Heading backwards in Ontario
OTTAWA—Call him the Highwayman. Ontario Premier Doug Ford appears to have staked his party’s re-election on the perception that the province’s commuters want more, ever-bigger roads, regardless of the environmental consequences. It might have been a miscalculation, seeing that just overnight driving went from being a somewhat costly necessity to an outright luxury. But so […]
Federal parties have evolved their democratic processes—why won’t they do the same for the Canadian public?
If party leaders were selected by party caucuses, Pierre Poilievre would be the next Conservative leader. But that system of selecting leaders was discarded a century ago, when the parties opted for leadership conventions, dominated by ex-officio delegates or party insiders such as constituency presidents and executives, and defeated party candidates as well as MPs. […]
Conservatives say to win over millennials and Gen Z voters, they need to communicate better
Conservatives say the federal Liberals have failed to support the aspirations of millennials and Gen Z voters, but say their party is well-positioned to expand its base to Canada’s young voters in the next election, however, they say they have to do a better job of communicating their party’s policies to win them over. Conservative […]
Poilievre, Charest neck-and-neck in early fundraising numbers
Early fundraising numbers show Conservative leadership front-runners Pierre Poilievre and Jean Charest are pulling ahead in the six-member field, but drawing from different audiences that strategists say feed into emerging themes that one has populist pull, and the other is an establishment candidate. Seven-term MP Poilievre (Carleton, Ont.), who announced his candidacy on Feb. 5, […]
Government missing golden opportunity to correct serious error in distribution of House seats
On Bill C-14, An Act to Amend the Constitution Act, 1867, (Electoral Representation), the government is missing a golden opportunity to correct a serious error in the distribution of seats in the House of Commons. This error started when previous governments introduced bills to amend Sec. 51 of the Constitution Act, 1867, to give results […]
Indigenous languages on federal ballots could help boost turnout, PROC hears
Directly or indirectly, including Indigenous languages on federal ballots could help to boost Indigenous voter turnout, argue witnesses appearing as part of the House Affairs Committee’s ongoing study into the prospect. But some suggest resources would be better allocated elsewhere. “Having the Inuit language on ballots would help in increasing the voter turnout,” Nunavut Languages […]
Ford gambling on Ontarians’ health in pre-election dice roll
OTTAWA—Whatever you can say about Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s handling of the pandemic, it clearly didn’t have anything to do with equal treatment of his province’s population. It emerged last year that private schools had been huge beneficiaries when the Ford government began handing out rapid tests (paid for by federal taxpayers) as Ontarians struggled with […]
Russia-Ukraine ‘war-supply shock’ could erode Canada’s positive financial situation, warns former PBO
“Today, Canada has come roaring back,” federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland declared in the House of Commons on April 7, echoing a familiar promise Prime Minister Justin Trudeau used throughout the pandemic. Canada’s deficit is projected to drop to $52.8-billion this year, down slightly from the $58.4-billion estimated for 2022-23 in December’s fiscal update—and both […]
Adding Indigenous languages to ballots a step toward reconciliation: Chief Electoral Officer
Enabling the use of Indigenous languages in the federal electoral process is “at the core of reconciliation,” says Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault, but doing so would require sorting out details around which languages to incorporate, where, and how, and would likely mean amending the Canada Elections Act. “The presence of Indigenous languages at the […]
Climate policies could prove key ‘wedge’ in Conservative leadership race, say strategists
The race to determine the next Conservative Party leader could “hinge” on candidates’ climate policies, from carbon pricing and beyond, say strategists, with early front-runner Pierre Poilievre already on the anti-carbon tax offensive. “Climate change policy is going to be a bit of a litmus test … it’s important to voters to see the Conservative […]
