Canada Minute: Issue 94

Canada Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Canadian politics.

📅 This Week In Canada: 📅

• An incident that took place at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Wainwright in Alberta on Saturday has resulted in four confirmed deaths and dozens more injuries, as of the time of writing. It appears that an accident during a live-fire training exercise triggered a fire and that the accident and fire have both caused significant casualties, though full details are not yet available. The soldiers training at the base at the time were from one of Canada's main front-line infantry regiments, whose members are based in Edmonton and at CFB Shilo in Manitoba. Prime Minister Carney said the country will care for the injured through their recovery and stand by military members as they bear the loss, adding that "they will not carry it alone."
  
  
• Prime Minister Mark Carney says Alberta does not need a referendum to secure greater cooperation with Ottawa on immigration. Speaking to Global News in Calgary on October 15th, Carney said he expects more federal-provincial cooperation on immigration "irrespective of the result" of today's vote. Albertans are voting on five questions regarding immigration, including whether the provincial government should take increased control over immigration to reduce it to more sustainable levels, prioritize economic migrants, and give Albertans first priority for new jobs. Premier Danielle Smith has advocated for an arrangement similar to Quebec's, which gives that province greater authority over the selection of economic immigrants. Carney defended his government's record, claiming asylum seekers are down 70%, temporary foreign workers 60%, and foreign students 80% over roughly the past 18 months. However, he recently told the New York Times that a controlled increase in Canada's population could begin again.
  
  
• Industry Minister Mélanie Joly is warning that a court could force Stelco to sell its Canadian assets, as Ottawa reviews the steelmaker's response to a federal legal threat over layoffs. Stelco has announced plans to lay off up to 500 workers at its Hamilton and Lake Erie facilities and began issuing layoff notices last week. On October 5th, Joly gave its American parent company, Cleveland-Cliffs, five business days to show how it would honour the legally binding commitments it made when it bought Stelco in 2024, including maintaining unionized employment levels. Speaking on October 14th, Joly said that under the Investment Canada Act a court could order the company to comply, impose financial penalties, or order it to divest its Canadian assets, adding that "everything is on the table". She declined to say whether the government will go ahead with a lawsuit. Stelco maintains it remains in compliance and blames 50% US tariffs for a 58% drop in its cold-rolled and coated steel exports. NDP Leader Avi Lewis and Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles have called on Ottawa to nationalize the company, while Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre wants the government to sue right away.
  
  
• The Supreme Court of Canada announced that it will hear an appeal over whether Ottawa's ban on single-use plastics can stay in place. The ban, phased in from 2022, covers the manufacture and sale of six items, including straws, stir sticks, cutlery, takeout containers, and six-pack rings. To bring it in, the federal government listed "plastic manufactured items" as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. In 2023, the Federal Court ruled that listing was too broad, in part because the government had failed to show that all plastic items harm human health or the environment. The Federal Court of Appeal unanimously overturned that decision in January, finding the listing reasonable. The listing was challenged by a group representing plastics companies, along with three chemical companies, which argued among other things that a lack of testing to determine which plastics are harmful made Ottawa's decision unreasonable. The industry group says it welcomes the chance to take the case to the Supreme Court, while the office of Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin says the ban will stay in place until the Court rules.
  
  
• The federal government is putting $100 million into research for Wind West, Nova Scotia's proposed offshore wind project, as developers prepare to bid for offshore licences later this winter. Energy Minister Tim Hodgson and Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency Minister Sean Fraser announced the funding in Halifax on October 15th alongside Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston. Part of the money is earmarked for floating buoys to measure wind speeds and ocean conditions, and $3 million will expand transmission modelling to cover infrastructure that could reach Quebec, Ontario, and beyond. Nova Scotia has previously estimated the project could cost $60 billion, with two-thirds going to wind farms and the rest to transmission, while the federal government has pitched it as a $44-billion proposal that could deliver 5 gigawatts of offshore wind generation. Total costs depend on whether the project secures investment tax credits and low-cost financing from the Canada Infrastructure Bank. Houston claims there is "incredible interest from industry", but some developers have said their interest is conditional on getting transmission lines to various markets under way.

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

Prime Minister Mark Carney wrapped up a two-day, pro-Canada tour of Alberta that included rallies in Edmonton, Calgary, and Red Deer, where he urged Albertans to vote against separation. Joined by Premier Danielle Smith in Red Deer, Carney promoted national unity and warned that leaving Canada would bring years of uncertainty.

How do you think Albertans will vote? Will the province choose to stay in Canada, or is there a chance separation will win?

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