DENTALCARE DRIBS AND DRABS — No pressure or anything, but the survival of this fragile minority Parliament could depend in part on dentists. OK, make that the ability of political staff and senior public servants to deliver on a key plank of the house of cards known as the Liberal-NDP deal.
As Cabinet plots fall strategy, inflation and the economy are no doubt on the tips of tongues. … especially after Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU quelled any leadership gossip by telling his team that he's running in the next campaign. ( Scoop credit on that one goes to the Toronto Star's TONDA MACCHARLES.) But Cabmins interested in governing a while longer might be thinking through another even more existential priority. NDP leader JAGMEET SINGH threatened "repercussions" Wednesday if the Liberals don't follow through on a promise to implement a dentalcare program. — The promise: When JUSTIN TRUDEAU and Singh came to an agreement last March, the Liberals committed to introducing a dentalcare program by the end of the year for kids under 12 whose household incomes fall below C$90,000. The program would expand to kids under 18, seniors and people with disabilities in 2023. Everybody else who meets the income threshold would be rolled in by 2025. Less than two weeks after the ink dried on the two-party accord, Deputy PM CHRYSTIA FREELAND's budget put some meat on the policy bone. The government committed C$5.3 billion over five years to the cause. But but but, only C$300 million would flow in 2022–23. A few friendly leakers told the Canadian Press this summer the Liberals are trying to buy themselves time to create a permanent program by distributing cheques to qualifying families in the interim. That stopgap speaks to the complexity of the conversations going on behind closed doors. In late July, the government asked industry for input on a national dentalcare program. The deadline for feedback closed Aug. 23. — How to fix dentalcare: Convene a meeting, of course. A briefing note delivered to Finance deputy minister MICHAEL SABIA on May 24 made reference to a gathering of DMs meant to talk through dentalcare. We can already hear Liberals yelling at their inboxes. Rest assured we know the government has had more than a single meeting about a potentially Parliament-saving program that has sucked up way more oxygen than any Liberal platform writer ever imagined a year ago. But the makeup of the meeting tells a story about the considerable attention being paid to getting something out the door that'll satisfy the do-something-already New Democrats, — Who was in the room: Playbook asked the Privy Council Office whose minds were required to advance the policy when the senior bureaucrats gathered. A spokesperson served up the roster and noted the group has met only once. PCO clerk JANICE CHARETTE and her deputy, NATHALIE DROUIN, were in attendance. Senior PCO officials were there, too: SHAWN TUPPER, the deputy secretary to Cabinet for operations; MICHAEL VANDERGRIFT, the DM for intergovernmental affairs; LISA SETLAKWE , assistant secretary of social development policy; and SIOBHAN HARTY, assistant secretary to Cabinet for priorities and planning. Eight senior departmental officials joined, too: Health Canada DM STEPHEN LUCAS, the committee's chair; Finance's Sabia; Secretary of the Treasury Board GRAHAM FLACK; Canada Revenue Agency commissioner BOB HAMILTON; Public Services and Procurement Canada DM PAUL THOMPSON, then-Indigenous Services DM CHRIS FOX; Employment and Social Development Canada DM JEAN-FRANÇOIS TREMBLAY; and then-Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada DM CATRINA TAPLEY. — Oh, the redactions: Playbook filed an access-to-information request for Sabia's briefing note. Nine days later, which is light speed for ATIP processing, the response came. Every page was fully redacted. The censors cited six different exemptions under the information law covering "strategy or tactics" on fed-prov relations, "positions or plans developed for the purpose of negotiations," recommendations to Cabinet, and planned Cabinet conversations. Sounds like a typical policy quagmire on a tight deadline. Stay tuned. | 
