Weekly Roundup - May 22, 2026
Top Federal Stories
The United States announced Monday it is pausing the Permanent Joint Board on Defence with Canada. U.S. Undersecretary of Defence for Policy Elbridge Colby said in a social media post that his department is reassessing how the forum benefits shared North American defence, claiming Canada has not made adequate headway on the commitments it has pledged and linking his post to a transcript of Prime Minister Mark Carney's January speech in Davos. The board was established in 1940 and has long guided defence cooperation between the two nations, including modernization of the North American Aerospace Defense Command.
The pause comes as Canada hits its NATO target of 2 per cent of GDP on defence spending for the first time. Canada spent $63.4 billion on defence in 2025 in what Carney has called the largest year-on-year increase in defence investment in generations. The move may be tied to Canada's stalled decision on the purchase of 88 F-35 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin. That order has been under political review for more than a year. U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra has previously warned of consequences for the defence relationship if Ottawa does not proceed with the deal.
Carney spent the rest of the week advancing the government’s domestic major projects agenda. On Tuesday he travelled to Saint-Michel-des-Saints in Quebec to mark the start of construction at the Nouveau Monde Graphite Matawinie Mine. Ottawa is supporting the project through a seven-year offtake agreement for 30,000 tonnes of graphite concentrate annually, after General Motors withdrew as a client last fall.
The Prime Minister then travelled to Vancouver on Wednesday to meet with B.C. Premier David Eby. The meeting followed last week's Alberta-Canada MOU implementation agreement, which Eby criticized for rewarding "bad behaviour." In a speech to the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, Carney restated the terms of the Alberta-Canada MOU, indicating that the Pathways carbon capture project must proceed alongside any Pacific Coast pipeline. He framed the deal in terms of its economic benefits for British Columbia, but Eby reiterated that economic development must align with environmental protection. The two leaders agreed to enter formal negotiations on B.C.'s economic priorities and Ottawa's role in national development projects.
Top Alberta Stories
Premier Danielle Smith announced Thursday that Albertans will vote this fall on whether the province should remain part of Canada, or begin the legal process toward a future binding referendum on separation. The announcement comes after months of mounting pressure from separatist organizers, as well as a recent court ruling that blocked the Stay Free Alberta petition over failures to consult First Nations.
According to the Premier, the new referendum question is the only practical way to allow Albertans to express their views while the legal challenge works its way through the courts, insisting that “it’s time to have a vote” and pledging she personally will vote for Alberta to remain within Canada. Still, the move drawn criticism from nearly every side of the political spectrum.
Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi accused Smith of risking national unity for political expediency, while Calgary Liberal MP Corey Hogan said the Premier was allowing internal UCP pressures to become a national crisis. At the same time, many separatist activists expressed frustration that the proposed question does not directly trigger independence, with prominent organizer Mitch Sylvestre saying he felt “duped” by the government’s approach and warning of political fallout inside the UCP. The debate is also expected to intensify legal tensions with several First Nations, who argue any process affecting treaty rights requires meaningful consultation before proceeding.
Smith attempted to position herself between both camps during the address, but the announcement sets the stage for months of political campaigning, constitutional debate and growing uncertainty around the province’s relationship with Ottawa. On this week's episode of The Hub's Alberta Edge podcast, New West partner Keith McLaughlin discussed the growing divide between separatists and federalists, both inside the UCP and across Alberta. Listen to the full episode here.
As these debates intensify, leaders from Canada’s four western provinces and three territories will gather in Alberta next week for the annual Western Premiers’ Conference. Tensions are already running high between Smith and British Columbia Premier David Eby. Eby openly criticized Smith’s handling of Alberta’s proposed separation referendum, saying western leaders are now being asked to sit down with a premier “who appears, bluntly, to be setting the table to leave the country.” Smith responded with her own jab, joking that she had bought Eby a pair of cowboy boots in hopes he would still attend the summit. The increasingly public feud comes as Prime Minister Mark Carney continues to push for new energy infrastructure and pipeline access to the West Coast, a conversation that Eby argues reveals preferential treatment of Alberta by Ottawa due to rising separatist pressures. Despite the political sparring, the premiers will still be tasked with finding areas of common ground as the conference operates by consensus and is meant to advance shared western interests within the Canadian federation.
