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Parliament resumes with the Liberal government tabling Bill C-39, the Building Canada Strong Act, sparking protests and debate. Carney also discusses Trump invasion preparations and a possible second term in a New York Times interview.
Parliament arians returned to Ottawa this week, and the slim majority Liberal government wasted no time in advancing contentious legislation. The fall sitting began with new faces taking their seats after the Liberal's sweeping summer byelections, and old issues quickly returned to the top of the agenda.
In the first question period back, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre picked up where he left off before the break. He accused Prime Minister Mark Carney of driving inflation while noting Canadians cannot eat speeches, summits or signing ceremonies. Carney shot back, citing three wars affecting costs in this country: the U.S. trade war, the war in Iran and the war in Ukraine. He then noted what affordability assistance his government has offered.
Building Canada Strong Act Faces Pushback
The major attention-grabber on the first day was the tabling of Bill C-39, a 232-page piece of legislation aimed at building major projects faster and alleviating labour uncertainties. The Building Canada Strong Act proposes to reconfigure this country's regulatory approval process, while vowing to uphold environmental standards and Indigenous rights. In a release, the government touted the bill as the most comprehensive and ambitious reform to Canada's ability to get big things built in a generation.
The pushback has also been comprehensive. Labour groups have sounded alarms over changes to the Canada Labour Code rules around collective bargaining included in the bill. They say the changes will have adverse consequences for workers and strip them of their right to strike. Climate activists brought their discontent right to Parliament Hill, resulting in several seniors being arrested for trespassing.
Donning shirts with anti-pipeline slogans, the protestors tried to deliver evidence of the effects of climate change to MPs. Business groups welcomed the legislative package, which also proposes to create zones of national interest. It aims to ensure federal assessments of new projects take no longer than one year and are co-ordinated under a new streamlined process. Debate kicked off on the bill on Wednesday.
Carney Discusses Trump Invasion And Re-election
Speaking outside of the House of Commons, as he remains seatless, NDP Leader Avi Lewis told reporters a day prior that he is alarmed by Carney's attempt to expand cabinet's powers. While the prime minister was in New York for the United Nations earlier this week, he sat down for an hour with The New York Times and made some news.
The first attention-grabbing revelation was that he had thought through and made preparations for the possibility of U.S. President Donald Trump ordering a military invasion of Canada. He described the prospect as an extreme tail risk, referencing a financial term for events that are very rare but would have enormous consequences, and are so unlikely that most people ignore or overlook them.
That is not a base case, but it would be irresponsible not to prepare for the possibility, Carney told The Times. Then, in a separate Times headline, the prime minister also shed new light on lingering domestic political questions. Specifically, Carney indicated he is considering running for a second term, if the work he is doing during his first is not complete. It is too early to start asking, he said, referencing whether he would run again.
My value as a member of my party is to hit on the big things and move forward. And then, at the end of that, you see how much has got done, and if something else needs to be done. The prime minister, noting he has a majority government, said he is aware a lot of what he has committed to will take another year and a half to two years to yield results Canadians would feel.
Examples include the development of major infrastructure and energy projects. His description of this was that it would be beyond the current political cycle. It was in this context that Carney downplayed the chatter around him potentially calling an early election. The next general election is not expected until October 2029.
B.C. Premier Calls Snap Provincial Election
October will be a big month for British Columbians, as they will now be heading to the polls twice. This week B.C. Premier David Eby called a snap provincial election for Oct. 24, one week after the provincewide municipal election on Oct. 17. Eby justified the move citing the existential threat posed by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration and the need for British Columbians to have their say.
The embattled opposition was quick to balk that the move was little more than crass political opportunism. The call came just days after controversial B.C. Conservative leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay resigned amid a flurry of caucus departures. On Parliament Hill, MPs from the province were split down party lines on the appropriateness of the election call.
One hundred per cent opportunistic, said B.C. Conservative MP Frank Caputo. I think it is a good idea. Let us get it over with.
I mean, they have had lots of time to get organized, said B.C. NDP MP Gord Johns. Port Coquitlam mayoral candidate Brad West put it simply: B.C. politics is just reality TV. There is nothing quite like it.
It is a soap opera like no other. The same day that U.S. President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to claim Canada is destroying itself with its immigration policies, new data from Statistics Canada shows the number of newcomers is actually going down. This development adds another layer to the ongoing political drama in Ottawa and across the provinces.
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CTVNews:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
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