Politics Briefing: Ottawa will remove Chinese-owned TikTok app from all government-issued mobile devices on Tuesday - The Globe and Mail | Canada News Media
The federal government will remove the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok from all government-issued mobile devices on Feb. 28 in response to privacy and security concerns, Treasury Board President Mona Fortier announced Monday.
The government will also block the app from being downloaded on official devices in the future.
In a statement, Ms. Fortier said that, following a review of TikTok, the Chief Information Officer of Canada decided the app “presents an unacceptable level of risk to privacy and security.” The app is used for making and posting short videos, which are often accompanied by catchy music and focused on trends, including dances and pranks.
Ms. Fortier said the decision to remove and block TikTok was taken due to concerns about “the legal regime that governs the information collected from mobile devices,” adding that, “TikTok’s data collection methods provide considerable access to the contents of the phone.”
She did say, however, that the government has no evidence at this time that its information has been compromised and called the move a “precaution.”
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
CALLS FOR AN INQUIRY INTO ELECTION INTERFERENCE – Two former advisers to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as well as the leader of the New Democrats, say that a non-partisan public inquiry into Chinese state-directed interference into the 2019 and 2021 federal elections is warranted. Story here.
SENATORS QUESTION DISABILITY BENEFIT BILL – Some Senators are questioning a government bill setting up a long-promised new disability benefit and are calling for amendments, potentially delaying passage of legislation that recently won unanimous support in the House of Commons. Story here.
PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE FOCUSES ON NATO EXPANSION – Expanding the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has become a major focus of Parliament’s foreign affairs committee as it tours several European countries to study the impact of the war in Ukraine, the committee chair said in an interview in Warsaw Sunday. Story here.
NEW SANCTIONS ON IRAN – Canada is imposing more sanctions against Iran for what it describes as gross violations of human rights. Story here.
NEVER SPOKE TO ANDERSON: POILIEVRE – Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is denying that he has ever spoken with controversial far-right German politician Christine Anderson, despite her claims that they have conversed on more than one occasion, and that she found him to be a “decent guy.” Story here.
ALBERTA SIGNS ON TO FEDERAL HEALTH DEAL Alberta has become the seventh province to sign an agreement in principle with Ottawa on health-care funding. Story here.
FORMER NHL STAR LAMENTS CANADA’S PAROLE APPROACH – Don Edwards, a former National Hockey League star, is writing a memoir about George Harding Lovie, who murdered Mr. Edwards’s parents in 1991, and has been granted parole, with the prospect of full parole looming. Mr. Lovie’s conditional release shows that people convicted of multiple murders can and do get out of prison on parole. Story here.
NEIL YOUNG, INTRODUCED BY WIFE DARRYL HANNAH, IS SURPRISE ACT AT LOGGING PROTEST – Singer Neil Young made a surprise appearance over the weekend at an old-growth logging protest rally at the British Columbia legislature. Story here.
NATION’S CAPITAL GRAPPLING WITH DRUG CRISIS – Those who sit in the houses of Parliament in Ottawa often talk about the country’s drug crisis and how to stop it, but they don’t have to go far to deal with its impact because it is affecting Ottawa as well. Story here.
SOME FILMS RULED OUT FOR SCREENING ON PM, OTHER GOVERNMENT JETS – The rude comedy of Sacha Baron Cohen and the sex and violence of Game of Thrones have been deemed inappropriate for viewing by Canada’s top VIPs, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whenever they fly on board a military passenger jet. Story here from The Ottawa Citizen.
THIS AND THAT
ON A BREAK – Both Parliament and the Senate are on breaks, with the House of Commons returning on March 6 and the Senate on March 7.
NEW TORONTO STAR OTTAWA BUREAU CHIEF – Veteran journalist Tonda MacCharles is the new Ottawa bureau chief of The Toronto Star newspaper, succeeding Heather Scoffield. Ms. MacCharles joined the Star’s Ottawa bureau in 1998 after nearly a decade at CBC’s The National and The Fifth Estate.
