Tag Archives: Rail Safety

QP: In advance of the fiscal update

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Just before the fall fiscal update was to be delivered – in the Commons for the first time in a decade, mind you – Justin Trudeau was elsewhere, despite all other leaders being present. Rona Ambrose led off, raising the forthcoming fiscal update and wondering why the government was doubling down on its failed plan. Bill Morneau said that he was looking forward to talking about the long-term impact of their measures. Ambrose noted that the infrastructure plan only got one project going, but Amarjit Sohi disputed that characterization and praised the agreements with the provinces. Ambrose decried tax increases, and Morneau retorted with the tax cuts they put through in the last year plus the implementation of the Canada Child Benefit. Ambrose then tried to equate Trudeau’s cabinet with Kathleen Wynne’s staffers facing provincial charges as a segue to fundraising issues, and Bardish Chagger read her standard response about the federal rules. Ambrose changed to French and raised the Chrétien-era staffer who was found guilty for Sponsorship-scandal related fraud charges, and Chagger simply repeated her response in French. Thomas Mulcair was up next, asking about police surveillance of a journalist in Quebec. Ralph Goodale responded about the gravity of the situation and the values of freedom of the press, which is spelled out in a ministerial directive. Mulcair pressed, and Goodale spelled out the Supreme Court five-part test. Mulcair moved onto fundraising, and Chagger repeated her standard response. Another round of the same got no different answer.

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QP: Building a conspiracy theory

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Even though Justin Trudeau was not off to Europe for the CETA signing, he was not in Question Period, nor was Thomas Mulcair. Rona Ambrose led off, demanding transparency on the mission in Iraq, saying that the training mission has changed (never mind that it was always billed as “advise and assist.”) Marc Garneau answered, somewhat unexpectedly, and noted that it was advise and assist by that they needed operational security because Daesh was sophisticated. Ambrose tried again, and Garneau repeated the response, but added that a new medical facility in Iraq was being installed. Ambrose then moved onto fundraising and raising the spectre of the lobbying commissioner investigating, but it merely merited a recited response on the strict federal rules. Denis Lebel was up next and raised the issue of a veteran who faced discrimination for her sexual orientation, and Garneau reminded her that society had changed and they were working on a whole-of-government response. Lebel then moved onto the PBO report on the labour market and the loss of jobs reported. Jean-Yves Duclos noted that they were working on job creation. Tracey Ramsey led off for the NDP, decrying the EU trade agreement and the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism. Chrystia Freeland read her astonishment at the lack of NDP support for a progressive trade agreement. Alexandre Boulerice asked again in French, raising the spectre of Quebec dairy farmers and drug prices, but Freeland’s answer didn’t change. Boulerice then raised the fundraising rules, Chagger gave her rote response on federal limits, and Tracey Ramsey gave another go in English for the same response.

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QP: Demanding a technical briefing

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For a second day in a row, all leaders were present in the Commons, ready to go for QP after a morning of caucus meetings. Rona Ambrose led off, asking about the secrecy over whether our Forces were on the front lines in Iraq. Justin Trudeau said that their role in assisting and training was important and dangerous but necessary work. Ambrose worried that the lack of transparency with no technical briefings, and Trudeau noted the need for operational security. Ambrose asked again in French, got the same response. From there, Ambrose went onto fundraising and tried to link ministers going to fundraisers with the former system in Ontario, and Trudeau reminded her that there are strict and transparent rules. She pressed again, but Trudeau responded a bit more forcefully. Thomas Mulcair kept up the fundraising questions, calling activities “unethical” and wanted tougher rules into law. Trudeau reiterated the strict federal laws, and they went another round of the same in French. Mulcair then moved onto funding for First Nations children, demanding support for their Supply Day motion on the subject tomorrow. Trudeau spoke about respect and working in partnership and the noted the investments to date. Mulcair asked again in English, and got much the same response.

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QP: The menace of millionaires

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Despite it being Thursday, there were no leaders present in the Commons today (save Elizabeth May), Justin Trudeau at an Amazon fulfilment centre opening in the GTA, and the others, well, elsewhere. Denis Lebel led off for the opposition, decrying the government not respecting provincial jurisdiction regarding healthcare, and Jane Philpott immediately hit back that the previous government didn’t much care for the file and they were making investments. Lebel asked again in English, and Philpott noted that previous investments did not transform the system as was necessary, which they were engaged in. Lebel then moved onto that Bill Morneau fundraiser in Halifax, and Bardish Chagger stood to take that bullet, assuring him that all rules were obeyed. Candice Bergen took over, decrying the appointment to the Port Authority one of the attendees. Chagger repeated her answer in English, and Bergen took her through one more round of the same. Murray Rankin led off for the NDP, his first time as their new House Leader, and he carried on the same line of questioning. Chagger’s answer didn’t change, leaving it for Brigitte Sansoucy to ask again in French, no avail. Sansoucy moved onto the investments in mental health, to which Philpott insisted that this was not a political issue but one of a responsibility to Canadians and ensuring that the investments translated in better access to care. Rankin asked the same again in English, and Philpott responded with an edge in her tone, assuring him that she does not play politics with mental health.

