Latest news with #LILLEY
Toronto Sun
4 days ago
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
Infested — Invasive Japanese beetles eating their way through eastern Canada and more
LILLEY: Ford's new harsh tone on Trump a really dumb idea 'IT'S MY LIFE': Blue Jays broadcaster Buck Martinez happy to be back, reveals lung cancer fight Infested — Invasive Japanese beetles eating their way through eastern Canada and more Photo by Dan Janisse / Windsor Star Article content Parts of eastern Canada and much more are under siege from the invasive Japanese beetle, which appears to be spiking in population while tearing through thousands of plants and trees across the region. Advertisement 2 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account or Sign in without password View more offers Article content Since early spring, Windsor-area Master Gardener Barb Morden has waged a daily battle against the Japanese scarab beetle in her Tecumseh garden. Article content Recommended Videos tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Infested — Invasive Japanese beetles eating their way through eastern Canada and more Back to video tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Play Video Article content 'We go out two or three times a day and kill them,' Morden told the Star. 'They're eating everything. They're really, really bad.' Photo by Dan Janisse / Windsor Star The pest isn't new to Windsor, but it appears to be thriving here more than usual. The larvae prefer turf grass and are a 'major pest' in parks and golf courses, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). The adult beetles attack the roots, foliage, and fruit of roughly 300 different kinds of plants. Its wide range of victims include elm, maple, rose, zinnia, corn, asparagus, grape, apple, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries. Your Midday Sun Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. There was an error, please provide a valid email address. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Thanks for signing up! A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Your Midday Sun will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Article content Advertisement 3 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content They skeletonize foliage, devouring the leaf tissue and leaving behind only the veins. Photo by Trevor Wilhelm 'You can tell by the holes in the plants,' said Morden. 'They eat the leaves. They make holes in the leaves. They hit your vegetables as well as your fruit.' The hungry bugs are officially known as Popillia japonica, and measure about 15 mm long by 10 mm wide. Males are usually smaller than females. They feature iridescent copper-coloured elytra (wing casings) and a green thorax and head. A row of white hairs project from under the wing covers. The insect spends most if its life as a larva in soil, emerging in the spring when temperatures rise, and only 30 to 45 days as an adult. The beetle is native to the main islands of Japan, where it is not considered a pest, thanks to natural predators there. In North America, however, it's a different story. Advertisement 4 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content English entomologist Edward Newman wrote about the Japanese beetle in 1841. The Canadian food inspection agency said the invasive insect was first detected on North American soil, at a New Jersey nursery, in 1916. The first recorded Canadian appearance was in 1939. A Japanese beetle was discovered in a tourist's car arriving in Yarmouth, N.S., from Maine. The same year, three more beetles were captured in Yarmouth and four more were found in southern Quebec. The beetle is now considered 'established' in Ontario, Quebec, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and many U.S. states, according to the CFIA. The Japanese beetle has also been detected across Canada, including in 2017 in the Vancouver area. Advertisement 5 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Photo by Dan Janisse / Windsor Star Photo by Dan Janisse / Windsor Star 'We have seen an increase in reports of Japanese beetle from regulated areas across Canada, however, it is important to note that Japanese beetle is considered 'established' in the province of Ontario,' the CFIA said. Because the beetle is already established in Ontario, the CFIA said it does not conduct annual monitoring for the pest and does not have population data for Windsor or elsewhere. But Morden said the numbers in Windsor area have obviously increased. She kills at least 15 to 20 a day. 'I would say they probably doubled in population,' said Morden, who attributes the proliferation to increasingly hot weather. She said the beetles usually start appearing in early spring. 'Right now, I'd say they're at their peak mating season,' she said. Advertisement 6 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content 'It's better to kill them now, because what they do is they lay eggs in your grass, and then you have a problem with insects in your grass.' Morden said one of the best ways to kill the pest is neem oil, which has been used as a natural pesticide for hundreds of years and is safe for people and pets. She adds some dish soap to it. If you can't find neem oil, Morden suggested mixing one teaspoon of dishwasher liquid, one cup of vegetable oil, one cup of rubbing alcohol and four cups of water in a spray bottle. 'You spray them,' she said. 'These beetles have two holes at the top of their neck, and what you're doing is they're clogging their air holes.' Photo by Trevor Wilhelm / Windsor Star Photo by Trevor Wilhelm / Windsor Star The CFIA said recommending ways to deal with an infestation is outside of its mandate. Advertisement 7 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content But the agency does try to prevent the spread to pest-free areas by regulating the movement of items that can carry Japanese beetles, such as plants with soil or 'soil-related matter.' 