It was all hands on deck for QP today, but as Wednesday is caucus day, this is usually the day when nearly everybody is in attendance. Thomas Mulcair was up first, and read off a trio of questions regarding why Gerry Ritz hasn’t taken responsibility for the tainted meat issue, and Harper repeated that CFIA is the responsible authority, since they conduct the inspections. Mulcair then switched topics for the final two questions, asking about that handful of troops over in Afghanistan in combat operations as part of officer exchange programmes. Mulcair wanted them withdrawn immediately because of that non-binding vote in the Commons – never mind that matters of national defence are a Crown prerogative and that the vote was non-binding and really only useful to Harper as a smokescreen for when thins got difficult during the mission, and it allowed him to fob off responsibility to the House rather than be accountable as he should be. Regardless, Harper wasn’t going to bite on this one, and reminded him that the exchange was for less than a dozen people, and it’s standard operating practice. Bob Rae was up next, and first asked about changing the incoming Bill S-11 so that it’s the Auditor General who audits CFIA and not the minister’s office, but Harper responded with bland assurances about how great our food inspection system is. Rae then turned to the issue of the revelations around Peter Penashue overspending during the election, declaring “rather than buying elections, why not a by-election?” Harper declared that the official agent responsible for the spending was no longer on the job, and that the Liberals fired a staffer who then later rehired – because non-sequiturs like that is great cover.
Tag Archives: Canadian Forces
Roundup: Laundering future abuses of power
After pushing through new legislation that gives him extraordinary powers to determine who can be barred from entering the country, immigration minister Jason Kenney now says he’ll let a parliamentary committee determine the guidelines around it. Instead of, you know, putting limits in the legislation in the first place so that he’s not vested with so much arbitrary power in the first place. Also, it launders any potential political fallout when the powers are abused, because he gets to say “the committee set those limits, not me.”
The rebranding of the Canadian Museum of Civilization means it is now the Canadian Museum of History, which will be more of a unified history museum, which we don’t really have here in the Nation’s Capital. It won’t be another war museum, and no, the minister can’t exert curatorial influence. Part of this idea of networking smaller museums around the country is one where they can share artefacts between them for focused exhibits, which is great – assuming, of course, that they have the budgets to transport these artefacts around the country.
Roundup: Exit McGuinty
The shocking news last night was that Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty resigned suddenly – and prorogued the Legislature to let the dust settle. His party was facing contempt proceedings, and prorogation collapses them, but he did just resign, which is the ultimate accountability measure. Meanwhile, a team has been assembling to try to encourage him to run for federal leader for a while – not that it’s likely to happen. Here is reaction from Stephen Harper and Bob Rae. Paul Wells looks back at McGuinty’s career, and the situation his party now finds itself in.
Incidentally, I’m really not that outraged about this prorogation, possibly because I actually know what a prorogation means, and I’m not of the belief that it’s illegitimate for a government to exercise its Crown powers. He wasn’t facing a confidence motion, and it was well within his right as premier to do so – especially to allow time for the dust to settle from his resignation. I’m a little less keen if he plans to keep it prorogued until after his party’s leadership contest, but they’re planning on a quick one, so I wouldn’t expect it to be out for six months. And if anyone can tell me what exactly the piling on by opposition parties would contribute at this point when the premier has already taken that ultimate step and resigned, well, be my guest.
QP: Not biting on the resignation demands
With Harper heading home from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Bob Rae away elsewhere, it was up to Thomas Mulcair to be the sole leader in the leader’s round of questions. He began QP by reading a trio of questions on the tainted beef issue, his third question including a demand that Gerry Ritz resign. Ritz was up to speak each time – rather than another back-up PM du jour – but spoke about taking food safety seriously and science-based decision, but wouldn’t take the bait on the resignation demand. Malcolm Allen was up next to say that there aren’t enough meat inspectors in the system, to which Ritz replied that the Union said there were. Marc Garneau was up for the Liberals, first asking a pair of questions on reassurances around food safety, to which Ritz took the classy move of blaming previous Liberal cuts for the problems and to tout their government’s “reinvestments” in food safety. For his last question, Garneau asked about the issue of bullying, to which Rob Nicholson replied that the government was taking action, there were two Parliamentary committees studying the issue, as well as funding for RCMP and cyber-tips hotlines.
