The House of Commons may be set to reopen for regular parliamentary business later this morning — which, for those who keep track of such details, also marks the opening of the last four-week stretch of sittings before it shuts down for the holidays — but it looks like opposition members will have to wait at least one more day to cross-examine Prime Minister Justin Trudeau from across the aisle.
According to his official itinerary, Trudeau won’t be in his assigned seat for question period this afternoon, but will instead spend the day in “private meetings,” including a call with his Dutch counterpart, Mark Rutte, and a closed-door huddle with his front bench team.
He’s also booked in for a livestreamed appearance at the opening of the second annual Global Conference for Media Freedom, which Canada is co-hosting in conjunction with Botswana. (11:15 AM)
Also on the agenda for the one-day virtual summit: A high-level ministerial meet-up of the 37 countries “committed to working together to advocate for media freedom and the protection of journalists,” which will be co-chaired by Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne and his UK counterpart, Dominic Raab.
Although the ministerial session will, not surprisingly, take place behind digitally closed doors, it will be followed by a livestreamed panel discussion with “legal experts,” including former federal justice minister Irwin Cotler and human rights lawyer Amal Clooney. (9:30 AM)
Back on the Hill, meanwhile, Conservative finance critic Pierre Poilievre has reserved a mid-morning timeslot at the West Block media theatre to “propose a solution” to the ongoing impasse at the House finance committee over an opposition-driven push to reopen the investigation into the WE Charity controversy. (10:30 AM)
Elsewhere on the precinct media circuit, Green Leader Annamie Paul joins Green MPs Paul Manly and Elizabeth May to brief reporters on what the party hopes to see in the “environmental accountability” legislation that the minority Liberal government is expected to table later this week, which, as per a weekend press release, should include a “detailed carbon budget,” a “carbon border adjustment” and “investments in renewable energy,” among other measures. (11 AM)
IN THE CHAMBER
When the curtain rises on the Commons later today, the first order of legislative business on the government to-do list will be a final round of debate on the proposed new guidelines to require federal judges to undergo specialized training on sexual assault cases, which is based on a backbench bill originally put forward by then-interim Conservative Leader Rona Ambrose during the previous parliament, and is now set to secure third-reading approval later today.
Later this afternoon, MPs will also hand down their collective verdict on the New Democrats’ omnibus opposition day pitch to hike taxes on wealthy individuals and businesses making a profit from the pandemic, which, as per the motion, would make more public funds available to expand universal health care to include pharmacare and dental services.
Before all that gets underway, Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs will get her first chance to present her private members’ proposal to encourage “environmental restoration” with a new tax credit to cover some costs related to the closure of gas and oil wells.
OUTSIDE THE PRECINCT
Social Development Minister Ahmed Hussen teams up with his New Brunswick counterpart Dominic Cardy for a joint Zoom reveal of a new deal on support for early learning and child care throughout the province. (11:30 AM)
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Don’t miss today’s complete legislative brief in GovGuide.ca!
