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 Spencer Van Dyk.
Amid the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and Canada, Canadians should bear in mind that U.S. President Donald Trump is “a showman before he’s a statesman,” former prime minister Joe Clark says. The leaders of the world’s most advanced economies are descending on Kananaskis, Alta. for the G7 summit this week, with Trump expected to attend. Ahead of the...
The U.S. and Canada have intensified talks for an economic and security deal in recent weeks, with a framework for such an arrangement trading hands between the two parties, CTV News can confirm. Sources who spoke to CTV News on the condition of anonymity all universally cautioned the finalizing of such a deal requires sign-off directly from U.S. President Donald...
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says the approval and construction of major projects, such as a new pipeline, should be able to move ahead without consensus from stakeholders and premiers. “We’ve got to get it done,” Poilievre told reporters on Parliament on Monday. “We need a pipe.” “At the end of the day, if you wait until everybody agrees on everything...
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she’s ready to convince her counterpart in British Columbia to support building a pipeline to transport oil from her province, through his, to tidewater. B.C. Premier David Eby said last week he won’t support a new pipeline, arguing the Trans Mountain Expansion Project is already in place. Smith’s comments come after Prime Minister Mark Carney...
Internal Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland says she hopes members of Parliament from all parties will unanimously sign on to her government’s promised soon-to-be-tabled bill to eliminate federal interprovincial trade barriers. Throughout the election campaign, Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged several times to eliminate interprovincial trade barriers by Canada Day, while his platform promises only to table the necessary legislation by...
Former Alberta premier Jason Kenney says the provinces and territories need to maintain the momentum spurred by U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war and make quicker progress on eliminating interprovincial trade barriers. Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to meet with all of Canada’s premiers on Monday, with interprovincial trade — and his promise to eliminate barriers to that trade...
The Liberal national campaign director is commending the Conservatives for employing what he characterizes as the right strategy during last month’s election. “I think that their strategy is right to concentrate on change, cost of living,” Andrew Bevan said in an interview on CTV Power Play with Vassy Kapelos on Wednesday. “I don’t think they had a strategy problem. “I...
Liberal MP Francis Scarpaleggia, who represents the Montreal-area riding of Lac–Saint–Louis, has been elected Speaker of the House of Commons. Monday marks the return to the House for newly elected and returning MPs, after a five-month hiatus to choose a new Liberal leader and hold a general election. According to House of Commons procedure, electing a Speaker of the House...
The Conservative Leader in the House of Commons says he “can absolutely advocate for a united Canada,” but won’t specifically condemn a possible referendum on Alberta separation. “I’ll leave it to provincial premiers to handle what’s going on in their province,” Andrew Scheer told CTV Question Period host Vassy Kapelos, when pressed on why he wouldn’t explicitly say a referendum...
The new U.S. ambassador to Canada says while U.S. President Donald Trump is unlikely to ever remove his slate of tariffs entirely, he’s confident Canada can reach a deal to secure the lowest levies possible. “The president has made it clear that there will probably be a tariff on every country that we do business with,” Pete Hoekstra said in...
In an exclusive Canadian broadcast interview, Prime Minister Mark Carney sat down with CTV News chief political correspondent Vassy Kapelos to discuss his mandate for change, Canada’s “investment era,” becoming an “energy superpower,” and U.S. President Donald Trump. He also answered some rapid-fire questions about the start of a new session of Parliament, whether he’s seeking out floor-crossers, whether he...
Former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig says a full reset of the Canada-China relationship is not possible, and that the federal government should instead be focusing on building stable diplomatic relations with Chinese officials to mitigate any possible worsening of the relationship. “Always with a new government, there will be maybe a temptation for ministers to think that ‘I can be...
Prime Minister Mark Carney signed a symbolic order signalling his government will prioritize passing his promised middle-class tax cut, following the first in-person meeting of his cabinet on Parliament Hill Wednesday. Surrounded by his cabinet, Carney signed a note of instruction directing his ministers to prepare the legislation to be tabled first thing when Parliament returns later this month. “We...
Longtime cabinet minister Melanie Joly says Prime Minister Mark Carney shuffling her out of foreign affairs is a move she’s been asking for, for years. In Tuesday’s cabinet shuffle — which Carney framed as blending two dozen new faces with several more experienced ministers — Joly was replaced with Anita Anand in the top diplomatic post, then sworn-in as the...
