Weekly Roundup - March 20, 2026
Top Federal Stories
As the war in Iran continues, Defence Minister David McGuinty confirmed that, despite Canadian Armed Forces personnel working in the region, Canada has not participated in the armed conflict and does not intend to. The statement came after La Presse reported last week that Canadian assets at a Kuwait airbase were struck by an Iranian airstrike early in the conflict, an incident Ottawa never disclosed. McGuinty defended the non-disclosure on grounds of operational security, pushing back on Conservative claims that the government has not been transparent about Canada’s exposure to the war.
On the diplomatic side, Prime Minister Carney signed a joint statement with six allies expressing willingness to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The statement stopped short of specifying how the group of nations intends to open the strait.
On trade, the U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said plainly this week that talks with Canada are lagging behind those with Mexico. The Trump administration has launched a formal renegotiation of CUSMA with Mexico, but no equivalent announcement has come for Canada, with Greer pointing to provincial barriers on U.S. alcohol as a complicating factor. The review reaches its decision point in July, when all three parties must choose to renew the agreement for 16 years, withdraw from it, or enter a rolling annual review that could keep negotiations open for up to a decade.
The Bank of Canada held its benchmark rate at 2.25 per cent this week. Governor Tiff Macklem framed the decision as a dilemma: U.S. trade uncertainty is slowing the economy while the war in the Middle East is pushing global oil prices higher, raising the risk of persistent inflation. The Bank will look past the immediate inflationary effects of the conflict for now, but will act if the pressures prove lasting.
Pierre Poilievre took his message south this week on his second international trip, sitting down for a 2.5-hour conversation on the world’s biggest podcast: The Joe Rogan Experience. Poilievre spent much of the podcast making the case for free trade, telling Rogan that Trump’s 51st state comments are counterproductive and urged him to move past the annexation talk so the two countries could get back to working together. Other notable moments included a forceful defence of the Alberta oilsands and a refusal to take shots at Prime Minister Carney while abroad.
Top Alberta Stories
Health care returned to the headlines this week, not for new budget investments but for the ongoing controversy over procurement practices. The RCMP executed multiple search warrants, including at MHCare Medical Corp., a company linked to more than $600 million in Alberta Health Services (AHS) contracts since 2020. The investigation runs alongside an Auditor General investigation and follows a report from former Manitoba judge Raymond Wyant, which flagged real or perceived conflicts of interest but found no evidence of government wrongdoing.
Premier Danielle Smith was quick to dismiss the situation, saying, “This is an AHS matter, looking at AHS personnel, and we would ask for everyone to be patient while the RCMP does its and while the auditor general finishes its work.”
Health wasn’t the only hot-button topic this week as Smith faced scrutiny from the opposition over a previously undisclosed private flight taken during a fall trip to Saudi Arabia. Smith said the travel, arranged at the invitation of Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and approved by Alberta’s ethics commissioner, was intended to allow for more efficient movement during meetings with regional officials. But the issue quickly became political, with opposition leader Naheed Nenshi questioning gaps in the public disclosure of the trip and raising concerns about the optics of accepting private travel from a foreign government.
While the opposition is trying to make hay, new Angus Reid polling suggests Smith’s support remains steady, with 46 per cent of Albertans approving of her performance - a level she has held consistently since taking office in 2022.
The MOU with Ottawa is expected to be a key part of maintaining and growing that support. With the April 1 deadline looming, Smith has signalled that talks are ongoing and may take longer to finalize, particularly around agreements with industry partners. Despite some progress on smaller elements, major gaps remain, including carbon pricing and the Pathways Project. With growing economic arguments for increased export capacity, both governments are under pressure to reach clarity - but the complexity of the remaining issues suggests April 1 may be more of a waypoint than a firm deadline.
As rural municipal leaders gathered in Edmonton for their annual convention this week, the province, by way of the Rural Municipalities of Alberta and the Alberta Energy Regulator, released the final Property Tax Accountability Strategy report. The document takes aim at the long-standing issue of unpaid oil and gas property taxes. The plan includes 17 recommendations, all accepted by government, focused on bringing tax arrears into the regulator’s mandate, strengthening enforcement and improving data sharing and coordination. Municipal Affairs Minister Dan Williams was clear that most past debt tied to insolvent companies is likely unrecoverable, positioning the strategy as a forward-looking fix rather than a recovery plan. The changes will give the regulator more tools to act, speed up the removal of insolvent companies from the tax roll, and extend financial relief.
The legislative agenda continued this week with the government introducing Bill 18, the Safeguards for Last Resort Termination of Life Act, which would significantly restrict access to medical assistance in dying (MAID) in the province. The legislation limits eligibility to patients whose death is considered “reasonably foreseeable,” effectively barring those who are not expected to die within 12 months, and would prohibit MAID in cases where mental illness is the sole underlying condition. The bill further restricts how MAID information can be shared in health-care settings and strengthens protections for providers who refuse to participate. The Premier and Justice Minister say the changes are intended to protect vulnerable individuals amid concerns about the federal government expanding eligibility, including to those with mental illness, by 2027. If passed, Alberta would become the first province to impose such limits on a federally permitted service, a move that could potentially face legal challenges.
Top Ontario Stories
The Ford government’s move to reshape Ontario’s freedom of information regime drew an unusually forceful rebuke from the province’s Information and Privacy Commissioner. The government’s proposal, if passed, would apply retroactive exemptions to information requested from, among others, the Premier’s office, extinguishing ongoing FOI battles over Ford’s personal cellphone records and Greenbelt-related documents.
Commissioner Patricia Kosseim issued a statement calling the proposals “alarming” and warning they “seriously undermine” the principles of access to information in Ontario. Kosseim put it bluntly: “If records about government business can be shielded from scrutiny simply because they sit in a minister’s office, on a staffer’s device, or within a political account, public accountability is eviscerated.” She reserved particular criticism for the retroactive provisions, saying the message they send is that “if oversight bodies get in the way, just change the rules.”
Media organizations and civil liberties groups are expected to mount sustained opposition, and the retroactive clauses in particular are likely to face legal challenges. The bill will be introduced when the legislature returns on March 23 for what is shaping up to be a politically volatile spring session at Queen’s Park.
Ahead of the March 26 budget, reports emerged this week that the Ford government is poised to waive the provincial portion of the HST on all newly constructed homes as it significantly expands the first-time buyer rebate. The original policy was costed at $470 million over three years; industry sources told Global News the broader version could cost the treasury $2 billion. For the housing and development sector, the signal is clear: the government is willing to absorb major fiscal cost as it tries to stimulate new construction. Whether Finance Minister Bethlenfalvy can square that ambition with his promise of a budget that is both “cautious” and free of cuts remains the central tension heading into budget day.
On the trade competitiveness front, Premier Ford sent letters on March 18 to his counterparts in British Columbia and Quebec, urging them to drop their electric vehicle sales targets, arguing the mandates are making Canada less competitive at a time when the United States is rolling back its own EV policies. Ford pointed to Ontario’s nearly 100,000 auto sector jobs and framed the request as part of a “Team Canada” approach. Both provinces have already scaled back their previous goals: Quebec now targets 90 per cent hybrid or electric new vehicle sales by 2035, while B.C. scrapped its mandate entirely but has promised new legislation this year. For its part, the federal government eliminated its EV sales mandate earlier this year in favour of stricter emissions standards.
Upcoming Events Calendar
March 23, 2026: Ontario legislative assembly resumes
March 26, 2026: Ontario Budget 2026 released
March 29, 2026: Federal NDP Leadership Race Results Announcement
November 21, 2026: Ontario Liberal Party Leadership Race results announced
