Policy Topics | Policy Briefings

COLLAPSE

• Agriculture
• Biotechnology
• Defence & Security
• Environment
• Finance
• Fisheries and Oceans

• Foreign Policy​
• Health
• Industry and Manufacturing
• Infrastructure and Transport
• Innovation
• Intergovernmental

• Indigenous Relations
• Justice
• Labour & Employment
• Lobbying
• Natural Resources and Energy
• Women, Gender and Diversity

Finance

‘All about’ NATO: bulk of feds’ $5.4-billion spending request boosts defence programs

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

• The $2.2-billion request for defence spending is ‘all tied’ to meeting NATO’s defence spending target, says Canadian Global Affairs Institute’s Craig Stone, but Macdonald-Laurier Institute's Christopher Coates says it should be seen as 'long overdue' modernization of the Armed Forces.

‘All about’ NATO: bulk of feds’ $5.4-billion spending request boosts defence programs

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

• The $2.2-billion request for defence spending is ‘all tied’ to meeting NATO’s defence spending target, says Canadian Global Affairs Institute’s Craig Stone, but Macdonald-Laurier Institute's Christopher Coates says it should be seen as 'long overdue' modernization of the Armed Forces.

Canada faces ‘an emergency of extraordinary proportions’ with Trump, say foreign affairs and trade experts

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Building a more innovative Canadian economy won’t be easy, but it will be worth it

OpinionBY DAVID CRANE

Liberals see path forward for budget bill, but Conservatives still have ‘huge concerns’ with cabinet’s ‘regulatory sandbox’

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Bill C-15 is one of the biggest threats yet to Canada’s rule of law 

OpinionBY GENEVIèVE PAUL, ANAïS BUSSIèRES MCNICOLL

Ministers could exempt businesses from laws within ‘regulatory sandbox’ outlined in budget bill

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

Bringing investment banking rigor to Ottawa

OpinionBY RAM MATHILAKATH

Canada’s largest pension manager ‘backsliding’ on climate, risks being unable to pay out pensions: report

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

Three measures to tackle ‘wicked’ health policy problems

OpinionBY AZIN PEYROW

MOST RECENT POLICY BRIEFINGS

Banking and Monetary Policy

• DOWNLOAD

Financial Sector, Investment & Banking Policy Briefing

• DOWNLOAD

Great Rebuild: Part III Special Report

• DOWNLOAD

• VIEW ALL POLICY BRIEFINGS

‘Not a chance’: Green Leader May says she can’t support budget omnibus bill without major changes, but NDP skeptical

NewsBY STUART BENSON

• Green Leader Elizabeth May says the prime minister's 'word means nothing,' but isn't closing the door on co-operating with the progressive opposition to advance the government's ecological agenda.

‘Not a chance’: Green Leader May says she can’t support budget omnibus bill without major changes, but NDP skeptical

NewsBY STUART BENSON

• Green Leader Elizabeth May says the prime minister's 'word means nothing,' but isn't closing the door on co-operating with the progressive opposition to advance the government's ecological agenda.

MPs face a choice this Parliament: play partisan games or meet the moment

OpinionBY BHAGWANT SANDHU

House winter session expected to be ‘very consequential’ with affordability issues, global trade, and possible referendums, say politicos

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

IMF report says Canada’s elevated trade uncertainty reinforces long-standing weaknesses in productivity and competitiveness

OpinionBY DAVID CRANE

‘Unprecedented’ 2025 for canola industry, with record-breaking economic lobbying

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Liberals ‘taking a sledgehammer’ to the public service, says interim NDP leader Davies

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

Canada’s green jobs strategy needs more than good intentions

OpinionBY LIN AL-AKKAD

Senators renew push to see their pensions become funded

NewsBY LAURA RYCKEWAERT

Canada now needs a backup plan for our auto industry

OpinionBY DAVID CRANE

AGRICULTURE

Bloc MP Perron condemns ‘ridiculous’ spending cuts that will shutter research farms across Canada

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

MPs celebrate canola tariff relief, but national security, pork, remain opposition concerns with China

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

Do Conservatives want the best for the West, or not?

