Politics Briefing: Canada to send rocket launchers to Ukraine, streamline process for refugees fleeing Russia's assault - The Globe and Mail | Canada News Media
Canada has announced new measures related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, involving tariffs, weapons and immigration.
On Thursday, Ottawa slapped a massive tariff on Russian imports, announced a shipment of rocket launchers to Ukraine and unveiled a streamlined immigration process for Ukrainians fleeing Moscow’s military assault.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said Thursday that a new 35-per-cent duty will apply to all imports from Russia and Belarus, the country’s close ally, in a further economic sanction of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
And Defence Minister Anita Anand announced Canada will send more weapons to Ukraine: 4,500 M-72 rocket launchers and 7,500 hand grenades. She said this gear would be drawn from existing Canadian Armed Forces stockpiles.
Also Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada and other close partners are calling to suspend Russia from Interpol, the International Criminal Police Organization, which consists of 195 member countries who share and access data on crimes and criminals.
“We’re supporting this because we believe that international law enforcement co-operation depends on a collective commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and mutual respect between Interpol members,” Mr. Trudeau told a news conference.
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Ian Bailey. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you’re reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
TODAY’S HEADLINES
UKRAINE
CANADIAN-MADE TARGETING GEAR HAS IMPACT – Canadian-made air strike targeting gear appears to be playing an important supporting role in the fight Ukraine is mounting against invading Russian forces. Story here.
DON’T FIGHT FOR RUSSIA IN UKRAINE: FREELAND – Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland is warning Canadians against fighting for Russia in Ukraine, saying anyone who does so could face severe consequences. Story here.
NEWFOUNDLAND OIL AS ALTERNATIVE TO RUSSIAN PRODUCT: FUREY – Asked by reporters about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Premier Andrew Furey stopped just short of calling it an opportunity, but he did say his government is pushing Newfoundland and Labrador oil as an alternative to Russian fossil fuels. Story here from CBC.
UPDATES: Watch here for the latest Globe and Mail updates on the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
OTHER HEADLINES
OTTAWA LAUNCHES $4-BILLION ONLINE PROGRAM – The federal government launched the Canada Digital Adoption Program Thursday, a $4-billion package of grants and loans aimed at encouraging small and medium-sized businesses to expand their online presence. Story here.
HIGHER INFLATION RATES NECESSARY DESPITE PINCH: MACKLEM – Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem said that Canadians will feel the pinch of rising interest rates, but argued that higher borrowing costs are necessary to bring inflation back under control and to stop demand from outstripping supply, sending consumer prices higher. Story here.
CHAREST DETAILS AGENDA IF HE LEADS TORIES – Former Quebec premier Jean Charest says that if he became the leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister, he would bring fiscal discipline to federal spending, mend regional divisions and restore Canada’s brand on the international stage. Story here.
FREEZE CARBON-TAX INCREASE: BROWN – Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, considering a run for the leadership of the federal Conservatives, is calling on the federal government to freeze the federal carbon-pricing increase on April 1, arguing “now is the wrong time for any new burden.” Story here from The National Post.
MANITOBA CONSIDERS ELECTRONIC BALLOT COUNTING – Under a bill introduced in the Manitoba legislature this week, electronic machines would count votes. Voters would continue to fill out paper ballots, but the machines would be a faster alternative to counting by hand. Story here.
BECK FOR SASKATCHEWAN NDP LEADER – Carla Beck, a member of the Saskatchewan legislative assembly, has announced her bid for leadership of the province’s New Democrats. If she wins the leadership election in June, she would become the first woman to be elected to lead the Saskatchewan NDP. Story here.
THIS AND THAT
TODAY IN THE COMMONS – Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, March 3, accessible here.
RULES OF THE RACE FOR TORY LEADERSHIP – The federal Conservatives have announced that their new leader will be elected Sept. 10. The party’s Leadership Election Organizing Committee has adopted rules that include a June 3 deadline for the submission of membership applications, and plans for ballots to be mailed to party members in late June/early August. There’s also a total entry fee of $200,000, in addition to a compliance deposit of $100,000 refundable after the conclusion of the leadership election.
