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NDP MLA under conflict of interest investigation for promoting her cheese shop

NDP MLA for Regina South Albert Aleana Young is facing an investigation from the conflict of interest commissioner.

Young's social media is being flagged for containing a mix of legislative content and small business achievements, such as her holiday cheese boards and shop's five-year milestone.

"I'm proud of the fact that I am a small business owner," said Young in an interview with CBC Friday. Young owns the shop Takeaway Gourmet in Regina. "For us who are elected officials, I think that the line between professional and personal life can blur," said Young. "Certainly for my work as an MLA but I also post a lot of pictures of my kids." She added that other MLAs often post photos from work that they do, including the Premier. "Some MLA's, like the premier, will post pictures celebrating harvest in a combine."

In an email to CBC, the commissioner said there were "reasonable and probable grounds" to proceed with the investigation and that the parties were advised of it earlier in the month.

The conflict of interest guidelines do not specifically reference social media for elected officials, so posts on social platforms remain a ‘grey area.’

Earlier this year, former MLA Gary Grewal was found to have violated the conflict of interest act concerning his ownership in the Sunrise Motel. Saskatchewan Party MLA for The Battlefords and Minister of Health Jeremy Cockrill is also under investigation by the commissioner.

You can read the full story here.

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Trudeau explains changes to immigration policy

The Prime Minister is discussing changes to the country’s immigration system. In a social media post, Justin Trudeau said, “We are making a big change to immigration in Canada.”

In the seven-minute video, the Prime Minister utilizes a communication method capitalized by conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, who has used this medium to communicate longer form videos explaining policy positions and proposals.

In the video, Trudeau talks about the need to increase immigration after pandemic lockdowns ended to boost the labour market, saying the move helped avoid a full-blown recession. But after that, Trudeau says some "bad actors" took advantage of these programs, such as employers trying to avoid hiring Canadians, schools recruiting more international students for the higher tuition money, or scams promising bogus paths to citizenship.

Trudeau says the goal of the government's immigration reduction is to help stabilize population growth while housing stocks catch up, and then to consider gradually increasing immigration rates once again.

Canada’s positioning on immigration also aligns with the shift south of the border in the United States. Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions, and Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic Leblanc discussed the Canadian-American border moving forward. “I’m very confident in the work that they can do with their American counterparts, and we’ll reassure the American administration that we’re prepared to do the work that’s necessary,” LeBlanc told Mercedes Stephenson in an interview that aired Sunday on The West Block.

The Prime Minister has reiterated that he intends to lead the Liberals into another election as he will try for an unprecedented fourth consecutive term in government.

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Saskatoon marks thirteenth homicide of 2024

Saskatoon has recorded its thirteenth murder in 2024. A 20-year-old woman is the victim of Saskatoon’s 13th murder of 2024.

Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) confirmed on Saturday that a 20-year-old woman’s death in a parking lot of the Copper Mug on 8th Street East was the sudden death they were investigating last week.

The woman was found dead at the scene, police said, adding that officers were continuing to gather evidence and no further details would be released at this time.

Saskatoon has not seen a homicide since Aug. 16 but in 2024 recorded 11 before June 30. Earlier this year Saskatoon recorded five homicides in the same month for the first time. The most homicide deaths recorded in Saskatoon’s history was 16 in 2019.

Compared to the rest of the province, Regina has recorded four homicides this year, and Prince Albert with five.

Crime and public safety were top issues for voters in the recent municipal election. Mayor-elect Cynthia Block addressed those issues in her campaign plan, saying, “Saskatoon is facing complex challenges, giving rise to more violent and organized crime. This requires more police resources but also new strategies to build a strong, resilient city that embeds community safety into the fabric of its neighbourhoods.” She goes on to promise to target organized crime and create district safety plans.

More news and info

• Formal complaint alleges Advance Regina broke privacy rules during municipal election (Regina Leader-Post)

• Biden authorized Ukraine to strike Russia with U.S.-supplied long-range missiles (NBC News)

• Canadians think we can do more to improve one of our most important public institutions, education (Abacus Data)

• Parliament on the road to an unprecedented confidence crisis, but there are off-ramps (Canadian Press)