Politics Briefing: Canada should balance welcoming Afghan refugees and efforts to help those who remain in the country, says Trudeau - The Globe and Mail | Canada News Media
Politics Briefing: Canada should balance welcoming Afghan refugees and efforts to help those who remain in the country, says Trudeau – The Globe and Mail
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will have to balance welcoming Afghans to this country and diligent efforts to provide support to those in need within the troubled country.
Mr. Trudeau’s comments during a Thursday news conference in Halifax came amidst criticism from the Conservatives about his government’s handling of issues around facilitating access to Canada for Afghans intent on leaving the country.
“We are going to have to figure out how to step up and support people who remain in Afghanistan with humanitarian support, with investments, with the global community that is extremely concerned, rightly with the Taliban’s sponsoring terrorism around the world,” Mr. Trudeau said.
“But we have to make sure we are getting food and supplies and a future to the people in Afghanistan even if the Taliban isn’t, and it is a difficult issue.”
However, the federal Conservatives are raising concerns about the Liberal government’s approach.
At a news conference Thursday, MPs urged the government to expand a special program to bring Afghans to Canada even though the government has said it will process the last of 18,000 applications in the program.
MPs Jasraj Singh Hallan – the opposition immigration critic – and Luc Berthold, deputy opposition leader, accused the Liberal government of being ready to move on while thousands of Afghans are still fleeing the Taliban.
In a statement, they noted that out of the roughly 16,500 Afghans who’ve made it to Canada since August, 2021, only 7,200 applicants have entered through the government’s special immigration measures program.
“Running the program incompetently and without the urgency it deserves is not an excuse for the Liberal government to turn its back on Afghans who are desperate for answers,” they said in a statement.
The federal government promised to admit 40,000 Afghans to Canadaafter the Taliban takeover. Some have arrived under a humanitarian program that resettles vulnerable Afghans who did not work for Canada while others have been settled through the program for people who worked for Canada.
As of mid-July, 16,645 Afghans have arrived under the program for Afghans who assisted the Government of Canada and the humanitarian program, according to the immigration department website.
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TODAY’S HEADLINES
SECRECY CONSIDERED FOR SOME ARMED FORCES FLIGHTS – The military says it’s exploring ways to add a layer of secrecy to the movement of some Canadian Armed Forces flights, including the planes that carry the Prime Minister and the Governor-General. Story here.
NEW TECH OFFICERS AT ROGERS – Rogers Communications has a new chief technology officer in the wake of a nationwide outage earlier this month that resulted in the company promising change and investment to ensure network reliability. Story here.
CHARGES AGAINST SENIOR MILITARY COMMANDER – A senior military commander has been charged with two counts of breaching theArmed Forces’ disciplinary code, after a sexual-misconduct investigation by military police. Story here.
BIDEN HAS COVID-19 – President Joe Biden tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, underscoring the persistence of the highly contagious virus as new variants challenge the nation’s efforts to resume normalcy after two and a half years of pandemic disruptions. Story here. The President tweeted a video message here on how he is doing.
MINISTER ASKED TO FREEZE FUNDING – More than 500 Canadian gymnasts are calling on Canada’s Sport Minister to freeze funding to their national sport organization. Story here.
PUBLIC SERVANTS EXPECTED BACK IN THE OFFICE PART-TIME – Canada’s top bureaucrat wants public servants back in the office part-time this summer to test drive running federal departments with a hybrid workforce. Story here from Policy Options.
AFRICA DIPLOMATIC STRATEGY IN THE WORKS – Liberal MP Robert Oliphant, the parliamentary secretary to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly talks to The Hill Times about an African strategy he is developing for cabinet, noting, “It really the first time that there has been a strategy document for our engagement diplomatically and on a number of fronts with Africa in many years.” Story here.
CANADA AND U.S. UNITE TO PRESS MEXICO ON ENERGY – Canada joined forces Wednesday with the United States in a bilateral effort to push back against what they consider protectionist energy policies in Mexico that violate both the spirit and the letter of North America’s new trade rules. Story here.
ALBERTA MINISTER CRITICIZES SMITH PLEDGE – Alberta Finance Minister Jason Nixon says United Conservative Party leadership candidate Danielle Smith’s proposed Alberta sovereignty act is “very problematic” for the party and would be impossible to deliver. Story here from CBC.
OTTAWA COUNCILLORS OPPOSED TO `STRONG-MAYOR’ SYSTEM – Ottawa city councillors are skeptical about and opposed to an Ontario government plan to give more power to the next mayor to make decisions at city council. According to an Ottawa Citizen story here, the “strong mayor” system proposed for Toronto as well as the nation’s capital would result in a massive change in the political culture at Ottawa City Hall by centralizing more authority in the mayor’s office and potentially reducing the influence of the 24 ward councillors.
