Roundup: An interim process

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The Commons Board of Internal Economy met yesterday and adopted the House of Commons administration policy on harassment as an interim measure going forward, but noted that they didn’t have any mandate to deal with the harassment incidents in question, and that they should be referred to the Procedure and House Affairs Committee instead (as only MPs can discipline themselves. Parliament is self-governing after all). That leaves the two suspended MPs in limbo for the time being. The NDP meanwhile are saying that one of the incidents may have actually been sexual assault and not harassment, according to Craig Scott who was in one of the meetings with one of the complainants. But the NDP’s justice critic, Françoise Boivin, said that Trudeau should have delivered a verbal warning to the two MPs and left it at that, because they didn’t want to lay charges or file a formal complaint. So they could then turn around and claim that Trudeau didn’t do anything about the incidents once he was made aware of them? Especially if they waited until the election to make that particular reveal? Trudeau maintains that he had a duty to act, which he followed up on.

Good reads:

  • Kady O’Malley looks at Justin Trudeau’s private member’s bill, which was debated yesterday, while I interviewed him on said bill for Blacklock’s (paywalled).
  • Pundit’s Guide gives a detailed analysis of the by-elections, as well as the trends in the past several.
  • The Canadian Press’ Baloney Meter™ puts Barack Obama’s claims about Canadian oil exports and the Keystone XL pipeline to the test. (Spoiler: It rates “a lot of baloney.”)
  • Kirk Lapointe writes about what it was like to run for (and lose) the mayoralty of Vancouver.
  • Stephen Gordon writes about why the top earners in Canada are earning less, especially in comparison to their American counterparts. (Hint: The Canadian dollar plays a role).
  • Here are 32 things from the Justin Trudeau documentary.
  • The head of the Royal Canadian Navy was prepared to face the media following the recall of HMCS Whitehorse for crew misconduct, when he was blocked by the Minister’s office. Try to look surprised!

Odds and ends:

Irwin Cotler is your 2014 Parliamentarian of the Year. Other notable winners include Brent Rathgeber as best representing constituents, Jason Kenney as hardest working, Nathan Cullen as most knowledgeable, Michelle Rempel as the rising star, and Flora MacDonald for the lifetime achievement. The event also featured the Twitter Mirror.

Former Progressive Conservative/Conservative-turned-Independent MP Bill Casey is planning on running again – as a Liberal.