I’LL SCRAP CARBON TAX: POILIEVRE – Also on the Conservative leadership front, Pierre Poilievre, the only declared candidate so far, said in a statement that he will scrap the carbon tax if he becomes prime minister. “My environment plan will be about results, not revenue; technology and not taxes,” he said. “As Prime Minister, I will scrap the carbon tax to lower the cost of gas, groceries and heating.”
SPONSORED TRIPS BY MPS “QUITE LOW” : DION – The federal ethics commissioner says that, for the second year in a row, the number of sponsored trips accepted by MPs is “quite low” from the prepandemic yearly average. On Thursday, the List of Sponsored Travel 2021 prepared by Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion was tabled in the House of Commons. Members reported seven trips in 2021 compared with a yearly average of 83 between 2007, when the office started publishing the List of Sponsored Travel, and 2019. The 2021 list of Sponsored Travel is here . The list is an annual compilation of all domestic and international travel worth more than $200 taken by MPs and their guests and whose costs are not fully paid by the government, a political party, a recognized parliamentary association or by the members themselves. The combined declared value of the trips taken in 2021 is $13,651.43. There’s a list here of the travel rules for MPs.
THE DECIBEL – On Thursday’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast, senior international correspondent Mark Mackinnon , who is in Lviv, Ukraine, returns to talk about what Russia’s gains mean for the people of Ukraine and whether they have a chance at holding Russian troops back. Plus, he tells us about his journey out of Kyiv as the invasion began. The Decibel is here.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
Private meetings. The Prime Minister made an announcement, in Ottawa, and held a media availability with International Trade Minister Mary Ng. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to chair a meeting of the Incident Response Group on the situation in Ukraine.
LEADERS
No schedules released for party leaders.
OPINION
David Parkinson (The Globe and Mail)on how the crisis in Ukraine is pulling monetary policy in multiple directions: “And yet there remains some hesitance in Wednesday’s decision. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has thrown a whole set of new and fast-changing variables into the mix. The conflict already looks like the driver of still more inflation: Uncertainty over the security of oil and natural gas supplies from Russia have sent crude prices skyrocketing more than 20 per cent since last Friday. On the other hand, if supply interruptions and shortages were to occur in Europe, the implication is certainly negative for output, business confidence, consumption and investment – it would be a major drag on global growth. And yet, higher oil and gas prices are a boon for Canada’s energy sector, generating increased income and, perhaps, creating a powerful impetus for new investment in the sector. The surging energy prices also improve the country’s terms of trade – which would be supportive of a stronger dollar, offsetting at least some of those inflation pressures by easing the cost of imports.”
Konrad Yakabuski (The Globe and Mail)on how Chrystia Freeland, on Russia sanctions, is in the right place at the right time: “No one in the Canadian political class hasstudied Russia, or its now pariah president, more than Ms. Freeland. As a student of Russian history at Harvard and exchange student in Kyiv in the 1980s. As the Moscow correspondent for the Financial Times in the 1990s. Or, since 2015, in her successive roles as Canada’s minister of international trade, foreign affairs and finance. “There are moments in history,” Ms. Freeland said on Monday, “when the great struggle between freedom and tyranny comes down to one fight, in one place, which is waged for all humanity.” Her five-minute speech overshadowed that of her boss, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and went viral on social media. Like her other pronouncements on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military assault on Ukraine, it stood out from the boilerplate recrimination uttered by many politicians.”
Alexandra Wrage and Peter Klein (Contributed to The Globe and Mail)on how money – not missiles – will lead to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s undoing: “Without a single foreign soldier on their soil, Russians are under fire – lining up for cash at ATMs, seeing the ruble massively devalued, and watching powerlessly as the fragile Russian stock market refuses to open for fear of collapse. American President Joe Biden opened his State of the Union address this week pledging sanctions targeting Russia’s kleptocratic ruling class, saying the U.S. will “seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets. We are coming for your ill-begotten gains.” In Vladimir Putin’s war of bullets and bluster, it is money, not missiles, that may prove to be his undoing.”
