The Jill Bennett Show

April is BC Wine Month and that's perfect timing for the new releases from the 2025 vintage that are starting to come out, which mark a return to BC fruit. Guest: Geoff Moss - Owner of Lithica Wine Marketing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Air Canada says customers will be contacted with alternative travel options after the announcement of the suspension of some flights due to high fuel prices. Kelowna is being allowed to opt out of rules limiting short-term rentals in time for this summer's tourism season. The one-time allowance comes as the province speeds up the process of allowing communities to opt out if they have rental vacancy rates of at least 3 per cent. A $40 weekly grocery bill in Canada? Homemaker Michelle Nadjim says it's possible! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Burnaby School District is dealing with several major financial and operational pressures heading into the 2026–27 school year. Key issues include a potential $9.4 million unfunded labour arbitration ruling, ongoing budget consultations, and significant changes to community use of the Michael J. Fox Theatre. Guest: Kristin Schnider - Burnaby School Board Chair Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Troy Hillman - Retired Cold Case Homicide Detective Sergeant, Author and Consultant Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom Digby - Vancouver Park Board Chair Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Markham Hislop - Energy journalist and energy transition expert at Energi Media, Find him on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vancouver footwear designer John Fluevog recently underwent a kidney transplant. He's even debuted some new shoes for the occasion. Guest: Dr. John Gill - Nephrologist who was part of the team that performed Fluevog's transplant Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Paul W. Bennett - Director, Schoolhouse Institute an independent consulting practice, Senior Fellow, Macdonald-Laurier Institute Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Canada Post lays out 5-year plan to convert to community mailbox delivery Jon Hamilton - VP of Communications, Canada Post Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vancouver footwear designer John Fluevog received a life-saving kidney from a family friend, Patty, in what he now calls an overwhelming act of generosity. A major decision out of the District of North Vancouver this week is raising questions about both local safety and national infrastructure. Ontario is moving ahead with a major shake-up to high school education, proposing changes that could reshape how students are tested, graded, and even how attendance affects their marks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tons of stories happening in the travel sector! Let's unpack them with our resident travel expert Claire Newell. Guest: Claire Newell - Founder of Travel Best Bets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vancouver city council has approved a controversial rezoning that clears the way for a 250-room floating hotel in Coal Harbour. Supporters say it will help address the city's hotel shortage and boost tourism, but critics argue could privatize public waterfront space and sidestep traditional safety oversight. Guest: Mike Klassen - Vancouver City Councillor with ABC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Prime Minister Mark Carney is moving quickly to tackle affordability concerns, announcing a temporary suspension of the federal fuel excise tax that could shave about 10 cents off the price of gas. A rally is set for Vancouver City Hall today as hospitality workers and residents push back against a proposed floating hotel in Coal Harbour. Ten years after British Columbia declared the toxic drug crisis a public health emergency, more than 18,000 lives have been lost in the province alone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alberta is turning to artificial intelligence and drone technology to help track and manage an invasive species that's become a growing problem for farmers and the environment. Guest: Ryan Brook - University of Saskatchewan professor and the lead researcher for the Canadian Wild Pig Research Project Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Docket with Michael Shapray Guest: Michael Shapray - Criminal Lawyer with Stern Shapray Criminal Lawyers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At 81 years-old, former Surrey mayor Doug McCallum is making a comeback to politics with another run for Surrey mayor. Artemis astronauts are home! What does the success of this mission mean for future missions? Are you coping with the loss of a pet? There's a new service in B.C. to help. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Teresa Scassa, Canada Research Chair in Information Law and Policy, University of Ottawa: Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Andrew Leonard, Mayor of Bowen Island Municipality Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With a ceasefire in the Middle East still shaky, US Vice President JD Vance is heading to Pakistan for high-level talks with Iranian officials. With only three weeks to go until the Apr. 30 tax filing deadline, what kinds of mistakes do tax filers often make when scrambling to get their taxes done before the deadline? In Vancouver's softer housing market, developers are getting creative to attract buyers, including one offering a very unusual incentive... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This Sunday All Elite Wrestling returns to Vancouver for AEW Dynasty at Rogers Arena. The show will be headlined by AEW World Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman wrestling Winnipeg's own Kenny Omega. Our producer Ben Dooley had the chance to speak to MJF earlier this morning about what fans can expect on Sunday Guest: Maxwell Jacob Friedman - AEW World Champion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The B.C. government is facing growing backlash over its plan to temporarily suspend key parts of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, legislation that was once unanimously supported in the legislature as a cornerstone of reconciliation. Guest: Adam Olsen - Lead Negotiator, Tsartlip First Nation and former BC Green MLA Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are joined by an 83 year-old woman who claims doctors floated the idea of medical assistance in dying (MAID) to her during a visit to the ER seeking diagnosis for her back pain. Two B.C. organizations are calling on the provincial government to make a long-promised change to rental housing rules. A mystery surrounding a piece of art, part of the Hudson Bay Company collections, has recently been unraveled. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Jenny Kwan, NDP MP for Vancouver East Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guests: Denis Agar, Executive Director, Movement: Metro Vancouver Transit Riders and Arden English, elected councillor at the Simon Fraser Student Society Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Warren Kinsella, Former special Advisor to Jean Chretien and founder of the Daisy Group Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Josie Osborne, B.C. Minister of Health Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you been blinded by headlights while driving at night? Transport Canada wants to hear about your experience with a survey. A familiar name is set to spearhead the B.C. Treaty Commission, they join us to talk about playing the key role in Indigenous negotiations and relations. And could a GST exemption on new homes happen in B.C.? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Daniel Stern, vehicle lighting and regulation expert based in Vancouver and Chief Editor of Driving Vision News - the technical journal of record for driver vision and vehicle lighting around the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Claire Newell, President and Founder of Travel Best Bets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Alex Marland, professor at the Acadia University dept. of politics, co-author of No I in Team, Party Loyalty in Canadian Politics Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 8th edition of the annual State of Downtown report has been released today. This publication offers an exclusive look into the economic and social landscape of downtown Vancouver, supported by cutting-edge data. Rogers Field at Nat Bailey Stadium(better known as “The Nat”) is celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2026, marking three-quarters of a century as a community landmark, baseball hub, and summer tradition in the city. Rescued raven learns to imitate 'dramatic' sneeze of Prince George shelter operator. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you play Lotto Max, big changes are coming this month... including higher jackpots, more prizes, and a shift in the odds. Guest: Michael Wallace - Associate professor of biostatistics in the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science at the University of Waterloo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new singer dominating the ITunes charts is AI generated. Is this the future? Guest: Eric Alper - Publicist and Music Commentator Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week's edition features a story about a woman suing Tim Hortons after falling off a toilet. Guest: Michael Shapray - Criminal Lawyer with Stern Shapray Criminal Lawyers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most of us have encountered someone like this: a friend who turns on you without warning, a colleague who quietly undermines your work, or a partner who initially seemed perfect but later revealed a much darker side. While we might call them difficult, toxic, or even a “bad apple,” personality researchers have a more specific term: the “dark tetrad.” Guest: Leanne Ten Brinke - associate professor of psychology at UBC Okanagan and directs the Irving K. Barber Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences‘ Truth and Trust Lab. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen and his three American crewmates have surpassed the distance record of 400-thousand-171 kilometres set by Apollo 13 in 1970. Guest: Scott Tilley - Amateur Astronomer and blogger at skyriddles.wordpress.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kelowna is pushing the B.C. government to fast-track an exemption to the province's new short-term rental rules, arguing that changes could help bring hundreds of units back into the tourism market just as demand is expected to surge. Guest: Chris Petty - General Manager, Basil & Mint Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We've all heard the phrase “age is just a number”—but what if that number doesn't tell the whole story? Guest: Scott Lear - Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rising fuel costs are hitting nearly every corner of the economy, but in British Columbia's wine industry, the impact is being felt from vineyard to shelf. Trump's threating to blow "everything up" if Iran won't make a deal in the latest ceasefire bid. Multiple sailings were cancelled over the Easter long weekend due to mechanical issues affecting key vessels. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Bronwyn Lewis, food and travel writer and content creator. Follow her on Instagram and YouTube @FeastWriteGrow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why is Good Friday widely observed even among the non-religious? More and more Canadians identify as non-religious, what does the religious landscape look like and how has it changed? Guest: Joel Thiessen, Professor of Sociology at Ambrose University and Director of the Flourishing Congregations Institute Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BC Ferries has another disastrous long weekend, how are the coastal communities dealing with it? A tax expert joins us to talk about how changes to the property tax deferral program may unexpected impacts. Another major Aboriginal land claim decision out of the B.C. Court of Appeal, what does this mean for future land claims decisions across the country? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

