Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May. Ms. May's Green Party has been recording historic highs in recent national polls, but pollster Greg Lyle predicts that the Bloc and the NDP will be more influential than the Greens after the next federal election. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade and courtesy of the Bloc Québécois
Despite Greens’ rising popularity, NDP and Bloc more likely to hold balance of power in next House: pollster Lyle
If the current voting trends continued until election time, the Green Party could win 14 seats, says EKOS president Frank Graves. But he also says if progressive voters choose to vote strategically to prevent the Conservatives from forming government, they could vote for the Liberals.
Conservatives and Scheer falling behind in Ontario, suggests Campaign Research poll
The Liberals also surpassed the Conservatives nationally for the first time in a year in polls by the Toronto firm.Canada should keep focus on human rights in midst of U.S.-Iran spiralling tensions, say activists
Global Affairs says Canada's priority in engagement with Iran is the case of Maryam Mombeini who has not been able to leave Iran since March of 2018 following the death of her imprisoned husband. Politics This Morning
Your email has been added. An email has been sent to your address, please click the link inside of it to confirm your subscription.
Venezuela talks end without resolution, calling Canada’s role in dispute into question, say critics
As internationally mediated talks between the Venezuelan regime and opposition break down, lawmakers and experts are skeptical about the path forward, and are divided on Canada's role in solving the crisis. Former Hill staffer Kim overseeing federal Liberals’ candidate-vetting process
Suh Kim, national chair of the Liberal Green Light Committee, served as Ontario co-chair of the Green Light Committee for the 2015 election cycle.Commission to unveil televised leaders’ debates producer in ‘next few weeks,’ says Cormier
There’s an inherent tension at play between journalism’s interest in news value and the public interest, says Elly Alboim, former CBC journalist, who doesn't think debates should be treated as a 'journalistic exercise.'Globe and Mail still a ‘great paper,’ but losing ‘huge amount of institutional knowledge’ from buyouts, says veteran journalist
The president of the Canadian Association of Journalists called the voluntary buyouts at The Globe ‘the canary in the coal mines’ within the Canadian journalism industry.Many Indigenous youth optimistic about future of reconciliation, poll suggests, as election looms
Max FineDay of Canadian Roots Exchange says it's up to parties to articulate clear visions about how they're going to advance reconciliation.Controversial Château Laurier redesign gets green light from city council after bid to reconsider proposal fails
Environment Minister Catherine McKenna, who represents the riding where the historic hotel is situated in, is offering to sit down with the city and Larco Investments, the Château Laurier's owner. Next PM to quicken or quell Senator independence, with nearly a quarter set to retire next Parliament
The numbers mean the next Parliament could be a turning point for Senate reform, says Sen. Tony Dean, but ‘there’s no scenario where it’s a slam dunk for anybody.’
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May. Ms. May's Green Party has been recording historic highs in recent national polls, but pollster Greg Lyle predicts that the Bloc and the NDP will be more influential than the Greens after the next federal election. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade and courtesy of the Bloc Québécois
Despite Greens’ rising popularity, NDP and Bloc more likely to hold balance of power in next House: pollster Lyle
If the current voting trends continued until election time, the Green Party could win 14 seats, says EKOS president Frank Graves. But he also says if progressive voters choose to vote strategically to prevent the Conservatives from forming government, they could vote for the Liberals.
So campaign 2019, the ‘Low Blows Election’ has begun
It's our new Trumpian politics. It goes something like this. You get a famous name to make a controversial allegation against a well-known public figure and hope that it lights up Twitter.
The Château’s not your building; if you want to keep it the way it is, buy it
Ottawa, stop embracing the past. Stop celebrating fluff. Consider the possibilities of 2019 and beyond.Federal parties are racing against time and losing
In politics, time management matters, or as Benjamin Franklin once put it, 'Lost time is never found again.' So the parties better get at it. 
Trudeau’s legislative record unlikely to motivate voters in the fall, with a few exceptions: pollsters
Many achievements and blunders enshrined in legislation are ancient history in the minds of voters, who cast their ballots based on the next thing you can do for them, say politicos and pollsters.Liberals passing the buck on weapons ban
If the Liberal government truly believes that the legal availability of assault weapons puts the public at risk, then why not enact measures that are available to them right now, while they are still in power?Will the Senate respect democracy and First Nations rights?
