<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/" xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/" xmlns:georss="http://www.georss.org/georss" xmlns:geo="http://www.w3.org/2003/01/geo/wgs84_pos#" > <channel> <title>Housing – Routine Proceedings</title> <atom:link href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/tag/housing/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" /> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com</link> <description>The adventures of a Press Gallery journalist</description> <lastBuildDate>Wed, 11 Dec 2024 23:14:56 +0000</lastBuildDate> <language>en-CA</language> <sy:updatePeriod> hourly </sy:updatePeriod> <sy:updateFrequency> 1 </sy:updateFrequency> <generator>https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1</generator> <image> <url>https://www.routineproceedings.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cropped-DSmith-2024-32x32.jpg</url> <title>Housing – Routine Proceedings</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com</link> <width>32</width> <height>32</height> </image> <site xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">34256478</site> <item> <title>QP: Fantasizing about a “collapsing” economy</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/11/qp-fantasizing-about-a-collapsing-economy/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 11 Dec 2024 23:14:56 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Bank of Canada]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Canada Post]]></category> <category><![CDATA[CBSA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Constitution]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Federalism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[First Nations]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Immigration]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Public Health]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Tough on Crime]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12976</guid> <description><![CDATA[Wednesday, the final proto-PMQ of the year, and the prime minister was indeed present and ready to respond to all questions put to him, while his deputy was elsewhere. All of the other leaders were also present today, and Pierre … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/11/qp-fantasizing-about-a-collapsing-economy/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Wednesday, the final proto-PMQ of the year, and the prime minister was indeed present and ready to respond to all questions put to him, while his deputy was elsewhere. All of the other leaders were also present today, and Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and again cited the <i>Globe and Mail</i> story about the supposed tensions between Freeland and Trudeau over the size of the deficit, and demanded to know why he pushed her to break her promise on capping it. Justin Trudeau said that Poilievre was dramatizing things to distract from his voting against programmes that help people, and that he muzzles his MPs to prevent them from speaking out for their communities, or get his security clearance. Poilievre again demanded to know why Trudeau forced his finance minister to break her promise and Trudeau responded with a list of things Poilievre voted against. Poilievre switched to English and repeated his first question on the <i>Globe</i> story, and Trudeau once again called these little “dramas” a distraction from his record of voting against supports for Canadians or refusing to get his security clearance. Poilievre accused a Trudeau of bullying Freeland, said that he is too weak to control his own caucus, and then Poilievre proclaimed that he leads by inspiration and that Trudeau leads by intimidation. Trudeau said that Poilievre likes to claim things are broken because he keeps breaking them. Poilievre<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>mocked this, and then claimed that Freeland was going to be humiliated by reading a fiscal update authored by Mark Carney, and Trudeau accused Poilievre of using Canadians’ struggles for his own gain but that he won’t lift a finger to help them.</p> <p>Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, complained about a committee study, and wondered what the PM would say to the thousands of Muslims who are happy to assimilate into Quebec. Trudeau praised diversity and rights. Blanchet then wondered if Trudeau was defending religious “indoctrination” at certain Quebec schools, to which Trudeau praised the Charter, and then said it was the responsibility of those schools to hire the best teachers they could.</p> <p>Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, said that Trump was a bully and that Trudeau was too weak to stand up to him. Trudeau said that they were taking a measured approach, working with leaders across the country, and were not freaking out like the NDP were. Singh exclaimed that Trudeau’s job wasn’t safe either, and then repeated the same question/demand in French. Trudeau reminded him that they defeated Trump tariffs in the past.</p> <p><span id="more-12976"></span>Round two, and Poilievre got back up to wonder if Trudeau pushed Freeland to cross her own fiscal lines (Trudeau: He is putting on a show to distract from the facts that interest rates are down and Canadians will be getting a tax break; We have the lowest debt and deficit in the G7 and the largest recipient of foreign direct investment per capita), claimed that there was an “emergency” rate cut because the economy is “collapsing” (Trudeau: You’re just making this up), he claimed inflation was up—it’s not (Trudeau: It must be so hard to do your job when things are improving and you can’t acknowledge it), and then turned to take swipes at the Bloc for voting with the government (Trudeau: We are used to his disdain from the Conservatives, which shows why he isn’t worthy of this place).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3ld2jh3brs22f" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreidux4fb6gyscn6ollbqdxjdedtyb2jhbvyokjj7clv7goqqiistrm"> <p lang="en">Poilievre said that there was an “emergency rate cut” this morning because the economy is “collapsing.” #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3ld2jh3brs22f?ref_src=embed">2024-12-11T19:46:20.640Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Blanchet got back up to say that it was up to Quebec to demands what happens at their own schools or if he supports people attacking with religion (Trudeau: We will defend fundamental freedoms), demanded an end to the religious exemption for hate speech (Trudeau: Spreading hate is always illegal and police need to enforce it).</p> <p>Poilievre complained that the government voted against their motion to cut GST on new homes<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(Trudeau: You need to look at the small print of your promises and you want to cut the tools to increase density and faster approvals), claimed that this was all in Trudeau’s imagination (Trudeau: your own MPs want this programme and you keep stopping them from advocating for their communities), returned to French to swipe at the Bloc for also voting against his motion—and got called out by the Speaker as not being about government (Trudeau: Bloc MPs understand that the money invested is increasing densification and cutting red tape), and more of the same (Trudeau: You want to take this away from Quebeckers).</p> <p>Leah Gazan demanded legal mechanisms against residential school denialism (Trudeau: Incitement to hated is not free speech, and the path of reconciliation needs to be walked by everyone, and we will work with you on the bill), and Blake Desjarlais complained that Trudeau wouldn’t stand up to Danielle Smith around housing (Trudeau: We have put in billions, but provinces have been varied in their responses, so we are working with municipalities directly).</p> <p>Round three saw more questions from Poilievre on fentanyl (Trudeau: We have been stepping up in an evidence-based, compassionate approach), losing track of people facing deportation (Trudeau: We remains the best country in the world, and we are rolling up our sleeves; We have invested significantly in the border agency when you cut them), more swipes about the Bloc (Trudeau: Quebeckers don’t like you), demanding an end to the Canada Post strike (Trudeau: Your party attacked labour rights, but we believe the best deals happen at the bargaining table), violent crime (Trudeau: We continue to move ahead red flag and yellow flag laws in spite of Conservative opposition; You are just trying to scare people with misinformation; We defined what an assault-style weapon is in law and the RCMP are now moving and destroying them). There were also questions about Poilievre’s swipes at the Bloc (Trudeau: Quebeckers don’t take him seriously because he wants to attack women’s rights and reduce gun control), biomass incentives (Trudeau: We will stand up for the sector and innovation in the industry), and a call for an excess profit tax (Trudeau: We did bring in an excess profit tax on bank and insurance companies).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3ld2km6wozc2f" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreigqb3oonncxvckqispdyesu2s2kedghbrxje5zxxf6t73rstywmsq"> <p lang="en">Poilievre is workshopping a new slogan of “weak, woke and wasteful.” #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3ld2km6wozc2f?ref_src=embed">2024-12-11T20:07:05.985Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3ld2ktwk7qs2f" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreie6hkiw76ho5epvr62d4lkrgfq4mn2boa3obmnbh327vxgdi5igia"> <p lang="en">If the question is not for government, DON’T STAND UP! You don’t need a clip that badly. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3ld2ktwk7qs2f?ref_src=embed">2024-12-11T20:11:25.623Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Overall, it was a fairly regular Wednesday, where the Poilievre/Trudeau show was not any more over the top than it normally is. We got a repeat of yesterday’s opener where Chrystia Freeland gets belittled while they accuse Trudeau of bullying or humiliating her, followed by some outright hallucination about the Bank of Canada’s planned rate cut or the state of the economy, but again, Trudeau had a very difficult time in articulating a fact-based response to those economic questions (talking about GDP growth, for example) rather than just the bland assurances about inflation being on target, or trying to distract with talking points rather than pointing out just how much of an absolute liar Poilievre is. Don’t just say Poilievre is trying to distract, when Trudeau did plenty of that himself—show that he’s a liar who is trying to present a doom scenario to make people anxious. Use figures. Spell it out. Don’t play his game.</p> <p>Meanwhile, Yves-François Blanchet was utterly incoherent around his attempt to call Trudeau out for not condemning the incident with those North African Muslim teachers using de facto religious education in a Quebec school. Incoherent. And it would be great if Trudeau could point that out. As for Jagmeet Singh, his attempt to play tough guy when it comes to Trump comes off as pretty laughable, and his playing for clips like that is childish and he really doesn’t look like the “adult in the room” that his caucus keeps trying to insist that he is.</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3ld25meosdk2r" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreig67sxoixgx5azzxr6fvqiykudjlixjy3twd73ut6pxv3t3tjryte"> <p lang="en">I attend Question Period on a daily basis.</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3ld25meosdk2r?ref_src=embed">2024-12-11T16:14:33.374Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/ben-carr(115744)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ben Carr</a> for a dark blue suit with a crisp white shirt and a pink tie, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/michelle-ferreri(110604)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michelle Ferreri</a> for a tailored navy suit over a black top.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/anita-vandenbeld(71738)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anita Vandenbeld</a> for a smock top with a variety of grey patterns, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/darrell-samson(88333)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Darrell Samson</a> for a blue-green jacket over a white shirt with no tie.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12976</post-id> </item> <item> <title>QP: Pouncing on alleged tensions between PMO and Finance</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/10/qp-pouncing-on-alleged-tensions-between-pmo-and-finance/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 10 Dec 2024 22:12:27 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[CBSA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Chrystia Freeland]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Constitution]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Healthcare]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12970</guid> <description><![CDATA[Both the PM and his deputy were present for QP today, in advance of the Supplementary Estimates, as were all of the other leaders. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and cited the “weak” prime minister who has lost control … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/10/qp-pouncing-on-alleged-tensions-between-pmo-and-finance/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Both the PM and his deputy were present for QP today, in advance of the Supplementary Estimates, as were all of the other leaders. