Canada
Trudeau says Canada ‘will respond’ if Trump imposes 25% tariffs
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada “will respond” if US President-elect Donald Trump imposes new tariffs on Canadian imports, and argued that retaliatory tariffs were successful when Trump put tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum in 2018.
Freeland to table fall fiscal update on Dec 16
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland announced Monday she will table the fall Fiscal Dconomic Statement (FES) in a week, on Dec. 16. Global’s Chief Political Correspondent David Akin reports that this year's FES will be closely watched to see what, if any, new spending programs the government has in store but it will also serve as a benchmark for the government's commitment to a key fiscal guardrail.
Economists say Trudeau will break fiscal target
13 of 15 economists say Freeland will not meet the fiscal pledges she outlined last year.
Canada Post suggests no quick end to strike after latest union offer
Canada Post says it's 'extremely disappointed' in the latest offers from the union representing its workers, as the strike nears the four-week mark.
Trudeau government survives 3rd non-confidence vote since September
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberal government survived another attempt Monday by the Conservatives to topple it. The latest Conservative non-confidence motion — the third since September — quoted NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh’s criticism of Trudeau to goad his party into supporting the motion. But despite Singh’s past criticisms, the New Democrats have continued to prop up the Liberal government. Mackenzie Gray has more on the latest vote in the House of Commons.
Justin Trudeau is unlikely to win the Canadian election
Robert Russo Justin Trudeau is unlikely to win Canada’s election in 2025. Pierre Poilievre, the Conservative leader, is aiming to replace him as prime minster. The author, Rob Russo, many of you will know as the former Ottawa bureau chief for CBC and, before that, The Canadian Press. He knows his politics.
Latest batch of CPC candidates announced via social media. Of this group, my model suggests that Jonathan Rowe and Tom Ellard have a very good chance to become MPs. Gurvir Khaira, Bob Dossanjh Singh and Colin Reynolds would be in toss-up races. And the rest, well, the CPC can't win every seat, can they? -DA
The Provinces
New wind projects to generate as much power as Site C dam, B.C. says
B.C. unveiled nine new private wind power projects with major First Nations equity on Monday it says will produce as much electricity as the Site C dam by 2031.
Ontario PCs lead by 18 as Ford government approval rating rebounds
If an election were held today, 43% of committed voters in Ontario would vote PC. The Ontario Liberals are at 25%, with the Ontario NDP trailing behind at 21%, and the Greens at 6%. All these changes are within the margin of error of our previous surveys. Since May, the Ontario PCs have consistently led by between 16 and 20 points.
Yarmouth recount confirms PC Nick Hilton win over Zach Churchill
A judicial recount has confirmed that PC candidate Nick Hilton won the Yarmouth riding in the Nova Scotia provincial election over Zach Churchill who had held the seat since 2010.
Elsewhere
Many targeted for removal by Trump can’t be deported, ICE data shows
Nearly half of the 1.4 million people in the U.S. immigration system who have pending deportation orders cannot be sent back to their home countries, according to internal Immigration and Customs Enforcement data, posing one of several looming obstacles to President-elect Donald Trump’s pledge for a mass removal campaign. (🎁 link)
Media
News coverage of artificial intelligence reflects business and government hype — not critical voices
Computer scientists are overwhelmingly present in AI news coverage in Canada, while critical voices who could speak to the current and potential adverse effects of AI are lacking. Point taken but if any academic seriously thinks that examining the news coverage of five newspapers = "the media in Canada", well, I don't know what to say. Le Devoir and La Presse? Why not Le Journal? The Globe and Mail and The Toronto Star? My organization, Global News, has a combined online, legacy TV, and print audience roughly double those titles combined. And, of course, we don't have a print product! But then, the Globe and the Star don't have a legacy TV product. And none of the content produced by CBC is part of this analysis -- and CBC not only employs more journalists than any organization in Canada, it has the single largest online audience. If you want to analyse "the news media", The Globe and the Star no longer cut it as proxies for the Canadian media. I would think you want to look at the news media that most Canadians consume every day. And that would be: CBC, Global, CTV, TVA.
