While National Newswatch does not keep an archive of external articles for longer than 6 months, we do keep all articles written by contributors who post directly to our site. Here you will find all of the contributed and linked external articles from Brian Platt.
President Donald Trump’s push to unlock Venezuelan crude is strengthening the political case for a proposed pipeline that would allow Canada to ship more oil to China and other Asian markets. Refineries in the American Midwest are configured to process Canada’s heavy crude. But prices for the commodity slumped Monday as traders worried that the removal of Venezuelan President Nicolas...
The Canadian government will likely look at selling equity in the state-owned Trans Mountain oil pipeline only after steps are taken over the next few years to maximize its output, Energy Minister Tim Hodgson said. The government purchased the pipeline in 2018 to ensure a major expansion was built. The project ballooned in cost to about $34 billion, but it...
Canada’s government is willing to negotiate with more provinces beyond Alberta on lifting clean electricity regulations if they have equivalent policies, Energy Minister Tim Hodgson said. The regulations, created by the former government under Justin Trudeau, took effect this year and are aimed at forcing provinces to create a net zero electricity grid by 2050, with a phased-in approach beginning...
Trade talks between the US and Canada remain stalled, and there’s an emerging belief in both governments that key issues will be rolled into next year’s broader review of the North American trade accord, people familiar with the matter said. There have been no negotiations since US President Donald Trump’s Oct. 23 social media post that halted them, the people...
As Carney was traveling to Asia, Trump announced an additional 10% in tariffs on Canada in retaliation for a TV advertisement by the province of Ontario that’s airing in the US. The ad features excerpts of former US President Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs.
Canada is delaying a plan to force automakers to hit minimum sales levels for electric vehicles by 2026, a concession to manufacturers in a sector that has been upended by tariffs. Canada is delaying a plan to force automakers to hit minimum sales levels for electric vehicles by 2026, a concession to manufacturers in a sector that has been upended...
Canadian Energy Minister Tim Hodgson said his government is taking steps toward exporting natural gas to Europe, and criticized former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for not making the same effort. “The new Canadian federal government has made a conscious choice to re-center energy and critical minerals in how we think about not only our domestic affairs, but Canada’s place in...
Canada will remove its retaliatory tariffs on a long list of US products that comply with the existing North American trade deal, seeking to lower tensions with the White House. Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to announce the decision Friday after a meeting with his cabinet. The government will change its tariff policy to align more closely with US...
The Canadian government is looking hard at developing a remote northern port on Hudson Bay as a conduit for exporting natural gas, potash, canola and other commodities as the country tries to reduce its economic dependence on the US.
Canada’s finance minister said the country can negotiate a better trade deal with the Trump administration than other nations have received, pushing back on the idea that it may have to settle for a new baseline tariff on all exports to the United States. “We buy more from the U.S. than China, Japan, the U.K. and France combined, so we’re...
The governments of Canada and India are set to establish a new structure to share information about cross-border crimes, their latest step toward rebuilding ties nearly two years after Canadian officials accused India of orchestrating the murder of a Sikh activist near Vancouver.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to meet with US President Donald Trump in Washington on Tuesday, people familiar with the matter said, their first encounter since Carney won an election in part because of an anti-Trump message.
On an overcast afternoon on Canada’s east coast, Mark Carney emerged from a pickup truck and stepped carefully in his dress shoes through the muddy lot outside a lumber mill. His hard hat didn’t fit right, pitched forward at an awkward angle; an aide hustled over to fix it before he went inside.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said his government would give raises to the armed forces, speed up the acquisition of military equipment and grant new surveillance powers to the Canadian Coast Guard if he wins the election.
Mark Carney promised to cap the size of the Canadian public service and undertake a program spending review if he becomes prime minister, but did not provide details of how much he would reduce government outlays overall.
A failed fiber-optic link crippled the computer network at the highest level of the Canadian government throughout the day on Jan. 31, but an investigation has found no evidence of deliberate sabotage, a spokesperson said.
There is strong nationwide support among Canadians for putting export taxes on oil shipments if needed to retaliate against US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, a new poll suggests.
The senior ranks of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet have made their choice on who they believe should replace him as Canada’s prime minister — and they’re throwing their weight behind Mark Carney.
Chrystia Freeland would drop the Canadian government’s policy of raising the capital gains inclusion rate if she wins the race to replace Justin Trudeau as prime minister, according to a person with knowledge of her plan. It’s a major reversal for Freeland, who introduced that capital gains hike in April as Trudeau’s finance minister. She argued at the time that...
Mark Carney, the former governor of the Bank of Canada and Bank of England, said he’s considering entering the race to replace Justin Trudeau as Canada’s prime minister. Listen to the Bloomberg Daybreak Europe podcast on Apple, Spotify or anywhere you listen. Carney said he’s “encouraged and honored by the support that I’ve already been hearing” from Liberal lawmakers and...
