Hello,
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland is in the process of reaching out to premiers who want to get a better deal on federal equalization payments through the courts.
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey announced plans in May to go to court over its concerns, and British Columbia Premier David Eby said in early June his government may join the East Coast province in its legal efforts.
Asked about the topic today, Freeland told a news conference in Ottawa that she has been talking to Furey, and hopes to have a chat with Eby later this week.
She did not elaborate on what was accomplished in the outreach to Furey, or what she hopes to get done by talking with his B.C. counterpart.
Instead, Freeland said equalization is an incredibly important national program.
“I think all of us as Canadians need to be really grateful to the far-sighted past generation of Canadians who put it in place. It’s one of the things that knits our country together,” she said.
“It’s one of the things that makes it possible for Canadians, wherever they live, to have a comparable level of public service, to have a comparable social safety net.”
When it announced its court action, Newfoundland and Labrador said the existing system puts the province at a disadvantage.
B.C.’s Eby has also said his province is not getting its fair share of federal funding for its needs.
Furey’s communications director Meghan McCabe said a court action had not been filed, but that she expected one to be in the next few weeks.
Last week, Furey was in Vancouver for talks with Eby, and the two premiers discussed their equalization concerns at length.
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TODAY'S HEADLINES
Senate passes bill to ban replacement workers in federally regulated workplaces: The legislation was a key element of the Liberals’ political pact with the New Democrats, and passed through the House of Commons with unanimous support. Union leaders have lauded the changes as a win for worker protections and bargaining power.
Trudeau welcomes inquiry decision to probe allegations of parliamentarians colluding with foreign states: In an interview with CBC’s Power and Politics, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canadians should be assured that Justice Marie-Josée Hogue will determine the scope of parliamentarians who may have been compromised.
Family sues after B.C. Catholic hospital denies MAID request on religious grounds: The family of a terminal cancer patient who had to transfer health care facilities to receive medical assistance in dying is suing British Columbia and two health authorities, arguing that it is a violation of Charter rights for publicly funded care sites to deny the procedure on religious grounds.
Canada sanctions 13 more Russians for role in Navalny’s imprisonment and death: Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, was scheduled to arrive in Ottawa today for meetings with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly but her visit was postponed after her plane had technical issues.
PQ leader tells Legault to drop his ‘unhealthy defeatism’ on independence: One day after François Legault said holding another sovereignty referendum would be irresponsible because Quebec would be weakened if it was lost, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon said Legault is more interested in his own re-election than the future of the country. The Montreal Gazette reports.
Trudeau interview on Power & Politics: CBC has posted their interview with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday afternoon here.
TODAY’S POLITICAL QUOTES
“A lot of people talk about, `Oh yeah. You learned how to be a politician from your Dad.’ I didn’t learn how to be a politician from my Dad. I learned a bit about being a prime minister from my Dad, but learning how to be a politician happened on the ground in the community of Papineau, which some of you may know is a challenging part of Montreal where there are real, real struggles that people have.” – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivering remarks in Ottawa today at a surprise appearance before the United Way Centraide Conference.
“I would like to stress to media that it is fairly superficial to only speak about 2 per cent without examining how the funding is going to be spent in the short and the long term.” – Treasury Board President Anita Anand, a former defence minister, arriving for today’s cabinet meeting in Ottawa, on the debate about Canada spending at least 2 per cent of its GDP on defence. Meanwhile, a record number of NATO allies hit defence spending targets during the war in Ukraine.
“Mr. Poilievre expects to be the next prime minister of Canada. At that moment, he will have access to all sorts of information. He could not refuse to read the reports he will receive then, saying, `No. I don’t want to read your security report because I want to speak freely.’“ – Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, during a news conference in the House of Commons today, on foreign interference and Pierre Poilievre, the federal Conservative leader declining to seek a security clearance to view the CSIS report. ???
THIS AND THAT
Today in the Commons: Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, June 18, accessible here.
Deputy Prime Minister’s Day: Chrystia Freeland, following private meetings, attended the weekly cabinet meeting, and later provided a news conference update on the government’s economic plan.
