Latest news with #Lavoie
Winnipeg Free Press
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Court orders B.C. to pass law giving French school board expropriation powers
VANCOUVER – The B.C. Supreme Court has ordered the provincial government to pass a law within six months providing the Francophone School Board with powers to expropriate private property to build new French-language schools. The court found that, unlike other school boards in B.C., the Francophone School Board is the only one without expropriation powers despite it having the 'greatest need' for new schools. The board says in a statement that the ruling posted this week is a 'partial victory,' recognizing its challenges compared to other school boards, and it acknowledges that Vancouver does not provide 'equivalent education' in French. Board president Marie-Pierre Lavoie says the court ruling gives the board 'access to better tools to support its hard work in finding sites and building schools.' But the board statement says it's 'disappointed' with several of the court's findings, including its refusal to transfer properties in Vancouver and Whistler, as well as the decision to give the province time to remedy Charter violations rather than recognize 'the urgent need for quality French-language schools.' Lavoie says the court gave the provincial government 'latitude to remain reactionary' instead of ordering it to help the board overcome challenges identifying sites and building schools. She says in the board's statement that the judgment is complex and the board will 'need time to analyze its impacts.' The ruling says the case is the latest in a series of 'prolonged and difficult lawsuits' about the Charter's guarantee of minority language education rights since it was enacted in 1982. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. It says courts in 2016 and 2020 determined that 'certain communities' in B.C. such as Whistler are entitled to offer francophone schooling but 'the necessary schools are still not in existence.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 28, 2025.
Vancouver Sun
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Vancouver Sun
Quebec's envoy in Ottawa leaves office as province seeks larger role in Canada's U.S. relations
OTTAWA – Quebec's 'top diplomat' in the nation's capital retired last week as a new prime minister was elected, a new delegation of Quebec Liberal MPs is about to arrive in town, and when the province wants to play a bigger role in Canada-U.S. relations. While the Roxham Road file on asylum seekers was making headlines and rumbling in the House of Commons, Mario Lavoie was trying to reassure Latin American ambassadors that Quebec was still welcoming to newcomers. 'They told us 'what you're doing doesn't make sense,'' Lavoie, who was then the head of the Quebec Government Office in Ottawa, said in an interview with National Post. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. At the time, the Quebec government was asking the federal government to tighten the border and put an end to the notorious migrant crossings between New York State and Quebec. 'So, you're able to explain why the government says that. But also, to say in the same sentence that the government is very generous, that it is the most generous of governments towards migrants, but it's just that the elastic is stretched,' he added. Roxham Road was closed for good in 2023, marking a major victory for the Quebec government on the national stage. Lavoie announced his retirement last week, but Canada-U.S. relations and the situation with migrants may well be at the heart of relations between Quebec and Ottawa with Mark Carney taking office as prime minister. With U.S. President Donald Trump's executive actions, more and more people are flocking to the northern border . 'This is really an issue for the relationship between Quebec and Ottawa, and I would even say it is a challenge for the entire federation,' said Charles Breton, executive director of the Centre of Excellence on the Canadian Federation. Ottawa and Quebec will try to strengthen their relations during the Trump presidency, he said. However, immigration is still a contentious file. 'It's the first point of friction that should appear on the horizon because, on economic issues, on the relationship with the United States, on tariffs, I think everyone will work and row in the same direction,' Breton said. The Quebec Office plays a strategic role in representing the province's interests in the capital. The envoy frequently meets with ambassadors, civil servants, elected officials, and senators, and plays a particular strategic role for the province in the federal legislative process. So much so that, since Lavoie came to office in 2020, Alberta and Ontario have announced they, too, would also be represented by a 'diplomat' in Ottawa. In Quebec City, Premier François Legault's entourage believes the Quebec Office in Ottawa is 'more relevant than ever.' 'In a context where federal decisions have major repercussions for Quebec, and as a new Prime Minister takes office, it is essential that Quebec can count on an active and direct presence with the federal government, in Ottawa,' Legault's director of media relations Ewan Sauves told National Post in a written statement. The premier has not yet chosen his point person in the capital and a decision will be made in due course, Sauves said. With a new prime minister, a delegation of 43 Liberal MPs and a new cabinet that will be sworn in next week, a Speech from the Throne delivered by King Charles May 27, new economic momentum within the federation and difficult negotiations with the White House to come, the province wants to be at the heart of the action. 'It's a new government that has been elected,' said Lavoie. 'The prime minister will appoint the people around him, there will be new ministers, new political attachés, new MPs, so it is important that the person who will represent Quebec introduces himself and then reestablishes contacts.' Since François Legault's election as premier in 2018, relations have been strained, to say the least. However, a week after the election that gave Mark Carney a near-majority government, Legault demonstrated he can make friends easily. 'When I had about an hour discussion with (Carney), we spoke about the economy and we talked about energy… We're really having a common vision about the economy,' Legault said last week. 'I think that the best way to thank Quebecers is to take action about the economy, about the immigration,' added Legault, who wishes to see the 400,000 temporary immigrants controlled by Ottawa reduced by 50 per cent. Carney's Quebec lieutenant Steven Guilbeault attended the meeting and, in a recent interview with National Post, shared that 'it was a very pleasant meeting, somewhat good-natured.' 'They realized that they know some of the same people… I think they discovered they had a lot of common ground, probably more than there was between Mr. Legault and (former) prime minister (Justin) Trudeau,' said Guilbeault. Breton said it will be important to find Lavoie's replacement by September because Quebec's agenda, which includes immigration, a new provincial constitution and the ongoing battle over the division of powers, could well create waves in Ottawa. National Post atrepanier@ Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what's really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here . Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here .
