Ottawa shenanigans a distraction from government business affecting North
Parliament Hill’s year-end disarray is bad news for the country — including Nunavut and Nunavik
Premier P.J. Akeeagok, left, and Hadrien Trudeau watch as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signs his name in Inuktitut syllabics in the guestbook at the legislative assembly in Iqaluit. (Photo by Jeff Pelletier)
The cloud of uncertainty over Parliament Hill this week stretches all the way to the Arctic.
With Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government in shambles from its bungled fall economic statement and the stunning resignation of Chrystia Freeland as finance minister, there’s some unfinished business related to Canada’s North that needs tending to.
As Canadians head into the holidays, Trudeau is clinging onto the prime minister’s job. (Check your phone. That might have changed between the writing of this editorial and its publication.)
For a few hours on Monday, Canadians were left wondering if the country indeed had a finance minister and if so, who it was. The government was scheduled to update its financial position, but the woman of the hour had resigned from cabinet over a spat with the prime minister.
It fueled speculation Trudeau might resign as Liberal leader, plunging his party into a leadership race. Or that he might call a snap election. Or that he might ask Gov. Gen. Mary Simon to prorogue Parliament — essentially calling a timeout in parliamentary business — for a few months.
Any of those options would have been a setback for Nunavut or Nunavik. At the end of 2024, there are a few key pieces of government business that would be nice to wrap up before the next scheduled election in October 2025.
With U.S. president-elect Donald Trump threatening to impose a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods coming into the States, Premier P.J. Akeeagok warned the effects of such a move would be felt across the country.
After meeting with premiers, Trudeau touted a “Team Canada” approach toward U.S.-Canada relations, a sentiment now undermined by political infighting.
Another federal project that will affect northerners is the review of the Nutrition North subsidy program that Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal announced in October before he himself announced he will step down from cabinet after a replacement is named.
The plan, Vandal said then, was for the government to appoint a representative early in 2025 to begin a review of the program.
And just last week, Nunavut MP Lori Idlout heralded a parliamentary committee’s recommendation to put Inuktitut on the ballot in the next federal election. That recommendation moved on to the Senate, but if Parliament grinds to a halt — due to proroguing or an election — progress on that front will stall too.
Shenanigans in Ottawa can only serve as distractions from this kind of business.
Finally, it seems likely that Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative party is poised to form the government after the next election — whenever that is.
A Conservative government hell-bent on cutting public spending and bringing down Canada’s deficit might be less generous with funding for issues affecting the North, such as the lack of housing and the high cost of groceries.
It was a messy end to 2024 on Parliament Hill. Here’s hoping there won’t be a hangover in the new year.
The conservatives created Nunavut. Pierre wants to make housing affordable. Time to rid ourselves of liberal non-sense Corey.
This is a correct but shallow understanding of how the NLCA was ratified by the Feds.
Read John Amagoaliks memoirs to gain a better understanding of what happened.
Basically, the Inuit negotiators knew the Mulroney government was going to fall to the Liberals. They said to DIAND that the Conservative Government can either ratify, or the incoming Liberals will.
Mulroney/Campbell and co. decided to take the PR win and accept the draft NLCA on their way out the door.
Also, Poilievre is beholden to the same Boomer generation as the Liberals. Any suggestion the CPC will “make housing more affordable” is just drinking the Kool aid. Unless the CPC wants to build mass transit in Nunavut communities, none of their proposed policies will help Nunavut housing prices come down.
TBF, Nunavut housing prices are not on anyone’s radar. If we’re looking at bang for buck, every dollar spent on housing issues in any of Canada’s metros gets far far more return than any spent in Nunavut.
From a purely rational viewpoint, it makes much more sense to spend money where it does the greatest good.
Pierre Poilièvre is more likely to end the open bar that Trudeau created for First Nations funding. If you think Poilièvre has any inkling of what happens up here, you may as well be Princess Diana.
I miss Jim Bell.
I’d be curious to know if Nunatsiaq benefits in any way from the 600 million the Canadian government pours into media subsidies?
The anxiety at a Conservative government that routinely seeps into the political commentary at this publication appears to suggest it might?
Tell us more, Corey? What are you afraid to lose when the Conservatives inevitably take power?
Colourful language around the party being hell-bent on cutting public spending should at least be balanced with some explanation.