'The provinces of Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island are considered infested with Japanese beetle and movement of regulated articles from these areas to other parts of Canada must meet certain requirements to prevent further spread,' the CFIA said. Read More St. Clair College student to tend historic Windsor property through landscaping scholarship Green thumb crowds line up hours ahead of Windsor's annual plant sale The food inspection agency added that citizens can do their part to prevent the invasion into other parts of Canada. 'The CFIA is asking for everybody's assistance in avoiding the movement of regulated articles out of the regulated areas without prior written permission from the CFIA,' the agency said. 'You can also assist the CFIA by reporting all illegal movement of regulated articles, and by reporting all sightings of Japanese beetle outside of a regulated area.' twilhelm@ Photo by Trevor Wilhelm Article content Share this article in your social network Read Next
Toronto Sun
29-07-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
LILLEY: Ford changes tune on call for asylum seekers to get work permits
WARMINGTON: Driver allegedly almost runs over cops and public but released without bail hearing Two fans seemingly caught in sex act at Yankee Stadium in viral video LILLEY: Ford changes tune on call for asylum seekers to get work permits Article content Doug Ford both walked back and doubled down on his call for asylum seekers to get work permits. Last week, Ontario's Premier said that he would not wait around for the federal government and would start issuing provincial work permits for asylum seekers. Advertisement 2 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account or Sign in without password View more offers Article content Under Sec. 95, of the Constitution Act, any province has the ability to pass legislation in this area, but few provinces do. Last week, Ford said that he was willing to start issuing such work permits despite the high unemployment rate in the province. Article content tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or LILLEY: Ford changes tune on call for asylum seekers to get work permits Back to video tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Play Video Article content On Monday, Ford was less strident. 'I don't want to take the responsibility off the federal government, but in saying that, if you have a pulse and you're healthy, you need to be working,' Ford said. His viewpoint on this is understandable even if it is wrong. Ford's view is that the federal government is letting people into the country, including thousands who claim asylum under questionable circumstances. He'd rather see them working than drawing on the welfare or social services system. Your Midday Sun Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. There was an error, please provide a valid email address. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Thanks for signing up! A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Your Midday Sun will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Article content Advertisement 3 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content In Toronto, more than 50% of the 9,000 plus beds in the city's shelter system are taken up by asylum seekers. There are thousands more in hotel rooms across the GTA, in Hamilton, Niagara, and in Ottawa. Still, Ford's plan announced last week would only lead to more people making illegal and illegitimate asylum claims in the hope of getting a work permit. 'I don't want to take the responsibility off the federal government, but in saying that, if you have a pulse and you're healthy, you need to be working,' Ford said. Recommended video tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Play Video That's an understandable point of view, especially for an MPP who represents an area where many of these asylum seekers are housed in hotels. Ford interacts with people stuck in these federal hotels on a regular basis in his riding. Despite his compassion for these people, Ford is wrong to want to start issuing provincial work permits to these people. Over the last decade, most of those claiming asylum are actually economic immigrants looking to game the system. 'We've got to protect our workers,' Ford Minister for Labour and Immigration David Piccini said. 'That means having systems with integrity.' Piccini noted that he was the grandson of immigrants from Italy but that today, the system is too often abused. Advertisement 4 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Doug Ford's idea of handing out provincial work permits to more than 100,000 asylum seekers may seem compassionate, his heart may be in the right place but... It's a horrible idea that must be stopped. Here's — Brian Lilley (@brianlilley) July 28, 2025 'We want Ontario to succeed; we want this economy to succeed. To do it, you've got to ensure that people are working, and people are contributing to the economy,' Piccini said. Ford pushed back against claims that the federal government issues work permits within 45 days of people arriving. 'Go up Airport Rd., pull over at the Tim Hortons by the Congress Centre, start talking to people, ask them how long they've been there. Ask them if they want to work. They all want to work, but instead we're paying them to sit in a hotel room,' Ford said. 'I just want people working if they're here.' It's an understandable position, but it is also the wrong position. If people can work it is better than them drawing on welfare, but making it standard operating procedure that asylum seekers will get a hotel room, money for food and a work permit will only see more people arrive in this country illegally. The policy Ford is putting forward will only make things worse, not better in the long run. Thankfully, he is quietly walking this idea back; while still saying the people the federal government allows into the country should be able to work rather than just draw welfare. We need to clamp down on our out-of-control immigration system rather than making things worse. Article content Share this article in your social network Read Next
