Tag Archives: F-35 Fighters

Roundup: A thousand omnibudget amendments

Posted on by

The next steps in the fight against the omnibus budget bill are heating up. After getting their interns to camp out, the Liberals deposited 503 deletion amendments to be considered. Moments later, the NDP deposited 506 deletion amendments of their own. (I’m informed that the number was just a coincidences and not a juvenile game of one-upmanship). This on top of Elizabeth May’s 200 or so substantive amendments. The Speaker is due to rule on Monday as to what is going to be admissible and how those amendments will be grouped together. Pity his poor staff, who will have to spend their weekend going through all of it.

Court documents are undermining what Dean Del Mastro was claiming yesterday regarding his innocence with those allegedly improper payments that Elections Canada is now investigating.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer is preparing to go to Federal Court to get the information on the budget cuts that he is entitled to get, but that the government is withholding.

Continue reading →

QP: Taking lessons from France

Posted on by

With Stephen Harper just having visited France, Thomas Mulcair took the opportunity to start off Question Period by pointing out that the French president has just lowered the retirement age in that country from 62 to 60 (which I believe is simply restoring the age that had been raised previously), and wondered why Harper wouldn’t take a page from the same notebook and keep from raising the age of eligibility for OAS from 65 to 67. Peter Van Loan, still the designated back-up PM du jour, wasn’t biting. Mulcair then went on to ask about Harper’s further comments about European integration, to which Jim Flaherty informed him that the solution was not to give Canadian money to a bail out those European countries. Peggy Nash was up next asking about what plan there was for the coming European economic storm, to which Flaherty asserted that they’ve been working with Europe for years about their fiscal woes. Bob Rae was up next, and asked the government to divide up the omnibus budget bill, to which Van Loan responded with the canned pitch for the Economic Action Plan™. Rae asked about the changes in the bill that had no consultation with the premiers, but Van Loan cleverly retorted that the Liberals cut provincial transfers during their reign. To finish off the leaders’ round, Rae asked why, per Van Loan, they ran a competition for their limos used in Davos, but couldn’t run a competition for the F-35s? Van Loan pointed out that they have a new secretariat and a Seven-Point Action Plan™.

Continue reading →

QP: Questions arising from the Mansbridge interview

Posted on by

Thomas Mulcair was back in the House today, and led off Question Period with a trio of questions arising from Stephen Harper’s interview with Peter Mansbridge last night, about what kinds of plans he had to stave off another recession if the Europe situation worsened. Seeing as Harper was not there to respond in person, it was Peter Van Loan’s turn to be designated back-up PM du jour, and he responded with praise for the Economic Action Plan™ as the only tool the government needs to head it off. Peggy Nash got up for her turn, and followed up with a pair of questions on whether the government would be focusing on cuts instead of growth and job creation. Ted Menzies stood up to lament that the NDP obviously didn’t want to help people if they wouldn’t vote for the budget. Bob Rae apparently also paid attention to the interview, and wondered if Harper would call a meeting with all of the various premiers upon his return, since he was preaching greater integration in Europe, so why not with Canada. Van Loan simply delivered a talking point about Harper preaching Canada’s fiscal approach to Europe. For his last comment, Rae asked if Conservative foreign policy had sunk so low that MP Larry Miller – he who compared the long-gun registry to Hitler’s actions – was musing that Canada should withdraw from the UN. Van Loan insisted that Canada has a Values-Based Foreign Policy™, and that we were all about freedom and human rights. Okay then.

Continue reading →

Roundup: A too-predictable sympathetic report

Posted on by

The NDP have release their “report” on their “consultations” on the omnibus budget bill around the country. Their condemnation comes from having panels stuffed with representatives from sympathetic groups, and by avoiding Alberta or any regions whose economies are dependent on resource extraction. Funny how that happens. Meanwhile, they’re also promising some 200 deletion amendments at report stage of the bill in the Commons, which on top of Elizabeth May’s 50 substantive amendments and the 200 deletion amendments she’s working with the Liberals on means that there could be 30 hours or so of votes, depending on what the Speaker rules to be in order or how he groups them.

