Politics Insider for Nov. 3, 2021: Heather Stefanson takes over, and her rival refuses to concede; America sends an ambassador
Partisan acrimony is all the stimulus our economy needs
The NDP appeals to the Speaker
The Speaker’s decision is questioned
John Geddes on questions raised by an unusual clash
The Commons: The hideousness of taxation
‘There are no tax increases in budget 2013’
A moment of silence, then oral questions
Here is the text of Thomas Mulcair’s speech in the House yesterday—with periodic interjections from Conservative MPs—on C-45, the second budget implementation bill. He spoke just after Shelly Glover began the debate for the Conservatives.
By my count, 57 Conservative MPs have used the phrase “carbon tax” in the House of Commons since the House returned on September 17 (a total of 12 sitting days). The prize for the most-prodigious talking-point spouter goes to Shelly Glover, who has referenced the phrase eight times (for the purposes of this study, I’m not counting multiple uses of the phrase in the same intervention). Peter Van Loan, Kellie Leitch and the Prime Minister himself have made seven interventions that included the phrase. Eve Adams is coming on strong though, using the phrase four times just yesterday.
Among the Conservaties who stood in the House this week and criticized the NDP’s stance on cap-and-trade were Kyle Seeback, Peter Van Loan, Gord Brown, Leon Benoit, Shelly Glover, Chris Warkentin, LaVar Payne, Gerry Ritz, Pierre Poilievre, Christian Paradis, Rick Dykstra, Randy Hoback, Pierre Lemieux, Ed Fast, Tony Clement and Andrew Saxton. These individuals—like Phil McColeman, Joe Preston and Ed Holder, who attacked the NDP last week—were all Conservative candidates in 2008 when the Conservative party platform included a commitment to pursue a continental cap-and-trade system.
Aaron Wherry on the first day back