The cost of servicing our debt this year is 46.5 billion (up from 20.3 only 4 years ago) more than 15 times the Nunavut budget. Our national debt has doubled under Trudeau, from about 620 billion in 2015 to over 1.2 trillion today. Should we mention the recent update, expected to show a 40 billion deficit this year alone, which turned out 50% higher at 60 billion.
But of course, we should be alarmed, spooked, at the prospect of a government that might want to reign all this in.
We need an election in this country. I’m hoping for a clear majority for the Conservatives because it gives them the mandate to fix the mess that the Lib/NDP government has created, and it shows the world that this government represents the will of the majority of Canadian citizens. Currently, we are a laughing stock. We are not taken seriously, and this enables people like Mr. Trump to flagrantly troll our PM.
Mr. Trump talks about the United States subsidizing Canada. That’s not true. It is a trade imbalance, meaning they buy more stuff from us than we do from them (especially energy). and that’s all. He’s a smart guy and he knows this. He is, in short, “playing us” because he sees a weak leader with no support.
Election. Now.
Ottawa is not the only place where we see inaction.
Nunavut has more than its share, too. Lot’s of busy, but not much results.
Nunavut needs to be prepared for Trump, and for the issues unfolding in Ottawa, and for the likelihood of a Conservative government in Ottawa that probably will not be as generous as the current one.
But for some reason, the position of Director, Nunavut Emergency Management is vacant and has been vacant for many months.
Nunavut needs to see housing as a societal need, not just an opportunity to funnel money to an Inuit-owned front company that subcontracts most of the work to southern firms. Until our government focuses on reducing the cost of house construction, in part by developing a construction labour force in every community that does not have to fly to the worksite, we will continue to see an increase in homelessness. A hundred years ago Inuit were selfsufficient. Not so today. It’s time we moved towards increased levels of selfsuffiency.
Our government has tried to copy southern health care, while spending more than 3 times as much per person as Ontario does. This has not worked. Nunavummiut still suffer from TB and other curable conditions. It’s time for our government to look for a different approach to health care in Nunavut. Today’s focus is on tests, treatments, and pills. Nunavut needs an approach that focuses on getting people healthy and keeping them healthy.
It’s called the Baffin Correctional Centre, but there seems to be little to no correction. For many inmates it’s a warm place to spend the winter and get 3 meals a day. What a waste. For others, it’s the only way to get from their home community to Iqaluit, other than arranging for a serious “accident”. Again, what a waste.
The US wants Canada to spend 2% buying weapons from the US.
But there are better ways Canada can invest 2% in “defense”.
The US has the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, built with defense funding.
Canada needs its own improved road and rail networks that will serve defense, civil and commercial needs. At an immediate minimum, we need alterative bridges for both rail and road, and the rail lines need to be double-tracked so trains can go in both directions without waiting.
Doing that will require lots of wooden railway ties and steel rails. So if the US decides to put tarrifs on Canadian materials, there will be an adequate market for them in Canada. “Sorry, none available for export this year. Military priority, surely you understand.”
Canada could also invest in drone production capacity and our own independent communication system that would cover all of Canada, including Nunavut’s High Arctic. We could use drones for defense if invaded and could supply them to Ukraine if Canada is not invaded.
What about our unelected senate and new senator for Nunavut. They should be able to fix some of our problems LOL.
The wokeness of NN is so cringe.
25 community’s in Nunavut. Most with population of 1500 or less. Most expensive per capita, probably in the world. The poorest people in the country paying the highest cost of living. On top of that, the addictions. We need to think about relocation and make this territory 10-15 communities less, where each towns minimum population is 3000. Probably still not sustainable but still better than 25 communities spread across almost the entire country.
I am thinking all Nunavut Government staff positions that are not directlt providing a service or program should be relocated south to Ottawa Winnipeg and Edmonton.
Admin assistance, finance officers, payroll officers, etc. basically all paper pushers. If they are not meeting with members of the public providing programs and services and the position is not filled by an Inuk the position can be relocated out of territory.
This way Government of Nunavut saves on staff houses, the staff houses then get put into public housing pool, This would convert 300 staff housing in to public housing over this process.
Government Nunavut saves millions on the Northern Allowance for all these positions
The Government of Nunavut save on relocating employees which will save millions annually.
There are so many spin offs, the employees up here do not support the local economies as they save their hard earned money to spend in the south anyway.
Honestly because Corey Larocque is so left leaning and Liberal supporting I reduced the amount of time I read Nunatsiaq News.
Why not report unbiased opinions and report the facts
Stop telling your readers how they should feel and allow us to develop our own opinions.