Policy Topics | Policy Briefings

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• Infrastructure and Transport
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• Indigenous Relations
• Justice
• Labour & Employment
• Lobbying
• Natural Resources and Energy
• Women, Gender and Diversity

Intergovernmental

Quebec: inhaling the ‘hopeium’ of the next ‘Mark Carney’

OpinionBY KEN POLK

• The potential evanescence of a CAQ without François Legault in all probability increases the likelihood of a PQ win in October. Investors already concerned about that prospect will be looking to consider attaching an additional risk premium to any opportunities in Quebec because of the fundamental political uncertainty associated with a PQ win.

Quebec: inhaling the ‘hopeium’ of the next ‘Mark Carney’

OpinionBY KEN POLK

• The potential evanescence of a CAQ without François Legault in all probability increases the likelihood of a PQ win in October. Investors already concerned about that prospect will be looking to consider attaching an additional risk premium to any opportunities in Quebec because of the fundamental political uncertainty associated with a PQ win.

A shifting geopolitical environment leaves the Arctic central to Canada’s sovereignty and security

OpinionBY NDP MP LORI IDLOUT

Legault’s legacy: incompetence and division

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

The slow, uphill climb to fix the housing mess

OpinionBY LES WHITTINGTON

Big-name staffers steal candidate spotlight as B.C. Conservative leadership race takes shape

NewsBY STUART BENSON

Far-right ideology is a prescription for bad health

OpinionBY DORIS GRINSPUN

Encore une fois: a constitution for Quebec?

OpinionBY NELSON WISEMAN

Legault’s resignation leaves ‘a big vacuum’ as Quebec gears up for an election amid two leadership races, say politicos

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

Bill 13 is Alberta’s law—but all Canadians must pay attention

OpinionBY BUKOLA SALAMI, NNAMDI NDUBUKA, SUME NDUMBE EYOH, MODUPE TUNDE-BYASS

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Next year ‘an important one for Quebec’ as possibility of referendum looms, say Bloc MP, politicos

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

• Quebec’s provincial election is set to take place in October 2026, and the sovereigntist Parti Québécois is leading in the polls—something that is likely causing ‘anxiety’ in Ottawa, says a pollster.

Next year ‘an important one for Quebec’ as possibility of referendum looms, say Bloc MP, politicos

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

• Quebec’s provincial election is set to take place in October 2026, and the sovereigntist Parti Québécois is leading in the polls—something that is likely causing ‘anxiety’ in Ottawa, says a pollster.

Nothing is sacred in Doug Ford’s Ontario

OpinionBY JENN JEFFERYS

Buried in the MOU: a licence to lie

OpinionBY LEAH TEMPER, SAMANTHA GREEN

Charting our course: four shores, one voice

OpinionBY GRO SENATOR IRIS PETTEN

Alberta’s health-care reforms don’t go far enough  

OpinionBY NADEEM ESMAIL, TEGAN HILL

Solution to substance abuse in Ottawa will come from collaboration, say area politicians

NewsBY SOPHIA LAPORTE

Time to look back, and ahead

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

Quebec MPs noncommittal on support for province’s controversial constitution bill

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

Canadian experts challenge proposed authoritarian Quebec constitution at UN and under international law

OpinionBY ERROL MENDES, STéPHANE BEAULAC

AGRICULTURE

‘Unprecedented’ 2025 for canola industry, with record-breaking economic lobbying

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Liberals ‘taking a sledgehammer’ to the public service, says interim NDP leader Davies

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

Do Conservatives want the best for the West, or not?

