MPs have an important chance to update a consequential piece of federal legislation—an opportunity that should not be squandered for the sake of advancing party interests.
Floor-crossings are not unusual in parliamentary democracies around the world. MPs switch parties for a variety of reasons, and there is no law or ethics rule that prevents them from doing so. Let the people decide.
The prime minister’s first video report is an optimistic opening gambit, with the commitment to address what isn’t working setting itself up as the real benchmark of accountability.
Canada has called for a ‘de-escalation and a sustained ceasefire’ in Iran. Prime Minister Mark Carney says all parties should respect international laws and the rules of engagement. Although the Canadian government is in a difficult position with the upcoming review of the Canada-U.S. Mexico trade agreement and we live next door to the United States, the prime minister must be more direct in his comments about the legality of this war because it’s the right thing to do and puts Canada on the right side of history.
Canadians want leadership and decisiveness in the face of global instability, and effective opposition is crucial to ensuring that both of those things happen.
MPs spend significant time away from their families, travel between their ridings and Ottawa, and work on House committees. They should be fairly compensated for the amount of work time they put in and they should be paid a competitively. But they should also be in Ottawa more.
As the elected representatives, House MPs do their best to serve their constituents, but the sword of re-election and pleasing the majority will always hang overhead. A Senate that has the time to truly study bills and make them better is in everyone’s best interests.
What happened on March 9 at the Confederation Building is not only a good news story of how a young person’s life was saved, it also reinforces the notion that miracles do happen, that we need to look out for each other, and that lives can change in an instant.
The Carney government has made no secret of its desire to move quickly and get things done. But those things should not also be done in secret.
Annette Ryan wants the job and promises to hold the government’s feet to the fire. The House and Senate should give her the chance to do that.
Making priorities cohesive while simultaneously slicing spending should be more of a focus if the goal is to win hearts and minds beyond the current polling boon.
Not taking Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre seriously would be a serious miscalculation, and the Liberals would do so at their own peril. The Liberals also should not get cocky.
Canada does need the NDP, and it’s time for the party to work out to how to credibly contribute in a way that resonates, and not get shunted off to the fringe while the ‘adults’ are talking.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has given Canadians hope and is a savvy leader for our times, but he should be listening to his caucus, too. The Liberals who have been speaking anonymously to The Hill Times are right: attacking a sovereign nation without authorization from the UN Security Council violates international law. His MPs would have told him that.
Prime Minister Mark Carney missed an opportunity to demonstrate that his speeches aren’t just for international audiences, but also for Canadians, in the people’s house.
Despite the differing styles of previous officers, the government should make this appointment a top priority when Parliament returns this week because, as the Organisation for the Economic Co-Operation and Development pointed out in its first-ever review of the PBO (which was conducted at Jason Jacques’ request), this office is the best in the world.
If Prime Minister Mark Carney was running behind schedule in India, he should have used the lengthy flight to his next destination to answer reporters’ questions about all of the very consequential decisions he had just made.
If past is precedent, then one only needs to look at the PM’s recent trip to China where business and ‘respecting each other’s differences’ took priority over addressing the issue of transnational repression.
The grand old Ottawa Union Station should be brought back to its original purpose and glory. Our city needs a train station downtown to best serve the people of Ottawa, tourists, MPs, Senators, cabinet ministers, and staffers. Think big for this beautiful city and for the generations to come.
Demanding that public servants get little-to-no flexibility when it comes to their workplace while MPs permit themselves the opposite seems off.
The House should seriously consider these reforms in order to make the Commons a more democratic place of substance—not just quips and digs—and motivate MPs to be more fully present—which includes appearing in person—in the House to engage in the debates that contribute to important policy-making decisions.
It shouldn’t only fall to Albertan public figures who no longer hold political office, like former premier Jason Kenney or past prime minister Stephen Harper, to speak up for federalism.
It’s a lot to ask of the populations of three territories to help protect an entire country through the use of their land if they don’t have reasonable access to electricity, housing, and publicly-funded health care in Canada.
Now is the time to demonstrate that we’re all in this together by actually making Canadians feel as though they’re part of a team, and don’t have to keep their heads on a swivel to see where the axe will fall next.
Prime Minister Carney has made many Canadians proud in the past two weeks. He’s also offered hope to other countries. But now is the time to engage more Canadians and explain his next steps because he will need the people to be on his side, engaged and hopeful.
