House of Commons returns for fall sitting after turbulent summer
At Issue | Is Carney’s Europe pivot in Canada’s best interest?
Canada had 'no choice' but to walk away from U.S. trade talks: Harper
Is Canada becoming an ‘associate member’ of the European Union?
The federal NDP is looking to rebuild ahead of the fall parliamentary sitting. The party's new leader, Avi Lewis, does not have a seat in Parliament but sources say he is considering running for a seat in Toronto.
Heading into the fall sitting, the federal NDP's new leader, Avi Lewis, doesn't even have a seat yet — and it's unclear when he will run. (He is reportedly eyeing opportunities to grow the party in Toronto and eventually run in the city himself.)
In the meantime, the party will likely focus on rebuilding and repaying millions of dollars in debt incurred during last year's election that saw its presence in the House of Commons significantly reduced.
This year has been somewhat tumultuous for the federal NDP, too. Earlier this year, one NDP MP crossed the floor to join the Liberals, while another left federal politics. Right now, the party only has five seats in the House of Commons, well short of the 12 needed to earn official party status.
But Lewis has signalled a sense of hope. "Our rebuild as a party is well underway. Lots of work still to do. But the early signs are really encouraging," he said previously.
Lewis has also criticized Prime Minister Mark Carney for not going far enough to support regular Canadians amid U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war.
Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered remarks about Canada-Europe ties a day after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen opened the door to Canada becoming an 'associate' member of the EU.
As Canada's relationship with the Trump administration remains under stress, Carney is ramping up efforts to forge stronger ties with global partners.
Last week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced she'd like Canada to become the EU's first "associate member," and Carney addressed the European Parliament, calling for deeper co-ordination, including in AI, defence and critical minerals. (Trump responded characteristically, calling a potential EU-Canada deal "hostile" and threatened to slap more tariffs on the EU.)
Discussions between Canada and the EU are admittedly in early days, and some European governments reportedly voiced concerns over deeper integration. In Canada, some concerns have also been raised, including by Conservatives over immigration. But Carney has said he isn't pursuing full EU membership and that the two partners would have to develop a new framework. In particular, Carney is eyeing the EU's popular student exchange program, Erasmus+.
"Canadian membership of Erasmus+ would give your students and ours more opportunity to learn at some of the world's top universities, to broaden their horizons and to build those lasting ties that will sustain our alliance for the future," Carney previously said.
U.S. President Donald Trump lashed out at a possible Canada-EU trade alliance, threatening new tariffs if he finds it to be 'a hostile act.' Meanwhile, Democrats in Washington expressed sympathy for Canada and said trade talks should resume.
Over the summer, trade talks between Canada and the U.S. failed, with Carney calling his top negotiators back from Washington, saying that U.S. officials made unacceptable last-minute demands.
Fast-forward to today: the two countries are imposing billions of dollars worth of tariffs on each other, and it's unclear whether and when the situation will improve.
That means Parliament will likely have to focus on and manage Canada's strained relationship with Trump — and the harm caused by U.S. levies.
Conservatives are discussing party priorities ahead of Parliament's return from summer break. The caucus retreat comes as widespread support for Prime Minister Mark Carney's trade strategy has left Conservatives grasping for political footing.
Federal Conservatives will be in search of a foothold in a national conversation dominated by Trump's trade war and a public seized with Carney's dealings with the White House.
The Official Opposition leader offered a hint of what that might look like in a news conference prior to his caucus gathering in Penticton, B.C.
"The promise of Canada, that if you work hard, you get a great life, a home you can own, food you can afford, a safe street to live on — that promise is broken after 11 years of Liberal government," Pierre Poilievre said in Vancouver on Tuesday.
His message focused on affordability, a winning formula when Carney's predecessor, Justin Trudeau, was still in the Prime Minister's Office.
But pollster David Coletto said last week that Canadians are just not willing to place the blame for sky-high prices at Carney's feet at this time.
"It's not an immediate pointing to Ottawa or to Mr. Carney. It's Donald Trump," said Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data.
Forgive the pedantic rant from a parliamentary nerd, but today is not the start of a new session. Today is the first day of the fall sitting.
What's the difference? Parliamentary sessions only begin after an election or prorogation. In both of those situations, the legislative agenda is reset and all bills that hadn't passed "die on the order paper." A session always begins with a throne speech.
MPs are returning today after a break in the session over the summer. The session is continuing today and all the bills leftover from the spring sitting can still be voted on and debated.
The Peace Tower is seen on Parliament Hill in Ottawa in August. (Patrick Doyle/The Canadian Press)In this sitting, the government will have to balance new bills they want to bring to the House floor this fall with legislative work they have left over from the spring.
The prime minister gave some hints of what to expect in the upcoming budget during last week's investment summit. During an address at the event, Carney said the government will be able to balance the operating budget — which it loosely defines as day-to-day spending on government programs — by next year, one year ahead of schedule.
Carney also announced that he plans to build on a tax deduction announced in last year's budget by introducing a productivity "mega-deduction" that will allow companies to expense the total cost of new investments across a number of sectors.
Bill C-31, which officially implements portions of the 2025 budget, will be before committee this fall and needs to clear a few more votes in Parliament before it passes. That bill includes tax changes and defence procurement provisions.
There are a number of other bills left over from the spring, including legislation to restrict access to social media platforms for kids under the age of 16, create a framework to protect drinking water in First Nations communities (which is receiving heavy scrutiny) and tighten privacy rules and regulations for companies handling Canadians' data.
A number of new bills are expected to be brought forward this fall, starting with legislation to extend the excise tax holiday on gasoline, which will be introduced this week.
The Liberals are also expected to table legislation to further streamline the review process for major projects and make changes to the Labour Code.
Employees are seen dusting and cleaning ahead of MPs returning to the House of Commons. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)Members of Parliament are heading back to the House of Commons today to pick up where they left off in June. While the summer break is usually a quiet time in the political world, this one seemed anything but.
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened new tariffs in July (including over wildfire smoke) and trade talks subsequently ramped up only to collapse in August. Prime Minister Mark Carney made moves to deepen Canada's ties with the European Union.
All of this happened after the final whistle blew at the FIFA World Cup — which, to some, may feel like far more than two months ago.
Carney's government will now be turning from diplomacy to its legislative agenda with an opposition that will be pushing for answers.
