Politics This Morning: Trudeau cancels trip to Japan as post-storm recovery begins

Good Monday morning, The Canadian Forces and other arms of the federal government are assisting the four Atlantic provinces and Quebec in the aftermath of this weekend's massive storm. Fiona made landfall in Canada early Saturday morning as a hurricane-strength post-tropical storm, flooding homes and businesses in several provinces and killing a 73-year-old Newfoundland woman whose home was among 20 destroyed by boulders and debris. CBC News reported that more than 375,000 people across Atlantic Canada lost power, with approximately 270,000 Nova Scotia Power customers without electricity on Sunday morning. Many will be without power until Tuesday or Wednesday. Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU chaired two meetings of the Incident Response Group on the weekend, and spoke with the premiers of Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Quebec. Trudeau, Emergency Preparedness Minister BILL BLAIR, Defence Minister ANITA ANAND, and cabinet colleagues from the affected provinces also held press conferences over the weekend to discuss the initial response to the storm and the recovery efforts. Trudeau has cancelled his planned trip to Japan, where he was scheduled to attend Tuesday’s state funeral for former Japanese prime minister SHINZO ABE, who was killed in July while attending a campaign event. Industry Minister FRANÇOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE will represent Canada instead. PTM has learned that Trudeau was the only G7 leader expected to attend the funeral. Japan is preparing to take its turn holding the presidency of the G7, and the Canadian Press has reported that Trudeau had been scheduled to meet with Japan’s current prime minister, FUMIO KISHIDA, who served as Abe’s foreign minister. Government expected to announce end of pandemic border measures Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos, seen here on Sept. 20, will appear alongside cabinet colleagues this morning to provide an update on pandemic border restrictions. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade Health Minister JEAN-YVES DUCLOS, Public Safety Minister MARCO MENDICINO, Transport Minister OMAR ALGHABRA, Treasury Board President MONA FORTIER, and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister DOMINIC LEBLANC will hold a press conference on Parliament Hill at 8:30 a.m. Ottawa time to announce changes to Canada's border measures. According to CBC News, government sources have said that this announcement will mark the official end of pandemic border measures, a decision which the prime minister signed off on last week. One of the changes involves the ArriveCAN app, which will no longer be mandatory for travellers entering Canada. What's happening on Parliament Hill today? This morning, the House will continue debate on second reading of Bill C-31, which would implement interim payments for dental care for children under 12 and the one-time rental housing benefit for low-income households. In the afternoon, the debate will shift to the government's other "affordability" bill, C-30, which would temporarily double the GST credit for low-income families for six months. Eleven House committees and two Senate committees are scheduled to meet. Many of the House committees will spend at least a portion of their time in camera to discuss draft reports on various studies. The House Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs will resume its fourth study of Arctic sovereignty, security, and emergency preparedness for Indigenous peoples. The committee will hear from experts from Trent University and the Macdonald-Laurier Institute at 11 a.m. Ottawa time and from representatives of the Nunavut government and the Listuguj Mi'gmaq government at noon. The House Committee on the Status of Women will meet at 11 a.m. Ottawa time to begin a study of the mental health of young women and girls. Indigenous youth leaders will testify before the Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples at 1 p.m. Ottawa time about what Truth and Reconciliation means to them. The youth leaders were selected by a program that connects Senators with Indigenous youth. The Senate Committee on Official languages will continue its study of Bill C-13, which addresses the use of French in federally-regulated private businesses, at 4 p.m. Ottawa time. The committee will hear from legal and language rights experts, as well as from representatives of the Canadian Bankers Association. The House Science Committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. Ottawa time to continue its study of small modular nuclear reactors. The committee will hear from representatives of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, and the Department of Natural Resources, before going in camera at 7:30 p.m. to consider its draft report on the subject. What else is happening today? Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau is the second cabinet minister to visit the Philippines on a trade mission in as many weeks. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade Agriculture Minister MARIE-CLAUDE BIBEAU will conclude her two-day trade mission to the Philippines, where she is meeting with government and agriculture representatives. International Trade Minister MARY NG was in Manila last week to discuss trade between Canada and the Philippines. DAN VANDAL, the minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada, will be in Winnipeg at 11.30 a.m. local time to announce funding related to substance abuse in Manitoba. The University of Ottawa will host a book launch and panel discussion on the topic of using tools and insights from political science to inform public health policymaking. This event will take place in person and online at 5 p.m. Ottawa time. In the news Putting together a shadow cabinet will be a challenge for PIERRE POILIEVRE, Conservative insiders tell ABBAS RANA and STUART BENSON, given that more than half of the caucus supported him in the leadership contest. The Conservative Leader is expected to announce his shadow cabinet after the Thanksgiving weekend. The latest release of data from the 2021 census shows a significant increase in the Indigenous population in Canada, compared with the 2016 census. MPs and advocates tell CHELSEA NASH that the change is an indicator that more Indigenous people feel comfortable self-identifying to Statistics Canada. MPs, diplomats, staffers, lobbyists, and strategists toasted Parliament’s return at the Métropolitain Brasserie and at the official residence of the British high commissioner, writes STUART BENSON in his Party Central roundup of the first week of the fall sitting. kphilipupillai@hilltimes.com The Hill Times

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Politics This Morning

Politics This Morning: Trudeau cancels trip to Japan as post-storm recovery begins

And senior cabinet ministers are expected to announce the end of pandemic border measures.

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