Families punished by tax system that ‘doesn't see them'
Liberal MPs are canvassing a range of new tax agendas aimed at finding issues to resonate with voters, put them back into contention for government and revive Australia's lagging productivity.
Ideas discussed include making private school fees tax-deductible while cutting taxpayer funding, lowering family tax bills by allowing couples to split incomes, and a fringe benefits review to allow workers in remote communities to pay their rent or mortgage from pre-tax income.
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27 minutes ago
Carney facing some Liberal pushback over Modi's invitation to G7 summit
Prime Minister Mark Carney is facing some pushback from his caucus over Canada's decision to invite the Indian prime minister to the G7 meeting in Alberta next week, with one Sikh MP saying it's a bad idea. B.C. MP Sukh Dhaliwal told reporters he met with Carney early Wednesday to express what he says are constituents' frustrations with the decision to include Narendra Modi. Canadian police have alleged Indian agents were involved in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar (new window) , the Canadian Khalistani separatist who was gunned down in B.C. in 2023. Nijjar and others in that movement have been calling for an independent Sikh homeland in northern India called Khalistan, which Modi's government has vigorously opposed and denounced as a national security threat. The RCMP has clearly stated there's credible evidence Indian agents were involved in the assassination of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil, Dhaliwal said of Nijjar. It's a bad idea to include Modi in this high-profile get-together, he said. WATCH | Modi coming is a 'bad idea,' Dhaliwal says: Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? Liberal MP says Modi coming to Canada is 'a bad idea' Speaking to reporters in Ottawa, B.C. Liberal MP Sukh Dhaliwal said he met with Prime Minister Mark Carney Wednesday morning to express concerns he says his constituents have with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi being invited to the upcoming G7 summit in Alberta. Dhaliwal said Carney is alarmed by the Nijjar case and taking seriously what would be an egregious violation of Canadian sovereignty. Canada expelled some Indian diplomats (new window) after the allegations were made public. A police investigation into alleged Indian involvement is ongoing but the government has already said there are linkages between the four Indian nationals arrested and charged (new window) with Nijjar's murder and the Indian government. Dhaliwal said Carney is very strong on the issue and will represent Sikh concerns about Indian interference and transnational crime when speaking to Modi. I'm saying it's not a good idea, but now he's invited. We have to move forward, he said. 'Our government needs to take a firm stand' Another Liberal B.C. MP, Gurbux Saini, said his voters are concerned. What is happening is wrong and our government needs to take a firm stand, he said of India's alleged actions. Beyond the Nijjar killing, the Foreign Interference Commission's final report (new window) also identified India as a top meddler in Canadian affairs. The commission reviewed intelligence suggesting Indian-aligned proxies may have clandestinely provided financial support to various Canadian politicians to try and get more pro-Indian candidates elected. The report also found that India has used disinformation to further its goals in Canada. Liberal MP Karina Gould, a past cabinet minister and leadership contender, said human rights should be on the agenda when Carney meets with Modi and if another controversial G7 invitee, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (new window) , also decides to attend. Bin Salman has been tied to the killing of Saudi dissident and journalist Jamal Khashoggi. I understand why they were invited. Part of diplomacy is having these conversations — you don't shut the door to them, Gould said. But we're also standing up for values that are important to Canadians. WATCH | MPs asked about India, Saudi Arabia invites : Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? Liberal MPs asked about Carney inviting India, Saudi Arabia to G7 in Canada Liberal MPs Yasir Naqvi, Ahmed Hussen, Rob Oliphant and Yvan Baker were asked Wednesday to share their thoughts on Prime Minister Mark Carney inviting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia to attend the upcoming G7 summit in Alberta. The Modi invite is a sign Carney may be looking to reset relations with India after a particularly fractious period under the last Liberal government, said Fen Hampson, a professor of international affairs at Carleton University. It's sending a positive signal to the Indians that the Carney government wants to begin to turn the page on some of the frictions we saw during the Trudeau government and the difficulties they had with India, Hampson said in an interview with CBC News. And there are signs India may be open to a rapprochement because Modi