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A daily look inside Canadian politics and power. | | | | |  | | By Nick Taylor-Vaisey and Zi-Ann Lum |
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Thanks for reading the Ottawa Playbook. I'm your host, Nick Taylor-Vaisey, with Zi-Ann Lum. Today, we're at the Public Policy Forum's Canada Growth Summit. Plus, air traffic controllers are antsy about negotiations with their federal employer. Also, we talk to former diplomats about The Diplomat — which they're devouring. |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | |
NEED FOR SPEED — LISA RAITT says Canada needs to get out of its own way.
“We have so much going on for us in this country, it would be a damn shame if we just couldn’t,” says the former Conservative Cabinet minister and now the vice-chair of global investment banking at CIBC. — Talking it out: Raitt is on the agenda at the Public Policy Forum's Canada Growth Summit 2023, a daylong confab at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The title of her session — “Is the U.S. eating Canada’s lunch on the great energy transition?” — is intentional, she tells us. She will be honored this evening at a testimonial dinner, lauded by the PPF for “her openness and honesty, and her drive to get difficult things done.” Raitt spoke to POLITICO, a media partner of the PPF event, about climate targets, carbon taxes and what it will take for Canada to compete. Read the extended cut of Raitt's interview with POLITICO Canada. — On today's roster: Summit speakers include MIKE MCNAIR, JANICE STEIN, SEAMUS O'REGAN, RUPA BANERJEE, CHRIS FOX and STEVE VERHEUL. — Also on the agenda: POLITICO is moderating a pair of PPF fireside chats. NICK TAYLOR-VAISEY will talk about artificial intelligence with Microsoft Canada president CHRIS BARRY and public policy director OWEN LARTER. ZI-ANN LUM will tackle international trade with a pair of Canadian ambassadors: NADIA THEODORE, who reps the country at the World Trade Organization; and IAN MCKAY, who is ambo in Japan and special envoy to the Indo-Pacific. — Wait, there's more: Check out our five key takeaways from a recent interview with Verheul.
|  PPF President and CEO Edward Greenspon, left, with Simon Kennedy, deputy minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. | Public Policy Forum | — And don’t miss: Zi-Ann’s interview with SIMON KENNEDY on Canada’s industrial challenge. — Stay tuned: Playbook will have full coverage of the summit in Friday's Playbook — including spotteds from the testimonial dinner. | | For your radar | | SHELVED — Fox News has scrapped plans to release TUCKER CARLSON’s “O Canada!” documentary on its subscription streaming service following his exit from the company. A Fox News spokesperson confirmed to Playbook the episode Carlson had dedicated to exploring if the U.S. should “liberate” Canada from Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU’s “tyranny,” won’t air May 1 on Fox Nation, as previously planned. “There are no further new episodes of Tucker Carlson Originals running on the platform.” TOWER TROUBLE — NICK VON SCHOENBERG isn't hitting the alarm yet. He's president of the Canadian Air Traffic Control Association, the union that represents the unseen folks in airport towers who make sure airplanes don't smash into each other. It's stressful on a good day. These days good days are harder to find, he says. CATCA members work for Nav Canada, a privately run not-for-profit corporation that runs civil air navigation — and their contract expired at the end of March. The two sides have been bargaining since December. They've hit a major sticking point: money. "It's sad that things come down to money, but they do. And we're very, very far apart," says von Schoenberg, who proposed wage increases that match inflation. Nav Canada said in a statement to Playbook the agency is pushing for a "fair deal," but acknowledged a "significant monetary difference" between the two sides. — Feeling the pinch: The air traffic controller ranks are aging, and recruitment challenges coupled with extensive training requirements — qualifying can take up to two years — mean they can't keep up with attrition. Job postings are a common sight. The union currently has 1,857 members. NAV Canada says its training programs are jammed, with 400 trainees in the pipeline — and another 600 in the next two years. The agency insists new hires will "outstrip" attrition. Von Schoenberg says the controllers are stuck with long shifts and extended stretches without time off to recharge. They're maxing out overtime and, he says, watching leave get canceled. The longer they go without a collective agreement, the lower morale sinks. There's no talk of striking. But a busy travel season is on the way: "It's all sort of coming together in what could prove to be quite a storm in the summer." — Knock-on effects: The union leader is clear that airports are safe. The system has enough fail-safes built in that a staff shortage in a tower doesn't mean airplanes start running into each other in the sky or on the tarmac. The vastly likelier scenario is familiar to Transport Minister OMAR ALGHABRA and the many Canadian travelers who've given him hell in recent years: delays. Von Schoenberg claims staff shortages are already having an impact. "In the last week, we've had several instances where one of the big international airports has had to close a runway because they didn't have the staff to operate that runway." — Counterpoint: Nav Canada says the "vast