Policy Topics | Policy Briefings

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• Agriculture
• Biotechnology
• Defence & Security
• Environment
• Finance
• Fisheries and Oceans

• Foreign Policy​
• Health
• Industry and Manufacturing
• Infrastructure and Transport
• Innovation
• Intergovernmental

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

Justice

Parties have ‘free rein’ with voter data, finds report, but veteran party ops say that’s vital for democratic engagement

NewsBY IAN CAMPBELL

• A court case about voter privacy rights in B.C. begins this week against the backdrop of a data ‘arms race’ by the federal political parties, says Matt Hatfield of OpenMedia.

Parties have ‘free rein’ with voter data, finds report, but veteran party ops say that’s vital for democratic engagement

NewsBY IAN CAMPBELL

• A court case about voter privacy rights in B.C. begins this week against the backdrop of a data ‘arms race’ by the federal political parties, says Matt Hatfield of OpenMedia.

Bill 21 should be quickly repealed

OpinionBY FRANK BAYLIS

Internet freedom can co-exist with child protection

OpinionBY ANU GEORGE CANJANATHOPPIL, JOHN TANAGHO

Federal parties in court April 22 after judge denies adjournment request in voter data case

NewsBY IAN CAMPBELL

We must demand greater accountability from police

OpinionBY ROSE LEMAY

Liberals, Conservatives, and NDP to argue new electoral reform bill should delay voter data court case

NewsBY IAN CAMPBELL

Trudeau should abandon his quest to regulate free speech, argues Robert Sopuck

OpinionBY ROBERT SOPUCK

Government’s newly proposed privacy policies won’t change how federal political parties use voter data: experts

NewsBY IAN CAMPBELL

House report on preventing human trafficking met with mixed reviews

NewsBY LAURA RYCKEWAERT

MOST RECENT POLICY BRIEFINGS

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Suicide prevention in military and RCMP communities: where do families fit in?

OpinionBY FARDOUS HOSSEINY, LARYSSA LAMROCK

• It is crucial that family members who play an important role in suicide prevention are not overlooked, but are provided with their own resources, tools and supports.

Suicide prevention in military and RCMP communities: where do families fit in?

OpinionBY FARDOUS HOSSEINY, LARYSSA LAMROCK

• It is crucial that family members who play an important role in suicide prevention are not overlooked, but are provided with their own resources, tools and supports.

Supporting the prosperity and success of Black entrepreneurs

OpinionBY PSG SENATOR AMINA GERBA

Attorney general calls B.C. privacy case ‘premature,’ says federal political parties can ‘self-regulate’ use of voter data: new documents

NewsBY IAN CAMPBELL

Online Harms Act a ‘step in the right direction,’ but social justice and civil society advocates united in commendation and concern

NewsBY STUART BENSON

RCMP says ‘no political pressure’ in decision not to pursue criminal probe of SNC-Lavalin scandal

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

AGRICULTURE

Canada’s system of supply management: an innovative, modern solution

OpinionBY ROGER PELISSERO

Economic value of agriculture industry often overlooked by feds, argue sector advocates

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Climate change will affect your grocery prices

OpinionBY NAVIN RAMANKUTTY AND KUSHANK BAJAJ

Agriculture can do more than just put food on our plate

OpinionBY RENE VAN ACKER, AMY PROULX, AND MARTIN SCANLON

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Biotechnology

Does Canada need a more integrated strategy for pandemic responses? Yes

OpinionBY ISAAC BOGOCH AND DAVID NAYLOR

Canada’s biomedical brain drain is reversing. Let’s continue that trend

OpinionBY MICHAEL MAY, ALLISON BROWN

Talent shortage a priority for biotech sector emerging from pandemic

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Canada’s place in the world of biotechnology research and application is in jeopardy

OpinionBY NDP MP RICHARD CANNINGS

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DEFENCE & SECURITY

Canada’s military procurement: a laundry list of broken promises

OpinionBY SCOTT TAYLOR

Cyber threat ‘continuously evolving,’ with autocratic states posing ‘greatest strategic cyber threat to Canada,’ Senate committee hears

NewsBY MIKE LAPOINTE

Struggling low-cost air carriers require feds’ intervention on price competition, says aviation expert

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Canada’s updated defence policy muted on UN peacekeeping as historic low contributions persist  

NewsBY NEIL MOSS

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Environment

All eyes on Ottawa: the world comes together to address plastic pollution

OpinionBY ISABELLE DES CHêNES

Sustainable development, here and now

OpinionBY PIERRE COSSETTE

Rallying against the blaze: uniting Canadians to fight climate change

OpinionBY INDEPENDENT SENATOR ROSA GALVEZ, KATHLEEN ROSS

How green was this budget?