Calgary Herald
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
Quebec's envoy in Ottawa leaves office as province seeks larger role in Canada's U.S. relations
OTTAWA – Quebec's 'top diplomat' in the nation's capital retired last week as a new prime minister was elected, a new delegation of Quebec Liberal MPs is about to arrive in town, and when the province wants to play a bigger role in Canada-U.S. relations. Article content Article content While the Roxham Road file on asylum seekers was making headlines and rumbling in the House of Commons, Mario Lavoie was trying to reassure Latin American ambassadors that Quebec was still welcoming to newcomers. Article content Article content 'They told us 'what you're doing doesn't make sense,'' Lavoie, who was then the head of the Quebec Government Office in Ottawa, said in an interview with National Post. Article content Article content At the time, the Quebec government was asking the federal government to tighten the border and put an end to the notorious migrant crossings between New York State and Quebec. Article content 'So, you're able to explain why the government says that. But also, to say in the same sentence that the government is very generous, that it is the most generous of governments towards migrants, but it's just that the elastic is stretched,' he added. Article content Roxham Road was closed for good in 2023, marking a major victory for the Quebec government on the national stage. Article content Lavoie announced his retirement last week, but Canada-U.S. relations and the situation with migrants may well be at the heart of relations between Quebec and Ottawa with Mark Carney taking office as prime minister. Article content With U.S. President Donald Trump's executive actions, more and more people are flocking to the northern border. Article content Article content 'This is really an issue for the relationship between Quebec and Ottawa, and I would even say it is a challenge for the entire federation,' said Charles Breton, executive director of the Centre of Excellence on the Canadian Federation. Article content Article content Ottawa and Quebec will try to strengthen their relations during the Trump presidency, he said. However, immigration is still a contentious file. Article content 'It's the first point of friction that should appear on the horizon because, on economic issues, on the relationship with the United States, on tariffs, I think everyone will work and row in the same direction,' Breton said. Article content The Quebec Office plays a strategic role in representing the province's interests in the capital. The envoy frequently meets with ambassadors, civil servants, elected officials, and senators, and plays a particular strategic role for the province in the federal legislative process.
Winnipeg Free Press
30-04-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
‘Progress, not perfection': Manitoba's homegrown pot ban ends Thursday
Manitoba is ending an outright ban on homegrown cannabis, but recreational users remain committed to fighting for the right to grow pot in their backyards. As of Thursday, anyone aged 19 and older can grow a maximum of four plants in an indoor room, container or enclosure that is not accessible to underage residents or visitors. The changes bring the province more in line with the rest of Canada — except for Quebec, where it remains illegal to cultivate cannabis for personal use. JESSE BOILY / FREE PRESS FILES Jesse Lavoie launched a legal challenge against the provincial government in 2020 to fight the ban on growing cannabis plants at home. Licensed producer TobaGrown has imported 'exotic seeds' from Spain and elsewhere in Canada that will be up for sale immediately, said Jesse Lavoie, founder of the non-profit organization. It's a bittersweet milestone for Lavoie, who launched a legal challenge against the provincial government in 2020. He argued federal legislation allowed provinces only to restrict the growing of non-medical cannabis at home instead of issuing a sweeping ban. The case — which was dismissed and Lavoie was in the process of appealing until he learned changes were in the works in 2024 — was funded via TobaGrown sales and donations. 'Our lawsuit was fighting for both indoor and outdoor,' he said, noting he plans to revive it if the Kinew government does not widen the rules. 'Keeping it indoors and how they have it written, requiring plants to be locked in a room, essentially in your basement, keeps the taboo in place.' Justice Minister Matt Wiebe defended the legislation as 'balanced,' citing concerns about community access to outdoor gardens. 'This is the right mix of giving that choice to Manitobans, but also protecting kids,' Wiebe said. The rules also allow businesses to tap into new markets and sell both seeds and growing equipment, he noted. Seeds and plants, often called clones, must be bought from a licensed Manitoba store, per the newly updated Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Control Act. Melanie Bekevich, vice-president of the Retail Cannabis Council of Manitoba, said she does not anticipate a significant impact on member sales, owing to the limited markup on seeds and complexities of growing pot. The co-owner of Winnipeg's Mistik Cannabis Co. said she plans to stock seeds, mainly for educational purposes so customers are up to date with the regulations. 