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Tonight on Village Media's new daily podcast: Amid a summer heat wave, parents are calling on the province to create new regulations to deal with scorching temperatures in daycares and classrooms.

As heat waves continue to grip the province, parents are speaking out about the "sweltering" conditions inside some child-care centres.

The Trillium, Village Media's bureau at Queen's Park, reported this week that some kids are being left in diapers as a way to keep cool. While some facilities have window or portable air conditioning units, parents say the devices aren't enough to keep the rooms comfortable.

As The Trillium reported, parents are calling on the province to set maximum allowable temperatures for child-care centres — a move supported by Opposition parties.

Pressed about the issue at a news conference this week, Premier Doug Ford did not rule out implementing air conditioning standards in child-care settings.

"It's terrible that kids have to sit in the boiling hot heat. And I'm all for putting window air conditioning units in and helping them out ... any way they can," Ford said. "But this has been going on for decades and decades and decades, and we need to help the young kids any way we possibly can."

Sneh Duggal, deputy editor of The Trillium, has been leading the coverage of this story and joins us tonight on Closer Look.

Spoiler alert: Building a giant highway tunnel is probably not the solution to this particular problem.

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Tonight on Village Media's new daily podcast: We dig a little deeper into Premier Ford's big idea to construct a massive, congestion-easing tunnel underneath Highway 401 in Toronto.

For a story about boring, this one has proven to be anything but.

Premier Doug Ford is determined as ever to dig a massive tunnel underneath Highway 401 in Toronto — telling reporters yesterday that he's spoken with "some tunnelling folks" and has hashed out a realistic plan to ease congestion.

According to Ford's tunnel vision, the finished product will have three levels: one for eastbound traffic, one for westbound traffic, and another for public transit.

The total cost? Nobody knows for sure.

Is a highway tunnel a realistic construction project? How long would it actually take to build? Would it be safe?

Or would the province be more wise to spend some of those billions on other options aimed at mitigating congestion?

We tackle those questions, and many more, on tonight's episode of Village Media's new Closer Look podcast. Our guests are Jessica Smith Cross, editor-in-chief of The Trillium, and Professor Matti Siemiatycki, director of the Infrastructure Institute at the University of Toronto.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

New episodes of Closer Look drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. across the Village Media network, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Have something to say? You can reach us at closerlook@villagemedia.ca.

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It's not everyday that the OPP launches an investigation targeting an Ontario mayor. But that's exactly what happened this week in North Bay, where Mayor Peter Chirico has been dogged by a spending scandal that has triggered plenty of headlines.

The controversy revolves around nearly $16,000 in questionable expenses charged to Chirico's city-issued corporate credit card, including dog food, cigarettes, a golf membership and season tickets to the OHL's North Bay Battalion.

Chirico has previously said he's "done nothing wrong" and has "nothing to hide." Ultimately, it's now up to the OPP to decide.

To be clear, Chirico has not been charged with any crime. At this point, the force will only confirm that it is investigating a complaint regarding the mayor.

Our guest on tonight's Closer Look podcast is Chris Dawson of BayToday, one of our reporters covering the evolving story.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

New episodes of Closer Look drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. across the Village Media network, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Have something to say? You can reach us at closerlook@villagemedia.ca.

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Tonight on Village Media's new daily podcast: Ontario's Liberal leader concedes that 'mistakes were made' during the last election, but she has every intention of steering her party into the next campaign.

Bonnie Crombie acknowledges that “mistakes were made” during the last provincial election, but the Liberal leader insists she is the best person to steer her party into the next campaign — whenever that happens to be.

Crombie — who faces a mandatory leadership review at next month’s annual general meeting of the Ontario Liberal Party — has faced some recent heat from fellow Liberals, including former leadership rival Nate Erskine-Smith.

Although party rules demand that a leader receive support from more than 50 per cent of delegates in order to stay on the job, Erskine-Smith says Crombie should resign if she doesn’t garner at least two-thirds.

During an interview with Village Media’s new Closer Look podcast, Crombie would not specify how much support is enough for her. But she insisted she is "not going anywhere.”

“I’m here to say we have listened, we acknowledge mistakes were made, and we are prepared to rebuild and revitalize and move forward together,” she told the podcast. “We need to be united against our common opponent, not against each other.”

You can watch Crombie’s full interview in the video clip above.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

New episodes of Closer Look drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. across the Village Media network, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Have something to say? You can reach us at closerlook@villagemedia.ca.

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Tonight on 'Closer Look': One of Canada's most recognized and respected journalists talks to us about his beloved Red Sox, his new podcast, and why he's excited to once again team up with Village Media.

