Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Nick | Follow Politico Canada
Thanks for reading Ottawa Playbook. Today, ZI-ANN LUM reports on the Freeland-Yellen get-together in Toronto. We have news on NORAD and the latest on the hybrid House. Plus, NICK TAYLOR-VAISEY drops names after CHRIS HALLs farewell at The Met. And MAURA FORREST has the latest on the politics of plastic.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia (fourth from the top) and her staff on Monday in Toronto. | Zi-Ann Lum
THE F WORD Deputy Prime Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND rolled up to her bilat with U.S. Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN on her bike before swapping a black tee and pants for a three-piece blue blazer set.
Freeland and Yellen met inside a converted exhibit space in Torontos Royal Ontario Museum on Monday. They were flanked by displays of glittering metal artifacts, swapping notes on major economic influences facing both the U.S. and Canada: Global inflation, critical minerals, energy security, Russia and friend-shoring.
Yellens definition: Friend-shoring is the idea that countries that espouse a common set of values about international trade, conduct in the global economy should trade and get the benefits of trade so we have multiple sources of supply and are not reliant excessively on sourcing critical goods from countries where we have geopolitical concerns.
Translation: Russian President VLADIMIR PUTINs war in Ukraine made western economies realize they dont like relying on Russia and China.
The challenge: Redrawing trade relations in the name of friend-shoring is long-term work that will be costly. Inflation and rising food and energy prices are also driving the cost of living around the world. Incumbent governments are under pressure to find solutions now, which is setting the tone of political debate in the U.S. and Canada.
Both Freeland and Yellen brought their A-teams, kinda. A government official tells Playbook they chose the ROM as the venue for bilat talks partly because they wanted to show off the city plus, its in Freelands riding.
But even the best-laid plans have twists (#pandemic). Some A-team bilat talk members got knocked out by Covid, prompting some last-minute subs.
The final seating chart on Freelands side of the table: The DPMs chief of staff LESLIE CHURCH, Canadas ambassador to the U.S. KIRSTEN HILLMAN, Deputy Finance Minister MICHAEL SABIA and her DComm ALEX LAWRENCE.
Representing Team U.S.A. with Yellen: Deputy assistant secretary for banking CRAIG RADCLIFFE, U.S. Ambassador to Canada DAVID COHEN and international economist and senior adviser JAKE OWENS.
Hanging question: Freeland mentioned off the cuff to a Toronto business crowd following the bilat that new institutions may be needed to help navigate a new era of economic and geopolitical uncertainties. She offered no specifics.
Setting the stage for next weeks G-7 meeting in Germany, Yellen teased future news on a potential price cap on Russian oil to further starve Putins coffers as talks continue with Canadian and other international partners.
She told reporters, Stay tuned.
The gifts: Freeland's crew knew Yellen was an avid rock collector, so gifted the secretary a piece of limestone from Centre Block with a maple leaf carved into it. The Canadians also gave her a French edition of a book written by her husband, Nobel laureate GEORGE AKERLOF, ordered from a Montreal bookstore.
Did someone forward Ottawa Playbook to you today? Are you ready to be a forwarder, not a forwardee? Click here to sign up to this free newsletter.
NEXT-GEN NORAD Canada's enemies and allies all know at least one thing to be true. NORAD's North Warning System, which dates to the end of the Cold War, is obsolete.
That was the backdrop for Defense Minister ANITA ANAND's Monday announcement of C$4.9 billion in spending over six years on a variety of continental defense initiatives, including four surveillance systems designed to detect and deter ultra-fast hypersonic missiles.
As she spoke, Anand was backed by a fighter jet and transport aircraft and flanked by the chief of the defense staff, Gen. WAYNE EYRE, and NORAD deputy commander Lieut.-Gen. ALAIN PELLETIER. Notably absent was JUSTIN TRUDEAU, who's still working remotely after testing positive for Covid last week.
New or nah? Anand initially stressed that this was new money, over and above the C$252 million committed to NORAD and Arctic security in Budget 2021, and Budget 2022's C$8-billion injection of defense spending spread over five years. But her office later clarified that it wasn't new money, and was baked into the most recent budget. Clear as mud.
