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I just came back from the House of Commons foyer where I was taping a segment for broadcast this weekend on CTV Ottawa and noticed that the Commons was filled with university students from Queen’s University in Kingston, holding what is, I understand, a model  Parliament.

As I peeked in, I couldn’t help but notice that the Speaker of the House for the day’s session was none other than Green Party leader Elizabeth May — perhaps getting some a taste of what she hopes will be full-time occupancy in that chamber.

Maclean’s Ottawa gadfly Kady O’Malley also got a chance to be Speaker for a few hours, before being replaced by some guy named John Baird, and she’s got a great post about presiding over a mock emergency debate on the Chalk River shutdown:

During my hour of ultimate parliamentary power, I recognized members, ruled on points of orders, said 'Order, order,' while giving the whole room my best 'watch it' face, and generally had the time of my life. I even got to preside over a vote. All told, by the time my replacement — a jovial fellow by the name of John Baird — showed up to take my spot, I wasn't remotely ready to hand over the robes. If only there was some way to become Speaker without going through all that bother of being elected to the House of Commons, it would totally be my dream job.

Liberal leader Stephane Dion made his ill-advised comments Wednesday in Quebec City. We reported them on our national newscast that night. The Prime Minister and the Pakistan high commissioner reacted to them Thursday. Now, in what is beginning to look like piling on — perhaps in order to keep voter attention away from the AECL-Lunn controversies of earlier this week — Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier takes this shot at Dion, in the form of a letter to the Pakistanis:

His Excellency Musa Javed Chohan
High Commissioner for the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
10 Range Road
Ottawa, Ontario
K1N 8J3

Excellency:

 Let me begin by noting once again that Canada greatly appreciates Pakistan's contribution to the fight against terrorism and extends our sympathy for the losses that your country has endured.  Canada will
continue to work with Pakistani and Afghan officials to improve the management of your shared border.

 I believe it is necessary for me to reaffirm Canada's position at this time  due to recent remarks made by the Leader of the Official Opposition which do not reflect the views of the Government. 

I regret if the remarks in question have caused any consternation. Once again, I assure you that our policy remains consistent.

      Sincerely,

Maxime Bernier
Minister of Foreign Affairs

Of course, to Dion’s credit, he has no qualms in facing an unscripted scrum of reporters. Can’t say the same for Bernier. His scrums have been few and far between in the Foreign Affairs portfolio and, forgetting for a moment the dubious proposal of sending NATO troops into Pakistan that Dion hinted at, many Canadians might like to get a little more information from Bernier about what he and his department diplomatically to pressure the Pakistanis to lock down their border with Aghanistan.

 

Here are the lines the Opposition Leader’s Office (OLO) is sending out in the wake of the brushback from Pakistan, the Prime Minister, and others to a comment made earlier this week in Quebec City in which Liberal Leader Stephane Dion made it sound an awful lot like NATO ought to consider sending troops into Pakistan if that country can’t secure its border with Afghanistan:

Contrary to the erroneous claim and distortions of Mr. Harper and the Conservatives, in a press conference in Quebec City yesterday the Liberal leader did not propose a military intervention in Pakistan. Mr. Dion obviously did not propose any sort of military intervention. Mr. Dion believes that Canada must focus our diplomatic efforts on Pakistan in order to secure the border with Afghanistan. 

There can be no doubt that one of the single biggest factors in the ongoing struggle for security and stability in Afghanistan is the border with Pakistan.  During the recent visit to Afghanistan by Mr. Dion and deputy leader Michael Ignatieff, they heard time and again that a major impediment to improving the security of Afghanistan is the existence of Taliban training centres across the border in Pakistan. The location of these centres are known according to Afghan authorities. Canada must not only diplomatically intervene with Pakistan to convince them to take necessary action to shut down these centres and stop the flow of insurgent personnel and equipment across the border, we must also put pressure on our NATO allies to make this issue a priority in their own bilateral dealings with Pakistan.

It is incumbent upon Canada, in close collaboration with our NATO allies, to pressure Pakistan to deal seriously and swiftly with these Taliban centres if we truly want to see an improved security situation in Afghanistan. Canada will need to take its diplomatic efforts more seriously than the Conservative government seems to deem necessary.

 

Earlier this week at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, I reported on the activities of Chinese car makers eager to crack the North American market. China had four car makers and an importer at the show including Chamco (that’s its SUV, right), BYD, Changfeng and Geely.