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and cited the “weak” prime minister who has lost control of everything, and that he has now lost control of his finance minister, who wanted a big deficit but that Trudeau wanted an even bigger one, and wondered which of them would win. Trudeau said that when a government delivers dental care to seniors, or food to children’s schools, Canadians win, but they won’t if the Conservatives come to power. Poilievre insisted that his finance minister doesn’t agree and that he imposed the “inflationary” GST “holiday” plan on her. Trudeau said that the only one voting against Canadians is the leader of the opposition. Poilievre switched to English to repeat his first question and got much the same response, with a few added jabs that Poilievre was against growing the economy. Poilievre again quoted the <i>Globe and Mail</i> article from this morning, and wondered if they would meet their deficit target. Trudeau accused Poilievre of talking down Canada, while the Bank of Canada would likely cut rates again this week because inflation is on target, and then took another swipe at Poilievre controlling his caucus. Poilievre gave a tortured analogy about the finance minister driving a bus while a “lunatic” grabs control of the wheel, jerks it to the left and smashes through a guardrail down a cliff, Trudeau responded with a paean about the supports they have given Canadians, which Poilievre voted against.</p> <p>Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and wanted the PM to denounce his immigration minister for calling out François Legault for attacking Muslims in the name of “secularism” while going to Notre Dame in Paris, to which Trudeau gave a rote line about Charter rights and diversity. Blanchet gave a torture definition of what equality means, and Trudeau reminds him that they should cherish individual rights and freedoms, and that the federal government will defend those rights.</p> <p>Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and accused the government of siding with the Conservatives in voting against their GST cut proposal, and Trudeau said he was equally puzzled when the Conservatives voted against a tax break for Canadians—but didn’t say anything about the NDP’s plan (which was bad and disproportionately benefits the wealthy). Singh made a half-hearted jab about taxing (or axing?) the prime minister’s excuses, before switching to French to worry about private healthcare in Quebec. Trudeau said that they respect provincial jurisdiction but they have also invested billions in healthcare across the country and would defend the public system.</p> <p><span id="more-12970"></span>Round two, and Melissa Lantsman accused Trudeau of “bullying” his female finance minister (Freeland: We are united in working hard for Canadians, and the only would-be bullies in this Chamber are opposite and I can fully stand up to them), and demanded the deficit figure (Freeland: I look forward to tabling the Fall Economic Statement on Monday, and it will show we are keeping our fiscal anchor of the declining debt-to-GDP ratio), and Dominique Vien tried again in French (Freeland: Same answer about the fiscal anchor; I’m glad you raised the PBO because he said our fiscal position is sustainable; Freeland: I am tabling the economic statement on Monday).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lcxyz3dz2c2l" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreief5yud3xooqqnvz7hre66wgop3cpb5oeodv2abkptr3h25rxokba"> <p lang="en">Someone in the gallery is yelling about homelessness being a national emergency, and is being escorted out. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lcxyz3dz2c2l?ref_src=embed">2024-12-10T19:46:51.605Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe raised the story about Chilean asylum seekers under removal orders escaping a holding facility (LeBlanc: We share the concerns, and I have asked the CBSA to revisit their protocols around this facility and to ensure it doesn’t happen again), Kristina Michaud raised previous Auditor General’s reports regarding CBSA’s lack of tracking of people under removal orders (LeBlanc: This is common around the world given the increase in asylum seekers around the world, but we are taking additional measures; We work with police and provinces to detaining people who are inadmissible in the country).</p> <p>Jasraj Hallan breathlessly read some rhyming word salad about the deficit (Freeland: Are you giving out Xmas presents for alliteration?; I look forward to tabling the Economic Statement on Monday), and Luc Berthold read the same talking points about the deficit in French (Freeland: Look at all the things we delivered for Canadians; I will be tabling the Statement on Monday, and it will show we have our fiscal anchor).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lcxzcfw2k22l" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreihuqvyrwhkzzthlwds4ar4rfdiu5dvvqdzbtallhvbscvetjy4yny"> <p lang="en">Hallan: Canadians can’t afford Xmas because [Freeland] can’t do math. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lcxzcfw2k22l?ref_src=embed">2024-12-10T19:52:04.671Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Bonita Zarrillo worried about renters—which is a provincial jurisdiction (Fraser: No one is choosing to be homeless, but we are making investments while the Conservatives are making jokes), and Taylor Bachrach asked about Air Canada charging new baggage fees (Anand: If I could clarify, we are concerned with the fees, and I will be speaking with the executives and calling them out).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lcxzmcmla22l" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiewr5eo4fkqsjix2mb3zluhe6ddhmwzimu4lrnfkubhbdruhm5h2a"> <p lang="en">Zarrillo references the disturbance in the gallery.The Speaker warns her she can’t reference what happened in the gallery. She repeats it. She gets warned again. This time she doesn’t reference it. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lcxzmcmla22l?ref_src=embed">2024-12-10T19:57:36.760Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Round three saw more questions on the deficit (Freeland: I look forward to tabling the statement next Monday; Gould: You are trying to distract from your voting against a tax break; The only people engaged in bullying are the Conservatives; You know very well the number will be released on Monday; Conservatives say that when times are tough they want to take supports away from Canadians; Valdez: Your leader calls our support programs “big fat government spending”; Duclos: We have the best fiscal record of anyone in the G7; Virani: The Minister is so great because she empowers women to participate in the economy through the child care programme), whether the prime minister still has confidence in Freeland (Freeland: Yes), a motion at committee on calling on the Auditor General to investigate CBSA’s latest IT problem (LeBlanc: We don’t tell the AG what to do; We are always looking for solutions and the new system replaced an ancient system that was on the verge of failing), a closing mine in Northern Ontario and transitioning to a new project (Wilkinson: Critical minerals offer a tremendous opportunity, and I am happy to sit down and have that conversation), and a coal mine going ahead in the Rocky Mountains without an assessment (Guilbeault: The Supreme Court directed us to review some of the elements of the legislation, and there are Indigenous communities supporting the project).</p> <p>Overall, much hay was made today by pretty much every Conservative question about that <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-chrystia-freeland-justin-trudeau-pmo-tensions-gst-holiday/">story</a> in the <i>Globe and Mail</i> about tensions between the PMO and Freeland’s office, particularly over the GST “holiday,” and Freeland, through her very careful use of language, seemed to be indicating that the deficit figures will be higher than the number she set out in the spring, but that because of GDP growth will still be within the declining debt-to-GDP ratio, but anything will be treated as a big number and therefore scandalous, regardless of what the actual figures wind up being when released next week. Nevertheless, watching Conservative after Conservative get up to belittle Freeland and then have the temerity to claim that it’s Trudeau who is “bullying” her—all while turning Bill Morneau into some kind of a folk hero–was bizarre and kind of gross to watch. Time to send them home.</p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/anna-gainey(115736)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anna Gainey</a> for a collared white shirt under a dark grey vest and dark grey slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/marc-miller(88660)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marc Miller</a> for a tailored navy suit with a crisp white shirt and a light purple tie.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/ryan-williams(110330)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ryan Williams</a> for a dark blue checkerboard jacket over a black waistcoat, pale blue shirt, red tie, and faded dark blue slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/mary-ng(96352)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mary Ng</a> for a translucent grey dress with puffy sleeves, a polka dot pattern, and a pussy bow.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12970</post-id> </item> <item> <title>QP: More swipes before a confidence vote</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/09/qp-more-swipes-before-a-confidence-vote/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 09 Dec 2024 22:02:40 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Auditor General]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Border]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[CBSA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Federalism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Tough on Crime]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12966</guid> <description><![CDATA[The PM was away in Halifax, and his deputy was elsewhere, and most of the other leaders were also away. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and he accused the prime minister of a litany of economic sins, and demanded … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/09/qp-more-swipes-before-a-confidence-vote/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The PM was away in Halifax, and his deputy was elsewhere, and most of the other leaders were also away. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and he accused the prime minister of a litany of economic sins, and demanded he stop raising taxes and “inflationary” spending. Arif Virani said that they were proud of their record and that the Fall Economic Statement would be released on Monday, and praised that inflation as on target and that interest rates have come down. Poilievre mocked that the government wants to bury their record, and wondered if the deficit would remain under target. Jonathan Wilkinson praised the GST cut on purpose-built rentals, and that they are building more houses than ever before. Poilievre switched to English to repeat his first question, and Virani got back up, but this time praised how their childcare programme has seen one of the largest rates of female participation in the labour force. Poilievre lied about debt causing inflation (ignoring the pandemic and the global supply shock), and again asked about the deficit target. Virani cited current and former Bank of Canada governors about the current inflation spike being tamed and how Harper muted the recovery from the 2008 financial crisis by cutting too quickly. Poilievre then said that in the spirit of non-partisanship, they took Jagmeet Singh’s words and put them in a non-confidence motion, and wondered if the prime minister was going to let the NDP to vote for the motion. The Speaker warned that this stretched what was permissible under the administration of government, but Karina Gould got up to point out that it was the Conservatives who muzzled their members.</p> <p>Alain Therrien led for the Bloc, and raised concerns about religion in schools in Quebec, and demanded the federal government stop “undermining” secularism in Quebec. Jean-Yves Duclos reminded him that education was a provincial matter. Therrien insisted that multiculturalism is what is undermining the ability to live together, and Duclos noted that there is strength in diversity before returning to the reminder that education is a provincial matter.</p> <p>Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP to give an anecdote of the plight of a retiree in relation to the demand to extend the $250 “rebate” cheque. Virani got back up to pat himself on the back for their other programmes for seniors, including dental care. Singh retorted that Virani didn’t answer the question, before repeating it he demand in French. Virani said that they always fight against poverty, and the data shows progress.</p> <p><span id="more-12966"></span>Round two, and Michael Barrett took swipes at Singh in demanding an election—and got warned by the Speaker (Gould: If you want to talk about pensions, your leader’s is worth $2 million; No one rose on a follow-up), Michelle Rempel Garner insisted that there was issue relevant for government if the question is what they promised the NDP (Gould: You know a thing or two about saying one thing and doing the opposition; Why won’t your leader get his security clearance?), and Gérard Deltell gave the same again in French (Duclos: Why can’t you speak for yourself?; Your leader only built six housing units—not really true—and that 8000<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <p>Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay wanted support for a motion to call the Auditor General to study the replacement of CBSA’s recent IT changeover (LeBlanc: We don’t direct the Auditor General and committee can study what they want; We understand the concerns about the changeover that started in 2010, and we will ensure errors get fixed).</p> <p>John Brassard took swipes at Singh (Gould: We stand up for workers which you can’t say you’ve ever done; MacKinnon: Here is a reminder of your government’s anti-union legislation), and Jacques Gourde did the same in French (MacKinnon: Same answer).