Monday, November 2, 2026

Canada’s Politics and Government News Source Since 1989

Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem's rate hike is the first since 2023 after the central bank held the rate seven consecutive times. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Bank of Canada hikes interest rate to contain inflation, but economists are split over timing

newsBY RIDDHI KACHHELA

Governor Tiff Macklem says the hike in the rate is necessary to prevent high energy prices from impacting overall costs for Canadians, as inflation is projected to rise to about 3.5 per cent by the end of 2026.

Alberta referendum questions were ‘misleading,’ not ‘plain English,’ say NDP MP McPherson, Senator Simons

newsBY ELEANOR WAND

B.C. voters back ‘chill guy’ Doerkson, punish Eby for ‘cynicism’ in election call, say politicos

newsBY MARLO GLASS

Wainwright investigation must include ‘hard questions’ to ensure it doesn’t happen again, current and former military officials say

newsBY MARLO GLASS

Carney’s high popularity, referendum win, and a new right-of-centre party could help Liberals win 10-15 more seats in Alberta in next election, say some politicos

newsBY ABBAS RANA

Mounting federal debt ‘concerning,’ but economists say Canada’s finances are ‘sustainable’ ahead of Nov. 5 budget

newsBY RIDDHI KACHHELA

Canada should be ‘careful’ ahead of U.S. midterms, say some political players, but former MP McKay calls interference accusations ‘absurd’

newsBY ELEANOR WAND

Tech sector lobbying picks up with questions about new Ottawa agency for streamlining tech use, procurement

newsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Electricity in winter not a ‘convenience’ but ‘a matter of public safety,’ says Yukon energy minister, as territorial officials seek feds’ help to reduce energy poverty in the North

newsBY TESSIE SANCI

Ottawa says private contractor can clear 97,000 air-passenger complaint backlog faster, but won’t say how long it would take

newsBY MZWANDILE PONCANA

Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab is expected to table the government's new 2027–29 immigration levels plan in November. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Feds’ new ‘neoliberal’ immigration measures fail to address labour shortages, say critics

newsBY IREM KOCA

A list of 186 eligible occupations ‘fails to recognize many occupations where there are significant labour shortages in Canada,’ says immigration lawyer Adrienne Smith.

Provincial-territorial health ministers ‘welcome’ extra year of mental health, home-care dollars, but want ‘assurance’ that longer deals are coming, says Manitoba minister

newsBY TESSIE SANCI

Liberals set to update access-to-information law: watchdog

newsBY DAVIS LEGREE

Ottawa wants regulators to take on more major project reviews. Are they equipped for the job?

newsBY MZWANDILE PONCANA

Crowds of people

Pay equity delays pile up for women in federal jobs as union alleges bad faith at Canadian Food Inspection Agency

newsBY MZWANDILE PONCANA

Parliamentary Calendar

Ambassador Hoekstra, former cabinet minister Raitt to speak at IIF Canada Forum

Podcast

Alberta vs. the Constitution—Gerard Kennedy on the ‘other nine’ referendum questions

news

What makes a ‘good’ lobbyist? A lot

feature

Associate EU membership back on the table

Podcast

Minister Eleanor Olszewski weighs in on the Alberta referendum

Prime Minister Mark Carney's, centre right, team of top fundraising ministers—including Mélanie Joly, Tim Hodgson, Rechie Valdez, François-Philippe Champagne, Anita Anand—have begun to outpace Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's, left, solo prominence since the 2025 election. The Hill Times photographs by Aidan Raynor and Andrew Meade, and illustration by Joey Sabourin

Poilievre raised estimated $20-million for Conservatives since 2022, Carney and cabinet ministers work to outpace one-man show

newsBY STUART BENSON, AIDAN RAYNOR

In the second part of a series on political fundraising, The Hill Times looks at Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s surge to top-performing fundraiser since late 2022, and Prime Minister Mark Carney’s team of top-performing ministers and ridings helping him reinvigorate the party’s war chest.

Canada should continue to speak ‘loudly and clearly’ despite U.S. envoy’s interference claims, say former diplomats and ex-MP

newsBY NEIL MOSS

‘There’s nothing worse than uncertainty’: cattle sector looks to slow Mercosur trade stampede

newsBY STUART BENSON

Carney championed territorial integrity in Davos, but will Cyprus be on the agenda in Turkey?

newsBY NEIL MOSS

‘Constructive’ and ‘credible’: Saint-Germain retires with some parting advice for Senators

newsBY LAURA RYCKEWAERT

Liberals tout support for Alberta after decisive vote rejecting separation referendum

newsBY ELEANOR WAND

Mark Carney

Parliament ‘united in grief,’ pauses to reflect on ‘unimaginable heroism’ following deadly fire at Alberta military base

newsBY MARLO GLASS, ELEANOR WAND

Parliamentary Calendar

SecState McLean, ex-MP Keith Martin to attend party fundraiser hosted by Esquimalt-Saanich-Sooke Federal Liberal Association on July 21

Podcast

‘Creating Canada as the enemy’: What a PQ government means for Canadian politics

news

Lobbying under Carney: ‘it is a very different Liberal government’

opinion

Where is the PQ taking Quebec?