Three important pieces of legislation sit in the Senate today, subject to the whim of a small group of Senators, which is a gross undermining of the democratic process.
Would you shill for Osama bin Laden?
Canadian lobby firm should not be doing business with Sudan military.U.S. Ambassador Craft in ‘departure mode’ with ‘unconventional’ Fourth of July, say former diplomats
The outgoing U.S. ambassador was big on relationships and will be remembered for key Trump ties that proved useful during NAFTA renegotiations, says Liberal MP Wayne Easter.No sign Canada ‘making inroads’ with China, strategy not working as Trudeau claims, say former diplomats
Canada ‘more or less completely passive’ on China file, according to former Canadian diplomat to Beijing Charles Burton.
Lobbying watchdog says glitch in system skewed volume of registrations
Lobbying commissioner Nancy Bélanger says she's considering doing 'spot checks' for political activities in an effort to advise lobbyists of how their lobbying activities might be affected in the future.Municipalities close conference with sights set on Election 2019
So coming out of FCM’s conference and heading to the election 2019, municipalities stand ready to continue working with every federal party to empower Canada’s local leaders. Because that’s how we’ll build better lives.Lobbyists increasingly target Senate as Liberals make final legislative push
At 517 lobbying records in the first four months of 2019, the volume of lobbyists targeting the Senate has already surpassed the annual totals common before the Justin Trudeau's government came to power.
‘I started there with Mr. Trudeau and I finished with Mr. Trudeau’: longtime Parliamentary Restaurant stalwart Marguerite Charlebois retires
Plus, Warren Kinsella is added to the Green Party's war room, and Pierre Pettigrew is named Asia Pacific Foundation board chair.
New chief of staff for Public Services Minister Qualtrough
Plus, Women and Gender Equality Minister Maryam Monsef has a new issues manager in her office.
Hillites, lobbyists, public servants, reporters drawn to magic of Ottawa Lawn Summer Nights
Lawn Summer Nights at the Elmdale Lawn Bowling club brings together Hillites for a night of good-natured competition and ridiculous outfits to raise money for Cystic Fibrosis Canada.
Liberals accuse Conservatives of promoting anti-abortion movie, reopening abortion debate
Plus, Tories flip pancakes, don ten-gallon hats at Calgary Stampede; Conservative react with furor to professor's 'classist' tweet; and former NDP MP John Rafferty has died at 65.New policy directors for ministers Morneau, Champagne, and LeBlanc
Justin To has left the finance minister’s office, and deputy policy director Ian Foucher has already been promoted to replace him. Privy Council Office ready to support government transition with new clerk, ‘whatever the result of the election’
Public service transition planning now starts 'well in advance of elections', says David Zussman.
Feds say clean fuel standard can make LNG ‘more efficient than coal’, despite report’s warning
Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers calls the recent Global Energy Monitor report 'misleading', and says Canada has the 'strongest environmental performance' among LNG-producing nations.
Military second-in-command shouldn’t be praised for making a beneficial personal choice
The simple truth of the Wynnyk story is that he followed an existing policy and stretched the rules without breaking them. If he had to make any sacrifice to his lifestyle, this was purely due to his own personal choice.
Stepping into an untapped tourist niche for rural Canada
Walking could transform rural tourism and generate jobs and investment in regions once thought of as backwaters, but it requires real effort and vision by local business leaders and elected officials.
Anti-racism strategy a ‘good start,’ says Senator, but critics pan definitions of Islamophobia, anti-Semitism
Critics say it's unclear how the definition of Islamophobia within the report will inform law enforcement, while the report's definition of anti-Semitism comes with a 'fraught history.' Arms exports to Saudi Arabia reach $1.2-billion in 2018, despite calls for Canada to suspend permits
It’s ‘unacceptable’ Canada has yet to finish a review, eight months in, on weapons permits to Saudi Arabia, say critics of the LAV contract.Why the proposed addition to Ottawa’s Château Laurier should be redesigned
The proposed architectural design has horrified many Canadians for its unsympathetic visual impact on the picturesque heritage values of the Château Laurier, a national historic site. The prime minister should step in.