When Prime Minister Mark Carney unveils his new front bench on Tuesday, more than half of its members will be fresh faces, CTV News has confirmed. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) tells CTV News that Carney’s new cabinet will be a more focused roster, and while the core slate of cabinet ministers is expected to stay under 30 people, he’ll...
Longtime cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc insists Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government will set itself apart from that of former prime minister Justin Trudeau when it comes to relations with Alberta and Saskatchewan, despite plans to keep some divisive environmental policies. LeBlanc — who as intergovernmental affairs minister overseas the relationship between the federal government and provinces — told CTV’s Question...
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she will “respect the outcome” of a referendum vote to separate the western province from the rest of Canada, but insisted she does not support the initiative. Pressed repeatedly on whether she would pursue separation if a vote in Alberta endorsed it, Smith conceded she would. “What I have said is that I will respect...
Green party Leader Elizabeth May, the lone member of her party to be re-elected, says she’s open to throwing her hat in the ring for Speaker of the House when the next Parliament begins. “I’m open to lots of things,” May said in an interview with CTV News on Wednesday. “It doesn’t mean they’re at all likely, and they’re pretty...
Amid questions about the future of the Conservative Party and its leader Pierre Poilievre, one Progressive Conservative premier says it’s time for some “soul searching,” and one defeated member of Parliament says she thinks the party needs to not be “so extreme” going forward.
Bruce Fanjoy, the Liberal rookie who unseated Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre in his longtime Ottawa-area riding, says he wasn’t surprised he won. “With (Prime Minister) Mark Carney’s leadership, suddenly I had the wind at my back. We could see that in all the communities and in the riding,” Fanjoy said in an interview with CTV’s Power Play host Vassy Kapelos...
After a challenging election campaign that saw New Democrats sidelined, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has failed to secure his re-election, and announced he will step down once an interim leader is appointed. “Choosing to commit your life to politics obviously comes with some sacrifice, but we choose this life because of the chance to change the country you love for...
The leader scrums that had been scheduled for after Thursday’s English-language debate have been cancelled due to security concerns. CTV News first reported the development while the debate was underway. Leaders’ Debates Commission executive director Michel Cormier later confirmed it, telling reporters the organizers don’t feel they “can actually guarantee a proper environment for this activity.” Cormier did not elaborate...
Longtime Conservative MP Ed Fast says his party held a “sham” nomination process in his B.C. riding, where he has endorsed an Independent candidate to be his successor. “I still support the election of a strong Conservative government under (leader) Pierre Poilievre, but this is not the way to do it,” Fast told CTV’s Power Play host Vassy Kapelos in...
Leading Conservative campaign strategist Kory Teneycke is taking aim at his own party, accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and his team of squandering a big lead. “I know it’s uncomfortable for people to hear that said out loud, but it’s in every poll and every poll aggregator, the numbers are the numbers, and saying that you don’t believe in polls...
Green Party co-leader Elizabeth May says while a majority-Conservative election victory seemed like a foregone conclusion at this time last year, she now believes Canada is in for another Liberal government. “I think predictions are not a game I want to play,” May said in a joint interview with party co-leader Jonathan Pedneault on CTV News Channel’s Power Play. “Certainly...
The Conservatives have dropped a second candidate in the election race, in a single day. Stefan Marquis — who was running for the Conservatives in the Montreal riding of Laurier—Sainte-Marie, held by Liberal cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault since 2019 — wrote in a post on social media that he is no longer a candidate for the party. “In a call...
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, appearing alongside conservative commentator Ben Shapiro, told a Florida gala last week the federal Liberals’ upswing in public support can be attributed to a change in leadership. “When I was down before, we were talking about the potential for a total wipe-out of the Liberal party. That’s how unpopular they had become,” Smith said, when asked...
Most Canadians support Liberal Leader Mark Carney disclosing the financial assets he’s placed in a blind trust while in office, as well as Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre obtaining security clearance to receive briefings about foreign interference, according to new data from Nanos Research.
Former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton is cautioning not to read too much into the more positive tone struck by U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Mark Carney following Friday’s phone call between the two, but said if the commander-in-chief is a fan of the Liberal leader, a smoother bilateral relationship could be possible. “I don’t think you...
Former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig says news China has executed what was later revealed to be four Canadians in recent months shows the country has no intention of improving bilateral relations. “What it clearly demonstrates is that any hopes that China might be willing to extend some olive branches or try to heal rifts in the relationship, to try to...
