Politics and pancake breakfasts can make for strange bedfellows.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith shared the podium Saturday as they both attended a Stampede pancake breakfast put on by the Ismaili Muslim community.
The two leaders have had a somewhat frosty relationship but shook hands prior to a private meeting Friday where they discussed Alberta’s concerns about emission reductions, the goal of establishing a net-zero electricity grid by 2035 and the ongoing strike among British Columbia port workers.
Danielle Smith flips pancakes at Marlborough Mall in Calgary Saturday. (Helen Pike/CBC)
“It’s great to be here with Premier Smith. Thank you Danielle for your leadership,” Trudeau said in his opening remarks at the breakfast.
The two didn’t appear to have any time to chat.
“I’d like to thank the prime minister for his comments,” Smith said in response.
WATCH | Trudeau flips pancakes at Stampede pancake breakfast
Trudeau flips pancakes at Calgary Stampede breakfast
1 day ago
Duration 0:27
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took part in a Stampede tradition on Saturday, a day after a brief meeting with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith where the two discussed carbon emissions and the strike by B.C. port workers.
‘A debt of gratitude’ to the Ismaili community
Instead of politics, the two leaders focused on the impact the Ismaili community has had on Canada since members began settling here en masse more than 50 years ago.
Trudeau said Ismailis still approach him to express their gratitude for the work his father, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, did in bringing members of the community to Canada in large numbers.
“It is much more true that my father and I and Canada owe you a debt of gratitude. Not just for what you’ve contributed to this country but for being a shining example of what welcoming people who are fleeing violence, persecution, fear can do,” he said.
Federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre speaks to a crowd in Calgary Saturday. (Helen Pike/CBC)
“When we welcome in refugees, we are not only giving them opportunities. We are enriching our country so deeply from everything this community has done in Canada.”
Smith also heaped praise on the Ismaili community for its generosity.
“This Stampede breakfast is more proof of your generosity which knows no bounds,” she said.
“It’s not limited by faith or culture or colour and has marked Alberta deeply. Every day you change lives by volunteering, improving education and practicing social responsibility.”
Poilievre’s hometown politics
Federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre also attended the event and took photos with the crowd.
Later on Saturday morning, Poilievre was at Marlborough Mall for Calgary Forest Lawn MP Jasraj Singh Hallan’s pancake breakfast.
He talked to the crowd about policies including cutting the carbon tax, lowering income taxes and strengthening Alberta’s oil and gas industry.
Federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre takes photos with the crowd at MP Jasraj Singh Hallan’s pancake breakfast. (Helen Pike/CBC)
Poilievre also criticized Trudeau’s leadership through the last eight years.
“Life costs more, work doesn’t pay, housing costs have doubled, crime, chaos, drugs and disorder are common in our streets,” Poilievre told the crowd.
“Some of my best memories were when I had one of my first jobs, picking up garbage at the Stampede … and now we actually have to clean house on Parliament Hill and in Ottawa as well.”
Poilievre was born in Calgary to a 16-year-old single mother. He was adopted by Francophone school teachers and raised in the city, where he found his political affiliations at the University of Calgary.
A spokesperson for the federal NDP said party leader Jagmeet Singh has no plans on coming to the Stampede this year but did not say why.
Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley will be part of the party’s pancake breakfast on Tuesday, a spokesperson confirmed.
Rallying support
Trudeau spent a short time flipping pancakes at the Ismaili Muslim community’s event before heading to his own second breakfast of the morning at an event hosted by Liberal MP George Chahal.
A huge crowd was on hand to hear the prime minister’s second speech which took a more political turn.
“The reality is George needs reinforcements, and I really much hope over the coming years we’re going to elect more members of Parliament from the Liberal party for Alberta,” Trudeau said.
He also urged those listening to continue working toward making Canada better during these trying times.
“The world is facing tremendous challenges right now. Whether it be war returning to Europe, the destabilization of the world with energy prices and food prices, whether it be climate change having an increasing impact including on the wildfires,” Trudeau said.
“There’s a lot of reasons to feel anxious and worried about the future, but there are also so many reasons to be optimistic and positive and ambitious about the country we get to build every single day.”
Trudeau was swarmed after his speech by people seeking photos and autographs or wanting to shake his hand.
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.
