Which brings me to my first topic for the weekend.

Canada’s public service. There was a time when we used to be touted by outsiders as having one of the best, if not THE best, public service in the world. That was some time ago, probably the late fifties and sixties. Various things have gotten in the way since, but it’s fair to say the public service is not seen the same way these days. And apparently not by the new prime minister. 

At least not according to the award-winning Globe reporter Robert Fife. I’ve known Bob since the eighties when he was making his name as a hard-hitting young scribbler for Canadian Press. He has a well-earned reputation for breaking stories. Once, when asked how he got so many “breaks,” he said he hears rumblings from House of Commons guards who themselves hear everything while standing by their favourite pillars in the House lobby. I’m sure it’s a little more complicated than that, but I’ve always loved that story.

Anyway, Bob’s latest scoop is about how Mark Carney is not impressed with some high-ranking public servants, who may not have picked up the hint yet that he wants things changed and changed now. They’re too slow, and he wants action, like yesterday. Here’s Fife’s latest:

🔒 Carney ready to dismiss top bureaucrats unable to meet his expectations, Liberal insiders say

If the top levels of the public service are to see change, the person who will deliver it for the PM is his new Clerk of the Privy Council, Michael Sabia. 

He, like Carney, is no stranger to those positions. 

Both are former deputy ministers of finance. But change won’t be easy, as David McLaughlin, a former chief of staff to Brian Mulroney, writes, also in the Globe:

🔒 Michael Sabia faces an uphill climb in reforming Canada’s civil service

Some of us keep hearing rumblings from inside the Conservative Party that Pierre Poilievre’s position may be a bit wobbly. 

That, with support edging downwards in recent polls, the party may be thinking twice about keeping him as leader. Hard to say how real that is, but it’s interesting that some Liberals don’t agree, in fact, they’re worried to the point where they think Mark Carney may have made a mistake agreeing to a quick byelection for Poilievre. The chief editor of iPolitics, Marco Vigliotti, wrote about that this week:

Should Carney have promised to immediately call a byelection for Poilievre?

When I interviewed Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on stage in Calgary a few weeks ago, she agreed with this theory. 

If Mark Carney’s promises to make Canada an energy superpower were real, then desires by some Albertans to secede from Canada could just fade away. Apparently not yet, as the premier now says that separatist feelings are growing:

Premier Smith says Albertans' desire for leaving Canada has never been higher

So why aren’t the secessionists buying the Carney lines? 

Maybe the answer is here in this piece that former Harper aide Alykhan Velshi wrote for The Hub:

Alykhan Velshi: Canada will never build another new pipeline

We lost Bill Moyers this week and that’s a significant loss.

People used to say, and some still do, that television is not a place for smart discussion, that it’s all glitz, glitter and hot talk. Bill Moyers showed that not to be true. The former Press Secretary to US President Lyndon Johnson had a brilliant post-politics television career with PBS, where enlightened talk was the order of the day. 

The Washington Post remembered Bill Moyers:

Bill Moyers, eminence of public affairs broadcasting, dies at 91

Now I know you don’t like paywalls and if you don’t subscribe to one of the world’s great papers, The Times, you won’t like this.

But if you like reading stories about the future of the royals, and I know some of you do, it might be worth paying a pound a month for The Times (deal on right now). The story is from Roya Nikkhah, a friend and someone I’ve co-anchored a few royal shows with over the years. Enjoy:  

🔒 How Prince William will change the monarchy, by those close to him

I’m going in for cataract surgery this week and since I mentioned that on my podcast a few weeks ago, I’ve received lots of emails from listeners telling me it’s no big deal. 

A “breeze,” said one, “In and out in a few minutes and within days you’ve got vision like you’ve never had”. Fine, it’s still surgery, and it’s my eyes!

At least the surgeon is right there beside me. That will give me comfort. Not like this story from Africanews.com, which is a bit of shocker:

Robotic surgery performed remotely from the U.S. on a patient in Africa