It cost $47,000 for Peter MacKay and company to put on the photo op with the mock-up F-35 when the government announced they initially were going to be buying those planes.

The NDP wants to charge the deputy minister of DND with contempt of parliament over his testimony on the F-35s. And while this drama unfolds in the Public Accounts Committee, Liberal MP Gerry Byrne charges that the NDP has been doing a lot of in camera cooperation with the Conservatives in order to try to stick it to the Liberals. Sigh.

Continue reading →

QP: A professional relationship

Posted on by

Not only was Harper away from Question Period today – as he is still in London celebrating Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee – but Thomas Mulcair was mysteriously absent as well. (What was that about people who wanted promotions needing to show up?) Nathan Cullen instead took his place and asked about the government’s need to redraft their entire Canada First Defence Strategy because they can’t afford all of it. Jason Kenney, still as the designated back-up PM du jour, insisted that his government acted to rebuild the Forces, and were better for the military than any other government in living memory. Jack Harris then asked about the very same thing, and then both he and Christine Moore brought in the costly price tag for Peter MacKay’s photo op about choosing the F-35s, to which Julian Fantino read off a talking point about the need to inform the public. Moore’s final question was about MacKay’s office chastising DND for not defending MacKay well enough with his various scandals, but Fantino read off a talking point about the professional relationship between the minister’s office and DND. Bob Rae was up next, and asked about the issue of youth unemployment and apprentices being laid off, and did the government have a plan to deal with that? Diane Finely at first insisted that they were proud of their investments in youth employment, before Kenney responded to the supplementals about how they were continuing to target economic growth.

Continue reading →

Roundup: May’s plot to derail the omnibudget

Posted on by

Elizabeth May has moved a Point of Order in the Commons to have the omnibus budget bill declared out of order because it doesn’t fit the proper criteria for such bills. Not surprisingly the government disputes this, but we’ll see more in the next couple of days as other parties get to weigh in before the Speaker makes any kind of ruling.

Meanwhile, May and the Liberals are planning a marathon series of amendments to the omnibus budget bill for when it returns to the Commons, and the 200 or so amendments they plan to move could mean upwards of 50 of 60 straight hours off votes. They’re already planning the logistics of food and bathroom breaks, but this is looking like it’s set to go ahead. They got a taste of it with some three-plus hours of amendment votes on C-31 last night. Expect much more in for the omnibudget.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer is calling bullshit on the government’s excuses as to why they can’t turn over their numbers relating to the cuts. If some departments can, all of them can, and the unions don’t have problems with the figures released so long as it doesn’t include personal information. And yet the government continues to insist that they can’t give the information, and that everything will come out in quarterly reports and public accounts statements.

There was lots of activity on the defence file yesterday. The Canada First Defence Strategy is going to need an overhaul, seeing as we can’t afford the whole laundry list of new procurement. In fact, they’ve known for some time that they can’t afford the list, but the government kept that under wraps until now. And you never know – future procurement may include unmanned naval vessels, kind of like unmanned aerial drones but on the water. Meanwhile, it looks like Peter MacKay’s staff is unimpressed that Canadian Forces staff didn’t defend MacKay vigorously enough when he was under fire for things like that helicopter lift. Aww, poor MacKay can’t fight he own battles.

The Department of National Defence won’t say what two other fighters it considered before the decision to go with the F-35s was made, but it seems that the Super Hornet wasn’t one of them – even though it meets all of the requirements that have so far been released.

It looks like the government has softened its stance on an international arms control treaty, and are now less likely to derail the process.

Lisa Raitt talks about her experience with post-partum depression as a new initiative to address the stigma of mental health launched in Ottawa yesterday.

And not to be outdone, but Wildrose leader Danielle Smith also plans to be at Edmonton’s gay pride festival. My how things are changing in Alberta.

