Non-partisan focus needed for next UN Security Council campaign, say experts
More than a year after Canada lost its bid for a temporary seat on the UN Security Council, experts say a non-partisan approach is needed to fix mistakes of past failed campaigns. Trumpeted as a central pillar of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s (Papineau, Que.) foreign agenda since he came to power in 2015, the Canadian […]
‘Slightly odd group of people’: political passion drives party executives behind the scenes
A speculative election season may bring a ramp-up of responsibility and change in workflows, but for the executives who volunteer their time to run federal political parties, this is what they live for. Those in these party executive and national council positions are elected and serve on a voluntary basis. Their responsibilities include typical party […]
New class of non-partisans threatens to improve Senate’s reputation
CHELSEA, QUE.—As Justin Trudeau ticks off items on his to-do list in the weeks leading to the election, there is one accomplishment that may have escaped most voters’ notice. Indirectly—if not inadvertently—he has improved the quality of Canada’s Senate. Not the institution: it remains indefensible and indestructible. But, since we are stuck with an unelected […]
The Kelowna Accord was a lost opportunity for Canada
KAMOURASKA, QUE.—The “what ifs” of history are the most fascinating, and yet the most frustrating concepts to contemplate. What if JFK had lived? What if Pierre Trudeau had lost the 1972 election? What if the “Yes” side had won the Quebec referendum in 1995? In the current turmoil over Indigenous rights, Canada has been turned […]
Strange chessboard is developing for the federal election
HALIFAX—What a strange chessboard is developing for the federal election everyone suspects looms just ahead. The Conservatives are headed for nowhere-ville with Erin O’Toole as leader. He never got a bump in the polls when he became leader, which is unusual. Since then, the polls have been worse than they were for the hapless Stockwell […]
The NDP’s disadvantage
OAKVILLE, ONT.—Anyone wanting to handicap the NDP’s chances in the next federal election, should bear in mind what I’d call the party’s polling disadvantage. That’s to say, both the Liberals and Conservatives can probably outdo the NDP when it comes to consistently and effectively gauging public opinion. Of course, I might be wrong about this, […]
Conservative Party slowly learning real cost of promoting culturally divisive policies
Recently, concerns over the growing problem of Islamophobia in Canada led to a push for political leaders to apologize for a controversial niqab ban that was introduced a decade ago by prime minister Stephen Harper’s government. Issues of hate-motivated violence and Islamophobia were thrust into the national discourse after a hit-and-run attack against a Muslim […]
Liberal and Conservative governments that planted seeds of Islamophobia must now sow the tragic consequences
It is now more than two weeks week since Justin Trudeau and Erin O’Toole put out statements and made speeches condemning the hate-motivated attack which killed four members of the Afzaal Family, and injured nine-year-old Fayez Afzaal in London, Ont. Since the attack against this Muslim family, few have mentioned that Trudeau’s and O’Toole’s parties […]
Ministers Chagger, Qualtrough both down a press secretary
Diversity, Inclusion, and Youth Minister Bardish Chagger has seen a couple of key staff exits in recent weeks, including that of her press secretary, Emelyana Titarenko, who left to do the same job for Infrastructure and Communities Minister Catherine McKenna. Ms. McKenna has been in need of a new press secretary since late May, when […]
With O’Toole behind in polls, U.K. consultants unlikely to be helpful for Conservatives, say some politicos
While Erin O’Toole is running behind Justin Trudeau with wide margins in polls, the U.K. political consultants hired by the Conservatives for the next election campaign are unlikely to be of any help, say some politicos, but others say they have a recent proven track record of winning high-profile campaigns and would prove to be […]