Don’t use the word retired to describe Steve Paikin. He’s working as hard as ever.

The longtime anchor of TVO’s The Agenda, who recorded his final show last month after 19 seasons, has shifted his journalism to the independent kind.

The Paikin Podcast dropped its debut episode two weeks ago — a sit-down interview with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith — and features a cast of regular panellists, including former MPs Tony Clement and Martha Hall Findlay and esteemed international relations expert Janice Stein.

You can find every episode of The Paikin Podcast HERE, or wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.

And starting this weekend, you'll also be able to watch Paikin's latest episode right here on your local news site — every Saturday at 8 a.m. at the top of the homepage. Be sure to look for it.

Paikin joins us on tonight’s Closer Look to talk about his beloved Boston Red Sox, his new podcast, and why he’s excited to be teaming up with Village Media once again.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

New episodes of Closer Look drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. across the Village Media network, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Have something to say? You can reach us at closerlook@villagemedia.ca.

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Tonight on Village Media's new daily podcast: What our Queen's Park team at The Trillium discovered about the chair of the PC Ontario Fund — and how Premier Ford reacted to the investigation.

"He could be the most powerful person in the province."

That's the way one source described Tony Miele, the long-serving chair of the PC Ontario Fund — the fundraising arm of Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party. With Miele at the helm, the PCs have dominated other provincial parties in fundraising for more than a decade, bankrolling slick, expensive commercials and professional election campaigns.

An investigation by The Trillium, Village Media's bureau at Queen's Park, uncovered a lot more about the PC party's chief fundraiser.

Several well-placed sources who have worked at high levels of the Ford government and in the development industry told The Trillium that Miele not only raises party funds from developers, but personally makes money working with them, a claim substantiated by court documents.

Miele has also had rare access to provincial cabinet ministers and their staff, who sometimes get in touch with him while planning political fundraisers, according to nine well-placed sources.

Miele told The Trillium he has “dedicated over 30 years to advising on building and infrastructure across Canada.”

“My role has always been that of a consultant and not a lobbyist,” he continued. “I'm proud of the work I've done and stand by the integrity and transparency of the services I've provided.”

The article triggered plenty of reaction from Opposition politicians, with one Liberal MPP asking the province's integrity commissioner to consider The Trillium report as she determines whether or not her office will investigate issues around the Dresden landfill.

Our guest on tonight's Closer Look podcast is Jessica Smith Cross, the Editor-in-Chief of The Trillium, who co-authored the Miele profile with reporter Charlie Pinkerton.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, 'Closer Look' is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

New episodes of ‘Closer Look’ drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. across the Village Media network, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Have something to say? You can reach us at closerlook@villag

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Tonight on Village Media's new 'Closer Look' podcast: One month after masked men tried to steal a vehicle out of Doug Ford's driveway, a new report finds a major decline in reported auto thefts.

Last year, when the provincial and federal governments announced millions of dollars in funding to crack down on car thieves, Ontario Premier Doug Ford had a stern warning for would-be criminals: “We’re coming after you.”

They actually came after him, it turned out. But in the end, the government crackdown appears to be working.

A new report released this week found the number of vehicles reported stolen across Canada is way down during the first six months of 2025 — including in Ontario, where reported auto theft has dropped nearly 26 per cent.

Équité Association, the industry group that released the report, credits much of the drop to collective efforts aimed at combating the crime from coast to coast.

Our guest on tonight's Closer Look podcast is Bryan Gast, a former OPP officer who is now the national vice-president of investigative services at Équité Association.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

New episodes of Closer Look drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. across the Village Media network, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Have something to say? You can reach us at closerlook@villagemedia.ca.

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Remember back in 2018, when the United States, Canada and Mexico celebrated their successful bid to co-host the 2026 World Cup?

Now that the big event is less than a year away — and U.S. President Donald Trump has unleashed a tariff war on his country’s closest trading partner — things have gotten a bit awkward.

Offside, to borrow a soccer term.

Political tensions, combined with Trump’s immigration crackdown, are threatening to overshadow the largest-ever FIFA World Cup, with the three countries set to host a record 48 teams.

Will some international fans get caught up in Trump’s travel ban? And how does Canada play co-host to the world alongside a country that is openly threatening its very sovereignty?

We tackle those questions, and many more, with our guest on tonight’s Closer Look podcast: Tim Elcombe, a kinesiology professor at Wilfrid Laurier University who studies the connected world of sports, politics and international affairs.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

New episodes of Closer Look drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. across the Village Media network, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Have something to say? You can reach us at closerlook@villagemedia.ca.