'It's progress, not perfection at this time,' Bekevich said about the inability for cannabis users to take their plants outside unless they have a medical licence. Bekevich and Lavoie both said the cannabis industry is generally on board with the changes that do away with a $2,542 fine for growing non-medical cannabis inside a residence. 'You can make wine and beer at home, but there's still lineups outside liquor stores,' Lavoie added. In the lead up to the regulatory changes, the official Opposition accused the NDP of diverting limited police resources from more pressing issues by bringing in new homegrown rules. 'With violent crime on the rise, how can the premier justify focusing on cannabis policy?' Wayne Ewasko, then-interim leader of the Progressive Conservatives, asked Premier Wab Kinew during question period last week. Ewasko then suggested Kinew must be smoking pot daily. 'I don't smoke weed at all. Guess what? I don't drink either. I don't even use Tylenol — but that's not the point,' Kinew quipped. 'The point is that the member opposite's 1950s Reefer Madness mentality, it just doesn't work.' (Director Louis Gasnier's propaganda film achieved cult classic status owing to its over-the-top depiction of cannabis users as dangerous criminals.) Ewasko later told the Free Press the plan is unenforceable and rests upon 'neighbours ratting on neighbours.' The justice minister said the province does not anticipate the updates will generate significant new activity for police, but rather provide clarity about what is legal. 'People are in this quasi-legal realm again. It's just absurd, to be six years after legalization, and we're still dealing with grey area,' said Steven Stairs, a longtime cannabis advocate. 'If you're going to be progressive, why go 95 per cent of the way?' During Elections Get campaign news, insight, analysis and commentary delivered to your inbox during Canada's 2025 election. Stairs received a medical prescription for pot in 2009 to treat vision problems and alleviate related pain. For the last 15 years, he's been growing weed in his backyard with a medical licence, he said, adding he's never had a plant stolen or received a complaint from a neighbour during that period. Stairs said he protected his children by educating them on the drug and its effects. It's also important to lock up the plants, be it with zipper-secure tents or otherwise, so they cannot be accessed by kids or pets, he said. He likened the process to locking a garage door so no tools are stolen overnight. Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Forbes
30-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Connecticut's Chief Manufacturing Officer Aims For Growth, Reshoring
Paul Lavoie, whose long manufacturing career included stints in engineering services, hardware and electronics, is now applying his skills to help grow Connecticut's already vigorous manufacturing base in his unique role as the state's Chief Manufacturing Officer. In 2019, with a strong desire to build on the state's manufacturing base, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont created this unique state government leadership role with the responsibility of coordinating state and private-sector efforts to promote growth in the state's manufacturing sector. After a three-year tenure by aerospace industry veteran Colin Cooper, Lavoie took the reins in early 2022. While the Connecticut might fly under the radar somewhat when it comes to manufacturing due to its small size in both physical area and its population of just 3.6 million people, it often punches above its weight. It hosts such world-beaters as General Dynamics Electric Boat, the submarine builders in Groton, and Pratt and Whitney, the aerospace and defense manufacturer headquartered in East Hartford. Now Lavoie, whose office is part of the state's Department of Economic and Community Development, has developed a plan to deliver on the state's objectives to grow its industrial base. 'I'm the author of Connecticut's manufacturing strategic plan, and the strategic plan is a was written in response to feedback from the manufacturing sector,' he told me in an interview. 'I'm leaning in, listening to what their challenges are, learning about their businesses and linking them to resources.' Developing talent The strategic plan consists of four main components. The first of those is developing talent. 'Our developing talent program really is around three areas,' said Lavoie. 'First is inspiring the next generation of manufacturing leaders–the makers, the doers, the creators. We do things like, we fund a statewide robotics program. We've made a $2.6 million, two-year investment to level the playing field for robotics across Connecticut.' Career roadshows are also an important inspiration tool. 'We bring in middle school kids and high school kids to meet with manufacturing companies,' Lavoie explained. 'Last year, we brought in over 7,500 kids to meet with over 130 companies. And it's really just exposing them to what manufacturing is.' Finally, the state's 'I Got It Made' campaign features a downloadable lookbook that serves as a complete guide to manufacturers and industrial careers in Connecticut. 'The second part of developing talent is all around underserved groups,' Lavoie continued. 'So second-chance workers, veterans, women, neurodiverse individuals, people of color, tapping into groups of people the manufacturing sector may not even be aware of.' Upskilling and reskilling the existing workforce are the final elements of talent development. 