I’m sure that in the minds of MPs, yesterday’s meeting of the Government Operations committee was going to be the high point of the calendar. Dominic Barton was coming to testify, and boy, were they going to blow open the case about how McKinsey got so many contracts with the federal government, or about what Barton knew about the Perdue Pharma scandal, and if they were really good, they could draw some kind of line between Perdue, Barton, Justin Trudeau, and the opioid crisis, and then dine out for weeks on the clips.

It really didn’t turn out that way. I mean, sure, opposition MPs were showboating for all they were worth, whether it was Stephanie Kusie being obnoxious, Garnett Genuis trying to pick fights, or Gord Johns’ unctuous sanctimony. Yves-François Blanchet personally turned up to try and get answers about what McKinsey allegedly told the government about immigration levels. But all of it was pretty much for naught.

I’m not sure which is worse: MPs performatively acting tough for the cameras, or MPs delivering unctuous sanctimony for the cameras. #OGGO

— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) February 1, 2023

Barton largely shut down most of their lines of attack. No, he’s not a close personal friend of the prime minister—they don’t go to dinner, he doesn’t have his personal phone number, they don’t hang out. There was no personal relationship so it didn’t win McKinsey any government contracts, and he wasn’t involved in any of those contracts regardless because he had been in Asia since 1996. He also denied knowing what McKinsey was doing with Perdue Pharma, because it wasn’t his area of responsibility, and he asked several times if they understood how a company like McKinsey operates. Really, he was asked to serve his country, and he did because he wanted to give back, is how he tells it. He also made the point that the civil service’s human resources systems are week, and need to be revamped with better training for civil servants if they want to cut down on the reliance on outside consultants, and he’s absolutely right about that (and yes, I have talked to people who study these things about that).

In all, it was just another example of how our Commons committees are largely dysfunctional and are nothing but theatre that we were unfortunate enough to be subjected to for two solid hours of bullshit. Because our Parliament is such a serious institution these days.

Ukraine Dispatch, Day 344:

Russian forces shelled Bakhmut and ten towns and villages surrounding it, as they continue their advance on the strategically important city. (There are a couple of accounts of life in Bakhmut currently, here and here). As well, they destroyed an apartment building in Kramatorsk, because you know, they’re totally not targeting civilians. Meanwhile, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s crackdown on graft continues, with a raid carried out at the Tax Office and the home of a former interior minister.

Kramatorsk. Russian terrorists have hit the city with a ballistic missile leading to civilian casualties. Some people are still under the rubble. No goal other than terror. The only way to stop Russian terrorism is to defeat it. By tanks. Fighter jets. Long-range missiles. pic.twitter.com/jYlltDDl1G

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 1, 2023

This evening, a russian missile almost completely destroyed an apartment building in the center of Kramatorsk. Two dead and 7 wounded have already been found. Rescue operations are ongoing. People's cries for help can be heard from under the rubble. pic.twitter.com/mcHQPdZ102

— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) February 1, 2023

Good reads:

• Justin Trudeau met with BC Premier David Eby after Question Period yesterday.
• David Lametti is likely to table the bill to delay the MAiD expansion in statute before the end of the week.
• Jonathan Wilkinson says that the “sustainable jobs” plan will be unveiled this spring, with the legislation to follow at some point later.
• The child care legislation passed second reading with Conservative support (where one assumes they will try to gut it in committee and then vote against it).
• The House of Commons voted unanimously on a non-binding motion to resettle 10,000 displaced Uyghurs, and the government says they’ll work on it.
• The Sport Integrity Commissioner says more provinces need to buy into the system, and more rules need to be harmonised in order to tackle abuse in sport.
• The Competition Bureau is investigating the forestry industry’s claims about sustainable management, as there are complaints that it’s false advertising.
• There is concern that standards for long-term care won’t amount to much unless there is more staff who have full-time hours and better pay.
• AFN national chief RoseAnne Archibald distrusts the outside investigators probing allegations of workplace harassment because they’re not Indigenous.
• The Louis Bull Tribe in Alberta has signed an agreement about child welfare with the federal government, but not with the provincial government.
• A lawsuit has been launched over restrictions around gay and bisexual men from donating sperm for general use.
• Special representative Amira Elghawaby met with Yves-François Blanchet and publicly apologised if she sounded like she was calling Quebeckers racists.
• Candice Bergen has told the Conservative caucus that she will be resigning.
• Jagmeet Singh wants Trudeau to use the Canada Health Act to stop all private care delivery, which is going to be difficult given how much is already privately delivered.
• The Ontario government is arguing in court that they can’t increase treaty payments to First Nations because of the cost of infrastructure to exploit their resources.

Odds and ends:

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