Putting the “Ask” in Saskatoon
Your Look Ahead from Summa Strategies
- 6 minute read
The Latest
Top stories driving the news this week.
- Yesterday, Prime Minister Mark Carney chose Marc André Blanchard to serve as his chief of staff. Blanchard is the Head of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) Global and previously served as Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations from 2016-2020. Former Justice Minister David Lametti will also serve as Carney’s permanent principal secretary.
- Carney is set to meet with Canada’s premiers today. He is expected to discuss major projects and the federal government’s plan to introduce legislation that would help identify and speed up regulatory approvals for those deemed to be in the “national interest”. The legislation is set to be tabled before the House rises for the summer. Carney also promoted these plans to municipal leaders at a major conference on Friday.
- As wildfires continue to escalate throughout Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba, Carney convened the Incident Response Group, a small committee of cabinet ministers and senior officials, last Friday to discuss the federal government’s relief plans.
- Yesterday, Ontario and Saskatchewan signed a Memorandum of Understanding to remove trade barriers ahead of today’s First Ministers’ meeting in Saskatoon. The agreement will see the two provinces mutually recognize each other’s goods, workers and investment. This is the first in what’s expected to be a three-part deal that also includes bilateral agreements with Alberta and PEI.
- Federal Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu will be in Paris, France today though Wednesday. He is attending the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Ministerial Council Meeting (MCM) and will also participate in meetings with WTO ministers. He will also host a G7 trade ministers’ meeting.
- Last Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump indicated that he will be doubling steel and aluminium tariffs on imported steel from 25 per cent to 50 per cent. Canada’s steel industry stands to be included in this new step.
In the House
Key Green Chamber business set to play out.
- Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon noted in the Thursday question that the House will continue to debate the Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne today, tomorrow and Wednesday. The amendment to the throne speech put forward by the leader of the opposition is expected to be voted on today.
- Thursday, June 5; Monday, June 9; Tuesday, June 10; and Wednesday, June 11 are the designated days for consideration of the Main Estimates in the Committee of the Whole.
- The minister of finance and national revenue tabled notice of a ways and means motion to introduce “a bill respecting certain affordability measures for Canadians and another measure.” The government also published draft legislation and gave notice of its intention to introduce the corresponding bill at first reading.
Committee Updates
- The House of Commons has not yet constituted committees.
In the Senate
Stay informed on events in the Upper Chamber.
- Bill S-209, Protecting Young Persons from Exposure to Pornography Act, currently sits at second reading.
- Bill S-202, An Act to amend the Food and Drugs Act (warning label on alcoholic beverages), currently sits at second reading.
- Bill S-203, Alcoholic Beverage Promotion Prohibition Act, currently sits at second reading.
Committee Updates
- The Senate has appointed the Committee of Selection, which is responsible for nominating senators to the Senate’s standing and joint committees. As of now, the committee has not nominated any senators.
In Case You Missed It
Your crib notes for last week’s top stories.
- Canada Post asked federal Minister of Jobs and Families Patty Hadju to order a union vote on its latest contract offer to postal workers. The union has thus far declined to put the offer to a vote, wanting greater commitments from the employer. Several demonstrations across Canada took place over the weekend.
- The Carney government tabled the Main Estimates last Tuesday containing $486 billion in government expenditures for the upcoming fiscal year. The estimates notably exclude carbon price rebates.
- Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre indicated that his party will vote against the government’s Main Estimates and called on the government to table a budget this spring session.
- A recent Statistics Canada report indicates that Canada’s economy grew at an annual rate of 2.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2025. This report in advance of an interest rate announcement scheduled for this Wednesday.
- Last Friday, Finance Canada issued a report indicating that between April 2024 and March 2025, Canada ran a budgetary deficit of $43.2 billion.
- While the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that it would block President Trump’s fentanyl-related tariffs against Canada, implementation of the ruling has been paused as the Trump administration appeals to a higher court. The court ruling does not impact U.S. tariffs on steel, aluminium and automobiles.