OpinionBY ERICA IFILL

Scrap the Indo-Pacific Strategy: a pragmatic path for Canadian sovereignty

OpinionBY WENRAN JIANG

See all

Biotechnology

Canada’s missing life sciences industrial strategy is leaving economic growth on the table

OpinionBY MICHELLE MCLEAN

PMPRB closes all open drug-pricing investigations before implementing new guidelines on Jan. 1

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Bloc joins push for mandatory labelling of genetically engineered foods

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Canada’s research strength is world-class—now we need to all pull in the same direction

OpinionBY BENOIT-ANTOINE BACON

See all

DEFENCE & SECURITY

What will it take to re-arm the Army?

OpinionBY SCOTT TAYLOR

Defence Investment Agency needs to do more than reshuffle the staff deck to succeed, say observers

NewsBY IREM KOCA

Documents reveal more about powerful forces behind push for warrantless lawful access

OpinionBY KEN RUBIN

‘A nation mourns with you:’ Carney orders flags at half-mast after deadly Tumbler Ridge, B.C., shooting

NewsBY MARLO GLASS | UPDATED February 12, 2026

See all

Environment

Climate change should be the big story of 2026

OpinionBY BILL HENDERSON

The real rupture we face: what Carney’s next speech needs to say

OpinionBY TREVOR HANCOCK

How the pursuit of innovation and sustainability can supercharge the Canadian economy

OpinionBY MARENA WINSTANLEY

Build more homes—but don’t lock Canada into higher emissions

OpinionBY KATE KOPLOVICH

See all

Fisheries and oceans

Nearly 2,000 jobs and $1.5-billion to be cut across five departments by 2030, PBO analysis shows

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

Canada’s plan to boost its economy must include rebuilding wild fisheries

OpinionBY JOSH LAUGHREN

Coastal communities ‘running out of time’ without fisheries fund renewal, say opposition critics as DFO faces $544M in cuts

NewsBY STUART BENSON

Q&A | Cod quota ‘pressure is enormous’ on fisheries minister

NewsBY PETER MAZEREEUW

See all

FOREIGN POLICY

Why Canada must act now to uphold refugee protection and stability

OpinionBY TRACEY MAULFAIR

He came in like a wrecking ball, and he keeps on coming

OpinionBY JOHN MCKAY

Trudeau, Carney, Davos, and Liberal dexterity

OpinionBY NELSON WISEMAN

U.S. President Trump’s bridge outrage is latest example of how corrupt the American political system has become

OpinionBY SHEILA COPPS

See all

health

Beyond funding: why flexible, locally grounded care models matter now

OpinionBY BERNARD LORD

Canada is facing a teen vaping crisis

OpinionBY DOUG ROTH

AI is already in our clinics, but Canada is failing to train the people who use it

OpinionBY SAMIRA ABBASGHOLIZADEH-RAHIMI

Canada on path to become a superaged country

OpinionBY SHARON STRAUS, FRANçOISE BAYLIS

See all

Industry and Manufacturing

Industrial benefits policy needs a ‘relook,’ says ex-senior public servant, as Conservative MP pushes for contract records

NewsBY IREM KOCA

Canada’s auto sector ‘hangs in the balance’ as CUSMA review looms in 2026: ‘there’s no sugar-coating it, this is going to be a critical year for the industry’

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Renewable energy sector adds concerns about wind-tower costs to steel industry crisis talks: ‘there’s a ton of urgency’

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Steel tariff missteps threaten Canada’s energy future

OpinionBY VITTORIA BELLISSIMO, FERNANDO MELO

See all

infrastructure and transport

‘Back to the future’: Senators react to idea of turning Senate Building back into original train station for high-speed rail hub

NewsBY IREM KOCA

Ottawa has a housing initiative, but not a homeownership plan

OpinionBY KEVIN LEE

Arctic security investments must also improve living conditions in the North, say territories

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Feds looking for Canadian steel supplier to keep high-speed rail project on track

NewsBY IREM KOCA

See all

innovation

To ban or not to ban? Experts wary of restricting social media access for kids, as feds watch Australian approach

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

Building Canada’s digital future

OpinionBY DELPHINE ADENOT-OWUSU

From promise to reality: scaling innovative housing in Canada

OpinionBY TASNIM FARIHA

Canadians concerned about AI’s impact on environment, children: federal consultation

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

See all

intergovernmental

Hearings at National Assembly offer insight into Bill 1

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

Alberta MPs shouldn’t just quietly wait for separatist issue to blow over

OpinionBY EDITORIAL

Will we actually see the new Arctic vehicles on order?

