, Seniors, Affordability, Social Services, Energy]

The Government of the Northwest Territories announced modifications to the Senior Home Heating Subsidy by raising the household income threshold to $90,000 or less per year to expand financial assistance over the winter. The new policy replaces a previous three-zone system ranging from $66,000 to $87,000 with a uniform income cap while maintaining zone-based monthly subsidy rates of $530 for Zone 1, $685 for Zone 2, and $1,090 for Zone 3. Payments are distributed monthly between September and April, with previously denied applicants automatically reassessed and an application deadline set for March 15, 2027.

8 new housing units, built in Hay River, arrive in Behchokǫ̀

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-20 22:55:41.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Social Services, Indigenous, Infrastructure]

Housing N.W.T. has delivered eight new modular social housing units, constructed as four duplexes by METCAN Building Solutions in Hay River, to the community of Behchokǫ̀, with a final duplex scheduled for delivery by the end of the year to bring the total to ten units. The units are expected to be ready for occupancy by December to address a high local demand for one-bedroom social housing. This delivery forms part of a broader territorial initiative funded by a three-year, $150 million investment to construct 98 single-occupant housing units across nine Northwest Territories communities—including Behchokǫ̀, Fort Providence, Tuktoyaktuk, Inuvik, Délı̨nę, Tulita, Fort Simpson, Ulukhaktok, and Fort Smith—by March 2028.

Trʼondëk Hwëchʼin opens new family services building in Dawson City, Yukon

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-20 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Indigenous, Social Services, Infrastructure, Culture]

The Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation has officially opened its new family services building, named Ni’ehłyat Nidähjì’ (meaning 'Our Families, Our Future' in the Hän language), in Dawson City, Yukon. Formed around 2022 and constructed entirely by local Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in contractors, the facility is designed to provide voluntary wrap-around services—including pre- and post-natal support, cultural programs, family wellness, nutrition, and traditional parenting support—while collaborating with the First Nation's wellness and justice departments to bridge service gaps.

Q&A | Navarana Beveridge looking ahead in her first week as NTI CEO

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-18 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Indigenous, Governance, Social Services]

Navarana Beveridge assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer for Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (NTI) on October 5, 2026, bringing two decades of experience with Inuit organizations, including negotiating the Mary River Project Inuit Impact and Benefit Agreement. In her first week, Beveridge outlined her priorities to focus on listening to leadership, preparing for the upcoming Annual General Meeting in Kugluktuk alongside President Gloria Uluqsi, and implementing the Inungnik Makipalliatittiniq strategic plan. She emphasized collaboration with government bodies and regional Inuit associations to address critical regional issues such as housing shortages, food insecurity, and family services.

Housing advocate fears removing rent control will thwart plan to end homelessness

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-15 19:45:44.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Social Services, Governance]

The Yukon territorial government endorsed the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition's 112-page community action plan to end homelessness, titled A Place to Be, while simultaneously introducing a bill in the Legislative Assembly via Community Services Minister Cory Bellmore to repeal rent caps and reintroduce no-cause evictions. Kristina Craig, executive director of the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition, expressed concern that the elimination of rent control will jeopardize housing stability for current renters and undermine progress toward the plan's 29 recommendations. Scott Kent, the minister responsible for the Yukon Housing Corporation, stated that the government supports the plan's vision but declined to endorse its target of reducing homelessness by 50 percent in two years, while highlighting forthcoming housing developments such as 34 units at the former Korbo apartment site in Dawson City and 184 units delivered in partnership with the Da Daghay Development Corporation.