</p> <p>Leah Gazan railed that the housing crisis hurts people fleeing domestic violence—as though there aren’t provincial governments (Fragiskatos: We have put forward the National Housing Strategy which has a focus on hosing women facing domestic violence), and Lisa Marie Barron demanded more funding for food banks (Sudds: Hooray for the Canada Child Benefit).</p> <p>Round three saw more questions on deficits (Turnbull: The only thing you are serving up for Xmas dinner is stale slogans; We are looking forward to this week’s Bank of Canada announcement; The Fall Economic Statement is coming on Monday; You are complaining if things are late while you are obstructing everything; Duclos: There are affordable housing units being built in your very riding but you let your leader pretend they don’t exist; Champagne: You know we have made record investments in industry and workers), the “loophole” in the Safe Third Country Agreement (Miller: We can’t take action without the U.S., and I hope you support our asylum reforms; Look at our actions with visas for Mexicans), someone killed in Edmonton (Virani: Our condolences, but we are working on multiple fronts to keep Canadians safe; The provinces have their own work to do with their responsibilities), someone investing in rental properties in Montreal (Martinez Ferrada: We just made an announcement about 700 more units), and Canada Council funding inequities (Noormohamed: We will work with any members who want to work on this).</p> <p>Overall, we started seeing a return of the schtick the Conservatives were pulling on Friday of taking swipes at the NDP while trying to give it the fig leaf of a government question with non sequiturs like “Are you giving them a free vote” or “What deal did you make with them,” which really aren’t about the administrative responsibilities of government, but Speaker Fergus was somewhat incoherent about what he was warning about, what he was allowing, and it didn’t matter for the most part because Karina Gould kept standing up to get her own digs in about the Conservatives rather than staying seated to show that the questions were out of order. I have said this before and I will keep saying it—stay seated for those non-questions. Stop legitimising them. Your taking your own swipes is not helping matters any.</p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/adam-chambers(110649)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Adam Chambers</a> for a tailored dark blue suit with a white shirt and pocket square and a light blue tie, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/michelle-rempel-garner(71902)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michelle Rempel Garner</a> for a dark grey jacket with a grid pattern over a v-necked black top and slacks.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/stephanie-kusie(96367)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephanie Kusie</a> for a short-sleeved dark green shirt with sparkles across it along with black slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/alexis-brunelle-duceppe(104786)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe</a> for a navy jacket over a pale blue shirt, dark grey diamond-patterned tie, and blue jeans.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Dishonourable mention goes out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/jagmeet-singh(71588)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jagmeet Singh</a> for a black suit and tie with a white shirt and a mustard turban.</p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12966</post-id> </item> <item> <title>QP: Avoiding questions about the deficit</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/05/qp-avoiding-questions-about-the-deficit/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 05 Dec 2024 22:44:17 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Gun Control]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Supply Management]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Tough on Crime]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12958</guid> <description><![CDATA[After a morning where the Conservatives were on the losing end of procedural warfare with their planned confidence vote debate, neither the PM nor his deputy were present today, nor were any of the other leaders. Jasraj Hallan led off, … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/05/qp-avoiding-questions-about-the-deficit/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>After a morning where the Conservatives were on the losing end of procedural warfare with their planned confidence vote debate, neither the PM nor his deputy were present today, nor were any of the other leaders. Jasraj Hallan led off, spouted nonsense about the deficit and inflation, and demanded to know the size of the deficit. Sean Fraser responded by praising the country’s growth projections, and that the Conservatives voted against measures to help people. Hallan listed things that were “broken,” and Fraser chided him for his alliteration before again pointing out the things the Conservatives have voted against. Hallan again demanded the deficit number, and this time Jenna Sudds rose to point out how many more children were in poverty when the Conservatives were in power before listing programmes the government rolled out. Luc Berthold took over in French, and demanded the Fall Economic Statement be delivered on Monday. Steven Guilbeault took this one and decried that the Conservatives voted against the GST “holiday.” Berthold then quoted the “Food Professor” on food prices and blamed the carbon price, and Guilbeault quoted said professor back again in saying that climate change is responsible for food prices.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lclfs6zrp22q" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreigza43emyx4iqktwrwql45z4octuyce2mffpfduvp5tzcustmfpby"> <p lang="en">Berthold just cited the Food Dude about food prices, and I can’t even. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lclfs6zrp22q?ref_src=embed">2024-12-05T19:31:02.629Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Alain Therrien led for the Bloc, and railed about the Senate dragging out the vote on their Supply Management bill, to which Karina Gould reminded him that the government supported the bill, but the Conservatives were divided on it. Therrien railed some more about senators, and Gould again repeated her response.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <p>Peter Julian rose for the NDP, and decried grocery giant greed in French. Guilbeault again praised the GST “holiday.” Alistair MacGregor decried the same in English, and Fraser praised their school food programme and the GST “holiday.”</p> <p><span id="more-12958"></span>Round two, and John Barlow got up to mislead about food insecurity and the carbon levy (Turnbull: The very report you cite says that climate change is the biggest driver of food price inflation; Guilbeault: The report doesn’t mention the carbon levy is a factor in food prices rising), Jake Stewart read another misleading script on the same (Sudds: You voted against the work we’re doing to provide relief to families, like the school food programme; Gould: Just because you make something up, it doesn’t make it true, and we have already cited that the report doesn’t say that), and Gérard Deltell again raised the stories of children asking Santa Claus for food and winter coats (MacKinnon: You just voted against a GST break on these things).</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">OK, enough. This is an outright lie, and I am not in the habit of calling people liars. The report he is referring to dos NOT mention the carbon tax as a factor behind the $800 increase and certainly does not say ‘the carbon tax will cost families $800 more on food ». <a href="https://t.co/qXymaaEuyE">https://t.co/qXymaaEuyE</a></p> <p>— Marc Lévesque (@MarcLevesqueEco) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcLevesqueEco/status/1864731713500225825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Rhéal Fortin worried about the future of Lion Electric (Guilbeault: This is an important company and thanks to our federal transit electrification programme, they will get orders; Turnbull: We know where the puck is going, and that’s a cleaner future, and we will make every effort to work with them to get projects across the finish line), and Xavier Barsalou-Duval demanded more support for the company (Fraser: The federal government will help schools bus and transit fleets modernise with our zero emission transition fund)l</p> <p>Stephen Ellis returned to the false correlation between food insecurity and the carbon levy (Fraser: It’s hard to take seriously your questions when you opposed a tax cut on food; You just don’t care about people, it’s all politics), and Warren Steinley read more of the same (Bendayan: Those are crocodile tears).</p> <p>Bonita Zarrillo worried about family doctors—which is a provincial issue (Naqvi: We are making unprecedented investments in the healthcare system), and Taylor Bachrach wanted a restoration of the northern residents tax deduction for Haida Gwaii (Vandal: We will work with partners).</p> <p>Round three saw more questions on gun violence (O’Connell: On the anniversary of one of the largest mass shootings in Canadian history, you are looking to weaken gun laws; Virani: Our track record speaks for itself, but your party’s ability to resistance to online safety is unconscionable; Bendayan: We have taken concrete action to remove war weapons from circulation, which don’t belong in our communities), ending the religious exemption to hate speech (Virani: We are aware of a rising hate, but we want to study this proposal in depth, but there is already legislation on the table they can support as well; We are willing to debate your bill, but we also need to pass Bill C-63), a “crime wave” (Virani: Bill C-75 codified existing Supreme Court jurisprudence and increased bail conditions on more offences; Here are quotes from police chiefs about the provinces not resourcing courts), the deficit number (Bendayan: We have the lowest debt and deficit in the G7, but the statement is upcoming; We haven’t even had a single quarter of negative growth; Anand: In their time of need, Canadians need a government who is there for them), Danielle Smith bringing workers from the UAE (Petitpas Taylor: Our priority is Canadian jobs, and we have made changes to the temporary foreign workers programme), and affordable housing dollars versus of CMHC definitions (Fraser: The majority of grant programmes are for social housing with other market-based mechanisms).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lclim7gi2s2q" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreihrpfed2btbhky7dult47gskkkal2dfur7l5rhr252u4kvptxjhni"> <p lang="en">The Conservatives denied consent for a motion relating to their First Nations Drinking Water Bill. Jamie Battiste took his water glass and moved into the aisle, berating the Conservatives for denying it. #HoC</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lclim7gi2s2q?ref_src=embed">2024-12-05T20:21:22.943Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Overall, it was a lower-key day, with fewer verb-the-noun slogans than usual, and even Jasraj Hallan was slightly more coherent than usual as he didn’t have as many slogans to cram into his usual word salad questions. Nevertheless, there was little to recommend the day, as the Liberals continued to tout their intellectually bankrupt “GST holiday” in response to questions where it wasn’t really appropriate. I did appreciate that, finally, Arif Virani did call out the disinformation about the previous Bill C-75 on bail, but this was blunted by the fact that he kept hammering onto the online harms bill instead of answering questions that were bit put to him. This remains more of the same as the fall sitting teeters toward a close.</p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/randeep-sarai(89339)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Randeep Sarai</a> for a dark grey suit with a white shirt and turban with a light purple tie, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/iqra-khalid(88849)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Iqra Khalid</a> for a fuchsia suit with a black button-up top.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/rachel-blaney(89354)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rachel Blaney</a> for a teal sweater with pink and yellow snowflakes (I think) over black slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/sebastien-lemire(104630)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sébastien Lemire</a> for a navy jacket over a pink floral shirt, black tie, and light grey slacks.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12958</post-id> </item> <item> <title>QP: Using Crombie and Joly as cudgels</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/04/qp-using-crombie-and-joly-as-cudgels/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 04 Dec 2024 22:48:09 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Border]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Canada Post]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[First Nations]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Immigration]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Inflation]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Pensions]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12954</guid> <description><![CDATA[The prime minister was present and ready to take all questions, while his deputy found better things to do. All of the other leaders were present today, and Pierre Poilievre led off in French, as is his usual wont, and … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/12/04/qp-using-crombie-and-joly-as-cudgels/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The prime minister was present and ready to take all questions, while his deputy found better things to do. All of the other leaders were present today, and Pierre Poilievre led off in French, as is his usual wont, and claimed the PM was weak, lost control of the border, his spending, and his own party, and used Bonnie Crombie’s words as proof (even though it’s not the same party). Justin Trudeau said that his caucus was unified about the GST “holiday,” and claimed Conservatives wanted to vote for it and that Poilievre gagged them. Poilievre repeated the “lost control” slogan to apply it to food insecurity, and wanted assurances from the Economic Statement next week. Trudeau said it would come in due course, and that the government was helping people while Poilievre was jostling for his own political interests. Poilievre switched to English to repeat his first question while adding in the claim that Mélanie Joly launched her leadership campaign in the New York Times. Trudeau said that the Liberals are allowed to have different opinions while Poilievre just muzzles his MPs. Poilievre went on about the Joly story, and said Trudeau needs to get the hint that his party doesn’t want him any more. Trudeau gave a paean about Canadians pulling together when they face threats but Poilievre can’t help himself. Poilievre said that Trudeau was giving Canadian jobs to Trump, and listed “taxes” as proof, while Trudeau said that Canadians see through Poilievre’s shallow games, and that he wants them to struggle because he thinks it helps his prospects.