Policy Topics | Policy Briefings

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• Agriculture
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• 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

Natural Resources and Energy

Canada’s green jobs strategy needs more than good intentions

OpinionBY LIN AL-AKKAD

• The federal government lacks a data-driven method for identifying how workers in legacy sectors can transition into clean-economy jobs and where the real gaps lie. 

Canada’s green jobs strategy needs more than good intentions

OpinionBY LIN AL-AKKAD

• The federal government lacks a data-driven method for identifying how workers in legacy sectors can transition into clean-economy jobs and where the real gaps lie. 

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

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

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

Canada’s rising disaster costs call for adaptive design

OpinionBY HOSSEIN BONAKDARI

Four key steps can help secure Canadian sovereignty

OpinionBY JON SHELL

2026: Another year on the edge for Carney and Canada

OpinionBY LES WHITTINGTON

Steel tariff missteps threaten Canada’s energy future

OpinionBY VITTORIA BELLISSIMO, FERNANDO MELO

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The Alberta energy deal is worse than you think

OpinionBY STEPHEN THOMAS

• Canada’s clean electricity regulations—finally published less than 12 months ago—are on the chopping block as part of this deal.

The Alberta energy deal is worse than you think

OpinionBY STEPHEN THOMAS

• Canada’s clean electricity regulations—finally published less than 12 months ago—are on the chopping block as part of this deal.

Jump-starting a Canadian power grid

OpinionBY MADELEINE MCPHERSON, PETER FAIRLEY

Canada’s chance to lead the critical minerals race should be based not only on extraction, but also on tech

OpinionBY APOORV SINHA

Likelihood of reaching long-term climate goals unclear until more details emerge from Alberta MOU, say environment experts

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

The MOU’s real value may be for those on the outside looking in

OpinionBY TIM POWERS

Alberta’s new energy MOU could kick-start a race to the bottom on climate

OpinionBY RICK SMITH, DALE BEUGIN, DAVE SAWYER

Canada must find its climate path beyond fossil fuels

OpinionBY DAMON MATTHEWS

Ottawa-Alberta energy deal could open door for other provinces to pursue weakened climate policies, say environmental experts: ‘this is just a massive step back’

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT, RIDDHI KACHHELA

Chief says feds’ engagement with First Nations ‘needs to improve’ after ‘very limited’ contact on major projects

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

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

‘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

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Biotechnology

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

Canada could have access to more than 10,000 doctors if licensing were less complicated, House Health Committee hears

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

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DEFENCE & SECURITY

Empower hardtech innovators to step up to sovereignty threats

OpinionBY HUGH CHOW

Time to close the U.S. arms export loophole

OpinionBY ALEX NEVE

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

NewsBY STUART BENSON

In defence of Canada

OpinionBY SCOTT TAYLOR

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Environment

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

OpinionBY KATE KOPLOVICH

Priorities for Canada as 2026 gets underway

OpinionBY ELIZABETH MAY

Planetary limits: why Canada’s next nation-building project must be grounded in reality

OpinionBY INDEPENDENT SENATOR ROSA GALVEZ, TREVOR HANCOCK, COURTNEY HOWARD

Climate advisers ask feds to put Net-Zero Advisory Body on ‘pause,’ say they can’t fulfill mandate in ‘skeleton state’

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

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FINANCE

Three measures to tackle ‘wicked’ health policy problems

OpinionBY AZIN PEYROW

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

NewsBY STUART BENSON

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

OpinionBY BHAGWANT SANDHU

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

OpinionBY DAVID CRANE

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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

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FOREIGN POLICY

Will the Carney Doctrine play in Scarborough?

