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NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says his party will not support a Conservative motion to create a special committee to investigate the Liberals' ethics controversies, which would have triggered a snap election.
Mr. Singh refused to say at a news conference this afternoon whether his party would actually vote against the motion or whether they would just abstain. However, he said his party decidedly did not want to start campaigning right now. (And the NDP did support the Liberals in confidence votes last month.)
The Conservatives proposed the far-reaching motion, but said they did not want the vote itself to trigger an election. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who can really request an election from the Governor-General whenever he wants one, said that if the motion passed he would have sought an election immediately.
The Bloc Québécois supported the Conservatives and, of all the parties, seemed the most happy to go straight into a campaign.
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TODAY’S HEADLINES
The Canada Revenue Agency has begun to audit some small-business owners who claimed the federal wage subsidy earlier this year. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has written the CRA and asked if the auditors could at least wait until the current tax year is over.
Independent MP Jody Wilson-Raybould, who was the first Indigenous justice minister, said the federal government needs to create a long-term framework for respecting Indigenous rights so it stops lurching from crisis to crisis, such as the current one playing out at a fishery in Nova Scotia.
The federal government has done little to help Indigenous communities deal with climate-change-fuelled food scarcity, Human Rights Watch says.
The United Nations Independent Expert on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity says the Liberal government’s bill to ban conversion therapy could help advance LGBTQ+ rights in other countries, too.
Lawyers say 545 children who were separated from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border are still missing their parents.
And the B.C. election is this weekend. Read our rundown of the parties' policies before you cast your ballot.
John Ibbitson (The Globe and Mail) on what the Liberals could be thinking in trying to force an election: “They may have looked at the victory of the Conservatives in the New Brunswick provincial election, the strong lead the NDP is enjoying in the B.C. election and Jacinda Ardern’s Labour Party victory in New Zealand and decided that this is an opportune time for a governing party to go to the people.”
Andrew Coyne (The Globe and Mail) on the Liberals trying to dodge more questions: “And now the election threat and [Liberal House Leader Pablo] Rodriguez’s amazing justification of it: to avoid the degrading spectacle of ministers having to spend precious time answering questions from members of Parliament, rather than the ‘important work’ of … whatever it is they do. Because, you see, that’s the choice. The government can fight the pandemic or it can answer questions about possible misuse of public funds. It can’t do both, apparently.”
Paul Wells (Maclean’s) on the Liberal psyche: “The other way Parliament sucks, if you’re a Liberal, is that it is such a reliable buzz kill. When they’re among themselves, as they have usually been since March, they can come up with new income support programs and wage subsidies and synonyms for giving people money. They can savour the fatigue that comes from undeniably working hard, and tell themselves the coronavirus crisis would be worse without them. Then they have to face MPs from other parties, as well as reporters, who taken as a group hardly ever thank them.”
Robyn Urback (The Globe and Mail) on the government’s proposal to let cities ban handguns: “For a federal government that will fall over itself in deference to provincial jurisdiction when questioned on, say, a law that bans people from working certain public-sector jobs because of what they wear, it is noteworthy that Ottawa apparently has no qualms venturing into provincial jurisdiction to allow municipalities to ban handguns within their city limits. Systemic discrimination is a provincial matter, but municipal governance is … a federal one? Have I got that right?”
Rita Trichur (The Globe and Mail) on diversity on corporate boards: “The federal government, meanwhile, has already made it mandatory for companies subject to the Canada Business Corporations Act to disclose information about the diversity of their boards and senior management teams to investors. It plans similar requirements for major banks. But as [Public Services Minister Anita] Anand rightly points out, true change will not come from legislation alone. What’s really needed is a shift in corporate culture so that diverse candidates are given a fair shot at those roles.”
Celeste Pedri-Spade (The Globe and Mail) on Queen’s removing John A. Macdonald’s name from a building: “Taking down Macdonald monuments or renaming buildings is not an example of people or organizations trying to forget history or falling victim to a trend. Rather, it is evidence of a powerful cultural renaissance taking place within our communities – one that is motivated and driven by thoughtful citizens who are no longer happy being surrounded with material embodiments of people and stories that are traumatic and harmful to their families or their neighbours. It is an example of people who want a present and future that upholds and celebrates the importance of collective moral responsibility.”
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