</p> <p>Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and demanded the federal government respect the unanimous motion in the Quebec National Assembly to get rid of the religious exemption for hate crimes, and Trudeau hit back that if they cared about it, they would do something about the Conservative filibuster so that said bill could come up for debate. Blanchet repeated the demand, and Trudeau again repeated his point about the Bloc not helping to end the filibuster.</p> <p>Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and demanded permanent GST exemptions for “daily essentials,” and Trudeau patted himself on their GST “holiday.” Singh recited his new line about the Conservatives being “boot-lickers for billionaires” and the Speaker had to interject before Singh repeated his demand in French. Trudeau repeated his same self-congratulatory response.</p> <p><span id="more-12954"></span>Round two, and Poilievre chirped that Singh was a “Maserati Marxist” before demanding an election (Trudeau: You didn’t support the GST “holiday”), the size of the deficit (Trudeau: You stopped talking about inflation because we helped bring it down; We invested in measures to help Canadians without triggering inflation), fentanyl (Trudeau: Your answer to this tragedy is to stand for photo ops in front of encampments, and we have anchored ourselves in science, in partnerships with other municipalities, and working with the United States on precursor chemicals; He doesn’t care about Canadians, and is only there for a clip).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lciw2vyumc2b" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreibqg3u2dw4r3lloisarg33iadwiw4gewaraz5saihtsxyor3x54yq"> <p lang="en">“Boot-licker for billionaires!”“Maserati Marxist!”#QP is sure getting those clips for social media today.</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lciw2vyumc2b?ref_src=embed">2024-12-04T19:44:15.805Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Blanchet offered to “unblock” the House of Commons for 24 hours if they pass their bill on the religious exemption for hate speech (Trudeau: That’s great, but there are plenty of other things that also need to be debated; Some talking points about dental care and jurisdiction).</p> <p>Poilievre railed about housing prices in Toronto and Vancouver (Trudeau: Your own MPs complained that you won’t let them stand up for their communities on housing), construction slowdowns after being given federal money (Trudeau: Mayors are speaking out about the reckless cuts he is proposing; Your only plan is to pick fights with journalists, mayors, and the Team Canada approach rather than solving problems).</p> <p>Lindsay Mathyssen demanded action on food affordability (Trudeau: You won’t stand up for workers with our proposed rebate cheques), and Lori Idlout wanted more accountability for the First Nations and Inuit cultural support providers (Trudeau: The AFN chiefs are right now engaged in a review of the whole programme and we will work with them).</p> <p>Round three saw more questions from Poilievre on labour rights (Trudeau: He’s been obstructing to make Parliament look like it can’t work so he can tell everyone that things are broken), First Nations launching a court challenge about the carbon levy (Trudeau: Indigenous people are the first to stand up for the environment; They know about the impacts of climate change and the under-investment in their infrastructure by Conservatives), voting non-confidence (Trudeau: He wants obstruction rather than seeing us solving problems and delivering for Canadians), the emissions cap sending jobs to the U.S. (Trudeau: We are putting a cap on emissions not production; They need to innovate and reduce their emissions), immigration numbers (Trudeau: After the pandemic, provinces and industry had a labour shortage so we brought in workers and our system is flexible so we are now reducing numbers because they’re not needed), the number of people in the country illegally (Trudeau: Canada has always had a generous but responsible system; You are importing right-wing rhetoric from south of the border). There were also questions about enriching OAS (Trudeau: The Bloc is just picking a fight while we help seniors who need it), the Bloc hate speech bill (Trudeau: We need to work together on this and other matters like our online harms bill), the soccer drone scandal (Trudeau: This was unfortunate and there have been consequences and there are follow-ups), passports held up by the postal strike (Trudeau: We are working with both parties to put an end to the strike).</p> <p>Once QP was over, Olympic and Paralympic athletes filled the Chamber to be applauded for their efforts on behalf of Canada, and it was nice to see MPs behaving like human beings for a change. The handshakes were slow to start, but did eventually happen mostly with Trudeau, but increasingly with Poilievre as well, who even got a bro-hug from one of the athletes, before he and Melissa Lantsman started illicitly snapping photographs of Poilievre with athletes (which is against the rules and which the Speaker told them not to do before the athletes arrived).</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lciyrkdirk2b" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiavel6tot63xkyncpimu77x6im7jxrhfxxlef24bk6kegiikyclji"> <p lang="en">Olympic and paralympics athletes are being presented to the House of Commons (and the Speaker is warning MPs not to take photos). #HoC</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lciyrkdirk2b?ref_src=embed">2024-12-04T20:32:42.806Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Overall, today wasn’t anything really new, as Poilievre kept up his “weak” talking points and slogans, and so on. He did reference the offer to let the fiscal update happen on Monday, but Trudeau didn’t seem to take him up on it, so we’ll see if that happens. There were also offers from the Bloc to temporarily lift the filibuster so long as it means passing one of their bills, but again, Trudeau wasn’t biting so long as it was for just that one private members’ bill, but wanted an end to the filibuster writ-large in order to let other measures go forward.</p> <p>I would also note that while last week, Trudeau kept prevaricating around questions relating to the size of the deficit, and making himself look innumerate in the process, today it was about the number of people in the country illegally (which I’m not sure how exactly you would figure that out, considering that they don’t just self-declare to authorities that they are in the country illegally). Regardless, the most scorn that Trudeau poured on the question was to call out Poilievre for importing right-wing rhetoric from the U.S., but again, it was mostly just prevarication and feel-good pabulum rather than finding a better way of responding to these particular kinds of questions.</p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/carla-qualtrough(89272)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Carla Qualtrough</a> for a tailored cranberry jacket over a lower-cut white top and black slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/peter-fragiskatos(88827)">Peter Fragiskatos</a> for a tailored navy three-piece suit over a crisp white shirt with a matching pocket square and a burgundy tie.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/yves-francois-blanchet(104669)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Yves-François Blanchet</a> for a brown jacket over a light blue shirt, dark blue and red striped tie, multicoloured pocket square, and light grey slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/lindsay-mathyssen(105221)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lindsay Mathyssen</a> for a white top with wizard sleeves under a long dusky rose sleeveless jacket and light grey slacks.</p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12954</post-id> </item> <item> <title>Roundup: GST “holiday” bill passes</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/29/roundup-gst-holiday-bill-passes/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 29 Nov 2024 10:28:39 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Political Roundup]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Border]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Canada Post]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Canadian Forces]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Competition Bureau]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Danielle Smith]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category> <category><![CDATA[First Nations]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Fisheries]]></category> <category><![CDATA[HIV]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Labour]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Pierre Poilievre]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Procurement]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Trade]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ukraine]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12937</guid> <description><![CDATA[The federal government got their wish, with the cooperation of the NDP, to get their GST “holiday” bill through the House of Commons thanks to a programming motion that paused the ongoing privilege filibuster for the sitting day. In spite … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/29/roundup-gst-holiday-bill-passes/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The federal government got their wish, with the cooperation of the NDP, to get their GST “holiday” bill through the House of Commons thanks to a programming motion that paused the ongoing privilege filibuster for the sitting day. In spite of the Bloc and Conservatives slow-walking it with dilatory amendments, it <a href="https://twitter.com/hocchamber/status/1862353831851430350?s=61&t=QyNFGBf3ohVE6_AB3OAyRg">did pass</a> late at night, with the terms of the motion being that once it passed second reading vote, it would automatically be deemed to have been referred to committee of the whole and passed, and then passed at third reading. (The Senate won’t see it until Tuesday at the earliest). It’s the first opportunity the Commons has had to do real work in more than six weeks, for what it’s worth. The Liberals and NDP, however, think they’ve found a big gotcha, that by forcing the Conservatives to vote against this legitimately terrible policy will be the key to reversing their fortunes in the polls, and their attempts remain cringe-worthy.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Honestly. I hope the PM takes a long look at this tweet and assesses the current state of his government and their direction or lack thereof. My goodness. <a href="https://t.co/tPfe4yAODm">https://t.co/tPfe4yAODm</a></p> <p>— Andrew Leach (@andrew_leach) <a href="https://twitter.com/andrew_leach/status/1862244630663930358?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Make it stop. <a href="https://t.co/mm8cQ8g39t">https://t.co/mm8cQ8g39t</a></p> <p>— Andrew Leach (@andrew_leach) <a href="https://twitter.com/andrew_leach/status/1862308708182827394?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Pierre Poilievre took to the microphones to denounce it as “<a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/national/poilievre-calls-two-month-gst-break-inflationary-says-tories-will-vote-against-it/article_41c8bb61-8fe2-522e-a9aa-8fae327f7f35.html">inflationary</a>,” which is actually nonsense because we’re no longer in an overheated economy. Nevertheless, he relies on the simplistic notion that any government spending or deficits are inflationary (and claims that Chrystia Freeland herself this, which isn’t really what she said—not that the truth has ever mattered to Poilievre). Then again, his entire understanding of economics comes from crypto bros on YouTube, so probably best not to take him seriously. It’s still a terrible policy, however, so their opposition to it somewhat accidentally puts them on the right side of the issue, even if the reasons are entirely false and misleading (but broken clocks being right twice a day, and all of that).</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">This just keeps getting worse for the Liberals: </p> <p>– They're making the stupid GST holiday a priority, and punting on the 'not smart but meh' rebates<br /> – The CPC has taken a position that has the support of pretty much every tax expert<a href="https://t.co/fEAVh54fFa">https://t.co/fEAVh54fFa</a></p> <p>— Stephen Gordon (@stephenfgordon) <a href="https://twitter.com/stephenfgordon/status/1862269816293228661?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">This is really amazing. The Liberals and the NDP have gone out of their way to set up a scenario in which they're defending crass, rancid pandering while the CPC is the voice of principled and responsible expertise.</p> <p>— Stephen Gordon (@stephenfgordon) <a href="https://twitter.com/stephenfgordon/status/1862283834663776470?