Good morning, it’s Tuesday, October 21st. In today’s news, a generational battle ensues over whether wealthy seniors should keep full OAS benefits, Carney looks to expand bureaucracy with a financial crimes agency, Britain’s spy agency scandal exposes Kier Starmer’s biggest crisis yet, a hunting stand was found near Donald Trump’s plane, and much more.
First time reading the daily blend? Sign up here.
Generational Battle Builds Over Whether Wealthy Seniors Should Keep Full OAS Benefits
As Canada’s fiscal walls begin to close in, the first major test of Mark Carney’s leadership is coming from an unlikely place — the nation’s seniors. Advocacy groups are urging the Liberal government to slash Old Age Security (OAS) payments for wealthier retirees, calling the $80-billion program the single biggest driver of Ottawa’s ballooning deficits.
Paul Kershaw, head of the generational fairness group Generation Squeeze, says OAS has drifted far from its original mission of protecting vulnerable seniors. Instead, it now “pads the comfort of affluence.” He argues that Ottawa could save $7 billion annually by trimming payments to couples earning over $100,000, redirecting those funds toward the roughly 400,000 seniors still living in poverty.
Under current rules, even couples earning up to $182,000 still receive the full $18,000 benefit — a fact that’s hard to square with the government’s warnings about “fiscal discipline.” As Kershaw puts it, “Helping poor retirees is a duty. Subsidizing affluence is a waste.”
The proposal comes as Carney’s first budget — set for November 4 — is being framed as an “austerity and investment” plan. But any attempt to cut OAS risks political backlash, especially with the Bloc Québécois pushing to expand the benefit. Their proposal would increase payments for seniors aged 65 to 74 by 10 percent, adding roughly $3 billion a year to federal spending. The Bloc’s motion already passed the House of Commons last year with support from the Conservatives, NDP, and Greens — leaving Carney squeezed between fiscal reality and political survival.
Some are concerned that OAS would pit generations against one another. Anthony Quinn of the Canadian Association of Retired Persons accused Kershaw of “sparking intergenerational warfare,” arguing that many seniors face steep costs of aging — from home care to medical equipment — that younger advocates underestimate.
Still, the broader point remains: OAS has become a fiscal time bomb in a country already running structural deficits. Canada’s aging population means the costs will keep climbing, while fewer workers are left to fund them. Whether Carney decides to scale back benefits or bow to political pressure, his choice will define his government’s economic philosophy. Source.
Liberals Unveil New Financial Crimes Agency—Is More Bureaucracy What Canada Really Needs?
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced that Budget 2025, set for release on November 4, will include a National Anti-Fraud Strategy and legislation to create a Financial Crimes Agency by spring 2026. The move follows a worrying spike in scams: Canadians lost $643 million in 2024, nearly 300% more than in 2020. The government says the new strategy will give customers more control over their accounts and force banks to strengthen their fraud prevention policies.
The proposed Financial Crimes Agency would consolidate expertise to target money laundering, organized crime, and online scams, and recover illicit funds. Champagne will work with Justice Minister Sean Fraser and Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree on the legislation. A separate voluntary code of conduct will aim to prevent “economic abuse,” a form of financial control that disproportionately affects women and seniors—a growing demographic, with nearly a quarter of Canadians expected to be over 65 by 2057.
But there’s reason for skepticism. Canada already has several institutions handling this file—FINTRAC, the RCMP, and multiple federal task forces—all claiming to do similar work. So why another agency? Ottawa has a pattern of responding to systemic failures by creating new bureaucracies rather than fixing existing ones. It’s hard to believe this will be any different.
Even Champagne’s claim that this agency will be “best in class in the world” feels optimistic, given Canada’s mixed record on money laundering enforcement and the chronic underperformance of existing oversight bodies.
Meanwhile, this announcement comes amid a flurry of pre-budget spending pledges: $1.8 billion to boost federal policing capacity, $617 million for 1,000 new border officers, and new social programs like automatic tax filing and the National School Food Program.
Ottawa’s intent to tackle fraud is laudable—Canadians deserve protection from financial predators—but it’s fair to ask: will another government agency actually make a difference, or just add another layer of red tape and cost?
