It won’t happen for six months, but the news came out yesterday that Conservative Senator Hugh Segal will be retiring from the Upper Chamber before his term is complete, in June. Segal, one of the remaining Red Tories and a bit of a rebel who has pushed back against some of the government’s more egregious bills and actions, will be taking on the new position of Master of Massey College. Given that he has been one of the voices of sanity in the Conservative caucus, it will be a definite blow to the Senate’s membership and to the quality of debate. It will also mean the loss of expertise in foreign affairs, as Segal has also been our representative to the Commonwealth, and served on the Eminent Persons panel that saw the creation of the Commonwealth Charter.

Kady O’Malley looks at the six things that didn’t get done by the Commons before they rose for the winter break. Since press time, they did get three bills past royal assent, which is still fairly small for a legislative sitting.

In defending the Canada Post service cuts, Government House Leader Peter Van Loan took the tone-deaf route of comparing it to the Rosedale garbage dispute in Toronto, where funding cuts meant that the residents had to put their garbage on the curb rather than having the collectors going up their driveways. I’m really not sure it’s the same thing – or as Andrew Coyne put it, “Everybody lower your expectations! Demand worse!” Charlie Gillis looks at the continued existential threats facing Canada Post. Peter Nowak satirically suggests that Canada Post and CBC form up to start the nation’s fourth wireless carrier.

Van Loan, incidentally, also bragged “Parliament is working better than ever right now.” No, seriously. It’s like the tone-deafness doesn’t cease.

Liberal Senator Celine Hervieux-Payette has asked the Senate Ethics Officer to look into Senator Gerstein’s role in interfering with the Deloitte audit, and seeing as he’s not under RCMP investigation – so far as we know – there doesn’t seem to be any reason why an investigation shouldn’t be opened. The fact that Gerstein ruled out of order any challenge to his position as head of the banking committee while these questions still circulate played a part in Hervieux-Payette’s decision to take this action.

In a year-ender interview the Governor General – who also serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces – says that one military suicide is too many, and that more needs to be done to counter the “stiff upper lip” mentality of those in uniform in order to help to get them to seek treatment. Veteran-led initiatives like Send Up The Count have apparently already stopped at least one suicide attempt, so hopefully it will get more support.

A year-ender with Commons Speaker Andrew Scheer has him reminding MPs of their fundamental right to speak in the Chamber, where they don’t have to be bound to the speaking lists that the whips and House Leaders compile. But if we can recall when this was seen to be revolutionary, that panic has fallen by the wayside, and we’re not seeing backbenchers jumping up to be recognised, unless there’s time for overtime questions in QP if the list exhausts itself before the clock runs out. Nothing apparently on his fairly lousy track record for keeping debates on topic or relevant to government business in QP.

The bill that changes the Museum of Civilisation to the Museum of Canadian History received royal assent yesterday, making the change official.

The Senate Speaker has made five trips to the Vatican on government business. There doesn’t seem to be any recognition by the likes of Charlie Angus that the Senate Speaker has a diplomatic role in this country, being number four in the order of Canadian protocol, and that he frequently hosts foreign leaders when they visit Parliament Hill.

Conservatives and Liberals are ramping up the year-end fundraising campaigns. The Conservatives have apparently lost some 10,000 donors so far, in large part because of the Senate spending scandals.

Ruh-roh! Kellie Leitch has been banned from her local Santa Claus parade for violating the rules when it comes to tossing candy. (No, seriously).

There may be another Diefenbaby in Canada, and his DNA matches that of the first alleged son of former Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.

And Jennifer Ditchburn profiles Michael Chong, and his small-town roots that helped him become the parliamentary reformer that he is today.