OpinionBY SCOTT TAYLOR

Alberta Conservative MPs ‘walking a fine line’ on politically explosive referendum issue, and don’t want to give it more oxygen, say politicos

NewsBY ABBAS RANA, JESSE CNOCKAERT

See all

justice

Republican Party can rein in U.S. President Trump—if it’s brave enough

OpinionBY MICHAEL HARRIS

Tory Senator Housakos proposes invoking notwithstanding clause to uphold certain mandatory minimums

NewsBY LAURA RYCKEWAERT

Despite early ‘spirit of co-operation’ on some bills, Liberal agenda still failing to launch in Parliament, say politicos

NewsBY STUART BENSON

Emergencies Act architect says courts checked government overreach, advises against further appeal

NewsBY STUART BENSON

See all

Labour & employment

Investing in Indigenous housing strengthens Canada, and the solutions are ready

OpinionBY JOHN GORDON

Keeping the North strong and free also means ensuring a better way of life for northerners

OpinionBY EDITORIAL

Solving Canada’s housing crisis starts with a reality check

OpinionBY JANICE MYERS

Nuancing our understanding of Canada’s housing affordability crisis

OpinionBY STEVE POMEROY

See all

Lobbying

Ottawa’s lowered lobbying registration thresholds will reshape government relations

OpinionBY SUZANNE SABOURIN, MICHAEL WALSH

Libya was a warning, Venezuela is the test

OpinionBY AKOLISA UFODIKE

‘It’s like molasses in January’: pharmacare implementation stalled, say health-care groups, but others argue time needed to get deals right

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Joly top-lobbied minister in November, universities push to attract research talent driven away from U.S.

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

See all

natural resources and energy

The world has too much LNG—so why is Canada fast-tracking more?

OpinionBY MARK KALEGHA, OLAF WEBER

Federal environmental impact assessments are in even more jeopardy   

OpinionBY KEN RUBIN

Trump’s hit on Venezuela just gave Canada a bruise

OpinionBY ERICA IFILL

Buried in the MOU: a licence to lie

OpinionBY LEAH TEMPER, SAMANTHA GREEN

See all

Women, Gender and Diversity

Celebrating Black Canadian trailblazers who’ve played a critical role in public life

OpinionBY WAHEED KHAN

Here’s how Parliament can tackle the rise in anti-feminist ideology

OpinionBY SHARI GRAYDON

Pierre Poilievre came to Calgary and Canadians should be paying attention

OpinionBY ANNA MURPHY

The Conservatives’ other favourite boogeyman makes a comeback

OpinionBY ERICA IFILL

See all

Indigenous Relations

A partial table cannot deliver justice for Indigenous people

OpinionBY BRENDAN MOORE

Wide-eyed patriotism is an Indigenous value

OpinionBY ROSE LEMAY

‘The ground on which we stand’: innovation and Indigenous sovereignty

OpinionBY JESSICA KOLOPENUK

Indigenous innovation: part of the tradition, not the trend

OpinionBY KATHY MANNERS

Exclusive lists

Who’s backing the NDP leadership contenders?

Who’s backing the NDP leadership contenders?

Tracking job cuts in the federal public service

Tracking job cuts in the federal public service

Take The Hill Times year-end news quiz

Take The Hill Times year-end news quiz

First-quarter expenses: MPs spent nearly $28-million

First-quarter expenses: MPs spent nearly $28-million

This Parliament’s ethics roundup: blind trusts, recusals, gifts, and more

This Parliament’s ethics roundup: blind trusts, recusals, gifts, and more

Take The Hill Times politics quiz

Take The Hill Times politics quiz

Carney government bills: tracking their progress into law

Carney government bills: tracking their progress into law

The number of sick days claimed by bureaucrats, broken down by department

The number of sick days claimed by bureaucrats, broken down by department