Toronto Sun
16-07-2025
- Business
- Toronto Sun
Letters to the Editor, July 16, 2025
Wednesday letters Photo by Illustration / Toronto Sun Re 'LILLEY UNLEASHED: Mark Carney is starting to sound like a conservative' (July 10): Mark Carney is sounding like a prime minister. That is why we voted for him, not because he ran as a Liberal, but because he came across as an adult who would get down to business. If Pierre Poilievre had sounded like a prime minister, he may have succeeded in his party forming a government or at least kept his seat. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Shane Matt (So your idea of getting down to business is having the U.S. president push Carney's buttons?) POWER GRID Certain Canadians said in the last election we don't want a change from Justin Trudeau's disastrous leadership of the past 10 years. We are going to believe the Liberals for the fourth time and vote in a prime minister who stole all the Conservatives' plans that would have repaired the damage the Liberals have done to our country. Mark Carney told you that he will make Canada an energy superpower and he is the only person in the world who can deal with Donald Trump and his tariffs. Really? Barry Harris Edmonton (The Liberals have done everything they can to waste energy resources in Canada.) NO JUSTICE Re 'Ontario court gambles with public safety, grants drunk driver bail' (Joe Warmington, July 10): Warmington rightly criticizes the court's decision to release an alleged impaired driver despite five previous convictions for the same offence. The accused was arrested after a four-vehicle collision in Brampton that sent three people to hospital, one in critical condition. He's a danger to public safety, so this decision is unjustified. Yes, the accused has rights, but the court is ignoring the rights of victims and the public in this matter. Moreover, nothing is stopping him from doing the same thing again. Considering the circumstances, he should have been held in custody pending his trial date. Claudio Ceolin Toronto (Let's hope he doesn't get the urge to climb behind the wheel again.) Sunshine Girls Toronto & GTA NFL Entertainment Toronto & GTA
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
GOLDSTEIN: Can Carney Liberals fix damage caused by Trudeau Liberals?
Prime Minister Mark Carney's mandate letter to his cabinet is largely an attempt to address problems created, ignored or exacerbated by his predecessor, Justin Trudeau. In that context, it's hard to see how effective Carney's cabinet will be in achieving his goals, given its large contingent of Trudeau-era ministers who, under Trudeau's leadership, screwed up many of the files Carney now says he wants to fix. In his mandate letter to his newly-appointed cabinet released last week, Carney wrote that he has seven priorities, which are: – Establishing a new economic and security relationship with the U.S. and strengthening collaboration with reliable trading partners and allies around the world; – Building one Canadian economy by removing barriers to interprovincial trade and expanding nation-building projects that will connect and transform the country; – Bringing down costs for Canadians and helping them get ahead; – Making housing more affordable by unleashing the power of public-private co-operation; – Protecting Canadian sovereignty, strengthening the Canadian Armed Forces, securing Canada's borders and reinforcing law enforcement; – Attracting the best talent in the world to build our economy while returning overall immigration to sustainable levels; – And spending less on government operations so that Canadians can invest more in people and businesses that will build the strongest economy in the G7. KINSELLA: Murky Mark Carney remains an enigma wrapped in a riddle LILLEY: Trudeau lowered bar so much, Carney gets credit for being an adult Blanket mandate letter worrying sign for Carney era, observers say Here's the issue. Bringing down costs for Canadians and making housing more affordable were problems exacerbated by the Trudeau government's high immigration policies, which Carney says he now wants to address by 'returning our overall immigration rates to sustainable levels.' The Trudeau government dramatically hiked immigration levels despite being warned in advance by its own public servants that that this would increase the cost of housing and put additional stress on public services such as health care. Carney's plan to reduce spending on government operations is a direct repudiation of the Trudeau government's record of increasing the size of the federal civil service at more that twice the rate of Canada's population growth during its almost decade in power. Carney himself said during the Liberal leadership race that two policies of the Trudeau government – unsustainably high immigrations levels and government spending increasing at a rate of 9% a year – weakened the Canadian economy, even 'before we got to the point of these threats from President (Donald) Trump.' Carney's goal of keeping Canadians safe by strengthening Canada's Armed Forces is intended to address the failure of the Trudeau and Stephen Harper governments to meet Canada's promised NATO target of committing 2% of GDP to national defence. As for Carney's goal of securing Canada's borders and reinforcing law enforcement, both would be massive improvements over the near decade record of the Trudeau government. The Trudeau Liberals had almost a decade to bring down barriers to interprovincial trade, which Carney now wants to address, while 'nation-building projects' were few and far between, fraying national unity and exacerbating tensions between the Alberta and federal governments in particular. As for Carney's goal of making Canada's economy the strongest among members of the G7, after their nearly-decade in power the Trudeau Liberals had the worst record on economic growth of any Canadian government since that of R.B. Bennett during the Great Depression. Real GDP per capita – a widely accepted metric for measuring a nation's prosperity – fell by 1.4% in 2024, following a decline of 1.3% in 2023. It's true the economic uncertainty caused by Trump's tariff war with Canada is having a depressing effect on the Canadian economy, but as Carney himself has said, our economy was already weakened by Trudeau government policies before Trump was elected president. lgoldstein@
