The Current

The Current for Oct. 5, 2020

Today on The Current: Personal support workers call for more help supporting the vulnerable, What Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis means for his health and the election, New Green Party Leader Annamie Paul, Amnesty International says bank account frozen in India.
Matt Galloway is the host of CBC Radio's The Current. (CBC)

Today on The Current:

Personal support workers (PSWs) have welcomed a pay raise in Ontario, but wonder if the financial help will last beyond COVID-19. Matt Galloway talks to Asona Kirton, a personal support worker in a long-term care facility in Toronto, as well as Laura Bulmer, professor in the PSW program at George Brown College, and Natalie Stake-Doucet, president of the Quebec Nurses Association. 

Plus, COVID-19 has come to the White House, but there's some confusion and debate over exactly how sick U.S. President Donald Trump is. What does his diagnosis mean for the election, in a country where the virus itself has become a wildly divisive political issue? We talk to Josh Wingrove, White House correspondent for Bloomberg News, and Dr. Jorge Salinas, an infectious disease expert and hospital epidemiologist at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Then, Annamie Paul is the new leader of the Green Party, becoming the first Black leader of a major federal political party in Canada. She discusses what's next for the party, and her vision for Canada's future.

And Amnesty International says its bank accounts in India have been frozen, essentially halting its operations there. Author Natasha Badhwar says it's the latest government attack on civil liberties, which haven't stopped since riots in New Delhi earlier this year.

Full Episode Transcript