majority" of ground delays aren't related to staffing. They instead blame them on weather, construction, gate availability, surface conditions and "compounding delays upstream." The agency says staffing-related ground delays are "usually due to unplanned absences and we work actively to mitigate them through forecasting, optimizing scheduling and bringing in additional resources." — What's next: More bargaining. The two sides are also negotiating the terms of work in case of an eventual strike. But nobody's threatening a stoppage. Yet. | | | TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS | | | — Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU is in New York City for the Global Citizen NOW summit. — Deputy PM CHRYSTIA FREELAND is in Toronto. She holds a roundtable with energy and mining industry leaders at 10 a.m. She'll hold a second roundtable, this time with automotive and steel industry leaders, at 11:30. 9:30 a.m. Trudeau will meet Barbados PM MIA MOTTLEY for a bilat. 9:30 a.m. Liberal MP MICHAEL COTEAU will join Toronto city councilor LILY CHENG and community rep ALIM LILA at a news conference in the Sir John A Macdonald Building on the proposed elimination of Coteau's Don Valley East riding. 9:30 a.m. NDP MP MP DON DAVIES holds a West Block news conference on prescription drug prices. 10 a.m. Trudeau and Mottley will co-chair a meeting with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Advocates 11 a.m. NDP leader JAGMEET SINGH is in Toronto. He'll meet with Amalgamated Transit Union Canada. At noon, he’ll speak to reporters about transit safety. 12 p.m. Trudeau will attend a luncheon given by Global Citizen. 12:30 p.m. NDP MP NIKI ASHTON holds a West Block media avail on tax havens and "loopholes that allow the ultra-rich to get away with not paying what they owe." She'll be joined by DT COCHRANE from the nonprofit Canadians for Tax Fairness. 2 p.m. Singh will speak at the 2023 United Steelworkers Convention, then join the CUPE 233 picket line. 3:30 p.m. Trudeau will meet European Commission President URSULA VON DER LEYEN. 4:15 p.m. Trudeau will participate in an armchair discussion with Global Citizen NOW, moderated by LISA LAFLAMME. 5:30 p.m. Tory leader PIERRE POILIEVRE headlines a party fundraiser at a private residence in Mississauga. 6 p.m. Trudeau will attend a reception given by the Consul General of Canada in New York City.
| | | Talk of the town | | | 
We talked to diplomats binge-watching Netflix. | AP | DIPLOMATS ON THE DIPLOMAT — Even ambassadors are binge-watchers. Netflix's The Diplomat has snared AILISH CAMPBELL, Canada's ambo to the E.U. in Brussels. The show follows KATE WYLER, an American diplomat played by KERI RUSSELL who receives a surprise posting as U.S. ambassador in London on the heels of an international incident in the Persian Gulf. Warning: No spoilers ahead, only minor plot points. Campbell tweeted about Wyler as "a master of the one-minute complex brief" to the president and her secretary of state. "Some scenes I’ve lived + others remind me of colleagues. Just saying." The ambo tagged fellow current and former ambassadors KIRSTEN HILLMAN, NADIA THEODORE, JACQUELINE O'NEILL, ELISSA GOLDBERG, AYEH REKHI, JENNIFER MAY and SANDRA MCCARDELL. — Water cooler talk: Playbook got word of a Canadian diplomatic group chat trading views on the series — what it gets right about their way of life and what it gets wrong. We traded notes with former diplomats who'd taken in the show. — LOUISE BLAIS, former ambassador and deputy permanent representative to the U.N.: The plot is filled with situations that would never happen, Yet, at the same time, it captures the general contours of diplomatic life. I would describe it as a caricature: All traits being highly exaggerated, yet recognizable and fun to watch. — KERRY BUCK, former ambassador to NATO: It is, in so, so many ways, completely insanely unrealistic. At Global Affairs, if Wyler spoke up the way she does in the show, she would be forever parked as a junior foreign service officer after one single briefing. She is a Middle East expert, so she would be sent as a political officer to Africa. She would have no clothing budget so would be wearing that twig and leaf covered dress in every episode. The dining table at the residence would have been cut down (literally sawed in half) so only eight people could sit at it, as per a previous [Canadian] minister’s directions. Shall I go on? But it is such a fun romp… so I will keep watching till the end. — PETER BOEHM, senator and former ambassador to Germany: Of course I am watching and enjoying the series (at episode 4 now). Our sitting until midnight last night got in the way. Entertaining fantasy in some respects. Interesting exposé on some of the tradecraft. There are ambassadors, and there are U.S. ambassadors. No one would have a staff that large at their official residence, not even a U.S. ambassador. A president would never drop in by Marine One just for lunch in London. A British PM would never criticize a U.S. president so directly from a podium. However, it's great and informed writing. The males are sartorially splendid. Keri Russell is great, but was better in The Americans. There are many of us “formers” who could spin tales perhaps equally entertaining. | | PAPER TRAIL | |
STAY IN YOUR LANE — The electronic spy agency known as Communications Security Establishment Canada hired EKOS Research to test a pair of ad concepts on focus groups last November. Participants scored C$120 for serving up opinions.