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
GOLDSTEIN: 'Elbows up' was Liberal rhetoric while policy was 'quietly fold' on tariffs
As it turns out, Prime Minister Mark Carney's election strategy of publicly talking tough about taking on U.S. President Donald Trump in his tariff/trade war, while practising a far more conciliatory approach behind the scenes, was hiding in plain sight all the time. Ian Bremmer, president of New York-based Eurasia Group, a political risk analysis firm with close ties to Carney, accurately predicted this strategy in a March 26 column titled, 'The end of the transatlantic relationship as we know it.' Unlike Mexico, which took a more conciliatory approach, he wrote, 'Canadian leaders have a political incentive to put up a bigger fight because Trump's threats toward Canada's economy and sovereignty have sharply inflamed nationalist sentiment north of the border in the run-up to the April 28 elections. However, I expect Ottawa will quietly fold shortly after the vote to ensure that ongoing relations with the U.S. remain functional.' This now appears to have been the Liberals' successful election strategy all along. LILLEY: Carney dropped most tariffs the day after meeting Trump KINSELLA: Anita Anand seems to side with Jew-and-Israel-haters in propaganda war GOLDSTEIN: Carney, like Trudeau, thinks big deficits are the answer to tough times GOLDSTEIN: Honda decision raises doubts about Canada's $52.5 billion bet on EVs Carney initially said 'dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs by Canada' against the U.S. 'should be a given' during the Liberal leadership race – 'elbows up' as the popular saying went. But after becoming prime minister, Carney said this was unrealistic given that the Canadian economy is 'a tenth the size of the U.S.' According to a Bloomberg News report in the National Post last week, on May 7 – the day after Carney's cordial meeting with Trump in the White House and nine days after Carney won the election – 'Canada … effectively suspended almost all of its retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products,' having 'announced a six-month tariff exemption for products used in Canadian manufacturing, processing and food and beverage packaging, and for items related to health care, public safety and national security. 'Automakers got a break, too: companies that manufacture in Canada, such as General Motors Co., are allowed to import some vehicles into Canada tariff free.' (The finance department announced these moves in a little-noticed April 15 news release becoming effective, as my Postmedia colleague Brian Lilley reported, when they were published in the Canada Gazette on May 7.) Tony Stillo, of Oxford Economics, told Bloomberg that based on his firm's calculations, Canada's tariff-rate increase on the U.S. is now 'nearly zero,' adding, 'It's a very strategic approach from a new prime minister to really say, 'We're not going to have a retaliation.'' That's very different from Carney's messaging during the campaign. Was Bremmer able to predict the Liberals' strategy in advance because of the close ties between Carney and Eurasia Group? Gerald Butts, former principal secretary to prime minister Justin Trudeau and an adviser to the Carney campaign, is vice-chairman of the Eurasia Group. Evan Solomon, the newly-elected Liberal MP for Toronto Centre, is a longtime friend of Carney, who appointed him as Canada's first minister of artificial intelligence last week. Prior to that, Solomon was publisher of GZERO Media, a Eurasia Group subsidiary. Carney's spouse, Diana Fox Carney, joined Eurasia Group in 2021 as a senior advisor on climate and energy policy. Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner noted these connections in a March 27 substack column where she asked, 'Why is a firm closely related with Mark Carney and the Liberals telling the world to expect that Canada will acquiesce to American demands after the election … did Bremmer arrive at his conclusion Canada would 'have to accept Trump's terms eventually' and 'Ottawa would quietly fold shortly after the vote' from discussions with any of these people? Should it be taken as the Liberals' post election plan for tariffs should they form government … it's a question worth asking.' 'That's because … it's not a stretch to imagine that after tricking the Canadian electorate into giving them a fourth term, the Liberals would, in fact, simply capitulate to Trump's demands,' Rempel Garner said while noting, 'Trump's recent comment that he'd prefer the Liberals to win because it would be better for him.' Responding to such observations on social media, Bremmer said on X on March 27 that his commentary, 'assumes (Pierre) Poilievre wins the election (our base case, but it's close)' because 'he is more ideologically aligned with Trump,' even though polls in late March showed the Liberals ahead of the Conservatives. There's nothing surprising about the Liberals pursuing one strategy in public and a different one in private for political gain. And while the economic threat posed by Trump's tariffs hasn't gone away, he appears, for now, to be backing off the most severe sanctions aimed at Canada. That said, Carney's 'elbows up' rhetoric during the campaign appears to have been done mainly for show. lgoldstein@