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>As for the implementation of this terrible policy, it just looks even worse as the details emerge. What <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/sports/diapers-yes-skates-no-a-look-at-items-getting-a-tax-holiday/article_88bbb8f0-ecac-5da5-a876-f63ca8e9fc70.html">counts and what doesn’t</a> for the rebate are all over the map, and it’s so chaotic that businesses are, quite rightly, <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/business/implementing-gst-break-for-two-months-proving-to-be-a-nightmare-for-businesses/article_694a8c06-af60-59ab-ae8e-d7eddfce0c84.html">frustrated</a> at just how much work it’s going to be to implement for those two months. None of this should have happened, and the Liberals should have come up with a better measure than this (and rubbed the NDP’s faces in their own ill-conceived GST cut plan), but here we are, and it just keeps getting worse by the day. Well done, guys. Slow clap.</p> <p>Ukraine Dispatch</p> <p>Russia fired another <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine-russia-strikes-energy-infrastructure-1.7395445">nearly 200</a> missiles and drones, targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure to leave more than a million people without power. Fragments from downed drones <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russian-drones-strike-buildings-kyiv-officials-say-2024-11-28/">hit two buildings</a> in Kyiv, injuring one person.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Eyewitnesses reported seeing large clouds of smoke over the FDKU Atlas oil depot in the Kamensk-Shakhtinsky district of Rostov Oblast. Videos of the fire posted on various Telegram channels appear to show a large blaze engulfing the night sky.</p> <p>— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) <a href="https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1862346806794899821?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/26a1.png" alt="⚡" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />Russia's drone attack damages children's medical center in Kyiv, injuries reported. </p> <p>In one district of the capital, debris from a drone caused a fire on the facade of a children's medical center. A security guard was injured in the attack.<a href="https://t.co/hWuP3F6bFV">https://t.co/hWuP3F6bFV</a></p> <p>— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) <a href="https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1862280433402098112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p><span id="more-12937"></span>Good reads:</p> <ul> <li>In case you needed a reminder of how certain premiers are <a href="https://www.thestar.com/politics/trudeau-governments-team-canada-approach-to-donald-trump-is-already-on-shaky-ground-heres-why/article_204c0978-add2-11ef-beaa-370061522dad.html">undermining</a> the fight against the Trump tariff threats, the <em>Star</em> has you covered.</li> <li>Bill Blair told a national Indigenous defence conference that the future of the military <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/politics/blair-says-future-of-defence-relies-on-building-relationships-with-indigenous-peoples/article_546b66ca-f778-56f4-92ca-cd9d238fcc5f.html">depends on</a> strengthening relationships with Indigenous people.</li> <li>Blair also says that DND and the Forces are “<a href="https://www.hilltimes.com/story/2024/11/28/dnd-and-caf-exempt-from-further-spending-cuts-says-blair-after-dept-was-tasked-to-find-900m-year-in-savings/443372/">exempt</a>” from further spending cuts.</li> <li>The government has <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/ottawa-abandons-promise-to-fix-over-criminalization-of-people-living-with-hiv/article_f1a329fa-ad98-11ef-8ae9-3bec58a9cddd.html">essentially abandoned</a> its pledge to deal with ending criminalization for HIV non-disclosure as they can’t prioritize it.</li> <li>The military is trying to <a href="https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/canadian-military-air-defence-system-latvia">fast-track</a> the acquisition of a short-range air defence battery for our troops in Latvia, before focusing on more ground-based air defences.</li> <li><em>The Logic</em> <a href="https://thelogic.co/news/national-defence-email-outage/">got access</a> to an internal Canadian Forces report about how precarious their IT is, when an upgrade knocked out mobile emails for more than eight hours.</li> <li>The Competition Bureau has <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/canada-competition-bureau-google-search-lawsuit-1.7396167">begun legal action</a> against Google, with the aim of breaking up their monopoly in the digital ad-tech space.</li> <li>Canada Post has started <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/canada-post-strike-layoffs-1.7395839">laying off</a> striking workers, in spite of that being in contravention of the Canada Labour Code.</li> <li>Different Indigenous groups are <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/business/eliminating-b-c-s-open-net-fish-farms-would-cost-billions-report-says/article_25bd2cc0-e904-5429-9a4c-9bfa4636d3be.html">fighting over</a> the plan to transition open-net salmon farms to land-based facilities, including how much it could cost governments.</li> <li>Danielle Smith is <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/politics/alberta-taking-federal-government-to-court-over-revised-impact-assessment-law/article_ac8cef8e-ce88-5f18-9aae-37161703b25a.html">taking</a> the revised federal Impact Assessment Act to court, claiming it still strays too far into provincial jurisdiction.</li> <li>Amidst her boot-licking, Smith also says that she’s <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/politics/premier-smith-says-alberta-is-still-formulating-border-plan-to-meet-u-s-demands/article_f433f1d4-918b-5b87-8482-b4f44886edb2.html">still working out</a> her border plan with Montana to capitulate to Trump’s demands.</li> <li>Mike Moffatt <a href="https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/these-canadian-cities-are-finally-doing-something-to-fix-the-housing-crisis-almost-none-are/article_de79b6a4-ac40-11ef-bded-5ffdfc6cc92b.html">calls out</a> Ontario as being uniquely terrible when it comes to dealing with the housing crisis as other provinces step up.</li> <li>Susan Delacourt <a href="https://www.thestar.com/politics/political-opinion/when-it-comes-to-donald-trump-s-tariff-threat-doug-ford-is-getting-it-right/article_6e2966a2-adc0-11ef-9f8c-7b914fa34bb4.html">contrasts</a> the response to the Trump threats by both Doug Ford and Poilievre (though I’m not wholly convinced by her characterisation of Ford).</li> </ul> <p>Odds and ends:</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:w3miivoaldds6rqccvwjnvnc/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbzcx6qvhc22" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiaqwmlyyrgo6wh45voupomaz2mdt4ldrzvnjwgukh2o6r24acpnca"> <p lang="en">The Appeal Court decision was so clean, straightforward, that I hope the SCC is taking this on mostly to endorse it. I won't think highly of any judges adopting the trial court's incoherent logic.</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:w3miivoaldds6rqccvwjnvnc?ref_src=embed">Emmett Macfarlane (@emmettmacfarlane.com)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:w3miivoaldds6rqccvwjnvnc/post/3lbzcx6qvhc22?ref_src=embed">2024-11-28T14:52:13.594Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbb4j54sc223" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiei2uzv2wluwxsf2t2nn4g4ydcikbvim7csfqpcbqkyivbcwfgyk4"> <p lang="en">Need a copy of my book “The Unbroken Machine,” or “Royal Progress,” which I contributed to? Want to give a copy as a gift? Dundurn Press is having a 25% off site wide sale!</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbb4j54sc223?ref_src=embed">2024-11-18T23:53:05.945Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p><strong>Want more Routine Proceedings? <a href="https://www.patreon.com/journo_dale">Become a patron</a> and get exclusive new content. </strong></p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12937</post-id> </item> <item> <title>QP: The “brains and backbone” to defend Canada</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/27/qp-the-brains-and-backbone-to-defend-canada/</link> <comments>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/27/qp-the-brains-and-backbone-to-defend-canada/#comments</comments> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 27 Nov 2024 22:31:18 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Border]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Electoral Reform]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Federalism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Immigration]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Public Health]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Trade]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12928</guid> <description><![CDATA[The prime minister was present and ready to take all questions, as is his usual wont on Wednesdays, and nearly all of the other leaders were also there. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and worried about the threat of … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/27/qp-the-brains-and-backbone-to-defend-canada/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The prime minister was present and ready to take all questions, as is his usual wont on Wednesdays, and nearly all of the other leaders were also there. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and worried about the threat of tariffs from the US, but insisted that our economy, the borders, and the PM himself was weak, and demanded an election so that a “strong leader” could put Canada First<img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/2122.png" alt="™" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />. Just Trudeau said it was ironic because they had given the Conservatives a chance to put Canadians first, but they kept voting against initiatives to help people, such as dental care and the school food programme. Poilievre repeated the mocking falsehood that Trudeau’s only plan was a Zoom call with premiers, Trudeau insisted that while the other guy was putting on a little show, he and his party were there for Canadians, and added that the Conservatives are only sowing chaos and discord. Poilievre switched to English, and once again listed things he considered the government to have “weakened,” and wanted an election so there was someone with the “brains and backbone” to defend the country, to peals of laugher from the Liberal benches. Trudeau said that while Poilievre is concerned only about himself and Trudeau, they were focused on Canadians. Poilievre said that was an example was a sign that Trudeau has lost control, and demanded an election. Trudeau mocked that Poilievre was up all night practicing that line in the mirror, and listed ways that the government was there for Canadians. Poilievre insisted that was a “mass hallucination” and that those programmes don’t exist outside of his head, and again demanded an election. Trudeau said this was an example of Poilievre trying to gaslight Canadians, and used dental care as an example of a programme that is working.</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbxc6o5auc2s" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiepg36abtzbxgifajp6goqc5asxx5ntbqf3hummcesveyfshqlyku"> <p lang="en">Poilievre says that only he has the “brains and backbone” to defend the country.The Liberal benches erupted in peals of laughter. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbxc6o5auc2s?ref_src=embed">2024-11-27T19:33:11.389Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and said that nobody wants Trudeau’s vote-buying Christmas gift, to which Trudeau praised the GST holiday as helping those struggling. Blanchet said that those who need the cheques most won’t get it, and demanded a confidence vote. Trudeau said it was up to the opposition parties to vote to help people rather than engage in petty partisan games.</p> <p>Alexandre Boulerice rose for the NDP to raise the story of a woman on disability who can’t work, but her spouse is a high-income earner and he will get the cheque and not her (which doesn’t seem like a great anecdote). Trudeau mocked that he remembered a time when the NDP stood up for workers, but now they are not supporting this rebate for workers, and said that they wanted the rebate to acknowledge the hard work of workers. Alistair MacGregor took over in English to also denounce that seniors were not getting the cheque, and Trudeau repeated his same mocking in English.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbxckjzbzk2s" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreifugbogtkam6mnxmzqgun7afn6nkgfogxb3gu3fmknpxx4sw4gnba"> <p lang="en">No, that spike of inflation was not the worst we had ever seen. It was much higher and more persistent in the seventies and eighties. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbxckjzbzk2s?ref_src=embed">2024-11-27T19:39:49.718Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p><span id="more-12928"></span>Round two, and Poilievre took a swipe at the NDP before demanding an election (Trudeau: MPs are supposed to represent their constituencies in Ottawa, but Conservatives have to represent their leader in their constituencies, and they need to stand up to their leader), framing an election as a rebate on tax cuts (Trudeau: Cutting the carbon levy would eliminate the rebates people rely on), derided the housing funds (Trudeau: Mayors from Conservative ridings keep telling us how much they rely on these funds), Poilievre mocked that politicians like getting money rather than cutting taxes on people who buy the houses (Trudeau: You would rather pick fights with everyone rather than work together to get things built), Poilievre accused Trudeau of being unable to stay on a single subject, but then changed it again to the carbon levy (Trudeau: I only ever talk about helping Canadians, which you don’t do), and then said that people need a leader who is “in control of himself” and demanded an election (Trudeau: You want to talk about food banks, then let’s talk about the school food programme that you forced your MPs to vote against).