What was clear: Anand's audience wasn't reaaaally the journalists in front of her and any curious Canadians watching at home. This was, at least in part, a signal to the other half of NORAD south of the border.
The backstory: Last summer, then-defense minister HARJITSAJJAN and U.S. Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN released a joint statement on NORAD modernization that laid out priorities in broad strokes.
Two weeks ago, Anand joined Trudeau at NORAD HQ in Colorado for a tour and classified briefings. Austin was there, too.
Anand's Monday announcement comes just a week before Trudeau heads to the NATO Summit in Madrid, where his office says discussions will include "ongoing and future transatlantic security threats and challenges."
One of the predictable elephants in the room at these gatherings is Canada's lackluster per capita defense spending.
The commitment: The fancy new tech is called "over-the-horizon" radar. The binational alliance will use one system to track threats between the Canada-U.S. border and the Arctic Circle, and another to keep an eye on Arctic islands and beyond.
A third system, called "Crossbow," will add sensors in northern Canada. Anand would only say that particular network would employ "classified capabilities." NORAD will also take advantage of space-based surveillance.
The timeline: Uncertain. Anand didn't offer clarity on when the North Warning System would be replaced, only insisting that a C$600-million maintenance contract would have to do for now. But in an interview with CP, NORAD deputy commander Lieut.-Gen. ALAIN PELLETIERadmitted the gaps in surveillance.
"The reality right now is that long-range aviation has an ability to launch cruise missiles outside of the North Warning System's detection range," he said.
The fine print: Also uncertain. Journalists waited all afternoon for a detailed backgrounder as questions mounted on how this would all be funded. The department published a press release at 10:15 p.m.
SETTLE YOUR BETS Anyone in your office pool who guessed the House will sit until the end of the June calendar will take home the big bucks. Government House Leader MARK HOLLAND said he anticipates needing every minute available before adjourning until September.
The traditional griping: Holland gathered journalists for an end-of-session check-in on the Liberal legislative agenda. His Conservative counterpart, JOHNBRASSARD, followed suit with his own media availability.
Holland accused Tories of using obstructionary tactics 17 times in 14 weeks. "C-8 took months to get through where we waited and we waited and waited for that obstruction to end," he complained.
The Conservatives voted against the government 45 out of 51 times, he added to which every Tory in the House would likely reply: "Uh, yeah. So?"
At his own presser, Brassard fired back that Liberals had moved 16 time allocation motions on government bills. He reminded journalists that New Democrats, who insist they maintain an adversarial relationship with Liberals, still sided with them 95 percent of the time.
The final debate: Expect a last hurrah of House theatrics after Holland tables a motion that would extend hybrid measures another year and then run out the clock debating it.
Brassard in a word: unimpressed. He told reporters that hybrid sittings have run their course, and Liberals have presented no evidence to justify extending them. "There's no reason we can't flip a switch" in the case of a new Covid variant, he said.
The Tory House leader added that voting app malfunctions have disrupted proceedings, and he complained that translators have suffered health issues due to poor audio quality in the House and at committee.
An olive branch: Holland committed to having a full front bench in-person for QP. "I was in opposition for a long time and I understand very well that accountability is essential, and the ability to pose questions in question period and get answers in-person is extraordinarily important," he said.
Not good enough, said Brassard. MPs are elected to go to Ottawa. They should go there.
How the vote will go: New Democrats will side with the government, so hybrid sittings will almost certainly run well into 2023.
Brassard will introduce amendments to Holland's motion, which he says are reasonable. New office pool: What are the odds the other parties agree?
Related reading:Youre on mute. Is it time to end the work from home House?
9 a.m. The Parliamentary Budget Officer will post a new costing note on veterans survivor pension benefits.
DPM Freeland is in Toronto for "private meetings," but will attend Cabinet and QP virtually.
4:35 p.m. Innovation Minister FRANOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE settles in for the first of two days at Collision in Toronto. On tap: A "fireside chat" with FRANZ FAYOT, Luxembourg's minister of the economy and minister for development cooperation and humanitarian affairs.
