New Data Shows Dramatic Rise in Non-Teachers Filling in at TDSB Schools
Records obtained by The Local reveal the TDSB's use of unqualified emergency replacements jumped more than 1,100 percent since COVID.
The Worm Hunters of Southern Ontario
Nearly all bait worms sold in North America are hand-plucked from farmland in this part of Canada. But with labour shortages and climate change, some worry we’re witnessing the final wiggles of a once thriving business.
On the Front Lines of the War Against ‘Super Lice’
With the emergence of drug-resistant nits, lice removal has become a booming business, catering to harried, itchy parents willing to pay for relief.
Bird Flu Comes For Toronto’s Wildlife
For humans, the virus has the potential to spark the next pandemic. But for wildlife, it's already causing devastation.
End Times at Ontario’s Roadside Zoos?
Ontario’s lax regulations have made the province the “wild west” for exotic animals. But as public concern over animal welfare grows, some zoos are buckling under the pressure.
The Cormorant Wars
The Toronto waterfront is home to the largest colony of cormorants in North America. And now they're spreading—squawking, puking, leaving toxic guano. Inside the fight between residents, conservationists, and governments over the most divisive and persecuted bird on the planet.
Young, Broke, and Unwoke
Less than a decade after Justin Trudeau rode a wave of youthful enthusiasm to power, the Conservatives are winning the youth vote. Inside King Street parties and campaign launches with a new generation of Conservatives.
With Canada-India Tensions Simmering, Conservatives See an Opening with a Voting Group They’ve Long Prized
For decades, Conservatives have tried to court South Asian voters in vital suburban ridings. With a diplomatic breakdown between the Liberals and the Indian government, can they finally win over alienated Indo-Canadians?
How J.D. Vance Became a Flash Point in an Election in Durham
With anonymous letters flying and a union leader warning off voters, Conservative candidate Jamil Jivani’s close friendship with the American V.P. has entered the race in Bowmanville-Oshawa North.
How Ontario Sleepwalked into a Crisis in Higher Education
After years of underfunding, the province’s colleges and universities are now in financial free fall—slashing staff, cutting programs, and shuttering campuses.
Under Ford, Hallway Health Care Has Devolved into ‘Chair Care’
Doug Ford became premier on a promise to end hallway health care. Seven years later, ERs are more crowded than ever and the system has never been in greater disarray.
Province Invests $1.3 Billion in New Schools—Just Not in Toronto
The Tories will fund 45 school building projects across Ontario—and not a single one in the TDSB, the biggest board in the province. Critics say the opaque process puts politics over students.
Doug Ford’s Big Wager on Online Gambling
The province’s three-year-old online casino market, iGaming Ontario, is already bringing in billions of dollars. The Tories are betting the revenues outweigh the human costs.
When a Hospital Visit Costs $11,000
Amid changes that make accessing health care for uninsured residents more difficult than ever, midwives have led the charge for universal care.
Caught in a Wave of Anti-Indian Hate
Each cohort of newcomers has faced prejudice in Canada. A new onslaught of hate, this time against residents of Indian ancestry, is unfolding in increasingly unregulated online spaces.
After the International Student Gold Rush
Foreign students were harmed by the policies that brought them here, and they’re being harmed once again by the policies shutting them out.
In Ontario’s Housing Crisis, Immigrants Are the Scapegoat and the Solution
The feds say reducing immigration will alleviate housing demand, but with a chronic worker shortage, the construction sector has increasingly relied on immigrant labour to build new homes.
Ontario Needs Nurses—Many Are Already Here, and Waiting to Practice
In the midst of a labour shortage, nurses who come as caregivers and students remain shut out of their profession, with many working gig economy jobs and contemplating leaving.
The Death of an Asylum Seeker and the Shelter Crisis in Peel
The number of asylum seekers and refugees needing shelter has surged in recent years, leaving officials in suburban municipalities like Peel scrambling to respond.
A Long-Brewing Crisis in Special Education
Parents and teachers say schools are underfunded and understaffed, kids are being “abandoned” in mainstream classrooms in the name of inclusion, and neither the TDSB nor the province will take responsibility.