</p> <p>Blanchet returned to his feet to say that they could use the money from those cheques to enrich pensions or build housing<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(Trudeau: People are struggling so we are supporting them, and we are giving direct support to workers), and demanded a confidence vote on the measures (Trudeau: You have Opposition Days where you can propose such a motion).</p> <p>Poilievre got back up, and in French, demanded a plan to deal with Trump and worried about expiring visas in Canada (Trudeau: Every year, thousands of visas expire and people return home when they do), Poilievre insisted that they don’t track those numbers (Trudeau: We just put forward an immigration plan to reduce numbers to allow housing to catch up, while our borders are strong), repeated the same concern about not tracking numbers in English (Trudeau: Every year, the vast majority of people return home when their visas expire, and there are mechanisms and consequences if they don’t), and Poilievre denounced that as a weak answer (Trudeau: You are talking down Canada and Canadians).</p> <p>Lisa Marie Barron railed about electoral reform (Trudeau: I would bring in a ranked ballot tomorrow If I could, but why is the NDP is asking about this rather than people having a difficult time?), and Blake Desjarlais thundered about minimum wage and the rebate cheques (Trudeau: Canadians with disabilities will get payments every month starting next year, and the NDP are turning their backs on workers again).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbxdqcfa2c2s" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiepaprg2izn5ktfzh543r3pzj5dskmai32ial7tgnqglfwd4awwiu"> <p lang="en">Mark Gerretsen reads a script about Conservative MPs being muzzled. The Speaker shut it down as it was not about the responsibility of government. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbxdqcfa2c2s?ref_src=embed">2024-11-27T20:00:56.790Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Round three saw yet more questions from Poilievre on the GST holiday (Trudeau: You muzzle your MPs), outright lying about the “liberalisation of hard drugs” (Trudeau: You use struggling people as props to spread fear and misinformation; An evidenced-based and compassionate approach will save lives), claiming the economy is “broken” (Trudeau: You want to cut help to people), the deficit (Trudeau: We will present our economic statement shortly; We will deliver assistance for Canadians that the Conservatives will vote against so he can claim Canada is broken; I won’t take lessons from someone who stays up to practice his little performances in the mirror, and we had the third largest foreign investment in the world last year; We are focused on delivering for Canadians).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>There were also questions about a surge of asylum claims at the border (Trudeau: We renegotiated the Safe Third Country Agreement; You were so proud of your written question that you didn’t listen to my answer), women’s shelters (Trudeau: No one should have to return to a violent or at-risk situation, which is why we are funding provinces and municipalities to support anyone fleeing domestic violence), and our borders being unsecured (Trudeau: Why don’t you turn your friend the Conservative leader why he won’t get his security clearance?).</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">He says, two thirds of the way through <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/QP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#QP</a>. <a href="https://t.co/bFusNgyN1g">https://t.co/bFusNgyN1g</a></p> <p>— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) <a href="https://twitter.com/journo_dale/status/1861861733217845561?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbxdy3dosk2s" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreia3dkrt4ywwqkrhzfwaqcxpyxqjxpvxmfagyojrvpwq4l4nxux6jq"> <p lang="en">Dear Justin Trudeau,Stop trying to make “brokenist” happen. It’s not going to happen. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbxdy3dosk2s?ref_src=embed">2024-11-27T20:05:17.834Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbxeqdlhu22s" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreia6amxisn6lyyhn5stua3e6x4a2yalfkdk22lj7cnxgqr4qhtqreu"> <p lang="en">Trudeau walked into Poilievre’s little rhetorical trap, and it would have been so easy to shut it down but he instead makes himself look even worse. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbxeqdlhu22s?ref_src=embed">2024-11-27T20:18:51.784Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Overall, there were a couple of interesting things happening today. One was that Poilievre kept insisting that Trudeau was unhinged when he gave perfectly rational answers, and called some of the recent social programmes a “mass hallucination that only exists in his mind,” because he<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>is actively trying to build an alternate reality for his followers to believe in as a test of their loyalty to him This is a Trump tactic. Trudeau did respond that this was gaslighting, and for once it’s an appropriate use of the term, because Poilievre’s use of “mass hallucination” and not being in control of himself, which implies that he is trying to convince Trudeau (and others) that he is mentally ill or unstable. This is what separates gaslighting from garden-variety lying.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <p>Two other things—the first was that Trudeau finally articulated a reason for those cheques going out only to workers, which was pretty much a week too late and a thin policy reason about rewarding workers for keeping Canada going through the pandemic and the inflation spike. It also gave him an opportunity to needle the NDP about not being on there for workers anymore, but still, this feels like an ableist policy that was not as well thought-through as it should have been, and the fact that it took a week to articulate why this is intended for workers only is a problem for the government. The second thing was that Trudeau walked right into Poilievre’s rhetorical trap when he refused to discuss just what last year’s deficit number was. Trudeau could have easily shut down the line of questions by saying the number, providing some context about how small it is in the overall size of the economy, and actually looked like he knew what he was talking about. Nevertheless, the insistence on just talking around it just served to make Trudeau look aloof and indifferent, which I can’t imagine why he thinks this is the better way to go.</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbxf5lnca22s" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreides6g3okuipbmmfuzmqs7u6hvu4dnkrhrtv5ppy2gsnzomqjraw4"> <p lang="en">There are now accusations that Sorbara gave the finger to the Conservatives. Everyone is behaving like children. #HoC</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbxf5lnca22s?ref_src=embed">2024-11-27T20:26:16.441Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/karina-gould(88715)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Karina Gould</a> for a dark grey suit with a white top, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/justin-trudeau(58733)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Justin Trudeau</a> for a tailored navy suit with a white shirt and a dark purple tie.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/colin-carrie(25486)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Colin Carrie</a> for a dark grey checkerboard jacket over a white shirt with a multicoloured striped tie and black slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/sonia-sidhu(88703)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sonia Sidhu</a> for a long light grey sleeveless jacket over a bright red turtleneck and khaki slacks.</p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/27/qp-the-brains-and-backbone-to-defend-canada/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>1</slash:comments> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12928</post-id> </item> <item> <title>QP: Boissonnault out vs caucus muzzling</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/20/qp-boissonnault-out-vs-caucus-muzzling/</link> <comments>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/20/qp-boissonnault-out-vs-caucus-muzzling/#comments</comments> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2024 22:52:29 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Border]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Budget 2024]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Electoral Reform]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Immigration]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Inuit]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Randy Boissonnault]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Supply Management]]></category> <category><![CDATA[The Senate]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Tough on Crime]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12905</guid> <description><![CDATA[Fresh from his trips to Peru and Brazil, the prime minister was present for QP today, ready to respond to any and all questions, though his deputy was elsewhere. All of the other leaders were present, and just before QP … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/20/qp-boissonnault-out-vs-caucus-muzzling/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Fresh from his trips to Peru and Brazil, the prime minister was present for QP today, ready to respond to any and all questions, though his deputy was elsewhere. All of the other leaders were present, and just before QP started, it was announced that Randy Boissonnault was stepping away from Cabinet to “clear his name” from the various allegations against him. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, and led off with the various salacious allegations against Boissonnault. Justin Trudeau noted that Boissonnault has left Cabinet to focus on the allegations, but the Conservatives only want to cut. Poilievre raised Jody Wilson-Raybould and tried to compare her to Boissonnault, and Trudeau noted that for a leader who claims to want the truth is muzzling his own caucus. Poilievre switched to English, gave a quip about doubling hosing prices and gun crimes, and up until a minute ago, had a minister with a “double identity,” and Trudeau again repeated the points about Poilievre muzzling his MPs rather than letting them advocate for their communities. Poilievre again tried compare Wilson-Raybould to Boissonnault, and Trudeau repeated that Poilievre won’t let his caucus talk because he’s afraid of what they are going to say about him. Poilievre retorted that twenty Liberals want Trudeau gone, and demanded an election. Trudeau said that MPs on his side were free to share their opinions unlike the other side.</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbfouwlqec2m" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiabssng357zsd4kdhfki5t46sis5stnn3z4gfowmndd7m35aesbnq"> <p lang="en">That threw a wrench in a bunch of planned #QP questions.</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbfouwlqec2m?ref_src=embed">2024-11-20T19:32:28.061Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">He says, sitting in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/QP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#QP</a>. <a href="https://t.co/8C6EpVxf6Z">https://t.co/8C6EpVxf6Z</a></p> <p>— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) <a href="https://twitter.com/journo_dale/status/1859317748767010980?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, said this display proved why Quebec needs to be on its own, and then demanded that the government force the Senate to pass the Supply Management bill. Trudeau noted that his party was in favour of it, and demanded the prime minister personally meet with senators to get them to pass it, and Trudeau noted that he does meet with them often, but regardless, the government will protect the system.</p> <p>Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, complained about the cost of living, and demanded the government support their economically illiterate GST cut plan. Trudeau said that if the NDP was so concerned about the cost of living, they would help the government break the Conservative obstruction in the Chamber. Singh repeated the demand in French, and Trudeau repeated his same response.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <p><span id="more-12905"></span>Round two, and Poilievre got back up to very cleverly wondered which government issued permits and visas (Trudeau: There was a need for more labour support, and we delivered, our economy got back faster than anyone else, and now we are reducing numbers to let housing catch up because the situation changed; These little performances that he puts on aren’t fooling anyone; When you were Harper’s failed housing minister, you only built six units—which isn’t really true), burnished his record as “housing” minister (Trudeau: Your government got out of the business of housing, while we are changing the way housing gets built; You need to get your security clearance), and tried once more in French (Trudeau: There were labour market needs after the lockdowns and the situation has changed).</p> <p>Blanchet got back up read some vague condemnation about the Senate (Trudeau: We are supporting Supply Management and we will protect it even if the bill fails), and again demanded they meet with senators (Trudeau: We will protect it regardless).