PLASTIC WASTE As Environment Minister STEVEN GUILBEAULT declared Monday, a ban on making six single-use plastic items bags, straws, cutlery, takeout containers, stir sticks and ring carriers will be in place by the end of this year. Thats a mere three and a half years after Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU first announced his intent to ban single-use plastics.
The ban isnt nothing Guilbeault estimated it will reduce plastic waste by 1.3 million metric tons over the next decade. But he also illustrated the scale of the challenge the Liberals are up against with their promise to eliminate plastic waste by 2030, telling reporters that just eight percent of the plastic produced in Canada each year is recycled.
To wit: Its taken three years to tackle what is clearly the lowest-hanging fruit when it comes to plastic waste six items that are easily replaced with other materials. The Liberals other policies, which include requiring plastic packaging to contain 50 percent recycled material by 2030 and creating a public registry of plastics produced in Canada, are in much earlier stages of development.
SAVE THE FARM Heppell's Potato Corp. wants to save hundreds of acres of federally owned agricultural land from developers, and they've hired a lobbyist to make their case on the Hill. JOHN MOONEN will rep the farmers from a rural corner of Surrey, B.C.
The Heppells say they've farmed the 300-acre property here's the Google Street View since 1972. But they don't own it. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada does. Decades ago, the feds built a transpacific radio transmission facility there, and over the years various departments used it for radio monitoring. Now, ISED is looking to divest itself of the "Cloverdale Site."
Pushback: The farmers have launched a petition, gathering more than 20,000 signatures. They claim "3050 million servings of potatoes, carrots, cabbage, parsnips and squash are produced from the land annually," which is "enough fresh food to put a vegetable serving on every Metro-Vancouverite's dinner plate for 23 weeks."
What they want: A long-term lease for a farmer.
Future of Good's VINOD RAJASEKARAN says CHRYSTIA FREELAND's affordability plan doesn't rise to the challenge in a country where people are turning to crowdfunding sites to pay for their basic needs.
The Narwhal investigates allegations of bullying and harassment at the Pacific Wild Alliance, an environmental non-profit in British Columbia.
The Hub quizzes ADAM PANKRATZ, a UBC business school lecturer and 2015 Liberal candidate, about whether self-described "Blue Liberals" like him fit into the party.
On NPR's Planet Money, listen to JOHN COCHRANE, aka The Grumpy Economist, go halfway to agreeing with PIERRE POILIEVRE on inflation's root causes. Cochrane blames federal Covid spending for American inflation, but absolves the Fed of responsibility.
MP GREG FERGUS is on the latest episode of the Hot Room to talk about expanding the parliamentary precinct.
Birthdays: HBD to Senator ROSA GALVEZ and Heritage Minister PABLO RODRIGUEZ.
Also celebrating: Sportscaster GORD MILLER, a Met regular, and former Nova Scotia MLA BROOKE TAYLOR.
Retirement gift: A custom baseball card, framed for the baseball fanatic | Nick Taylor-Vaisey/POLITICO
Spotted at CHRIS HALL's Met retirement party: Hall's wife, the Toronto Star's TONDA MACCHARLES; Cabmins DOMINIC LEBLANC, MONA FORTIER, OMAR ALGHABRA, MARCO MENDICINO and GUDIE HUTCHINGS; Liberal whip STEVEN MACKINNON and MP JOHN MCKAY; Tory MPs MICHAEL CHONG and GARNETT GENUIS; NDP leader JAGMEET SINGH (and daughter ANHAD) and NDP MP HEATHER MCPHERSON; Green MPs ELIZABETH MAY and MIKE MORRICE.
Also in the crowd: MATTHEW DUB, YAROSLAV BARAN, JANET SILVER, ANDREW BALFOUR, JEREMY BROADHURST, TIM POWERS, RENE FILIATRAULT, ANNE MCGRATH, MEGAN LESLIE, ZITA ASTRAVAS, TOM CLARK, CORY HANN, ROB SILVER, TOM WALSH, ALYSON FAIR, SUSAN SMITH, KEVIN BOSCH, GREG MACEACHERN, CHRIS MCCLUSKEY, JIM ARMOUR, DON NEWMAN and GRAHAM FOX.