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QP: Woe be the small business

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While nearly all of the leaders were present today, it was the Prime Minister who was absent today (though he did show up for votes afterward), so when Rona Ambrose led off with another disingenuous questions about taxes, Bill Morneau stood up to remind her that they lowered taxes on millions of households. Ambrose then decried Trudeau meeting with billionaires and demanded that he instead reverse tax increases on small businesses. Morneau reminded her that those taxes went down, and that those meetings were bringing investment to Canada, such as with Thompson Reuters opening that new tech centre in Toronto. Ambrose closed with another overwrought lament about the plight of families, while Morneau responded with a list of the measures they implemented to help families. Denis Lebel took over, and lamented that the federal government was getting too involved in provincial jurisdiction around healthcare. Carolyn Bennett took the question, and reminded him that Jane Philpott was meeting with her provincial counterparts and they waned results for their transfers. Lebel tried again, and Bennett hit back with Maxime Bernier’s plan disband all health transfers. Thomas Mulcair stood up for the NDP, and decried “cuts” to healthcare — despite the fact that there aren’t any. Bennett noted that there was no cut, and reminded Mulcair that his election promise of increased health transfers with a balanced budget would have resulted in cuts across the board. Mulcair tried again, got much the same reply. Mulcair tried to insist that the government was confusing competence with jurisdiction with health spending, and Bennett laid out the divisions. Mulcair demanded that the Prime Minister meet with the premiers to discuss health funding, to which Bennett said there would be a meeting soon.

https://twitter.com/EmmMacfarlane/status/788446704429391873

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QP: More shovels in the ground

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Caucus day, and nearly a full house in the Commons as QP got underway. Rona Ambrose, mini-lectern on desk, was terribly concerned about 190 conditions attached to the Pacific Northwest LNG approval. Justin Trudeau reminded her that the last government’s cheerleading didn’t get them anywhere and they needed to do things differently. Ambrose demanded they get shovels in the ground, but Trudeau stuck to his points about sustainable development. Ambrose shifted gears and was concerned that the first round of deficit spending didn’t spend jobs, to which Trudeau praised the investments they were making in communities. Ambrose went for another round, and Trudeau insisted that the Conservatives didn’t learn the lessons of the last election, and they went one more round on the same question in French. Thomas Mulcair was up next, and he railed about the lack of consultation with local First Nations on the LNG project. Trudeau praised economic growth with environmental protection and they “folded in” the consultations. Mulcair decried that it was now impossible to meet GHG targets, to which Trudeau noted that they need to grow the economy while working to meet targets, so they are working with the provinces to do so. Mulcair wanted approval for their supply day motion for parliamentary oversight over arms sales, and Trudeau spoke instead about participating the arms trade treaty. Mulcair asked again in English, and got much the same answer.

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QP: Pawns on a chessboard

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While Trudeau and a good number of ministers remained at the UN General Assembly, things carried on back in Ottawa. Rona Ambrose led off, reiterating her line from yesterday about our troops not being pawns on the political chessboard of getting a UN Security Council seat. Harjit Sajjan reminded her that nothing was decided about where they would be deployed and they were still gathering information, and then patted himself on the back for how transparent they were being about it all. Ambrose asked a pair of questions about why there was a sudden change of heart on an extradition treaty with China while they still have the dealt penalty, Sajjan said that they were pushing China on that issue. Ambrose then changed topics to the planned CPP increase, and Bill Morneau said that they still planned on keeping TFSAs and that the rate would increase with the Consumer Price Index, and then they went one more round in French. Thomas Mulcair concerned trolled about the Liberals still using Stephen Harper’s GHG targets, and Jim Carr said that they were planning to increase the targets as they went along. Mulcair went another round in French, and Carr reminded him of the pan-Canadian targets being negotiated. Hélène Laverdière asked if the government would repeal the ministerial directive that allows information obtained by torture to be used. Ralph Goodale didn’t make a firm commitment, only noted that they were giving the whole national security apparatus a thorough review and that legislation on a parliamentary oversight body was before the House. Laverdière then returned to the issue of the extradition treaty with China, but got much the same response from Sajjan that he gave before.

