‘It’s very unusual to see this level of trust between two major parties’: NDP-Liberal confidence deal a ‘double-edged sword’ for Singh, strategists say
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh’s commitment to prop up the Liberal government until 2025 carries more risk for New Democrats, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau the clear winner, according to political strategists. “It’s very unusual to see this level of trust between two major parties,” said former two-term Liberal MP Joe Jordan. The NDP is the […]
New comms, parliamentary aides in Government House Leader Holland’s office
A handful of new aides have joined Government House Leader Mark Holland’s office since the 44th Parliament began, including Alexandra Maheux, who’s taken on the role of press secretary. Maheux started on the job in Holland’s office in January after almost two-and-a-half years as a media relations specialist with the Canadian Institute for Health Information. […]
Devil’s in the details: experts await Liberal plan to protect Quebec seats, but some question the move
The Liberal government signalled its intent to intervene to protect Quebec’s seats in the ongoing electoral redistribution process, but as experts weigh the implications, some question the province’s continued preferential treatment. “I don’t know exactly what the government will propose about this … but politically, I think there could be a pushback, especially from provinces […]
Fresh catches abound in Fisheries Minister Murray’s office
There’s a largely new team in place in new Fisheries, Oceans, and Canadian Coast Guard Minister Joyce Murray’s office this Parliament, where Jason Rondeau, one of five holdovers, has been promoted to director of policy. Rondeau first joined the fisheries team as a policy and Atlantic regional affairs adviser in late 2019, after his boss, […]
New operations director, press secretary in the mix for Northern Affairs Minister Vandal
Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal, who was given added responsibility for Prairies Economic Development Canada and the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency last fall, has some new faces on his team this Parliament, including new operations director Nikki Hipkin. Hipkin was previously director of operations to Liberal MP Jim Carr as the prime minister’s special […]
Minister Rodriguez names press secretary, among other new hires
There’s been a fair bit of staff movement in Quebec Lieutenant and Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez’s office since Hill Climbers last checked in, including the addition of Laura Scaffidi as press secretary. Scaffidi landed in the minister’s office in January, fresh from three years as an associate development officer with the National Arts Centre in […]
Trudeau should shut down Liberal leadership election speculation
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been insisting since the last election that he will lead his party into the next one. How likely is this? It’s common sense that if Trudeau were planning to retire, he would not announce his intentions now to avoid becoming a lame duck prime minister. Still, in private, off-the-record conversations, […]
Here’s a look at National Revenue Minister Lebouthillier’s team so far
National Revenue Minister Diane Lebouthillier has nine political staff confirmed in her office so far, and among the new additions to her team this Parliament is Justine Lesage as director of communications and Chris MacMillan as press secretary. As previously reported, Faizel Gulamhussein continues as chief of staff to the revenue minister. Before joining Lebouthillier’s […]
We need to talk about Azov
OTTAWA—I didn’t want to write about this topic, but every time I try to get out, white supremacy just pulls me back in. There has been a lot of Russian disinformation accompanying their invasion of Ukraine, an accoutrement to the ground war. Russia’s pretext to the invasion, in Vladimir Putin’s own words, as printed in […]
Diving into Health Minister Duclos’ team, plus O’Regan has new policy head
After a trying last couple of years amid COVID-19, there’s an almost entirely fresh slate of staff in place in the health minister’s office under Jean-Yves Duclos, a number of whom have followed the minister from his old post. As previously reported, Jamie Kippen has been brought in as chief of staff; he was last […]
