From the Council of the Federation meeting in Charlottetown, PEI, the premiers have decided that they not only want federal health transfers to stay at the five percent escalator they’re at currently (they are scheduled to fall to three percent within a couple of years), but they also want the federal government to assume fifty percent of all health spending, like when the system first began in the fifties. The problem, of course, is that back in the seventies, the provinces agreed to a smaller federal share in exchange for tax points, so that they could raise their own revenues (which also means that those revenues didn’t necessarily need to be spent on healthcare). So now they want to not only keep those tax points, but more federal dollars as well. Some of you might recall that during the era of Paul Martin’s six percent health transfer escalator, most provincial health spending increased by something like 2.6 percent, meaning a lot of money got spent on other things, including tax cuts. There is no reason why that wouldn’t happen again. But what about attaching strings, like those health advocates said? Well, that turns out to be easier said than done. Trudeau tried that by requiring provinces to submit action plans that would be checked in on before future transfers went ahead, but there was no end of provincial grousing, and it takes a lot of time, attention and resources to be constantly checking up on that spending.

Meanwhile, the premiers also want prime minister Mark Carney to “do something” about the tariff threats, but they won’t say what. Certain premiers don’t want to play hardball with their exports, while others, particularly Doug Ford, want Carney to play a “leadership role” for the provinces, but again, he only has so many levers when it comes to getting the provinces on-side. Carney will be meeting with said premiers today, where they will present him with the list of things they want him to do and pay for, and if Carney is true to form, he won’t push back—but he also may not pay for what they want. Nevertheless, I don’t think he’s quite reached the point of frustration with the premiers that all of his predecessors have, but it probably won’t be too long before he does.

My Latest:

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russia has struck port facilities and ships at Odesa and Chornomorsk, claiming it was military equipment. Ukraine has started targeting warehouses owned by Wildberries, the Russian equivalent of Amazon. Ukraine’s new military commander says they will step up counteroffensive actions, while his outgoing predecessor says that they reclaimed 700 square kilometres of territory this year.

Noteworthy:

• Nearly one in six products on the list of Trump’s threatened Section 338 tariffs are products that Canada doesn’t even export to the US. (This is just more theatre).
• The Government Operations Centre that is coordinating federal wildfire responses has faced 50 percent job cuts over the past year. (Cutting like a CEO!)
• Thomas Juneau points to the Houthis now threatening to blockade the entrance to the Red Sea as a byproduct of the US’ war with Iran destabilising global shipping.

I will say, I have yet to see a single tough-on-crime Conservative complain about her previously being out on bail, her lenient sentence, the fact that she seems to be continually breaching the terms of her house arrest so she can "work" for Rebel "News," or this latest affront. Not. One. Peep.

— Dale Smith (@journodale.bsky.social) 2026-07-22T14:03:05.423Z

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