This Week's Round-Up: June 24, 2026

• Stop panicking about CUSMA

• Canada’s social media ban for teens

• Alberta separatists find unlikely ally in Quebec

• Hockey Night in Canada is over

• Letters section is back

Poilievre Went to Calgary to Save Canada. He Didn’t Blow It

As separatists gain attention, the Conservative leader makes a (pretty good) case for the country

BY PAUL WELLS

On June 8, Pierre Poilievre was speaking up for a united Canada in Calgary, as he had promised to do. He catalogued many of the things that anyone who loves Alberta will love—’88 Olympics, Brian Orser, big sky, unpretentious—before pondering the British North America Act of 1867, which “crystallized” the “win-win of Confederation.” It tells provinces and the federal government what to do.

You can probably predict what came next. “The problem lately has been that the federal government has been terrible at the things that are its job, whilst sticking its nose in things that are not its job.”

The Walrus Announces the Mansbridge Essay

The Walrus is partnering with Peter Mansbridge to launch a new $5,000 essay program supporting emerging writers in Canada. Writers in the first five years of their career are invited to pitch original reported essays for publication in The Walrus.

Adopt Don’t Shop

Catherine Bush begins “How Many Poodle Rescues Have I Followed? Oodles” (March/April) by highlighting the surge of unwanted and abandoned dogs post-pandemic, an important reminder of the long-term responsibility of pet ownership. But after a few heart‑tugging anecdotes about rescue dogs, Bush abruptly pivots to explaining that she did not want to adopt any of them and instead purchased a poodle from a breeder. I found myself frustrated by the disconnect between the problem she raises and the choice she ultimately makes. All dogs require “devotion and patience,” and the idea that buying an expensive, purpose‑bred poodle somehow reduces the risk of behavioural or health challenges is both naive and inaccurate. We can’t normalize the idea that it is okay to feel momentarily guilty about shelter dogs while still spending thousands on a bred puppy when, as Bush herself notes, so many dogs are in need of a home.

Rachel Kidd
Calgary, AB

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