| | | | |  | | By Nick Taylor-Vaisey | Send tips | Subscribe here | Follow Politico Canada Thanks for reading Ottawa Playbook. I'm your host, Nick Taylor-Vaisey. Ten days left until MPs head home for the holidays. We have three things to watch this week, plus a report from 338Canada's PHILIPPE J. FOURNIER and career news for a trade-negotiating legend who stood up to DONALD TRUMP and came away with a deal for Canada.
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | THREE THINGS TO WATCH — We've got our eyes on a pair of auditor general reports guaranteed to make headlines on Tuesday, a global biodiversity conference in Montreal that gets underway Wednesday, and the House's rush to the holidays that includes an as-yet-unrevealed Thursday opposition motion. — Covid accountability: Auditor general KAREN HOGAN drops a couple of doozies on Tuesday morning. Her office will table an audit of two massive emergency response programs — the CERB and the federal wage subsidy — and smaller targeted programs. One of Hogan's aims was to measure whether or not payments "were accurate and paid to eligible applicants." She also dug into the timeliness of "procedures to recover overpayments and/or payments made to ineligible recipients." As Playbook has reported, CERB clawbacks are, um, a work in progress . Hogan's second audit looks under the hood at Canada's vaccine procurement — a file riddled with bad press in the earliest days of the global race for doses that, only a few months and millions of vaccinations later, positioned then-procurement minister ANITA ANAND into a star performer. — Biodiversity watch: Montreal's Palais des Congrès hosts the UN Biodiversity Conference, aka COP15, starting Wednesday. This COP is distinct from the UN Climate Change Conference, aka COP27, that recently went down in Egypt. Thousands of delegates from nearly 200 countries will be in town. It's a little bit awkward . Canada is the host country, but China is chairing the gathering. And global circumstances could hamper negotiations. "It's not a good time to be negotiating a new global deal to stop biodiversity loss and funnel more cash toward nature protection," POLITICO EU's LOUISE GUILLOT reported in October . Guillot quotes European negotiators' worries that Russia's invasion of Ukraine is "diverting attention away from the biodiversity crisis and lowering governments' willingness to mobilize more cash for biodiversity conservation." Environment Minister STEVEN GUILBEAULT is bullish. He wrote in The Narwhal last month that COP15 is "Canada's chance to set the agenda on the global biodiversity crisis." — House business: Government House Leader MARK HOLLAND is racing to turn CHRYSTIA FREELAND's Bill C-32 into law asap. That's the legislation that implements pieces of Freeland's Fall Economic Statement and 2022 budget. The House will debate the bill today at report stage, the last step before a third reading vote that would send it to the Senate. The other chamber's national finance committee is pre-studying the bill and will hear from Freeland Thursday . Thursday will also serve as an opposition day. We don't know what MPs will debate, but it'll be one of the last chances of the year for the House to consider an opposition motion. Did someone forward you this Playbook? Click here to sign up for your own .
| | For your radar | | DOCUMENT DUMP — Most federal bodies published Departmental Results Reports for 2021–22 on Friday. The annual check-ins account for how government spending matches objectives. Here's a key finding from the Department of National Defence report : "It is now apparent that reduced CAF strength and readiness will take upwards of 5-10 years to remedy and is severely challenging the CAF's ability to fulfill the Government of Canada's policy objectives to defend Canada and Canadians, and engage with allies abroad." BATTLEGROUND SURREY — Defense Minister ANITA ANAND is on Vancouver Island today to welcome a pair of warships home from Indo-Pacific operations and war games. By night, Anand will be in the Lower Mainland for a party fundraiser alongside Cloverdale–Langley City MP JOHN ALDAG. The regular price of admission is C$1,000. This is the third high-profile fundraiser in the area since October. Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU headlined the others in nearby Surrey Centre — including one last Friday. Anand also recently lent her star power to CHARLES SOUSA , the Liberal candidate in Mississauga–Lakeshore's Dec. 12 by-election. The minister knocked on doors Saturday with fellow MPs JULIE DABRUSIN, BILL BLAIR, FRANCESCO SORBARA and YASIR NAQVI — Sousa's former Queen's Park caucusmate. FORT PEARSON TO FORTUNE 500 — Remember STEVE VERHEUL, the unflappable trade negotiator who struck a deal with the European Union and then worked to save NAFTA from DONALD TRUMP? When Verheul retired as a full-time public servant in 2021, it wasn't long before he was back in government as a special adviser to Finance DM MICHAEL SABIA on trade issues. The cross-border heavyweight still pops up in the federal lobbyist registry, though with yet another title. Recent entries identify him as a consultant in Finance's economic development and corporate finance branch. Turkey farmers lobbied him last month . Finance officials offered less detail on Verheul's government consulting, saying only that post-retirement he has "since continued to share his knowledge on global trade issues with the Department of Finance on an ad hoc basis in various capacities." Clear as mud. In any case, Verheul has another career update. Just after Thanksgiving, he started a new gig as principal at gt&co — a firm co-founded by Liberal backroomer DON GUY and New Democrat mainstay BRIAN TOPP. Also on the team: LARYSSA WALER, a former Harper Hill staffer who coordinated media on the recent papal visit; CHERYL OATES, a journalist-turned-senior staffer in RACHEL NOTLEY's government; and STEPHEN RIGBY, a Harper-era national security adviser. Verheul's new gig should come as no surprise. JERRY DIAS, the former Unifor boss who now faces allegations of wrongdoing , was a staunch Verheul ally in the NAFTA renegotiations. He once told your Playbook host the well-liked negotiator would prosper outside the bureaucracy . "Steve Verheul could quite likely quadruple his wages if he went to the private sector. If he went out on the open market, Fortune 500 companies would trip all over themselves to hire him," said Dias. Seems he's taken the plunge, though we don't have access to his client list. Playbook reached out to Verheul, but he didn't reply. Our door is always open, Mr. Verheul .
| | TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS | | — PM Trudeau will be in Ingersoll, Ont., for a 12:15 p.m. announcement with Ontario Premier DOUG FORD at GM's CAMI assembly plant. They'll "mark a milestone in manufacturing electric vehicles." Ontario economic development minister VIC FEDELI will join. 10 a.m. (11 a.m. AT) Immigration Minister SEAN FRASER is in Charlottetown to make an announcement about the Foreign Credential Recognition Program. 11 a.m. Innovation Minister FRANÇOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE hosts a media callback from Germany, wrapping up a weeklong trip in Europe. 11 a.m. Justice Minister DAVID LAMETTI will be a witness at the first half of the House justice committee to take questions related to Supplementary Estimates. In the second half, Conservative MPs MEL ARNOLD and FRANK CAPUTO will be at committee while MPs go through clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-291 . 4:30 p.m. The political director and deputy secretary-general of the European External Action Service, ENRIQUE MORA, will join Ukrainian ambassador YULIA KOVALIV in a visit to Café Ukraine. They'll meet Ukrainian newcomers. 7 p.m. In Ottawa, Trudeau will attend a candle lighting ceremony in celebration of Hanukkah and deliver brief remarks.
| | FROM THE DESK OF 338CANADA | | A word from Philippe J. Fournier: Alberta's Postmedia newspapers published a new poll from Léger last Friday. Alarms bells should have been ringing in Premier DANIELLE SMITH's office. — First, the horse race: Province-wide numbers show Smith's UCP trailing RACHEL NOTLEY's NDP by a narrow 3-point margin among decided voters — a statistical tie. The poll's regional breakdown spells trouble for Smith. While Edmonton tilts heavily toward the NDP and rural Alberta leans UCP, Calgary is where the poll reveals dramatic changes. Léger gives the NDP a 10-point lead — 51 percent to 41 percent — in Alberta's biggest city. Four years ago, JASON KENNEY's UCP won Calgary by almost 20 points. The UCP scooped up 23 out of 26 seats. Notley is also more popular than her rival. Asked who would make the best premier, 37 percent of respondents picked the NDP leader. Only one in four chose Smith. — The appetite for an Ottawa fight: Fifty-eight percent of UCP voters agree that Smith's Alberta sovereignty act is "necessary to stand-up for Alberta against the federal government." A mere 11 percent of NDP voters said the same. Only 32 percent of provincewide voters agreed with that statement. — Caveats: This poll was in the field Nov. 24–28, before the sovereignty act's tabling. The next round of polling will tell a new story about what voters think of what's actually on the table. The next Alberta general election is scheduled for May 29, 2023. I'll follow the data out of Alberta closely all the way until voting day. Check out the 338Canada Alberta vote and seat projections .
| | HALLWAY CONVERSATION | | WHY HAWAII MATTERS — The federal Indo-Pacific Strategy's commitment to a new diplomatic posting in the paradisiacal American state likely prompted a career rethink among foreign service officers in search of a job with easy access to Waikiki Beach. But Honolulu isn't merely a plum posting. The Pacific city is a regional center for strategic thinking, and Canada is the only Five Eyes nation without a diplomat in town. Playbook asked JEFF REEVES, the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada's vice-president of research and strategy, to explain what a Canadian diplomat can achieve in Hawaii. One problem Reeves flagged off the top: it's unclear where the Canadian will work. But there are options. — Option 1: A Canadian could be seconded as staff at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies, which is affiliated with the U.S. Department of Defense and United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM). "Canadian officers attend courses there regularly, but it's conceivable for a Canadian diplomat or military officer to be seconded there as staff, which would bring him/her into direct contact with foreign officials from across the Indo-Pacific," said Reeves. "That individual would be relatively junior in Hawaii's ecosystem of strategic thinkers and wouldn't have much chance to interact directly with US INDOPACOM." — Option 2: "A secondment with US INDOPACOM makes a lot more sense," says Reeves. But Canadians have held similar positions before, so that wouldn't be a "game changer." — Option 3: The Aussies currently represent Canada's consular interests in Hawaii. A dedicated diplomat could do that work. That kind of role "would be more about promoting Canadian culture and society and ensuring Canada is better represented in informal and formal diplomatic engagement on the island." — The verdict: Reeves says a posting with INDOPACOM would be "most effective." But he notes the required qualifications would narrow the field of applicants considerably: a foreign area expertise; foreign language skills; an extremely high-level security clearance; and academic qualifications suitable for the role.
| | MEDIA ROOM | | — They beat us to it. The Hill Times kicks off the latest season of Cabinet shuffle speculation . — The Toronto Star's TONDA MACCHARLES had the must-read weekend thumper on the Emergencies Act inquiry, profanity-laden texts and all. — Intergovernmental Affairs Minister DOMINIC LEBLANC is still refusing to engage in hypothetical debates about Alberta's sovereignty act. Here he is on CTV's Question Period . — Speaking of the controversial bill: DANIELLE SMITH's government will introduce amendments to clarify that her Cabinet won't have extraordinary powers to change laws without legislative approval . — The National Museum of Scotland will return a stolen totem pole to the Nisga'a Nation , APTN News reports. — The Narwhal's FATIMA SYED digs into the Ford government's lack of consultation with Indigenous communities on a massive housing bill. — New York Times columnist ROSS DOUTHAT writes about Canada's medically assisted dying law : "You can see what America might look like with real right-wing power broken and a tamed conservatism offering minimal resistance to social liberalism."
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| | PLAYBOOKERS | | Movers and shakers: CEARA COPPS-EDWARDS joined the Canada Infrastructure Bank as manager of corporate comms … NICOLA PLUMMER shifts from the Government of Canada to the Boston Consulting Group. Spotted: Yukon Premier SANDY SILVER, at Irene's Pub in the Glebe on Sunday ahead of testimony today at the Senate national defense committee. Montreal Canadiens star goalie CAREY PRICE with a message for JUSTIN TRUDEAU via Instagram on the federal gun buyback program: "I love my family. I love my country and I care for my neighbour. I am not a criminal or a threat to society. What Justin Trudeau is trying to do is unjust" … Two-time Olympian LYNDA KIEJKO agrees . PIERRE POILIEVRE d-comm BEN WOODFINDEN, rubbing it in after beating Poilievre campaign/transition team press guy ANTHONY KOCH in a World Cup bet. Recently published Elections Canada records reveal attendees at a Nov. 8 Conservative fundraiser at Vancouver's Fasken law offices attended by Poilievre: — MPs ED FAST and KERRY-LYNNE FINDLAY, former party president SCOTT LAMB, MP BOB ZIMMER, former MP ANDREW SAXTON, former B.C. MLA DOUGLAS HORNE, Sen. YONAH MARTIN, Wellington Advocacy VP KATY MERRIFIELD, CPC regional organizer CHRISTINE REMEDIOS… … longtime JAMES MOORE aide COLIN METCALFE, outgoing B.C. Business Council CEO GREG D'AVIGNON, Bitcoin business exec MIKE KITT, Knightsbridge Capital Group president DEAN SHILLINGTON, Restaurants Canada VP MARK VON SCHELLWITZ, former CPC candidates LES JICKLING and ROBERT BOYD, Hill staffer-turned-CPC candidate-turned commercial real estate GR director ZACH SEGAL.
| | On the Hill | | — Find the latest House committee meetings here . — Keep track of Senate committees here . 11 a.m. The House committee on the status of women continues its study of women and girls in sport. 11 a.m. Sen. MARY JANE MCCALLUM will be at the House Indigenous affairs committee to take questions about her Senate public bill proposing to designate Jan. 4 as "National Ribbon Skirt Day." 11 a.m. The House industry committee meets to continue its study of Bill C-244 , Liberal MP WILSON MIAO's private member's bill proposing a right to repair. 3:30 p.m. Loblaws executive JODAT HUSSAIN will be at the House agriculture committee as MPs continue their study of food price inflation. Retail Council of Canada's KARL LITTLER will also be a witness. 3:30 p.m. The House finance committee meets to take Bill C-241 through clause-by-clause consideration. 4 p.m. Yukon Premier SANDY SILVER will be at the Senate national defense committee to share "perspectives from Yukon." 4 p.m. The Senate official languages committee meets to study Francophone immigration to minority communities. 4 p.m. The Senate human rights committee meets to discuss restrictions on humanitarian aid to Afghanistan. Representatives from the Canadian Red Cross, World Vision Canada and Afghan Women's Organization Refugee and Immigrant Services are witnesses. 6:30 p.m. The House science committee meets to continue its study of international moonshot programs.
| | TRIVIA | | Friday's answer: On winning the NDP leadership on Dec. 2, 1989, then-Yukon MP AUDREY MCLAUGHLIN declared: "I'm just ready to roar and take it on. " Props to BRAM ABRAMSON, BOB GORDON, LAURA JARVIS, MICHAEL MACDONALD and ANNE-MARIE STACEY. Today's question: "You could say that it was my signature that killed the Dexter government." Which minister in Nova Scotia's only NDP government wrote that line in their 2014 memoir? Send your answer to ottawaplaybook@politico.com Playbook wouldn't happen without: Luiza Ch. Savage, Sue Allan and Mike Zapler. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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