</p> <p>Poilievre got back on his feet to denounce the G20 trip and claim Trudeau was a hypocrite for it<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(Trudeau: Global inflation and climate change requires us to work together, something he doesn’t do if he can’t even work with his own MPs), gave some falsehoods about food prices (Trudeau: I was talking exactly about putting affordability first even as we fight climate change, not whatever he invented), gave some outright lies about the carbon price (Trudeau: He’s not telling the truth, and he wants to sign up for the higher cost of climate change), and concern trolled about climate change performance (Trudeau: He is misrepresenting the facts for his own benefit).</p> <p>Leah Gazan worried about increasing child poverty and demanded the government adopt the NDP’s GST plan (Trudeau: If you really want to support the school food programme, your party would help stop the Conservative obstruction), and clean water in Inuit communities (Trudeau: We need to move forward on this, which is why we need you to stop slow-walking the clean water bill).</p> <p>Round three saw Poilievre give some complete nonsense about the deficit and inflation (Trudeau: The foundation of your entire economic argument is that help when people need it makes everyone worse, and you only want to cut; We have the best balance sheet in the G7; You only believe in cuts and austerity, and trickle-down that benefits the wealthy and no one else), gave some revisionist history of the last migrant wave under Trump (Trudeau: Protecting our system and our border has always been a priority, and the whole world is dealing with tough times which is why we took steps), funding bureaucracy (Trudeau: You have been attacking mayors and muzzling your MPs), housing (Trudeau: Your own MPs wanted these funds for their communities until you muzzled them; You are directly contradicted by at least 18 of your own MPs who want these funds), the Parole Board not letting victims families attend in person (Trudeau: They are independent, while your government cut funding and won’t get your security clearance; You are just instrumentalising the grief of families for your own personal gain).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>There were also questions about the potential border influx from the Americans (Trudeau: This is a responsibility we take seriously; We acknowledge that Quebec has done more than their fair share, which is why we are compensating them), the “bomb cyclone” versus oil companies (Trudeau: We cut subsidies ahead of everyone else, and are putting a cap on emissions), and a citizen’s assembly on electoral reform (Trudeau: Isn’t it terrible that Conservatives are muzzled?)</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbfqsshmzs2m" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiglv2drdfwqctzhgagjx64i7pmszwavgv5xlvxqthx7kw3inmooji"> <p lang="en">Poilievre is trying to be clever about the deficit, and I just can’t.</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbfqsshmzs2m?ref_src=embed">2024-11-20T20:07:04.107Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbfrhjdvys2m" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreic2vahfspnkstbykdafb5cquxfp3uo6hf2awzcl6wg5pr7jugg44q"> <p lang="en">Poilievre blaming the government for the actions of the Parole Board is always ghoulish disinformation. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbfrhjdvys2m?ref_src=embed">2024-11-20T20:18:39.191Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Overall, the sudden resignation of Boissonnault basically put a wrench in what was likely a whole series of questions that Poilievre was planning to ask about this, all for the sake of more clips, so while Poilievre did still lead on this, he had to dress the questions up a bit more to make them fit the new reality. Trudeau himself was shaper in his responses, not only to Poilievre, where the retort was largely about the news report this morning about the level of caucus control that Poilievre was asserting, but also to the NDP, whom Trudeau called out at every opportunity for allowing the filibuster to continue which wasn’t helping Canadians like they were demanding (though I would have liked to see him explain why their GST cut plan is economically illiterate, but we all know that’s not going to happen). Trudeau was better in some of his responses to the immigration questions, given that he put out that contrition video over the weekend, but still, this was pretty lacklustre.</p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/peter-fragiskatos(88827)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Peter Fragiskatos</a> for a tailored navy three-piece suit with a crisp white shirt and matching pocket square with a lavender tie, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/anita-anand(96081)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anita Anand</a> for a pink jacket over a white button-up top and dark grey slacks.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/leah-gazan(87121)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leah Gazan</a> for a v-necked floral top with wizard sleeves and black leather slacks, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/alain-therrien(104783)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alain Therrien</a> for a light blue jacket with a windowpane pattern over a white shirt, black tie, and faded blue jeans.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Dishonourable mention goes out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/jagmeet-singh(71588)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jagmeet Singh</a> for a black suit and tie with a white shirt and a mustard yellow turban.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/20/qp-boissonnault-out-vs-caucus-muzzling/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>3</slash:comments> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12905</post-id> </item> <item> <title>Roundup: Ignoring the abuse and the banana republic tactics</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/20/roundup-ignoring-the-abuse-and-the-banana-republic-tactics/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2024 10:34:26 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Political Roundup]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Canadian Forces]]></category> <category><![CDATA[CRA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Estimates]]></category> <category><![CDATA[G20]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Immigration]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Irwin Cotler]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mexico]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Privilege]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Randy Boissonnault]]></category> <category><![CDATA[RCMP]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ukraine]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Undermining Parliamentary Democracy]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12903</guid> <description><![CDATA[While on the one hand, it’s nice that legacy media is once again paying attention to the fact that there is an ongoing filibuster in the House of Commons that has largely paralyzed any work for six weeks now, but … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/20/roundup-ignoring-the-abuse-and-the-banana-republic-tactics/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>While on the one hand, it’s nice that legacy media is once again paying attention to the fact that there is an ongoing filibuster in the House of Commons that has largely paralyzed any work for six weeks now, but it would be great if they could actually make a gods damned effort at it. Pretty much every story, and the <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/nearly-two-month-debate-political-gridlock-1.7386424">CBC’s turn</a> was yesterday, just types of the quotes from Karina Gould and Andrew Scheer blaming one another for the filibuster. The current fascination to this story, however, is that the Supplementary Estimates votes are coming up, and every gods damned Hill reporter is dying to use the phrase “American-style government shutdown” to go along with it that they continue to gloss over the actual issues at hand.</p> <p>There is a legitimate issue about the abuse of the parliamentary privilege to demand documents, because the power is only in relation to Parliament summoning those documents for their own purposes, not to turn them over to a third party. The Speaker and the clerks who advise him should never have allowed this to be considered a matter of privilege because the powers are being abused, but this is too much of a “process story” for them, so they don’t like that angle. There is also the even more pressing issue that these powers are being abused in a manner befitting a banana republic, where the powers of the state are being weaponized against those that the legislature doesn’t like, and that should be absolutely alarming to anyone paying attention.</p> <p>This kind of abuse sets precedents, and if it’s allowed to happen now, it’ll be allowed to happen the next time someone wants to abuses these powers. The most that media outlets can muster up is “The RCMP says they don’t want these documents, so why are you so insistent?” but never “Why do you think it’s appropriate to behave like this is a banana republic where you are using the state to go after your perceived enemies?” We are in a particular moment in western democracies where autocrats are threatening to take over, and Viktor Orbán in Hungary has provided them a template to dismantle the guardrails of the state to delegitimize opposition and stay in power as long as possible. This is creeping into Canada, and legacy media in this country needs to be alive to the issue and call out these kinds of tactics and behaviours, rather than just both-sidesing it and using words like “polarized” or “divisive,” because that just plays into their hands.</p> <p>Ukraine Dispatch</p> <p>Ukraine <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/world/europe/ukraine-fires-several-u-s--made-longer-range-missiles-into-russia-for-the-first/article_7a302838-83ff-5027-9e39-192f29f8123d.html">fired</a> eight US-supplied longer-range missiles into Russia, two of them being intercepted, the rest hitting an ammunition supply location. President Zelenskyy <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/zelenskiy-addresses-parliament-ukraine-marks-1000-days-russian-invasion-2024-11-19/">addressed</a> Ukraine’s parliament with a speech to mark the 1,000th day of the invasion.</p> <p>https://twitter.com/defenceu/status/1858871441032155385</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">The Kyiv Independent has compiled a photo gallery of the key events that took place during a nearly three-year-long all-out war that killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions of others.<a href="https://t.co/gxfqE3IzjU">https://t.co/gxfqE3IzjU</a></p> <p>— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) <a href="https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1858960705774645271?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p><span id="more-12903"></span>Good reads:</p> <ul> <li>Justin Trudeau left the G20 in Brazil <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/national/trudeau-says-g20-leaders-statement-on-ukraine-is-not-strong-enough/article_26dd9861-7da8-5f1b-9b0f-37c4b22dc0bb.html">dissatisfied</a> with the weak stance the summit took on Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine.</li> <li>Trudeau also <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/10876679/trudeau-support-randy-boissonnault/">expressed support</a> for Randy Boissonnault (because of course he is—that’s Cabinet solidarity, and he has little choice but to keep him in Cabinet).</li> <li>In her weekly economic update press conference, Chrystia Freeland reiterated that there are <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/national/with-trump-headed-to-white-house-canada-has-its-eyes-on-chinese-investment-in-mexico/article_f05623e6-16d7-58ed-9fac-936c947e3beb.html">concerns</a> about Mexico trans-shipping Chinese goods.</li> <li>Anita Anand <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/national/government-spending-in-limbo-as-tories-liberals-continue-game-of-chicken-in-house/article_bac38b20-189f-5228-a505-15c6cf8c10db.html">warns</a> that government departments will start to run out of money in a few weeks if the Supplementary Estimates aren’t passed (thanks to the filibuster).</li> <li>Marie-Claude Bibeau says the CRA fraud whistleblowers have <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/marie-claude-bibeau-tax-fraud-whistleblower-1.7387944">compromised</a> the investigation and “disclosed instructions” on how to defraud the government.</li> <li>The federal government has <a href="https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/ncc-looks-to-revive-controversial-rochester-field-development-through-land-bank">released</a> more property to the Canada Land Bank to develop into housing, including some new parcels in Ottawa.</li> <li>The <em>Star</em> <a href="https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/pierre-poilievre-claimed-chaplains-were-banned-from-praying-at-remembrance-day-ceremonies-is-that-true/article_d65c13ea-a6af-11ef-8f46-03f2ee757464.html">belatedly fact-checks</a> Poilievre’s bullshit claim that prayer was “banned” at Remembrance Day ceremonies, and lo, finds that it was bullshit.</li> <li>A report cites that one in five immigrants <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/politics/report-finds-1-in-5-newcomers-leave-canada-within-25-years-calls-for-retention-plan/article_a51cdad1-ef5a-5ad8-8265-9e0c918f6f65.html">ultimately leaves</a> Canada within 25 years, and wants a retention strategy.</li> <li>Another report cites that child poverty is once again <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/campaign-2000-national-report-card-child-poverty-1.7387176">increasing</a> as the Canada Child Benefit is no longer able to keep up with the issues it previously addressed.</li> <li>Former justice minister Irwin Cotler says he’s <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/rcmp-foils-plot-to-kill-irwin-cotler-1.7386253">been told</a> by the RCMP that the Iranian plot to kill him has been foiled.