Today: December 13, 2021

Today: December 13, 2021

By Andrew Thomson | UPDATED 3:01pmET

Military, DND apologize for handling of sexual misconduct

Defence Minister Anita Anand delivers a "virtual public apology to all current and former members of the Defence Team who have been affected by sexual assault, sexual harassment or discrimination based on sex, gender, gender identity or sexual orientation."

Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Wayne Eyre and deputy minister Jody Thomas will also issue apologies at 1pm ET / 10am PT. 

PM faces questions after announcing New Brunswick child care agreement

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs announce a $492-million five-year agreement aimed at creating 3,400 new regulated child care spaces by spring 2026 and a 50-per-cent fee reduction for children under 6 by the end of next year. 

Inflation and the Bank of Canada

The Bank of Canada's inflation target will remain at the 2-per-cent range for the next five years, but the central bank will have "flexibility" to shift closer to 3% inflation to "actively seek the maximum sustainable level of employment when conditions warrant."

Watch the full news conference:

Freeland will deliver the government's economic and fiscal update tomorrow afternoon. FOLLOW CPAC'S FULL COVERAGE

Watch: chief public health officer discusses annual report

Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, holds a news conference in Ottawa following the tabling of her annual report. The report documents the state of public health and outlines ways to improve the health of Canadians.

In the House

Debate begins on the re-introduced legislation on mandatory minimum sentences that would represent a major shift in drug policy away from incarceration and towards treatment.

Bill C-5 (the former Bill C-22) would repeal mandatory minimum sentences for certain drug offences that disproportionately affect Indigenous and Black offenders and those struggling with addictions. Judges would have more flexibility to impose conditional sentence orders (CSOs) when an offender faces less than two years imprisonment but does not pose a public safety threat.

C-5 would also force police and prosecutors to consider different options for simple possession charges, including treatment programs or conditional sentences for those posing no threat to public safety.

Indigenous people comprise roughly 30% of the federal prison population despite being only 5% of Canada’s overall population. The disparity is even higher in many provincial jails. Black Canadians make up 10% of the federal prison population, compared to 3.5% of the overall population.

MPs also vote on the Conservative amendment to the reply to the speech from the throne, which argues the government is failing to address:

(a) a cost of living crisis that is cutting the average Canadian worker’s paycheque by 2.7%, which requires urgent action by the government to (i) table a plan to control spending and apply a laser focus on policies that will create growth, (ii) maintain the Bank of Canada’s 2% inflation target, (iii) increase production of Canadian energy to boost supply and lower gas prices, (iv) take action to improve the resilience of Canadian supply chains;

(b) a stagnant economy, with Canada’s real GDP growth now the weakest in the G-7, actually shrinking by 1.1% in the second quarter, which requires urgent action by the government to (i) reduce the burden of taxes and regulation to restore Canada as an attractive place to invest and build a business, (ii) table a plan to create growth in all sectors of the economy and boost real wages, (iii) drive innovation and technology by overhauling Canada’s R&D programs;

(c) a housing crisis that has driven home prices up 30% over the past year and priced thousands of young families out of the market, which requires policies that will build an additional one million homes over the next three years by (i) reallocating 15% of the government’s real estate portfolio for housing, (ii) tackling regulatory barriers that raise costs of construction, (iii) linking infrastructure dollars to higher density zoning, (iv) committing to not tax principal residences;

(d) an acute labour shortage that is affecting 60% of businesses in Canada and 82% of Canadian manufacturers, which requires the government to (i) improve alignment of immigration criteria with the needs of employers, (ii) streamline the rules of the temporary foreign workers program, (iii) improve skills training and give more powers to provinces; and

(e) a national unity crisis, which requires (i) respecting provincial jurisdiction, (ii) supporting and growing all parts of the economy, including the energy sector, (iii) restoring confidence in our national institutions, starting by returning ethics and accountability to the government”.

In Committee

Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez goes before the Standing Committee on Finance for questions on Bill C-2, which would extend pandemic support to hard-hit sectors such as arts and culture.

The committee meets again this evening to consider amendments.

Bill C-2 would:

  • Extend the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit and the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit until May 7 and increase the maximum duration of both by two weeks.
  • Extend the Canada Recovery Hiring Program through May 7.
  • Establish the Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit to provide a weekly $300 income support to eligible workers affected by a local lockdown between Oct. 24 and May 7.
  • Establish the Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program with a subsidy rate of up to 75 per cent; eligible businesses include hotels, restaurants, bars, museums, tour companies, gyms, casinos, and wedding venues.
  • Establish the Hardest-Hit Business Recovery Program that targets “other businesses that have faced deep losses, with a subsidy rate of up to 50 per cent.”
  • Establish the Local Lockdown Program for businesses that face temporary closure.

A number of other House committees hold their first meeting to elect a chair, including the newly-created Special Committee on Afghanistan. 

Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan goes before the Senate social affairs committee for questions on Bill C-3, which includes Criminal Code protection from harassment of health care workers and patients or prevention of their access to a medical facility. (6:30pm ET / 3:30pm PT).