No northerners in cabinet, no problem for veteran Yukon MP
Liberal MP Larry Bagnell was once invited to speak at a high school graduation in his riding, as most MPs are. However, for most MPs the journey to a high school in their riding would not consist of flying in a small plane, being grounded due to fog, and hitchhiking the rest of the way […]
‘It has a terrible history,’ Indigenous Affairs needs to go in order for reconciliation to happen, says Liberal MP
Liberal MP Robert-Falcon Ouellette says the department of Indigenous and Northern Affairs may have to be rebuilt entirely if reconciliation is to happen. The MP from Winnipeg Centre, Man. said he thinks the history of the department that was responsible for many years for the marginalization of indigenous people runs too deep, and that for the culture […]
Trudeau needs Tory voice for climate action
MONTREAL—Consider this: The first federal-led attempt to put in place a pan-Canadian climate framework got off the ground a bit more than 12 months ago, almost two decades after Jean Chrétien agreed to the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. To put that in perspective, it took Pierre Trudeau more than a decade to secure enough provincial […]
Feds should fund indigenous environmental guardians network
OTTAWA—When it comes to protecting the land, water, flora, and fauna around mining operations, companies use a wide range of tools, technologies, and expertise. Increasingly, that expertise comes in the form of traditional knowledge from local indigenous communities. But innovative solutions are needed to enable communities to contribute on a larger scale. What we’re talking […]
Hot issues to watch in 2017
A highly anticipated federal budget. The legalization of recreational marijuana. Lingering debate over electoral reform. A controversial new American president. The end of several major reviews and consultations, including on defence policy and foreign aid. The year of the 150th anniversary of Confederation is expected to produce some tantalizing political story lines in Ottawa and across Canada. […]
Making good on food promises
In 2012, the then-United Nations special rapporteur on the right to food, Olivier De Schutter, visited Canada at the government’s request. It was the first such mission to an industrialized country. Government ministers at the time were vocal in their disapproval that a UN office focused on food security should consider a rich country like Canada worth a visit. […]
Trans Mountain expansion approval already a big political mess
The Big Lebowski, one of the funniest movies ever made, begins with two hired goons threatening and demanding money from “the Dude,” Jeffrey Lebowski. When the goons realize they have the wrong Jeffrey Lebowski, they leave, but not before one of them urinates on the Dude’s rug. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Natural Resources Minister […]
Electoral reform will not happen in this Parliament
OTTAWA—I took the MyDemocracy.ca voting test and discovered what I already knew. According to the online government survey, managed by Vox Pop, I am a pragmatist. The pragmatist in me says electoral reform is dead. Its public interment by the minister responsible for democratic reform was not a pretty sight. Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef […]
Trudeau ‘the changer’ has morphed into ‘the compromiser’
OAKVILLE, ONT.—If for some odd reason, Canada’s opinion leaders had to choose a fairy tale character to be our prime minster, my sense is they’d pick Goldilocks. I say that because with her “not too hot, not too cold” porridge policy, along with her “not too hard, not too soft” bed strategy, Goldilocks instinctively understand […]
Quebec, Ontario crucial to Conservative leadership race
Conservative leadership candidates are setting their sights on battleground provinces of Ontario and Quebec as the race heats up. Leadership candidates from Quebec could have an edge in what is a very crowded contest so far. Conservative MPs Steven Blaney (Bellechasse-Les Etchemins-Lévis, Que.) and Maxime Bernier (Beauce, Que.) are the only two current Parliamentarians from Quebec […]
