Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looks at Anita Anand after she was sworn in as the President of the Treasury Board during a cabinet shuffle, in Ottawa, on July 26.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Our next prime minister?
Re “Anand’s new role reveals Trudeau’s priorities” (Opinion, Aug. 19): Kudos to Konrad Yakabuski for his column. Anita Anand is the smartest minister in cabinet and possibly the only one who can get anything done. She would make a great prime minister – one who could get housing built and health care improved with the assistance of the provinces because she sets goals, takes her responsibilities and promises seriously, and acts by setting spending cuts in motion in her new portfolio.
The major problem with this current government is that it promises much and delivers nothing. Each minister is given talking points which they mouth back. They don’t answer questions, just speak meaningless phrases that will result in nothing being done. Please retire Justin Trudeau and leave us with memories of your socks and lovely family. Give the people of Canada the opportunity of voting for a centrist party with a leader who understands the meaning of the word.
Marilyn DolenkoOttawa
Hurry up and wait
Re “When foxes get to choose their watchdog” (Editorial, Aug.18): The question at the end of the editorial reads like a cry in the wilderness; that is, the bewildering indifference of the Trudeau government toward some of the most fundamental requirements of a functioning democracy.
Just as Canada’s wildfires will cost us well into the future, the failure to fulfill certain vital obligations of a democratic government will have a price none of us will want to pay.
Foot-dragging, bordering on refusal, until an essential issue disappears from the minds of an already stressed electorate, is the worst possible governance. Even worse is to assume the electorate is scarcely interested, if at all. The long-time neglect of its federal responsibility to appoint judges to our courts, until the numbers have become stuck in the high 80s, is a perfect example of the latter. It is an intolerable situation for which we are already paying dearly.
Patricia HanleyToronto
Start with decriminalization
Re “Make supervised drug-use sites safe for all” (Aug. 19): Marcus Gee raises many valid concerns around safe injection sites, but they are secondary to the main issue, which is the illegal drug market.
The solution is simple: Decriminalize drugs and make them available free at these centres.
This simple, inexpensive change eliminates the need to steal to pay for drugs, reduces criminal incentives to distribute them, and thus removes the turf wars that are a major cause of gun violence in this and other cities across Canada.
Unfortunately, such a progressive idea is anathema to capital C conservatives. It’s easier to prey on fear and abhorrence of the human weakness and simply close the centres down. I fear this is the inevitable knee-jerk reaction to Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s “critical incident review.”
The studies and research have been done, and even the trials in Dauphin, Man., of this necessary policy proved successful in the 1970s. Mr. Segal knew the benefits and did his best to make this policy happen. Now is the time.
This legislation was enacted with good intentions but lacked foresight, especially in the face of warnings from the companies it would affect. Thus, Meta’s decision to withhold Canadian news cannot be described in isolation.
Bill C-18 and Meta are equally responsible for the block of information in the Northwest Territories. Both parties are bound by commercial considerations, yet our government has the paramount duty to ensure its residents are informed during an emergency.
A more balanced perspective is required – one that calls for our government to reassess the impact of Bill C-18 and take steps to increase news and information accessibility. Simply blaming Meta overlooks the nuanced relationship and shared responsibilities at play. Ultimately, our government must repair what has been broken.
Sam Hollinrake Oakville, Ont.
Isn’t it bizarre that various levels of Canadian government have come to rely on U.S. social media to communicate with their citizens? And how now suddenly we see the catch?
But there’s a logical solution, which I haven’t yet seen described: the CBC.
It’s a public broadcaster, heavily subsidized by Canadian taxpayers, available to anyone with an internet connection: Surely the CBC could be “encouraged” to have a dedicated space for public service announcements.
The CBC already runs a fine online digital news service. A dedicated add-on should be no problem, and we’d quickly get used to consulting it.
As a parent, I learned that when my kids were interrupting me, it meant they were not listening.
Lesson No. 1: Let them interrupt. I listened carefully to their interruption to figure out how I could better reach them. Then the real conversation could start. And as a professional, I came to appreciate that a colleague who was interrupting me was engaged.
Lesson No. 2: Being engaged meant interest, concern. This meant there was energy to co-create a “co-operative overlapping.” (This positive framing can be even more effective when coupled with non-threatening body language cues.)
American author Ken Blanchard once said, “Not any one of us is as smart as all of us.” To me, that means making more “room” for interruptions in our conversations.
Irene McGheeToronto
Thanks to a letter-writer for offering a rare example of where interrupting might benefit discourse and thereby, I suppose, the human condition (“Pardon Me,” Letters, Aug. 18).
I note, however, that he used written prose to make his point, frustrating my urge to interrupt him midstream. I am reminded of a favourite rhetorical gag from my young daughter, who fell into conniptions by asking me: “Knock knock, who’s there?” Her answer: “Interrupting cow!” Then she’d shout, “Moo!” before I could finish asking, “Interrupting cow, who?”
Ron BeramGabriola B.C.
Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Keep letters to 150 words or fewer. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here:letters@globeandmail.com
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
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