Jamil Jivani’s solo mission to Washington has provoked confusion and consternation among some of his Conservative colleagues who want to avoid the party looking cozy with Donald Trump’s administration. Jivani, a friend of U.S. Vice-President JD Vance since they attended Yale Law School together, paid a visit to Vance’s office in what he described as an attempt to “build bridges”...
Blair Turner, a police officer from the Ottawa area, says he plans to run for the Conservative nomination in Pierre Poilievre's former riding of Carleton. Turner ran for the Tories in Ottawa South in the most recent federal election in April losing to Defence Minister David McGuinty. Poilievre lost the seat he had held for 20 years and had to...
The Conservative Party of Canada has started the candidate nomination process across the country, according to an internal memo. Ottawa is buzzing with election speculation as Elections Canada lines up offices and recruits staff, Liberals poach candidates and MPs from opposition parties, and the Conservatives have formally launched nomination contests. “In a minority government context, the election could be called...
Rob Lantz will become the next premier of Prince Edward Island after winning the Conservative party leadership race today.
“Inuit are one people” is a message heard from Canadian and Greenlandic Inuit in and around the opening of the new Canadian consulate in Nuuk, and it’s amplified coming from Governor General Mary Simon. Simon says Canadian Inuit are in Nuuk to show their support to the Greenlandic Inuit. She says as an Inuit person herself, her personal relationship with...
Abacus Data, in partnership with the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA), conducted a national survey to understand how Canadians view the housing crisis. This release examines the growing gap between the scale of the problem and the scale of the response, the balance between market and non-market housing, and the policy levers Canadians believe can make a real difference.
The latest federal voter intentions from Mainstreet Research show a surge for the Mark Carney Liberals who now hold a 15 point advantage over the Conservatives. The latest snapshot was fielded over the weekend from January 31 to February 2, 2026 with a sample size of 1,276. This carries a margin of error of +/- 2.7 19 times out of...
The cause was given an exception boost this week. The last week has been a turning point for the Conservative Party of Canada. Its devotees observed the 20th anniversary of the coming to office of Stephen Harper at the head of a reconstructed Conservative party that merged the old Progressive Conservatives and the Canadian Alliance/Reform Party. Stephen Harper thus became...
For the first time since his defeat a decade ago, Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper took centre stage this week with a refreshing show of bipartisanship and a call for national unity — a message the country and his party needed to hear. The occasion was Harperpalooza or Harperfest as some Conservative staffers referred to the celebrations, a week’s worth...
The Ontario Liberal Party says it will select a new leader on Nov. 21, an announcement that kicks off its third leadership race since 2020. Several politicians, both provincially and federally, have been weighing bids and assembling teams in the background but have been waiting for the date and rules of the upcoming leadership race before making any official announcements...
Not even a week after Pierre Poilievre's resounding victory at the leadership review vote in Calgary, the Conservative leader found himself struggling. Why? Because he seemed offside on strategy with the often referred to "Godfather" of his party, Stephen Harper. It was a big week for Harper as he was in Ottawa to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his first...
Prime Minister Mark Carney’s well-crafted and eloquently delivered speech at Davos has been widely noted, and I want to start by offering some praise of my own. The Prime Minister is right to restate what many have said for years: Canada must become more self-reliant, less dependent and work with like-minded countries to advance our interests. Conservatives are, as always...
The whole co-operation initiative was obviously a distasteful task to Pierre Poilievre, one that circumstances and strategists have foisted upon him. When he went to meet Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday to talk about it, his opposite number appeared equally sincere. This was a week when talk of co-operation seemed to be breaking out all over Ottawa. But the...
Former prime minister Stephen Harper spoke at an event earlier this week marking the 20th anniversary since forming his Conservative government. The Political Pulse Panel reviews Harper’s comments on Canada’s relationship with the U.S., and his urging for co-operation among all parties amid America’s aggression.
It is doubtful any country has ever been in quite the national security dilemma Canada now finds itself in: with so much land and so few people to defend it; wedged between two expansionist superpowers, one of which was until very recently our best defence against the other, but which has since become more or less aligned with it. The...
The speech heard round the world has had much impact. Mark Carney’s message to Canadians and everyone else has been widely quoted, lauded, analyzed, criticized and described as the most important speech on Canadian foreign policy since Louis St Laurent’s Grey Lecture at the University of Toronto in 1947. In discussing the speech this week with Ben Rowswell, former Canadian...
