Jan 25 2020 — Susan Delacourt — Toronto Star — Who would have thought that Harry and Meghan would prove to be inspirational to the Conservative leadership race in Canada? On the very heels of the royal couple’s exit, three prominent Conservatives have also chosen the path less public, standing down from a chance to lead the party, with all the fame, duty and title […]

Jan 24 2020 — Matt Gurney — National Post — There is one question that those who are madly speculating Stephen Harper may be about to mount some kind of return to political life have yet to satisfactorily answer. Do you get the sense that he particularly misses his life in the public eye? Is he so unhappy running his own consultancy back home in […]

Jan 24 2020 — Don Braid — Calgary Herald — The talent void in the Conservative party leadership race is prompting strange scenarios among Alberta loyalists. Their first and faintest hope: Stephen Harper comes back, wins the leadership with ease, runs off Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and recreates a Conservative national government. There is no hard evidence for this, but you have to wonder why […]

Jan 24 2020 — Andrew Coyne — Globe and Mail — Perhaps you saw that clip from the CBC’s latest offering, as part of its mandate to “inform, enlighten and entertain” Canadians at the same time as it reflects “Canada’s various geographic, cultural and linguistic realities and identities” while protecting Canadian culture from the ravages of global – but I digress. The show is called Family […]

Jan 23 2020 — John Ivison — National Post — Conservatives are often concerned about the unintended consequences arising from tight regulations. It seems the rigid rules governing their own leadership campaign may be having some unexpected results. Pierre Poilievre is the third prospective candidate in three days to drop a bombshell announcement around supper-time, withdrawing from a race in which he was considered one […]

Jan 23 2020 — Financial Post — Last week I participated in “The Value of Alberta,” a Calgary conference devoted to examining Alberta’s importance to Canada and how the province can achieve a fairer relationship in Confederation. Most Easterners do not appreciate how profoundly frustrated Albertans are about their poor treatment — so frustrated that deeply patriotic citizens are contemplating what should […]

Jan 23 2020 — Mark Goldberg — National Newswatch — Contradicting the popular narrative, a recent set of reports from PwC Canada puts Canadian unlimited mobile wireless plans atop affordability rankings among the G7 countries plus Australia. In December, PwC released “Understanding wireless affordability in Canada” [pdf, 4MB] and earlier this week, it released an addendum, “Impact of unlimited data plans on affordability” [pdf, 1.6MB]. According to the reports, […]

Jan 23 2020 — Lori Turnbull — Globe and Mail — If the evolution of the Conservative movement in Canada had gone differently, Scott Brison would be announcing his candidacy for the party’s leadership. And he’d be at the front of the pack. Mr. Brison was first elected as a Progressive Conservative member of Parliament back in 1997 in the Nova Scotia riding of Kings Hants. […]

Jan 23 2020 — Chris Selley — Postmedia — There is no “Donutgate.” It is not a thing. At a rough guess, perhaps five real people care that Justin Trudeau went to an upmarket instead of mass-market donut shop in Winnipeg to pick up treats for the Liberal cabinet retreat. Five people does not make “scandal,” “outrage” or “controversy.” Not even close. Donutgate is […]

Jan 23 2020 — Don Martin — CTV News — The nobodies are pounding on the door while the somebodies bolt for the exit in a Conservative leadership race hemorrhaging political status and credibility. The lineup is getting messier, murkier and less moderate by the day — and the only smiles are on Liberal faces. Former interim leader Rona Ambrose was the best hope for […]

Jan 22 2020 — John Ivison — National Post — Rona Ambrose is out and she wasn’t even in. The former Conservative minister ended weeks of speculation about whether she would run for the party’s leadership by saying that she is going to pass and “focus on making a difference through the private sector”. She said she struggled with the decision of whether or not […]

Jan 22 2020 — Policy Magazine — Jean Charest acknowledged one problem with the prospect of running for leader of the Conservative Party more than two decades after leaving Ottawa to become Liberal leader and three-term premier of Quebec. “It takes time to reintroduce yourself,” Charest said Tuesday after announcing his decision not to run for the Tory leadership, 22 years after […]

Jan 22 2020 — Susan Delacourt — Toronto Star — Canada’s top public servant has some words of advice to the rookie politicians first elected last fall, which they could print out and frame in their sparkling new Parliament Hill offices. “You are more than a mechanism to make Ottawa work,” Privy Council Clerk Ian Shugart warned at an orientation session for new MPs on […]

Jan 22 2020 — Michael Coren — Maclean's — It was largely inevitable that there would be a conflict between Doug Ford’s Ontario government and the province’s teachers. It happened under former Tory Premier Mike Harris, and it’s happened with various right-wing administrations in other provinces. Put simply, teachers are not popular with conservatives, and their unions have been used as scapegoats by conservative […]

Jan 22 2020 — Jim Stanford — Policy Options — It’s usually taken for granted that the world of work is being fundamentally transformed by the irresistible, tectonic force of technology. Automation and artificial intelligence will destroy some jobs and create others. Digitized business models and on-demand platforms will convert jobs into gigs. Huge gains in productivity could usher in abundant leisure time — or […]