— Broad strokes: EKOS drilled down on the proposed ads with eight focus groups. The first one — "What is dis?" — introduced the concept of disinformation. People found it "bland" and "not appealing." The word "dis" went over poorly. A second ad warned against spreading untrustworthy information. Focus groups preferred it because of its "quirky humor," but also described it as "juvenile," "cheesy" and "silly." There was more. "Most participants also did not like the jingle sung by the bear" — yes, there was a bear — "in part because of the double negative of the line, 'If you’re not sure if it’s not true, dooooooon’t share it.' " — The final word: CSE got the message and dropped the concepts when the campaign ran in February and March. A disinformation education portal is still online. — Words of caution: EKOS delivered some higher-level takeaways. "Many participants expressed reservations about the Government of Canada telling Canadians what is true or false." Participants wanted the feds to be "careful to provide neutral information without any political lens." The focus groups acknowledged the power of bias in influencing their reaction to whatever is floating around the internet: "A few participants noted it is harder for them to identify misinformation when it is something they want to believe." | | MEDIA ROOM | | | | 
Donald Trump and Joe Biden in Cleveland, Ohio, Sept. 29, 2020. | Morry Gash/Pool via AP Photo | — From our colleagues in D.C.: Biden v. Trump: A race for the White House with actuarial tables in the background. — The Globe's MARIEKE WALSH reports: Minister HARJIT SAJJAN says he was unaware of a senator sending travel documents to Afghans because ‘I wasn’t reading my e-mail’ — What is it like to leave office? SCOTT BRISON, PETER KENT, CELINA CAESAR-CHAVANNES and others share their stories of leaving parliament with Samara on the final episode of Humans of the House. — The Indigo cyberattack is a warning of things to come, STEVEN BEATTIE writes at The Walrus. — The Hub’s STUART THOMSON asks: Is it majority or bust for Poilievre’s Conservatives? — A new film on what it’s like to be publicly LGBTQ2S+ in Canadian politics starts at the beginning: SVEND ROBINSON, writes DAVID BEERS in The Tyee of a new documentary from Ottawa journalist CHRISTOPHER GULY. | | PLAYBOOKERS | |
Birthdays: HBD to MP STÉPHANE LAUZON, Space Canada CEO BRIAN GALLANT, Sen. RENÉ CORMIER and retired senator JANIS JOHNSON. … Also celebrating today: Journalist MOHAMED FAHMY, former MP JOE PESCHISOLIDO and TSN sports reporter CLAIRE HANNA.
Do you have a birthday coming up? Does a colleague? Send us the dates and we'll tell the world. Spotted: Tory MP SCOTT AITCHISON's housing reading list. He's taking recommendations, too. Minister CAROLYN BENNETT, (probably) wearing a Leafs jersey for Game 5. Maybe BILL BLAIR, too. Movers and shakers: RUSSELL BAKER is on his way out as the Nuclear Waste Management Organization's manager of public and media relations. His next gig: Manager of communications, media relations and issues management at the City of Toronto. JUSTIN MARGOLIS is leaving the Quebec government office in Washington for a new job — details TBD — at Global Affairs. Media mentions: CINDY TRAN is leaving the Canadian Press and will return to CBC Ottawa next month. | | PROZONE | |
If you’re a , don’t miss our latest policy newsletter by ZI-ANN LUM: Three things we're watching.