OpinionBY ERICA IFILL

Scrap the Indo-Pacific Strategy: a pragmatic path for Canadian sovereignty

OpinionBY WENRAN JIANG

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Biotechnology

PMPRB closes all open drug-pricing investigations before implementing new guidelines on Jan. 1

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Bloc joins push for mandatory labelling of genetically engineered foods

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Canada’s research strength is world-class—now we need to all pull in the same direction

OpinionBY BENOIT-ANTOINE BACON

Canada could have access to more than 10,000 doctors if licensing were less complicated, House Health Committee hears

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

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DEFENCE & SECURITY

In defence of Canada

OpinionBY SCOTT TAYLOR

Learning a new dance for 2026

OpinionBY CAM HOLMSTROM

MPs from all parties must work together to deal with external and internal challenges facing Canada

OpinionBY EDITORIAL

Debating creating a Canadian CIA? Never say never, but now is not the time

OpinionBY MARTIN GREEN

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Environment

Priorities for Canada as 2026 gets underway

OpinionBY ELIZABETH MAY

Canada’s green jobs strategy needs more than good intentions

OpinionBY LIN AL-AKKAD

Planetary limits: why Canada’s next nation-building project must be grounded in reality

OpinionBY INDEPENDENT SENATOR ROSA GALVEZ, TREVOR HANCOCK, COURTNEY HOWARD

Federal environmental impact assessments are in even more jeopardy   

OpinionBY KEN RUBIN

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FINANCE

MPs face a choice this Parliament: play partisan games or meet the moment

OpinionBY BHAGWANT SANDHU

House winter session expected to be ‘very consequential’ with affordability issues, global trade, and possible referendums, say politicos

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

IMF report says Canada’s elevated trade uncertainty reinforces long-standing weaknesses in productivity and competitiveness

OpinionBY DAVID CRANE

Senators renew push to see their pensions become funded

NewsBY LAURA RYCKEWAERT

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Fisheries and oceans

Nearly 2,000 jobs and $1.5-billion to be cut across five departments by 2030, PBO analysis shows

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

Canada’s plan to boost its economy must include rebuilding wild fisheries

OpinionBY JOSH LAUGHREN

Coastal communities ‘running out of time’ without fisheries fund renewal, say opposition critics as DFO faces $544M in cuts

NewsBY STUART BENSON

Q&A | Cod quota ‘pressure is enormous’ on fisheries minister

NewsBY PETER MAZEREEUW

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FOREIGN POLICY

After Davos, Trump confronts an inflection point

OpinionBY GWYNNE DYER

Why zero‑sum thinking is not strength

OpinionBY CATHY ORLANDO

Carney has thrown his hat over the wall, now what?

OpinionBY MATT GURNEY

In a world filled with conflict, Yamanouchi reflects on diplomacy

OpinionBY ROSEANN O’REILLY RUNTE

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health

Health workforce, toxic drug crisis on health critics’ agendas this winter

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Make federal funding permanent for Canada’s suicide crisis helpline, say Conservative and NDP critics

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Health care is 13 per cent of Canada’s economy, and must be central to nation-building

OpinionBY JIMMY YANG

PHAC says creating national vaccination registry would be ‘difficult’ as Canada contends with high measles count, loss of measles-free status

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

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Industry and Manufacturing

Canada’s auto sector ‘hangs in the balance’ as CUSMA review looms in 2026: ‘there’s no sugar-coating it, this is going to be a critical year for the industry’

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Renewable energy sector adds concerns about wind-tower costs to steel industry crisis talks: ‘there’s a ton of urgency’

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Steel tariff missteps threaten Canada’s energy future

OpinionBY VITTORIA BELLISSIMO, FERNANDO MELO

‘Quiet buzz’ on Bay Street about Carney’s ‘nation-building’ major projects, says Tobin

NewsBY CHRISTOPHER GULY

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infrastructure and transport

Health organizations have questions, but few answers about feds’ new $5-billion Health Infrastructure Fund

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Can Build Canada Homes make a dent in the housing crisis?