The holiday period is over and Canadian politics is gripped by a single question: when will the country hear from Justin Trudeau? The prime minister has largely disappeared from public view since Dec. 16, when Chrystia Freeland — his finance minister and once his most powerful ally in cabinet — resigned in devastating fashion, with a public letter that criticized...
Justin Trudeau’s political future has been shaky for months. But the events that threaten to finish him as Canada’s prime minister snowballed into a crisis in a matter of days. Everything seemed in hand on Dec. 8 when Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland, his finance minister and longtime deputy, dined at Harrington Lake, the prime minister’s country residence in the hills...
Canada is examining the use of export taxes on major commodities it exports to the US — including uranium, oil and potash — if incoming President Donald Trump carries out his threat to impose broad tariffs. Export levies would be a last resort for Canada, according to officials familiar with the discussions inside Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government. Retaliatory tariffs...
Canadians’ trust in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to deal with incoming US President Donald Trump is growing, a new survey suggests. Trudeau is now effectively tied with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre on the question of who is best to negotiate with Trump, according to the poll from Nanos Research Group for Bloomberg News. That’s a significant improvement for him from...
A week before Donald Trump fired off yet another tariff threat on his neighbors, Justin Trudeau and Claudia Sheinbaum had a chance to confer in person about how to tackle that very scenario. Would they join forces against their errant trading partner or was it going to be a case of every person for themselves? The evidence is pointing to...
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with President-elect Donald Trump on Friday as the two leaders discussed trade, the border and fentanyl, subjects of the incoming US leader’s tariff threat on its neighbor. Trudeau and Trump spoke on a wide range of issues over dinner at Mar-a-Lago that lasted roughly three hours, two officials familiar with the meeting said. They...
Working with the next Donald Trump administration will be a constant challenge for Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Lima, Peru. But he added that every US government is difficult for Canada to work with in its own way. Trudeau said he draws some optimism from the fact Canada was able to successfully update...
The crowd gathered on the 54th floor of TD Bank Tower, an imposing glass-and-steel edifice in Toronto’s financial district, was a who’s who of the Canadian business elite. There were CEOs and tech moguls and bankers who had paid as much as C$1,725 each for a chance to hear from Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the Conservative Party.
Just five days ago, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly was convinced a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah was near. Then Israeli forces killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and Iran vowed revenge. Now it’s crucial for Group of Seven leaders to crank up the pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the escalation of violence before the Middle East...
Canada will impose new tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles, aluminum and steel, lining up behind western allies and taking steps to protect domestic manufacturers. The government plans to announce a 100% levy on electric cars and 25% on steel and aluminum, according to people familiar with the matter, speaking on condition they not be identified because the matter is still...
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is mulling a change to help crack down on abuses of temporary foreign workers — publicly naming individual business managers or owners who violate Canada’s labor rules.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is likely to stall the sale of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline until after Canada’s national election in 2025, according to officials familiar with internal discussions.
Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland denied that there’s growing friction between her office and that of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Asked if there has been greater tension between herself and Trudeau, or between their aides, the Canadian finance minister said: “From my perspective, not at all.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is preparing potential new tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles to align Canada with actions taken by the US and European Union, according to people familiar with the matter. The government still has to make final decisions on how to proceed, but it’s likely to announce soon the start of public consultations on tariffs that would...
Canada’s corporate titans are helping the country’s Conservative Party build a financial war chest to oust Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as frustration grows among business leaders about the country’s economic performance.
Canada is on the verge of an agreement with Honda Motor Co. that would see the Japanese firm build electric vehicles and their components in the province of Ontario, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal, expected to be announced within a week, involves a multibillion-dollar commitment by Honda for new facilities to process cathode active materials, build...
Housing will be the focus of Canada’s upcoming budget, with Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland emphasizing measures to speed up construction and boost the supply of affordable homes — possibly using government land to do it. The budget, which is still being drafted ahead of its April 16 release, is likely to include a strategy for building homes on government-owned property...
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s upcoming budget has some in Canada’s business community concerned there will be tax increases to offset new government spending. Freeland and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will almost certainly bring in a package of tools to boost housing supply in the April 16 budget, according to people familiar with the government’s plans, and may commit additional spending...
Justin Trudeau has promised one of the largest government-led asset sales in Canadian history by divesting the Trans Mountain pipeline, a huge conduit that moves crude from the province of Alberta to the west coast. But the government faces a mounting set of challenges in unloading it — including high interest rates, a fight over costs with oil companies, and...
The Conservative politician who’s trying to take down Justin Trudeau said that if he’s elected, he would link Canada’s immigration levels to the number of homes being built. Pierre Poilievre took aim Friday at Trudeau’s housing minister, Sean Fraser, arguing that when Fraser was immigration minister, he oversaw soaring numbers of new arrivals without ensuring the country could properly accommodate...