Opposition Leader Candice Bergen wants a full investigation into questions around the RCMP Commissioner allegedly pressing her force to disclose the weapons used in the Nova Scotia mass shooting to help advance the federal Liberal government’s gun-control legislation.
But the interim leader of the Conservatives said Wednesday that she doesn’t have faith in a committee of MPs looking into the matter because of the supply and confidence agreement that the NDP struck earlier this year with the governing Liberals.
“We have seen the NDP help cover up a lot for the Liberals so I really have concern about a parliamentary committee,” Ms. Bergen told journalists as she arrived for this week’s caucus meeting.
“So I think there has to be more independence and the ability for more of an independent investigation to happen. I don’t trust the NDP to not cover up.”
She declined to provide further specifics.
The public inquiry into the April, 2020, killings of 22 people by a lone gunman has been told that in an April. 28 conference call, Commissioner Brenda Lucki chastised senior commanders for withholding information about the guns used in the attack – allegedly telling them those details could be leveraged for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s gun-control agenda.
The Mass Casualty Commission released supporting documents and notes Tuesday involving a conversation between Commissioner Lucki and RCMP officers overseeing the Nova Scotia investigation into the murders. Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife, Senior Parliamentary Reporter Steven Chase, and Atlantic Canada Reporter Greg Mercer report here.
Meanwhile, Opposition House Leader John Brassard said the Conservatives were going to ask the Speaker for an emergency debate in Parliament on this issue. Mr. Brassard said the debate should include inflation and the passport “fiasco” as Canadians seek access to travel documents. He said the request would be made Wednesday.
Mr. Brassard expressed more faith in a committee investigation than Ms. Bergen, saying “at a minimum” questions about the RCMP and the mass shooting need to go to a parliamentary committee. “We expect that this is going to end up at a parliamentary committee so that we can get to the truth of this matter.”
He said the process needs to move as quickly as possible, even ahead of the inquiry in Nova Scotia.
Nova Scotia MP Chris d’Entremont said the situation is disturbing. “It makes me sick,” the member for West Nova and the deputy speaker said.
“Twenty-two people died in Nova Scotia. We, as Nova Scotians, mourn the loss of those people as do our neighbours.”
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TODAY’S HEADLINES
INFLATION AT FOUR-DECADE HIGH – Canadian inflation accelerated to the highest rate in nearly four decades in May as calls broaden for policy makers to find new ways of curbing runaway price growth. Story here.
HOCKEY CANADA FUNDING TO BE FROZEN – Hockey Canada’s federal funding is being frozen in the wake of the national sport body’s handling of an alleged sexual assault and out-of-court settlement. Story here.
WHEREABOUTS OF SCIENTISTS STILL A MYSTERY – A year and a half after two Canadian scientists were fired from Ottawa’s top-security infectious-disease laboratory over alleged national-security breaches, it is still unclear whether the couple are now in China or living at an undisclosed location in Canada. Story here.
SITUATION AT PASSPORT OFFICES “UNACCEPTABLE”: TRUDEAU – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is promising to do more to fix what he calls an “unacceptable” state of affairs at passport offices overwhelmed as thousands of Canadians scramble to get necessary documents before travelling abroad. Mr. Trudeau made the comments in an interview on CBC Radio’s The House that will air Saturday. Story here from CBC.
PM DEPARTS FOR INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENTS – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has departed for a 10-day international trip, with the Russia-Ukraine conflict expected to be a major focus during stops in Kigali, Rwanda as well as Germany and then on to Madrid. Story here.
REMPEL GARNER CLEARS HURDLE FOR UCP LEADERSHIP BID – Long-time federal Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner has cleared a barrier for entry into the United Conservative Party leadership race to replace Alberta Premier Jason Kenney after the UCP agreed to let her run despite the potential candidate not being a party member long enough. Story here.
STEFANSON HAS COVID-19 -Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson has tested positive for COVID-19. Story here.
MPS EQUIPPED WITH PANIC BUTTONS – MPs say they are getting used to the option of carrying panic buttons that can summon help, even when away from Parliament Hill, amid rising threats against parliamentarians. Story here..
TRANS MOUNTAIN PIPELINE NO LONGER PROFITABLE: PBO -The Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain oil pipeline is no longer profitable after cost overruns and delays to its expansion project, the country’s parliamentary budget officer (PBO) said on Wednesday. Story here.
