Maple Express | August 1, 2026 OSAP Grant Reforms Take Effect as Students Warn of Accessibility Crisis

📰 OSAP Grant Reforms Take Effect Today as Students Warn of Accessibility Crisis

Major changes to Ontario's student financial assistance program officially take effect today. The proportion of grants offered through OSAP has been capped at 25%, down dramatically from the previous 85%, meaning students will now rely far more heavily on loans to fund their education. The province has simultaneously lifted a seven-year tuition freeze, allowing colleges and universities to raise fees by up to 2% annually over the next three years.

Premier Doug Ford defended the reforms earlier this year, arguing the system was financially unsustainable and that without intervention, some post-secondary institutions faced the risk of closure. The government has committed $6.4 billion to the sector over four years.

Students, however, have expressed deep concern. Many say the combination of higher tuition and reduced grants will make post-secondary education unaffordable. Some have shared that they might not have enrolled in university had they known their OSAP funding would be cut so drastically, with others now considering deferring or dropping out entirely.

— CP24

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📰 Canada Unveils $3.2B National Food Strategy to Process More at Home

The federal government's newly released National Food Security Strategy aims to reverse a long-standing economic paradox: Canada grows massive quantities of agricultural products but exports the vast majority for processing abroad, only to import them back for domestic consumption. With soybeans alone, over 70% of Canada's production is shipped overseas, missing out on significant value-added economic opportunities.

The $3.2 billion strategy seeks to boost domestic food processing capacity. According to Protein Industries Canada, the right investments could unlock $25 billion in annual GDP growth from plant-based ingredient manufacturing and food processing. In Benmiller, Ontario, New Protein International is operating a demonstration plant using a unique hexane-free process to extract soy protein isolate, aiming to build Canada's first large-scale commercial facility.

Their planned facility would process 70,000 metric tonnes of soybeans annually, producing 17,500 tonnes of protein isolate. As one company founder put it: "Let's make it here. We will forever become a servant state of other countries if we don't."

— CBC News

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📰 Six Candidates Locked In for Ontario Liberal Leadership Race

The Ontario Liberal Party's leadership contest has officially taken shape, with six candidates confirmed as the entry deadline passed Friday at 5 p.m. The field includes two sitting MPPs — Lee Fairclough and Andrea Bowman — along with former federal cabinet minister Parm Bains under Justin Trudeau, plus three candidates who have never held public office. The new leader will be elected on November 21, 2026.

The first online debate is scheduled for August 10 at 7 p.m., with additional debates to follow after Labour Day. Interim leader John Fraser stated that Ontarians are actively looking for an alternative to the current government. Key campaign issues include raising the minimum wage, free tuition, legalizing fourplexes to address the housing shortage, improving highway safety in northern Ontario, tackling youth unemployment, and repealing OSAP cuts.

Notably, both Fairclough and Bowman have emphasized their advantage of holding legislative seats, which would allow them to face Premier Ford directly in daily Question Period — a capability the last two Liberal leaders lacked.

— Toronto Star

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📰 Mayor Chow Demands Province Return Island Land After Airport Expansion Blocked

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow has filed an urgent motion with city council demanding that the Ontario government return lands it recently expropriated from the city. The move comes after federal Transportation Minister Steven MacKinnon rejected Premier Doug Ford's plan to allow jets at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, following public consultations.

This spring, the province passed Bill 110 to take over city-owned land in and around the Toronto Islands, as well as Toronto's seat in the tripartite agreement governing the airport alongside the federal government and the Toronto Port Authority. Chow's motion calls for both the return of the land and the restoration of the city's role in the airport's governance structure.

Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria has stated the province will continue to push for the expansion, signaling that the three-way jurisdictional battle over Billy Bishop is far from over.

— CP24

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📰 Markham Home Care Nurse Charged with Sexual Assault of Trainee

York Regional Police have charged a 58-year-old home care nurse in Markham with sexual assault of a nursing student he was responsible for instructing. The man served as a nurse preceptor, a role in which experienced practitioners guide and supervise newer nurses during their clinical training.

According to police, the accused conducted several home visits with the student as part of her training. Investigators allege that following these visits, he drove the student to a secluded location and groped her. The student contacted police this month to report the incident.

Police say they believe there may be additional victims and are urging anyone with information to come forward. The accused faces a charge of sexual assault.