The Best Podcasts of 2024
Despite industry turmoil, old and new shows continue to innovate, whether investigating Elon Musk, high-school mysteries, or our relationship to death itself.
Reader Notes
This newsletter is curated by David Akin, chief political correspondent at Global News. The headlines, excerpts, and photos are generated by the publishers of the clipping. The publisher is at the bottom left of the clipping. If I've got a comment, you''ll see that in italics. But if I've generated the headline and the excerpt, you'll see me taking attribution by finishing with -DA in bold.
You can support this newsletter with a monthly pledge -- Just $5 would do it -- via Patreon or, if you want to make a one-time donation, send an e-transfer to jda@davidakin.com. Many of you have already contributed and I’m very grateful. Thank you. Hoping others may consider a donation as small as $3 a month for this 7-day-a-week newsletter. Thanks in any event for all your support!
Science and tech
Google reveals quantum computing chip with ‘breakthrough’ achievements
Google says Willow is a quantum computing chip capable of performing a task in 5 minutes that would take a supercomputer 10 septillion years to complete.
The Calendar
- 0815 ET: 415 Wellington -Indigenous and Northern Affairs (INAN) | Meeting 137 - Order of the House Referring Back the Second Report of the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs entitled "Barriers to Economic Development in Indigenous Communities"
- 0845 ET: NPT -Deputy PM and Fin Min Chrystia Freeland and Housing and Infrastructure Min Sean Fraser make a housing announcement.
- 0930 ET: NPT - The Canadian Civil Liberaties Association speaks about the nothwithstanding clause.
- 1000 ET: West Block -PM Trudeau meets with his cabinet.
- 1030 ET: NPT - The Office of the Federal Ombudsperson for Victims of Crime releases a study on hate crime responses.
- 1100 ET: 430 Wellington -Health (HESA) | Meeting 145 Opioid Epidemic and Toxic Drug Crisis in Canada
- 1100 ET: 420 Wellington -Foreign Affairs and International Development (FAAE) | Meeting 133 - Drafting report.
- 1100 ET: 035-B West Block -Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) | Meeting 159 - Indigenous Procurement; Resources for the Offices of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner and the Procurement Ombud
- 1100 ET: 430 Wellington -Health (HESA) | Meeting 145 - Opioid Epidemic and Toxic Drug Crisis in Canada
- 1100 ET: 330 Wellington -Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA) | Meeting 141 - Briefing by the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
- 1100 ET: 125-B West Block -Official Languages (LANG) | Meeting 125 - Minority-Language Education Continuum
- 1100 ET: 425 Wellington -Public Safety and National Security (SECU) | Meeting 135 - Drafting report. / Growing Problem of Car Thefts in Canada; Russian Interference and Disinformation Campaigns in Canada
- 1530 ET: 430 Wellington -Finance (FINA) | Meeting 170 - Drafting report.
- 1530 ET: 225-A West Block -National Defence (NDDN) | Meeting 131 - Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces Contaminated Sites
- 1530 ET: 410 Wellington -Science and Research (SRSR) | Meeting 114 - Impact of the Criteria for Awarding Federal Funding on Research Excellence in Canada
- 1530 ET: 125-B West Block -Transport, Infrastructure and Communities (TRAN) | Meeting 143 - Community Safety and Emergency Preparedness Transport of Dangerous Goods by Rail
- 1530 ET: 420 Wellington -Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Foreign Affairs and International Development (SDIR) | Meeting 63 - Patterns of Forced Migration in Different Regions of the World
- 1700 ET: Ottawa -PM Trudeau speaks to the Equal Voice Foundation Gala.
- 1900 ET: Ottawa -NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh speaks to the Equal Voice Foundation Gala.
- 1930 ET: Ottawa -GPC MP Elizabeth May speaks to the Equal Voice Foundation Gala.