Britain’s China Spy Scandal Exposes Keir Starmer’s Biggest Crisis Yet
The United Kingdom is now at the centre of its most explosive intelligence scandal in decades — one that’s raising alarms across the Western world. Allegations are mounting that Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government quietly buried an espionage case involving a Chinese agent to avoid offending Beijing.
At the heart of the scandal is Christopher Berry, a 33-year-old academic intercepted at Heathrow Airport with a suitcase of cash after returning from China. Investigators believe the money came from a Chinese Ministry of State Security handler. According to witness statements, Berry funnelled confidential political intelligence from Westminster to Beijing — information originally sourced from a parliamentary researcher with access to senior Conservative MPs critical of China’s regime.
Despite the evidence, prosecutors dropped the case after the Starmer government declined to certify that China posed an “ongoing threat to national security” — a legal condition under the Official Secrets Act. That decision has now blown up into a full-blown political and diplomatic crisis.
The Sunday Times revealed that Starmer’s National Security Adviser, Jonathan Powell, chaired a high-level meeting with Cabinet Secretary Christopher Wormald and MI5’s director-general, where officials discussed how proceeding with the case could damage relations with China. If true, it directly contradicts Starmer’s claim that “no minister or special adviser was involved.”
Opposition Leader Kemi Badenoch has accused Starmer of misleading Parliament and covering up ministerial interference. In a blistering letter, she alleged that officials “softened” witness statements to downplay Chinese espionage and shield the government from political fallout.
The scandal has now spilled across the Atlantic. U.S. lawmakers — including the chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party — have issued a rare rebuke, warning that the decision “undermines Five Eyes coordination” and sends a dangerous message that foreign adversaries can spy on Western legislatures with impunity.
Taken together, the revelations paint a damning picture: a government willing to compromise its own security and that of its allies to protect trade and diplomacy with Beijing. Not since the days of the Cambridge Spy Ring has Westminster faced such a test of loyalty — and the world is watching to see whether Britain stands with its allies or bows to its adversaries. Source.
Hunting Stand Found Near Trump’s Plane Highlights Rising Threat of Political Violence
A hunting stand was discovered near President Trump’s Air Force One in Florida, prompting an FBI-led investigation using digital and biometric forensic tools. The stand, a platform typically used for deer hunting, was found by the Secret Service and has since been dismantled and flown to an FBI lab. No individuals were present at the site, and security measures around Palm Beach International Airport have been tightened.
This incident comes just weeks after a man was convicted of trying to assassinate Trump at his Mar-a-Lago golf course, a month after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and less than a year since Trump was shot while speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania. These events highlight a disturbing trend: politically motivated violence is on the rise, and Americans are increasingly worried about its normalization. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 63% of respondents believe the way Americans discuss politics contributes “a lot” to encouraging violence.
While the government emphasizes security and investigation, the broader question looms: how much is the current political climate, amplified by certain media narratives and partisan rhetoric, contributing to these violent incidents? The stand and prior assassination attempts are not isolated; they are part of a pattern of escalating threats fueled by a polarized political environment. More
Fifth MLA Leaves BC Conservative Caucus in Just One Year Amid Leadership Turmoil
Penticton-Summerland MLA Amelia Boultbee has left the BC Conservative Party to sit as an independent, citing concerns over leader John Rustad’s leadership and calling for his resignation. Boultbee’s exit is the fifth from the party since last October, reflecting ongoing turmoil within the caucus. She criticized Rustad for prioritizing his own position amid a membership scandal ahead of a September leadership review, and for showing disrespect toward caucus members.
