Trudeau needs to stay on, in part to navigate Trump, says N.L.'s new federal minister
CBC
Now is not the time to disrupt the federal government, according to Newfoundland and Labrador's newest federal cabinet minister.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau named St. John's East MP Joanne Thompson as minister of seniors on Friday in a cabinet shuffle that followed former finance minister Chrystia Freeland's fiery resignation on Dec. 16.
Thompson, who has been a Liberal MP for three years, was not expecting the call, and in fact last week was preparing to fly back to St. John's.
"I was caught off guard," she said.
"That's not where my where my thoughts were. It was really more about coming home and getting on with the work here."
Three days later after getting the call, she was sworn into Trudeau's cabinet, taking over a role that had once been held by St. John's South— Mount Pearl MP Seamus O'Regan, who resigned from cabinet in July.
As a federal election looms with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh each vowing to bring forward a non-confidence motion to take down the Liberal government in the House of Commons, Thompson is maintaining her support for Trudeau.
She said his experience is valuable as the country prepares for president-elect Donald Trump's second inauguration, in January.
"We have an experienced prime minister who has worked with the Trump government in the past. We need that experience at the helm right now," Thompson said.
She also wants to protect federal programs the Liberal party has introduced, including $10 a day daycare, dental care, and pharmacare.
In her perspective, the federal Liberals have a strong record of supporting Canadians.
"We've done that by also balancing the budget in a way that tangible measurements around interest rates, around where Canada fits against its peers in terms of our GDP," Thompson said.
"I support him because we need to focus on Canadians. This is not the time to be divisive."
Thompson will run again in the next federal election, with St. John's East — a riding that has been held by the three major parties over the years — again being a national riding to watch. Thompson will face David Brazil, a former interim leader for the provincial PCs, for the Conservative Party, while Mary Shortall, a former president of Newfoundland and Labrador's Federation of Labour, is running for the NDP.
With criminal networks shifting to domestic production of fentanyl and other opioids, the focus of law enforcement at Canada's borders has now shifted to the chemicals used to make the deadly drugs.
Watching Christmas movies is a time-honoured tradition, including those holiday romance films typically set in small-town USA.
While we all deal with grief and loss at some point in our lives, it can be particularly challenging for children to process.
Barbara and David Enns were residents of The Village of Lions Bay for several decades until they died last weekend in a landslide, says the town's mayor.
Hundreds of Detroit Lions fans crowded into London's Canada Life Place on Sunday as part of a watch party event organized by the team.
Helen Conway-Ottenheimer, justice critic and PC MHA for the district of Harbour Main says that the shortage of police officers in the province is alarming and poses a threat to residents' safety and well-being—especially in rural communities.
Three North Atlantic right whales have been spotted entangled in fishing gear off the coast of the U.S. just this month, according to information from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries.
The Quebec government has reached an agreement-in-principle with a union that represents workers in subsidized daycares — or CPEs as they're known in French.
A former president of the Calgary Homeless Foundation says he is deeply concerned by the Alberta government's recent decision to overhaul the funding scheme for organizations providing services to homeless people.
As Christmas travel kicks into high gear, several storms are forecast to hit B.C.'s entire coast, including Metro Vancouver and Greater Victoria.
Barbara and David Enns were residents of Lions Bay, B.C., for several decades until they died last weekend in a landslide, says the village's mayor.