Journalists in the room: SUSAN DELACOURT, JOHN IVISON, VASSY KAPELOS, ROB RUSSO, CORMAC MAC SWEENEY, ALTHIA RAJ, BILL CURRY, RAISA PATEL, IAN BAILEY and countless CBC parliamentary bureau reporters and producers.
The House team: JENNIFER CHEVALIER, EMMA GODMERE and CHRISTIAN PAAS-LANG.
Movers and shakers: Tory MP BLAKE RICHARDSbrings on MACKENZIE FRANKLIN as a parliamentary assistant.
CATHERINE CLARK will receive an honorary degree from Algonquin College this week.
Former PM JEAN CHRTIEN will pick up an honorary doctorate today from Carleton University.
Media mentions: Digital editor DANI-ELLE DUBmoves from CityNews Ottawa to CFRA, where she'll start a new gig as talk show producer.
If youre a POLITICO Pro subscriber, dont miss our latest policy newsletter:Word of the day: Friendshoring.
In news for POLITICO Pro subscribers:
Justice or overreach?: As crucial test looms, Big Greens are under fire. Manchin resistance to clean energy provision could harm Bidens climate goals. CDC recommends Pfizer, Moderna Covid-19 vaccine for babies and toddlers. U.S. officials weigh doubling the number of rocket launchers sent to Ukraine. Biden races against time to unlock Ukraines trapped grain.
Parliament Hill | POLITICO Canada
Keep up to House committee schedules here.
Find Senate meeting schedules here.
9:30 a.m. The Senate national finance committee meets to go over clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-19, Finance Minister CHRYSTIA FREELANDs budget implementation bill.
11 a.m. The House fisheries and oceans committee continues its study of science at the federal department.
11 a.m.The House procedures committee will hear from Sergeant-at-Arms PATRICK MCDONELL and LARRY BROOKSON, acting director of the Parliamentary Protective Service, as it studies the boundaries of the parliamentary precinct.
3:30 p.m. Sen. PIERRE-HUGUES BOISVENU is in the other place, appearing at the House justice committee to speak on the governments obligations to victims of crime.
3:30 p.m. The House industry committee will spend the first part of its meeting hearing from experts on small and medium-sized enterprises. DAVID MACDONALD of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives is among the witnesses scheduled to appear.
3:30 p.m. PBO YVES GIROUX will discuss military expenditure at the House committee on government operations and estimates.
3:30 p.m. Yukon Community Services Minister RICHARD MOSTYN answers questions at the House Indigenous and northern affairs committee as part of MPs study of Arctic sovereignty, security, and emergency preparedness of Indigneous peoples.
6:30 p.m. Former Ottawa police chief PETER SLOLY is a witness at the joint parliamentary committee on the declaration of emergency. Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner THOMAS CARRIQUE will be in the hot seat first.
6:30 p.m. The House subcommittee on human rights will receive briefings on the situation in the Tigray region.
Behind closed doors:
11 a.m.The House environment committee meets in camera to consider a draft report of its study on nuclear waste governance in Canada.
11 a.m.The House public accounts committee meets in camera to consider a draft report of its study digging into the Public Accounts of Canada 2021 reports. A discussion of committee business is also on the agenda.
Mondays answer: The Animals in War Dedication can be found in Confederation Park in downtown Ottawa.
Props to JOSEPH CHAMOUN, NANCI WAUGH, BRAM ABRAMSON, CULLY ROBINSON, SHANE ONEILL, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, DOUG RICE, NATHAN GORDON, MICHAEL SUNG, DOROTHY MCCABE and BOB GORDON.
Tuesdays question: Who is the first person to have led the White House Council of Economic Advisers, the Federal Reserve, and the U.S. Treasury Department?
Send your answers to [emailprotected]
Have a petition you want signed? A cause youre promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness amongst this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Alejandra Waase to find out how: [emailprotected].
Read the original:
