In minority Parliament, Lamoureux suggests no House votes on Mondays and Fridays, a dual Chamber, and more power for MPs
MPs could be given more power, they could stop voting on Mondays and Fridays, and there could be a two-House Chamber to complement the work of the Commons, says Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux, parliamentary secretary to the government House leader, and the one who’s leading the charge to modernize the House in this minority Parliament. […]
PCO, Canada’s high commissioner to U.K. likely consulted in royal couple’s plans to move here part time, say experts
As the Royal Family scrambled to navigate the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s announcement they were planning to pare down their royal duties and move to Canada part time, one expert says Canada’s high commissioner to the U.K. Janice Charette would “likely be a key person” in any early discussions including Canadian officials, with a […]
‘He has a lot of work to do’: elusive collective agreement, Phoenix damages loom large for new Treasury Board president
As Canada’s largest federal public sector union remains without a new collective agreement, PSAC national president Chris Aylward says newly appointed Treasury Board President Jean-Yves Duclos “has a lot of work to do” with 140,000 public sector workers still without a contract. But Canada’s former top bureaucrat suggests Mr. Duclos may be a “bit of […]
Parties agree to NDP’s push for representation on steering committees
The Liberals and opposition parties have agreed to give the NDP representation on all steering committees, an ask that the Conservatives’ whip says had delayed the process of setting up committees. The House on Wednesday voted by “unanimous consent” to strike the Procedure and House Affairs Committee, also known as PROC, the body responsible for […]
Veterans’ benefits lead in supplementary spending ask of nearly $5-billion
The federal government’s budgetary spending is up 7.3 per cent so far this fiscal year over last, as laid out in the recently released first supplementary estimates of 2019-20. The supplementary estimates (A) for this fiscal year were tabled by new Treasury Board President Jean-Yves Duclos (Quebec, Que.) on Dec. 5. These estimates, the first […]
In Speech from the Throne, a nod to Western alienation, promise to enshrine Indigenous rights
SENATE CHAMBER—In an effort to strike a conciliatory note after being reduced to a minority, the Liberal government is promising to “apply a spirit of collaboration” as it works to carry out its priorities, including introducing a middle-class tax cut as its “first act” and setting Canada on the path to carbon neutrality by 2050, […]
Liberals’ Anthony Rota elected Speaker of the House
In an upset, Liberal MP Anthony Rota was elected Speaker of the House, beating incumbent Speaker, Geoff Regan. He was elected by his peers in a preferential ballot system. Mr. Rota (Nipissing-Timiskaming, Ont.), the former assistant deputy speaker, was one of five candidates running for the job. The others were: Liberal MP Geoff Regan […]
Continuing to champion ‘resilient digital government’ could be greatest legacy of new minister, says expert
Given the scope and complexity of the challenges surrounding the development of a resilient digital government, one expert says that realistically, “it does need to be someone’s job that they wake up to every morning and are focused on.” Following the Oct. 21 election that saw the Liberals returned to government in a minority Parliament, […]
Transition teams must be prepared for ‘unpredictable outcomes’ in minority situation, say former senior bureaucrats
Former senior bureaucrats say they hope Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer’s transition team is “already plugged into the Privy Council Office,” and that both the Liberal and Conservative transition teams should be “prepared for unpredictable outcomes” at this point in the campaign. According to CBC’s poll tracker, updated on Oct. 14, the Conservatives were in the […]
Savoie’s new ‘magnum opus’ book argues federal public service has been ‘knocked off its moorings’
Although he says he didn’t plan for the release of his “magnum opus” in the final weeks leading up to the Oct. 21 election, Donald Savoie’s new book, Democracy in Canada: The Disintegration of Our Institutions, argues that if Canadians wish to locate political power, “they should not look to Parliament, political parties, cabinet or […]
