Canada has imposed sanctions on more than 200 people who are loyal to Russian President Vladimir Putin in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.
Global Affairs Canada says the new measures target 11 senior officials and 192 other members of the People’s Councils of the self-proclaimed People’s Republics of Luhansk and Donetsk for supporting Putin’s attack on the area.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, asked about the new sanctions on Wednesday morning, said unity across the West will continue to put pressure on anyone who supported Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We are all looking at ways of moving forward and every conversation we have is about how we can do more as Western countries to demonstrate that Vladimir Putin made a terrible mistake,” Mr. Trudeau told the media as he arrived for a caucus meeting. “He needs to lose and anyone who supports him needs to face severe consequences.”
Meanwhile, senior parliamentary reporter Steven Chase reports here the Canadian government plans to give itself the power to sell off assets of foreigners seized under sanctions law, and then turn them over to affected victims or pay for rebuilding war-torn countries. The change would make Canada the first among Group of Seven countries to allow such actions.
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TODAY’S HEADLINES
BULLYING AND HARASSAMENT IN THE CRA – A team of psychological consultants hired by the Canada Revenue Agency found that a division responsible for working with multinational firms on global tax enforcement is rife with bullying and harassment and most of the staff feel their unit is ineffective. Story here.
ALL-TIME HIGH OF WORKING-AGE CANADIANS CLOSE TO RETIREMENT – More than one in five Canadians of working age are close to retirement, an all-time high that will have major ripple effects on the country’s economy, labour market and health care system, according to 2021 census details released by Statistics Canada on Wednesday. Story here.
TORIES SEEK RCMP INVESTIGATION OF PM’S AGA KHAN VACATION – Opposition Conservatives are asking the RCMP to pursue a criminal investigation into Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s trip to the Aga Khan’s private island six years ago, saying there’s new evidence. Story here Meanwhile the Prime Minister told Parliament, on Tuesday, that he did not authorize himself to take his family on an exclusive vacation at the Aga Khan’s private island in the Bahamas in 2016. Story here.
LAW ENFORCEMENT NEEDED EMERGENCIES ACT: MENDICINO – The Liberal government invoked the never-before-used Emergencies Act because law enforcement advised that existing authorities were ineffective to restore public safety during blockades at ports of entry, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said on Tuesday evening. Story here.
QUEBEC AS LOUISIANA?: LEGAULT – Two newly formed political parties would prefer Quebec be bilingual, a move that is a sure ticket to becoming a new Louisiana, Premier François Legault said Tuesday. Story here.
FEDERAL COURT RULES AGAINST FEDERAL B.C. FISH FARM ORDER – A Federal Court judge has set aside a Department of Fisheries order that would have phased out fish farming in British Columbia’s Discovery Islands. Story here.
ALBERTA PLANS TO PROMOTE ITSELF IN U.S. – New documents reveal details of a multimillion-dollar plan from the province of Alberta to promote itself in the United States and expand its international diplomacy in an era of tension over energy policy. Story here from CBC.
LIGHT SHED ON FUNDRAISING DETAILS FOR RACE TO BE MANTOBA PREMIER – Former federal cabinet minister Shelly Glover came close last fall to becoming Manitoba’s premier with a third of the donations of the eventual winner, Heather Stefanson. Story here from CBC.
CONSERVATIVE LEADERSHIP RACE
SMALLER THAN USUAL CROWD FOR POILIEVRE – After rallies with crowds of hundreds or thousands in attendance, Pierre Poilievre, on Tuesday night, made his case for leading the federal Tories to a smaller crowd. Only about 200 were in attendance for a meet and greet held at a Gatineau hotel. Still, the crowd was lively, and many lined up for photos with the candidate after his remarks. The Poilievre campaign has yet to respond to Politics newsletter questions about the turnout. Mr. Poilievre asked for a show of hands for card-carrying Conservatives in the group. Most raised their hands. The candidate is holding a similar event in Brockville, Ont., on Wednesday night.
BABER IS IN – Roman Baber, an independent member of the Ontario legislature now seeking the Tory leadership, announced Wednesday he has submitted $300,000 to the Conservative Party of Canada alongside the required signatures from party members to warrant appearing on the ballot for the leadership race.
CHAREST VS. POILIEVRE ON THE ENVIRONMENT – Two high-profile candidates in the race to lead the federal Conservatives touted their climate change credentials on Tuesday, with Jean Charest releasing his environmental plan and Pierre Poilievre saying he would look at reviving some energy projects blocked by the Liberal government. Story here.
THIS AND THAT
TODAY IN THE COMMONS – Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, April. 27, accessible here.
FREELAND AT ALBRIGHT FUNERAL – Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was in Washington on Wednesday and scheduled to attend the funeral of the former United States secretary of state, Madeleine Albright at the Washington National Cathedral. U.S. President Joe Biden spoke at the ceremony. Ms. Albright was secretary of state from 1997 to 2001 under former president Bill Clinton. She died last month, aged 84.