OpinionBY JOHN MCKAY

‘With or without you’: policy sovereignty in a Trumpian world

OpinionBY KEVIN LYNCH, PAUL DEEGAN

Japan salutes Canadian business ties

FeatureBY SAM GARCIA

Iran an active case study on whether massacres work

OpinionBY GWYNNE DYER

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health

Health workforce, toxic drug crisis on health critics’ agendas this winter

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Make federal funding permanent for Canada’s suicide crisis helpline, say Conservative and NDP critics

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Health care is 13 per cent of Canada’s economy, and must be central to nation-building

OpinionBY JIMMY YANG

Far-right ideology is a prescription for bad health

OpinionBY DORIS GRINSPUN

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Industry and Manufacturing

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

‘Quiet buzz’ on Bay Street about Carney’s ‘nation-building’ major projects, says Tobin

NewsBY CHRISTOPHER GULY

Canada’s ZEV mandate will leave 450,000 drivers stranded

OpinionBY BRIAN LIVINGSTON

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infrastructure and transport

Health organizations have questions, but few answers about feds’ new $5-billion Health Infrastructure Fund

NewsBY TESSIE SANCI

Can Build Canada Homes make a dent in the housing crisis?

OpinionBY ALAN BROADBENT

The joys of winter biking aren’t without politics

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

Time to strengthen Canada’s infrastructure planning 

OpinionBY JENNIFER ANGEL, PETER WELTMAN

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innovation

Canada needs a national strategy for the information ecosystem—not just its parts

OpinionBY ALICA WANLESS

Experts say 6G networks still years away, but Canada’s already preparing for the technology of the future

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

Elbow patches up: universities and Canadian sovereignty

OpinionBY TIMOTHY CHAN

Warming Canada-China relations shouldn’t extend to Huawei ban, say security experts, parliamentarians

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

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intergovernmental

Canada’s housing crisis isn’t just about building more—it’s about getting governments to talk to each other

OpinionBY ADRIAN SCHUT

Bravo to Carney for speaking the truth

OpinionBY ANDREW CADDELL

Quebec: inhaling the ‘hopeium’ of the next ‘Mark Carney’

OpinionBY KEN POLK

A shifting geopolitical environment leaves the Arctic central to Canada’s sovereignty and security

OpinionBY NDP MP LORI IDLOUT

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justice

America lost justice when Renee Nicole Good was killed

OpinionBY MICHAEL HARRIS

We need to go beyond criminal law reform to end gender-based violence

OpinionBY LANA WELLS

Bill C-16 ‘progress,’ but needs tougher language to codify femicide as a standalone crime, advocates say

NewsBY MARLO GLASS

Ottawa set to revive online harms legislation in 2026: government source

NewsBY DAVIS LEGREE

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Labour & employment

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

This one policy could allow Canada to dramatically reduce land costs for affordable housing

OpinionBY COLIN O’LEARY, ACACIA PANGILINAN

Affordable housing is slipping away. Here’s how we get it back

OpinionBY REBECCA BLIGH

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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

Record-breaking November lobbying sees U.S. trade war and federal budget among top concerns

NewsBY JESSE CNOCKAERT

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Women, Gender and Diversity

Governments can do more to fight against Islamophobia

OpinionBY WAHEED KHAN

Women entrepreneurs are a crucial asset for Canada’s economy, they deserve a voice in shaping it

OpinionBY ROSALIND LOCKYER

Artificial action: feds offering tepid response to AI abuse

OpinionBY ERICA IFILL

When a parliamentary committee recently politicized EDI in research, they put Canadian science and patient care at risk

OpinionBY RACHEL REEVE

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Indigenous Relations

Housing is reconciliation: why Canada must prioritize Indigenous housing

OpinionBY MARGARET PFOH

‘I will always be an advocate,’ says retiring Indigenous senior civil servant Gina Wilson after decades working to ‘bridge worlds’

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

Principled-based pragmatism and the wisdom of the seven generations

OpinionBY ROSE LEMAY

‘Stark contrast’ between Carney and Trudeau’s approach to Indigenous relations, says ITK president Obed

NewsBY ELEANOR WAND

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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