Commons Committee Highlights: Canadian Labour Congress President Bea Bruske was among the witnesses appearing this morning before the House finance committee on changes to capital gains and corresponding measures announced in the federal budget. Representatives of Amnistie internationale Canada francophone, Human Rights Watch and the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights were scheduled to testify before the subcommittee on international human rights on the current situation in Sudan. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Commissioner Michael Duheme and Mark Flynn, the deputy commissioner of federal policing, appeared before the public-accounts committee on the ArriveCan report of the Auditor-General of Canada.
Salmon aquaculture announcement scheduled: Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier will “announce the path forward for salmon aquaculture in British Columbia” at a 4 p.m. ET news conference in Ottawa on Wednesday. Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife has a story here on what Lebouthillier will be talking about.
Exclude Modi from G7 meeting: As it marks the death of Hardeep Singh Nijjar of B.C., allegedly at the hands of agents of the Indian government, the World Sikh Organization of Canada is urging Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to ensure Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not invited to the G7 meeting scheduled to take place in Kananaskis in 2025. “Sikhs do not wish to see India’s Prime Minister enter Canada with the blood of Canadian Sikhs on his hands,” Organization President Danish Singh said. At the conclusion of last week’s G7 leaders’ summit in Italy, Trudeau was asked about Modi being invited to next year’s summit. The prime minister said, “I will have more to say about next year’s G7 when we assume the presidency next year,” he said.
PRIME MINISTER'S DAY
Justin Trudeau delivered remarks to the United Way Centraide Conference in Ottawa, then chaired the weekly cabinet meeting and attended Question Period. In the late afternoon, Trudeau was scheduled to deliver remarks and present the Prime Minister’s Awards for Teaching Excellence.
LEADERS
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet held a news conference ahead of Question Period then attended Question Period
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, in Toronto for the day, campaigned for Christian Cullis, the Green candidate in the Toronto-St. Paul’s by-election, and attended an evening fundraising event for Cullis.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh attended Question Period.
No schedules released for Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
THE DECIBEL
Today’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast features Decibel host Menaka Raman-Wilms, producer Rachel Levy-McLaughlin and Globe and Mail columnist Marcus Gee travelling to Point Pelee National Park to see the spring migration in which thousands of birds touch down as a key stop along their migratory routes from the Southern U.S., Central and South America to northern Canada. The Decibel is here.
OPINION
Calgary needs clarity on its water crisis
“A catastrophic rupture in Calgary’s most critical water artery on June 5 has left one of Canada’s largest cities parched for much of this month. With the major feeder shut down, the water system for 1.7 million people is operating at about half its normal capacity. On Friday, the crisis escalated, with Calgary officials announcing that five ‘hot spots’ will have to be repaired before the water system can resume normal operations. Mayor Jyoti Gondek declared a formal state of emergency over the weekend.” – The Globe and Mail Editorial Board.
Knowing how to reverse an overdose is an essential skill for students living in the toxic drug era
“Never mind the moralistic condemnation of drug use. The reality is that teenagers and young adults have always and will always experiment with drugs, from alcohol to cannabis and beyond. We need to equip them with the knowledge to minimize the potential harms of youthful indiscretion, not just serve up “Just say No” bromides.” – André Picard
Pierre Poilievre can prove he’s a grown-up and read the NSICOP report. But what would be the point?
“Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has every partisan political reason to resist calls to read the classified version of the watchdog report into foreign meddling and alleged collaboration from Canadian parliamentarians. His party’s support in the polls is sky-high. The Liberals’ support is the worst it’s been since 2015. He has a clear, solid line of attack in demanding Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “release the names” implicated in the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) report, the redacted version of which was released earlier this month.” – Robyn Urback.
The foreign interference revelations show that Trudeau’s security committee is fulfilling its mandate
“One of the bitter ironies in the dismal, long-running foreign interference saga is that Justin Trudeau – whose lack of leadership on this issue has been so disturbing – did one smart thing six years ago that is helping us get to the bottom of the mess. In 2018, Ralph Goodale, then Mr. Trudeau’s public safety minister, established the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP), which earlier this month released a report alleging MPs and senators have been compromised by China and India.” – Stephen Maher.
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