Andrew Longhurst 🇨🇦 🍉

The Ontario government is aggressively privatizing surgeries and medical imaging—core hospital services My new @policyalternatives.ca research study evaluates whether this policy direction reduces wait times and serves the public interest www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc... #onpoli

A new cancer drug costs as much as a home down payment each month. Doctors say that's greed, not health care. By Nick Logan and Christine Birak. This article and more at canadahealthwatch.ca #CdnHealth #CancerCare

New from me: a post-election look at what to expect from the new Conservative government in BC, and the policy echoes of Gordon Campbell's victory a generation ago www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

Under the CPBC, I expect BC will follow AB, QC, ON by aggressively privatizing surgeries, diagnostics, long-term care CPBC platform calls for publicly funded vouchers for surgeries and long-term care. This will expand the private for-profit health care industry #bcpoli

#bcpoli

The morning after the provincial election, a white supremacist group stood in front of the BC legislature. Premier-designate Lorne Doerkson condemned their actions and pledged to fight hate. @jenstden.bsky.social reports. #BCPoli thetyee.ca/News/2026/10...

The Conservatives’ proposal to pay for private procedures. “This risks really undermining the public hospital system. It risks reducing equitable access to surgical care, and it’s going to be very costly,” said @alonghurst.bsky.social #bcpoli vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/10/24/h...

A Serbian nationalist leader who courted MAGA just lost in a landslide

Wealth tax results in Norway: - Less than 100 rich people left Norway - No evidence of significant outbound migration or reduced inflows of startup founders or inventors - Tax revenue up 71.5% The "controversy" is artificial marketing... the results are real www.nber.org/system/files...

Corporate penetration of the NHS’: Revolving door raises concerns over ADHD review. Instead of expanding NHS capacity, govts hand contacts to private providers making vast profits. The same providers meet ministers to influence terms of reviews. More privatisations follow. Public money buys less.

Room for hope in Brazil. With 78% of votes counted, Lula is ahead of Bolsonaro by narrow margin: 51.27% to 48.73%. www.theguardian.com/world/ng-int...

It's an important moment for the province. The BC Conservatives have won a majority with 64 seats in the legislature. There are now 27 seats for the BC NDP and two for the BC Greens. What happens next? @pwillcocks.bsky.social writes. #BCPoli thetyee.ca/Opinion/2026...

A study by @policyalternatives.ca found that wait times for most publicly funded priority surgeries and procedures have increased since 2017. The Ford government has expanded private clinics in an attempt to reduce wait times for surgical procedures..." #onpoli www.napaneeguide.com/opinion/comm...

David Eby has to wear this. Just terrible

The perennial game of pin the ideology on the BC party BC has been governed by centre-right and right coalitions for most of its colonial past and present In last 10 yrs, political spectrum has shifted right. The BCNDP shifted right. Greens moved left. Fringe parties went hard right

Not while shrinking provincial revenue and making any effort to reduce the deficit!

Only 48% of BC voters supported the BC Conservatives, yet the voting system has handed Lorne Doerkson's Conservatives 69% of the seats and 100% of the power. READ MORE: www.fairvote.ca/25/10/2026/b... JOIN THE CAMPAIGN FOR PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION: secure.fairvote.ca/en/action/de...

It’s very inaccurate that some media have been saying BC hasn’t had a conservative government for 100 years Sure, in name only. But the BC Liberals were a coalition of federal Tories and Liberals

ICYMI: “...the provincial govt [in #Ontario] over the last 8 years has moved quite aggressively in the direction of privatizing surgeries and medical imaging, [spending] $4.1B which are dollars that are not going into public hospitals," said @alonghurst.bsky.social. www.tvo.org/video/can-pr...

Lorne Doerkson is the new premier of British Columbia. David Eby announced his resignation as BC NDP leader. And BC Greens leader Emily Lowan won her seat on Vancouver Island. #BCPoli thetyee.ca/News/2026/10...

The Conservatives will end the night fairly close to the 900,000 or so votes they got in 2024. The NDP will go from just under 950,000 votes in 2024 to less than 700,000 this time. Turnout was down — but how much of it was demotivated 2017-2024 NDP voters who stayed home is a massive question.