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Roundup: The lobbyist’s Senate speculation

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Courtesy of the Hill Times comes a hot mess of an article that speculates that the new independent Senate is going to have a much more active policy role upfront in the future, which…I’m not so sure about. The thesis of this former MP-turned-lobbyist is that the Trudeau gang knows exactly what they got into with their Senate reform plan (err, I’m really, really dubious about that based on what I’ve seen to date), and the loss of top-down Senate management means that Senators need to be brought into the legislative process from the conceptual stage rather than in their current role as revising and amending. Okay, so while his point that no government can take the Senate for granted anymore is true to a certain extent, most governments have paid a price when they did and found that the Senate wasn’t willing to put up with it. And it’s this particular passage that really makes my skin crawl:

Mr. Jordan said that with new dynamics in the Red Chamber, Senators could prove to be a useful ally of opposition parties and lobbyists, especially in majority governments when governing parties can pass any legislation they wish in the House of Commons. So, if an opposition party or a lobby group wants to stop the government from doing anything, their best bet would be to reach out to Senators.

“You could now go to the Senate and rally support,” Mr. Jordan said. “Make your case.”

It feels a little too much like Jordan, a lobbyist himself, is licking his chops at the prospect. It also undermines the role of the Senate as a kind of constitutional safeguard, who has the power of unlimited veto and of institutional independence to say no to a prime minister with a majority when there is no other option to stop an unconstitutional bill, not to become a partisan competition with the Commons. In fact, the Supreme Court reference stated explicitly that it was not the role of the Senate to be that competitor, and yet this is what Jordan both envisions and says that Trudeau must have known when he started making his push for a more independent upper chamber. (Again, I have my doubts). Turning the Senate into the tool of the opposition and lobbyist allies is antithetical to its nature and its purpose, and for him to start putting this kind of nonsense out there is not helpful, whether as a point of speculation or as a meditation on where senate reform is headed. And if anything, it proves that Trudeau didn’t know what can of worms he opened when he kicked his senators out of caucus, but here we are.

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QP: Sharper responses to repetitive questions

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The vast majority of MPs fresh from a convention, you would have thought that the leaders would be there to join them, but no, Elizabeth May was the only party leader present in the Commons for QP on a sweltering day in the Nation’s Capital. Denis Lebel led off, demanding a referendum on electoral reform to ensure that there was proper support. Mark Holland responded, inviting members of the opposition for their input on what kind of a system they would like to see. Lebel repeated the question in English, and Holland brought up the Fair Elections Act. Lebel asked again, and Holland broadened his response to say that it wasn’t just about electoral reform, but about things like mandatory voting or electronic voting. Andrew Scheer was up next, and demanded that the government withdraw the motion to create the electoral reform committee. Holland reiterated the points that people believe that the status quo isn’t good enough. Scheer closed it off with a series of lame hashtag jokes, but Holland praised the dynamic conversation that was about to happen. Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet led off for the NDP, and wanted C-14 referred to the Supreme Court. Jody Wilson-Raybould insisted that they needed to pass the bill before the Supreme Court deadline. The question was repeated in French, and Wilson-Raybould stated that the bill is the best public policy framework going forward. Murray Rankin took over, and pleaded for the government to work with them to get the bill right. Wilson-Raybould’s answer didn’t change, and on a repeated supplemental, Jane Philpott insisted that they need the legislation in place to protect physicians and pharmacists.

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QP: A lid on the anger

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After last night’s insanity and this morning’s third apology, Justin Trudeau was nowhere to be found. Rona Ambrose led off, mini-lectern on desk, and lamented the arrogance of the government while demanding that Motion 6 be withdrawn. Dominic LeBlanc stood up to assure her that they withdrew it. Ambrose wanted to ensure that every MP who wanted to speak on Bill C-14 would be allowed to, and LeBlanc said that they were trying to find a mechanism to extend the hours while keeping the deadline in mind. Ambrose demanded that the government show that they respect MPs, and LeBlanc repeated that they respect parliament but they also respect the deadline. Denis Lebel took over to ask, in French, why the PM lost his temper, and Jane Philpott took this one, reminding them of the sincere apology of the PM and that they wanted to get to work on C-14 deadline. Lebel returned to the question of MPs getting the chance to speak, and LeBlanc repeated his answer about finding a balance. Peter Julian got up for the NDP, and demanded the end of use of time allocation. Dominic LeBlanc said that they were trying to work cooperatively. Julian demanded timetables for legislation, and LeBlanc reminded him of the deadline on bills. Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet cranked up the partisan complaining about time allocation in both official languages, and got much the same answer from LeBlanc.

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