Politics Briefing: Tempers cool in Alberta and B.C.

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Good morning,

It's the end of pipe-wine politics — at least for now.

The fight over the fate of the Trans Mountain pipeline appears to be cooling, as British Columbia backs down on a measure aimed at blocking the project and Alberta ends a ban on B.C. wines.

The dispute began when B.C. laid out a plan to study the science around crude oil spills, while placing a moratorium on expanded oil exports until the results were in. The move was seen as an indirect attempt to kill the Trans Mountain pipeline, and Alberta responded by banning imports of B.C. wine. The dispute threatened a longstanding economic relationship between the two provinces and raised the prospect of a prolonged trade war.

But B.C. blinked first. The province says it will hold off on its oil moratorium while instead referring the issue to the courts for a constitutional reference. It was enough for Alberta to suspend its wine ban.

The battle is far from over. Both provinces insist they remain as committed as ever to their positions. The issue will now be before the courts, increasing pressure on Ottawa to intervene. The Trudeau government has promised to ensure the pipeline is built, but it hasn't said what exactly it's prepared to do to ensure that happens.

During the melee, the federal government abruptly cancelled an announcement related to $153-million in daycare funding for B.C. Both levels of government insisted it was little more than a scheduling conflict and not related to the pipeline fight. But soon after B.C. announced its change of course yesterday, a new schedule was announced. The deal will be unveiled in Vancouver this morning.

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 B.C. premier and one-time federal cabinet minister Ujjal Dosanjh is criticizing Justin Trudeau after a man convicted of attempted murder and with a history of Sikh extremism was invited to a dinner with the Prime Minister in India. Jaspal Atwal was invited to a Thursday night dinner reception with the Prime Minister after attending another event with the Trudeau family earlier this week. Mr. Atwal was charged but later acquitted for allegations he attacked Mr. Dosanjh with an iron bar in 1985. Mr. Atwal, then a member of the International Sikh Youth Federation, was also convicted of the attempted murder of Indian cabinet minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu in 1986. The Vancouver Sun is reporting that someone warned Canada's spy agency last week about Mr. Atwal.

Mr. Trudeau did finally meet Indian PM Narendra Modi as his trip wound down, the two meeting with a hug.

The Immigration and Refugee Board is struggling to keep up with the number of asylum claims coming to Canada.

A member of the Ontario Progressive Conservatives' nominations committee is raising concerns about the vetting process for Patrick Brown.

B.C.'s housing tax targeted at out-of-province investors is causing confusion in communities that depend on tourism driven by visitors and cabin owners from outside the province. Some like Kelowna are worried visitors will be driven away, while others fear they will be the next stop for investors looking to drive up prices. At the same time, the province has raised the possibility it may expand the tax measures to other cities.

U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller has filed additional charges against former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and his business associate Rick Gates. The allegations include tax evasion and bank fraud. The two men were charged in October, when the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election took an important step forward.

More than 100 girls are missing following a suspected attack by Boko Haram extremists in Nigeria. Parents of the the missing fear that their children could be kidnapped, similar to the hundreds that were taken from Chibok a few years ago.

John Ibbitson (The Globe and Mail) on Justin Trudeau in India: "But how did this unwelcome guest clear diplomatic and security screens? How could the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi, Global Affairs in Ottawa and the RCMP have messed up so badly?"

The Globe and Mail Editorial Board on the Atwal invitation: "In a spectacular gaffe that exacerbated an already troubled week-long excursion to India, the Canadian High Commissioner in India invited a man named Jaspal Atwal to an official dinner with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau."

Paul Wells (Maclean's) on Trudeau's trip to India: "There is no reason to fear a prolonged chill in Canada-India relations; not everyone carries a grudge forever, and it's not as though Canada and India haven't hit speed bumps before. But this prime minister, Justin Trudeau, might as well never have gone to India, for all the good he has accomplished."

Christie Blatchford (National Post) on Mr. Atwal: "What one can take from all this is that the federal Liberals have a high tolerance level for convicted terrorists who are also Sikhs and who are connected to that powerful community, particularly powerful in B.C."

Gary Mason (The Globe on Mail) on the Alberta-B.C. wine war: "The entire issue had become a lose-lose for B.C., and this reality was beginning to dawn on the government. Increasingly, Mr. Horgan looked like the proverbial cat in a tree that's unsure how to get down."

Margaret Wente (The Globe and Mail) on Ontario politics: "What the Tories might come up with now is anybody's guess. And the three plausible candidates on offer (not including Mr. Brown and the anti-sex-ed lady) are nobody's ideal choices. Rob Ford's older brother, Doug, makes liberal Tories burst out in hives. But his simple, anti-elitist message should not be underrated. Christine Elliott is an uninspiring but probably competent long-time party member. Caroline Mulroney is the attractive novice whose idea of a starter job is premier of Canada's most populous province. Any of them could win. But the biggest winner of all could be the NDP, which might wind up holding the balance of power as the miserable voters search for anybody plausible."

Peter Donolo (The Globe and Mail) on guns and Canada: "Any smugness on our part is sorely misplaced. When it comes to gun violence, the United States is in a class of its own among developed countries. However, when the gun-sick United States is factored out, it is clear that among developed nations, Canada has a bad – and worsening – gun problem."

Linda Nazareth (The Globe and Mail) on labour demand: "The reality is that another era for the workplace is starting now. We are now 10 years past the economic crisis and every day brings reports of worker shortages in Canada and the United States. In December, 2017, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business reported that there was a shortage of 361,700 workers to fill positions in the private sector, the highest number ever recorded by their surveys. Ironically, the fact that technology has made work 24/7 for many may make the case for shorter official weeks even stronger. That the wall between world and leisure is effectively blurred means that official number of hours actually worked, particularly by white-collar employees, has little to do with the number of hours that they are at work. Granting shorter workweeks may not cost employers as much as it might seem, on the surface anyway."

Charles Lammam and Hugh MacIntyre (The Globe and Mail) on balanced budgets: "The Trudeau government has run deficits nearly double the promised amount, and despite a growing economy, has no plan to balance the budget. In fact, according to projections by the Department of Finance, federal deficits could continue for the next 27 years. Yet, even with larger-than-promised deficits, the Trudeau government can still fulfill its pledge to balance the budget by 2019/20. But only with a change in fiscal direction – specifically, a much more disciplined approach to government spending."

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