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly says Canada is prepared for a trade war with the U.S., should President Donald Trump implement the sweeping tariffs he’s threatened, as promised, on Tuesday. “We will be ready,” Joly told reporters on Parliament Hill Monday, categorizing Trump’s tariffs as “an existential threat.” Trump first threatened the punishing 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods...
As Buckingham Palace remains quiet on U.S. President Donald Trump’s persistent attacks on Canadian sovereignty, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to have an audience with King Charles III on Monday. Trump has quadrupled down on his comments in recent months that Canada should become the 51st state. He’s said on several occasions the country could avoid the sweeping and...
Buckingham Palace is refusing to weigh in on U.S. President Donald Trump’s persistent attacks on Canadian sovereignty. Trump has quadrupled down on his comments in recent months that Canada should become the 51st state. He’s said on several occasions the country could avoid the sweeping and significant tariffs he’s threatening if it agreed to annexation, and that he’s prepared to...
Immigration Minister Marc Miller says that with just days to go before U.S. President Donald Trump’s 30-day tariff reprieve expires, there’s been no indication whether Canada can avoid the levies. “There’s no certainty on this,” Miller told CTV’s Question Period host Vassy Kapelos in an interview airing Sunday. “It’ll be hanging over our head until we know, and we’ll probably...
The four remaining candidates in the race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as head of the Liberals squared off in the first of two debates Monday. Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney, former deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland, former government House leader Karina Gould — who resigned last month to run for the leadership — and former MP...
Liberal leadership contender Karina Gould says she’s going to wait to gauge the state of the Canada-U.S. relationship when the race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is determined in mid-March, before deciding whether to call an early election, if she wins the contest. “I am going to see where the country is at that moment in time, because if...
With just two and a half weeks to go until the Liberals choose their next leader and the person who will replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, presumptive frontrunners Mark Carney and Chrystia Freeland made campaign stops on Wednesday. Freeland, following a tour of a dairy farm in Waterville, Que., vowed to protect supply management in future trade negotiations with the...
The premier of Newfoundland and Labrador says he found it “incredibly concerning” to hear senior staff from U.S. President Donald Trump’s office convey that the commander-in-chief is “very serious” when he talks about annexing Canada. “As Canadians, we need to realize that he is not joking, that he is definitively looking towards the 51st state being Canada,” Andrew Furey told...
Germany’s defence chief says the level to which Russia is building up its military, which he categorized as an “imminent threat,” is deeply concerning to him. “What we’re seeing is that Russia is ramping up, that Russia is really getting into new structures, that they are producing more and more main battle tanks, that they are using more battle tanks...
Liberal leadership hopefuls Mark Carney and Chrystia Freeland unveiled parts of their policy planks Wednesday, both taking aim at U.S. President Donald Trump and pledging to attract investment, among other promises. In a Wednesday morning press conference in Windsor, Ont, Carney pledged Canada will hit the NATO defence spending target sooner than currently projected, cancel the capital gains tax increase...
The premier of Alberta says if Canada wants to avoid U.S.-imposed tariffs on Canadian imports in a month’s time, federal and provincial governments should “stop making excuses” and heed President Donald Trump’s border security demands. “He wants us to recognize that Canada enjoys a very special relationship with the U.S. that no other country in the world enjoys, and just...
Liberal leadership contender Chrystia Freeland says everything should be on the table when it comes to Canada’s response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs, while insisting she can get provinces united on that response. “We have to be prepared to use every single tool in the toolbox,” Freeland told CTV Question Period host Vassy Kapelos in an interview Sunday, when...
Public Safety Minister David McGuinty says he hopes MPs across the aisle can come together when Parliament resumes in late March to quickly tackle some of the recommendations from the foreign interference inquiry report, some of which would require legislation. In an interview on CTV Power Play with Vassy Kapelos on Tuesday McGuinty said “foreign interference is not a partisan...
After years of speculation about his political aspirations, former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor Mark Carney has officially thrown his hat in the ring to replace Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader and prime minister. As one of the race’s top three contenders, alongside deputy prime minister and finance minister Chrystia Freeland and Government House Leader Karina Gould...
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith — who’s stood in staunch opposition to the idea of cutting of energy exports to the U.S. in response to the potential imposition of tariffs — insists she isn’t creating a national unity crisis by publicly opposing her fellow premiers on the issue. “I think the problem that we saw is that we were getting together...
