Hour 1 of Ottawa Now for Wed. August 20th, 2025

Andrew Pinsent is filling in for the vacationing Kristy Cameron this week. It’s been a tragic Summer season on Ontario waters, backed up by new data from the Ontario Provincial Police. They say that drownings over the past 12 months have doubled. And in the wake of one particular tragedy in Northern Ontario, calls for mandatory swimming lessons in public schools have resurfaced at a fast and furious pace. Sean Duffy from the Lifesaving Society of Ontario pays us a visit in Hour 1. Turning our attention to municipal and provincial politics, an Ottawa city councillor has caught the attention of Ontario’s Premier, and not in a good way. Ariel Troster from Somerset Ward took the province’s Deputy Premier to task on recent crime data statistics, leading to a widening degree of confusion. She hops on the show to clarify her stance and react to Doug Ford’s criticism.