</li> <li>A Federal Court judge has <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/caf-vaccine-mandate-lawsuit-dismissed">tossed</a> a lawsuit from current and former military members about the COVID vaccine mandate, as it was vexatious and lacked facts.</li> <li>The NDP are also now <a href="https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/national/ndp-mp-calls-on-boissonnault-to-resign-over-false-claims-to-indigenous-identity/article_a867fd53-8486-5a76-8dd3-eda0be6f0689.html">calling on</a> Randy Boissonnault to resign.</li> <li>My <a href="https://looniepolitics.com/justin-trudeau-tries-contrition-but-is-it-enough/">column</a> looks at Trudeau’s seven-minute video on immigration, and finds both the contrition and the accountability lacking in spite of the effort.</li> </ul> <p>Odds and ends:</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">It’s also against the rules to claim the Speaker is acting with partisan motives. Andrew Scheer made that clear when he was Speaker, for the record.</p> <p>— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) <a href="https://twitter.com/journo_dale/status/1859090428059845049?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbb4j54sc223" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiei2uzv2wluwxsf2t2nn4g4ydcikbvim7csfqpcbqkyivbcwfgyk4"> <p lang="en">Need a copy of my book “The Unbroken Machine,” or “Royal Progress,” which I contributed to? Want to give a copy as a gift? Dundurn Press is having a 25% off site wide sale!</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbb4j54sc223?ref_src=embed">2024-11-18T23:53:05.945Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p><strong>Want more Routine Proceedings? <a href="https://www.patreon.com/journo_dale">Become a patron</a> and get exclusive new content. </strong></p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12903</post-id> </item> <item> <title>QP: Speaker Fergus walks into the trap set for him</title> <link>https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/19/qp-speaker-fergus-walks-into-the-trap-set-for-him/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Dale]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 19 Nov 2024 22:25:20 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Question Period]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Afghanistan]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Border]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Corrections]]></category> <category><![CDATA[CRA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Healthcare]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Privilege]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Randy Boissnnault]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Tough on Crime]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Veterans]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.routineproceedings.com/?p=12901</guid> <description><![CDATA[The PM was wrapping up at the G20, while his deputy was also elsewhere, as were most of the other leaders. Andrew Scheer was there to lead off, and he listed a bunch of specious allegations around Randy Boissonnault, and … <a href="https://www.routineproceedings.com/2024/11/19/qp-speaker-fergus-walks-into-the-trap-set-for-him/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→</span></a>]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The PM was wrapping up at the G20, while his deputy was also elsewhere, as were most of the other leaders. Andrew Scheer was there to lead off, and he listed a bunch of specious allegations around Randy Boissonnault, and Boissonnault responded that he had nothing to do with the person in question. Scheer tried again, listing more salacious allegations, and this time Jean-Yves Duclos responded with the usual lines about Pierre Poilievre not getting his security clearance. Scheer then cited a tweet from Jody Wilson-Raybould that took a swipe at Boissonnault and then got into a back-and-forth with Speaker Fergus about which words he used weren’t parliamentary. Karina Gould got up to to decry the disrespect the Conservatives have been showing the Chamber, and had to start over after a lengthy intervention by the Speaker, who was pretty much exasperated by this point. Fergus then threatened to start taking questions away, before Luc Berthold got up to give the same talking points about Boissonnault in French, and Gould again got up to say that Boissonnault has answered, and it was time to stop the partisan games. Berthold tried one more time, got warned about the use of a first name, and Gould again got up to moralise about how the Conservatives are making a joke of this place.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">He says, sitting in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/QP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#QP</a>. <a href="https://t.co/SkHj19fxWT">https://t.co/SkHj19fxWT</a></p> <p>— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) <a href="https://twitter.com/journo_dale/status/1858956018111152215?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbd6fsck4s23" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreifd2znw5gqqw7ha7t6ficycvg4tvguqjnj3ilbcmqgde43lsq3azu"> <p lang="en">Fergus has pretty much lost the entire Chamber. This is utterly ridiculous. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbd6fsck4s23?ref_src=embed">2024-11-19T19:32:20.904Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Alain Therrien led for the Bloc, and railed about their fraud perpetrated against the CRA and the hunt for the whistleblowers. Marie-Claude Bibeau insisted that this was false and that they took it seriously, and that the Privacy Commissioner was involved. Therrien went on a tear about CRA trying to protect their own backsides, and Bibeau replied that they have not hidden anything and that that they have taken action.</p> <p>Alexandre Boulerice rose for the NDP, and demand the government adopt the NDP’s economically illiterate GST cut plan. François-Philippe Champagne agreed with the framing device that the Conservatives would only cut, while the government is investing in Canadians. Leila Dance made the same demand in English, and Jenna Sudds also agreed that the Conservatives will cut before praising the school food programme.</p> <p><span id="more-12901"></span>Round two, and Melissa Lantsman returned to the Boissonnault allegations (Duclos: It’s unfortunate to hear so many falsehoods in so little time, and your leader needs his clearance; Gould: That’s false and why won’t your leader let his MPs advocate for their communities), Michael Cooper gave the same allegations (Duclos: You are combined a number of falsehoods, and your leader needs his security clearance; Champagne: Security clearance), and Pierre Paul-Hus gave the same in French, and got warned by the Speaker several times (Duclos: We are building 8000 housing units in Quebec, dozens in your own riding, and your leader should go and see them).</p> <p>Kristina Michaud worried about a news story about a passport being issued to a human smuggler (Miller: If this is true, I will do verifications with Service Canada and report back), Julie Vignola worried about what this meant for border safety (Miller: I will come back to the House after I check into this; LeBlanc: We re-invested in CBSA and the RCMP to protect the border).</p> <p>Michael Barrett spun yet more slanderous allegations about Boissonnault, and he too got a warning (Gould: We have yet to hear a question from the Conservatives on this being the 1000th day of Russia’s invasion of a Ukraine, and the Conservatives’ support seems to be wavering), Jamie Schmale did the same (Hajdu: You only want to talk about reconciling when it’s an allegation and not when it is about housing because it record is shameful), and at Garnett Genuis called her out about Boissonnault (Hajdu: Your party is trying to undermine the study of the water bill at committee).</p> <p>Laurel Collins demanded an excess profit tax on oil and gas companies (Wilkinson: We have put in a plan to cut emissions, while you guys started collaborating with the Conservatives), and Matthew Green demanded the government adopt their GST plan (Sudds: I have talked to people at food banks about the importance of the Canada Child Benefit and moving forward with the school food programme).</p> <p>Round three saw several overwrought questions on child killers in the same correctional facilities that have a mother-child living unit (LeBlanc: There are safety measures, and there have been no problems in the 24 years this programme has existed), a possible migrant surge at the border (LeBlanc: We have invested significantly to ensure the border is safe; We have harmonised hours of operation with our US counterparts), falsehoods about the carbon levy (Guilbeault: You never talk about the costs of climate change, and this year we have seen record damages and the year isn’t even over yet; MacAulay: You slashed have a billion dollars from agriculture when you were in government), the SDTC documents (Gould: The levels of disrespect that Conservatives are showing you is unconscionable), housing funds (Fraser: Every time Conservatives take an interest in housing, they manipulate statistics to suit their narrative), a Canadian in the custody of the Taliban (Joly: I can’t speak about it other than to say we will take every measure to bring him home), mental health care (Saks: Mental health is health, and it was part of agreements with the provinces), veterans (Blair: It was shameful that the Conservatives gave a deliberate falsehood about banning prayer—and he too got a warning).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbdajz3j4k2v" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreif7rz3qkyb5nwepc4hrjibtnik3b2vrcv4te7lhohl4sgxtrfscba"> <p lang="en">Frank Caputo is outright lying about what C-83 was. It was about solitary confinement, not prison sentencing levels. #QP</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbdajz3j4k2v?ref_src=embed">2024-11-19T20:10:29.713Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>Overall, it was another absolutely shameless day, where the Conservatives decided to play the game of pushing the Speaker to his absolute limit, and Fergus was frankly ill-equipped to actually deal with it. The tactic by the Conservatives was to use various means to call Boissonnault a “fake,” a “fraud,” and “corrupt,” and when Fergus would warn them and ask them to withdraw the use, they started saying “I withdraw and substitute [another pejorative].” Fergus kept letting this happen, and kept giving ever-longer warnings so that QP stretched on at least a good ten minutes overtime, while his authority was continually undermined the longer it went on. After QP, Fergus went back and called on those Conservatives to withdraw those remarks and when they didn’t, they were expelled for the remainder of the day for not respecting his authority—but by that point, they had their clips, they had their supplemental questions, and they all but spat in his face throughout. He has been far too tolerant, and far too gentle, and not only has decorum largely collapsed, but he no longer has any authority in the Chamber. He should have given one warning, then started naming MPs and expelling them the first time they started to get cute with withdrawing words they know they’re not supposed to use, and if successive MPs kept using those words quite deliberately, they too should have received a single warning then expulsion, and questions being withdrawn for all of the wasted time. He’s not going to be Speaker again after this Parliament, so it’s time to stop walking on eggshells and just start cracking heads.</p> <blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/app.bsky.feed.post/3lbdfq6fbzc2z" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreibfomq574uqdksrwkp4al44p6li4huszaimunhbw5i4ikxhghyjaa"> <p lang="en">Went back and checked—post, #QP, Fergus named one expelled (for the day) Rempel Garner, Barrett and Perkins.This was a tactic by the Conservatives, Fergus fell into the trap, and you can bet that they are making hay about this over social media and in fundraising. #HoC</p> <p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro?ref_src=embed">Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4xqt7t2zph634drigtdxdmro/post/3lbdfq6fbzc2z?ref_src=embed">2024-11-19T21:43:25.313Z</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>There were also a series of completely inappropriate questions on the correctional facilities with mother-child units and the fact that a particular child killer is in a facility that has these units. This was not a real issue, but just ginned-up outrage porn for the sake of their social media clips, and the fact that they had three different MPs give these same bullshit questions in both languages points to the fact that this was just a ghoulish social media campaign that did nothing for the victims of said killer.</p> <p>Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/laurel-collins(105908)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Laurel Collins</a> for a tailored medium-blue shot-sleeved dress with a cut that looked like a jacket but was a single piece, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/charles-sousa(114349)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Charles Sousa</a> for a light grey suit with a white shirt and a lilac tie.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Style citations go out to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/alexandre-boulerice(58775)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alexandre Boulerice</a> for a maroon jacket over a white shirt, bright yellow tie, and blue jeans, and to <a href="https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/marci-ien(107097)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marci Ien</a> for a beige vest with white piping over a black top with red and white stripes.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> ]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12901</post-id> </item> </channel> </rss>