Every day, it seems, Donald Trump wields his presidential powers to undermine the Western alliance. Within the past week or so he has threatened new tariffs against Canadian aircraft exports, against South Korea and against any country (but principally Mexico) that sells oil to Cuba. And of course, there was his threat in January to annex Greenland and to tariff...
For decades, Canada has been using a secret, expansive, junk-ridden database of suspected terrorists, operated by the United States government. Known as Tipoff U.S./Canada — or TUSCAN — it serves as a form of no-fly list. Only this one is easier to be added to and harder to get removed from.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is playing with fire. Depending on what happens in the next few months, that fire could consume Smith, her Alberta United Conservative Party government, the province of Alberta, and Canada as we know it today. As premier of Alberta, Smith is trying to play the dangerous game of appeasing the separatist movement in the province while...
What an awfully nice, careful people we are. So reluctant to cause offence, even when someone spits in our collective eye. The tiny group of Alberta separatists, who are openly seeking support from a hostile Trump administration to break up the country are, at least in a political sense, spitting in our eye. They boast about meeting with U.S. officials...
CONSERVATIVE DELEGATES’ resounding show of support for Pierre Poilievre’s leadership in Calgary is more interesting than a more tentative vote would have been. The way people talk about Poilievre in Ottawa and Toronto, including a lot of long-time Conservatives, suggests they think he’s trying to be like Prime Minister Mark Carney, and he’s bad at it. The weekend’s events in...
The unveiling of Stephen Harper’s official parliamentary portrait has provided a moment of unexpected catharsis in Canadian politics. Speaking at an event hosted by the Royal Canadian Geographic Society this week, the former prime minister said there is a tendency in Canada to focus on past mistakes, at the expense of pride in the country’s achievements. The same might be...
As Conservatives celebrate the 20th anniversary of Stephen Harper’s first election victory this week, there’s a lot of chatter about what Pierre Poilievre can learn from his success. In 2006, Mr. Harper captured 36 per cent of the popular vote, and won. In 2025, Mr. Poilievre was a far better vote-getter, earning 41 per cent of the popular vote –...
Another week, another great big beautiful ask from Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. This time, she is demanding a say in federal judicial appointments and is threatening to withhold some provincial funding to help pay for them if Prime Minister Mark Carney says no
I first crossed paths with Stephen Harper in the late 1990s, but only briefly. I had just been elected as a Progressive Conservative, and he had by then moved on from a term in Parliament as a Reform MP to lead the National Citizens Coalition. He remained visible on the Hill due to his significant role in building the Reform...
Suppose there were a country, let’s call it Outlandia, that declared its intent to annex Canada – to take over its territory and subject its people to its rule – if not by military means, certainly by economic. Now suppose a group of fellow travellers within Canada offered to assist Outlandia with its hostile takeover. Nothing violent, mind you, but...
Just before the ceremony in downtown Ottawa in which Stephen Harper’s official portrait as Prime Minister would be unveiled on Tuesday afternoon, huge screens all around the room displayed a more ephemeral photo record of his time in office. The images highlighted what must have been most meaningful to him about that 2006-2015 chapter: the far north, the Canadian military...
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre had a pretty good convention. It seems to have been a well-organized affair, competently pulled off. Poilievre’s speech was well received, and he certainly has nothing to complain about regarding the 87-plus per cent support he got from party members for his continued leadership. So yeah. It’s mostly good news. But the man is facing some...
Credit to Pierre Poilievre: he worked hard to retain the leadership of the Conservative Party, and was rewarded with more than 87-per-cent support of those who attended the Calgary convention last weekend. Like the political opponent he long battled against—former prime minister Justin Trudeau—Poilievre has shown he is a political fighter. True, there were no current challengers for his job...
Without Stephen Harper, Mark Carney wouldn’t be Canada’s prime minister. As ironic as that sounds to say on the 20th anniversary of the first Harper government, I also believe it to be true, even if it might be impossible to prove. Where would Mark Carney be if Stephen Harper hadn’t appointed him to be the next governor of the Bank...
The official residence of the U.S. Ambassador to Canada is truly magnificent. Ringed by 10 acres of private, park-like grounds, the rambling mansion sits in splendid isolation from the surrounding Rockcliffe Park neighbourhood in Ottawa. This winter, Canadians should give its current inhabitant, Pete Hoekstra, more time to discover its many charms. Much, much more time. Since arriving in Canada...
