Politics this morning: Trudeau to host Chinese premier, Kenney to resign in front of the House
Today is Thursday, Sept. 22. Here are the 4 political events that should be on your radar today: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will host China’s premier and the State Council, Li Keqiang. There will be an official welcoming this morning at 9 a.m. at the Cartier Square Drill Hall in in Ottawa, and afterwards, the […]
A new era for Ottawa-Vanier
Ottawa-Vanier is one of the country’s safest ridings for the Liberal party. In its history, it has only ever elected Liberals at both federal and provincial levels. It is a riding with deep Franco-Ontarian roots and a staunchly loyal base of Liberal supporters where defence of the French language has been a defining feature of […]
Electoral Reform Committee must hear from women this fall
In 2016, the days of parliamentary committee meetings dominated by often well-meaning but largely male experts and organizations that often speak for only half of the population should be long gone. This should be especially true for the special committee convened by Parliament this past June to consider the fundamental question of viable alternatives to […]
Politics this morning: Trudeau to speak at National Press Theatre, Dion to participate in NYC diversity panel
Today is Wednesday, Sept. 21 Here’s what you should know before you start your day: The House is back in full swing now, and caucus meetings will commence this morning before Question Period begins at 2 p.m. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau—back from his trip to New York City for his first UN General Assembly as […]
Parliamentary schedule could delay major electoral reform, despite committee rush
The tight timeline and deadlines in the Liberal government’s plan for replacing Canada’s current federal electoral system could rule out major changes before the next general election, says the head of one of the country’s leading political engagement research groups. Instead, considering a May 2017 deadline the government has given itself to introduce legislation, combined […]
Big primer on Trudeau government’s agenda
1.Electoral reform: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced during the 2015 election campaign that, “this will be the last federal election” under the current first-past-the-post voting system. Most Canadians say they see no need for a new system the Liberals have committed to change through legislation by next May. The Special House Electoral Reform Committee is studying all sorts of […]
It’s time for Liberals to get specific on electoral reform
OTTAWA—You can usually tell a government’s end game or at least preferred direction on any given file by the planted news stories. The emerging Kinder Morgan narrative is a case in point: after likely considering the potential political cost in Quebec if it approved the Energy East pipeline, it appears as though the Trudeau government […]
Leitch’s immigration test another example of Conservative communications failures
TORONTO—Italians, when they accuse someone of wasting time with futile discussion, say, “Perdi tempo a pettinare bamboozle” (meaning “Wasting time to comb a doll’s hair”). This allegory came to my mind during the dispute about Conservative leadership candidate Kellie Leitch’s email with a survey about the need to “screen potential immigrants for anti-Canadian values.” Such an […]
‘We didn’t help matters,’ Clement says Conservatives failed to make ‘valid case’ for re-election last year
Conservative leadership candidate Tony Clement says he’s the person who can “overhaul” the federal party and fix the communications problems that contributed to it losing power to the Liberals in last year’s election. “We have to overhaul our party organization in a big way—better training, better candidate support, better communications, better media relations, better social […]
Longstanding legal battle between NDP and secretive House board picks up steam
A legal battle between the NDP and the powerful board of Cabinet ministers and other MPs who govern spending in the House of Commons is heating up, with hearing dates set to begin January 23, 2017 in Montreal, according to the Federal Court hearing list. The hearing centres on the Board of Internal Economy’s claim […]