B.C. scales back EV mandates, but is it enough? Independent grocers are warning they might have no choice but to pass on the cost of the global energy shortage on to consumers. Are the already sky-high grocery prices set to increase even more? New Westminster council approves bylaw to protect tenants from dangerously hot indoor conditions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

NASA's Artemis II mission is set to launch, carrying four astronauts on a journey that will test the systems and technology needed to return to the lunar surface and, eventually, push further into deep space. Guest: Gordon Osinski - Professor at Western University - in Florida to watch the launch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former Vancouver mayor and senator Larry Campbell says his work in the Downtown Eastside began as a “depressing and traumatic experience,” but that his perspective has shifted as he's seen signs of new housing and what he describes as a “vibrancy” returning to the neighbourhood. Canada's craft brewing industry is raising a glass to new federal tax measures that aim to give small and independent breweries some financial breathing room. BC Ferries says sailing disruptions due to a generator problem in one ship earlier this week will reverberate through the Easter long weekend on one busy route. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Claire Newell of Travel Best Bets comes on to discuss all the major stories coming out of the travel sector! Guest: Claire Newell - President and Founder, Travel Best Bets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new report is raising fresh concerns about the future of affordable child care in British Columbia. Despite promises to deliver $10-a-day spaces, progress appears to be slowing, with fewer new spots than expected and growing pressure on a system already struggling with long waitlists and staffing shortages. Guest: Eric Swanson - Principal of Third Space Planning and consultant to the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices