The next edition of the Ottawa Report is scheduled to be sent Monday, November 19.
Latest News
New Housing and Infrastructure Toolkit Announced
Communities across Canada will be able to build environmentally friendly, climate-resilient housing and infrastructure with support from the Climate Toolkit for Housing and Infrastructure (CTHI). On October 24, the Hon. Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, launched a suite of tools, resources, and support services that will be available, free of cost, to communities to help them adapt their infrastructure to changing climate conditions, and also reduce greenhouse gas emissions during new home and infrastructure constructions. The federal government invested $94.7 million in CTHI, and it will include a help desk, an online platform, and a roster of climate and infrastructure experts.
The Climate Help Desk provides communities with direct support and guidance on infrastructure and climate-related concerns. Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada operates the help desk which offers advice and best practices on how to make environmentally friendly and climate resilient considerations during project planning and development.
In collaboration with ICLEI Canada—an organization that supports local governments by providing them with the expertise and resources to take climate action in their communities—the government has also launched the ClimateInsight.ca Platform. The platform will ease the burden of data collection for small- and medium-sized communities. With guided navigation, the platform will provide easy access to curated tools and resources on one dedicated website.
Finally, in partnership with the Canadian Urban Institute (CUI)—a national research organization dedicated to achieving healthy urban development—the federal government will be launching the Roster of Climate and Infrastructure Experts in December 2024. The federal government’s investment will help CUI establish a roster of employees consisting of housing, infrastructure, and climate experts. This service will allow small communities with eligible infrastructure and housing projects to request climate related support. The roster will match communities with specialized experts to provide project-specific advice on reducing emissions and increasing climate resilience.
Cyber Security Guidelines for Critical Infrastructure
The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (Cyber Centre) has published a suite of voluntary guidelines designed to further protect essential services for people in Canada and enhance cyber security resilience overall. Called the Cyber Security Readiness Goals (CRGs), this new resource offers a toolkit with 36 cross-sector cyber security practices that build on available advice and guidance. The CRGs list important steps organizations can take toward goals that will improve their cyber security posture in the face of increasingly complex cyber security threats.
Designed to be an evergreen resource that can be used by all critical infrastructure sectors, the CRGs will be updated by the Cyber Centre based on feedback from partners and as the threat landscape evolves over time. Critical infrastructure services and systems are increasingly vulnerable due to their reliance on complex networks of interdependent digital services, assets, and facilities. This flagship resource is yet another step forward in Canada’s ongoing efforts to remain at the leading edge of cyber security resilience and protect this country’s vital critical infrastructure systems.
Parliamentary Business
The Current Lay of the Land in Ottawa
The Public Service
Nine months ago, Privy Council Clerk John Hannaford quietly hired consultant Derek Ferguson, former advisor to Paul Martin, to reframe whole-of-government communications about the governing agenda. Ferguson is said to have advocated for a plan designed to position the public service to be ready for all political and electoral eventualities, solve the most significant problems facing government, defend the government’s legacy, and prepare for transition.
Examples currently underway:
- All recent communication is related to housing affordability. The announcement last week of the reduction in immigration targets is the most salient example of this approach.
- The whole-of-government approach in QP to defend its record on COVID, inflation, and poverty is an example of “legacy work” underway to defend the Liberal record.
- Work on transition is underway and explained in the context of imminent cabinet shuffles in which several new ministers must be sworn in. Broader transition work is likely afoot.
In addition to the problem-solving, legacy, and transition efforts being shepherded by the non-partisan public service, senior public servants are planning to be in a state of readiness for three specific scenarios:
- Cabinet Shuffle: Four ministers declared they will not run in the next election. To be election-ready, the Liberal Government needs a bench of fully committed ministers. A cabinet shuffle and transition work therefore seem inevitable and imminent.
- Prorogation: This could allow the prime minister three advantages: entering 2025 with a new throne speech and agenda, creating a quiet parliamentary environment during which to hold a leadership convention should he resign, and enabling an election call on Liberal terms.
- Election: Prorogation or not, there are no more than 52 weeks left before the next election. Given the instability of government, this timeline could move forward to as early as Spring 2025.
When an election period is underway, government functions under “caretaker provisions,” meaning new policies that would bind a future government are not implemented. The current Liberal Government is essentially entering the last phase of its useful/productive life.
The Governing Liberals
In October, 24 members of Parliament (MPs) in the federal Liberal caucus called for the Prime Minister’s resignation. This creates the impression that “only” 16 percent of his caucus hopes he will resign. In reality, the Prime Minister faces a much deeper crisis: TACTIX data scientists sampled 318,437 posts by self-declared Liberals on social media in the past 30 days (i.e. posts on LinkedIn, X [formerly Twitter], YouTube, Reddit, Facebook, and Instagram) discussing Prime Minister Trudeau’s leadership. Of those sampled, only 29 percent of those discussing Trudeau’s leadership online in the past 30 days agreed with the statement: “I believe he is the best choice to lead us into the next election.” This problem is worse in Quebec, where only 22 percent agree with this statement. Even if Prime Minister Trudeau defies his caucus and stays on as leader, he is likely to face renewed calls to step down until an election is called.
If the Prime Minister stepped down now, potential prorogation for a leadership race would cancel all unpassed legislation—including the upcoming Fall Economic Statement 2024, which will likely be presented later in November.
The Opposition Parties
While the Conservative Party leads the Liberals by 19 points in vote intention, only 21 percent of a random sample of 331,432 Canadians discussing federal leaders online in the past 30 days agree that Poilievre is the “best alternative as PM.” While preparation for an inevitable election is underway, there are strong indications that the Conservative campaign platform will be much shorter than in 2021, with the four planks of “axe the tax, fix the budget, build the homes, and stop the crime” as central. A short platform was part of Doug Ford’s success in Ontario in 2018, but leaves larger questions on specific directions a new government would take. This effective simplified messaging will lead to accusations from the Liberals of a Conservative “hidden agenda.”
Meanwhile, the challenges for Trudeau and the Liberal Party of Canada are compounded by the New Democratic Party’s (NDP) decision to suspend the supply and confidence agreement. In addition to destabilizing the minority government, it has strengthened the NDP’s position. Indeed, the NDP has pulled to within four points of the Liberal Party of Canada in vote intention. In addition to the likability of Jagmeet Singh, the NDP benefits from strong surges into second place vote intentions in BC, the prairies, and Alberta, which could be devastating for Liberals.
For now, the Bloc Quebecois seems poised to surge to a strong first-place position in Quebec, as the province’s favourite party by a margin of roughly 10 points. This could put national unity back on the political agenda in Canada, especially given the strength of the Parti Quebecois in Quebec.
There are credible reports that NDP campaign platform creation has barely started. Neither the Bloc Quebecois nor the NDP have the current funds to campaign. Both would benefit from year-end fundraising before an election next year. This lends itself to a potential Spring 2025 election date at the earliest, particularly since last week Jagmeet Singh declared that he would not side with the Conservatives and the Bloc to bring down the government at this time.
Federal Funding Awarded
PEI Road Construction Season Wraps
Repairs and upgrades to roads and bridges in Prince Edward Island in 2024 were made possible after a combined investment of over $7 million from the federal and provincial governments through the Canada Community-Building Fund and the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. On October 30, Minister Lawrence MacAulay announced upgrades to roads and bridges that improve safety across the province and support housing development. These projects, including upgrades to intersections, roads and bridges, new traffic lights, and storm sewers, will be completed by the end of 2024.
Saint John Receives Arts Facility Funding
There will be growth in the theatre sector and better venues in southern New Brunswick after an additional $12 million investment from the federal government under the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Program in the Sydney Street former courthouse. This funding was announced by MP Wayne Long, Mayor Donna Reardon, and Dr. Sandra Bell, Saint John Theatre Company Board Chair.
Funding to Tackle Homelessness
On October 29, the Hon. Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities announced the Homelessness Reduction Innovation Fund, a $50 million fund to help communities develop innovative projects to prevent homelessness and accelerate new homes for people currently experiencing homelessness. The funding is part of the federal government’s $1 billion commitment to Reaching Home, Canada’s Homelessness Strategy announced in Budget 2024.
Active Transportation Expanding in the Outaouais
Outaouais residents will have access to safer active transportation options thanks to an investment of nearly $350,000 from the federal government to support nine active transportation planning and awareness projects led by MOBI-O, the Centre de gestion des déplacements de l’Outaouais et de l’Abitibi-Témiscamingue. Announced by MP for Pontiac Sophie Chatel, Mayor of Gatineau Maude Marquis-Bissonnette, Mayor of Chelsea Pierre Guénard, and Mayor of Cantley David Gomes, these projects will benefit the Outaouais people by increasing the safety and accessibility of active transportation in the region. An investment of nearly $250,000 will enable the development of school travel plans for nine schools.
New Affordable Homes in Nova Scotia
The communities of Shelburne and Barton will have 13 new, energy efficient homes after an investment of more than $5.1 million from the federal and provincial governments and Compass Nova Scotia Co-operative Homes Ltd. (Compass Nova Scotia). Heritage Hall in Shelburne is a centrally located building that will be converted into five one- and two-bedroom apartments. Barton Elementary School is located on a large parcel of land near shops and services in Barton and will be converted into eight one- and two-bedroom apartments. The conversion to make the two buildings more energy efficient will include heat pumps, heat recovery ventilators, and envelope improvements.