SILVER TAKES LEAD IN SOURTOE COCKTAIL MILESTONE – They wanted Ryan Reynolds. They got Sandy Silver. The Yukon premier was chosen to, this week, drink the 100,000th sourtoe cocktail at the Downtown Hotel in his hometown of Dawson City. Story here from CBC.
CONSERVATIVE LEADERSHIP RACE
CAMPAIGN TRAIL – Scott Aitchison is campaigning in Ontario. Roman Baber is in Victoria. Meanwhile, Jean Charest,Leslyn Lewis and Pierre Poilievre are all in Toronto.
THIRD LEADERSHIP DEBATE NEXT MONTH – The Conservative Party of Canada has decided to hold a third debate in the contest to become its next leader. The event will take place in August and more details on the timing are expected to be released later today. Story here.
POILIEVRE LIKELY TO PIVOT TO CENTRE: CLARK – Pierre Poilievre is likely to pivot to the political centre if he wins the Conservative leadership this fall, says former British Columbia premier Christy Clark. Story here.
VANCOUVER TO BLAME FOR REGIONAL HOUSING CHALLENGES: POILIEVRE – Pierre Poilievre did an interview with Castanet News while touring Kelowna, B.C. last week. Among other things, he said Vancouver’s failure to build housing is impacting Kelowna. Story here.
THIS AND THAT
The House of Commons is not sitting again until Sept. 19. The Senate is to resume sitting on Sept. 20.
PMO RESPONDS TO REPORTS ABOUT MEDIA HANDLING IN KELOWNA – The Prime Minister’s Office has responded to a report here in The Daily Courier newspaper in Kelowna, B.C. about a recent visit by Justin Trudeau to the Okanagan city. According to the report, journalists were told they would face “police-assisted eviction” from the premises Mr. Trudeau was visiting if they shouted questions.
In a statement, PMO spokesperson Ann-Clara Vaillancourt said, “Our office never instructed anyone to do this, and this is not how we operate. We have looked into the matter. It is our expectation that everyone involved in organizing government events treat journalists with respect and professionalism at all times.” She also said journalists must always be treated with the utmost respect and be able to do their jobs. “Under no circumstances should journalists ever be threatened when covering a government or political event.”
ALGHABRA IN EDMONTON – Transport Minister Omar Alghabra, in Edmonton, announced funding to support trade corridors.
BENNETT IN WHITEHORSE – Mental Health Minister Carolyn Bennett, in Whitehorse, announces funding to prevent and address family violence in the Yukon.
KHERA AND RODRIGUEZ IN MONTREAL – Seniors Minister Kamal Khera and Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez, in Sainte-Thérèse northwest of Montreal, announces changes to the Old Age Security pension.
THE DECIBEL
On Thursday’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast, Adrian Morrow, the Globe and Mail’s U.S. correspondent, talks about the most important things learned, so far, from the Jan. 6 Committee hearings in Washington and what to expect now that the hearings are coming to an end. The committee is attempting to figure out exactly what happened when supporters of then-president Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The Decibel is here.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
In Halifax, the Prime Minister made a clean-energy announcement and held a media availability, then attended a community barbecue with local families, and was scheduled to meet with local First Nations Chiefs, and met with youth and athletes at a local sporting event.
LEADERS
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet continued a summer tour of Saguenay – Lac-Saint-Jean.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in Yellowknife met with the Northwest Territories Association of Communities.
No schedules released for other party leaders.
OPINION
William Robson (Contributed to The Globe and Mail) on how we are at a major turning point in the fight against inflation: “Two economic headlines a week apart – the Bank of Canada’s 1 per cent hike in the overnight rate last week, and the 8.1per cent year-over-year increase in the Consumer Price Index Wednesday – make clear that we are at a major turning point. The Bank has underlined its determination to get inflation, which it admits it underestimated, back to its 2-per-cent target. Canadians can look forward to lower inflation, and also need to be ready for the recession that will precede it.”
Peter MacKay (The National Post)on Canada failing the thousands of Afghans who risked their lives for us: “For both Afghans and Ukrainians, Canadians, and their government, should open their arms, hearts and homes to welcome them in. In a few short months, over 151,000 Ukrainians have been approved to come to Canada, with almost 60,000 having already settled here. We need to bring them all here, and we need to apply this same kind of effort to those Afghans who helped our war effort. Canadians should call on the government to immediately commit to a “surge of resources,” to ensure that every Afghan with a legal path to Canadian residency is successfully evacuated.”
Geoff Norquay (Canadian Politics and Public Policy) on how the Conservative leadership process he helped invent needs an overhaul: “Open recruitment of new members and direct election has also displaced the most engaged local party activists and stalwarts who showed up through thick and thin, recruiting and coaching the next candidate, fundraising, running the campaign office and knocking on doors at election time. Today, who knows if the thousands of new members recruited to support a specific leadership candidate will stick around to contribute locally for the long haul? Despite the imperfections of the delegated convention, political parties lost a lot with its demise.”
