Politics This Morning: Federal cabinet retreat to focus on domestic priorities

Good Monday morning, Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU will make a virtual announcement on early learning and child care at 10 a.m. Ottawa time, alongside Nunavut Premier P. J. AKEEAGOK, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development KARINA GOULD, Minister of Northern Affairs DAN VANDAL, and Nunavut Minister of Education PAMELA GROSS. Let's hope the ministers from Nunavut get some questions directed their way; when the prime minister joined Housing Minister AHMED HUSSEN on Friday for a press conference on the Rapid Housing Initiative, every question that came back was about Ukraine. Opposition leader ERIN O’TOOLE will make an announcement on the rising cost of living from West Block at 1:30 p.m. The prime minister and deputy prime minister are both scheduled to join a virtual cabinet retreat at 1 p.m. today. The PMO announced on Friday that the retreat will run from Monday to Wednesday. Domestic priorities dominate the agenda for the retreat—or at least the part the PMO is advertising. Those include the economic impacts of the pandemic; investments in the green economy; $10-a-day child care; the vaccine rollout; the climate crisis; and creating affordable housing. The retreat will also give ministers a chance to advocate for their departments' priorities to the PM and finance minister in advance of the spring federal budget. The cabinet retreat follows Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND’s virtual meeting on Friday with finance ministers for the provinces and territories. A press release from the federal finance department said the ministers spoke about the ongoing uncertainty about global inflation and supply chain pressures, the importance of coordinating taxation, and barriers to interprovincial trade. Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly has returned to Canada after a trip to Ukraine, France and Belgium. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade Mélanie Joly returns from Ukraine trip Of note: the PMO's official statement about the cabinet retreat does not mention any discussion of the situation in Ukraine, which could suggest that these decisions are being made by a smaller team. Foreign Affairs Minister MÉLANIE JOLY returned from her trip to Ukraine, France and Belgium on Saturday. According to a press release from Global Affairs Canada, the trip included meetings with Ukraine’s President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY and prime minister DENIS SHMYHAL; France’s Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs JEAN-YVES LE DRIAN; the Secretary General of NATO JENS STOLTENBERG; the President of the European Council CHARLES MICHEL; and Belgium’s deputy prime minister SOPHIE WILMÈS, among others. The official statement said that “in the face of Russian aggression, Canada is proud to stand with those who believe in Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence,” and pointed out that Canada has imposed sanctions on more than 440 individuals and entities since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. The federal government has offered Ukraine a $120-million loan for “economic resilience and governance reforms.” International Development Minister HARJIT SAJJAN told CTV News that Ukraine cannot use this money to buy weapons, and Joly’s official statement did not address the possibility of military assistance from Canada. But CBC News reports that the government is actively considering whether to send a shipment of small arms, protective vests and goggles. Sources told CBC reporter MURRAY BREWSTER that any announcement about military assistance would come after this week’s virtual cabinet retreat. In case you missed it Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. THERESA TAM, announced at a telephone press conference on Friday that early indications are that the Omicron wave of COVID-19 “may have peaked at the national level,” based on daily case counts, the number and proportion of positive tests, the effective reproduction rate of the virus, and wastewater testing. But Dr. Tam also warned that “daily hospital and ICU numbers are still rising steeply, and many hospitals across Canada are under intense strain.” As The Canadian Press reported, Dr. Tam warned that there are 6.5 million people in Canada who are still not fully vaccinated. Health Canada data showed that daily deaths climbed above 100 per day last week, for the first time in almost a year. What else is happening today? There’s nothing on the Senate’s calendar. In the House, the Finance Committee continues its televised study on inflation at 2:30 p.m. Ottawa time. The agenda and procedure subcommittees of the Defence Committee, the Natural Resources Committee and the Committee on Government Operations and Estimates will each meet, in camera, to discuss their agendas and procedures. With ministers busy with the cabinet retreat, there's more room for other Liberal MPs to make funding announcements. MARC SERRÉ, MP for Nickel Belt, will announce a federal investment to improve high-speed internet access in Hearst, Ontario. DARRELL SAMSON, parliamentary secretary to the minister of veterans affairs and associate minister of national defence, will announce funding for organizations in Montreal that support veterans and their families. Samson will be joined by FRANCIS SCARPALEGGIA, MP for Lac-Saint-Louis, and ANJU DHILLON, MP for Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle. Senior Conservatives say the next few months will decide Erin O'Toole's future as leader of the party. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade In The Hill Times LAURA RYCKEWAERT speaks with strategists and pollsters to find out how much of a political challenge the upcoming carbon price increase will be for the Trudeau government. ABBAS RANA digs into leadership questions facing both the Liberals and the Conservatives. Liberal insiders are calling on the prime minister to shut down distracting speculation on who might succeed him, while senior Conservatives are calling the next few months a litmus test for Erin O'Toole’s leadership. And MPs talk to CHRISTOPHER GULY about fatigue, threats to their personal safety, and trying to connect with anxious constituents during the pandemic. kphilipupillai@hilltimes.com The Hill Times

Politics This Morning

Politics This Morning: Federal cabinet retreat to focus on domestic priorities

Plus, the feds have struck a deal with Nunavut.

Canada’s aging crisis and a call for reform in eldercare

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Politics This Morning

Politics This Morning: Federal cabinet retreat to focus on domestic priorities

Plus, the feds have struck a deal with Nunavut.

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