“Do we really want a committee,” an incredulous Pablo Rodriguez, Government House Leader, asked reporters on Tuesday, “that has the power to force the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, all ministers, to drop their work, the important work they’re doing and come testify?” There you have the nub of the question, at least as […]

It reads like satire now but five years ago, the Trudeau Liberals were elected on a platform that promised electoral reform; stronger Access to Information legislation; an end to the use of omnibus bills and prorogation; and, more robust parliamentary committees that could better hold the government to account.

There’s a golden opportunity hiding in the deafening political brinksmanship that is consuming Parliament Hill right now. As a way to steer clear of the Conservatives’ insistence that a committee be set up to air out every existing document on the WE Charity scandal, the Liberals are trying to entice them with an alternative: a […]

While the mantra for the COVID-19 crisis has been “let’s build back better,” it will be impossible to do so without acknowledging that this pandemic has hit demographic groups unequally. Immigrant women faced many challenges in the workforce before COVID, but this pandemic has had a way of further exacerbating existing social and economic inequities. […]

Canadians overwhelmingly hope former U.S. vice-president Joe Biden will win in the November presidential election. If he does, he plans on introducing a slate of new “Buy American” policies as part of a pandemic recovery program. Though some segments in Canada may cringe at that thought, it is not such a bad thing.

TRANSITION PLAN — Who has Joe Biden’s ear? With the countdown on to Election Day, that’s what Canadian officials are trying to find out. Biden may not take Trump’s bare-knuckle approach to U.S.-Canada relations, but that doesn’t mean a Biden presidency would be smooth sailing, what with his “Buy American” pledges and the Democrats’ tradition […]

In terms of Canadian politics, something extraordinary happened recently. Three MPs, from three different political parties, came together to have a positive discussion about what unites them and how they can work together. In our hyperpartisan world, this alone might be notable. But what really made this inspired was the vehicle they identified to achieve […]

Just how diverse is the federal public service? This question recently has attracted more scrutiny, particularly when it comes to the inclusion of Black Canadians in the bureaucracy. Before February, no Black person had made it to the deputy minister rank of the public service – Caroline Xavier is now associate deputy minister of immigration, […]

Two weeks until election day and everyone is still holding their breath.  2016 taught everyone to distrust the national polls as it became clear that Americans were in a surly mood, providing Donald Trump the ultimate victory.  But this year, especially at the state level, Joe Biden and the Democrats appear to be riding some […]

Vancouver is one of Canada’s most beautiful cities, framed by breathtaking mountains and sparkling seas, and blessed with the country’s mildest climate as a bonus. But there’s a dark side to the Pacific coast postcard: grinding poverty, growing homelessness and Canada’s worst drug-overdose epidemic, problems made progressively worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.