Stories by Samantha Wright Allen
French Embassy’s Ambassador for a Day program aims to shatter glass ceiling
It helps to have women like French Ambassador Kareen Rispal ‘open the door,’ says the program’s first student Juliana Trapolino.
The access-to-information bill needed close scrutiny to turn it into ‘workable legislation,’ says committee chair Sen. Serge Joyal.
Claudine Courtois is planning a May 2 reception to mark the first anniversary of his death, saying she’s touched by Hill community support.
Parliamentarians will face 194 votes, instead of one, to approve $6-billion in budget measures. It’s a ‘clear improvement,’ says the parliamentary budget officer, but opposition MPs say it still erodes spending scrutiny.
Taiwan Night was the hot ticket in town last week, with dozens of Parliamentarians in attendance.
‘It’s just disrupting everything’: MPs representing regions reporting the worst climate change effects speak about the impacts they see in their communities.
The Senate committee studying Bill C-58 is proposing changes to close a ‘loophole’ around terms that may be used to avoid release of documents and that will protect the power of the Senate.
Plus, the Canadian Press and National Post are losing their top editors, CPAC launches its Democracy Project, and the Donner Canadian Foundation shortlists your next read.Author
February produced 2,487 lobby records, doubling the slow holiday months as groups organized Hill days and focused on asks ahead of the March budget.
Critics say the policy is a needless threat to families trying to save their loved ones.
Trade experts point to the $23-million paid out to Canadian companies in duty relief as a sign money isn’t flowing fast enough.
After nearly 30 years in power, Kazakhstan's president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, resigned last month, but his ambassador in Ottawa says his priorities remain the same.
With millennials now representing the biggest voting bloc, panellists spoke about strategies on how parties can capture young Canadians’ interest.
He missed a deadline to meet party goals that would guarantee his candidacy, and hasn’t heard back about an extension. 
Observers are divided on the creation of a national drug agency, with some saying it’s a good first step, while the NDP critic says it’s ‘reorganization, not progress.’ 
The European Union's success ‘is not a foregone conclusion,’ says Sabine Sparwasser, and needs like-minded partners to shore up its defences.
‘It’s kind of like calving cows, except this is a little messier,’ says Conservative MP James Bezan of the all-night session.
Plus, Libby Davies has penned a political memoir, former Mulroney PMO staffer Bill Fox is recovering from a health scare, and Globe and Mail assistant editor Chris Hannay is taking on a new assignment.
Canada has also recognized a representative of interim president Juan Guaidó, who says the ‘complicated’ situation shouldn’t be ‘rushed.’NDP ‘under the gun’ to name candidates, say politicos, as they trail Grits, Tories on campaign slate
Nearly a third of the NDP caucus elected in 2015 have opted not to return to Parliament, part of the reason the party has only named 12 per cent of the candidates expected to run in 2019.
But by boosting partnerships in the region Canada also risks alienating China, said academics and diplomats at a March 11 Ottawa talk.
Canada faces a lawsuit alleging its actions were slow, which could be a ‘game changer’ for a department in need of a wake-up call, says one former diplomat.
A spokesperson for the health minister says it’s ‘too soon’ to speculate on potential approaches, as the pharmacare advisory council will submit its final report by June.
The Canadian Council of Young Feminists aims to bridge the gap between young leaders, global citizenship, and Canadian Parliamentarians.
Former politicians and academics are in favour of righting the ‘fundamental tension’ between the two roles, but are divided on whether the AG should still be an MP, or an agent of Parliament.
‘We’ve taken each other for granted, maybe a little bit too much,’ says Salome Meyer, looking for more active bilateralism between Canada and Switzerland.
January produced 1,237 lobby records, a slight uptick from December, but less than half of monthly averages in the fall.
‘We have heard from the concerns of First Nations groups and the Information Commissioner about the potential for this clause to be misused,’ former minister Jane Philpott says in a letter to Senate Legal Committee.
After months focusing on the leader’s bid to become an MP, the party has to shift gears to speed up nominations and boost fundraising as the clock ticks down to the general election. 
Raza Bashir Tarar, Pakistan’s new high commissioner to Canada, says more can be done on bilateral trade, and that sometimes means 'getting out of the way’ of businesses.
The SNC-Lavalin affair ‘casts a new light’ on the Senate Legal Affairs Committee study of remediation agreements last year, say committee members.
‘There’s no problem,’ says Independent Senator Pierre Dalphond, arguing the bill simply creates a ‘safety valve’ to prevent privileged information from being wrapped up in the new mandatory financial disclosures.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.