On this episode of the Insights Podcast, we talk with veteran political reporter Stephen Maher, who has just written a book called “The Prince: The Turbulent Reign of Justin Trudeau”. The book was well researched and provides a balanced look at Trudeau’s time as Prime Minister. It is a book that would be of interest to those who follow politics. Maher gives credit to the Trudeau Government’s for its handling of the pandemic, efforts to reconcile with Indigenous communities, and protecting the environment. He is more critical of Trudeau for his handling of the economy and the country’s fiscal situation. The podcast also takes the opportunity to discuss the state of journalism in the country, with a specific emphasis of the challenges facing the newspaper industry

On this week's Insights podcast, Don and David speak with Beena Goldenberg, CEO of the cannabis product manufacturing firm OrganiGram. The third largest company in Canada by market share, OrganiGram has annual revenues of $160 million and a massive 550,000 square foot production facility in the Moncton Industrial Park. To put that into perspective, OrganiGram's facilities are equivalent to the footprint of four Costco stores. The company is likely NB Power's largest customer in Moncton and has a 60 person R&D shop, again likely the largest private sector research team in the Greater Moncton region. Beena discusses the company's growth as well as challenges as the company looks to build a global company from its roots in New Brunswick. For anyone interested in learning about one of the largest manufacturing companies in Atlantic Canada and the state of the cannabis market in Canada and beyond, this one is well worth an hour of your time.

In this episode of the Insights Podcast, we focus on Canada's National Shipbuilding Strategy and the impact of that strategy on Atlantic Canada. Building ships for the navy is a complex and complicated endeavour and there is probably no other group than the Irvings that were capable of competing and winning a national bid to build those ships in Halifax. Irving Shipbuilding has 2,400 people working to complete the Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) portion of their contract and is readying to begin to build the combatant "River Class" ships. They have developed a skilled and capable workforce and provided Canada with a sovereign ability to build its own military ships. The company has already spent more than $500 million in the region since the beginning of the AOPS program and contracts with more than 130 companies across the region. In our conversation with their CEO, Dirk Lesko, a veteran shipbuilder, he talks about the further investments needed to prepare for the combatant program, his pride in his leadership group and labour force and how the current shipbuilding facilities compare globally. It is a big deal for our region and well worth a listen.