To suggest a Chinese-Canadian politician is a mouthpiece for Beijing displays a gross misunderstanding of our political system. Every politician in the country has to be aware of international politics.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on March 6, 2023.

OTTAWA—Foreign politics seems to be dominating the domestic agenda these days.

Whether it is questions about Chinese or German intervention in Canadian politics, the news of the week is focused on how other countries are trying to influence the Canadian agenda.

In the Liberals’ case, someone from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service is convinced that Chinese-Canadian Members of Parliament are agents of the Chinese government.

Evidence is being leaked in drips and drabs to link the Chinese government to Canadian political influence. The latest reports including co-opting the Trudeau Foundation with donations designed to build stronger relationships between the two countries.

Years ago, CSIS was convinced that many Muslims in my Hamilton, Ont., riding were agents of foreign governments. Muslims got more visits from security agents and were automatically questioned because many had relationships with their home countries.

In a constituency with a large immigrant population, many expats retain ties with home.

The Ukrainian Canadian Congress works very closely with the Ukrainian government, and even funds an internship program on Parliament Hill.

Their intention is to encourage the Canadian government to build strong links and friendships with their home country.

Multiple business associations in Canada have links with their homelands. In the case of Italians, they actually elect individuals from the North American diaspora to serve in the Italian Parliament.

Most Canadians MPs join international friendship associations with the express purpose of developing links with home countries or like-minded democracies.

The Canada-Israel Committee has a strong presence on Parliament Hill. Its intention is to influence Canadian public policy in support of the state of Israel.

Somehow, CSIS does not view these links as worthy of investigation.

Surprise, surprise: the Chinese government is trying to influence Canadian public policy.

Welcome to the world of diplomacy. Every ambassador in Ottawa is trying to make the Canadian government see the world through their lens.

And they could all be accused of taking a direct interest in Canadian domestic politics.

To suggest that a Chinese-Canadian politician is a mouthpiece for Beijing displays a gross misunderstanding of our political system.

Every politician in the country has to be aware of international politics.

When I was a Member of Parliament, I came out in favour of Croatia’s decision to leave Yugoslavia.

My boss was not very happy that I weighed into international separation politics. My southern Ontario constituency included almost equal numbers of Croatians and Serbians.

Of course, my decision cost me thousands of Serbian votes.

I was a Canadian politician who took a position. Would CSIS have investigated me if I had a Yugoslavian background? Probably.

As CSIS continues to point the finger at a Liberal relationship with the Chinese, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is being criticized for not kicking out three caucus members who consorted with a racist European parliamentarian.

The three claimed they did not know the origins of the person they were having dinner with.

That claim rings false because when European MP Christine Anderson called Trudeau a “disgrace” because of his pro-vaccine policy, she was quoted by Tory MPs in the House of Commons.

Members of Parliament do not spend their precious time going to dinner with people they do not know. They ration their agendas and assiduously review every invitation they receive.

So, the Tories knew full well that their comrade-in-arms espoused racist policies that no Canadian party could support.

Instead of kicking them out of the caucus, Poilievre issued a statement to a friendly journalist at the Toronto Sun, decrying the meeting and offering up a collective apology.

But there was absolutely no repercussion for any of the recalcitrants, and the leader did not even publish an apology in his party’s organ.

It was, at best, a nudge-nudge, wink-wink attempt to separate his party from Anderson, who was in Canada to meet with truckers and others in the F-Trudeau movement.

So neither main party did well this week when it came to foreign policy.

The Liberals are going to have to tread very carefully on their handling of the leaked CSIS allegations.

The Tories will need to do more to separate themselves from right-wing parties that can’t get any support in Europe.

The upcoming months will be focused on politics in Canada as we move toward a possible election.

But any vote in Canadian, especially in the country’s urban areas, involves a position on international politics.

To win, any Canadian politician worth their salt needs to understand multiple ethnicities in their ridings.

That includes Chinese-Canadians.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

Time to move on from COVID.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on January 24, 2022.

The return of Parliament should provide a much-anticipated channel-changer from the constant barrage of COVID news that still saturates the airwaves.

Most people I know have simply tuned out to the daily update of hospitalization and infection information from every part of the country.

They are also taking the medical advice with a grain of salt. Travel advisories emanating from Ottawa are being discounted even by federal government service providers. Last year, the majority of snowbirds heeded the government’s advice to stay home and refrained from travelling because of the danger of contracting COVID.

This year, those same people have decided to ignore the repeated warnings and are heading to warmer climes to avoid the bitterly cold Canadian winters.

Even the federal government pensioners’ payment website has a general proviso that the travel prohibitions emanating from Ottawa have no affect on their insurance policies or plans.

Likewise, the travel industry is starting to fight back publicly.

Last week, the major airlines and Canada’s largest airport joined to urge the government to end the redundant random PCR testing that faces some travellers upon their return to Canada. They pointed out that the infection rate on planes hovers around two per cent and every single passenger has already undergone a PCR test to get on a plane so it makes no sense to undergo a second test on landing when tests are so scarce and the local infection rate stands at 20 per cent.

Infected residents cannot access tests because of a shortage while travellers are double-tested in an effort to discourage their movement.

The opening of the House of Commons will focus public attention on issues other than the pandemic, with inflation rearing its ugly head just in time for the return.

Statistics Canada inflation numbers published last week painted a grim picture with calculations showing the highest levels of inflation in three decades.

Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole immediately tweeted out the negative results, claiming the Liberals are showing zero leadership on tackling the cost-of-living crisis.

O’Toole did not provide any specific suggestions himself, nor did he walk back his finance critic’s claim three days earlier that the cost-of-living figures were “vastly underestimated” in the methodology applied by Statistics Canada to the role played by inflation in the Consumer Price Index data.

Poilievre is great on grabbing the headlines, but the claim that Statistics Canada is cooking the books does not resonate well when his leader is about to launch a national campaign based on the very numbers the critic is questioning.

The chance for the Conservatives to make their mark on the inflation issue should not be muddied because their critic questions the veracity of Statistics Canada.

That kind of dog-whistle politics may serve Tories well in their fundraising endeavours, but it does little to prove to Canadians that they are really ready to govern the country.

To be that government-in-waiting they need to consider the big picture. Just like inflation could be a looming issue in this parliament, the Tories will want to make an example out of cultural policy when the government reintroduces legislation to amend the Broadcasting Act.

But by taking a hard line against new rules that put streaming services like Netflix on a more level playing field with traditional broadcasters, the Conservatives risk being viewed as a marginalized fringe party.

The Liberal legislation that passed a previous House of Commons vote was supported by the New Democrats and the Bloc Québécois so the Tories’ support is not required for passage.

The new minister of Canadian Heritage, Pablo Rodriguez, has also been in the portfolio before and has the kind of political savvy that will make him a real champion for the legislation.

He will not get sucked down the rabbit hole of responding to social media influencers who think their blogs are the equivalent of major streaming services.

If the Tories have any hope of forming the government, they have to be able to broaden their reach in Quebec. And by fighting against C-10, they simply manage to reinforce their image as a right-wing, anti-culture party that really does not care about Canadian content, on traditional media or via the internet.

They have a small rump of ten members of parliament in Quebec. Perhaps those members will be able to convince their colleagues that a more moderated approach to broadcasting amendments will serve their long-term political agenda.

The return of the House will be a welcome channel changer. Time to move on from COVID.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

In the end, the only party that really ended up ahead at year’s end is the Bloc. But this party also has the benefit of never having to be held accountable for what it might do in government as it vows never to form government.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on December 20, 2021.

OTTAWA—As the year draws to a close, it is time to reflect on politics past and future.

In the past year, the governing Liberals limped out of an election, barely making any inroads into their dream of a governing majority.

In the past year, the newly-minted Conservative leader dreamed that this was his party’s time to form government. He opened with a slick campaign brochure that promised change, but everything cratered during the campaign.

In the past year, the New Democratic Party leader was crowned by young people as the king of TikTok. But in the end, his clock ran out as too many followers simply did not turn out to vote.

In the past year, the Green Party leader went from breaking through a glass ceiling only to be covered in shards as her party imploded in internal infighting.

In the past year, the Bloc leader went from being almost forgotten in the House of Commons to reinserting himself in the public domain with a strong election effort.

In the end, the only party that really ended up ahead at year’s end is the Bloc. But this party also has the benefit of never having to be held accountable for what it might do in government as it vows never to form government.

So the new year offers opportunity for all political parties. In the case of the government, being in command of a progressive agenda will heal a lot of the wounds caused by an aborted attempt at a majority.

The childcare agreements with almost every provincial and territorial government are a great place to start. In addition, the all-party decision to move ahead with a ban on conversion therapy, showed that parties can accomplish much when they work together.

Continued management of the COVID situation will dominate politics for everyone in the new year, but if the government manages the Omicron threat well, the Liberals will be the greatest beneficiary of public support.

As for the Conservatives, the first step in the right direction was the unanimous support for the anti- conversion bill. The new year will provide opportunities for Erin O’Toole to continue to make movement toward the moderate middle. The only thing holding him back is the right-wing pull in his own party. And with an 18-month review process roiling inside the party, his freedom as a leader is certainly curtailed.

His party also needs to moderate its image as a collection of angry, white men. The finance critic, Pierre Poilievre, while a wonderful wordsmith, simply creates the impression that his work is being done for Bay Street and not for Main Street. While Poilievre is anxious to tag Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland as the inflation minister, most Canadians still don’t think the moniker fits.

As there is inflationary pressure worldwide, it is pretty hard to hang that problem on a single minister in a single government. Poilievre is no doubt banking on the fact that growing inflationary pressures will become a potent political tool for the Tories. That remains to be seen, but in the meantime, his overheated rhetoric could not pass a reality test.

In the new year, the New Democrats need to flex their muscles in Parliament to ensure that any legislation gets their seal of approval. Otherwise they risk being eclipsed by the government in the field of progressive politics. They also need to start spreading the news about their team. The current messaging is so fixated on the leader that it is hard for anyone to recognize the bench strength in Jagmeet Singh’s party. He has some excellent performers who need to take centre stage in the battle for the hearts and minds of Canadians.

In the new year, the Green Party needs to go back to the future, with emphasis on its roots and why the party was created in the first place. Internecine warfare based on Middle East politics is not going to win the party any support. And with a swathe of doctorates around the political table, one has to wonder who is able to guide the party back to a winning path.

With an unexpected breakthrough in Ontario, when Kitchener Centre sent Mike Morrice to Parliament, there is an opportunity to rebuild the party from scratch. Their interim leader, nonbinary astrophysicist Amita Kuttner certainly has her work cut out for her.

As we sweep out the old to ring in the new, all parties have a chance to right their respective ships. Happy Holidays.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.