Today, in his monthly auto report, Scotia Capital economist and auto specialist Carlos Gomes has this to say about China’s domestic market:

China has been the fastest-growing auto market over the past decade, with sales surging ten-fold to more than 5.0 million units in 2007. Growth has been driven by rapid economic expansion and increasing wealth — double-digit average wage gains over the past decade and more than a three-fold surge in equity markets. Despite this rapid growth, vehicle penetration remains very low at only 27 vehicles per thousand people, compared with a G7 average of 610. With a population of 1.3 billion people and a vehicle fleet of only 35 million, China will continue to experience rapid growth.

While car sales gains moderated to 22% in 2007 and will likely increase by 15% in 2008 to 5.9 million units, China is on target to overtake the United States and become the largest automotive market by roughly 2020. Young people are increasingly becoming an important group of car buyers in China. The average age of car owners dropped to 32 years old in 2006, four years less than in 2005. Surveys indicate that the 25-29 year-old age group accounts for the largest portion of potential car buyers in China, while those between the ages of 18 to 25 already represent more than 11% of overall purchases. With about 200 million people in the 20-29 age group and nearly 120 million in the 15-19 age group, long-term demand growth is assured.

Gomes also has a bleak forecast for the North American car market

U.S. SALES TO SLUMP TO A THIRTEEN-YEAR LOW
Weak first-half vehicle sales will pull full-year 2008 U.S. volumes down to 15.0 million units — the lowest level since 1995 — from an average of 16.6 million over the past 5 years. The fall-off reflects the changing economic environment facing Americans, with purchasing power and confidence undercut by the housing-led slowdown, declining home prices and equity values, as well as moderating job and income gains. High gasoline and interest costs are also cutting into disposable income and discretionary purchases. Estimates suggest that energy and interest expenses now absorb a record 26% of U.S. household disposable income, up from an average 22% during the previous decade, leaving less room for discretionary purchases.

Canadian vehicle sales are expected to soften to 1.61 million units in 2008 from 1.65 million last year, with the slowdown concentrated in Canada’s manufacturing heartland — Ontario and Quebec. Weaker U.S. growth, a strong Canadian dollar and slowing exports will undercut employment growth in Central Canada, dampening vehicle demand.

I was born in Montreal, but grew up mostly in Guelph, Ontario — an hour's drive or so from Buffalo. And, so, by luck of geography, I became a Buffalo Bills fan back in the 1980s. I still am. I'm stickin' by them.

But now, I find that Tom Dimitroff, who played for my other favourite team — the University of Guelph Gryphons — and whose older brother Randy (another Gryphon football alum) was my colleague at my other favourite job at The Bullring, is now the new general manager of the NFL's Atlanta Falcons. Right on, Tommy!

At Guelph, I remember Tom as a hard-hitting safety with a smile a mile wide.

Now, when it comes to NFC teams, I've been a Packer fan since back in the days before Favre joined the team. But with Dimitroff running the show in Atlanta, I've got a new team to cheer for. Good luck, Mr. D!

Yesterday in Quebec City, Liberal leader Stephane Dion hinted that NATO might consider military action in Pakistan, if Pakistan cannot control its porous border with Afghanistan: “We are going to have to discuss that very actively if they (the Pakistanis) are not able to deal with it on their own,” Dion said in French. “We could consider that option with the NATO forces in order to help Pakistan help us pacify Afghanistan.”

The Pakistan High Commission is not amused:

 We are dismayed by the statement of the leader of opposition, Mr. Stephane Dion about NATO intervention in Pakistan. It shows a lack of understanding of the ground realities.   We have, at the highest level, made it clear that Pakistan will not allow any foreign forces to operate within its territory under any circumstances.  The sovereignty of the state will not be compromised at any level as the government and people of Pakistan are fully capable of handling their security matters themselves.
          Pakistan is a peace-loving country and has joined the international community in the war against terrorism as an equal partner.  The contribution made by Pakistan in this regard has been recognized throughout the world.
          The price paid by Pakistan being a frontline state cannot be undermined by certain irrational comments.
          Pakistan has been saying all along that the problem lies inside Afghanistan and the solution should come from there too.  It is because of the security situation there that Pakistan is facing heat across the border.

I’m the featured journalist this week in a recurring feature in The Hill Times known as “In the Hotroom”. The Hill Times, a weekly paper here which focuses on the business, gossip, and ins-and-outs of life in Parliamentary Precinct, profiles Hill journalists from time to time and, before Christmas, their reporter Harris Macleod and I had a conversation which is reproduced pretty faithfully in the paper.

The headline over the piece, though, reads:

“Why Akin disputes Conservatives are a non-media friendly governnment”

I’m not so sure that the headline actually matches what Harris reported I said in the piece. So, for the record, here’s the key q-and-a here:

AKIN: “I arrived here in January of 2005. … I replaced Joy Malbon. Joy is in our Washington bureau now and I inherited Joy’s beats, one of which included the Conservative caucus.

