Ministerial Question Period in the Senate was actually being held a time that wasn’t counter-programming with QP in the Other Place, and so I was able to make it for a change. Today’s minister being grilled was Patty Hajdu, minister of jobs and families and minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario. As is usual for ministerial QP in the Senate, there is a longer clock for questions and answers, and the whole exercise is about 65 minutes and not 45, so it’s quite a different exercise than in the Commons.
At the Senate to watch Patty Hajdu for #SenQP.
— Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social) 2025-12-09T21:01:30.634Z
Senator Housakos led off, and he read a script about food insecurity and grocery costs, housing, and cost of living. Hajdu thanked the Senate for the invitation, before rattling off the government’s support programmes, and those benefits that are indexed to inflation, with some added back-patting for the school food programme. Housakos demanded the government change their methodology to get a different results, and Hajdu raised that report after report points to climate change affecting the price of food, they can control the supports for families who need it, which again got some back-patting for their programmes.
Senator Poirier asked about the Auditor General’s report on child care and the federal spending. Hajdu threatened to start reading quotes from families who benefit before noting that she just met with her provincial counterpart in Ontario, who agreed with the Auditor General about providing more data, and that it’s provinces who have the levers here. She asked about space in Manitoba in particular, and Hajdu said that they committed to growing those spaces with the province, while some provinces need to train more staff.
Senator Mohamed asked about the youth skills programme, and that need more than just short-term spaces but long-term placements in high-demand sectors. Hajdu again noted the challenge of provincial data not aligning with the federal data, which is why the prime minister had previous announced sector strategies with provinces, unions and employers. She added that there be a “sector alliance” with the care economy, per the previous question about training child care staff. Mohamed wanted a dashboard across the country to show metrics for these job investments, and Hajdu agreed they can do a better job of it.
Senator Arnot worried about provincial clawbacks for the Canadian Disability Benefit, and the need for provincial agreements. Hajdu gave some boilerplate about supporting people with disabilities, and said that the Benefit was never meant to replace provincial benefits but add to them, and said that they have raised it with that particular province. Arnot wanted recognition of the scale of the employment gap for disabled Canadians and wanted transparent reporting on it, and Hajdu again noted that this was once again an issue of provincial data, which they were working toward getting more of.
Senator Robinson asked about the pledge to double non-U.S. exports, and the potential of the agricultural sector, which needs more labour including temporary foreign workers. Hajdu noted that the changes to the TFW programme hasn’t changed for agricultural workers, but was reducing for the low-wage stream. Robinson said the labour shortage meant a loss of $3.2 billion of the sector. Hajdu said that it’s important to protect not only the programme, but also the workers and ensure that their safety is protected.
Senator Hay returned to the issue of youth unemployment, and warned about the mental health pressures with those youth. Hajdu raised her previous work with that senator during COVID, and talked about purpose and connection to community for those youth, and praised programmes like Canada Summer Jobs and the promised climate corps. Hay asked about a report on framework reform, particularly on changes to the Employment Equity Act. Hajdu said that she is concerned about threats on diversity, and that she has asked her department for the report on their consultations on this.
Senator McCallum asked the missed deadlines for a First Nations programme review, and Hajdu noted that it’s not her file, but she will pass the concern along. McCallum wanted treatment options in southern Manitoba, and Hajdu said that in her previous role, she ensured that these community responses were self-developed, and she would work with minster Gull-Masty on this. McCallum asked about the First Nations Child Welfare reform progress, and Hajdu again said this is under her colleague’s file which she cannot answer about. McCallum then asked about Manitoba misappropriating federal funds for child and family services, and Hajdu again said that this isn’t her file, but she carries with her when she worked with those communities when she was minister.
Senator Moodie asked about the international ranking on status of children, and why Canada has not progressed. Hajdu praised the Canada Child Benefit, dental care, school food programme, child care, and other programmes that they have instituted. She also noted this is a joint responsibility with provinces. Moodie noted that these programmes work independently of one another and progress is not tracked, and that there is no coordination between levels of government. Hajdu said that she has raised this with the Secretary of State for children and youth, and that they are working with provinces around coordination.
Senator Cormier asked about independent artists not qualifying for EI, and some artists want the programme adapted to meet their needs. Hajdu said that this is a good opportunity to modernise social safety nets like EI, and wanted to work more on it. Cormier asked about other supports for artists, to which Hajdu directed him to speak to Marc Miller about those programmes.
