Hello, welcome to Politics Insider. Let’s look at what happened today.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and other leaders of national parties are in Tumbler Ridge today to participate in a community vigil to honour the victims of this week’s mass shooting in the B.C. community.
Eight people were killed Tuesday in the remote mining community of 2,400 located in the foothills of the Rockies. The shooter also died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May and NDP interim leader Don Davies have made the trip to be with Carney today.
After a moment of silence in the House of Commons on Wednesday, Carney invited party leaders to join him as he travelled to Tumbler Ridge for the vigil.
Today’s candlelight ceremony is scheduled to take place at 6 p.m. PT at the town hall in Tumbler Ridge.
“This vigil will provide a space to come together, reflect and honour all those affected by this week’s tragedy,” said a statement posted online.
In other news, the Supreme Court of Canada has invalidated the result of last spring’s federal election in the Montreal-area riding of Terrebonne, Que.
Liberal Tatiana Auguste was initially declared the winner by one vote over Bloc Québécois candidate Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné in the 2025 election.
The decision was delivered from the bench after a period of deliberation following today’s hearing. The Supreme Court said in a press release that a full judgment will be published at a later date.
“We declare the annulment of the federal election of April 28, 2025, in the riding of Terrebonne,” Chief Justice Richard Wagner said in French in the court’s briefly stated oral judgment.
NDP interim Leader Don Davies, from left, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, MP Bob Zimmer, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, Prime Minister Mark Carney and his wife Diana Fox Carney, and Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet attend a memorial for the victims of the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., on Friday.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press
There will be no politics newsletter on Monday, which is Family Day.
What else is going on
Supreme Court delivers expansive view of mobility rights: The court ruled today that the rights of a Nova Scotia woman, who was denied the opportunity to attend her mother’s memorial service during the pandemic, were violated by Newfoundland’s then-travel restrictions.
Air Transat to cancel U.S.-bound flights for summer season: A spokeswoman for the airline says flights to Fort Lauderdale and Orlando in Florida will start gradually winding down in the spring.
B.C. Throne Speech delivers sombre message in wake of Tumbler Ridge shooting: This week’s throne speech was stripped of the usual pomp and ceremony. There was no red carpet, no brass bands, no inspection of the honour guard and no booming echo of cannon fire across the Victoria harbour.
Heritage Minister suggests Canada will back applying UNESCO cultural protocol to digital space: Canadian Identity Minister Marc Miller is to travel to Paris next week for an intergovernmental committee meeting at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
Canada not on track to meet any climate targets, study finds: The report by the Canadian Climate Institute suggests Canada has moved away from its climate goals thanks to “a slackening of policy effort over the past year, marked by the removal or weakening of climate policies across the country.”
$20-million of emergency stockpile medication lost because of open freezer door: The Conservative health critic says a briefing on the 2024 incident has raised serious national-security questions.
On our radar
Prime Minister’s Day: Mark Carney was in Tumbler Ridge today with all other federal party leaders as well as Governor-General Mary Simon to attend a vigil in light of the mass shooting in B.C. this week.
Ministers on the Road: In Calgary, Energy Minister Tim Hodgson delivered a keynote address and participated in a fireside chat hosted by the Financial Post and Calgary Economic Development.
On Monday, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne will be in Brussels to address the Eurogroup informal body. Champagne will also engage with counterparts from the Defence, Security, and Resilience Bank. He will meet with European counterparts, business leaders and leaders of the European Commission.
Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc is leading a Team Canada trade mission to Mexico from Sunday to next Friday. A total 240 organizations will be along for the effort and more than 370 delegates, according to a statement from Global Affairs. The aim of the mission is to strengthen commercial ties with Mexico and explore new market opportunities.
Commons and Senate break: The House of Commons and Senate are on a break next week. MPs return on Feb. 23. Senators return on Feb. 24.
Trudeau honours Telford: Former prime minister Justin Trudeau says one of the perks of his life after politics is that he now gets to be onstage with Katie Telford, who served as his only chief of staff during his decade-long run as prime minister that ended last year.
Trudeau made the comments onstage at an event Thursday evening promoting The Right Hand: Conversations with the Chiefs of Staff of the World’s Most Powerful People. The event took place at the Library and Archives Canada complex in Ottawa.
It was advertised as a conversation between author Phoebe Saintilan-Stocks and Telford, but Trudeau was invited on stage to give his perspective.
Trudeau said he and Telford have done a couple of events similar to this one, including at the recent World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
“I really like the fact that we get to be public as partners now,” he said, adding he misses the staff he worked with when he was in office.
It was a deliberate choice to remain friends and work on different projects, he said, noting they were not sick of each other after more than a decade of working together.
“Our friendship had flourished, and our professional abilities were greater because of the partnership we had,” he said. “There’s a lot of things I’m glad to sort of put aside, having left the job – I’m not particularly keen to put aside Katie Telford.” (A report from Emily Haws)
Freeland joins Bloomberg: Former federal finance minister Chrystia Freeland has been named a Bloomberg News contributor and will appear on the news agency’s Wall Street Week show and other Bloomberg Television programming, according to a statement. She will also contribute essays to the Bloomberg Weekend newsletter. The veteran Liberal MP, who left politics this year, now serves as economic adviser to the Ukrainian President and is the incoming chief executive officer of the Rhodes Trust.
Quote of the Day
“We declare the annulment of the election of April 28, 2025 in the riding of Terrebonne” - Richard Wagner, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, in a ruling he delivered today.
Question period
Forty-four years ago on Sunday, the Ocean Ranger oil platform sank off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador – a disaster that continues to haunt the province. How many people died in the incident?
Scroll to the bottom of this newsletter for the answer.
Perspectives
The bridge that illustrates the lesson about the new U.S.
Everybody knows what’s happening with Donald Trump’s threat to block the opening of a Detroit-Windsor bridge. At least, everybody in the political system in Washington and Ottawa.
— Campbell Clark, chief political writer
Ottawa’s asset: an independent central bank
Politicians should resist the urge to pressure central banks, as their sometimes unpopular decisions are key to keeping inflation low and the economy stable. The federal government should also avoid “mission creep” that tasks the bank with goals such as boosting employment, tackling climate change or inequality. Central banks work best when they can solely focus on managing inflation.
— The Globe and Mail Editorial Board
Saskatchewan shows Alberta how to handle a separatist threat seeking U.S. support
It’s a sad day for Canada when a provincial premier won’t call out separatists in their province who have been actively soliciting support from the United States. But Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she doesn’t want to “demonize” anyone for their views.
— Bill Waiser is a Saskatoon-based historian and the author of A World We Have Lost: Saskatchewan Before 1905.
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: 84 people died in the sinking on Feb. 15, 1982. Of the 84 people aboard, 56 were Newfoundlanders. In 1983, three divers were killed in efforts to refloat the platform so it could be towed to deeper waters. A Royal Commission on the disaster, established in 1982, found design flaws in the rig and raised concerns about crew training and the adequacy of life-saving equipment.