Tag Archives: Supply Management

QP: He was talking about Greece

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Thursday, and wouldn’t you know it, and to my great surprise, Stephen Harper was actually present for a change. Neither Thomas Mulcair nor Justin Trudeau were present to face off against him, however, so make of that what you will. That left Peter Julian to lead off, and wouldn’t you know it, he started off with yet another Mike Duffy question, on the altered audit report. Harper, of course, rejected the premise of the question and noted that Duffy was before the court for his own actions. Julian moved to the pro forma question about Duffy’s residency, and Harper responded with a pro forma response about the NDP satellite offices. Julian moved onto the Senate invoking privilege to keep their internal audit from the court — not actually government business — and Harper responded again with the satellite offices. Niki Ashton was up next, and asked about the lack of response to the First Nations housing fund, and Bernard Valcourt read a statement about significant resources being allocated to meeting housing needs. A second round was much the same. Scott Brison led off for the Liberals, asking about relaxing labour laws that would make it easier to fire Canadians, which Joe Oliver supported. Harper insisted that Oliver was talking about Greece, not Canada, and slammed the Liberal record. Brison pushed on the issue, and Harper read the latest Conservative attack line about how Trudeau apparently wants a new mandatory payroll tax. Marc Garneau closed the round, asking about the same issue in French, and got the same answer about it being a discussion about Greece, and that the Liberals would raise payroll taxes.

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QP: Shoehorning in the Duffy issue

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Despite it being a Tuesday, only two leaders were present — Thomas Mulcair, and Elizabeth May. Alas. Mulcair led off, asking about the destruction of records on the long-gun registry despite the Access to Information requests. Stephen Blaney insisted that the RCMP respects all laws and the will of parliament — which, you know, hadn’t been recorded because it was simply a bill at the time. Mulcair demanded to know who ordered the records deleted, and Blaney didn’t deviate. Mulcair tried to stretch it to the audit on Senate residencies, and Blaney insisted the NDP should be given a free vote on an upcoming gun bill. Mulcair insisted that the PM release the statement that Duffy apparently signed about his residency, to which Paul Calandra stood up and reminded the NDP about their satellite offices. Mulcair kept trying to tie the Duffy affair into things, and Calandra repeated his demanded that the NDP pay back the money from those offices. Dominic LeBlanc led off for the Liberals, decrying the focus on TFSAs instead of focusing on those who need help. Pierre Poilievre listed a couple of scenarios where seniors use the accounts. Scott Brison hammered on the TFSAs and the PBO’s statements on them, and Joe Oliver actually answered, listing some figures about them as a kind of non sequitur. Brison noted the GIS payments affected by TFSAs, but Oliver quoted some people who support their moves.

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QP: Talking points on a list

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Monday in the Commons, and true to form, none of the leaders were present — never mind that there are a mere four weeks left. Megan Leslie led off, asking about the GHG emissions targets announced by the government. Leona Aglukkaq got up and read a statement about their sector-by-sector approach, and that they wouldn’t implement a carbon tax. Leslie raised the use of offset credits, which the government used to decry, and Aglukkaq simply read the next non sequitur talking point on her list. Leslie then moved onto the PMO interference in the audit of Mike Duffy, to which Paul Calandra reminded her that it was before the courts. Peter Julian asked the same again in French, and got the same response from Calandra in English, and brought up the NDP satellite offices. Julian tried to bring the rest of the Senate into the mix, but Calandra gave a pro forma response about cooperation, and reminded them about the satellite offices. Emmanuel Dubourg led for the Liberals, and asked another youth unemployment as a way of touting the Liberal plan. Pierre Poilievre touted the government’s  plan in response. Ralph Goodale was up next, and slammed the government’s growth record, to which Poilievre repeated his Tax Cuts, Training and Trade™ talking point. For his final question, Goodale decried the government’s child tax plans, to which Poilievre insisted that he was wrong, and that even the PBO said the government plan was okay.

