Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is pushing back against claims that his government is infringing on provincial and territorial jurisdiction after premiers repeatedly attacked his policy spending at their annual summer meeting this week.
Canada’s 13 prime ministers spent nearly three days in Halifax discussing shared priorities and challenges.
While the two premiers didn’t see eye to eye on every issue, including the thorny issue of equalization payments, they appeared to join forces in attacking Ottawa’s habit of meddling in provincial areas of responsibility, from dental care to cod fisheries.
As the conference concluded Wednesday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford criticized the federal government’s $1 billion national school lunch program, which has pledged to provide meals to an additional 400,000 children a year.
He said the state’s program will feed more children at less cost.
“Something is wrong. They are wasting taxpayers’ money,” the prime minister said at his closing press conference.
“You know what happens? The prime ministers get mad, that’s it. They just jump in and think they know better than we do.”
At the closing press conference of the Conference of Provincial Premiers in Halifax, Ontario Premier Doug Ford compared funding for the federal breakfast program to his province’s.
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, who is chairing this year’s conference, said the Canadian government’s approach to federalism “risks pitting provinces and territories – Canadians – against each other.”
In a letter sent to Houston and Ford on Wednesday, Trudeau said the federal government is “simply seeking to use federal funds to improve the lives of Canadians and is not seeking to infringe on provincial and territorial jurisdiction.”
“We encourage provinces and territories that are hesitant to join these efforts or that take an obstructionist stance to consider the impact their decisions have on their people and to see us as partners,” Trudeau said in the letter obtained by CBC News.
The letter does not promise a meeting between Trudeau and the provincial premiers, a so-called “premier-level meeting,” as many premiers called for this week.
Prime Minister Trudeau said Interprovincial Relations Minister Dominic LeBlanc is open to meeting with Premier Ford and other interested premiers.
“Reinvigorating cooperative federalism in Canada is a top priority for my government, and I am pleased to hear that the Federal Council shares this view,” Trudeau wrote.
Prime ministers make requests to Ottawa
Premiers have asked Ottawa to leave, but they won’t leave the sunny port city without first issuing a series of written requests.
They cited several areas in which they would like to see the federal government play a bigger role, including infrastructure spending, Arctic security and aid for immigrants.
Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has said the province is open to accepting more asylum seekers, especially French speakers, but only if the federal government increases funding for the province.
“Manitoba has housing, health care and social service needs and we really need the help of the federal government, which has the financial resources to be able to make a difference here,” he said.
Kinew stepped into federal territory earlier today, calling on the Canadian government to accelerate defense investment.
After years of criticism from allies, particularly the United States, the Liberal government said last week it wanted to meet NATO’s commitment to invest 2 percent of member states’ gross domestic product in its military by 2032.
Kinew urged Trudeau to reach that goal within four years to ease concerns south of the border ahead of a presidential election that could see former President Donald Trump return to the White House.
“If we don’t live up to our responsibilities to our NATO allies, [the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement] “The renewal will have an impact on relations between the two countries,” the prime minister said.
Asked whether state governors were asking for too much from the federal government, Houston said they were asking for a focus on liberals.
“We need to focus on how and where that money is invested. We have a lot of ideas about that and we hope they will listen to us,” he said.