HATE IN THE SPOTLIGHT AT COMMITTEE HEARING – House of Commons committee meetings on Wednesday include the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage gathering to hear witnesses on the “History of and Current Display of Hate Symbols and Emblems in Canada.” Witnesses include leaders from the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies and the Hindu Federation. The notice, including instructions for watching online, is here. Notices of all meetings are here.
BQ MP HAS COVID-19 – Bloc Québécois MP Maxime Blanchette-Joncas, who represents Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, has tested positive for COVID-19 with a rapid test. He is in isolation at home, according to a party statement.
THE DECIBEL
On Wednesday’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast, The Globe’s technology reporter, Temur Durrani, talks about who is financing Elon Musk’s deal to buy Twitter, the social media platform, for US$44-billion as well as what Twitter’s users and advertisers think of it, and why it matters even if you’ve never written a single tweet. The Decibel is here.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
The Prime Minister held private meetings, attended the Liberal caucus meeting, was scheduled to attend Question Period and a reception hosted by Canada’s Building Trades Unions where he was to deliver remarks.
Conservative Leader Candace Bergen attended the Conservative caucus meeting, and Question Period.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh attended the NDP national caucus meeting, was scheduled to hold a media availability and participate in Question Period. In the evening, Mr. Singh was scheduled to attend the 22nd annual conference of the Association québécoise de la production médiatique , which advises, represents and supports independent production companies in film, television and the web, and present an award.
PUBLIC OPINION
TORIES LEADING LIBERALS IN NEW POLL – The Conservative Party of Canada has opened up a “statistically significant” lead over the governing Liberals, the latest polling from Nanos Research shows. Story here from CTV
OPINION
The Globe and Mail Editorial Boardon how the subject of the Rouleau inquiry is the Trudeau government, not the truckers: “It’s all too apparent that the Trudeau government doesn’t want the inquiry to focus too much on its decision to invoke the Emergencies Act on Feb. 14. What it appears to want is for the inquiry to put as much public attention on those who organized and took part in the trucker convoy that turned Parliament Hill into a giant parking lot for weeks on end. And that is wrong.”
Lawrence Martin (The Globe and Mail)on how the left is losing the language war: “The word “woke” used to have a positive connotation. It originated in Black culture and took on a more common, mainstream usage following the killing of Black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., in 2014. To be woke meant to be socially progressive, with an acute awareness of social injustices. Then, in the United States, Canada and elsewhere, the word woke was co-opted, hijacked by the political right and turned into a broad-sweep putdown of anyone with politically correct liberal values. Woke was newly reserved for lefty intellectuals and tree huggers, sushi eaters and faculty lounge highbrows, New York Times readers and the like.”
Diane Bellemare (Contributed to The Globe and Mail) on how a basic income would be an unfair, complicated and costly way to eliminate poverty: “There is much to say about Bill S-233 tabled in the Senate. The bill – which proposes to oblige the federal Minister of Finance to develop a national framework to implement an unconditional guaranteed basic income program (GBI), unconditionally guaranteeing sufficient income (equivalent to or near the low-income threshold) for all Canadian citizens over age 17, as well as Canadian residents, refugees and temporary workers – strives to eliminate poverty and establish social equity. These are laudable goals. There is also no doubt about the positive effects of a stable basic income on an individual’s physical and mental health, as ample research has demonstrated.”
Noura Kevorkian (Contributed to The Globe and Mail)on how the Syrian refugee crisis still requires our urgent attention: “As the world rightfully focuses its attention on the current war in Ukraine and the displacement of millions of refugees, I notice how the focus has shifted off of Syrians. This year marks the 11th anniversary of the start of the Syrian refugee crisis. Since the beginning of the revolution in March, 2011, thousands have been killed, with families and a nation torn apart. With more than six million refugees, it remains one of the largest forced human migrations of our time, along with seven million displaced internally in Syria. This conflict is not being as widely reported in the media these days, but it is certainly just as deserving.”
Rob Shaw (The Orca)on how John Horgan’s F bomb in the B.C legislature raises questions about the premier’s future: “The quick apology, and the humorous deflection, will likely be enough to cauterize any lasting political wound from the incident. For some, seeing the premier drop an f-bomb in the chamber may even be a relatable moment, mirroring how they often react privately to seeing the shenanigans by politicians in Victoria or Ottawa. Eventually, BC New Democrats will get around to spinning the entire affair into a positive light, suggesting this was exactly the kind of folksy “Premier Dad” moment that holds Horgan so high in public opinion polls. But make no mistake – everyone, on both sides the house, was surprised at the Premier’s poor performance on Monday. I suspect, even himself. Horgan looks tired and spent. His quick apology will save him this time. But it will only accelerate quiet chatter in the legislature about whether his retirement is near.”
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Simon Jolin-Barrette, minister responsible for consumer protection, has tabled a bill to force merchants to calculate tips based on the price before tax.
That means on a restaurant bill of $100, suggested tips would be calculated based on $100, not on $114.98 after provincial and federal sales taxes are added.
The bill would also increase the rebate offered to consumers when the price of an item at the cash register is higher than the shelf price, to $15 from $10.
And it would force grocery stores offering a discounted price for several items to clearly list the unit price as well.
Businesses would also have to indicate whether taxes will be added to the price of food products.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
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.