OpinionBY ALAN BROADBENT

The joys of winter biking aren’t without politics

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

Time to strengthen Canada’s infrastructure planning 

OpinionBY JENNIFER ANGEL, PETER WELTMAN

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innovation

Canada needs a national strategy for the information ecosystem—not just its parts

OpinionBY ALICA WANLESS

Experts say 6G networks still years away, but Canada’s already preparing for the technology of the future

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

Elbow patches up: universities and Canadian sovereignty

OpinionBY TIMOTHY CHAN

Warming Canada-China relations shouldn’t extend to Huawei ban, say security experts, parliamentarians

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

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justice

America lost justice when Renee Nicole Good was killed

OpinionBY MICHAEL HARRIS

We need to go beyond criminal law reform to end gender-based violence

OpinionBY LANA WELLS

Bill C-16 ‘progress,’ but needs tougher language to codify femicide as a standalone crime, advocates say

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

Ottawa set to revive online harms legislation in 2026: government source

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

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Labour & employment

Canada’s economic, security, and environmental interests have never been more challenged

OpinionBY INTERIM NDP LEADER DON DAVIES

If it’s a quid-pro-quo, include the charitable sector, too

OpinionBY JUNG-SUK (JS) RYU

Trading values for access: Canada, China, and the cost of looking away

OpinionBY JOHN MCKAY, INDEPENDENT SENATOR JULIE MIVILLE-DECHêNE

Why all governments must follow Ontario in scrapping the ‘Canadian experience’ requirement

OpinionBY AKOLISA UFODIKE

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Lobbying

Ottawa’s lowered lobbying registration thresholds will reshape government relations

OpinionBY SUZANNE SABOURIN, MICHAEL WALSH

Libya was a warning, Venezuela is the test

OpinionBY AKOLISA UFODIKE

‘It’s like molasses in January’: pharmacare implementation stalled, say health-care groups, but others argue time needed to get deals right

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Joly top-lobbied minister in November, universities push to attract research talent driven away from U.S.

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

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natural resources and energy

Trump’s hit on Venezuela just gave Canada a bruise

OpinionBY ERICA IFILL

Canada’s rising disaster costs call for adaptive design

OpinionBY HOSSEIN BONAKDARI

Four key steps can help secure Canadian sovereignty

OpinionBY JON SHELL

2026: Another year on the edge for Carney and Canada

OpinionBY LES WHITTINGTON

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Women, Gender and Diversity

Women entrepreneurs are a crucial asset for Canada’s economy, they deserve a voice in shaping it

OpinionBY ROSALIND LOCKYER

Artificial action: feds offering tepid response to AI abuse

OpinionBY ERICA IFILL

When a parliamentary committee recently politicized EDI in research, they put Canadian science and patient care at risk

OpinionBY RACHEL REEVE

Where is the real threat to Canadian security coming from?

OpinionBY CHRISTOPHER INGRAM, ERROL MENDES, JOSEPH INGRAM

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Indigenous Relations

Principled-based pragmatism and the wisdom of the seven generations

OpinionBY ROSE LEMAY

‘Stark contrast’ between Carney and Trudeau’s approach to Indigenous relations, says ITK president Obed

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

‘Very few truly understand how it currently works’: procurement watchdog puts defence contracting under microscope

NewsBY IREM KOCA

Poilievre praises a president who threatens democracies—including ours—on a daily basis

OpinionBY ROSE LEMAY

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Exclusive lists

Who’s backing the NDP leadership contenders?

Who’s backing the NDP leadership contenders?

Tracking job cuts in the federal public service

Tracking job cuts in the federal public service

Take The Hill Times year-end news quiz

Take The Hill Times year-end news quiz

First-quarter expenses: MPs spent nearly $28-million

First-quarter expenses: MPs spent nearly $28-million

This Parliament’s ethics roundup: blind trusts, recusals, gifts, and more

This Parliament’s ethics roundup: blind trusts, recusals, gifts, and more

Take The Hill Times politics quiz

Take The Hill Times politics quiz

Carney government bills: tracking their progress into law

Carney government bills: tracking their progress into law

The number of sick days claimed by bureaucrats, broken down by department

The number of sick days claimed by bureaucrats, broken down by department