QP: Doing the most in the Dominion

Posted on by

With Stephen Harper off in London to celebrate Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee this week, it was up to Jason Kenney to hold the fort in the Commons today as designated back-up PM du jour, a post that will rotate through the front bench all week. Thomas Mulcair, back from his Alberta adventure, was up first in Question Period, and asked why the government was outsourcing its smokestack monitoring to the US Environmental Protection Agency. Kenney replied that they were doing more about air quality “than any other government in the Dominion,” and wondered why the NDP hated Barack Obama. (In the Dominion? Don’t let the Vorta hear that, or they’ll send the Jem’Hadar after you. Oh, I kid). When Mulcair made a dig about Conservative caucus members believing that volcanoes caused climate change, Kenney retorted that the only thing volcanic was Mulcair’s temper. Megan Leslie was up next asking about scrutiny of environmental changes in the omnibus budget bill, but Peter Kent worried that she wasn’t paying attention to all of the great things his government was doing for the environment, like regulations and national parks. Bob Rae was up and gave mention to the “Blackout, speak out” event on the Internet today, and worried about the government’s culture of intimidation. Kenney, in turn, implied that Rae was somehow intimidating his own party. As a final question, Rae extended the culture of intimidation question to the calls being made in Etobicoke Centre over the weekend and the attack on the judicial process therein. Kenney declared that Borys Wrzesnewskyj had no shame, as he was busy fundraising, and then brought up AdScam. Seriously.

Continue reading →

QP: Kent’s version of what happened

Posted on by

While Thomas Mulcair was busy touring the Alberta oil sands, Nathan Cullen was once again holding the fort in Ottawa, and his lead series of questions were on the objections of those former Conservative fisheries ministers to the changes of the Act in the omnibus budget bill. Stephen Harper assured him that these changes were getting more committee study than ever, and that they would ensure a thorough and efficient review process. Cullen then brought up the upcoming website blackout protest and the attack on charities, but Harper shrugged it off, saying that most charities follow the rules and this was just ensuring that remains the case. Peggy Nash lamented that the government was offering no environmental leadership, to which Peter Kent reminded her that all three ministers showed up at the subcommittee for two hours! Except no, it was only for one hour, and it was a surprise appearance with almost no prior notice, and three ministers at once means that you can’t really get any substantive answers, but hey, details. Bob Rae asked about Rona Ambrose’s comments on the need to come with a new procurement process, and indicated that the government needed to take another step back in order to actually have some defence and foreign affairs policies in order before we decide what kind of planes we need. Harper simply retorted that at least his government was doing procurement, unlike the Liberals did. When John McKay asked for an open, fair and transparent competition for the fighter procurement, Jacques Gourde delivered Rona Ambrose’s talking points for her.

Continue reading →

QP: The calm before the Apocalypse

Posted on by

It started out like any other Question Period would. Thomas Mulcair rose to decry the effect of the EI changes on seasonal workers, and Harper assured him that EI would be there for those who need it. Peggy Nash tried to draw a connection between today’s census data and the need for OAS, but Diane Finley returned to her “sustainable” talking points, while Tony Clement assured her that all of their financial data was still being reported in quarterly reports and so on. Bob Rae brought up the comments of Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Kathy Dunderdale regarding the EI changes and the lack of consultation, but Harper assured him that he meets with premiers all the time. The Liberal benches didn’t sound like they believed that story, and while Harper may meet with premiers on an individual basis, he certainly hasn’t called a First Minister’s meeting in about six years, for the record.

Continue reading →

Roundup: Back-to-work bill on track for tonight

Posted on by

Expect today to be taken up with the back-to-work legislation around the CP Rail strike. Because of the way things are laid out procedurally, the vote on time allocation will take place this evening, at which point the bill will take precedence over everything and debate and votes – limited to a couple of hours – will go into the evening. It should be noted that the bill is far more fair and even-handed than previous examples under this government, according to many, though it’s still derided as an attack on the rights of workers.

As Thomas Mulcair prepares for his trip to Alberta – and Fort McMurray in particular – he’s toning down his language somewhat, while his critics out there are sharpening their own words.

Ted Opitz has appealed the overturning of the Etobicoke Centre election results to the Supreme Court at the last minute, but hasn’t exactly been clear on the grounds for the appeal. The Supreme Court is supposed to hear this without delay, and render a quick judgement, per the Elections Act.

Continue reading →