Amid a reported increase in the number of people saying they hope to leave the U.S. for Canada out of concern around President Donald Trump’s new gender identity policy, Canadian Immigration Minister Marc Miller says the U.S. is “a safe country” for LGBTQ2S+ people. “To suggest that the U.S. is not a safe space for trans people, for the LGBT...
Canada’s new chief of the defence staff says there are “absolutely” ways the federal government could speed up its defence-spending timeline to meet its NATO commitments sooner than the current 2032 target. “It’s absolutely possible, and this is what we have been working on since I’ve come on board,” Gen. Jennie Carignan said in an interview on CTV Power Play...
Hours after his inauguration, U.S. President Donald Trump is floating the date of Feb. 1 as the day he plans to slap Canada and Mexico with a 25 per cent tariff – and the federal government says Trump’s latest comment is not a surprise. “We took note, obviously, of what President Trump said earlier today in Washington. None of this...
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says his party still plans to vote to bring down the federal government as soon as possible, despite the Liberals looking for a leader, and the looming economic threat posed by U.S. President Donald Trump. “I’ve been really clear, and I remain clear, and I appreciate the opportunity to repeat it. We will be voting to...
Transport and Internal Trade Minister Anita Anand says Canada is ready to take on U.S. president-elect Donald Trump and levy countermeasures immediately, should the incoming commander-in-chief follow through with his threat to impose punishing tariffs on all Canadian imports on day one of his presidency. “Retaliatory measures are ready, and we will use all tools in our toolbox to ensure...
Canada’s ambassador to the U.S. says Donald Trump’s incoming administration hasn’t made any promises that Canada’s new border plan will help avoid the significant tariffs the U.S. president-elect has threatened to impose. In an interview with CTV Power Play with Vassy Kapelos on Wednesday, when asked whether the tariffs are certainly coming or whether they can be avoided, Kirsten Hillman...
Former B.C. premier Christy Clark will not run in the Liberal leadership race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, she said Tuesday. Sources tell CTV News Clark was “emotional” telling her core team about her decision on a conference call. “I have made the difficult decision to step back,” Clark wrote in an email sent to her supporters.
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly is not ruling out any countermeasures when it comes to dealing with U.S. president-elect Donald Trump — his threat of significant tariffs on Canadian imports, in particular. In an interview with host Vassy Kapelos for CTV Question Period, airing Sunday, Joly would not rule out cutting off energy exports to the U.S. in response to...
Former prime minister Jean Chrétien says U.S. president-elect Donald Trump is likely to walk back his threat of punishing tariffs and the resulting trade war with Canada, because the Americans are too reliant on a number of Canadian exports, namely in the energy sector. "He's apparently said this morning that he does not need our electricity. Fine," Chrétien said in...
With Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation as Liberal party leader, several well-known political faces may be waiting in the wings for their opportunity to take his place. Trudeau announced Monday he’s stepping down from the party’s leadership, but staying on as prime minister until a new leader is selected through what he called a “robust, nationwide, competitive process.” As the...
A new book about Chrystia Freeland has just come out, after the publishing company sped up its release date by a few months, in light of the bombshell news its main character has made in recent days. Titled, "Chrystia: From Peace River to Parliament Hill," the unauthorized biography was written by Toronto-based journalist Catherine Tsalikis and published by House of...
If the Canadian government wants to make headway with the incoming U.S. administration, it should look at scrapping some sticking-point policies, such as the controversial digital services tax, former Liberal finance minister Bill Morneau says. “I would move away from that, and think about the other places that we have a mutual interest in moving forward,” Morneau told CTV’s Question...
If Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wants to get on U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s good side for the sake of a smooth bilateral relationship, he’ll likely have to be openly deferential, says former U.S. National Security Advisor, John Bolton. “It's always possible, if somebody kisses the ring. I mean, that's what Trump likes,” Bolton told CTV Power Play host Vassy Kapelos...
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is set to table the federal government’s fall economic statement next Monday, the government announced today. The fiscal check-in will happen just one day before the House of Commons is expected to adjourn for the year, after months of procedural wrangling over a Conservative-led privilege debate.
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly insisted she supports Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and is focused on her own re-election, but wouldn't explicitly rule out a future Liberal leadership bid, in an interview on CTV’s Question Period airing Sunday. The questions come amid a profile of the minister published in the New York Times on Wednesday, labelling Joly as Trudeau’s “possible...