Podcast

Sheila Copps on Carney, Poilievre, her time in the Chrétien cabinet and more

Prime Minister Mark Carney's Building Canada Strong Act proposes creating 'regions of national interest' where projects could be pre-approved after an assessment of the region by the Impact Assessment Agency. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

‘Work needed’ to develop policy around ‘regions of national interest,’ says impact assessment head

newsBY RIDDHI KACHHELA

Bill C-39 should make clear what constitutes ‘national interest’ for regions or risk them becoming ‘sacrifice zones,’ says one critic before the special Senate committee studying the Building Canada Strong Act.

Public Health Agency recorded $331-million loss on damaged or expired emergency medical supplies: AG report

newsBY MZWANDILE PONCANA

‘You’re paid well, do your damn job’: House rules should stop backbench MPs from ‘moonlighting,’ say current and former MPs and experts

newsBY ABBAS RANA

New clinical guidelines committee moves forward after 2024 breast cancer screening debacle

newsBY TESSIE SANCI

Long shot for Conservatives to win Scarborough North byelection, but EDA president aims to turn the riding blue

newsBY ABBAS RANA

Prime Minister Mark Carney's government has created a climate 'better for entrepreneurs in general,' but there is still 'a lot of room to grow here,' according to Laurent Carbonneau, vice-president of policy and advocacy with the Council of Canadian Innovators. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Innovation and private sector ‘not the enemy’ under Carney government, but tax reforms needed to support entrepreneurs, say innovation sector reps

newsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Canada ranked 16th overall out of 139 economies in the 2026 Global Innovation Index, a slight improvement over its 17th spot the previous year.

Lobbyists push for tax changes in hydrogen production, phosphate mining in next federal budget

newsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Alexander Jeglic,

‘There’s a danger in removing transparency’ amid questions about Defence Investment Agency oversight: ombud

newsBY IREM KOCA

Politics This Morning

First Nation chiefs take their grievances to Carney and the premiers

Carney meets businesspeople in Istanbul

Referendum finale

All hands on deck for Alberta

Covid-19

Feds should show low-income Canadians the same grace extended to yacht and private jet owners

Feds announce $8-million for emergency response to Ebola outbreak

Conservative MP, experts call for broad review of COVID-19 decision-making to help prepare for next major health threat

Feds should conduct a broad review of pandemic decision-making, so we’re better prepared for next major health crisis

Election

Is Eby’s blunder the worst in Canadian political history?

MPs, feds tout collaboration after Quebec elects sovereigntist PQ government

Expect a more ‘hostile’ government in Quebec City, say strategists, as question of PQ majority-minority looms over election

Quebec: where ‘exemplary’ translates into bad news

Politics

Time for Canada to relieve women of the ‘third shift’

LRB scoops up new parl affairs, research director from Treasury Board president’s team

The PQ’s tepid mandate

Danielle Smith has boxed herself into a corner

Foreign Policy

Firing back at Trump in the trade war

Canada can issue you a passport—and still ask you to prove you are Canadian

Baseless U.S. accusations of Canadian interference in midterm elections should stop

Carney’s courting Turkey, but his opportunity is Armenia

Finance and budget

Next budget will be one of toughest in recent years

Mark Carney

Canada mobilized the world’s capital. Now it has to help companies scale

Canada’s productivity problem starts with the decisions we force people to make

Mark Carney

Canada’s next housing strategy starts with Budget 2026

Lobbying

Some lobbyists, stakeholders blame ‘risk averse’ ministerial staffers and non-stop cabinet shuffle speculation for reduced access to top officials

Critique shouldn’t open the door to communications chill for cultural bodies

Lobbying Act reform risks undermining democratic engagement

Aerospace industry pushes for Transport Canada certification process to keep up with expanded defence spending; Joly top-lobbied minister in July

Legislation

Mark Carney

Canada’s next housing strategy starts with Budget 2026

Women need better health care. A national framework can help deliver it

Claiming the second-generation cutoff disproportionally affects Indigenous women and girls dishonours MMIWG+

Canada needs to look beyond kids and social media to address online harms

Public service

Halfway through the public service workforce reduction, program officers and clerks at CRA and ESDC face the axe, security-related departments are growing, and executives are largely spared

Public servants report exit pay delays

Public servant’s $42,151 transition-payment cheque goes missing as job cuts test federal pay system

People walk past the The Wellington Building in downtown Ottawa on Sept. 15, 2026. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

It’s time to flatten the federal public service’s rigid military-like chain of command, from the clerk down to the managers

The Hill Times Newspaper

PEOPLE.
POLICY.
POLITICS.

Subscribers have
full access to the
digital newspaper.

Already a subscriber?

Log in here.

ISSUE: 10-28-2026

DOWNLOAD

PEOPLE.
POLICY.
POLITICS.

Subscribers have
full access to the
digital newspaper.

Already a subscriber?

Log in here.

ISSUE: 10-26-2026

DOWNLOAD

PEOPLE.
POLICY.
POLITICS.

Subscribers have
full access to the
digital newspaper.

Already a subscriber?

Log in here.

ISSUE: 10-21-2026

DOWNLOAD

VIEW PAST ISSUES