Hello,
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on the federal government to stop approving safe supply drug sites and to conduct a formal review of current ones in the province.
In a letter sent to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and released by the Premier’s office today, Ford thanks the federal government for recently reversing the decriminalization of hard drugs in British Columbia and says Ottawa should now require provincial support for safe supply sites in his province.
The sites, where medical professionals provide prescription medications as a safer alternative to the illegal drug supply, are approved by Health Canada.
Queen’s Park Reporter Laura Stone reports here.
Trudeau was asked about his response to Ford’s letter during a news conference today in Winnipeg. The Prime Minister did not directly refer to the communication from the Premier of Canada’s most populous province.
Rather he said his government will continue to have an approach based on science and compassion as it works to help people having issues with drugs and with the opioid crisis.
We will keep on working with provincial and municipal governments,” he said. “We will always want to have an approach focusing on public health and public safety.”
The Politics Briefing newsletter is taking a break for Monday, Victoria Day. However, it will be back on the beat on Tuesday.
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Ian Bailey. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you're reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
TODAY'S HEADLINES
Trudeau government cuts budget of federal Information Commissioner: Caroline Maynard told the House of Commons committee on access to information, privacy and ethics that the Treasury Board department reduced her budget by $700,000.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre takes no position on hybrid work for federal public servants: Chris Aylward, the national president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, has promised a “summer of discontent” over the matter. On Thursday, he sharply criticized Poilievre for failing to take a specific position on the issue. Meanwhile, CBC reports that Poilievre is also calling for a summer break from federal taxes on fuel.
Trudeau calls New Brunswick’s Conservative government ‘a disgrace’ on women’s rights: Despite his desire to “work with any government” in Canada, the Prime Minister told a news conference in Caraquet, N.B this week: “I do have issues with the current government of New Brunswick.” He said Progressive Conservative Premier Blaine Higgs doesn’t respect a “woman’s right to choose.”
Former riding president alleges meddling in Conservative GTA nomination: CBC reports Anthony Yacub claims that the party pushed him out of the nomination race in the Toronto-area riding of Pickering-Brooklin.
Kielburger mother’s defamation lawsuit against Canadaland to go to trial: An Ontario court has rejected an application to have it thrown out, finding there is reason to believe the claim has “substantial merit.”
B.C. Premier warns about United-Conservative merger: British Columbia’s election campaign has been unofficially launched, five months ahead of the Oct. 19 vote, with NDP Premier David Eby depicting it as “the starkest choice of a generation,” between the NDP and two opposition parties flirting with a merger.
Departing Saskatchewan Speaker makes `disturbing allegations,” and lambastes legislature member: The Saskatoon StarPhoenix reports that, ahead of Randy Weekes’s comments in the legislature, he posted a photo on social media showing his Saskatchewan Party membership card cut in half. Meanwhile, CBC reports that Premier Scott Moe has announced a minor cabinet shuffle ahead of this year’s provincial election.
TODAY’S POLITICAL QUOTES
“Oh. We’re just going to take a little break right now while we take care of this young person.” - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, at the beginning of a news conference in Winnipeg today, after a child in a classroom falls into medical distress as the proceedings begin.
THIS AND THAT
Break week: The Commons and Senate are both on a break, with sitting resuming for both next Tuesday.
Deputy Prime Minister’s Day: Private meetings in Montreal, and Chrystia Freeland, accompanied by Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, toured a community centre, discussed federal budget measures on the national school food program, and held a news conference.
Ministers on the Road: As the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister spotlighted the national school food program in events today, other ministers backed them up. Small-Business Minister Rechie Valdez and Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan held an event on the program in Mississauga. And Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez did an event on the program in Calgary.
Elsewhere: : In Whitehorse, Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge and Yukon Tourism Minister John Streicker co-hosted meetings for federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for culture and heritage. National Revenue Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau made an infrastructure announcement in the Quebec town of Richmond. In Quebec City, Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne talked about local food security. And Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier made an infrastructure announcement in the Quebec town of Carleton-sur-Mer.
In Newfoundland and Labrador: Rural Development Minister Gudie Hutchings attended the official opening of a new $3.2-million small boat basin at Norris Point on the northern peninsula. Also, Hutchings, with Premier Andrew Furey, marked the completion of construction of the visitor centre at Gros Morne National Park, announcing $1,629,144 for three tourism-related projects in Gros Morne.