CONSERVATIVE LEADERSHIP RACE
CAMPAIGN TRAIL – Scott Aitchison is in Ontario. Patrick Brown is in Brampton. Jean Charest is in the Toronto region meeting members and working with his campaign team. Leslyn Lewis is in Ottawa, and was at the national Conservative caucus meeting Wednesday. Pierre Poilievre is in Ottawa. There’s no word on the campaign whereabouts of Roman Baber.
THIS AND THAT
TODAY IN THE COMMONS – Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, June 22 accessible here.
DEPUTY BANK GOVERNOR TO RETIRE – Timothy Lane, the deputy governor of the Bank of Canada, will retire on September 16, 2022, the bank announced on Wednesday. Mr. Lane joined the bank in August, 2008, as an adviser to the governor, after a 20-year career at the International Monetary Fund. He was appointed Deputy Governor in 2009.
FREELAND INTRODUCING ZELENSKY – Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was scheduled to introduce Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, at a virtual address to students at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy. The event was livestreamed here.
JOLY TO RWANDA AND MADRID – Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly is travelling to Kigali, Rwanda, from June 22 to 25, to attend the Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers meeting, then to Madrid from June 28 to 30 to attend the NATO Leaders’ Summit with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
CHAMPAGNE IN TORONTO – Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne was in Toronto on Wednesday for the Collision tech-industry conference.
HORGAN UPDATE ON $789.5M MUSEUM – In Victoria, British Columbia Premier John Horgan will be providing an update on plans to modernize the Royal BC Museum. The NDP government has been in political hot water over the $789.5-million cost to build a new museum on the site of the current complex. In May, Western Arts Correspondent Marsha Lederman looked at the situation here.
THE DECIBEL
On Wednesday’s edition of The Decibel, Yap Boum from Doctors Without Borders talks about monkeypox in Central and West Africa. Then, Helen Branswell, senior writer at STAT News, whose beat is infectious diseases, provides an update on how monkeypox’s spread is different in Europe and North America, and why the World Health Organization might label it a “public health emergency of international concern” at its meeting Thursday. The Decibel is here.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
The Prime Minister arrives in Kigali, Rwanda for a conference on Commonwealth leaders.
LEADERS
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet held a news conference on the session of Parliament ending this week.
Conservative interim leader Candice Bergen attended the national Conservative caucus meeting and was scheduled to attend Question Period.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh attended the NDP national caucus, held a news conference and attended question period.
PUBLIC OPINION
FRANCOPHONE QUEBECERS AND FRENCH STATUS – Francophone Quebecers are concerned about the status of French, with seven in 10 feeling the French language is threatened in Quebec, according to new survey research. Details here.
CANADIANS ON UNITED STATES – Canadians are growing more confident in the United States as a trusted and reliable international ally, but losing faith in the man who’s currently running the country, a new poll suggests. Details here.
Sheema Khan (Contributed to The Globe and Mail) on how she was wrong that the Charter protects Canadians’ fundamental rights: “Much has been written about the history of how the notwithstanding clause came to be: a compromise between federal and provincial powers; a balance between elected representatives and unelected judges. Yet, this does not explain how basic human rights were used as a bargaining chip, rendering our Charter of Rights and Freedoms hollow. When it was introduced, the thought was that it would be rarely used. Some termed it the “nuclear button.” For decades, that was the case. However, within the past three years, it has been used twice by Quebec and once by Ontario.”
Don Braid (The Calgary Herald)on how, talking straight to UCP anger, could win Danielle Smith the leadership of the Alberta party: “Many Albertans are dismissing Danielle Smith as a separatist flake who won’t get anywhere in the UCP leadership election. They should not. Smith is onto something that could win her the leadership and premier’s office. She’s flying out of the gate with a striking Alberta First agenda. Early polls show her rising and now leading among UCP loyalists – the only ones who will matter in the vote Oct. 6. Whether her plan to “nullify” federal laws would be a winner in next year’s general election is another matter. That seems unlikely, but we should also remember the adage about playing with fire.”
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The New Democrats have declared a federal byelection victory in their Winnipeg stronghold riding of Elmwood—Transcona.
The NDP candidate Leila Dance told supporters in a tearful speech that even though the final results weren’t in, she expected she would see them in Ottawa.
With several polls still to be counted, Conservative candidate Colin Reynolds conceded defeat and told his volunteers that they should be proud of what the Conservatives accomplished in the campaign.