Don Braid (The Calgary Herald)on Alberta Premier Jason Kenney lowering the traditional bar for keeping his party leadership: “Premier Jason Kenney radically shifted the debate around his UCP leadership with one short sentence. “In a democracy, the majority is 50 per cent plus one,” he said Wednesday at a news conference. This Premier might be a lot harder to get rid of than his party opponents expected. A reporter asked Kenney what level of party support he needs at the April 9 leadership vote to keep his job. Would it be 60 per cent? Seventy per cent? Earlier PC premiers thought they needed that kind of backing to remain as party leader. A short time ago, even Kenney’s own boosters seemed to be suggesting 65 per cent. But on Wednesday, Kenney lowered the bar several notches by simply invoking the common democratic standard, which also happens to be his party’s formal rule.”
Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com. Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop
HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says it’s “disgraceful and demeaning” that a Halifax-area school would request that service members not wear military uniforms to its Remembrance Day ceremony.
Houston’s comments were part of a chorus of criticism levelled at the school — Sackville Heights Elementary — whose administration decided to back away from the plan after the outcry.
A November newsletter from the school in Middle Sackville, N.S., invited Armed Forces members to attend its ceremony but asked that all attendees arrive in civilian attire to “maintain a welcoming environment for all.”
Houston, who is currently running for re-election, accused the school’s leaders of “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country” in a post on the social media platform X Thursday night.
“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” Houston’s post read. There were also several calls for resignations within the school’s administration attached to Houston’s post.
In an email to families Thursday night, the school’s principal, Rachael Webster, apologized and welcomed military family members to attend “in the attire that makes them most comfortable.”
“I recognize this request has caused harm and I am deeply sorry,” Webster’s email read, adding later that the school has the “utmost respect for what the uniform represents.”
Webster said the initial request was out of concern for some students who come from countries experiencing conflict and who she said expressed discomfort with images of war, including military uniforms.
Her email said any students who have concerns about seeing Armed Forces members in uniform can be accommodated in a way that makes them feel safe, but she provided no further details in the message.
Webster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
At a news conference Friday, Houston said he’s glad the initial request was reversed but said he is still concerned.
“I can’t actually fathom how a decision like that was made,” Houston told reporters Friday, adding that he grew up moving between military bases around the country while his father was in the Armed Forces.
“My story of growing up in a military family is not unique in our province. The tradition of service is something so many of us share,” he said.
“Saying ‘lest we forget’ is a solemn promise to the fallen. It’s our commitment to those that continue to serve and our commitment that we will pass on our respects to the next generation.”
Liberal Leader Zach Churchill also said he’s happy with the school’s decision to allow uniformed Armed Forces members to attend the ceremony, but he said he didn’t think it was fair to question the intentions of those behind the original decision.
“We need to have them (uniforms) on display at Remembrance Day,” he said. “Not only are we celebrating (veterans) … we’re also commemorating our dead who gave the greatest sacrifice for our country and for the freedoms we have.”
NDP Leader Claudia Chender said that while Remembrance Day is an important occasion to honour veterans and current service members’ sacrifices, she said she hopes Houston wasn’t taking advantage of the decision to “play politics with this solemn occasion for his own political gain.”
“I hope Tim Houston reached out to the principal of the school before making a public statement,” she said in a statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
REGINA – Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she wants to prove to residents her party is the government in waiting as she heads into the incoming legislative session.
Beck held her first caucus meeting with 27 members, nearly double than what she had before the Oct. 28 election but short of the 31 required to form a majority in the 61-seat legislature.
She says her priorities will be health care and cost-of-living issues.
Beck says people need affordability help right now and will press Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government to cut the gas tax and the provincial sales tax on children’s clothing and some grocery items.
