In the news today: MPs trade jabs as House of Commons returns

By Canadian Press on September 16, 2025.

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…

MPs trade jabs as House of Commons returns

After talking up the prospect of cross-party collaboration in the House of Commons, Liberal and Conservative MPs wasted little time when Parliament resumed before reverting to partisan attacks over housing and the cost of living.

The tone was set early yesterday afternoon, when the first-ever question period exchange between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre began cordially before turning belligerent.

Hours earlier, Government House leader Steven MacKinnon said he was under “no illusions” about the chances for co-operation with Poilievre and his caucus, even though the minority government needs opposition votes to advance its agenda.

The Liberals and Conservatives did work together in the spring to pass the government’s major projects legislation. The first projects to be fast-tracked under that legislation were announced last week.

The Liberals hold 169 seats in the House of Commons, meaning they only need three additional votes to pass legislation.

Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet has said he’s willing to work with other parties as long as it benefits Quebec.

Here’s what else we’re watching…

StatCan set to release August inflation data today

Statistics Canada is set to release its inflation figures for August this morning.

A poll provided by Reuters shows economists expect the annual inflation rate rose to two per cent in August, from 1.7 per cent in July.

Core inflation metrics, which are closely watched by the Bank of Canada because they strip out volatile categories, are forecast to remain around three per cent, the upper end of the central bank’s target range.

The inflation report is a key piece of economic data and comes one day before the Bank of Canada is scheduled to announce its next interest rate decision.

Financial markets largely expect the central bank to cut its key lending rate by a quarter point to 2.5 per cent tomorrow as the labour market has weakened and the economy posted a contraction in the second quarter.

Critics question impetus for Alberta ID change

Critics are questioning what problem the Alberta government’s move to add mandatory citizenship markers to provincial identification aims to solve, and say it opens the door to potential privacy breaches and discrimination.

Premier Danielle Smith said yesterday the move is all about streamlining services and preventing election fraud.

Zool Suleman, a Vancouver-based immigration lawyer, said the United Conservative Party government’s impetus is unclear, and all Canadians should be worried about an increasing “creep” that forces the disclosure of more personal information.

The change comes as Smith’s hand-picked Alberta Next panel continues its tour of the province seeking support for measures meant to push back against federal policies and programs. One proposal is for Alberta to create its own provincial immigration system and withhold social services from newcomers who aren’t approved.

Suleman said the government needs to be very careful that the new rule doesn’t become a way to target newcomers or people with temporary status.

More small businesses missing payments: Equifax

A new report shows some small businesses across Canada are facing challenges as consumers cut back on spending and navigate a complicated trade landscape.

Equifax Canada’s latest business credit trends report says more than 286,000 businesses missed at least one credit payment in the second quarter, up 5.6 per cent from a year ago.

Jeff Brown, head of commercial solutions at Equifax Canada, says small businesses are navigating a complex environment.

He says sectors tied to international trade and consumer discretionary spending are under stress, while other businesses are holding steady or even improving.

Equifax says delinquency levels in consumer-sensitive industries, such as accommodation and food services, retail trade, and arts and entertainment, remain elevated year-over-year.

Carney to meet cabinet, Saskatchewan premier today

The prime minister has a slew of meetings today, with his cabinet, the premier of Saskatchewan and canola industry leaders.

In the afternoon, Mark Carney will meet with Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and, later, he will meet with canola industry leaders.

Moe and Carney’s parliamentary secretary Kody Blois were in China last week meeting Chinese officials who oversee an agency responsible for imposing steep tariffs on Canadian canola products.

China has imposed a 76 per cent tariff on Canadian canola seed, widely seen as a response to Canada’s 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles.

Beijing has also imposed duties of 100 per cent on Canadian canola oil, meal and peas, along with other levies on pork and some seafood products in response to Canada’s 25 per cent tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum.

Should Canadians talk to strangers more?

Psychology Prof. Gillian Sandstrom was a lonely graduate student in Toronto when she began what she calls “a tiny, tiny micro-relationship.”

She and a woman who ran a hotdog stand on her way to university around 2007 would wave hello and smile at each other. Their interactions were so small that Sandstrom uses air quotes to even describe them as a “relationship.”

Sandstrom, who works as an associate professor of psychology at the University of Sussex in England, now attributes the woman at the hotdog stand with setting her on the course of her professional life — researching interactions with strangers.

Sandstrom is now among a group of academics and activists who are pushing the benefits of talking and interacting with strangers, in contrast to the years when young Canadians in particular were told instead of their dangers.

They say even brief social interactions with strangers are beneficial to mental health and lead to feelings of belonging, in a push for connectivity that has led to a national campaign by Toronto-based organization GenWell.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2025.

The Canadian Press