The Agenda with Steve Paikin (Video)

How will the COVID-19 pandemic shape the way government, business, and life unfolds once the health emergency subsides? We ask Yascha Mounk, associate professor at Johns Hopkins University; Doug Saunders, the Globe and Mail's international affairs columnist; and Ann Fitz-Gerald, director of the Balsillie School of International Affairs.

Athletes have dedicated many hours to training hard the Olympic games that were meant to start in just a few months. But now it's been postponed, as have their dreams of competing. The Agenda discusses the toll it takes on athletes to keep safe during this pandemic.

A relatively mild winter this year has resulted in very little ice cover across the Great Lakes. Many surrounding communities rely on the ice for recreational activities such as ice fishing as an economic boost through tourism during the shoulder season. Ontario Hubs field producer Jeyan Jeganathan visited Manitoulin Island and the southwestern Ontario community of Mitchell's Bay to see how unpredictable ice levels affects small communities.

What do sports anchors and writers do when there are no games to cover? With basketball, hockey, baseball, and other leagues put on pause, Steve Paikin talks to people whose job it is to cover sports about how they're spending their time.

Coronavirus has shut down the way actors, musicians, and comedians make a living. To discuss the effects of this on careers and finances, The Agenda welcomes Torquil Campbell, singer/songwriter with the band Stars; Quinn C. Martin, a Toronto-based stand-up comedian; and actress Samora Smallwood.

In the middle of a provincial state of emergency, the Ontario government is set to release a fiscal update to address its response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Finance Minister Rod Phillips joins Steve Paikin to discuss the government's plans.

The Agenda hears from opposition parties on how the PC government is managing the province's finances, especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic that is bringing Ontario's economy to a halt. With guests: Liberal finance critic Mitzi Hunter; NDP finance critic Sandy Shaw; and Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner.

Business journalists evaluate how the PC government is responding financially to the COVID-19 pandemic as they strive to protect jobs and support the strained health-care system. Steve Paikin talks to Financial Post business reporter Vanmala Subramaniam; and HuffPost business reporter Daniel Tencer.

From Ebola to COVID-19, zoonotic diseases, viruses that cross from animal to humans, are increasing in frequency. Why is this happening and what can be done to stop this dangerous transfer? Steve Paikin talks to Dr. Samira Mubareka, microbiologist and infectious diseases physician at Sunnybrook Hosital, who was part of the team that recently isolated SARS-CoV-2, the agent that caused COVID-19.

What are the steps Canadian scientists are taking and what are their challenges as they race to find a vaccine to prevent the novel coronavirus? Steve Paikin talks with Alan Bernstein, president and CEO of Canadian Institute for Advanced Research; and Dr. Robert Kozak, clinical microbiologist at Sunnybrook Hospital, and part of the team that recently isolated SARS-CoV-2, the agent causes COVID-19.

Budget Day is usually one of the most important days on any government's calendar, because it sums up how Ontario intends to spend more than $170 billion of your tax dollars over the upcoming year. But how is the current finance minister, Rod Phillips, going to do that tomorrow, when no one has a clue what's going to happen to the economy next week, let alone next year? Steve Paikin talks to Janet Ecker about her experience as Ontario's finance minister in 2003 when SARS hit the province and her budget had to quickly pivot to take those realities into account.

As Ontario fights the spread of COVID-19, what lessons from the 2003 SARS epidemic have informed the decisions being made now? The Agenda welcomes key players from that crisis: Tony Clement, the former Ontario minister of health; Paul Cantin, who was then the minister's press secretary; Mike McCarthy, then a senior policy adviser to the Ministry of Health; and Kristina Gentes, then a policy adviser to Premier Ernie Eves.

COVID-19's presence in Ontario's northern regions poses a very specific risk to remote and fly-in communities with smaller populations often living in close quarters with far fewer health care options and resources. Northeastern Ontario Hub journalist Nick Dunne provides an update on how those regions are faring in pandemic preparation.

What is true and what's plain myth about the coronavirus? Then, Andre Picard contextualizes the messages from health authorities. We get tips on how to budget our personal finances during a pandemic. And, how can the economy come back from this situation. The Agenda reviews its week of COVID-19 coverage.

Pain doctor Hance Clarke visits the Agenda to discuss what you need to know about painkillers during the COVID-19 pandemic, from ibuprofen to opioids.