accepted the invitation immediately, Hampson said, unlike Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum who took days to consider whether to go or not (new window) . India is the world's fifth-largest economy, a major regional actor in the Indo-Pacific and an increasingly important player on the global stage, and bringing Modi here for the G7 is a way for Carney to signal he's taking Canada's foreign policy in a different direction, Hampson said. The fact that this is a multilateral gathering that we're hosting does give the prime minister some cover when it comes to domestic critics who feel Modi shouldn't be invited. It would be very different if it was an invitation for a bilateral heads of government meeting in Ottawa. At least this can be done under the cloak of the G7, he said. The push to diversify the economy is why other Liberal MPs were deferential to Carney and his decision to include Modi. Canada is facing an economic crisis with U.S. relations at a low point, International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu said, and Canada needs to collaborate and work out some of the issues with India. I think the G7 is an important avenue for the prime minister to discuss some economic collaboration, Sidhu said. MP Yasir Naqvi, the parliamentary secretary to Sidhu, said there's no excuse for the very serious allegations around extrajudicial killings, but the Carney and Modi face-to-face is a chance for Canada to demand India's co-operation with the ongoing Canadian police investigation and to engage on the larger issue. This only happens if there's a relationship between our governments, Naqvi said. WATCH | Conservative leader on Modi's invitation: Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? Poilievre says Modi's G7 invitation was 'necessary' 5 days agoDuration0:55'We need to work with India,' Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, said when asked if it's appropriate for the Indian prime minister to come to Canada, as his government's role in a B.C. killing is investigated. And, as Carney looks to lessen Canada's dependence on the U.S., there are opportunities for Canadian businesses in India, Naqvi said. Canada is trying to open the door on relationships and say, 'We need to diversify our trade vastly,' added MP Rob Oliphant, the parliamentary secretary to the minister of foreign affairs. The message to the world is Canada is a vibrant trading partner. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said earlier this week that India is one of the biggest and fastest-growing economies in the world. India is a promising potential market for Canadian liquefied natural gas and nuclear power technology, among other products, Poilievre said, and that sort of trade depends on improving relations. We need to work with India … on trade and security, he said. The invitation is necessary. WATCH | NDP MP slams invitations : Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? Modi's invitation to Canada 'deeply alarming,' says NDP MP NDP MP Heather McPherson joined colleagues on Parliament Hill to object to some of the foreign leaders invited to the G7 summit in Alberta, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, over his country's alleged links to the 2023 killing of B.C. Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Meanwhile, NDP MP Heather McPherson said Modi's inclusion is deeply alarming. This government has consistently and very clearly chosen profits and the economy over human rights, over people, she said. Profit over people. That's their mantra. John Paul Tasker (new window) · CBC News
Ottawa Citizen
41 minutes ago
- Ottawa Citizen
Dayforce confirmed as replacement for Phoenix as federal government pay system
The federal government is set to move forward with replacing the plagued Phoenix pay system with Dayforce. Article content Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound announced Wednesday that the government would start the 'final build and testing phase' of the new platform. Article content Article content 'The Government of Canada remains committed to modernizing its HR and pay systems in a responsible and transparent manner,' Lightbound said in a statement. 'By investing in the future of HR and pay, we are taking an important step forward in ensuring an efficient, secure, and sustainable solution for public service employees.' Article content Article content The announcement came as the federal government continued to work to ease the backlog of pay issues. As of April 23, there were 327,000 transactions in the system remaining to be processed. Of that number, 49 per cent were more than a year old. Article content Article content The total of 327,000 represented an improvement on previous months. In late February, the backlog stood at 366,000 transactions and in October 2024 it was 402,000. Article content The Liberal government launched Phoenix in 2016 after the previous Conservative government had initiated the platform. Problems soon arose as public servants struggled to get paid fully and on time. Article content An auditor