Roundup: The PBO immolates what little credibility he had left

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It looks like the Parliamentary Budget Officer, Yves Giroux, decided to extend his “winning” streak and cover himself in glory at the Commons’ finance committee yesterday, and once again immolated what credibility he has left. Defending his report, claiming he had access to a confidential report from Environment Canada that he was “gagged” from releasing (which the Conservatives jumped on and launched a thousand shitposts about, because committees are now only about content generation), lamented that the government doesn’t publish more climate modelling of their own, and how he hates how his reports are politicised, even though he’s been at this job for years and knows full well that PBO reports are always politicised, because that’s why MPs like them—so that they can both wield those reports as a cudgel, while hiding behind the shield of the PBO’s non-partisan “credibility” to keep the government from attacking it.

https://twitter.com/LindsayTedds/status/1797780078203671008

https://twitter.com/prairiecentrist/status/1797691621708054916

While this Tony Keller column lays out four major problems with the original carbon price report that the PBO produced—which again, Giroux continues to not really apologise for—energy economist Andrew Leach has some additional comments, driving home both how shallow the analysis is, and the fact that it’s not replicable because the PBO studiously refuses to explain his methodology, relying on “trust us, that’s our job.” But as we saw on P&P and again at finance committee, he complained that the government should be doing this kind of modelling work when it’s literally his one statutorily legislated job to do.

And to be helpful, Jennifer Robson provides some unsolicited advice on how the PBO could make his methodologies more transparent, if he actually wanted to do that (which I doubt, because so many of his reports rely on his pulling a novel methodology out of his ass, according to the many economists I’ve interviewed in the past). But that’s also part of the point about why he has no credibility left, and why he should start drafting that resignation letter.

https://twitter.com/lindsaytedds/status/1797817128483254759

Ukraine Dispatch:

A civilian was killed in a Russian strike on a recreation facility in Kharkiv. Here’s a look at what to expect from Ukraine’s peace summit to be held in Switzerland next week.

Good reads:

  • Justin Trudeau took part in a Pride flag-raising on Parliament Hill.
  • Trudeau spoke with Mexico’s incoming president, Claudia Sheinbaum, and committed to “working closely.”
  • Terry Beech says that children under 18 and people who receive the Disability Tax Credit will be eligible for dental care starting June 27th.
  • Steven Guilbeault helped launch a $530 million climate adaptation fund for communities to apply to, but says more will be needed.
  • Marc Miller announced two new pathways to permanent residence for foreign caregivers, particularly given the growing need for them.
  • The pharmacare bill passed the House of Commons and heads to the Senate.
  • A statute honouring the Royal Regina Rifles will be unveiled at Juno Beach this week (and you can expect Princess Anne in attendance).
  • NSICOP released their report on foreign interference, and it outlines slow responses, and MPs who “wittingly” took part in interference, particularly on India’s behalf.
  • The NSICOP report also alleges that China and India both interfered in more than one Conservative leadership contest, which the party claims ignorance.
  • AFN national chief Cindy Woodhouse Neepinak decried the slow (outward) progress in addressing the calls to action in the MMIW report.
  • Unsurprisingly, Mark Carney didn’t appear at the Commons finance committee after being invited (which was a compromise to move budget considerations forward).
  • Following the weekend of Arnold Viersen comments, Pierre Poilievre released a statement claiming he won’t touch abortion or same-sex marriage in government.
  • Viersen was on the receiving end of some backroom fury because of his comments.
  • What’s that? Blaine Higgs is using comments on sex ed as part of his political strategy? Gosh, whoever would have believed such a thing?
  • A group of BC mayors whose towns were flooded are upset that their applications for federal funding weren’t accepted (because they were missing information).
  • Justin Ling tries to figure out why the government backed down when the RCMP refused to implement directives banning choke holds and rubber bullets.
  • Althia Raj relays the Senior Liberal Insiders™ claiming the “knives will come out” for Trudeau if the Liberals lose the upcoming Toronto—St. Paul’s by-election.
  • Paul Wells posts the first of his three-part series on the opioid crisis in Alberta, and gives an overview of the scale and scope of the problem.

Odds and ends:

For National Magazine, I covered Chief Justice Richard Wagner’s annual media availability, and his comments on disinformation and court resources.

My Loonie Politics Quick Take notes that the Bloc bill to override the Jordan Decision on court timelines would just let provinces off the hook for under-resourcing courts.

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