Beck’s NDP is Saskatchewan’s largest Opposition in nearly two decades after sweeping Regina and winning all but one seat in Saskatoon.
The Saskatchewan Party won 34 seats, retaining its hold on all of the rural ridings and smaller cities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
HALIFAX – Nova Scotia‘s growing population was the subject of debate on Day 12 of the provincial election campaign, with Liberal Leader Zach Churchill arguing immigration levels must be reduced until the province can provide enough housing and health-care services.
Churchill said Thursday a plan by the incumbent Progressive Conservatives to double the province’s population to two million people by the year 2060 is unrealistic and unsustainable.
“That’s a big leap and it’s making life harder for people who live here, (including ) young people looking for a place to live and seniors looking to downsize,” he told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.
Anticipating that his call for less immigration might provoke protests from the immigrant community, Churchill was careful to note that he is among the third generation of a family that moved to Nova Scotia from Lebanon.
“I know the value of immigration, the importance of it to our province. We have been built on the backs of an immigrant population. But we just need to do it in a responsible way.”
The Liberal leader said Tim Houston’s Tories, who are seeking a second term in office, have made a mistake by exceeding immigration targets set by the province’s Department of Labour and Immigration. Churchill said a Liberal government would abide by the department’s targets.
In the most recent fiscal year, the government welcomed almost 12,000 immigrants through its nominee program, exceeding the department’s limit by more than 4,000, he said. The numbers aren’t huge, but the increase won’t help ease the province’s shortages in housing and doctors, and the increased strain on its infrastructure, including roads, schools and cellphone networks, Churchill said.
“(The Immigration Department) has done the hard work on this,” he said. “They know where the labour gaps are, and they know what growth is sustainable.”
In response, Houston said his commitment to double the population was a “stretch goal.” And he said the province had long struggled with a declining population before that trend was recently reversed.
“The only immigration that can come into this province at this time is if they are a skilled trade worker or a health-care worker,” Houston said. “The population has grown by two per cent a year, actually quite similar growth to what we experienced under the Liberal government before us.”
Still, Houston said he’s heard Nova Scotians’ concerns about population growth, and he then pivoted to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for trying to send 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, an assertion the federal government has denied.
Churchill said Houston’s claim about asylum seekers was shameful.
“It’s smoke and mirrors,” the Liberal leader said. “He is overshooting his own department’s numbers for sustainable population growth and yet he is trying to blame this on asylum seekers … who aren’t even here.”
In September, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said there is no plan to send any asylum seekers to the province without compensation or the consent of the premier. He said the 6,000 number was an “aspirational” figure based on models that reflect each province’s population.
In Halifax, NDP Leader Claudia Chender said it’s clear Nova Scotia needs more doctors, nurses and skilled trades people.
“Immigration has been and always will be a part of the Nova Scotia story, but we need to build as we grow,” Chender said. “This is why we have been pushing the Houston government to build more affordable housing.”
Chender was in a Halifax cafe on Thursday when she promised her party would remove the province’s portion of the harmonized sales tax from all grocery, cellphone and internet bills if elected to govern on Nov. 26. The tax would also be removed from the sale and installation of heat pumps.
“Our focus is on helping people to afford their lives,” Chender told reporters. “We know there are certain things that you can’t live without: food, internet and a phone …. So we know this will have the single biggest impact.”
The party estimates the measure would save the average Nova Scotia family about $1,300 a year.
“That’s a lot more than a one or two per cent HST cut,” Chender said, referring to the Progressive Conservative pledge to reduce the tax by one percentage point and the Liberal promise to trim it by two percentage points.
Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Houston announced that a Progressive Conservative government would make parking free at all Nova Scotia hospitals and health-care centres. The promise was also made by the Liberals in their election platform released Monday.
“Free parking may not seem like a big deal to some, but … the parking, especially for people working at the facilities, can add up to hundreds of dollars,” the premier told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