Outside Canada: Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly is in Greece on the final day of a trip that has included stops in Cyprus, Lebanon and Turkey since May. 13. And International Trade Minister Mary Ng is in the Peruvian city of Arequipa through Saturday for a meeting of Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum. She is also representing Canada at the first APEC joint meeting of ministers for women and ministers responsible for trade.
New ACOA head: A senior Nova Scotia public servant has been named the new president of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. The Prime Minister’s Office announced today that Laura Lee Langley will lead the economic-development agency. Langley current roles in Nova Scotia include being deputy minister in the Premiers’ office, head of the public service and chief executive officer of communications.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
In Winnipeg, Justin Trudeau met with students and educators to discuss the national school food program, then held a news conference, accompanied by Families Minister Jenna Suggs and Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal.
LEADERS
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May met with constituents in her British Columbia riding of Saanich-Gulf Islands.
No schedules released for Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-François Blanchet , Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.
THE DECIBEL
Adrian Morrow, the Globe’s U.S. correspondent based in Washington, is on the podcast today to talk about how Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s team is getting ready for either the re-election of U.S. President Joe Biden or a second Trump term. The Decibel is here.
TRIBUTE
Arthur Irving: The New Brunswick billionaire, who drove Irving Oil to great heights is remembered in an obituary here.
Jaye Robinson: The Toronto city councilor since 2010, who served as both the chair of the Toronto Transit Commissions and the public-works committee, has died, aged 61. CBC reports.
PUBLIC OPINION
Federal Parties in B.C.: Abacus Data, surveying the political scene in British Columbia, report that the federal Conservatives have the support of 44 per cent of committed voters, 18 points ahead of the NDP, in second place, and 26 points ahead the Liberal Party.
OPINION
The towering failure of Ontario and Toronto
“Office buildings have been hit by a one-two punch over the past four years. Workers fled the downtown core of cities in the early weeks of the pandemic. Since then, the rise of remote work looks to make much of that exodus permanent. That’s left Toronto, Canada’s largest city and financial hub, with dozens of underused office buildings and cratering commercial real-estate valuations, at a time of housing shortages and skyrocketing residential rents.” - The Globe and Mail Editorial Board.
Fix this law that makes tenants liable for their landlord’s taxes – pronto
“Do you know where your landlord lives? If they aren’t a Canadian resident, you should be sending a quarter of your rent to the taxman – or you might end up paying your landlord’s bill. That’s what happened to David Siscoe, a Montreal gym owner who rented an apartment for 24 years and thought the landlord with whom he signed a lease in 2010 was a Canadian resident.” - Campbell Clark.
Why does this union leader tweet so much about Gaza, and so little about wages?
“Fred Hahn’s tweets tell a tale about the transformation of Canada’s union movement. The president of CUPE Ontario – the Ontario branch of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, with 280,000 members – is a very active user of the platform now known as X. To advance his members’ interests, he gets his message out there, multiple times a day. But if you arrived in a time machine, fresh from reading Das Kapital, you’d be surprised by what he’s using his digital soapbox for.” - Tony Keller.
If Canada wants to respect and recognize treaty rights, it must kill Bill C-53
“I don’t often write about Métis issues because I’m not a community member. The definition of who is Métis, who is not, and who speaks for them is the subject of much debate among Métis themselves; it is not for me to decide. But I do know that until everything is cleared up, we can’t be changing laws and potentially redrawing maps in ways that are not built on Indigenous laws and protocols. If these efforts were clear, after all, we wouldn’t be passing laws in Parliament; we’d be dealing face to face. And that has not happened.” - Tanya Talaga.
Quebec’s far-left party risks imploding over one word: pragmatism
“Quebeckers first became captivated by Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois during the 2012 Maple Spring, when the then-history undergrad emerged as the star spokesman for striking students who paralyzed the province and its government for weeks. Poised, polished and brimming with confidence and charisma well beyond his 21 years, Mr. Nadeau-Dubois seemed destined for politics. It was always just a matter of him identifying the right political vehicle for his unique talents.” - Konrad Yakabuski.
B.C. legislature a poorer place without Mike de Jong
“One of the longest serving members of the legislature, Mike de Jong, took his leave of the place Thursday, providing a note of grace in a week of partisan recriminations and pre-election speculation. The usual rough fare of the last day of the sitting was set aside while De Jong delivered his valediction. Premier David Eby was at his seat in the chamber, nodding in agreement and joining in the laugh lines from one of the wittiest MLAs. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth delivered a warm introduction to de Jong, his friend and for years his coequal in managing the business of the chamber.” - Vaughn Palmer, The Vancouver Sun.
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Ian Bailey