MINISTERS ON THE ROAD – Transport Minister Omar Alghabra, in Belledune, N.B., announced new port funding. Tourism Minister Randy Boissonnault, in Edmonton, announced about $17.8-million in federal funding for 50 tourism-focused projects across Alberta. Mark Holland, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and MP for Ajax, in Whitby, Ont., announced Durham Region will receive about $4.3-million to prevent gun crime and gang violence. Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller, in Montreal, and on behalf of Innovation Minister Minister François-Philippe Champagne highlighted funding for a clean-technology company. Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan, in Halifax, announced projects funded through the Workplace Opportunities: Removing Barriers to Equity program. Sport Minister Pascale St‑Onge, also responsible for the Canadian Economic Development for Quebec Regions agency, in Montreal, announced a non-repayable contribution of $370,000 for the Chambre de commerce de l’Est de Montréal. Filomena Tassi, minister for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, in Hamilton, announced an investment of over $3.8-million for McMaster University for an aerospace industry training program. Ms. Tassi, in Smithville, Ont., announced support for clean growth and job creation for a local manufacturer. –
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in Peel Region, Ont., made an announcement with Ontario Premier Doug Ford and took media questions. Also present were federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos and Seniors Minister Kamal Khera. Later, Mr. Trudeau met with the National Council of Canadian Muslims.
LEADERS
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in Winnipeg, attended a meet-and-greet event with NDP MP Daniel Blaikie (Elmwood—Transcona) for local supporters.
No schedules released for other party leaders.
THE DECIBEL
On Monday’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast, Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife talks about documents from Canada’s spy agency CSIS – viewed by The Globe and Mail – that show how China was influencing Canada’s 2021 federal election by promoting candidates favourable to the regime, how it warned “friendly” Canadians about investigations and targeted Canadians with tactics like cyberattacks, bribery and sexual seduction. Mr. Fife also also talks about what we can learn from how China is trying to influence Canadian affairs. The Decibel is here.
OPINION
The Globe and Mail Editorial Boardon how the big banks’ dependence on housing undermines Canada’s prosperity: “It is the banks’ earnings season, when Canada’s major financial institutions report results for their first quarter. Analysts expect the banks to show a major slowdown in mortgage lending, with worse portended for the rest of 2023. Good. In fact, it should get worse. Much worse. For the sake of the future of the economy, banks should be weaned off housing and lend more to businesses – and governments and regulators should encourage competition and adjust rules to help make that happen.”
Kelly Cryderman (The Globe and Mail)on how Alberta was left to fend for itself during the Coutts blockade: “There are dozens of stories out of the sweeping report of the Public Order Emergency Commission, which was established to study Ottawa’s invocation of the Emergencies Act in February, 2022. The highest-profile accounts include policing failures during the “Freedom Convoy” protests, or how organizers’ descriptions of the demonstrations in Ottawa as lawful and calm belied a situation that was often unsafe and chaotic. It also includes how Ontario Premier Doug Ford avoided any direct involvement in the mess until his province’s key industries started to feel squeezed by the Ambassador Bridge blockade. But in the discussion of the “failure of federalism” that the POEC’s commissioner, Justice Paul Rouleau, identified in his report, one of the least told stories is how political leaders in Ottawa didn’t even provide the courtesy of a response to Alberta when the provincial government made an urgent request for help to end the illegal border protest and blockade in Coutts.”
André Picard (The Globe and Mail)on the need for a national licensing system for Canadian doctors: “The Eastern Premiers have agreed that there will be a single medical license needed for physicians to work in the four Atlantic provinces. The Atlantic Physician Register will be in place as of May 1. Ontario, in new legislation, has promised that health workers licensed anywhere in the country will be able to work in that province without first completing all the onerous paperwork. These are great initiatives. But why exactly are they happening in a piecemeal fashion? Why can’t the 13 provincial and territorial premiers agree to implement pan-Canadian licensure of physicians and other health care professionals?”
Matt Gurney (TVOntario) on Ottawa’s need for a dedicated security force: “In an era when we are rightly concerned about the militarization of police, there will be no appetite whatsoever among any elected officials to say aloud what needs to be said: Ottawa probably needs a dedicated security force, armed and equipped more like a military unit than a police agency, whose only task it is to secure critical sites, including the capital. This doesn’t need to be an army of thousands, nor should it fulfill a purely military mission — it’d be more like a paramilitary force that would see civilian agents trained to face unusual threats using weapons and equipment (including heavy vehicles) not typically used by law enforcement. We can quibble over the precise structure and size of any such unit. The issue isn’t so much about overawing with size as it is getting the mandate and training right.”
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.
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.