These departures and disputes have reduced the BC Conservatives to 39 seats, trailing the governing NDP’s 47, while an Abacus poll shows the NDP leading by 7 points among decided voters. The repeated resignations and internal scandals suggest a party struggling with leadership credibility, cohesion, and public confidence. More
Poll: Nearly 60% of Canadians Support Declaring States of Emergency to Clear Homeless Encampments - A clear sign of just how bad the crisis has become across the country. More
Tories Make Budget Requests: Cut Taxes, Keep Deficit Under $42 Billion - More
Ukraine to Sign Contract With US for 25 Patriot Systems, Europe May Send Tomahawks - Zelensky said Ukraine expects to receive the systems over several years, depending on US political decisions and production schedules. More
Rodrigo Paz Wins Bolivia Election, as Country Turns Page on 2 Decades of Socialist Rule - More
France’s Former President Sarkozy Will Begin Serving a 5-Year Prison Sentence Today - More
US, Australia to Invest Over $3 Billion in Critical Minerals Over Next 6 Months - The deal comes amid China’s weaponization of global supply chains via significantly expanding its export controls on minerals. More
Amazon Web Services Suffers Global Outage— Disrupts Snapchat, Fortnite, Lyft and More
Amazon Web Services (AWS) experienced a widespread outage on Monday, affecting thousands of websites and popular apps including Snapchat, Signal, Lyft, Fortnite, Reddit, Robinhood, and Venmo, as well as Amazon’s own platforms like Prime Video and Alexa. The disruption has been largely tied to AWS’s US-EAST-1 region.
The incident underscores the global reliance on a handful of cloud providers, as issues at a single company can ripple across industries, affecting gaming, finance, messaging, and government services worldwide. While AWS is investigating the root cause, service has since been restored, and there’s no evidence of a cyberattack. More
Canadian Mortgages Now Account for a Record 8 in Every 10 Dollars of Household Debt - More
Apple Approaches $4 Trillion Valuation as Confidence Reignites Following iPhone 17 Launch - More
Merck Breaks Ground on $3 Billion Virginia Plant, Advancing $70 Billion US Expansion - The expansion is expected to create more than 500 full-time positions, as well as 8,000 construction jobs. More
Scientists Discover Evidence of 4.5-Billion-Year-Old ‘Proto-Earth’ Buried Deep in Our Planet
Scientists may have found the first direct evidence of the proto-Earth, a primordial version of our planet that existed before the moon-forming giant impact 4.5 billion years ago. By analyzing ancient rocks from Greenland, Canada, and Hawaii, researchers detected a subtle potassium-40 deficit, suggesting that tiny remnants of the early Earth’s mantle survived deep within the planet. This discovery provides a rare window into Earth’s original building blocks and challenges previous assumptions based on meteorites, showing there is still much to learn about the planet’s earliest formation. More
Electronic Eye Implant Allows Blind Patients to Regain Sight - The study showed that 80% of participants had clinically meaningful visual improvements after one year post-implant. More
Study: Microplastics Have Been Tied to Vascular Dementia Cases - More
Exciting Time to Be a Jays Fan: Toronto Blue Jays Advance to World Series
The Toronto Blue Jays are heading to the World Series after a thrilling 4-3 win over the Seattle Mariners in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series. George Springer delivered a go-ahead three-run homer in the seventh inning, driving in Addison Barger and Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Toronto’s bullpen — featuring Louis Varland, Seranthony Dominguez, Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, and Jeff Hoffman — held the Mariners after starter Shane Bieber exited in the fourth inning. This marks the Blue Jays’ first AL pennant since 1993. Game one is scheduled for Friday October 24th. More
Former NFL Star Doug Martin Dies at 36 Following Dispute with Police - Officials say Martin went unresponsive while in custody after being arrested in connection with a break-in in Oakland. More
Prince Andrew Officially Relinquishes Duke of York Title - This decision follows renewed focus on his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein and scrutiny from the memoir of Virginia Roberts Giuffre. More
Farmer Has 150 Tonnes of Potatoes Stolen After Social Media Post Falsely Claimed He Was Giving Them Away
A 74-Year-Old Indian Man Fakes His Death to See Who Would Attend His Funeral
On This Day, 1948, The United Nations rejected a Soviet proposal to eliminate all atomic weapons, a missed opportunity that could have set the world on a path toward global nuclear disarmament decades earlier. Instead, the arms race accelerated, shaping the Cold War era and leaving the planet under the shadow of nuclear threat.
Regarding the Old Age Security, I find it ironic how Generation Sleaze wants to cut into benefits for Canadians rather than pushing to slash foreign aid. The vast majority of Old Age Security funds will be spent within the Canadian economy whereas foreign aid is gone with zero benefits to the tax slaves.
Tragedy that the LPC are adding another prevention ‘aiding’ anti money laundering when there’s FINTRAC and banks ensure AML too! Typical recreate another wheel of bureaucracy!!!