Jean Chretien warms up to Martinites: PM could open up cabinet to Martinites in June
Prime Minister Jean Chretien could be more open to the idea of widening his cabinet to so-called Martinites in the next shuffle, expected in June, sources say. Mr. Chretien (Saint-Maurice, Que.), better known as “King Jean” for winning an historic third straight Liberal majority, apparently feels more confident about the internal situation in the Liberal […]
Chief scientist to meet Health Canada’s disgruntled scientists: and with Dodge gone from deputy ministers’ community, PCO reviewing membership to DM committee
Canada’s new Chief Scientist Dr. Kevin Keough foresees smoother relations at Health Canada between management and scientists — just don’t call him on ombudsman. With David Dodge leaving his post as Health Canada’s DM to take over as governor of the Bank of Canada, the Health Department is under new management. High-ranking Privy Council Office […]
Alliance, Tories talking about Harris: sources say most viable alternative is Mike Harris [as next Alliance leader]
Despite grumblings from a significant number of Canadian Alliance members, Stockwell Day’s leadership of the party is relatively secure, according to Alliance sources. But Alliance and provincial Tory sources also say it’s not entirely because Alliance members are convinced that Mr. Day (Okanagan-Coquihalla, B.C.) is capable of turning in a superior performance in his next […]
Race for Speaker heats up: Kilger considered front-runner, McTeague an upset
While most MPs are still dealing with the aftermath of the Christmas drinkathon in Ottawa, others are already back into the political fray, especially those aspiring to be the 34th Speaker of the House of Commons. There are already four official candidates in the running, but Chief Government Whip Bob Kilger (Stormont-Dundas-Charlottenburg, Ont.) and former […]
Just who are these Alliance Stockwell Day dissenters? [Selective human rights enforcement]
Here’s a National Post front-page headline on Wednesday: “Some in Alliance see groundswell against Day.” Perhaps. But who are these Alliance people? Alas, Robert Fife’s story doesn’t tell us. There isn’t a single quote in the entire story from anybody expressing reservations about Day or his leadership. That’s because readers are told that “senior frontbench […]
When the prime minister calls, you listen, just ask Doug Fisher
It’s both the secret hope and fear of nearly every journalist who works on Parliament Hill — to pick up the phone only to hear the raspy provencal tones of the Prime Minister of the day emanating from the other end of the receiver. But for veteran, well-regarded Toronto Sun columnist Doug Fisher, it’s something […]
Libs would benefit from Tory death: and Warren Kinsella says the Post “scaring people”
If the embattled Progressive Conservative Party is going to disappear, the political beneficiary will be the Liberal Party, says a top backroom Liberal strategist. Warren Kinsella, who helped run the Libs’ war room in the last election campaign and served as an architect for the Grit victory, said that the No. 2 choice of the […]
Radwanski predicts privacy to be “defining issue of next decade”: new privacy commissioner George Radwanski has plenty to say about his new post, defends his Grit ties
It’s an interesting time to be Canada’s Privacy Commissioner. George Radwanski, who was appointed to the position on Oct. 19, 2000, predicts that privacy will be “the defining issue of this new decade” and he has plenty on his plate to justify the hype. He will be looking into the massive government online project, a […]
Alliance rookie admires Laurier, Manning and, yep, Paul Martin
As an aide to three Reform and Alliance MPs, James Rajotte who was elected in Edmonton Southwest, Alta., is no stranger to the Hill. The 30-year-old began his Parliament Hill career in 1993 as an assistant to the late Edmonton-area Reform MP Hugh Hanrahan. He later worked with then-British Columbia Reform MP Margaret Bridgman before […]
In Alberta, it seems it’s as easy to be a preacher as a politician
I spent the better part of the holidays in British Columbia. On this occasion, I would enjoy a family reunion and, as well, see what I could discover of the temper of the times in the province. I brought with me a copy of a Statistics Canada report on church attendance in Canada or, to […]
