A rampant Trump makes the world more dangerous by the day
OTTAWA—Even the experts make no claim to fully understanding why North Korea’s Kim Jong-un decided to shelve his hostility toward the outside world and pursue cooperation through moves to possibly reunite Korea and overcome a nuclear standoff with the United States. United States President Donald Trump may have gotten lucky at a time when the […]
With eight sitting days before Kinder Morgan’s deadline, no word on pipeline legislation
With only eight sitting days in the House of Commons until Kinder Morgan’s May 31 deadline to gain more certainty on the future of its Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, there’s still no word on when or if the federal government is planning to table legislative measures it’s been considering to support the pipeline. In a statement […]
Even if you’re not a New Democrat, you’ve got to feel for Jagmeet Singh
OTTAWA—Even if you aren’t a New Democrat you’ve got to feel a little bit for NDP leader Jagmeet Singh. It is as if he can neither make a break nor catch one. Even longtime Dippers, who usually have an abundance of optimism even when facts and the environment suggest they shouldn’t, are concerned about Singh’s […]
Liberals risk new-Canadian vote with border-crossing response, say pollsters
The Liberals have switched to more hardline messaging around asylum seekers, say pollsters and observers, as the government’s response has left it open to attack in the face of increasing irregular border crossings and charges from the Conservatives that the Grits are soft on border security. Politically, the challenge and vulnerability for the Liberals is […]
Infrastructure, tourism, arts key to Yukon’s success
There are many challenges for governments to provide quality of life for northern and Arctic people on par with that of southern Canada. There are great expanses of cold or frozen landscapes, there’s a small tax base to fund infrastructure, freezing and thawing permafrost that undermines buildings and highways, and a great distance from supplies and […]
Increase in longevity a remarkable success, but can also pose big economic, social risks
TORONTO—How much health care, education, and other public goods we value can we afford? It’s an important question for Canada as we face the challenges of an aging society and weak productivity growth. It’s certainly something each of our political parties should be thinking about as they prepare their platforms for next year’s federal election. […]
Feds’ Bill C-76 privacy changes ‘insufficient,’ and a missed opportunity to make long-called-for reforms, say critics
Privacy-related changes in the Liberal government’s large elections reform package, Bill C-76, are being criticized as “insufficient” by academics and opposition MPs alike, and as a missed opportunity to make long-called-for changes to bring political parties under federal privacy laws before the next election. “There’s nothing like the pressure of an election combined with public […]
Scheer targets fallout of Harper years
A year into his new job as Conservative leader, Andrew Scheer is methodically trying to mend some of the fences broken by his predecessor. Fresh from a weekend appearance on Radio-Canada’s talk show Tout le monde en parle as part of a public-relations campaign designed to bring about a thaw in the icy relationship of […]
Canada should get aboard the Korean peace train
TORONTO—Donald Trump has threatened to walk out of nuclear talks with North Korea unless Washington gets everything it wants. He may be too late. Momentum is building for a comprehensive settlement of the Korean stalemate. That momentum seems bound to continue—with or without the U.S. president. In the West, the Korean conflict tends to be […]
“The Liberal government has tabled a new Elections Reform Bill, C-76. What do you think of it? Should it be passed?”
Cameron Ahmad Liberal strategist “We are bringing forward a generational update to the Canada Elections Act. The Elections Modernization Act is a major step forward in our government’s commitment to improving and strengthening our elections and our democratic institutions. Additionally, we are reversing the changes brought in by the Harper Conservatives that made it harder […]