It was perhaps fitting that former prime ministers Stephen Harper and Jean Chrétien came out of the shadows to share the spotlight on Groundhog Day. While neither offered any clue on how long this winter will last, their 30-minute, convivial chat at the Royal Canadian Geographic Society on Monday offered some insights into how Mark Carney could aspire to stay...
The main criticism of Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s convention speech on Friday was that in 40 minutes or so, he didn’t mention the words “Donald Trump” — or how he would respond to the president’s intimidation.
The federal government says it is making more than $1 billion available to Canada Post in the form of a repayable loan to help the beleaguered Crown corporation remain solvent and keep its services running. The $1.01 billion would be provided as needed and is described as a short-term financial bridge. The new sum is in addition to $1.03 billion...
Kirsten Hillman hasn't written her autobiography yet, but the 57-year-old career diplomat -- soon to be Canada's former ambassador to the U.S. -- may already have a title picked out: "Diplomacy is a contact sport." One glance at her CV tells you why. She has been the underdog staring down centre ice as the world's largest economy looks to tear...
Former U.S. president Joe Biden’s top national security official says that while Canada-U.S. relations will have to evolve given the current U.S. president’s trade actions and threats, a deep and sustained relationship moving forward is in both countries’ interests. Jake Sullivan, who served as Biden’s national security advisor from 2021-2025, joined CTV’s Question Period for an interview reflecting on Prime...
Climate experts say emission rules still need to be worked out — and automakers hold much power. Despite widespread approval from provinces and auto manufacturers, Prime Minister Mark Carney's auto plan might not accelerate the transition to electric vehicles as fast as he says. On Thursday, Carney ended Canada's electric vehicle mandate, resumed purchase incentives and said higher standards for...
With federal Conservatives preparing to be ready for an election as soon as this spring, one outstanding question the party must answer is where party leader Pierre Poilievre will run. The party has said it is launching its candidate nomination process and calls have also begun to past candidates, with a view to being ready by
U.S. President Donald Trump’s racist social media post featuring former U.S. president Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, as primates in a jungle was deleted Friday after a backlash from both Republicans and Democrats who criticized the video as offensive. Trump said later Friday that he won’t apologize for the post. “I didn’t make a mistake,” he said. The...
China's top court has overturned the death sentence for accused Canadian drug smuggler Robert Schellenberg, a Canadian official told CBC News. The Supreme People's Court struck down the lower court's sentence on Friday. The source requested anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly on the matter. The New York Times first reported the news. Schellenberg had been found guilty...
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she did not discuss the “broader trade relationship” between Canada and the U.S. when she recently met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington. “Both he and I are cognizant of the fact that the trade file rests with other ministers in our respective governments,” Anand said in an interview with CTV...
Canada's new consulate in Greenland is officially open. The consulate has been operating quietly for several weeks but Gov. Gen. Mary Simon and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand are in Greenland's capital Nuuk for the ceremonial opening today. Anand raised a Canadian flag at the consulate and people gathered spontaneously sang O Canada, while they waved both Canadian and Greenland...
Canada becomes one of the first countries to open a consulate in Greenland following U.S. president's threats. A delegation of Inuit from Canada is in Greenland for the official opening of the new Canadian consulate in the capital, Nuuk, with a stern message for U.S. President Donald Trump: "Back off." Those were the words of Susie-Ann Kudluk, vice-president of the...
Key legislation that offers early retirement to some public servants is tied to the budget implementation bill, but Senator Peter Boehm, a former longtime public servant and deputy minister, said officials began planning for job reductions ‘some time ago' and aren’t waiting for legislation to go through. With federal public servants continuing to receive notices that their jobs may be...
Canada's unemployment rate ticked down to 6.5 per cent in January, but the economy lost 25,000 jobs, Statistics Canada said on Friday. The unemployment rate — the lowest since September 2024 — was the result of fewer people actively searching for work. The data agency also noted that the number of people who were neither employed nor looking for work...
The federal government’s new policy requiring public servants to be in the office for a minimum of four days a week, starting this summer, is about “strengthening the public service,” according to the Treasury Board president’s office. A directive issued late Thursday afternoon said, as of May 4, executives will be required to work onsite five days per week. All...
The Liberal government’s new Defence Industrial Strategy is expected to be released next week, according to industry officials who have been brief about rollout plans for the document. Defence Minister David McGuinty said in late October that the strategy, which will be a critical roadmap on how Canada spends its defence funding domestically, would be released no later than Christmas...