Annual Features
Contact list
Politics This Morning: Duclos to announce shipbuilding contract with Davie; Trudeau to meet with women’s groups
Plus, Procurement Minister Carla Qualtrough is expected to make an announcement on the Halifax-class frigates alongside Seaspan executive Joe O'Rourke.
As they finalize their climate platform, the Liberals have a choice: stick to business-as-usual rhetoric that fails to keep up with the growing concerns of Canadian voters or commit to real climate leadership.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appears to be getting his mojo back. So here's some advice. 
This election is already acrimonious, but what confidence can we have in news if the media can’t exercise enough digital judgement to decipher the wheat from the chaff?
The party might be engaged in a clever form of psychological warfare where in fact it has built a Trojan horse, or it may truly be out of steam. Let us hope not, as the NDP is good for Canadian democracy.
As the public sphere has become unrecognizably dystopian, the toll on human health includes a range of symptoms it may take more than pharmacology to cure.
The development of Lindenlea, a neighbourhood of about 160 lots on the highest point in the city, was unlike any other in Canada.
Is democracy possible?
It’s not easy to feel optimistic about democracy these days. In his important new book, Teardown: Rebuilding Democracy from the Ground Up, activist and author Dave Meslin tackles our democratic deficit and proposes meaningful solutions that would encourage more connectivity between citizens and their governments.
Politics This Morning
Your email has been added. An email has been sent to your address, please click the link inside of it to confirm your subscription.
This just in: Olivier Duchesneau joins Liberal HQ as deputy national campaign director
Marjorie Michel has in turn replaced Olivier Duchesneau as chief of staff to Families, Children, and Social Development Minister Jean-Yves Duclos.Veterans Affairs Minister MacAulay hires Morneau adviser to head up his policy team
Plus, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer's Question Period director, Bryan Rogers, recently left Ottawa to become an issues manager to new Alberta Premier Jason Kenney.U.S. Embassy packs NAC for Fourth of July party
Plus, Vassy Kapelos ties the knot, both Stockwell Day and Wayne Easter get another award, and Sarah McLachlan is coming to Ottawa! Trudeau and family pop into the Merry Dairy for ice cream
Plus, People's Party Leader Maxime Bernier ties the knot in Florida, Graham Fraser and Lisa LaFlamme are among recent Order of Canada honorees, and PROC pushes for parallel proposal.Public servants, feds inch closer to contracts with tentative agreements before election
The Public Service Alliance of Canada remains at an impasse with the federal government however, with national president Chris Aylward saying they won’t take an ‘inferior’ deal just to get it done before the election. SAP Canada pitches NextGen plan to standardize human resources processes
When processes are 'standardized, the collective input into a payroll system becomes a lot simpler,' says Robert Conlin, SAP Canada's vice-president of the public sector.U.S. Embassy brings bayou to Bytown for Fourth of July
Though U.S. Ambassador Kelly Craft was in Calgary, the U.S. Embassy's Fourth of July party was still filled with food and fun. Hill media descend on 24 Sussex for annual garden party
The prime minister opened up his backyard for one last shindig before politicians and journalists gear up for what's going to be a busy summer. Diplomatic spouses find community, give back with Wabano fundraiser
The Heads of Mission Spouses Association is planning a June 11 charity event for the Wabano Centre, helping raise funds for school supplies for 50 children.Israel envoy announces departure, welcomes free trade agreement
A bill to modernize the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, first signed in 1997, received royal assent on May 27.Shakespeare in the Park: Romeo and Juliet happens all summer long in parks in and around Ottawa
A banner that reads, 'This is Algonquin land, unsurrendered—unceded,' hangs on 100 Wellington St., formerly the site of the U.S. embassy. Grand chief Verna Polson of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation Council and her supporters have set up tents and chairs outside the building in protest over the fate of site, which is intended to be a space for Indigenous people. Chief Polson has been staging a hunger strike since Monday over what she says has been a lack of consultations on the future of the building. 
Comedian Rick Mercer and then-Reform Party MP Deb Grey, pictured in the late 1990s on Parliament Hill doing a shoot for CBC's This Hour Has 22 Minutes, which Mr. Mercer hosted at the time. The Hill Times photograph by Terry McDonald 
