If only this would get him re-elected.

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Pierre Poilievre wants to ‘cap population growth’ to rein in housing costs

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he wants to “cap population growth” to rein in housing costs, as the Liberal minority government signals it is considering whether to reduce immigration levels.

At a news conference on Parliament Hill Wednesday, Poilievre pledged that a future Conservative government under his leadership would limit the rapid growth of Canada’s population — which has been fuelled by new immigrants in recent years — to make sure it doesn’t outpace new housing construction.

That’s not even a question of whether you support, or not, immigration. It’s a question of whether you support mathematics.

#housing #immigration
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Singh signals NDP plan to oppose carbon tax, says it puts burden on ‘backs of working people’

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh signalled his party is planning to oppose the current carbon tax on Canadian consumers, saying the party is working on an alternative climate plan ahead of the next election campaign.

Mr. Singh said the NDP’s priorities in the House of Commons will be on lowering grocery prices, increasing access to affordable housing, justice for Indigenous people, climate policy and job creation.

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Jean-Yves Duclos said that Pierre Poilievre wants an election because more Canadians are finally realizing the great value of the carbon tax.

How out of touch is he?

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📔Canada’s living standards set to worsen without productivity bump: TD report

Canada risks a further deterioration in living standards if its lacklustre performance in productivity does not improve, economists at Toronto-Dominion Bank warn in a new report.

Business sector productivity – output per hour worked, adjusted for inflation – grew by a “respectable” annual average of 1.2 per cent over the decade before the pandemic.

But since then, productivity growth has ground to a halt. The slowdown has been driven by a contraction in the goods sector, the report notes, and the decline is especially bad in the construction industry, where productivity has tumbled to levels last seen in the 1990s.

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❌Provinces decry Ottawa's plan to resettle asylum seekers across the country

Provincial leaders across Canada are taking turns criticizing the federal Liberal government's proposal to alleviate immigration pressure on Quebec and Ontario by resettling asylum seekers more equitably across the country.

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs said Ottawa was proposing the province take in 4,600 asylum seekers without providing financial assistance.

How many of this 4,600 that is being proposed … how many are actually, actual genuine asylum seekers? Because they haven't gone through the process.

Higgs said.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said her government was also opposed to having more asylum seekers in her province.

We are currently supporting approximately 22 per cent — over 70,000 — of Ukrainian evacuees who arrived in Canada. We are informing the Government of Canada that until further notice, Alberta is not open to having these additional asylum seekers settled in our province.

Smith said.

#immigration
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🪖Canadian Army says new military sleeping bags not suitable for 'typical Canadian winter'

Despite the defence department spending more than $34.8 million on new sleeping bags, the Canadian Army asked late last year that hundreds of soldiers headed to a joint northern exercise in Alaska with the Americans be issued with old, 1960s-vintage bedrolls.

Troops who had used the recently issued General Purpose Sleeping Bag System (GPSBS) late last fall in a preparatory exercise found "several critical issues."

The "critical issues" discovered by the soldiers "related to lack of warmth with the new GPSBS," said the briefing note, written on Dec. 5, 2023.

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Immigration Minister Marc Miller says Ottawa 'could open up a hotel in any particular province and ship people there' amid a dispute over the distribution of asylum seekers.

There's only so far the federal government can actually be nice and say, "Please, please."

#immigration
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🇺🇦🇷🇺Trudeau "fully supports" Ukraine using long-range weaponry against Russia.

Trudeau fully supports World War III.

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🩺 B.C. signs national pharmacare deal with Ottawa, promises to expand drug coverage

British Columbia has become the first province in Canada to sign a pharmacare agreement with the federal government that would help the province fund hormone replacement therapy and diabetes expenses.

Federal Health Minister Mark Holland says B.C.’s portion of the $1.5-billion national plan is estimated to be $195 million, and under the memorandum of understanding funding could begin by April once the legislation makes it through the senate.

#healthcare #BritishColumbia
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The Ohio jokes in the comments are spot on.

💸Quebec introduces bill to rein in excessive tipping amid cost-of-living concerns

Quebec has introduced legislation to curb excessive tipping, a growing concern among consumers faced with high prices and increased demands to top up their bills.

Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette, who is responsible for consumer protection, tabled a bill Thursday that would force businesses to calculate suggested tips based on the price before tax and regulate how grocery stores display the price of food.

#Quebec
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🪖Bill Blair says he’s ‘optimistic’ about Canada joining expanded AUKUS

Canada is in discussions about joining an expanded AUKUS deal between the U.S., Britain, and Australia formed to counter China’s growing military influence in the Asia Pacific region, Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair said.

Canada has said it wants to join a second pillar of AUKUS that will collaborate on new military technologies, including artificial intelligence and quantum computing, but has not so far revealed any details of those talks.

#US #UK #Australia
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🤝Air Canada strikes last-minute deal with pilots' union, averting strike

Air Canada has reached a tentative, last-minute deal with its pilots' union over a new four-year collective agreement, the airline said on Sunday, ending a stand-off over pay and benefits and averting a near-term strike or lockout.

The airline was preparing to progressively cancel flights over three days and to completely shut down its operations as early as Sept. 18.

The Air Line Pilots Association said the deal would mean an additional $1.9 billion in value for members over its four-year term, representing a 46% increase over the previous contract that expired in September 2023.

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❌‘Drop the idea’: N.S. premier says province won’t accept thousands of asylum seekers

Nova Scotia’s premier doubled down Friday on his position that he will not accept any attempt by Ottawa to resettle thousands of asylum seekers in the province.

In a statement issued by his office, Tim Houston said the federal government wants to send nearly 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, something he called “simply unacceptable.”

He also repeated that Nova Scotia is focused on its plan for population growth and doesn’t have the capacity to accept that many would-be refugees.

#NovaScotia #immigration
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B.C. to open 'highly secure' involuntary care facilities

B.C. will be opening “highly secure facilities” for people with concurrent addiction and mental health issues, as well as brain injuries, officials said Sunday.

All of the facilities will provide involuntary care under the B.C. Mental Health Act for people certified as requiring that care.

a news release accompanying the announcement said.

In addition to dedicated, stand-alone facilities, the province will also be establishing “secure treatment” within B.C. correctional facilities.

#BritishColumbia
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🗳Another Liberal stronghold falls as BQ wins Montreal byelection squeaker

In another stunning upset for the Trudeau Liberals, Bloc Québécois candidate Louis-Philippe Sauvé has won the byelection in LaSalle—Émard—Verdun by more than 200 votes over the Liberals’ Laura Palestini, with all polling stations reporting.

The Bloc Québécois, the Liberals and the NDP were locked in a tight battle for the Liberal stronghold until early Tuesday morning. With the count so close, no candidate had yet conceded the loss after 2 a.m. local time. There were fewer than 600 votes between the winning Bloc candidate and third-place NDP candidate Craig Sauvé.

#Quebec
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Liberal House leader calls Poilievre a 'fraudster' and a 'bully' as Commons returns

Liberal House leader Karina Gould kicked off the fall sitting of Parliament Monday by calling Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre a "fraudster" and a "bully" and accusing him of holding a secret agenda that Canadians won't like.

She said the Conservative leader's attacks on carbon pricing are an effort to "distract Canadians from his real agenda … because he knows that they won't like it if they find out."

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📉As Parliament returns, support for Trudeau at ‘new low’: poll

As the House of Commons gets back to business for the fall session, support for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal government has hit a “new low,” new polling shows.

Just over one-third of Canadians (33 per cent) approve of the Trudeau government, according to an Ipsos poll. That approval rating is down by four points since the last time Ipsos did a similar poll in June.

#Trudeau
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🏠Freeland allowing more 30-year mortgages, higher values for insured mortgages

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced Monday Canadians will be able to borrow for longer, while also increasing the maximum value for insured mortgages, potentially giving buyers more money in the housing market.

Freeland announced that starting on Dec. 15, the cap for insured mortgages will rise to $1.5 million from the $1-million cap today. This would allow buyers to qualify for larger mortgages without putting 20 per cent down.

On the same day, the government is also expanding the availability of 30-year mortgages. In the spring budget, the government expanded the eligibility of those long-term mortgages to new buyers who were purchasing new builds.

But now the 30-year availability will apply to both new buyers and people buying new construction homes.

#housing
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