Hello,
The Deputy Prime Minister is pushing back at Vladimir Putin. The Russian President denounced Canada in the wake of the former House of Commons speaker encouraging applause for a Ukrainian who fought with a Nazi unit during the Second World War.
During a news conference Thursday, Chrystia Freeland said ex-speaker Anthony Rota has taken responsibility for his “terrible mistake” and resigned.
“We can, all of us, decide how effective Vladimir Putin is at weaponizing that mistake, and I would really urge all of us to understand that Russian propaganda is real, that Russia, right now, even as we speak is killing the brave people of Ukraine,” Freeland said in Ottawa.
“We need to push back very, very hard at everything Vladimir Putin says.”
On Thursday, Putin said Parliament’s standing ovations for Yaroslav Hunka were “disgusting” and showed Moscow was right to “de-Nazify” Ukraine.
Referring to Rota, Putin said that “He essentially lumped together Nazi collaborators, SS troops and the Ukrainian military of today who are fighting against Russia. He lumped them together.
“This only confirms our thesis that one of our goals in Ukraine is denazification.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has formally apologized for the incident, which took place after a speech to the Commons by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Meanwhile, Trudeau said Thursday that Canada will be steadfast in its support of Ukraine despite questions about the United States continuing to provide aid.
During a news conference in Vaughan, Trudeau noted that Canada has provided more than $9-billion in military, humanitarian and financial support.
Earlier this week, he said U.S. President Joe Biden promised that the United States would continue to be present in supporting Ukraine.
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Ian Bailey. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you’re reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
TODAY'S HEADLINES
Tory broke ethics rules in affair with subordinate, Integrity Commissioner’s report says - Toronto’s Integrity Commissioner says former mayor John Tory broke ethics rules in his affair with a subordinate and in voting on a council matter that related to her. However, he did not find Tory sexually harassed the woman, who said the then-mayor’s attentions were “not unwelcome.” Story here. The report is here.
Pat King will stand trial in Ottawa despite repeated attempts to move - An Ontario judge has ruled that convoy protest organizer Pat King will stand trial in Ottawa, dismissing his second request to move the proceedings out of town. Story here.
Trudeau says he never suggested those worried about ‘parental rights’ are hateful - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday he never suggested that individuals concerned about their rights as parents were hateful when he issued a statement in response to the thousands who attended recent protests about “gender ideology” in schools. Story here.
Ottawa seeks to scale back outsourcing with new guidelines - The federal government will announce new guidelines Thursday aimed at cutting back on the use of outside consultants, a move that is part of an effort to shave about $15-billion from existing spending plans. Story here.
Families celebrate Wab Kinew victory after pledge to search landfill for remains - Family and supporters of two First Nations women believed to be buried in a Winnipeg-area landfill are celebrating the election victory of Wab Kinews’s NDP and his pledge to search the site. Story here. Meanwhile, a Manitoba cabinet minister defeated in Tuesday’s provincial election says the Progressive Conservative party took a hard-right pivot during the campaign and needs to address an identity crisis. Story here.
Liberal MP sides with Conservatives on failed motion to ‘repeal all carbon taxes’ - Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s latest unsuccessful attempt to call on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to repeal his carbon pricing system has secured the support of one Liberal MP. Story here from CTV.
‘We’re ashamed:’ Canada’s information watchdogs sign joint pact, urging governments to fix FOI systems - Canada’s information commissioners have signed a joint resolution calling on federal, provincial and territorial governments to modernize access laws and strengthen the public’s right to information, after a Globe and Mail investigation found public bodies are routinely breaking those laws. Story here.
Poilievre’s inner circle divided over how to tackle gender issues, sources say - Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s advisers are divided on the position the party should take on issues of gender identity and diversity, multiple Conservative sources told Radio-Canada. Story here from CBC.
Quebec author cut from contention for French literary prize - Quebec author Kevin Lambert has been dropped from contention for the prestigious French Prix Goncourt for a novel that was praised by Quebec Premier François Legault. Story here.
THIS AND THAT
Today in the Commons - Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, Oct. 5, accessible here.
Deputy Prime Minister’s Day - Chrystia Freeland held private meetings in Ottawa, then made an announcement with Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne and Housing Minister Sean Fraser. Later, in Kingston, Freeland toured a local lithium-ion battery recycling facility.
Ministers on the Road - Rural Economic Development Minister Gudie Hutchings, in Corner Brook, N.L., announced support for an initiate at Memorial University’s Grenfell Campus.
In Ottawa - Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne delivered opening remarks at Canada’s Competition Summit conference hosted by the Competition Bureau. Justice Minister Arif Virani announced $1.57-million funding for two projects supporting Muslim communities in Ontario and Manitoba.
Committees - Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux briefed the Commons committee on industry and technology on his report entitled Break-Even Analysis of Production Subsidies for Stellantis-LGES and Volkswagen. In the Senate, B.C. Attorney-General Niki Sharma was among the witnesses at a meeting of the legal and constitutional affairs committee on Bill C-48 bail-reform legislation. Tomoya Obokata, the UN Human Rights Council’s Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, appeared before the Senate committee on social affairs, science and technology on Canada’s temporary and migrant labour force.
PRIME MINISTER'S DAY
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in the Toronto area, held private meetings, announced an agreement with the City of Vaughan to fast track more than 1,700 new housing units, and provided incentives for thousands more homes over the next three years. He also visited a seniors’ centre in Woodbridge, Ont.
LEADERS
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet is in Europe, on a work trip to Paris, Edinburgh and Belfast through Oct. 11. On Thursday, he has a private meeting in Edinburgh.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre attended Question Period,.
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is participating in the Commons virtually from her Vancouver Island riding.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in Ottawa, held a news conference on Parliament Hill and attended Question Period.
THE DECIBEL
On Thursday’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast, Globe senior political reporter Marieke Walsh talks about the case of Lieutenant-General Steven Whelan, who was facing two charges of misconduct that were dropped a week after his trial began in late September. The Decibel is here.
PUBLIC OPINION
B.C. politics - BC United - the new iteration of the BC Liberal party that governed the province from 2001 to 2017 under premiers Gordon Campbell and Christy Clark - has fallen to third place in support among B.C. voters, according to a new Leger poll. The governing NDP has 42 per cent, the BC Conservatives 25 per cent, BC United 19 per cent and the BC Green Party 10 per cent. Details here.
Unresolved colonialism - Thirty-five per cent of Canadians surveyed say colonialism has left unresolved discord in the relationship between Canadians and First Nations, according to new research by the Angus Reid Institute. Details here.
OPINION
The Globe and Mail Editorial Board on ending the fuzzy pricing of pet medicine: “In human medicine, a physician writes a prescription and a pharmacist dispenses a drug. In animal medicine, a veterinarian is both the prescriber and the dispenser. A pet owner may wonder: Why is that? Are pharmacists legally barred from dispensing animal drugs? Is there some special skill only a veterinarian can possess? Is there a serious public safety risk? Does this make drugs for pets more affordable? The answer to those questions is … no.”
Marsha Lederman (The Globe and Mail) on looking back at the 2011 Vancouver riot when social media took public shaming to new heights: “On the night of June 15, 2011, Mallory Newton, wearing a Vancouver Canucks scarf, posed for an unfortunate photograph. Standing next to a guy whose face was completely obscured with a black ski mask, she threw up a peace sign and smiled. The ski-mask guy was wearing a T-shirt. “I’m just here for the riots,” it read. The next day, at work, Ms. Newton could hear her phone blowing up with notifications. That photo, taken downtown during the Stanley Cup riot, had gone viral. Online stones were being cast against Ms. Newton; she had no ability to explain or provide context.”
Lawrence Martin (The Globe and Mail) on how Mark Carney could be a cure for Canadians fed up with career politicians: “Mark Carney has been back in the news, making very progressive speeches, throwing zingers at Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre – jabs to the effect that Mr. Poilievre’s populist brand breaks societies rather than builds them up, as exemplified by Trumpism in the United States and Brexit in Britain. The heightened activity has set off a buzz again about whether Mr. Carney will take the plunge into politics. Political parties rarely attract star candidates any more. Men and women of private-sector stature stay away. Why risk reputational ruin in Ottawa’s cauldron of malice?”
Konrad Yakabuski (The Globe and Mail) on how the Parti Québécois is back from the dead, and François Legault shares the blame: “The Parti Québécois is back,” PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon told an ecstatic crowd of supporters who gathered Monday to celebrate the sovereigntist party’s stunning by-election victory in a hotly contested Quebec City riding. A year to the day after finishing in fourth place in the 2022 general election, prompting the obituary writers to prepare their pens, the PQ indeed showed that it is back from the dead by steamrolling over the competition in the Jean-Talon riding. PQ candidate Pascal Paradis won 44 per cent of the vote, double that of his Coalition Avenir Québec rival. The race saw 55 per cent of registered voters cast a ballot – an exceptionally high turnout for a by-election – and drew province-wide attention.”
Tom Brodbeck (The Winnipeg Free Press) on how far-right campaign architects disgusted Manitobans and damaged the party brand: “The next time someone tells you toxic, negative advertising in an election campaign is an effective way to win the hearts and minds of voters, tell them about the 2023 provincial election in Manitoba. Experts tell us the reason political parties often resort to attack ads in election campaigns is because they work. They don’t, at least not the kind Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative party used in this election campaign. The U.S.-style ads, which the Tories ramped up in the final week of the campaign, were sleazy and sensationalist. They were cooked up by inept, far-right zealots in the Tory central campaign who are hopelessly out of touch with the political culture of Manitoba.”
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Ian Bailey