Canadian Annual Review of Politics and Public Affairs 2004 : CAR 2004

Cover 1 Contents 6 Contributors 14 Canadian calendar 2004 16 Editor’s introduction – the year in review 36 Parliament and politics 44 THE THIRTY-EIGHTH GENERAL ELECTION 46 Conservative Party leadership 46 Preliminaries 48 On the hustings:health care or something else? 50 The results 52 Parsing the outcome 55 The ceiling for women candidates 56 NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS 56 The new cabinet 56 Speeches from the Throne 59 New department 61 Speaker 62 Ethics Commissioner 62 Senate 62 Changes at the Supreme Court 63 AUDITOR GENERAL’S REPORTS 64 NATIONAL ECONOMY 66 Economic indicators 66 Budget 2004–5 67 Autumn economic and fiscal update 69 MAJOR POLICY AREAS 70 Finished and unfinished business 70 Federal-provincial health-care accord 70 Afghanistan and the military 72 Missile defence 73 Same-sex marriage 74 Decriminalization of marijuana possession 75 CONTROVERSIES 76 The sponsorship scandal 76 Maher Arar inquiry 79 Paul Martin and Canada Steamship Lines 81 The dismissal of Carolyn Parrish 82 Judy Sgro and ‘Strippergate’ 83 The trials of Svend Robinson 83 PASSAGES 84 Foreign affairs and defence 85 FOREIGN AFFAIRS 86 President Bush’s visit to Canada 86 CHALLENGES IN CANADA-U.S. TRADE 87 Wheat 87 Beef 89 Swine 90 Softwood lumber 91 Byrd Amendment 92 HUMAN AND POLITICAL RIGHTS 94 China/the Koreas 94 Zahra Kazemi 95 Maher Arar 96 The Khadrs 97 Ukrainian elections 98 Sudan 100 Asian Tsunami 101 DEFENCE POLICY 103 Federal election and defence issues 103 DOMESTIC AND CONTINENTAL SECURITY 104 Canada’s national-security policy 104 The military and the north 105 Ballistic Missile Defence 107 Bi-National Planning Group 109 AFGHANISTAN 110 Suicide bombing 110 ISAF command 110 Overstretch 111 Friendly fire incident, 2002 111 OTHER MILITARY OPERATIONS 112 Bosnia-Herzegovina 112 Haiti 113 EQUIPMENT AND PROCUREMENT 114 Submarines 114 Sea King helicopter replacement 116 Joint Support Ships 118 Unmanned aerial vehicles 118 POLICIES AND PERSONNEL 119 Recruitment, retention, and remuneration 119 Chemical-warfare testing 120 Military ombudsman 121 Chief of the defence staff 122 Municipal affairs 124 CITIES IN THE MARKETPLACE 124 THE CULTURE OF CITIES 128 REGIONAL GOVERNANCE 129 LOCAL DEMOCRACY 132 CITIES IN THE CONFEDERATION 133 First Nations 137 FEDERAL DEVELOPMENTS 137 Speech from the Throne 137 Indigenous participation 138 Treaties and self-government 138 Third-party management 138 New funding 139 Residential schools 140 PROVINCIAL AND TERRITORIAL DEVELOPMENTS 141 British Columbia 141 Natural-resource development 141 The politics of water 142 The Prairies 143 Treaties and economic development 143 ‘Starlight Cruises’ 144 Stolen Sisters 145 Another Walkerton? 146 Métis Nation Saskatchewan (MNS) 146 Ontario 147 Treaty rights and land claims 147 Court decisions 147 The injustice system? 