I suspect the first lesson the incoming BC premier and cabinet will get from the public service is one of basic arithmetic—considering that they plan to hollow out BC’s fiscal capacity via tax cuts while also promising major spending increases Much to be revealed about the fiscal direction of BC…

CBC BC wrapped up the election programming at 10:30. Maybe I’m in the minority but I think there would have been appetite for more analysis! It’s not even 11! Interesting thoughts from the CTV panel

I've reported a lot on OneBC and Dallas Brodie, the party that did its best to promote residential school denialism and attack Indigenous rights in this province. Tonight she lost her riding of Vancouver-Quilchena about as hard as you can lose.

This is an election for the history books—not unlike the BC Libs 2001 sweep that led to major policy shifts including widespread privatization You can count on @policyalternatives.ca for hard-hitting research & analysis of what this new government means for BC and Canada #bcpoli #cdnpoli

Under the CPBC, I expect BC will follow AB, QC, ON by aggressively privatizing surgeries, diagnostics, long-term care CPBC platform calls for publicly funded vouchers for surgeries and long-term care. This will expand the private for-profit health care industry #bcpoli

David Eby has resigned as leader of the B.C. NDP following election of Conservative majority government

Has British Columbia ever elected a premier with a more Albertan name than Lorne Doersken?

But not necessarily publicly delivered as they were clear in their platform

Oh there's the dog whistles. Doerkson believes in "property rights" and "parks that are open to all British Columbians"

"[paying for private procedures] risks undermining the public hospital system", and it risks reducing equitable access to surgical care," said @policyalternatives.ca health policy researcher @alonghurst.bsky.social. #bcpoli vancouver.citynews.ca/video/2026/1...

It’s election day in #bcpoli Get your vote on! www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

So this is Build Canada Strong? Yet another sign that Canada is being hollowed out from within

Yes!

"We’ve heard politicians focus debate on emergency rooms, hospital capacity and access to doctors. But an equally important part of our healthcare system receives far less attention: the community-based services that keep vulnerable people healthy, housed and out of hospital." #bcpoli 👏👏👏

Canadians tend to vote against parties, not for them. But what happens in a snap election where some candidates are only weeks old and others skip media interviews entirely? Contributing writer Michelle Cyca investigates: thewalrus.ca/bc-snap-election/

As general election day arrives Saturday Oct. 24, we’ve collected all our Tyee election coverage in one spot, to help readers make final decisions and process what comes next. thetyee.ca/News/2026/10...

The reality is that we need both BC has the fewest staffed hospital beds p.p. in Canada. People will still need inpatient care ER and hospital wait times are influenced by inpatient capacity—a fallacy to suggest otherwise We also need to boost long-term care and home care to free acute beds

Different parties in the B.C. election have different ideas for how to reform the B.C. tax system and potentially make the rich pay a fairer share. #bcpoli @marclee.bsky.social www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

There is no data that we are recovering and the article isn’t about that at all. Treatments and access to care are continually being scaled back across the country. It is an episodic disability that requires ongoing management and rehabilitative care. My research (in the article) supports this recc.

In British Columbia’s election, public auto insurance is in the crosshairs. How does the system work—and compare to other provinces? #bcpoli @marclee.bsky.social www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

Long Covid clinic runs virtual sessions of up to 50 patients. Many of them feature support from allied health professionals (AHPs) like occupational therapists, physios and psychologists MSP fee changes mean AHPs will no longer be available in virtual group settings www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Halloween may be around the corner, but the real horror is what billionaires are out here saying while we’re just trying to exist😒 #billionaires #makerichpolluterspay #climateaction #climatecrisis #halloween

The substance of the first five referendum questions allows for the sinister legacy of Trudeau to continue in the guise of newly arrived immigrants. Unable to conjure a sufficient external enemy in Ottawa, Smith seems intent on creating an internal one. www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

According to a report...released by @policyalternatives.ca, the median fee for infant care in Richmond is $52 per day, and $40 per day in Vancouver.... [For-profit] operators of these spaces tend to charge higher fees than their non-profit counterparts. www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...