- Last Tuesday, King Charles III opened Parliament by delivering the Speech from the Throne, in which he emphasized Canada’s sovereignty and committed Canada to join the ReArm Europe defence program.
- In his first major public speech, Minister of National Defence David McGuinty signaled to Canada’s top arms makers the government’s plans to accelerate military spending.
- Following King Charles III’s throne speech, U.S. President Donald Trump renewed Canadian annexation threats and set a $61 billion U.S. price tag for Canada to join his proposed Golden Dome missile defence system. A source from the prime minister’s office has confirmed that the federal government officials are discussing the Golden Dome with respect to security-related issues.
- In an interview with CBC’s David Cochrane, Prime Minister Mark Carney has indicated that he would like Canada to sign on to ReArm Europe by Canada Day and that more progress is needed on tariffs before CUSMA talks begin.
- U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra indicated at a conference in Michigan last Wednesday that an updated Canada-U.S. trade deal is possible, but that Canada should not assume that tariffs will disappear.
- Swedish defence manufacturer Saab signed a memorandum of understanding with Canadian tech company CAE INC. last Thursday to work together on training the Royal Canadian Navy’s new submarine fleet.
- Amidst turbulent North American trade relations, the Canadian government has invited Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to the G7 summit in Kananaskis. President Sheinbaum has remained noncommittal about coming to Canada during the G7 summit.
Provincial Updates
A look at the top news across the country.
- Bell Canada has announced that it will be investing in six artificial intelligence data centres as part of its Bell AI Fabric Project with the first data centre to open in Kamloops next month.
- Telus also announced plans to invest $15 billion over the next five years to expand the province’s network infrastructure, 5G and LTE services along with investing in a sovereign AI factory in Kamloops. This AI factory would be powered by Nvidia Corp.
- Boeing Canada has announced that it will be investing $17.5 million in sustainable aviation fuel projects in B.C. and Quebec. It will send $7.5 million to BC firm Dimensional Energy to scale up its industrial CO2 capture operations.
- The province’s minimum wage was increased from $17.40 to $17.85 this Sunday.
- The Prince Rupert Port Authority announced plans to test self-driving trucks, and unions representing truck drivers and workers at the Port of Prince Rupert voiced opposition to these plans.
- The B.C. legislature passed the Budget Implementation Act, along with the province’s tariff response legislation and major energy and infrastructure bills last Wednesday.
- Last Friday, the Manitoba Wildfire Service issued travel restrictions throughout the province as wildfires continue to burn out of control closing trails and water routes. Along with the new restrictions, the province indicated that the state of emergency will be in effect until June 26.
- Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has declared a state of emergency following the province’s 17 active wildfires. The province’s state of emergency will remain in-place for 30 days.
- Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has called 3 byelections to take place on June 22. Of note, NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi will run in Edmonton-Strathcona and Alberta Republican Party Leader Cam Davies will run in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills.
- An Ontario Superior Court Judge approved a $500 million settlement in the Loblaw bread-price-fixing case entitling shoppers from Ontario and Quebec to compensation.
- Ontario MPPs voted unanimously last Thursday to give themselves a nearly $41,000 raise for the first time in decades. Prior to this, the salaries for MPPs had been frozen at $116,500 since 2009. The Ford government has also re-introduced defined-benefit pensions for Members of Provincial Parliament.
- Last Wednesday, Ontario introduced the Working for Workers Seven Act, 2025. If passed, this legislation would enhance protections against job scams for prospective job seekers and expand entitlements for workers to provide better support in the event of layoffs and help workers access skills training faster.
- Last Friday, Ontario’s minister of education tabled the Supporting Children and Students Act, 2025. If passed, this legislation would provide the minister of education more power to put school boards under supervision and require more boards to place police officers in schools.
- Ontario’s Ministry of Finance recently revealed that of the 70 grocery stores that are required to accept empty alcohol containers in the province, only 13 are doing so. This comes as The Beer Store closes several of its locations across the province.