Political watchers had a keen eye on the results to see if the Tories could sway traditionally NDP voters on issues related to labour and affordability.
Meanwhile in the byelection race in the Montreal riding of LaSalle—Émard—Verdun the NDP, Liberals and Bloc Québécois remained locked in an extremely tight three-way race as the results trickled in slowly.
The Liberal stronghold riding had a record 91 names on the ballot, and the results aren’t expected until the early hours of the morning.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
VANCOUVER – An incumbent BC United legislative member has reversed her decision not to seek re-election and has announced she’ll run as an Independent in the riding of West Vancouver-Capilano in the upcoming British Columbia election.
Karin Kirkpatrick has been a vocal critic of BC United Leader Kevin Falcon’s decision last month to suspend the party’s campaign and throw support behind the B.C. Conservatives under John Rustad.
Kirkpatrick announced her retirement this year, but said Monday that her decision to re-enter the race comes as a direct result of Falcon’s actions, which would force middle-of-the-road voters to “swing to the left” to the NDP or to move further right to the Conservatives.
“I did hear from a lot of constituents and a lot of people who were emailing me from across B.C. … that they didn’t have anybody to vote for,” she said. “And so, I looked even at myself, and I looked at my riding, and I said, ‘Well, I no longer have anybody to vote for in my own riding.’ It was clearly an issue of this missing middle for the more moderate voter.”
She said voters who reached out “don’t want to vote for an NDP government but felt deeply uncomfortable” supporting the provincial Conservatives, citing Rustad’s tolerance of what she calls “extreme views and conspiracy theorists.”
Kirkpatrick joins four other incumbent Opposition MLAs running as Independents, including Peace River South’s Mike Bernier, Peace River North’s Dan Davies, Prince George-Cariboo’s Coralee Oakes and Tom Shypitka in Kootenay-Rockies.
“To be honest, we talk just about every day,” Kirkpatrick said about her fellow BC United incumbents now running as Independents. “We’re all feeling the same way. We all need to kind of hold each other up and make sure we’re doing the right thing.”
She added that a number of first-time candidates formerly on the BC United ticket are contacting the group of incumbents running for election, and the group is working together “as good moderates who respect each other and lift each other up.”
But Kirkpatrick said it’s also too early to talk about the future of BC United or the possibility of forming a new party.
“The first thing we need to do is to get these Independent MLAs elected into the legislature,” she said, noting a strong group could play a power-broker role if a minority government is elected. “Once we’re there then we’re all going to come together and we’re going to figure out, is there something left in BC United, BC Liberals that we can resurrect, or do we need to start a new party that’s in the centre?”
She said there’s a big gap left in the political spectrum in the province.
“So, we just have to do it in a mindful way, to make sure it’s representing the broadest base of people in B.C.”
Among the supporters at Kirkpatrick’s announcement Monday was former longtime MLA Ralph Sultan, who held West Vancouver-Capilano for almost two decades before retiring in 2020.
The Metro Vancouver riding has been a stronghold for the BC Liberals — the former BC United — since its formation in 1991, with more than half of the votes going to the centre-right party in every contest.
However, Kirkpatrick’s winning margin of 53.6 per cent to the NDP’s 30.1 per cent and the Green’s 15.4 per cent in the 2020 election shows a rising trend for left-leaning voters in the district.
Mike McDonald, chief strategy officer with Kirk and Co. Consulting, and a former campaign director for the BC Liberals and chief of staff under former Premier Christy Clark, said Independent candidates historically face an uphill battle and the biggest impact may be splitting votes in areas where the NDP could emerge victorious.
“It really comes down to, if the NDP are in a position to get 33 per cent of the vote, they might have a chance of winning,” McDonald said of the impact of an Independent vote-split with the Conservatives in certain ridings.
He said B.C. history shows it’s very hard for an Independent to win an election and has been done only a handful of times.
“So, the odds do not favour Independents winning the seats unless there is a very unique combination of circumstances, and more likely that they play a role as a spoiler, frankly.”
The B.C. Conservatives list West Vancouver School District Trustee Lynne Block as its candidate in West Vancouver-Capilano, while the BC NDP is represented by health care professional Sara Eftekhar.
Kirkpatrick said she is confident that her re-entry to the race will not result in a vote split that allows the NDP to win the seat because the party has always had a poor showing in the riding.
