September 18, 2023 10:05 GMT
Politics Week: Parliament Returns Amid Housing Pinch, Trudeau Poll Dip
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- Parliament returns after summer break; fiscal update expected before Christmas with continued deficit spending
- Liberal PM Justin Trudeau has fallen behind in polls to Conservatives led by Pierre Poilievre, though polling over summer between elections is often misleading
- Housing/cost of living remains dominant issue. Trudeau shuffled cabinet with a new housing minister this summer and hinted at more direct federal involvement in the file
- Opposition parties with majority of seats in Parliament forced a judicial inquiry into foreign election interference focused on China
- Program spending rising by double digits amid BOC rate hikes, Finance Minister Freeland says doesn't want to add to inflation fires
- Liberals have deal with NDP to prop up government into 2025, a regular 4-year mandate
- Sample of recent headlines: "Can Trudeau Survive?"; "Trudeau’s tumbleweed of tumult"; "The Liberals are letting themselves become Pierre Poilievre’s punching bag"; "Justin Trudeau’s luck appears to be running out"
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