In House Panel - Trudeau on the world stage
****Please note: this segment was recorded prior to Friday's attacks in Paris.
Justin Trudeau will be adding several new stamps to his passport this month, as he fills his calendar with overseas trips to the G20 summit in Turkey and the APEC summit in the Philippines.
Then there's a couple quick meetings on the side with China's Xi Jingping, U.S. President Barack Obama, and the Queen of England.
No doubt about it — the agenda is packed! So what's at stake for the new Prime Minister during his debut on the world stage? In House panelists Rosemary Barton, host of Power & Politics on CBC News Network, and CBC News' senior political correspondent Terry Milewski are here to discuss.
What should be Justin Trudeau's strategy at the G20?
Rosemary Barton: I think the best thing he could probably do is sit there, take it in, listen and learn about how he has to perform.
Terry Milewski: If he comes away without making a whole lot of news, that might be a good strategy. The real action of these things are the things that aren't on the agenda — what happens in the hallways. Remember, this meeting is in Turkey. It's next to Syria. Gee, do you think that could come up at a time when the fight against ISIS is at a critical stage?
What about APEC?
TM: The [U.S.] President will certainly push the TPP trade deal. He wants that as a legacy item. He'll also push on the climate.
RB: I think climate is more important than TPP. I think for Obama, the key legacy item is climate change, and he needs Canada to not only get on board, but go out and talk to other nations, Commonwealth nations and the members of the Francophonie, to act as a sub-negotiator to try and get other nations on board.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer updated his fiscal outlook earlier this week, downgrading projections for the economy. Does this help or hurt the Liberals?
TM: What a surprise, a new government comes into power and they find — what a shock — the cupboard is bare! It's a serious problem, a real problem, but it's not a looming disaster for the government of Canada. Nobody is saying the PBO is wrong, but here's my question: are voters, having just voted for deficits, going to march on Ottawa with pitchforks because the deficit turns out to be $12 billion instead of $10 billion?
RB: I think the report reinforces what the Liberals were saying throughout the election campaign — that growth is not so good, we need to do something about it. If they can continue with that kind of messaging, they can easily go a little bit further into deficit. $2 or $3 billion more is not, although it sounds like a lot, really that big a deal in Canada's economy. I think the problem becomes, for them, making sure that going a little further the first year doesn't turn into the same thing the next year. You have to have a plan to get out of it, and if you're going deeper in, what else has to be cut and what else has to go eventually?
TM: It's not an immediate problem for the government, but in 2019 it sure is, because they made a promise that they're going to balance the budget by 2019 – 2020. So they're going to have to do something. Or just get lucky?