Canada
Heading into election year, cost of living still dominates voter priorities
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberals face an uphill battle to convince Canadians they're the right party to address cost-of-living concerns heading into an election year.
Bas Sluijmers wins St. Catharines federal Conservative nomination
In securing this victory, Sluijmers defeated three prospective candidates, including St. Catharines Regional Councillor Peter Secord, legal clerk and businessman Hayden Lawrence, as well as local real estate agent Kim Schwenker. There was a good reason this was a hotly contested nomination: It's a riding that, in my model and most others, turns blue if there was an election early this winter. The riding has been held by Liberal Chris Bittle since 2015 but Bittle would be a 20 point underdog (11,800 votes) given current polling averages in Ontario. The winning candidate, Sluijmers, was endorsed by sitting MPs Dean Allison and Leslyn Lewis.
The Madding Crowd
Historian J.L. Granatstein reviews The Great Right North: Inside Far-Right Activism in Canada by Stéphane Leman-Langlois, Aurélie Campana, and Samuel Tanner.
Improving Interactions: Public Sector Reform and Parliamentary Committees
Canadian Public Administration A well-functioning policy process requires a responsible public service that supports the government and implements its decisions, and a representative legislature that holds the executive to account for policy decisions and actions. Reform of either the public sector or Parliament alone is insufficient to ensure that the relationship between the two bodies works to the benefit of Canadians as intended. This article explores that relationship using committees as a focal point given their centrality to the operation of the policy system. It begins with a discussion of the role of the two bodies in the policy process and criteria for assessing any potential reforms, followed by a brief discussion of recent attempts at reform and their positive and negative lessons. We conclude by identifying three key reform options for the public sector and parliament to improve their interaction in this vital, yet often overlooked, part of the policy process. This paper is authored by John Nater, the Conservative MP for the Ontario riding of Perth--Wellington who, the author bio tells us, is also a Ph.D candidate in political science at Western University.
The Provinces
Buoyed by election win, Tim Houston tones down rhetoric toward Ottawa
On the heels of a resounding election victory, Tim Houston is adopting a more measured tone when it comes to assessing his province’s relationship with the federal government.
Elsewhere
21 dead as Mozambique erupts in violence after election court ruling
Violence that engulfed Mozambique after the country’s highest court confirmed ruling Frelimo party presidential candidate Daniel Chapo as the winner of disputed Oct. 9 elections killed at least 21 people, including two police officers, authorities said Tuesday.
More than 10,000 migrants died this year trying to reach Spain by sea: Report
Spain’s interior ministry says more than 57, 700 migrants reached Spain by boat until Dec. 15 this year, a roughly 12 per cent increase from the same period last year.
Donald Trump and Elon Musk Have Energized the German Far-Right
Germany's AfD, with its own plan for mass deportations, is hoping to replicate the MAGA movement's success in upcoming elections.
India’s former PM Manmohan Singh dies aged 92
Singh served as prime minister from 2004 to 2014 and was the architect of India’s economic liberalisation in the 1990s. A consequential prime minister, he and Prime Minister Stephen Harper sought to put Canada-India relations on a new footing including an agreement by the Harper government to allow India to acquire and use peaceful nuclear technology from AECL. Canada froze India out of Canadian nuclear tech after it used CANDU stuff to make a nuclear bomb during Pierre Trudeau's time.
Poll: Exhausted by political news, Americans are tuning out
About two-thirds of American adults say they have recently felt the need to limit media consumption about politics and government because of overload, according to survey
Media
5 Palestinian journalists killed by Israeli strike, Gaza Health Ministry says
The journalists were working for the local news outlet Al-Quds Today, a television channel affiliated with the Islamic Jihad militant group.
Reclaiming career while living with cancer
John Vennavally-Rao:L In February, there was a time when I thought my career as a TV reporter was over. I was in the hospital, my liver showing signs of failure, my body struggling to recover from two major surgeries for two separate cancers. My identity as a journalist had dissolved — I was just someone hoping to survive, focused on finding the strength for a five-minute walk down the hospital hallway with a walker and an IV pole. This month, I returned to work. And this week, you’ll see me back on the news. I'm a former colleague of John's and was really happy to read this story. Good luck, John, and all the best!
Science and tech
Tech's biggest winners in 2024
[The Endgadget] team looks back on the highlights of 2024, including gadgets, apps and games.