148 Band elections 149 A First 150 Quebec 150 Land claims 150 Band governance 150 Atlantic Canada 151 Treaties and self-government 151 The north 152 Land claims and the politics of energy 152 Implementing the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement 152 Control over natural resources 153 Electoral controversy in Nunavut 154 The cost of environmental change 154 The politics of housing 155 British Columbia 156 CABINET SHUFFLE 156 A YEAR OF LABOUR UNREST 157 BALANCING THE BUDGET 159 PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS 160 PINE BEETLE EPIDEMIC 160 AVIAN FLU EPIDEMIC 161 POLITICIAN THEFT CAUGHT ON CAMERA 162 FEDERAL ELECTION 163 TOBACCO DAMAGES AND EARTHQUAKE ASSESSMENTS 164 BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALBERTA COOPERATE ON TRADE ISSUES 164 B.C. RAIL 164 SAFE STREETS ACT 165 OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT 165 FORESTRY 166 CITIZENS’ ASSEMBLY ON ELECTORAL REFORM 167 ECONOMY 167 Alberta 169 THE FEDERAL ELECTION: PAUL MARTIN’S ALBERTA DREAMS 169 THE MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS: CHANGE IN EDMONTON, CHAOS IN CALGARY 171 THE PROVINCIAL ELECTION: REFERENDUM ON RALPH KLEIN 172 DAR HEATHERINGTON’S TRIAL AND ITS AFTERMATH 175 THE BSE CRISIS ENTERS YEAR TWO 177 THE LEGISLATURE 179 THE ECONOMY 181 MISCELLANEOUS 183 Saskatchewan 185 ELECTIONS 185 Provincial election 185 Federal general election 186 THE LEGISLATURE AND GOVERNMENT 187 Spring Session of Legislature 187 Fall session of legislature 190 THE PROVINCIAL BUDGET 190 THE ECONOMY 194 THE JUDICIARY 194 INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS 195 Federal-provincial relations 195 Provincial-municipal relations 196 ABORIGINAL AFFAIRS 197 OTHER MAJOR ISSUES AND EVENTS 199 Manitoba 200 THE LEGISLATURE 200 THE ECONOMY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS 203 POLITICS AND POLITICAL PARTIES 204 OTHER EVENTS 206 The Territories 209 THE NORTH IN NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS 209 THE NORTH IN THE 2004 FEDERAL ELECTION 211 THE NORTH IN NATIONAL POLITICS 212 TERRITORIAL POLITICS 213 PUBLIC AFFAIRS IN THE YUKON TERRITORY 216 PUBLIC AFFAIRS IN THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES 217 PUBLIC AFFAIRS IN NUNAVUT 220 THE NORTH IN 2004 223 Ontario 225 EARLY EVENTS 226 ENERGY 227 HEALTH 230 EDUCATION 238 THE ECONOMY AND THE BUDGET 241 PUBLIC SAFETY 244 CONCLUSION 247 Quebec 248 DAMAGE CONTROL 249 RE-ENGINEERING THE STATE IN ORDER TO ‘SHINE AMONG THE BEST’ 251 FAILING TO PLEASE 255 FEDERAL-PROVINCIAL RELATIONS: FIRMING UP THE PROVINCIALIST STANCE 257 SEARCHING FOR THEIR WAY: OPPOSITION PARTIES AND THE NATIONAL QUESTION 259 Wrestling with old demons: the Parti Québécois 260 Political autonomy: Action Démocratique du Québec 262 QUEBEC: A BLOCKED SOCIETY? 264 New Brunswick 266 OTHER VIEWS OF THE FINANCIAL PICTURE 266 GOVERNMENT REJECTS NO-FAULT PUBLIC AUTO INSURANCE 268 CONTRASTING RESPONSES TO CIVIL-SERVICE CUTS 269 THE PERENNIAL PROBLEM: FINANCING AND STAFFING HEALTH CARE 270 NEW BRUNSWICK POWER’S ORIMULSION FIASCO 274 OTHER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS AND RESPONSES 276 ANOTHER BRIEF PRE-CHRISTMAS LEGISLATIVE SESSION 278 Prince Edward Island 280 THE ECONOMY 280 FISCAL EVENTS 284 POLITICS AND THE LEGISLATURE 285 OTHER EVENTS 289 Nova Scotia 292 POLITICS 292 THE LEGISLATURE 294 ECONOMY 297 INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 299 Newfoundland and Labrador 302 Obituaries 310 Election tables 314 Index of names 318 A 318 B 318 C 320 D 321 E 321 F 322 G 322 H 323 I 324 J 324 K 324 L 325 M 326 N 328 O 328 P 328 Q 329 R 329 S 330 T 331 U 331 V 331 W 332 Y 332 Z 332 Index of subjects 334 A 334 B 335 C 336 D 338 E 338 F 339 G 340 H 340 I 341 J 341 K 342 L 342 M 342 N 343 O 344 P 345 Q 346 R 346 S 346 T 348 U 348 V 349 W 349 Y 349