Roundup: Meeting in the Congo
In advance of the Francophonie summit in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pauline Marois has beaten Harper to the punch by meeting with opposition and civil society groups first, even though Harper has also promised to meet with them and to speak to the country’s leadership about some of the major human rights problems there, like using rape as a weapon of war. Harper’s trip to Senegal was also in large part about encouraging trade with the region, and making Senegal into a hub for investment. And in advance of the Harper/Marois meeting, the National Post’s Steve Murray offers some suggestions for things they probably should and shouldn’t say to one another.
The Russian ambassador said the scandal over this navy spy will fade away, and that “even friends spy on each other.” Because we want to forget that the danger of old-fashioned spying still does exist, despite our current preoccupations with counter-terrorism and hacking.
Roundup: Extending the Nexen deliberations
The government has indicated they will be extending the consideration of the Nexen deal by another 30 days – though this is a fairly common occurrence. Expect the renewed calls for “public consultations” to begin when the House returns on Monday.
Apparently the federal government has been studying ways to change the provincial equalisation programme. Changes to things like the way hydro revenues are calculated could have a major impact on the equalisation that Quebec receives.
Not only have the Conservatives ramped up their advertising spending in an age of fiscal austerity, it seems that over the past five years, they’ve exceeded said advertising budgets by 37 percent. Fiscal discipline, everybody!
Roundup: Tremble before the almighty online petition!
In another blow against civic literacy in this country, someone has decided to start an online petition to have Rob Anders removed from office. No, really. I’d like to know exactly what mechanism, pray tell, can do this, because last I checked, we don’t really have a mechanism to unseat an MP. Now, if the residents of Calgary West were serious about unseating him, well, they could challenge his nomination and sign up enough new party members to ensure that he will no longer represent the party in the next election. But oh, that would require organisation, and effort, and well, we couldn’t possibly do that. Oh, and FYI, it will not only be an open nomination before the next election, but with the new electoral boundaries coming into place, Anders is going to have to choose which of the new ridings he’ll be running in, and anyone in that new riding can organise to challenge his nomination. You know, the way that things actually work in our system.
Roundup: Mindful of one’s mandate
Tony Clement says he’s willing to go to court to insist that the Parliamentary Budget Officer is exceeding his mandate. Err, except that the PBO is trying to look at the Estimates, which is his mandate (and to be even more fair, he’s doing it so that MPs have data to hold the government to account, even though they’re passing off their work onto him). Good luck to Clement on this one.
The government is planning a new online portal for Access to Information requests next year.
The Canadian Forces have folded three operational commands into one – the Canadian Joint Operations Command, but it remains to be seen as to how much of a cost savings this will actually produce. Meanwhile, our special forces apparently have their eyes on wee little submarines.
QP: The missing minister
It could have been a rerun of yesterday, given the entirety of the leader’s found in QP. Thomas Mulcair once again began by reading out questions on the tainted meat “disaster,” and why store owners were acting responsibly but the Minister was not there to answer questions in the House. (He was over at the meat plant in question, and had a spectacular melt down of a press conference earlier in the day). Stephen Harper again responded that CFIA was the responsible authority and that they were containing the situation. Malcolm Allen bellowed outrage at the minister’s absence, and Pierre Lemieux (who is a much better communicator than his minister any day of the week, it should be noted), reassured him that CFIA was one of the top-rated food safety agencies in the world. Bob Rae asked why the head of CFIA said that he didn’t know the numbers yet for the new inspection standards, but Harper told him that it was not something to be determined by politicians, but rather by CFIA itself.
Roundup: Khadr repatriated
Omar Khadr was repatriated to Canada from Guantanamo Bay on Saturday morning. Vic Toews sent out a churlish press release to highlight the crimes that Khadr confessed to as part of his plea bargain (though there is doubt about the veracity of the claims), and to basically instruct parole officials about him. Khadr will serve the remainder of his sentence in the Millhaven penitentiary, and will now be subject to Canadian parole laws, rather than have no restrictions (as would have been the case had he served the remainder of his sentence in Guantanamo Bay). That parole hearing could come by next summer. Aaron Wherry reminds us what the Liberal government said of his predicament ten years ago.
Susan Delacourt looks into the grey area of privacy laws where political parties are concerned.