'We provide every manufacturing company in the state of Connecticut under 1,000 employees with $100,000 in matching grant funds to train their employees,' added Lavoie. 'The state of Connecticut wants to be the partner in training for all of our manufacturing companies.' To date, the Office of Manufacturing reports that over 29,000 workers have been retrained under the program. Mush Khan, co-founder and CEO at Alchemy Industrial, an advanced manufacturing consultancy, agreed with that approach. 'One of the most important aspects of driving manufacturing re-shoring is finding talent in places and in ways that aren't necessarily traditional,' he told me via email. 'Connecticut's focus on finding hidden talent pools is a creative and critical part of driving the state's re-shoring efforts.' Business development and cost reduction The second component of the strategic plan focuses on business development, cost reduction and energy efficiency. 'How can we help companies grow, and how can we bring to them business development opportunities?' Lavoie asked himself. 'We've invested in a supply chain database that's for manufacturers only, where they can find each other and they can find work from each other, and they can connect with each other.' With respect to cost reduction and energy efficiency, meanwhile, he said, 'You're a business that wants to come to Connecticut, you're looking at opening up a new building, and it's not energy efficient. The state of Connecticut is willing to give you some incentives to drive energy efficient equipment to be able to reduce consumption.' 'Energy is a significant contributor to manufacturing costs,' said Khan. 'Implementing creative energy reduction methods like building energy efficiency and leveraging behind-the-meter microgrids can drive down energy costs.' Driving innovation The next part of the strategy involves driving innovation. 'The four areas that we're focused on in Connecticut are the digital transformation, so model-based definition, the model basis of engineering, and digital twins; additive manufacturing and introducing additive into the aerospace, shipbuilding and medical device industries, which are our three largest industries; robotics and automation–how do we get machines to do the work for people we're never going to hire anyway? And then AI… it's pretty clear with AI, because all of our large OEMs are using it already. We're not really concerned with it replacing a workforce in the manufacturing sector, but we do know that a production person who is AI-enabled is going to replace one that isn't AI enabled.' 'Innovation in terms of manufacturing methods and product development are incredibly powerful ways to establish entirely new ways to create value for customers,' added Khan. 'Innovation allows manufacturing companies to create an entirely new competitive position besides costs.' Improving collaboration The final element of the plan is improved collaboration, which Lavoie has assigned to his own office for primary ownership. 'We're going to be communicating to manufacturers on a regular basis. We've created a manufacturing ambassador program, which now has over 875 registered ambassadors who get regular communication from my office on what's happening in the manufacturing sector.' Khan agreed with that as well. 'The manufacturing supply chain is actually a 'long tail' of dozens or even hundreds of companies working together to create products for the market,' he said. 'Typically, this long tail is organically created over time but there are ways to accelerate this system through thoughtful and intentional connections.' While the strategic plan is still in its infancy, Lavoie is adamant that it delivers measurable positive changes. 'We're on the third revision,' he explained. 'I launched it in February of 2023, so now it's two years in. I'm on the third revision, and it has become a North Star for the state of Connecticut… You know, if it's strategically aligned, it drives impacts that scale with a measurable ROI, those are our four criteria that we evaluate programs with. So if I can't measure it… we don't do it. We don't just do things to do things.' The goals of the strategic plan are straightforward: to increase the state's manufacturing employment to 235,000 by 2033, which would represent a 4% per year growth, and to increase the manufacturing share of Connecticut's GDP to 20% by 2029. 'I think any state regardless of its size can be competitive when it comes to 21st-century manufacturing,' Khan concluded. 'We are entering a system of highly distributed and highly connected manufacturing companies working together to compete on a global scale.' 'Connecticut is a great example of how a state government that understands a business sector and puts resources into a business sector can drive significant impact for a state's economy and the state's GDP,' Lavoie said. 'I talk to states all across America about the role that I play and the impact that we have. When I took this job, manufacturing was 10% of the state's GDP. That was in February of 2022. Today, we stand at 12.9% and my goal is to get to 20%... When you take such an important sector and you put a champion in place, and you then apply resources to that, you have a really dramatic effect on growing that economy.'
