Senate committee likely to amend C-45 on home pot cultivation, says sponsor
The Senate Social Affairs Committee will likely recommend a change to the cannabis legalization bill’s terms for growing pot at home, says its sponsor in the Red Chamber. “I suspect there will be something in home cultivation. It has been probably one of the most-discussed issues,” said Ontario Independent Senator Tony Dean. “I would be […]
Winning bid for surface combatant design expected by year’s end, on-time finish remains in question
The government expects to make a decision on the winning bid for the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) ship by the end of 2018, according to the Department of National Defence. The project is estimated to cost between $56- and $60-billion. It was originally projected to cost $26-billion in 2008. Each ship was originally projected to […]
Solving Scheer’s Harper dilemma
OAKVILLE, ONT.—Regardless of your partisan stripe, you have to feel a bit sorry these days for Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer. After all, even though he’s heading up Canada’s main opposition party, and even though he’s potentially our next prime minister, Scheer, as of late, seems to be getting less media coverage than his predecessor, […]
Party may finally be able to close lid on decades-old Bob Rae bogeyman
TORONTO—”Pink Floyd” and the Clampetts. Rae Days and massive deficits. With Andrea Horwath’s NDP showing continued momentum in the Ontario election, is it time again for the Bob Rae monster to burst out of the bedroom closet at night? Will he do an encore as a scary apparition at the stroke of midnight around the spooky […]
What the evisceration of the Ontario Liberal Party will mean to Trudeau
TORONTO—What will Justin Trudeau do? When Kathleen Wynne loses, that is. Because she is going to lose the Ontario election. Badly. The reasons are myriad. She leads a wildly unpopular government. She’s been the most unpopular premier in Canada for eons. She should’ve resigned more than a year ago, to give someone else a chance to rebuild. […]
Ontario election rattling federal Grits’ confidence, cockiness, say some Liberals
The federal Liberals are watching the Ontario provincial election with “great interest” and the possibility of a Conservative or an NDP win is making them nervous because the same scenario could be repeated federally in 2019, say some Liberals, while others say every election is different and the June 7 outcome would have “no bearing” […]
We live in a rapidly aging society, and with it face big challenges and opportunities
TORONTO—A recent press release in the name of Families, Children and Social Development Minister Jean-Yves Duclos boasted that “by our actions, the Government of Canada is ensuring that all Canadians have the support they need when they leave work and can live in a safe, secure, and dignified retirement.” Contrast this sign of complacency with […]
New speechwriter in the PMO, Minister Hajdu has a new press secretary
Two staffers recently exited Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s office for jobs elsewhere in the Liberal government’s ranks, and at the same time, the PMO has scooped up a new speechwriter, Astrid Krizus. Until recently, Ms. Krizus was working as a legislative assistant to Liberal MP Ali Ehsassi, who represents Willowdale, Ont., on the Hill. Her […]
Wynne bearing brunt of change theme that plagues all incumbent politicians
OTTAWA—Politics is the only profession where the more experience you get, the more people want to get rid of you. People have great respect for journalists who practise their craft for decades, and business people who achieve gravitas with age. Bay Street is sprinkled with eminences grises who are called on to offer the benefit […]
Vulnerable Ford must produce economic plan
TORONTO—When Ontario’s election campaign began earlier this month, it was enough for Tory leader Doug Ford to be the anti-Wynne. A good many Ontarians were sick of Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne and ready to support whichever party leader was best-positioned to deny her another term in government. In those early days, that leader was Ford. […]