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QP: Dropping the ball on operational security

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On most Tuesdays in the Commons, the leaders would actually be present, given that it’s usually one of the two days per week that Stephen Harper deigns to show up. Today, however, with Harper still in the Netherlands, none of the other main leaders bothered to show up either. Yay accountability! Megan Leslie led off, asking about the record trade deficit (which it needs to be stated is not necessarily a bad thing, just because it’s referred to as a deficit). Ed Fast insisted that exports were up, and yay trade agreements. Leslie asked again in English, capping it off with a demand for $15/day childcare. Candice Bergen insisted that theirs was the best plan for all families. Again, Leslie bemoaned the state of the manufacturing sector, to which James Moore praised all of their measures. Rosane Doré Lefebvre was up next, and decried the imminent passage of Bill C-51. Stephen Blaney wondered why the NDP refused to give tools to the police, or how they could deny that there were terrorist attacks in Canada. Dominic LeBlanc led for the Liberals, and wanted help for the middle class, touting the plan they introduced yesterday. Pierre Poilievre responded that the Liberals would raise taxes by replealing the doubling of the TFSA (which is not actually true). Ralph Goodale was up and more forcefully asked the same again in English twice, and Poilievre doubled down on his blatantly untrue talking points.

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QP: Pierre Poilievre, de facto finance minister

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While it was only Thursday, only two leaders were present — Thomas Mulcair and Elizabeth May, with Stephen Harper off in Winnipeg and Justin Trudeau, well, elsewhere. After interminable members’ statements on how great/terrible the budget is, Mulcair finally got up to lead off, pointing out that the NDP had proposed the small business tax cut that was being gradually rolled out in the budget, and it was voted down, so why should Canadians believe the government about it now. Pierre Poilievre boasted about the low-tax plan in response. Mulcair returned to yesterday’s lead about the problems for their grandchildren that the TFSA increase would create, but Poilievre insisted that TFSAs were great. Mulcair then wondered about Jason Kenney and other Conservatives insisting that the contingency fund wasn’t being touched when it was, and wondered where the finance minister was — as Oliver was once again absent. Poilievre ignored it, and continued to praise TFSAs. Charlie Angus was up next, and returned to the issue of Mike Duffy’s residency regarding his appointment to the Senate, to which Paul Calandra insisted that the practice was clear, and that the NDP was trying to make a victim of Duffy, and oh, they owe for those satellite offices. Angus then asked about entries in Duffy’s diary about meetings on Enbridge that weren’t reported to the Lobbying Commissioner, to which repeated his answer. Marc Garneau led off for the Liberals, returning to the problems with the TFSA boost and its inherent inequality. Poilievre insisted that the Liberals would raise taxes. Ralph Goodale was up next, bringing up the changes to the OAS in relation to the TFSA changes. Poilievre insisted that seniors were taking full advantage of TFSAs, and another round gave just the same.

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Senate QP: Solitary confinement under scrutiny

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The Senate was sitting early on a Friday morning as part of the final push to get the last of the bills that need to be passed done so before they rise for the Christmas break. Routine proceedings in the Chamber proceeded swiftly, and Question Period began early.

Senator Cordy led off, asking about an issue of a specific home care case in Alberta that she had raised with the leader of the government in the Senate weeks ago and had not yet heard a response to. Senator Carignan, who answers on behalf of the government, noted that he had raised the issue with Ministers Kenney or Alexander. Cordy updated the file with issue of work permits for a caregiver who was already in the country as a temporary foreign worker, but whose paperwork was being delayed for several more weeks. Carignan asked Cordy to have the woman in question send a letter directly, so that he could follow up with the ministers directly. Cordy noted that the woman in question has tried already and had no response, nor from her MP who insisted that nothing could be expedited, but would forward all of her correspondence to him in the next few minutes.

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Roundup: An upcoming rounding error surplus

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Joe Oliver delivered his fall economic update in Toronto, and as expected, the government is still technically in deficit until next year, at which point they are expected to turn out a modest $1.9 billion surplus, most of which is pretty much spent on their suite of “family” tax measures including the income splitting tax credit – all of it a challenge to the opposition parties and specifically Justin Trudeau, daring them to cancel the “tax cuts” (most of which aren’t really cuts). And it’s not a surplus plan without risks. Thomas Mulcair immediately called the figures a “mirage” because they depend on spending cuts, while Justin Trudeau referred to the tax measures as “unfair” because the income splitting measure in particular disproportionately benefits the wealthy. Andrew Coyne notes that Harper has put the opposition in a box with his tax cuts and expenditures unless those parties are willing to raise the GST. Paul Wells notes that this falls squarely within Harper’s re-election plans – that he doesn’t need to promise anything other than the fear that his opponents’ plans are ruinous. Stephen Gordon provides some context to Oliver’s pronouncements.

