As the calendar counts down to the final days of December, Canadians are taking time to reflect on the past year, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is no exception.
In a year-end interview with CBC News Chief Political Correspondent Rosemary Barton, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressed a number of issues that have been on the minds of Canadians in 2022.
The full interview will air Sunday at 11:30 a.m. on CBC television
Here are five key topics the Prime Minister discussed.
CBC News Special: A Year-End Interview with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (2022)
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with CBC News Chief Political Correspondent Rosemary Barton for a year-end interview.
The Law of Emergencies
The Trudeau government invoked the Emergency Act on February 14 for the first time in the law’s 34-year history to address protests against the COVID-19 restrictions in Ottawa and at several Canadian border crossings.
At the time, protesters who were part of the self-styled Freedom Convoy had blockaded downtown Ottawa for weeks and later began blocking border crossings and, as a result, snarled the main trade routes
The invocation of the act (which was revoked a little more than a week later) gave the federal government temporary powers to deal with the protests, but also drew much criticism from protesters, opposition politicians and advocates of civil liberty.
Barton asked Trudeau if he believed the country had suffered any long-term damage from his invocation.
“They did, in a very limited way, the job they were asked to do,” Trudeau replied.
“No one was seriously injured, no one had any lasting effects, and that cleaned up the situation.”
Police move to clear downtown Ottawa near Parliament Hill of protesters after weeks of demonstrations on Saturday, February 19, 2022. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press)
After weeks of hearings that began in October, the Public Order Emergency Commission is currently weighing whether the use of the act was justified. His report to Parliament is due next February.
“It’s a shame we had to use it. I didn’t want to use the Emergency Act,” Trudeau told Barton. “But when we got to that point, as I told the commission, it was one of the only tools left.”
Trudeau said he looks forward to the commission’s recommendations on how similar situations could be addressed in the future.
Restrict firearms
The Trudeau government has come under fire in recent months for a controversial amendment to its proposed gun legislation, Bill C-21.
The bill was initially intended ban handguns, but an amendment passed in committee would expand the list of prohibited weapons to include some hunting rifles.
Trudeau and his cabinet have done it he insisted that they do not target hunters with this legislation. But in his interview with Barton, Trudeau said some hunting rifles would be banned under the new law if it passes.
Patrick Deegan, a senior officer at Shooting Edge, examines a long gun scope at the store in Calgary September 15, 2010. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government’s firearms ban could affect some hunting rifles if they share characteristics of an assault weapon. (Jeff McIntosh/Canadian Press)
“I’ll be completely honest. There are some guns out there, not many, but some, that hunters are using now for hunting that are overpowered or have features that make them assault-style weapons,” he said .
The Prime Minister said the legislation was not intended to criminalize such hunters and insisted there would be a buyback program for guns that fall within the scope of the bill.
The war in Ukraine
When Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, Canada and other Western allies began offering aid to support the Ukrainian military and began accepting refugees as millions began to flee the country.
Russia has suffered a significant number of key losses in recent months, but yes stepped up missile attacks against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.
Western allies have discussed a new Marshall Plan-style aid package for Ukraine: a massive injection of foreign capital to finance the country’s post-war recovery. Barton asked Trudeau how Canada would participate in rebuilding. He said Canada would look for ways to participate, but insisted Ukraine would be responsible.
The aftermath of a Russian rocket attack on an apartment building in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih. (Emergency Service of Ukraine/The Associated Press)
“Canada will be part of the reconstruction, but we know that Ukraine must be at the center,” he said. “They have to drive it.”
Trudeau said the fact that the war has lasted so long shows that Russia greatly underestimated its neighbor. He also said that Ukrainians who have come to Canada and wish to make it their permanent home are welcome to do so.
“Many of them want to stay. They will be welcomed and will continue to be extraordinary Canadians and proud Ukrainians at the same time,” he said.
the economy
Canadians took a hit in their pocketbooks during 2022 due to cost of living increases on a scale not seen in decades.
Although inflation has begun to ease, the prices of some basic necessities, such as groceries, continue to rise.
Statistics Canada reports that the annual rate of food inflation came in at 11.4% last month, up from 11% in October. Gasoline prices fell 3.6 percent, but are still up 13.7 percent from a year ago.
A customer surveys the fresh produce at a vegetable stand at the Jean-Talon Market in Montreal. The cost of groceries rose sharply in 2022 as Canada experienced record inflation rates. (Ivanoh Demers/Radio-Canada)
The NDP has called on the federal government to levy a windfall tax on the oil and gas sectors and grocery chains — business party leader Jagmeet Singh accused of engaging in “greed.”
But Trudeau dismissed that idea as “simplistic.”
“The last thing we want to do is put a tax that people just pass on to consumers,” Trudeau said.
Trudeau also defended the Bank of Canada’s interest rate hikes. The Bank of Canada raised its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points earlier this month to 4.25% in an effort to reduce inflation.
The bank has taken its rate from functionally zero to its highest point since 2008 – its fastest pace of rate increases since inflation targeting began in the 1990s. These rate hikes have contributed to an increase in mortgage rates and the cost of servicing other loans.
“In Canada we have strong institutions and the Bank of Canada acts independently in a way that it believes is best for Canadians. And we respect that,” Trudeau said.
Working with the provinces
Alberta’s new premier, Danielle Smith, introduced the Sovereignty Act last month. It explains how the province intends to refuse to enforce federal legislation, policies or programs it decides are “harmful” to Alberta’s interests or violate the separation of powers in the Constitution.
Although experts say the legislation is unconstitutional, Trudeau has tried to distance himself from the act, saying he was not “picking a fight” with Alberta at any point.
During his CBC interview, Trudeau insisted he can find common ground with Smith on certain issues.
“There’s a lot we can work on,” he said.
Critics have called Premier Danielle Smith’s Alberta sovereignty within a United Canada Act undemocratic and constitutionally unsound. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press)
“I certainly think that moving forward to reach an agreement on health care is something that he’s interested in,” Trudeau said when Barton pushed him to pick a specific policy.
But the state of health care remains a sticking point with Alberta and the other provinces.
Ottawa and the provinces agree that the country’s health care system is facing a crisis. But when health ministers met in Vancouver last month to reach an agreement, a disagreement over funding blocked any progress.
The provinces have asked the federal government to increase their share of health care funding. But Ottawa insists it won’t offer cash until provinces agree to meet certain conditions, such as increasing access to family health services.
LOOK | Trudeau wants assurances that federal money will improve health services:
‘It doesn’t make sense to put more money into a broken system’: Trudeau on health care funding
In a year-end interview with CBC News chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says any increase in federal health care funding to the provinces must come with strings attached to ensure that additional dollars go toward measurable and improved outcomes for Canadians. .
“If I were to send people all the money they need to the provinces, there’s no guarantee that … people would be waiting less time in hospitals,” Trudeau said. “It doesn’t make sense to put more money into a broken system.”
The impasse comes as many healthcare facilities, particularly children’s hospitals, are struggling with staff shortages and overwhelming demand due to a combination of COVID-19, influenza and respiratory infections.
Quebec Premier Francois Legault said he is more confident after meeting with the premier on Tuesday that the premiers and the federal government can reach a health deal to increase long-term funding.
“I really felt there was a desire to move this issue forward,” Legault said. “I think we’re going in the right direction.”