A report by Mark Cameron, a former policy director in the Prime Minister's Office under Stephen Harper, said the Liberals' plan to tax polluters and return that money to Canadians directly would leave households better off financially than they are now. Meanwhile, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce is backing carbon pricing. They say that, far from being an environmental policy, pricing carbon is little more than a tax grab that will raise the cost of living for commuters, small businesses and farmers, and they want it cancelled. Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe, Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister and Alberta Opposition leader Jason Kenney have formed a united front to take on the federal Liberals' plan to impose a national price on carbon. The government got a bit of reprieve when a national security and intelligence committee report on the trip revealed that the RCMP knew Atwal was making his way to India to attend events with Trudeau, but failed to failed to "validate that information."ĭuration 5:03 Premiers vs. Trudeau's national security and intelligence adviser, Daniel Jean, contacted the media and gave an off-the-record briefing suggesting that rogue political elements in India may have orchestrated Atwal's invitation to embarrass Trudeau and make him seem sympathetic to Sikh extremism. The Atwal incident, however, obscured the glare from the prime minister's gold sherwani entirely. In a year-end interview with Rosemary Barton, host of CBC's The National, Trudeau admitted that he learned from the trip and would not wear the colourful Indian traditional clothing should he return to the country. This was the Trudeau government's signature pratfall on the world stage, marked by over-the-top wardrobe choices, questions about whether any work was getting done and, of course, the major security failure that allowed a convicted would-be assassin, Jaspal Atwal, to score an invite to a party with the prime minister. Liberal MP Kent Hehr was forced to step down from cabinet, but not from the party, after sexual harassment allegations emerged against him. Weir was removed from caucus in May after an independent investigation commissioned by the party upheld several complaints of harassment and sexual harassment against him.ĭuration 6:11 The Prime Minister's trip to India. Perhaps the most scandalous behaviour involved Conservative MP Clement, who admitted in November to sending sexually explicit images and videos of himself to someone he said he believed was a consenting woman - but who turned out to be a blackmailer targeting him for financial extortion.Ĭlement was forced to step down as his party's justice critic, was removed from the multi-party national security and intelligence committee and eventually stepped down from the Conservative caucus altogether.īut Clement was far from the only federal politician facing questions this year. Prime Minister Trudeau had to explain allegations that he groped a young woman nearly 20 years ago at a music festival. Cases in point: Tony Clement, Erin Weir, Trudeau's groping allegations, Kent Hehr. "These are people who've stepped up and offered tremendous service to this country, but Canadians expect a certain level of transparency and accountability, and we're going to make sure we're moving forward in a thoughtful way," Trudeau said.Ĭoming in at number two is behaviour that just didn't meet the bar of required conduct for a parliamentarian - or anyone else, for that matter. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was forced to address the issue, saying Canada's governors general deserve continued financial support once they retire but need to be more transparent and accountable for their expenses. Adrienne Clarkson's post-GG spendingĪdrienne Clarkson retired as Canada's governor general 13 years ago, but earlier this year it came to light that from 1999 to 2005, she billed taxpayers for more than $1 million in expenses after leaving the viceregal job. The biggest political blunders of 2018 5. The Power Panel - Postmedia journalist Jen Gerson, Supriya Dwivedi of Global Radio News, former Conservative cabinet minister Stockwell Day and Brad Lavigne of Counsel Public Affairs - helped host Vassy Kapelos count down the unforgettable political moments that defined 2018. As 2018 winds to a close, it's time to take a look back at the year's biggest political events and errors, both at home and abroad.
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