Hello,
A day after the Speaker ordered Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre out of the House of Commons during a tumultuous Question Period, the proceedings were comparatively quiet and restrained.
Greg Fergus took note of the tranquility, and urged all members to continue “in the positive vein which I think Canadians have noticed that members have been taking today.”
Among other issues, Poilievre and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau fenced over when the federal government would act on recriminalizing drug use in British Columbia, and whether Poilievre would denounce extremists the Liberals have linked him to.
But in the hours leading to Question Period, Conservatives arriving for their caucus meeting had said they had no confidence in Fergus.
On Tuesday, Tories said Fergus failed to act in a non-partisan way and was biased in censuring Poilievre while allowing unparliamentary language from the Liberals.
In response, Mathieu Gravel, a spokesperson for Fergus, said today that the Speaker has no intention of resigning.
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TODAY’S HEADLINES
BREAKING – The federal Treasury Board said in a statement issued this afternoon that federal public servants will have to work in their offices a minimum three days a week, up from two to three days.
Jagmeet Singh confirms NDP will support Liberals’ federal budget: The NDP Leader’s declaration today ends any speculation that the party could pull out of its deal with the minority Liberal government.
Liberal MP leaving politics over disrespectful dialogue, threats, misogyny: Toronto-area member Pam Damoff, who was first elected in 2015, says she’s proud of her time in politics but it is no longer for her, and it’s time to turn the page to a new chapter.
What’s next for British Columbia’s decriminalization experiment: B.C. Provincial Health Officer Bonnie Henry is calling on communities to provide the missing supports that widespread public drug use exposed during decriminalization, including more supervised consumption sites.
Quebec judge rejects request for injunction against pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University: Justice Chantal Masse ruled today that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate that their access to the school was being blocked or that they would be unable to write their final exams.
Federal cabinet minister Randy Boissonnault linked to PPE company embroiled in lawsuits: Global News reports that the Employment Minister remained listed as director of a medical supply company for more than a year while it was competing for provincial and municipal contracts.
Canadian spy agency says it shared details of Chinese hacking with parliamentary officials: The Communications Security Establishment says it did its job by passing the U.S. information on to parliamentary administrators in June, 2022.
B.C. Conservatives’ ‘biological sex’ sports bill is quickly quashed in legislature: The proposal by party leader John Rustad was voted down at first reading, a rarity in the B.C. legislature.
Two by-elections loom for Ontario; Milton race high stakes: Voters in two Ontario ridings head to the polls in a pair of by-elections Thursday, but most eyes will be on a town in the Greater Toronto Area, where the tight race comes with high stakes for both the Premier and the new Liberal Leader.
TODAY’S POLITICAL QUOTES
“I like Mr. Fergus a lot. He’s a great guy. He’s very nice. But in order to do this job, you need someone with certain qualities and they’re not easy to find. So I think if there’s a vote to determine whether Mr. Fergus should resign, what happened yesterday has nothing to do with that.” - Bloc Québécois House Leader Alain Therrien, during a media availability at the House of Commons today.
“If the Speaker makes a ruling, I think what the response of a parliamentarian should be is you accept the ruling and then you move on ... I took my lumps. I moved on. I didn’t tell my whole caucus to leave the chamber. We continued to do our jobs to hold the government to account.” - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh during a media availability on Parliament Hill, commenting on this week’s Commons conflict and an occasion in which a former Speaker kicked him out of the House.
“We have asked B.C. for updates and more information on what they have submitted to us. We understand that this is urgent, which is why we have asked them to respond to us on an urgent basis, so that we can address this.” - Mental Health and Addictions Minister Ya’ara Saks on expediting a request from British Columbia for drug recriminalization.
“I have two great challenges. One is getting the money, and the second one is spending the money. It’s kind of hard to believe how difficult it is to spend defence money.” Defence Minister Bill Blair speaks today at an event in Ottawa held by the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.
THIS AND THAT
Today in the Commons: Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, May 1, accessible here.
Deputy Prime Minister’s day: Chrystia Freeland held private meetings in Ottawa and attended the Liberal caucus meeting. Freeland was also scheduled to make a health-care announcement with Citizens’ Services Minister Terry Beech, Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan, and Public Services Minister Jean-Yves Duclos.
Commons committee highlights: Philippe Dufresne, Canada’s Privacy Commissioner, appears before the national-defence committee on transparency within the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.
Senate committee highlights: New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs appears before the transport and communications committee at 6:45 p.m. on Bill S-273. Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem and senior deputy governor Carolyn Rogers appear before the banking, commerce and economy committee at 4:15 p.m.
Liberal nomination, Toronto-St. Paul’s: Federal Liberals are holding a nomination meeting tonight for the riding previously held by former cabinet minister Carolyn Bennett. The two candidates are Leslie Church, formerly a chief of staff and policy director for Freeland, and Emma Richardson, most recently a senior adviser to the United Nations division of Global Affairs Canada.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
Justin Trudeau attended the weekly Liberal caucus meeting and was scheduled to attend Question Period.
LEADERS
No schedule provided for Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet attended Question Period.
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May participated in an event marking Flora’s Walk and also met with Nature Canada representatives as part of the annual Nature on the Hill event. In the evening, she was to speak at a reception to commemorate victims of the Armenian genocide.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh attended the NDP caucus meeting, later held a media availability and participated in Question Period.
THE DECIBEL
Today’s podcast features Ben Kaplan, general manager of iRun Magazine, Allison Hill, co-founder of Hill Run Club, and members of The Decibel’s own running club explain how distance running has grown more inclusive and diverse, drawing in a whole new generation of runners. The Decibel is here.
PUBLIC OPINION
Switching parties: A new Leger poll finds the Conservatives with a 21-point lead over the federal Liberals, but also finds that 18 per cent of respondents are somewhat or very likely to change the party they now favour in the next election.
OPINION
B.C.’s hard lesson on hard drugs
“Ahead of the decriminalization of simple possession of hard drugs in British Columbia last year, there was widespread acknowledgment that decades of arresting people struggling with addiction had failed. In 2020, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police endorsed decriminalization. Arrests had, the chiefs said, ‘proven to be ineffective’; they recognized ‘substance use disorder as a public health issue.’ That was one essential shift that led to Ottawa’s backing of B.C.’s plan to – for an initial three-year trial – remove criminal penalties on drugs such as opioids and cocaine, starting in early 2023.” - The Globe and Mail Editorial Board.
Pierre Poilievre gets kicked out of the schoolyard
“Now there is no doubt that these two hate each other. Tuesday’s Question Period was one of the nastiest in a long time. There have been occasional fireworks since Mr. Poilievre’s debut as Opposition Leader in 2022, but often he has been taking whacks at a demoralized Liberal front bench. What changed this week was the Liberals found their own line of attack, and it really angered Mr. Poilievre and the Conservatives.” - Campbell Clark.
Could you lose your family doctor because of higher capital gains taxes? That does not compute
“A 2022 survey of 9,000 Canadians found that more than one in five adults do not have a family doctor. The share of the population without a regular place of primary medical care ranges from a low of 13 per cent in Ontario to 27 per cent in British Columbia to a whopping 31 per cent in Atlantic Canada and Quebec. That means the long-term health forecast for a whole lot of Canadians is: worse health.” - Tony Keller.
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Ian Bailey