— Toronto Star

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📰 Caribbean Carnival Grand Parade Takes Over Toronto This Weekend

One of Toronto's biggest summer events, the Caribbean Carnival Grand Parade, takes place this Saturday, bringing with it major road closures across the Exhibition Place area and downtown waterfront. Toronto police announced closures will take effect from midnight Saturday, August 1, through 6 a.m. Sunday, August 2.

Affected routes include Lake Shore Boulevard West from Fort York Boulevard to Colborne Lodge Drive, southbound Strachan Avenue from Fleet Street, and several Gardiner Expressway ramps. Police are advising residents and visitors to expect significant traffic delays and strongly recommend using public transit. Additional police resources will be deployed in the downtown core and waterfront areas during evening hours.

The Caribbean Carnival is one of Toronto's most iconic cultural celebrations, drawing hundreds of thousands of spectators for its vibrant costume parade and music performances each year.

— CP24

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📰 Toronto's Renoviction Bylaw Marks One Year: Calls 'All But Disappeared'

One year since the City of Toronto implemented its Rental Renovation Licence Bylaw, tenant advocates are reporting near-total elimination of renoviction complaints. The bylaw, effective since July 31, 2025, requires landlords seeking to evict tenants for renovations to obtain a licence and compensate displaced tenants.

Douglas Kwan, director of advocacy and legal services at the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario, says calls about bad-faith renovictions have "all but disappeared," a dramatic reversal from when such complaints were routine. The city has received only 14 applications and issued just three licences, underscoring how effectively the regulatory barrier has deterred landlords from using renovations as a loophole to circumvent rent control.

Toronto's success has inspired other municipalities. Mississauga, Guelph, and Kitchener have since created their own similar bylaws. As Kwan noted: "It's been tremendously impactful and so important that Canada's largest city took the lead."

— Toronto Star

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📰 Federal Government Approves Crawford Nickel Project, Promising 5,000 Construction Jobs

The federal government has greenlit the Crawford Nickel Project, an open-pit nickel-cobalt mine located 42 kilometres north of Timmins, Ontario. The project is expected to attract $5 billion in investment, create 5,000 jobs during construction, and support 1,300 permanent positions once fully operational.

With an extraction capacity of nearly 90 million tonnes of ore per year and an expected 41-year operational lifespan, the mine is projected to contribute $70 billion to Canada's GDP. It is the first project to receive approval under Prime Minister Mark Carney's new impact assessment process. Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin approved the project despite an impact assessment finding negative effects on fish and bird habitats, water quality, and Indigenous communities, determining the economic benefits justified the environmental trade-offs.

The approval comes with legally binding conditions, including measures to mitigate adverse impacts on Indigenous communities and requirements to construct and continuously monitor a tailings management facility throughout the mine's lifecycle.

— CBC News

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📰 WestJet Begins Parking Planes as Flight Attendant Strike Looms

WestJet has started grounding its 737 aircraft across its network as the clock ticks toward a potential strike by approximately 4,287 flight attendants. The airline says the measure is designed to prevent passengers and aircraft from being stranded abroad. Travelers are being urged to check their flight status before heading to the airport.

Flight attendants issued a 72-hour strike notice on Thursday, to which WestJet responded with a 72-hour lockout notice. Barring a last-minute agreement, flight attendants could walk off the job as early as Sunday at 12:01 a.m. MT — right in the middle of the busy August long weekend. WestJet says it has offered a cumulative wage increase of approximately 36% over four years, along with scheduling improvements and better travel and accommodation provisions for crew.

CUPE Local 8125 President Alia Hussain countered that WestJet's disclosures represent only a "small part of a very large contract," and that the union is seeking a comprehensive agreement reflecting its members' priorities. Negotiations remain ongoing.

— CBC News

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📰 FIFA Abandons World Cup Privatization Plan After Massive Backlash

FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced Friday that world soccer's governing body has scrapped its controversial plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors. The proposal, first unveiled on Tuesday, aimed to raise up to $4.2 billion by selling approximately 20% of a new commercial unit at a $20 billion valuation.

The plan was met with fierce and swift opposition. UEFA's 55 member nations voted unanimously to boycott all FIFA tournaments unless the proposal was withdrawn, declaring the World Cup "cannot be treated as an investment product." CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation subsequently joined the opposition, together representing 143 of FIFA's 211 member associations. Internal dissent also erupted — Infantino's senior adviser, Carlos Cordeiro, resigned with immediate effect on Friday, calling the plan "a bad deal for football."

In his statement, Infantino acknowledged the proposal had created divisions "of a nature that are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place" and said he intends to bring all parties back together in the coming weeks.

— CBC News