Apr 20 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — If Liberal MPs disagree with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision to punish a colleague for voting against the party line, they weren’t saying so Friday — in stark contrast to a similar situation in the NDP. “Scott Simms is a fine member of Parliament and we’ll continue to make a real difference for the people […]
Apr 20 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — Liberal delegates gathered in Halifax were told Thursday they need to have the “prime minister’s back” as the Grits brace for a tough fight in the 2019 election. Nova Scotia Liberal Premier Stephen McNeil told the crowd of approximately 1,200 — though more than 2,700 have registered — that this weekend wasn’t just about celebrating […]
Apr 20 2018 — Zi-Ann Lum — Huffington Post — The glass doors of the Halifax Convention Centre opened to some 2,850 registered Liberal delegates Thursday, as the party kicked off its biannual policy convention. More than 20 per cent of the delegates are under the age of 25. Fifty-five per cent have not attended a convention in the last decade. The party’s leadership says […]
Apr 19 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — A longtime Liberal MP who voted against the federal government’s controversial Canada Summer Jobs attestation has been removed from his job as a committee chair. Scott Simms was quietly ousted as chairman of the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans Monday — losing a $11,900 salary bump that comes with the job.
Apr 16 2018 — Zi-Ann Lum and Althia Raj — Huffington Post — The Liberal government is being hoodwinked by Houston-based Kinder Morgan to get its contentious Trans Mountain pipeline expansion built, Elizabeth May charged Monday. “Kinder Morgan has executed an extremely effective piece of blackmail,” the Green Party leader spoke to reporters as members of Parliament returned to the House of Commons after a two-week constituency break.
Apr 14 2018 — Zi-Ann Lum — Huffington Post — The Indian High Commission says a story being used by Conservatives to attack the federal government over the Jaspal Atwal affair is false. International media reports claimed a bilateral meeting between India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland was scrapped as a result of waning relations after the prime minister’s […]
Apr 11 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — Should Jagmeet Singh run for the Montreal seat held by his predecessor Thomas Mulcair? That’s a question the current NDP leader says he’s still seriously pondering. “I’m considering all my options,” Singh told reporters Wednesday about possibly running in Outremont. He’s listening to counsel and is “always open to hearing folks’ input on any byelection […]
Apr 10 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — As the federal cabinet meets Tuesday to chart a path forward for the Kinder Morgan pipeline, a Toronto lawyer is urging the prime minister to temporarily suspend the normal rules of order and invoke the Emergencies Act. If Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is serious about getting the Kinder Morgan expansion built, Ian Blue, a counsel […]
Mar 29 2018 — Ryan Maloney — Huffington Post — A week of heated debate over a government official’s briefing to the media ended with federal Conservatives accusing the Liberal government of “muzzling journalists.” Tory MP Mark Strahl made the charge in question period Thursday while pressing Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale on the Liberals’ refusal to let Daniel Jean testify at committee on the […]
Mar 27 2018 — Zi-Ann Lum — Huffington Post — Despite what the calendar says, it’s seemingly Groundhog Day in the House of Commons after the government and Opposition repeated the same question and answer about the Jaspal Atwal affair in question period Monday. Conservatives kept poking the government to answer if the prime minister had any knowledge that his national security advisor, Daniel Jean, […]
Mar 26 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — Canada’s labour minister says she’s willing to rejig the language of the controversial attestation that faith groups, not-for-profit organizations, First Nations, and small business must sign in order to qualify for federal student summer job funding. But not until next year. Speaking to HuffPost Canada Monday, Patty Hajdu, the minister of employment, workforce development and […]
Mar 23 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer suggested Friday that he doesn’t want to know any government intelligence related to a former attempted murderer’s presence on the prime minister’s trip to India unless all members of Parliament receive the same information. As a former speaker of the House of Commons, Scheer is a member of the Privy Council […]
Mar 23 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — As MPs braced for some 40 hours of round-the-clock voting Thursday evening, they found clever ways of passing the time. HuffPost Canada found B.C. Conservative MP Dan Albas watching what looked like Ultimate Fighting Championship on his iPad. Liberal MP Matt DeCourcey watched basketball.
Mar 22 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — As Conservative MPs hold the House of Commons hostage over a failed attempt to convince the Liberals to allow a top public servant to testify on the prime minister’s disastrous trip to India, HuffPost Canada has learned the government offered to brief Tory Leader Andrew Scheer on the situation. Scheer’s spokesman, however, said the Conservative […]
Mar 22 2018 — Althia Raj — Huffington Post — The PM says the current system just doesn’t work. Hours before a crucial vote that could see a major campaign promise derailed, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is warning his Senate appointees that it’s not their job to defeat his government’s legislation. Speaking in New Brunswick where Trudeau was re-announcing new government benefits, the prime minister […]