Conservative MP Leslyn Lewis rises during Question Period on Sept. 27, 2022 in Ottawa.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Canada position
Re “Trudeau says government does not support premise of South Africa’s genocide case against Israel” (Jan. 13): So predictable. The first Western leader to fall in step behind the United States.
Jumping in and being first feels like a sad attempt to gain favour with the U.S.
Alison Dennis Calgary
United or divided?
Re “Whereas MPs such as Leslyn Lewis should not back inane ideas...” (Editorial, Jan. 11): A sponsored petition seeking a divorce from the United Nations can only mean the silly season is upon us (it seems to start sooner and end later every year). This particular divorce application begs for political satire – or it would if it weren’t so completely self-satirical.
Having said that, I believe it’s true that the United Nations is deeply flawed. Permanent membership on the Security Council was gifted to those who emerged on the winning side of the Second World War. To date nothing has changed, except of course the entire global order. I see no justification for maintaining a structure that would be teetering on the abyss of irrelevance were it not carved in stone and lovingly preserved by its five permanent members.
The UN desperately needs to be reformed. From within. Far from getting a divorce, Canada should be working with other members to bring about the sort of change that would make the UN immune to hare-brained schemes.
Steve Soloman Toronto
If we can at least agree that the rules-based international order is in bad shape and getting worse, then perhaps it is time for Canada to look at the United Nations and our role in it.
The stuff behind the petition is wacky, but what else is new? The question of UN membership itself is valid.
Ken Sutton Toronto
Postsecondary problems
Re “Queen’s University eyes drastic cutbacks to keep its doors open” (Jan. 13): We believe the most critical hurdle that affects all Ontario universities is the provincial government’s continued gross underfunding of our public postsecondary institutions.
Our world-class universities will continue to face financial troubles if the government does not commit to investing more into operating funding for postsecondary education. Its own blue-ribbon panel on the future of higher education recognizes this and recommends an increase in government funding for colleges and universities in its final report.
Our organization, representing more than 17,000 faculty, academic librarians and academic professionals, is calling on the government to increase total provincial university funding by 11.75 per cent annually for the next five years.
More robust, sustainable funding will have a direct, positive impact on student learning conditions, the working conditions of faculty and staff and Ontario’s economy. The government should urgently act to ensure our universities will not just survive, but thrive.
Nigmendra Narain President, Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations; Toronto
Canada has the highest percentage of the workforce with postsecondary education, nearly double the rate of Germany.
Do we need so many university graduates in subjects such as women’s studies, Russian literature or humanities? Canada lacks skilled trades, so we then bring in massive numbers of immigrants. But our points system often means immigrants also lack hands-on skills.
Population growth increases the need for skilled trades in things such as home construction. So we have two related problems with the same cure: We should train more Canadian students in skilled trades, and also cut immigration and temporary foreign workers.
Brian Graff Toronto
ROI?
Re “Gildan’s board stands firm on former CEO’s ouster, citing ineffective leadership, focus on ‘personal pursuits’ " (Report on Business, Jan. 9): Gildan’s regulatory filings show that its 10 independent directors awarded themselves a total combined compensation of $2,632,898 in 2022. For that, shareholders got an astonishing airing of boardroom dirty linen with the ousting of its CEO.
That’s not the story Gildan presented in its latest report on environmental, social and corporate governance, which cited a number of awards for ESG performance, including governance practices and risk management. With fiascos like this, it should be no surprise that the ESG movement is facing a maelstrom of pushback from investors around the world.
With the corporate governance equivalent of knife fights breaking out in the boardrooms of Rogers, OpenAI and now Gildan, one begins to wonder if the complexity of modern corporations has reached the point where it is no longer possible for a small group of outsiders, who meet less than a dozen times a year, to properly supervise corporate affairs.
J. Richard Finlay Founder, The Finlay Centre for Corporate and Public Governance; Toronto
Last fight
Re “Ed Broadbent fought for the little guy against the fat cats” (Jan. 12): Last year, I ordered Ed Broadbent’s last book, Seeking Social Democracy: Seven Decades in the Fight for Equality.
What stood out for me was Mr. Broadbent’s attention to the people in his riding who had elected him. He set up and funded Canada’s first MP constituency office to serve the people of Oshawa, Ont. This important fact may not be high up in his enormous legacy as a fine human being.
There were also his fights to eliminate child poverty and for equality for all, especially women. I will miss this strong voice for democracy and social Justice.
Marianne Freeman Vancouver
Re “Ed Broadbent took the NDP to new heights, and wished he could have gone higher” (Obituary, Jan. 12): As can be said with many federal NDP leaders, I believe Ed Broadbent was the right man with the wrong party.
Unfortunately for Mr. Broadbent and his supporters, the NDP’s socialist moniker often seemed like an albatross around his neck. This would become a party that most entrenched Canadians could not trust nor come to grips with allowing it to become a ruling power at this junction of political time.
That’s not to say Mr. Broadbent did not distinguish himself with an air of prestige and political acumen. He will be remembered as a quality politician who was trusted by all those who looked beyond his party’s socialist dogma and left-wing leanings.
A great man, politician and Canadian. He will be missed.
Danial Kowbell Mississauga
In their tributes to Ed Broadbent, both Jagmeet Singh and Rachel Notley concluded with the wish that he “rest in power.”
Surely, considering all Mr. Broadbent put up with during his career, he deserves to “rest in peace.”
T.M. Dickey Toronto
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