“The 2018 federal budget is out. What are your top three takeaways?”
Cory Hann Conservative strategist “Justin Trudeau is failing middle-class Canadians, women, and business operators—the very people the prime minister claims to help. His economic policies are failing to make a difference in the lives of Canadians. His budget completely failed to address the real possibility that we could see our most important free trade agreement […]
Partnerships key to game-changing investment in conservation
The $1.3-billion federal budget promise for new parks and protected areas sets the stage for one of the biggest, boldest conservation initiatives in Canadian history. After a quarter of a century of relative neglect, conservation in Canada is back in the spotlight; supporting provincial, territorial and Indigenous conservation partnerships is the best way to keep […]
Statistics Canada gets recognition it needs, deserves in Morneau’s budget
TORONTO—As Finance Minister Bill Morneau outlined the 2018 budget on Feb. 27, no one was probably happier among Ottawa officialdom than Anila Arora, Canada’s chief statistician. Not only was Statistics Canada getting more money. The budget was laced with references to the importance of the agency in providing government with the evidence it needs to […]
Budget 2018 signals a new vision for nature conservation in Canada
Despite its natural bounty and the significance of nature to our national identity, Canada has badly lagged other countries in the protection of ecosystems and wildlife habitat. To date, we have protected only 10.6 per cent of our terrestrial ecosystems and inland waters and less than 5 per cent of our marine areas. Among OECD […]
House Speaker invites G7 ambassadors to QP, budget speech
Milling about the hundreds of stakeholders and reporters in the clogged corridors of Centre Block on Feb. 27 were a few foreign observers invited to see Canada’s Budget Day up close. For the first time, House Speaker Geoff Regan invited all ambassadors from fellow G7 countries to watch Question Period that day and Finance Minister Bill Morneau’s budget speech […]
Left-leaning budget ‘big problem’ for NDP, reveals Liberal fear of fleeing progressive voters, say pollsters
Last week’s budget shows the Liberals are preparing to battle for left-leaning voters, trying to shore up gains made in 2015 from the NDP, who observers say should be worried as Grit policies leave little room for wedge issues to prove their progressive offer is any different. The budget is clearly aimed at taking a […]
Trudeau is failing to follow through on his defence policy
Last June, the Trudeau government published Strong, Secure, Engaged, Canada’s latest defence policy. While generally well received, significant skepticism has been expressed about the implementation of an ambitious policy with 130 initiatives requiring $60-billion in new spending over 20 years. The final spending plans for this fiscal year show that skepticism was warranted. National Defence […]
After last week’s epic fail, Team Trudeau may be in need of a refresh
OTTAWA—There was a federal budget delivered in Ottawa last week but you’d hardly know it, as the debate coming out of the House of Commons had more to do with the prime minister’s India trip than it did on the merits or demerits of gender-based analysis. The Trudeau government, normally very good at blowing past […]
Government support for Canadian journalism shouldn’t come in the form of a cheque
The Liberals’ third federal budget followed through on rumours the financial plan would include support for the media. In the days leading up to the budget, The Toronto Star said the feds were going to be doling out $50-million to community media projects, which came to pass when the document was tabled on Feb. 27. […]
Unions applaud scrapping Phoenix pay system, but want more support for its current victims
The government’s plan to move away from the failing Phoenix payroll system is encouraging, say union reps, but the budget missed the mark when it comes to helping the thousands of public servants currently facing financial hardships. In its third financial plan, the Liberal government highlighted the continued failings of the two-year-old payroll system, stating […]