In other Pro headlines:
— Biden's carbon capture wager.
— EU to propose economic security strategy on June 21.
— YouTube Music contractors vote to unionize.
— Congress in a 'mad rush' to catch up on AI.
— Next pandemic will be a disease we know, fueled by climate change.
— Inside the Cabinet turf war to Be Biden’s China fixer.
| | On the Hill | | → Find the latest House committees here → Keep track of Senate committees here 9 a.m. The Senate fisheries and oceans committee meets to consider the government response to a committee report. 9 a.m. The Senate agriculture and forestry committee meets behind closed doors before turning on the cameras for consideration of a draft budget. 9 a.m. The Senate energy and environment committee will hear from Environment Commissioner JERRY DEMARCO about climate change and the Canadian oil and gas industry. 11 a.m. Health Minister JEAN-YVES DUCLOS takes a seat before the House health committee to take questions about the goings-on at the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board. 11 a.m. It’s Public Safety Minister MARCO MENDICINO and CSIS Director DAVID VIGNEAULT’s turn at the House procedure and House affairs committee’s study of foreign election interference. The topic changes to Ontario’s electoral boundaries at noon where GTA MPs HAN DONG, MICHAEL COTEAU, MELISSA LANTSMAN, JOHN MCKAY, ROB OLIPHANT and SALMA ZAHID are up as witnesses. 11 a.m. The House science committee meets to continue its study of support for commercialization of intellectual property. 11 a.m. The House finance committee meets to continue its study of the budget implementation bill, C-47. 11 a.m. The House foreign affairs committee meets to take Bill C-281 through clause-by-clause consideration. 11:30 a.m. The Senate social affairs committee meets to continue its study of Bill C-22. 11:30 a.m. The Senate banking committee meets to study business investment in Canada. 11:30 a.m. Pollster NIK NANOS will appear before the Senate foreign affairs committee as it studies foreign relations and international trade. 11:30 a.m. The Senate legal and constitutional affairs committee will take Bill C-9 through clause-by-clause consideration. 3:30 p.m. Debate on Liberal MP MICHAEL MCLEOD's motion is the first order of business at the House environment committee before the cameras turn off so MPs can review a draft report summarizing their fossil fuel subsidies study. 3:30 p.m. Former Canada Soccer president STEVEN REED will be at the House heritage committee meeting where MPs will head into their 15th meeting studying safe sport in Canada. 3:30 p.m. The House fisheries committee continues its study of ecosystem impacts and management of pinniped populations. 6:30 p.m. Ex-Liberal MP KAREN MCCRIMMON returns to the Hill to join Sen. REBECCA PATTERSON at the House veterans affairs committee as members continue studying the experience of women veterans. — Behind closed doors: The House procedure and House affairs’ subcommittee on agenda and procedure has “committee business” on its agenda; the House public accounts committee meets to go over a draft report, followed by a meeting of its subcommittee on agenda and procedure for committee business; the House status of women committee meets to consider a draft report on women and girls in sport. | | Wednesday’s answer: JOE CLARK is the youngest prime minister of Canada ever. Props to JIM MUNSON, LILY MESH, LESLIE SWARTMAN, LAURA PAYTON, JOHN DILLON, BRIAN GILBERTSON, FRANCIS DOWNEY, AMY BOUGHNER, SHANE O’NEILL, ALLAN FABRYKANT, JAVIER GONZALEZ BLANCO, GERMAINE MALABRE, WALTER ROBINSON, SHEILA GERVAIS, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, NANCI WAUGH and SHAUGHN MCARTHUR. And also to: JOANNA PLATER, MARK AGNEW, DOUG RICE, GORDON RANDALL, BRANDON RABIDEAU, GEORGE SCHOENHOFER, CAMERON RYAN, MARY JANE ALLAN, SAM MACPHAIL, PATRICK HART and BOB GORDON. Today’s question: Name the politician who wrote a book about the “forgotten Leafs.” Send your answer to ottawaplaybook@politico.com Want to grab the attention of movers and shakers on Parliament Hill? Want your brand in front of a key audience of Ottawa influencers? Playbook can help. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com Playbook wouldn’t happen: Without Luiza Ch. Savage and Sue Allan. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |  |
