The Current

It’s been just over four months since Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith signed a memorandum of understanding giving Alberta special exemptions from federal environmental laws and setting the stage for a new oil pipeline to the west coast. But both sides are set to miss an early deadline on April 1st because of sticking points. Former oil executive Richard Massen and Clean Prosperity President and CEO Michael Bernstein discuss what's at stake if delays continue.

Duration:00:19:32

Baseball brings in the robots

Are the days of yelling at the umpire gone? Major league baseball is using new technology to check if a strike is really a strike called ABS, the Automated Ball-Strike system — and it’s getting applause and criticism.

Duration:00:10:49

Wanna Bet? Prediction markets are coming to Canada.

Imagine a world where you can bet on everything from when the war in Iran will end to how many tweets Elon Musk will post in a week. That world exists in prediction markets, and now those markets are coming to Canada. We talk to Werner Antweiler, an Associate professor at UBC’s Sauder School of Business, and he ran his own not-for-profit prediction market experiment for more than 20 years.

Duration:00:16:23

22 Minutes’ Mary Walsh on life’s highs and lows

Most Canadians know comedian Mary Walsh from her iconic characters on the CBC TV show, This Hour has 22 Minutes.But the story of Mary Walsh's life goes far beyond her comedic and acting triumphs. She tells those stories in her new book, a collection of essays about the highs, and the lows. We talk to Mary Walsh about her life and her new book “Brassy Bit of Aging Crumpet.”

Duration:00:24:26

No joy: when music falls flat for people

3/30/2026

They're not tone-deaf. They don't have the blues. Music just falls flat for them. Host Matt Galloway speaks with Bill Weiss, who is among a small percentage of people who don't derive pleasure from music. He also catches up with one of the first researchers to study the rare condition; Robert Zatorre from Montreal Neurological Institute at McGill University.

Duration:00:25:08

Is This War About to Get Bigger?

3/30/2026

Talk of negotiations is everywhere but so are signs of escalation, in the U.S., Israel and Iran war. Inside Iran, people are trapped between fear of war and fear of what comes after. Outside, military movements suggest this conflict may be heading somewhere much harder to stop.

Duration:00:24:20

NDP’s new leader, Avi Lewis, lays out the road ahead

3/30/2026

Newly elected federal NDP leader Avi Lewis lays out the steep climb ahead for the federal NDP and the new vision endorsed by party members this weekend.

Duration:00:19:25

What's the path forward for the federal NDP?

After facing their worst-ever election result less than a year ago, the federal NDP are electing a new leader at their party convention in Winnipeg this weekend. Two-party veterans — former B.C. MP Libby Davies and former Saskatchewan cabinet minister Pat Atkinson weigh in on the competing visions of frontrunners Avi Lewis and Heather McPherson.

Duration:00:19:16

Will the Blue Jays make it back to the World Series?

Baseball is back! After a shorter-than-usual off-season, the Blue Jays return to the Rogers Centre, kicking off the MLB season. So what does the team have in store, and what challenges lie ahead as the team eyes a return to the World Series? Acclaimed Blue Jays announcer Dan Shulman and his son Ben, also a play-by-play commentator, but for radio, walk us through what we can expect.

Duration:00:15:39

Why Canada wants to launch its own satellites

Brig.-Gen. Christopher Horner, commander of 3 Canadian Space Division, explains why Canada is interested in cementing the ability to launch its own satellites from a spaceport on home soil — and why, for the military in particular, it's a matter of security and sovereignty.

Duration:00:08:47

Canadian efforts to help the crisis in Cuba

Cuba is still recovering from a major blackout this past week as it continues to grapple with severe fuel shortages, rolling blackouts, and dwindling supplies of essentials. The country has long suffered from economic woes. But the situation has grown far worse since the U.S. deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January, cut off Venezuelan oil to Cuba, and threatened other countries with tariffs if they send fuel. That’s all on top of President Donald Trump’s threats to Cuba itself. It all stands in stark contrast to the relationship that Canada has long had with the Caribbean nation. A new CBC documentary explores that history and the efforts Canadians are making today to help a country in crisis.

Duration:00:25:51

A "generational” deal for WNBA players

We’re just over a month away from the 30th season of the WNBA and there are going to be some big changes in the league this year. Players signed a historic new collective bargaining agreement that’s giving them an almost 400% salary increase. Savanna Hamilton, sports journalist and host of the women's sports podcast, Cinderella Stories Podcast, breaks down what this moment means for the league.

Duration:00:07:31

Are baby boomers addicted to their phones?

Millennials were the first generation to grow up with the internet. Now, some are looking at their parents and questioning how much time they are spending on it. Sherry Bagnato, 67, and her Matthew Cira, 33, talk about how this is playing out in their family. And McMaster University professor Nicole Dalmer, who studies aging alongside technology, says for many older adults, using these devices is more seamless than people expect.

Duration:00:20:02

Iranian playwright Ava Alavi on her fears for her country

Playwright Ava Alavi moved from Iran to Canada shortly before Mahsa Amini was arrested and beaten for allegedly violating Iran's headscarf law. Amini's death and the movement that followed inspired Alavi's new play, "Sound," which premiered at Ottawa's Undercurrents Festival in early February. Alavi shares how creating geopolitical theatre helps her deal with what's happening back home.

Duration:00:22:00

Will the Supreme Court overturn Bill 21?