“So, even if there is competition between myself and the Conservative candidate, it is highly unlikely that anything would swing over to the NDP here. And I believe that I have the ability to actually attract those NDP voters to me, as well as the Conservatives and Liberals who are feeling just lost right now.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken heads to Egypt on Tuesday for his 10th trip to the Middle East since the war in Gaza began nearly a year ago, this one aimed partly at refining a proposal to present to Israel and Hamas for a cease-fire deal and release of hostages.
Unlike in recent mediating missions, America’s top diplomat this time is traveling without optimistic projections from the Biden administration of an expected breakthrough in the troubled negotiations.
Also unlike the earlier missions, Blinken has no public plans to go to Israel to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on this trip. The Israeli leader’s fiery public statements — like his declaration that Israel would accept only “total victory” when Blinken was in the region in June — and some other unbudgeable demands have complicated earlier diplomacy.
Blinken is going to Egypt for talks Wednesday with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and others, in a trip billed as focused both on American-Egyptian relations and Gaza consultations with Egypt.
The tamped-down public approach follows months in which President Joe Biden and his officials publicly talked up an agreement to end the war in Gaza as being just within reach, hoping to build pressure on Netanyahu’s far-right government and Hamas to seal a deal.
The Biden administration now says it is working with fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar to come up with a revised final proposal to try to at least get Israel and Hamas into a six-week cease-fire that would free some of the hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Americans believe public attention on details of the talks now would only hurt that effort.
American, Qatari and Egyptian officials still are consulting “about what that proposal will contain, and …. we’re trying to see that it’s a proposal that can get the parties to an ultimate agreement,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Monday.
The State Department pointed to Egypt’s important role in Gaza peace efforts in announcing last week that the Biden administration planned to give the country its full $1.3 billion in military aid, overriding congressional requirements that the U.S. hold back some of the funding if Egypt fails to show adequate progress on human rights. Blinken told Congress that Egypt has made progress on human rights, including in freeing political prisoners.
Blinken’s trip comes amid the risk of a full-on new front in the Middle East, with Israel threatening increasing military action against the Hezbollah militant organization in Lebanon. Biden envoy Amos Hochstein was in Israel on Monday to try to calm tensions after a stop in Lebanon.
Hezbollah has one of the strongest militaries in the Middle East, and like Hamas and smaller groups in Syria and Iraq it is allied with Iran.
Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged strikes across Israel’s northern border with Lebanon since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas started the war in Gaza. Hezbollah says it will ease those strikes — which have uprooted tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the border — only when there’s a cease-fire in Gaza.
Hochstein told Netanyahu and other Israeli officials that intensifying the conflict with Hezbollah would not help get Israelis back in their homes, according to a U.S. official. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private talks, said Hochstein stressed to Netanyahu that he risked sparking a broad and protracted regional conflict if he moved forward with a full-scale war in Lebanon.
Hochstein also underscored to Israeli officials that the Biden administration remained committed to finding a diplomatic solution to the tensions on Israel’s northern border in conjunction with a Gaza deal or on its own, the official said.
Netanyahu told Hochstein that it would “not be possible to return our residents without a fundamental change in the security situation in the north.” The prime minister said Israel “appreciates and respects” U.S. support but “will do what is necessary to maintain its security and return the residents of the north to their homes safely.”
Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, meanwhile, warned in his meeting with Hochstein that “the only way left to ensure the return of Israel’s northern communities to their homes will be via military action,” his office said.
In Gaza, the U.S. says Israel and Hamas have agreed to a deal in principle and that the biggest obstacles now include a disagreement on details of the hostage and prisoner swap and control over a buffer zone on the border between Gaza and Egypt. Netanyahu has demanded in recent weeks that the Israeli military be allowed to keep a presence in the Philadelphi corridor. Egypt and Hamas have rejected that demand.
The Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7 killed about 1,200 people. Militants also abducted 250 people and are still holding around 100 hostages. About a third of the remaining hostages are believed to be dead.
Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, said Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its count. The war has caused widespread destruction, displaced a majority of Gaza’s people and created a humanitarian crisis.
Netanyahu says he is working to bring home the hostages. His critics accuse him of slow-rolling a deal because it could bring down his hardline coalition government, which includes members opposed to a truce with the Palestinians.
Asked earlier this month if Netanyahu was doing enough for a cease-fire deal, Biden said, simply, “no.” But he added that he still believed a deal was close.
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Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani contributed to this report.