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QP: Cautioned questions on Del Mastro

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While the Chamber was full for François Hollande’s speech earlier this morning, it was much emptier by the time QP rolled around, the staffers acting as room meat no longer sitting at the desks to the fill the room. None of the major leaders were present for the grand exercise in accountability, leaving Peter Julian to lead off, to which he asked about Dean Del Mastro and election fraud — not government business. Paul Calandra stood up to say that the Procedure and House Affairs committee was looking into it, as they did the issue of the NDP satellite offices. When Julian asked again in French, the Speaker cautioned him that it was not about the administrative responsibility of the government, but Calandra repeated his response anyway. Julian got up and said that it was about the PM’s judgement, but Calandra kept up his own response to turn it back to the NDP, adding in the illegal union contributions. Charlie Angus tried again, got cautioned by the Speaker, asked again, and got Calandra to repeat his answers, while Angus sarcastically catcalled “Good job there, Speaker!” Ralph Goodale stood up to ask about the income splitting tax credit, and how it went agains Flaherty’s advice. Kevin Sorenson praised Flaherty as a response. Goodale noted that single parents were being punished for being single, but Sorenson just delivered praise for the programme. Emmanuel Dubourg asked again in French, to which Sorenson claimed that middle class Canadians were better off since the Conservatives came to power.

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QP: Unhappiness with the proposed privacy commissioner

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Thursday, and not a single major party leader was to be seen in the House — Harper off at the Maternal and Child Health summit in Toronto (where his press minions were kicking reporters out of the various sessions), Thomas Mulcair on tour in Saskatchewan, and Justin Trudeau off campaigning in Trinity—Spadina. Way to show respect for Parliament, everyone! That left Megan Leslie to lead off, brining up the nomination of Daniel Therrien as the new Privacy Commissioner, saying that the author of that legislation shouldn’t then be called upon to critique it. Dan Albas responded, saying that Therrien had a strong record of experience, and that he was identified as the best candidate after a rigorous process. There was a second round of the same, before Leslie turned to the lack of follow-through on maternal and child health goals and the need for reproductive options being made available. Deepak Obhrai praised the initiative for saving lives and decreasing maternal death rates. Nycole Turmel asked the same in French, naming the UN Reproductive Initiative as one of the organizations that the government refuses to fund, to which Obhrai repeated his answer. David McGuinty led for the Liberals, decried the loss of a full construction season due to the poor outlay of the Building Canada Fund. Denis Lebel accused him of misleading the House, and said that six billion dollars of infrastructure funding was flowing. Judy Sgro asked the same and got the same answer, Ralph Goodale quoted figures about how it was affecting municipalities, not that Lebel was swayed, calling the information “false.”

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Roundup: RCMP report released

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The RCMP report into missing and murdered Aboriginal women is now out, and there are a few interesting things to note, most of them presented in helpful infographics – that the homicide rate for Aboriginal women is four times that of non-Aboriginal women, that they are most likely to be murdered by an acquaintance, spouse or family member, and that their killers have an average age of 35, are less employed, and use intoxicants. In other words, it’s a more systemic societal problem and not one that can be solved by the government’s tough-on-crime policies consisting mostly of the threat of harsher penalties. Also of note are the fact that the solved rate for murdered Aboriginal women is on par with non-Aboriginal women, so it seems less like police inattention to these deaths, but the breakdown also pointed to a very big problem in BC, such as with the “Highway of Tears,” showing that there clearly needs to be more work undertaken in that area. The report renewed calls for a national inquiry to help address those systemic and societal issues and better understand how to tackle them, while the government took the statistics from the report and said that they are taking action by doing things like strengthening programmes to combat domestic violence on reserves. All RCMP divisions have been ordered to re-examine their unsolved files on these missing and murdered women in the hopes of generating new leads, and they have six months to report back on their findings. Funds for family violence prevention programmes will also be re-directed to higher-risk communities to partner with local agencies to help address “vulnerability factors.”

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