After widespread speculation, longtime UCP powerbroker Jason Nixon has officially been appointed President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance as Premier Danielle Smith unveiled a cabinet shuffle Thursday morning. The shuffle, which touches roughly a quarter of cabinet, resets key files heading into the government’s final full year before the 2027 election. Read more on the cabinet changes and political implications here.
Top Ontario Stories
The Ontario government announced that it will immediately bar the Ontario Provincial Police from using Chinese-made drones in highly sensitive operations, prohibit new government purchases of Chinese-manufactured drones, and gradually replace existing units with equipment made in Canada or “approved jurisdictions.” Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement Minister Stephen Crawford framed the decision as a data-protection measure, citing concerns that Chinese law can compel Chinese companies to disclose data even when it is gathered or stored abroad. The province says the move aligns Ontario with the Canadian Armed Forces and RCMP, both agencies have already restricted hardware from Chinese manufacturer DJI.
The announcement presents a practical issue. The OPP currently operates a fleet that is almost entirely Chinese-made, and no Canadian manufacturer ships a like-for-like equivalent to the Chinese-made drones currently in service with the OPP. The Ford government has tied the policy to the Buy Ontario Act, but DJI argues the province is restricting “life-saving” technology based solely on the manufacturer’s country of origin. The procurement transition will be consequential for provincial agencies, municipal police services, and the emerging Canadian drone manufacturing base. On this front, the Ford government has promised consultation with industry on replacement options.
Civil servants who process freedom-of-information requests for the Ontario government were instructed via a Microsoft Teams message before the Victoria Day weekend to halt all work including fee estimates, decision letters, and document releases. The Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario was not officially notified and learned about the pause through media reporting, warning that an outright freeze would raise “significant concerns about the public’s right of access to government-held information.” The freeze comes after the March 2026 budget bill, which amended FOI legislation to exempt the premier’s office, cabinet ministers, and parliamentary assistants from disclosure. NDP Leader Marit Stiles called the freeze “outrageous,” accusing the government of using legal changes “as an excuse to obliterate access to any information.” Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said freedom of information “is not optional.”
Pressure also mounted on the Ford government this week to disclose the dollar value of a Metrolinx settlement reached with Craft Kingsmen Rail (East) Corp., a developer whose directors include Carmine Nigro – a multiple-time Ford government appointee and a personal friend of the premier. Craft Kingsmen had sought $500 million over the expropriation of air rights above Union Station rail corridors it never actually owned. Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria defended the secrecy as “an independent process” and “a private process,” while Liberal MPP Andrea Hazell moved a motion to compel Metrolinx’s chair and CEO to testify.
The Ontario Liberal Party’s arbitration committee met Wednesday to hear federal MP Nate Erskine-Smith’s appeal of his May 9 Scarborough Southwest nomination loss to Ahsanul Hafiz. The appeal alleges 34 more ballots were counted than voters recorded and that voters were permitted to use unsigned apartment leases, refugee claimant documents, and in one case a visitor’s visa and Bangladeshi passport as identification. An internal pushback document obtained by media argues the appeal “does not establish grounds to overturn the result.” A ruling has not yet been made public.
Whatever the committee decides, the dispute has spilled over beyond process concerns. Senior Liberals went on record criticizing Erskine-Smith’s “style of politics.” The allegations now touch on immigration and electoral integrity, which party operatives worry could undermine the party’s chances in the upcoming byelection in the riding.
The New West Team is ready to guide clients through this uncertain time in Canadian politics.
