Hello, welcome to Politics Insider. Let’s look at what happened today.
Canada and three Western allies that recognized the state of Palestine last year are calling on President Mahmoud Abbas to reverse his decision to delay legislative council elections in the territories until next September.
Steven Chase reports that Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand and her counterparts in Britain, France and Australia issued a statement today saying they “deeply regret” Abbas’s decision. The legislative elections were supposed to be held next month, along with the presidential elections.
They pressed the Palestinian Authority to reconsider and hold both elections “without further delay.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney’s decision to recognize Palestine was predicated on several conditions, including a vote for Palestinians in 2026.
On Saturday, Abbas blamed Israel and the security situation in the Palestinian territories for the delay. The foreign ministers noted it had already been five years since elections planned for 2021 were postponed.
A pedestrian walks past the closed Palestinian Legislative Council building in Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Sunday.ZAIN JAAFAR/AFP/Getty Images
What else is going on
Chrystia Freeland releases new book Unreliable Boyfriend: Part memoir, part political polemic (with plenty of spicy metaphors), the new book from the former federal finance minister offers a sweeping vision of Canada’s place in a rapidly changing world, along with a blueprint for – oh, come on. You just want to know what she says about Justin Trudeau.
Alberta recommended Sam Mraiche-linked company to build recovery centre, lawyer alleges: Tsuut’ina Nation, which broke ground on its recovery centre in 2024, is one of several Indigenous communities building addiction treatment facilities funded by the provincial government.
Carney makes case for united Canada ahead of Alberta separation vote: In a video posted online, Prime Minister Mark Carney made a Thanksgiving pitch for residents of his home province to cast ballots against taking the process of separation to the next step.
Quebec businesses brace for renewed sovereignty debate: The business community is concerned about a commitment by premier elect Paul St-Pierre Plamondon to drastically cut immigration, despite warnings that such tightening could make it harder to meet labour needs.
RCMP strengthens ties with FBI, but critics warn Mounties are too dependent on U.S.: In a new book, law professor Kent Roach writes that the Mounties have relied on the bureau’s tips to learn about impending terrorist attacks and other national-security threats to Canada.
Political Lives, Jean-Luc Mongrain: The former Quebec news anchor and commentator died on Sunday at 75. In a post to X, Carney said Mongrain, a key media figure for more than 50 years, applied “frankness, passion and a rare talent for clearly explaining complex issues” to help Quebeckers make sense of the world.
On our radar
Prime Minister’s Day: Carney did not have any public events today. However, he spoke with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of his visit to Canada in December. The Prime Minister’s Office also announced that Carney has accepted an invitation to attend a federalist rally in Calgary on Thursday, and one in Edmonton on Friday.
Party Leaders:
In Windsor, Ont., Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre held a news conference ahead of a trip to Detroit to meet with American business leaders and speak to media on Canada-U.S. trade. No schedules released for other party leaders.
Ministers on the Road:
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand is in India today for a visit that will include meeting with her ministerial counterpart and participating in the Bloomberg New Economy Forum being held in New Delhi. Anand will also visit the United Arab Emirates.
In Winnipeg, Rechie Valdez, the Minister of Women and Gender Equality, announced $30-million in renewed funding for the Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund.
In Central York, N.B., Energy Minister Tim Hodgson and Premier Susan Holt announced about $270-million in funding for energy projects in the province, including $219-million to rehabilitate the 1960s-era Mactaquac Generating Station.
The Lobster Trap wins literary prize: Globe journalist Greg Mercer has won the 2026 J.W. Dafoe Foundation Book Prize for his book about the multibillion dollar lobster industry in Canada.
Helen Branswell dies at 69: Branswell was a veteran journalist covering infectious diseases and global health. Her career included work for health-news website Stat News, and time as an Ottawa-based reporter and news editor for the Canadian Press.
Quote of the Day
“The best-case scenario, I suppose, is that the remain side wins it with a very, very comfortable vote, that people trust the results ... and that the subsequent fight within the UCP is contained so the rest of Alberta is no longer held hostage by that dysfunction.” – Former Alberta premier Rachel Notley on her hopes for the sovereignty referendum, during an Edmonton event today with fellow former premier, Jason Kenney.
Question period
Albertans are to vote in a referendum on whether to remain in Canada or hold a second, binding referendum on separation. What was the first plebiscite held in the province on a public issue?
Scroll to the bottom of this newsletter for the answer.
Perspectives
Don’t buy it when the separatists say the referendum is about leverage
The moment for voting approaches on the Alberta referendum, and the separatists, having seemingly largely failed to convince a critical mass of Albertans to adopt their millenarian view of the province’s place within Confederation, are now putting an awful lot of weight in an alternate way to make their case – namely, that this is all about leverage.
— Tyler Dawson is an Edmonton-based editor for The Globe and Mail’s Opinion section. He is the author of The Republic of Alberta: An Idea That Won’t Go Away.
With talk of a hypothetical American invasion, Canadians should think about non-violent resistance
Non-violent defence offers Canada a potentially efficient and effective deterrence and defence, at a relatively low cost in terms of casualties and infrastructural damage. The case for civilian defence is pragmatic.
— Richard Sandbrook is an emeritus professor of political science at the University of Toronto and vice-president of Science for Peace.
The weakest links in Carney’s cabinet are still there
Yet the Prime Minister hasn’t shuffled them.
— Campbell Clark, Chief Political Writer
Go deeper
- Follow along for our stories on Canada-U.S. relations as news develops
- Get the latest insight and analysis from our political opinion writers
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The answer to today’s question: In July of 1915, voters in Alberta were asked whether the province should implement prohibition. Voters approved the idea and the policy was enacted in 1916.