Politics Briefing: B.C. NDP tables first full budget

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Good morning,

B.C.'s NDP government will table its first full provincial budget today, filling in the many blanks that remain from the party's platform in last year's election. The New Democrats came to power on promises to remake the province's daycare system with a $10 per day system — which the government is already backing away from — and to further rein in out-of-control housing prices. But many of the details have yet to be announced, putting significant pressure on Finance Minister Carole James.

The budget could also include new measures to target money laundering after a Globe and Mail investigation found lenders connected to the fentanyl trade are using real estate to launder money. The province's attorney-general says the government is prepared to crack down.

This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Chris Hannay in Ottawa, Mayaz Alam in Toronto and James Keller in Vancouver. If you're reading this on the web or someone forwarded this email newsletter to you, you can sign up for Politics Briefing and all Globe newsletters here. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.

TODAY'S HEADLINES

Former Ontario Progressive Conservative Party leader Patrick Brown, who entered his name into the race to replace himself as leader, discussed a $375,000 deal with a future Ontario Tory candidate. An affidavit says Jass Johal, who was acclaimed as the PC candidate for Brampton North, agreed to pay $375,000 for Aeroplan miles and a stake in a restaurant called Hooligans, which used to be a nightclub called The Bank in Barrie, Mr. Brown's hometown. One month later, $375,000 was deposited in Mr. Brown's bank account, ahead of a $2.3-million property purchase. But Mr. Brown says the deal was never done and that his family helped him buy the home.

The election commissioner is investigating a Liberal MP's fundraiser later this week, which is supported by party headquarters but not by the local riding association.

The Canadian Council of Criminal Defence Lawyers says it was wrong of the Prime Minister and Justice Minister to weigh in publicly with their opinions on the jury's verdict in the Gerald Stanley trial.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is considering an enhancement to parental leave rules that would give benefits to fathers and parents in an LGBTQ relationship.

Mr. Trudeau is currently in India, where he announced that Indian companies planned to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in Canada and create at least 5,000 new jobs in the coming years.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau is signalling there could be funds for a redress system for those caught up by mistake in the no-fly list.

Military insiders tell the Toronto Star that morale flights – those carrying entertainers across the ocean to entertain troops – routinely feature heavy drinking and inappropriate behaviour.

"There's so many areas where we know that if we had the courage to do more we could make people's lives better," NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told a convention of New Democrats on the weekend. The policies discussed at the convention could shape where the party goes in the 2019 election.

British Columbia is asking a national trade tribunal to intervene in a growing trade dispute with Alberta, which has seen Alberta ban B.C. wines to retaliate for that province's opposition to the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion. B.C. has formally requested consultations under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement.

And U.S. President Donald Trump has endorsed former presidential candidate Mitt Romney in his bid for a U.S. Senate seat in Utah.

Campbell Clark (The Globe and Mail) on Morneau's budget pitch: "There's a regular ritual for Canadian Finance ministers: after delivering a budget in Ottawa, they head to New York and London to sell it to movers in the markets. This year, Finance Minister Bill Morneau will break ground with two more stops: in Shanghai and Hong Kong. It is a symbol of China's growing might in economic matters and in financial markets. But in reality, it's a trade initiative. China wants to be seen as a rising centre of the financial world, so Mr. Morneau is putting its financial hubs on an itinerary of global financial capitals as a nod to Chinese influence intended to build relationships. The Liberal government has made halting efforts to launch free-trade talks with Beijing, but this is part of a broader strategy to try to deepen economic ties in ways that don't rely on a formal trade deal."

Charles Lugosi (The Globe and Mail) on the jury system: "Raising the issue of race in the wake of the Stanley case does not lead to more justice but smacks of jury tampering by political interference, rendering an expectation that race is a factor in achieving a better or desired verdict. This is a dangerous path that must be soundly rejected by people of principle and integrity. There are other ways to combat the evil of racism. This is not one of them."

Elizabeth Renzetti (The Globe and Mail) on the threats to our democracy: "Quite apart from bad actors illicitly buying ads to sow discord, or political campaigns legally but deviously micro-targeting groups, there is another threat. That is, as Pogo famously stated, us. We love the sugar-rush of a good political meme, even if it's bogus. We will happily follow YouTube down its rabbit hole of ever more conspiratorial videos. And this rush is amplified when we share spurious content and get clicks and likes in return." (for subscribers)

Lawrence Herman (The Globe and Mail) on NAFTA talks: "Canadians have no choice but to live with this unsettled situation for the next year, possibly longer, while accepting that, even with all possible fortitude, it might not be possible to rescue the NAFTA when talks resume. Even if an acceptable deal emerges down the road, the reality is Canada will always be exposed to the vicissitudes of U.S. trade policies, whether under Mr. Trump or his successor."

Parisa Mahboubi (The Globe and Mail) on Ontario's minimum-wage hike: "The January weakness in Ontario's labour market will no doubt spur a debate on whether the province has exceeded the threshold at which higher minimum wages actually exacerbate, rather than reduce, inequalities. It would be wise to consider giving the labour market more time to adjust to the recent increase before rushing forward with the plan for a second increase, to $15 an hour, next January."

Andrew Coyne (National Post) on the federal political landscape: "The NDP, by its willingness to advocate for progressive issues the Liberals would prefer not to touch, has expanded the boundaries of permissible debate, pulling the median vote to the left, forcing the Liberals to respond and pulling the median vote to the left. At the same time, the broad philosophical sympathy between the two parties means they define the terms of debate, the default assumptions of public discussion, leaving the Tories permanently on the defensive, as the odd man out."

Globe and Mail Editorial Board on superclusters: "The five clusters Ottawa selected...make a reasonable amount of sense. Canada is a legume superpower, so why not press our advantage? And Mr. Bains is said to be influenced by the theories of London-based economist Mariana Mazzacuto, who has persuasively argued against the notions that state intervention stifles innovation and that free markets are the only solution. But buzzy words can't hide the fact there is always a risk when governments pick and choose industries to favour. Canadians should be, well, super-dubious."

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