MACLEOD: Is that a challenging beat, since this is a fairly non-media friendly government?

AKIN: No, and I’ve always disputed that they’re a non-media friendly government. I don’t necessarily agree with that. I think governments generally are not media-friendly. Liberal, Conservative, you name it, governments – by definition – want to hide things from us . . .

So, my point, which perhaps I could have made more forcefully, is that all governments are not media-friendly, including the current one. That’s not new — and journalists who complain about that just have to be a bit more creative in digging stuff up to challenge any government’s line-of-the day. Happily, I’d say that about 90 per cent of the Parliamentary Press Gallery’s membership are the kind of journalists who do just that.

 

I’m in Detroit for the next few days covering the North American International Auto Show. This is Detroit’s big party of the year for the auto industry. And this year, like it’s been for the last few years I’ve come down to cover this thing, it’s a tale of the Detroit Three looking to fight off the foreign nameplates.

Today, two of them are doing that by circling the wagons — unveiling all-new versions of their franchise product. For Ford, that would be the F-150 pickup truck, the best-selling vehicle in Canada and in the U.S. Chrysler’s Dodge division unveils an all-new Ram, and will have its new pickup truck actually herd real cattle down Washington Avenue to the trade show facility at Detroit’s Cobo Hall.

On the other side of the ledge, Toyota, Honda, and Nissan have their usual presence here but there are more foreign nameplates to worry about: Hyundai has had the biggest year-over-year growth of any car maker in Canada and now, at this show, we will see some Chinese automakers show off their wares.

I’ll put pics up as I’m able through the weekend.

The Prime Minister’s Office just moments ago released David Johnston’s report on the terms of reference for an inquiry into the Mulroney-Schreiber affair.

As my colleague Robert Fife reported last night on CTV National News, Johnston is recommending a narrow inquiry that should not start until after the House of Commons ethics committee concludes their investigation. Moreoever, Johnston is recommending that Prime Minister Harper may choose not to proceed with an inquiry if he is satisfied with the work of the Commons committee.  Harper has decided to proceed with an inquiry and will wait for the Ethics Committee to wrap things up:

“I would like to thank Professor David Johnston for his impartial advice on how the Government should proceed.

After reviewing the report and consulting Professor Johnston, the Government has decided to convene a public inquiry once the House of Commons Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics has finished its hearings.

This will ensure that the public inquiry will usefully build on any testimony heard by the Ethics Committee.

I have also asked Professor Johnston to finalize his recommendations on the terms of reference for the public inquiry on an expedited basis once the Committee has completed its work. I am pleased that he has agreed to do so.”

Read the full report from Johnston here.

 

Some random thoughts ahead of the Prime Minister’s dinner tonight at 24 Sussex with the Premier’s:

• Jobs: The economy is at the top of the agenda and there’s some new data that might be part of the discussion. The latest job numbers are now out for December and while the unemployment rate did not change — at 5.9% it is still near a 33–year-low — there were some job losses in the month, namely the disappearance of 33,200 private sector job losses. The Canadian Labour Congress has a release out nothing that, for all of 2007, Canada’s economy lost 132,000 manufacturing jobs. That’s a number that Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and Quebec Premier Jean Charest will circle as they fight for more help for their beleaguered manufacturing sectors. The feds though may point out that Canada’s economy performed so well in 2007 that not only did it replace those 132,000 lost manufacturing jobs it created more. As a result, the net gain for jobs in 2007 was a whopping 370,000. Strong gains in the service and public sector were the big reasons.
• Surpluses: Premiers McGuinty and Charest, joining forces now after a couple of years of being on the opposite sides of a lot of issues, are saying that Harper’s announcement yesterday of a $1–billion trust fund to help small one-industry towns hurt by layoffs and plant closings is not enough. They want Harper to dip into the surpluses generated by the Employment Insurance plan, which some believe total $54–billion. The federal government may turn the provinces around by pointing out that the combined surplus of the provinces and territories is estimated at $7.8–billion. The federal government’s estimated surplus, after spending that $1–billion yesterday, is now $600–million
• Relationships: Relationships in politics matter a lot and Prime Minister Harper has, at times, building a productive relationship with key Premiers. The group he hosts tonight at 24 Sussex is a substantially different group of men than those who darkened his door two years ago. For example:
• There are five new premiers, from PEI, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Harper and Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams are seeing a slight thaw in their frosty relationship.
• Charest and McGuinty, as I noted, are now teammates of a sort.
• Harper’s advisors say the Premier he now gets along best with is Manitoba’s NDP Premier Gary Doer. Only Nunavut Premier Paul Ogalik has been on the job longer than Doer.