OpinionBY ELIZABETH MAY

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FINANCE

Freeland’s budget seen as last hope to turn Trudeau’s electoral fortunes around, say politicos

NewsBY ABBAS RANA

Feds give CBC a budget boost

OpinionBY SHEILA COPPS

Budget 2024 provides key themes for advocacy strategies in advance of anticipated election budget, says lobbyists

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Conservatives ‘riding the stronger horse’ in competing narratives about budget: pollster Lyle

NewsBY IAN CAMPBELL

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Fisheries and oceans

Unlocking the power of the ocean: threading the economic needle on the path to net zero

OpinionBY KENDRA MACDONALD, TRINE JøRANLI ESKEDAL

Reel returns: the economic mandate for rebuilding fisheries

OpinionBY REBECCA SCHIJNS

Department of Fisheries and Oceans undermining minister’s mandate

OpinionBY KAREN WRISTEN

Catching up with Fisheries Minister Lebouthillier’s team

FeatureBY LAURA RYCKEWAERT

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FOREIGN POLICY

Canada going ahead with Ecuador trade talks despite Mexican Embassy raid rebuke

NewsBY NEIL MOSS

Trump, the John Gotti of U.S. politics

OpinionBY MICHAEL HARRIS

There’s ‘no Plexiglass between our borders’ protecting Canada from global authoritarian sentiment, ex-judge warns

NewsBY STEPHEN JEFFERY

Canadian Senators should not approve Bill C-282, advocates urge

Opinion

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health

National surgical wait times strategy needed

OpinionBY TRISH BARBATO

Time for Poilievre to join a constructive pharmacare conversation

OpinionBY BHAGWANT SANDHU

House Health Committee calls for a national breast implant registry

FeatureBY MAGDELENE CRESKEY

School food program should focus on healthy plant-based eating

OpinionBY COLIN SARAVANAMUTTOO

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Industry and Manufacturing

Foreign investment rules designed for an economy that no longer exists

OpinionBY DAVID CRANE

Firefighters and environmentalists are asking for PFAS action

OpinionBY CASSIE BARKER

Expanded electric capacity to handle EVs must be taken seriously, say experts

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Fighting inflation one gigabyte at a time

OpinionBY ROBERT GHIZ

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infrastructure and transport

Budget overlooks need for trade-enabling infrastructure

OpinionBY LINDSAY KISLOCK

Roads, horses, and carts, oh my! Time for Canada to take trade-enabling infrastructure seriously

OpinionBY PASCAL CHAN

Better climate-risk mapping data a must as Canada addresses housing crisis, says experts

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Time to stop building infrastructure for yesterday’s climate

OpinionBY RYAN NESS

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innovation

We are on the path to legal singularity

FeatureBY ABDI AIDID AND BENJAMIN ALARIE

Should telecommunications be nationalized?

OpinionBY MARK HANCOCK

EV battery fires are a global problem that we need to address in Canada

OpinionBY JOSIPA PETRUNIC

Driving down emissions with electric school buses

OpinionBY NDP MP LAUREL COLLINS

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intergovernmental

Is there another Charest in the Quebec Liberals’ future?

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

Horrendous death of three women brings some action on gender-based violence, but there’s a long way to go

OpinionBY LES WHITTINGTON

A closer look at the federal carbon tax

NewsBY STEPHEN JEFFERY

Are we sleepwalking to another national unity crisis?