22nd prime minister is speaking out and Canadians are giving his legacy a second look. After a decade at the top of the Canadian political pyramid, former prime minister Stephen Harper largely retreated from public life after his election loss in 2015. While he delivered the occasional speech, gave interviews to some podcasters and endorsed Conservative candidates and causes, Harper...
Agency would become Crown corporation if legislation passes. The federal government introduced legislation that would enshrine its housing agency as a Crown corporation on Thursday, giving it land acquisition authority as well as the ability to partner with private developers — as questions remain over the number of units it intends to build. "We are making a generational decision that...
What’s Canada’s secret weapon to supercharge our economy? Something most of us rarely think about until it’s missing: electricity. Affordable, reliable energy sits at the centre of how we live and work, and how our industries compete. That’s why it was encouraging to see the Prime Minister meeting with provincial and territorial premiers to talk about doubling the power grid...
Conservative MP Jamil Jivani, who has had a long-time friendship with U.S. Vice-President JD Vance, says he had “positive” meetings with U.S. officials in his latest trip to Washington. “I’ve been having some very productive, promising and positive conversations with the White House, with the (U.S.) State Department, with senators representing border states that we do a lot of business...
Canada will open a new consulate in Greenland on Friday, a show of diplomatic support as rattled Nordic islanders there react to President Donald Trump’s aggressive rhetoric about acquiring their homeland. In Nuuk, many say Trump’s attention is leaving them feeling ground down — and yearning to be left alone — in spite of allies in Canada and Europe rallying...
The federal government is ordering public servants to be in the office at least four days a week starting this summer, with executives expected to return to the office full time in May. A Treasury Board message to deputy department heads published Thursday said executives will have to work on-site five days per week starting May 4. All other employees...
The Trump administration would “absolutely not” eliminate all of its tariffs on Canada if Ottawa did the same for American goods, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday, citing Canada’s recent trade agreement with China and the threat of Chinese electric vehicles. During testimony in front of the U.S. Senate banking committee, Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana asked Bessent...
Former B.C. Conservative leader John Rustad says he will "make himself available" to talk about a potential bid for his old job next week when the legislature resumes in Victoria. Rustad says he has "no comment" about a report, which says he has received and requested a leadership application, but promises to discuss the issue when the legislative session starts...
The Canadian Bar Association is speaking out against Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's call for more input on the selection of federal judges. Smith says if Alberta doesn't get more say on future judicial appointments to the province's superior courts and the Supreme Court of Canada, her government would hold back money those judges need to do their jobs.
The former federal cabinet minister responsible for the law dictating what happens after a provincial separation vote says Premier Danielle Smith must answer questions before a referendum. Stephane Dion, a former Liberal leader, tabled the Clarity Act in 1999 after the unsuccessful referendum in Quebec four years earlier. The act says a vote with a clear majority in favour of...
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson wouldn’t rule out allowing Chinese state-owned companies from buying majority stakes in Canada’s oil patch, when asked directly whether that would be a red line for the federal government. “We will look at every investment from every country against the Investment Canada Act, and we will accept investments that are a net benefit...
Up to $5,000 business or lease incentives coming for EVs. Prime Minister Mark Carney is repealing Canada’s electric vehicle mandate that required all new car sales to be electric in a decade, scrapping another Trudeau-era environmental policy. Instead, Carney is taking his own approach by introducing stronger greenhouse gas emission standards for vehicle models 2027-2032 to encourage automakers to produce...
Prime Minister Mark Carney's pledge to NATO allies that Canada will spend the equivalent of five per cent of GDP on defence will cost the country an extra $33.5 billion a year, the Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer says. A PBO report released today says all that extra defence spending will push up the federal budget deficit by $6...
B.C. NDP MP Gord Johns endorsed his caucus colleague Heather McPherson for the NDP leadership on Thursday. Johns told The Canadian Press he's backing the Alberta MP because he sees McPherson as someone who can grow the party, noting she won her Edmonton riding for a third term. He said McPherson's ability to connect with voters and her broad knowledge...
Russia used Ukrainian separatists as a Trojan Horse. Could it happen here? Communications between the Trump administration and Alberta's separatist movement raised alarm at the highest levels in Canada last week. It also raised questions about Washington's possible intentions. Some even see dangerous parallels between American efforts to inflame Alberta separatism and the Russian campaign to gin up a separatist...
Former prime minister says Canada should consider hitting U.S. goods with tariffs as trade war drags on. Former prime minister Stephen Harper said late Wednesday that Canada must urgently pivot in the face of an erratic U.S. president and reduce its dependence on the American market to protect its sovereignty and the continued functioning of the economy. Speaking at a...