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FREDERICTON – A look at Blaine Higgs, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick.
Born: March 1, 1954.
Early years: The son of a customs officer, he grew up in Forest City, N.B., near the Canada-U.S. border.
Education: Graduated from the University of New Brunswick with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1977.
Family: Married his high-school sweetheart, Marcia, and settled in Saint John, N.B., where they had four daughters: Lindsey, Laura, Sarah and Rachel.
Before politics: Hired by Irving Oil a week after he graduated from university and was eventually promoted to director of distribution. Worked for 33 years at the company.
Politics: Elected to the legislature in 2010 and later served as finance minister under former Progressive Conservative Premier David Alward. Elected Tory leader in 2016 and has been premier since 2018.
Quote: “I’ve always felt parents should play the main role in raising children. No one is denying gender diversity is real. But we need to figure out how to manage it.” — Blaine Higgs in a year-end interview in 2023, explaining changes to school policies about gender identity.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
GATINEAU, Que. – Treasury Board President Anita Anand will take on the additional role of transport minister this afternoon, after Pablo Rodriguez resigned from cabinet to run for the Quebec Liberal leadership.
A government source who was not authorized to speak publicly says Anand will be sworn in at a small ceremony at Rideau Hall.
Public Services and Procurement Minister Jean-Yves Duclos will become the government’s new Quebec lieutenant, but he is not expected to be at the ceremony because that is not an official role in cabinet.
Rodriguez announced this morning that he’s leaving cabinet and the federal Liberal caucus and will sit as an Independent member of Parliament until January.
That’s when the Quebec Liberal leadership race is set to officially begin.
Rodriguez says sitting as an Independent will allow him to focus on his own vision, but he plans to vote with the Liberals on a non-confidence motion next week.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
FREDERICTON – New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has called an election for Oct. 21, signalling the beginning of a 33-day campaign expected to focus on pocketbook issues and the government’s provocative approach to gender identity policies.
The 70-year-old Progressive Conservative leader, who is seeking a third term in office, has attracted national attention by requiring teachers to get parental consent before they can use the preferred names and pronouns of young students.
More recently, however, the former Irving Oil executive has tried to win over inflation-weary voters by promising to lower the provincial harmonized sales tax by two percentage points to 13 per cent if re-elected.
At dissolution, the Conservatives held 25 seats in the 49-seat legislature. The Liberals held 16 seats, the Greens had three and there was one Independent and four vacancies.
J.P. Lewis, a political science professor at the University of New Brunswick, said the top three issues facing New Brunswickers are affordability, health care and education.
“Across many jurisdictions, affordability is the top concern — cost of living, housing prices, things like that,” he said.
Richard Saillant, an economist and former vice-president of Université de Moncton, said the Tories’ pledge to lower the HST represents a costly promise.
“I don’t think there’s that much room for that,” he said. “I’m not entirely clear that they can do so without producing a greater deficit.” Saillant also pointed to mounting pressures to invest more in health care, education and housing, all of which are facing increasing demands from a growing population.
Higgs’s main rivals are Liberal Leader Susan Holt and Green Party Leader David Coon. Both are focusing on economic and social issues.
Holt has promised to impose a rent cap and roll out a subsidized school food program. The Liberals also want to open at least 30 community health clinics over the next four years.
Coon has said a Green government would create an “electricity support program,” which would give families earning less than $70,000 annually about $25 per month to offset “unprecedented” rate increases.
Higgs first came to power in 2018, when the Tories formed the province’s first minority government in 100 years. In 2020, he called a snap election — the first province to go to the polls after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic — and won a majority.
Since then, several well-known cabinet ministers and caucus members have stepped down after clashing with Higgs, some of them citing what they described as an authoritarian leadership style and a focus on policies that represent a hard shift to the right side of the political spectrum.
Lewis said the Progressive Conservatives are in the “midst of reinvention.”
“It appears he’s shaping the party now, really in the mould of his world views,” Lewis said. “Even though (Progressive Conservatives) have been down in the polls, I still think that they’re very competitive.”
Meanwhile, the legislature remained divided along linguistic lines. The Tories dominate in English-speaking ridings in central and southern parts of the province, while the Liberals held most French-speaking ridings in the north.
The drama within the party began in October 2022 when the province’s outspoken education minister, Dominic Cardy, resigned from cabinet, saying he could no longer tolerate the premier’s leadership style. In his resignation letter, Cardy cited controversial plans to reform French-language education. The government eventually stepped back those plans.
A series of resignations followed last year when the Higgs government announced changes to Policy 713, which now requires students under 16 who are exploring their gender identity to get their parents’ consent before teachers can use their preferred first names or pronouns — a reversal of the previous practice.
When several Tory lawmakers voted with the opposition to call for an external review of the change, Higgs dropped dissenters from his cabinet. And a bid by some party members to trigger a leadership review went nowhere.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