general report from December 2024 found that 32 per cent of federal government employees reported errors in their basic or acting pay during the 2023–24 fiscal year. That was up from 30 per cent in 2022–23 and 28 per cent in 2021–22. However, it was also a steep decrease from the peak of Phoenix's problems in 2019–20, when 51 per cent of employees had to deal with pay errors. The cost of Phoenix's failure for the government has also ballooned. Since 2017, the federal government has spent at least $3.5 billion on the Phoenix pay system. It has also cost the federal government money in settlements and compensation for public servants. Last November, the government settled a class-action lawsuit brought by non-unionized and casual employees over the payment system fiasco. And in 2020 Canada's largest public-sector union, the Public Service Alliance of Canada, reached an agreement with the government giving 140,000 workers each $2,500 in compensation over the issues with Phoenix. Article content Article content
Toronto Star
an hour ago
- Toronto Star
NDP leader says Carney needs to keep Parliament in the loop on trade talks
OTTAWA - Interim NDP Leader Don Davies is accusing Prime Minister Mark Carney of not being transparent about negotiations with the U.S. on getting President Donald Trump's tariffs lifted. Davies said Wednesday that Parliament has not been kept in the loop on what Carney and Trump are talking about behind closed doors, or whether Ottawa has involved stakeholders in negotiations with the U.S. 'Previous Liberal governments have made quite a deal out of appointing different stakeholders from society to be present in advising them. Yet we don't know anything about that in these negotiations,' Davies told reporters outside the House of Commons just ahead of question period. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW 'It's time that Carney government became more transparent with Canadians, let us know who's negotiating, and definitely explain to Canadians why he's pursuing deeper military and economic integration with the United States when he promised Canadians that he would do exactly the opposite.' Carney declared during the recent federal election that Canada's old relationship with the United States, based on deepening economic integration and military cooperation, had come to an end and he vowed to stand up to Trump in the face of steep U.S. tariffs. CBC/Radio-Canada reported earlier Wednesday that the U.S. and Canada are hashing out a 'working document' that outlines details of a potential trade deal and states that Canada will participate in Trump's Golden Dome missile defence project. The prime minister's office is neither confirming nor denying that report. Asked by reporters about talks on the U.S. tariffs, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the government's 'endgame' is to have all of Trump's tariffs removed, but he referred journalists to Carney and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc for the most up-to-date information. 'It's a very dynamic situation,' Champagne said. 'We've been engaging with our friends in the United States. You know, we talk to different people in the administration.' But Carney and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand breezed past reporters who shouted questions at them on Wednesday, while LeBlanc was not seen in Parliament. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Ontario Premier Doug Ford publicly confirmed the secret, top-level discussions last week, saying that Carney and Trump are in 'deep discussions' on trade and working 'around the clock to get a deal.' 'They're right at the brink,' Ford said in Toronto on June 5. Pete Hoekstra, Trump's ambassador to Canada, said in an armchair talk at the Canadian Club of Ottawa on Wednesday that he thinks there's a 'possibility to have a great deal.' He said that 'all indications' are that the two countries could reach a 'very positive agreement,' but couched that 'there's also the possibility you could end up with something like no deal or whatever.' 'Until a deal is announced, you really won't know what's it in it,' Hoekstra said. Trump has insisted that Canada could join his unbuilt Golden Dome continental missile defence program at a cost of $61 billion. Carney confirmed last month that he is in talks with Trump about the project. 'It's something that we are looking at and something that has been discussed at a high level,' Carney said at a press conference in Ottawa on May 21. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 11, 2025. Politics Headlines Newsletter Get the latest news and unmatched insights in your inbox every evening Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. Please enter a valid email address. Sign Up Yes, I'd also like to receive customized content suggestions and promotional messages from the Star. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Politics Headlines Newsletter You're signed up! You'll start getting Politics Headlines in your inbox soon. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page.