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump received rare blowback from Republican lawmakers over a video posted to social media that included a racist image of former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, depicted as primates.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump plans to convene the first meeting of his Board of Peace this month in Washington to raise money for the reconstruction of Gaza.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ever since a racist video was posted on President Donald Trump's social media account, the White House has offered shifting responses.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s racist social media post featuring former U.S. president Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, as primates in a jungle was deleted Friday after a backlash from both Republicans and Democrats who criticized the video as offensive. Trump said later Friday that he won’t apologize for the post. “I didn’t make a mistake,” he said. The...
Kirsten Hillman hasn't written her autobiography yet, but the 57-year-old career diplomat -- soon to be Canada's former ambassador to the U.S. -- may already have a title picked out: "Diplomacy is a contact sport." One glance at her CV tells you why. She has been the underdog staring down centre ice as the world's largest economy looks to tear...
Former U.S. president Joe Biden’s top national security official says that while Canada-U.S. relations will have to evolve given the current U.S. president’s trade actions and threats, a deep and sustained relationship moving forward is in both countries’ interests. Jake Sullivan, who served as Biden’s national security advisor from 2021-2025, joined CTV’s Question Period for an interview reflecting on Prime...
U.S. President Donald Trump’s racist social media post featuring former U.S. president Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, as primates in a jungle was deleted Friday after a backlash from both Republicans and Democrats who criticized the video as offensive. Trump said later Friday that he won’t apologize for the post. “I didn’t make a mistake,” he said. The...
China's top court has overturned the death sentence for accused Canadian drug smuggler Robert Schellenberg, a Canadian official told CBC News. The Supreme People's Court struck down the lower court's sentence on Friday. The source requested anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly on the matter. The New York Times first reported the news. Schellenberg had been found guilty...
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she did not discuss the “broader trade relationship” between Canada and the U.S. when she recently met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington. “Both he and I are cognizant of the fact that the trade file rests with other ministers in our respective governments,” Anand said in an interview with CTV...
Since the legalization of medical assistance in dying (MAiD) in 2016, the federal government has created certain safeguards and regulatory mechanisms – including data collection – to ensure that people don’t request death because they lack access to care, including palliative care.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s widely praised speech last week in Davos was most notable for its frankness in admitting the hypocrisy behind Western support for a selectively enforced “rules-based international order.” But it also pulled no punches in calling out the coercive measures that great powers — including the United States — are increasingly employing to advance their interests.
A collection of SubStack publishing within Canadian public affairs.
The head of Ottawa’s public service got an earful from the federal information commissioner about the dismal state of access to information – the sign of a growing rift between the Liberal government and Parliament’s watchdog on transparency. At a Nov. 12 meeting, Caroline Maynard presented Michael Sabia, clerk of the Privy Council, with statistics detailing the deterioration of the...
The RCMP has handed out 23 awards for excellence to officers and employees in Nova Scotia for their performance during the April 2020 mass murders, in which a gunman impersonating a Mountie murdered 22 people in cold blood.
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) gets a lot of flak for its processing of Access to Information Act (ATIA) requests, especially for its long delays to respond. But lately they’ve been doing a few things right.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has unveiled the government's new auto strategy – which pulls the plug on the EV sales mandate, but includes measures to encourage Canadians to buy EVs and companies to build and sell those cars here. Host Catherine Cullen asks Industry Minister Mélanie Joly why taxpayers should continue to spend money to help automakers. Then, auto industry...
Not even a week after Pierre Poilievre's resounding victory at the leadership review vote in Calgary, the Conservative leader found himself struggling. Why? Because he seemed offside on strategy with the often referred to "Godfather" of his party, Stephen Harper. It was a big week for Harper as he was in Ottawa to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his first...
Peter Mazereeuw speaks with Mireille Lalancette (Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières) and Éric Bélanger (McGill University), the co-holders of the Quebec Research Chair on Democracy, Living Together and Common Values, about the rise in support for the provincial Parti Québécois, which has promised another referendum on leaving Canada.
Prime Minister Mark Carney drops Canada’s EV mandate as part of a plan to strengthen the auto sector in the face of U.S. trade threats. Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives strike a new collaborative tone. And Stephen Harper's calls for unity. Rosemary Barton hosts Chantal Hébert, Andrew Coyne and Althia Raj.