Senator Robinson was back to asked about the shaping of the making the national school food programme being made permanent. Hajdu noted it was part of her portfolio, but would also fall under agriculture because they want to privilege Canadian food products. Robinson praised the attention to supply chain concerns, and Hajdu noted that she learned about the complexity of the supply chain as minster responsible for CFIA during the pandemic.
Senator Cardozo returned to the issue of youth unemployment, and wanted to work together with her in bringing in the private sector to do more about this. Hajdu listed off programmes and agreements in progress, and said she was convening a summit with provincial counterparts about it, and wanted to take him up on his offer. Cardozo asked about the sector councils to identify their human resource needs, and Hajdu returned to the launch of the “sectoral alliances” that the PM had previously announced.
Senator Martin worried about direct foreign investment fleeing the country, to which Hajdu hit back that Canadians demonstrated confidence in the government six months ago in the election. Martin expressed disbelief in the government’s economic record, and Hajdu replied with the usual boilerplate reassurances.
Senator Housakos returned, and took a swipe at Hajdu and the Algoma Steel loans and mockingly asked if this was a result of climate change. Hajdu praised the steel sector, and that this was about saving a crucial industry, and they saved 1700 jobs while they get new customers lined up. Housakos listed other companies that then laid off staff, and Hajdu said that they continue to bet on Canada and Canadian companies.
Senator Pate asked about the promise to turn the caregiver tax credit into a refundable credit, and Hajdu praised a personal support worker union offering retirement benefits and tax credits, and she has struck a caregiver alliance that needs all of the players involved. Pate asked what new approaches were being prosper for the sector, and Hajdu said that she homes this alliance will help to address this.
Senator Senior returned to the issue of child care, and wanted the status of agreements with provinces, and why they aren’t multi-year agreements. Hajdu praised the programme, and said that they are in the process of negation with provinces, some of which are conditional on more training, staff, and data-sharing. Senior asked what is being done to enhance training, and Hajdu said that they have worked with provinces with support to increase wages and provide access to pensions, because of the importance of the care economy.
Senator Miville-Dechêne worried about the state of the Labour Code given the number of strikes in recent years, and Hajdu said that they need to get the balance right in order to protect their rights to collective bargaining while ensuring labour peace. Miville-Dechêne asked about the mediator option, and Hajdu said that they have a federal mediation service, while come private sector companies have their own services as well, and that most agreements are reached without a work-stoppage.
Senator Robinson got another round, and asked about the promised refundable tax credits for personal support workers, but worried that the definition in the budget bill is too narrow. Hajdu again gave her praise for the main union in the sector, and that they need to keep doing the work for those in the sector (but didn’t actually answer the question). Robinson again made the case for those excluded from the definition, and Hajdu said she would take it have to the department.
Senator Martin was back to speak to the Stellantis contract, which Hajdu pointed out isn’t her portfolio. Martin said this was in the same vein of the problems with Algoma, and wondered about the “sandboxing” provisions in the budget bill. Hajdu again praised the confidence that Canadians have in the government.
Senator Oudar asked about unions supporting retraining in affected sectors, and Hajdu praised the EI changes and said that in some of the large centres like auto plants, provinces have the fiscal capacity to stand up retraining centres. Oudar wanted EI eligibility criteria revised, and Hajdu again said that they are undertaking a review thanks to the tariffs.
Overall, it’s pretty much a novelty to have such a variety of questions in a single QP, which is no longer the case over in the Other Place (even though I now tell the baby journalists who come to regular QP that back in the day, Question Period could have fifteen or twenty different topics on the same day). Amazing! Hajdu did give some answers that were more substantive than her usual fare in the Commons, particularly around the challenges of dealing with provincial governments for these federal programmes and the fact that they have lousy data-sharing, and that’s a problem for everyone, and lo, some of them are actually working on it. So that’s new. The one thing that Hajdu did talk around most was around the promised refundable tax credit for caregivers, where she kept talking about how proud she was to work with the largest union for caregivers, but didn’t really answer the question on the credit. Not unexpected, but disappointing given the venue and the fact that this was a more substantive exercise than we normally get from a minister.
Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to Senator Rebecca Patterson for a dark grey knit jacket over a white v-nerved goo and black slacks, and to Senator Leo Housakos for a tailored dark blue suit with a crisp white shirt and a navy tie. Style citations go out to Senator Larry Smith for a black jacket with a pale blueberry shirt, dark grey slacks and a multicoloured striped tie, and to Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne for a pale jacket with a busy green and black pattern over an orange-toned top and black slacks.