Setting the stage for Quebec’s fall election season

On Nov. 2, 1,131 cities, towns, and villages, and 87 regions in Quebec will go to the polls.
Conservative attacks on DEI are nothing new, but fighting past battles risks future growth, say politicos

The Tories’ latest salvo on DEI policies and Trudeau-era grievances appeals to ‘the basest of the base,’ but could alienate potential new voters, says Liberal strategist Greg MacEachern.
A fancy title does not a minister make

It’s not good enough for people to carry a cabinet title and collect a paycheque while ducking behind staff who don’t answer the phone.
‘Significant gaps’ in government’s monitoring and response to cyberattacks, AG finds

While solid cyber security systems were developed to protect government networks and systems, Auditor General Karen Hogan found not all departments, agencies, and Crown corporations use the security systems available to them.
Two-thirds of calls to CRA centres go unanswered as number of call agents drops: AG report

Callers who did reach agents may not have been given accurate information, as a report from Auditor General Karen Hogan found agents were only accurate 17 per cent of the time when asked questions about individual taxes.
Departments grapple with tracking employee attendance after a year of return-to-office rules

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada has only recently begun tracking staff attendance. However, the departments that have been monitoring employee attendance say there is no issue with compliance.
Budget cuts won’t impact RCMP hiring push, says public safety minister

At an Oct. 20 committee meeting, Conservative Senator Claude Carignan asked if the cuts would impact frontline Mounties.
Feds need clearer focus on youth as unemployment hits 15-year high, critics say

Prime Minister Mark Carney ‘has silenced the voice of youth at the cabinet table by failing to appoint a minister,’ says NDP critic Leah Gazan, noting Secretary of State for Children and Youth Anna Gainey should be pushing for more.
Conservative Party faces conflict-of-interest allegation over hiring of Alberta national councillor Feldbusch’s husband as regional organizer

The Conservative Party is a ‘close-knit’ group and it’s not ‘uncommon’ for family members, including those of national councillors, to work for the party in different positions, says CPC’s director of communications Sarah Fischer.
AG Hogan to release six audit reports on Tuesday, Oct. 21

House Schedule—The House of Commons will sit Oct. 20-24; Oct. 27-31; Nov. 3-7; Nov. 17-21; Nov. 24-28; Dec. 1-5; and Dec. 8-12. In total, the House will have sat only 73 days this year. Last year, it sat 122 days, and in 2023, it sat 121 days. In 2022, it sat 129 days, and in […]