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

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justice

Report finds RCMP officers six times more likely to screen positive for any mental health disorder than general population

NewsBY MIKE LAPOINTE

House Public Safety Committee should look into Mass Casualty Commission report on 2020 Nova Scotia deadly rampage

OpinionBY GREEN PARTY LEADER ELIZABETH MAY

The case for adding an exemption order to the government’s MAID legislation

OpinionBY JOCELYN DOWNIE, MONA GUPTA, DAPHNE GILBERT

Silenced no more: we need a survivor-led national strategy to end human trafficking in Canada

OpinionBY CONSERVATIVE SENATOR SALMA ATAULLAHJAN & CONSERVATIVE MP ARNOLD VIERSEN

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Labour & employment

Housing the latest skirmish pitting progressive government against zombie neoliberalism

OpinionBY LES WHITTINGTON

A trading nation needs a globally engaged workforce

OpinionBY PERRIN BEATTY

Freeland’s budget should focus on housing, ending homelessness, writes Ottawa reader

Opinion

Time to act on Canada Disability Benefit promise

OpinionBY RENZE NAUTA, ANDREAE SENNYAH

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Lobbying

Beef farmers seek exemption from federal carbon price in March dominated by environment lobbying

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Sponsored travel climbed back to pre-pandemic levels in 2023 as MPs accept trips to Israel, Taiwan, U.K.

NewsBY STEPHEN JEFFERY

Poilievre’s communication record shows corporate lobbyists shouldn’t panic, say lobbyists

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Democracy Watch wants lobbying commissioner’s office to probe firm with links to top Conservative adviser Jenni Byrne

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

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natural resources and energy

First Nations and the right to say yes

OpinionBY CONSERVATIVE SENATOR DAVID WELLS

Environmental groups urge an end to fossil fuel subsidies in two reports outlining Canada’s oil and gas financing

NewsBY MIKE LAPOINTE

A cap on emissions will actually hinder Canada’s environmental, social, and economic efforts

OpinionBY DEBORAH YEDLIN

Budget 2024 is critical to the future of made-in-Canada biofuel projects

OpinionBY BOB LAROCQUE

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Women, Gender and Diversity

Beyond International Women’s Day: sustaining support of Indigenous women entrepreneurs

OpinionBY MAGNOLIA PERRON

Difference does not mean worse: embracing neurodiversity in the workspace

OpinionBY AMIN KAMALEDDIN

Will Canada support changes to international law on gender persecution?

OpinionBY RHONDA GOSSEN

Trudeau’s feminist policies have failed Palestinian women and girls

OpinionBY KATHERINE BULLOCK, TAZEEN HASAN, NAWEL HAMIDI

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Indigenous Relations

Equity loan guarantees will pave path to economic reconciliation

OpinionBY WAYNE MCQUABBIE, GREGORY NEWTON, JOHN BEAUCAGE

Canada’s budgetary process: a failing grade in First Nations partnership

OpinionBY GRAND CHIEF CATHY MERRICK

It’s not comedy to make money off a mass murderer

OpinionBY ROSE LEMAY

Senate bill seeking to criminalize forced sterilizations raises concerns over unintended consequences

NewsBY LAURA RYCKEWAERT

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Exclusive lists

Cabinet’s communications and chiefs of staff list, 2024

Cabinet’s communications and chiefs of staff list, 2024

U.S. election preoccupies Canada’s top 50 foreign influencers as feds’ focus gets pulled from Asia strategy

U.S. election preoccupies Canada’s top 50 foreign influencers as feds’ focus gets pulled from Asia strategy

Cabinet’s communications and chiefs of staff list, 2024

Cabinet’s communications and chiefs of staff list, 2024

House committee trips that have been granted a travel budget in the 44th Parliament, so far

House committee trips that have been granted a travel budget in the 44th Parliament, so far

Fraser voted best minister in Question Period and best public speaker in The Hill Times’ Politically Savvy Survey 2023

Fraser voted best minister in Question Period and best public speaker in The Hill Times’ Politically Savvy Survey 2023

Telford three-peats at the top of the 20th Terrific 25 Staffers list, LRB’s Wendy Wu voted Best All-Round

Telford three-peats at the top of the 20th Terrific 25 Staffers list, LRB’s Wendy Wu voted Best All-Round

A ‘more challenging and volatile’ world: Russia, China, U.S. top of mind for top 50 foreign policy influencers

A ‘more challenging and volatile’ world: Russia, China, U.S. top of mind for top 50 foreign policy influencers

Top 30 consultant lobbyists with highest number of communications in 2022

Top 30 consultant lobbyists with highest number of communications in 2022