- Last Friday, Quebec’s Minister for the Economy Christopher Skeete tabled a bill which, if passed, would remove all restrictions on the use and sale of products from other provinces, with some exception,s and make it easier for workers who are certified in other provinces to have their credentials recognized in Quebec.
- A committee report tabled in Quebec’s National Assembly last Thursday recommends restructuring social media accounts for youth under 14.
- Last Friday, Quebec’s Minister of Finance Eric Girard indicated that the province is looking for the federal government to commit at least $22 billion over the next ten years on top of the roughly $2-3 billion in federal funding already requested by the premier to build the transmission line for Quebec’s hydroelectric projects with Newfoundland and Labrador.
- Last Wednesday, Quebec’s legislature passed a bill which requires that new immigrants to Quebec embrace the province’s common values of gender equality, secularism and protection of the French language.
- Nova Scotia is implementing new regulations to allow more commercial trucks and other passenger vehicles to operate in the province and amend the province’s building code to allow for modular housing.
- Canada’s federal privacy commissioner has launched an investigation that led to the theft of personal information belonging to 280,000 Nova Scotia Power customers. This comes after receiving complaints about a security breach in late April.
- Last Wednesday, New Brunswick’s government announced that it would up its overall spending for vulnerable young people by nearly $1.2 million, resulting in an extra $163 to $259 per person each month. This went into effect as of yesterday.
- Newfoundland’s privacy commissioner is investigating a security breach after hackers were able to steal the private information of roughly 300,000 current and former teachers and students in Newfoundland and Labrador.
What We’re Watching
Find out what issues Summa consultants are tracking and why they matter.
Linking Arms – Through both the Speech from the Throne and subsequent interviews with media, Prime Minister Mark Carney has made it clear that he would like to see Canada join Europe’s $1.25 trillion defence rearmament plan in the near future. Joining “ReArm Europe” would be a considerable step toward reducing Canada’s dependency on the United States for defence, something that the prime minister has identified as a key priority. As it stands, seventy-five cents of every dollar of Canada’s capital spending for defence goes to the United States, which the prime minister has deemed simply “not smart”. Canadian participation in the ReArm Europe program would also provide Canada an avenue to increase defence spending, another of Prime Minister Carney’s oft-cited priorities. With the next NATO summit scheduled just three weeks from now, Canadians can likely anticipate more details soon on the country’s participation in both ReArm Europe, and defence and security plans more broadly.
Consistent Conservatives – The Conservative Party of Canada maintained consistent messaging and tone from their 2025 election campaign into their first week back in the House of Commons, emphasizing affordability and government accountability. Andrew Scheer, speaking for the Conservatives in response to the Speech from the Throne, criticized the Liberal government’s agenda while also highlighting how some policies appear to be copied and pasted straight from the Conservative platform. Despite pledging to support measures that benefit Canadians, the Conservatives have announced they will oppose the government’s estimates, arguing there should be a full federal budget and objecting to an alleged spending increase. In Abacus Data’s first post-election poll, the Liberals and Conservatives are statistically tied a month post-election – meaning the Tories are unlikely to switch gears from their current messaging and lines of attack.
Getting Down to Business – Parliament’s opening week theatrics are behind us. Last week, Members of Parliament returned to the House of Commons for the first time in nearly six months and the King traveled to Canada in a rare move to deliver the Speech from the Throne. With formalities out of the way, the prime minister is signalling his intent for swift action on his core priorities, including a plan to fast-track nation-building projects. The legislation, expected to be introduced soon after today’s First Ministers meeting in Saskatoon, is rumoured to propose a two-year approval timeline for major infrastructure projects – such as ports, critical mineral mines and trade corridors – and a framework to reduce federal barriers to internal trade, keeping the commitment on track for the prime minister’s previously promised Canada Day delivery deadline. These measures target two of the seven priorities outlined in the PM’s mandate letter – early proof that the rookie prime minister intends to move quickly, minority or not.
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