The Paul Wells Show

With less than a week left until election day, Paul calls up a few colleagues to talk about what we’ve learned and what will come next. They also talk about how politicians have changed their relationship to the press.   Our panel this week features political journalists Vassy Kapelos, Hélène Buzzetti and Steve Murphy.    Season 3 of the Paul Wells Show is supported by McGill University's Max Bell School of Public Policy.

Someday we should probably sit down and have a talk about election platforms. Count this week’s instalment of The Panel as a down payment on that conversation. Platforms are weird: if you release yours on Easter Saturday, after the television debates are already over, and a month after the election campaign started, your body language doesn’t say “Key piece of voter information.” But nobody dares not release one. Anyway, we’ve got Allison Gifford, Marci Surkes and Jason Lietaer to discuss the platforms, the debates, and the home stretch of this fascinating campaign.

How concerned should we be about election interference online? Taylor Owen and his colleagues at the Media Ecosytem Observatory keep a close eye on who's trying to sway our elections, and whether or not they're succeeding. He joins Paul to discuss that work and share his wish list for the next government’s digital policy.    Taylor Owen is the founding director of the Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy at McGill University. You can hear him every other Tuesday on his podcast Machines Like Us.   In campaign news, Carney and Poilievre appeared on Quebec's biggest talk show this week. Now, they're getting ready for the debates. Hélène Buzzetti, political columnist for Coops de l’information, breaks down Montreal Week.   Season 3 of the Paul Wells Show is supported by McGill University's Max Bell School of Public Policy

This week is mostly about Quebec. Sorry, people who get bugged by that. The Conservative and Liberal leaders were on Tout le monde en parle, the only talk show in either official language that’s a must-attend for the Carneys and Poilievres of this world. On Wednesday they’ll be at the French-language leaders’ debate, followed by the Thursday English-language debate, both in Montreal. (The leaders of the emergency back-up parties will join them.) Mark Carney, at least, decided to stay in the Montreal area between TLMEP and Wednesday. Poilievre had Montreal events on Monday too. Our Panel also discusses Carney’s habit of putting his campaign up on blocks so he can return to Ottawa and be prime ministerial every time Donald Trump does the sort of thing Donald Trump would do; and the tendency of both major-party leaders to go on quirky offbeat lifestyle podcasts where nobody ever asks a backup question or points out a contradiction. Mostly I’m the one who wanted to talk about that last part. Our Panel, once again, is Conservative Jason Lietaer, New Democrat Allison Gifford, and Liberal Marci Surkes. And they’re the best. Enjoy.

We are living in "the age of coercion," says Michael Wernick. The former Clerk of the Privy Council talks about what the civil service (and the government) will be up against after the election. Geoff Meggs, former Chief of Staff to B.C. Premier John Horgan , weighs in on drug policy on the campaign trail and the unique politics of British Columbia. You can hear more of Geoff Meggs on the Hotel Pacifico podcast.  And Shannon Proudfoot, feature writer in the Globe and Mail's Ottawa bureau, trades notes with Paul on the first few weeks of the election. Is Poilievre failing to respond to the moment? And how much can Carney separate himself from Trudeau's legacy? Season 3 of the Paul Wells Show is supported by McGill University's Max Bell School of Public Policy.

Surely by now you've learned to mistrust an empty schedule. Time for my weekly campaign meeting with The Panel — Marci Surkes, Allison Gifford, Jason Lietaer — to discuss the strangest federal election in many years. On paper, it’s a quiet week. Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariff announcement was last week, the leaders’ debates are more than a week in the future. But while we’re still lousy at predicting surprises, I think we’re better than we used to be at realizing surprises are bound to happen. This week’s instalment ends with bonus minority-government speculation. Who’s got friends? Who can keep them? Will the NDP even control the balance of power?

Our election coverage continues!   Stephen Gordon, economics professor at University of Laval, evaluates the economic policy we’ve seen on the campaign trail so far, from tax cuts to housing plans.    Author Mark Bourrie talks about his new book, Ripper: The Making of Pierre Poilievre.    CTV host and chief political correspondent Vassy Kapelos trades notes with Paul on the campaign so far.

The election campaign heads into its second week, and everything feels brand new. The Liberal campaign plane finally has the Liberal logo on it. Mark Carney has a candidate he should probably drop. Pierre Poilievre is having a very hard time moving the debate from the issue he can’t win on to an issue he might win on. And Jagmeet Singh would just like to be noticed. We’ve got Allison Gifford, Marci Surkes and Jason Lietaer to break it down for you.

This is an elections podcast now. Each week throughout the election, we'll bring you a variety of smart commentators to keep you upto speed. This week, former Progressive Conservative MPP Lisa MacLeod talks about her old riding of Nepean, where Mark Carney is running, with Pierre Poilievre running just next door. MacLeod has also worked with Poilievre, and weighs in on his leadership. And Hélène Buzzetti, political columnist for les Coops de l’information, talks about the political landscape in Quebec. Can Carney overcome his weak French and lack of familiarity with Quebecers? And can the Conservatives gain ground in the province? Season 3 of the Paul Wells Show is supported by McGill University's Max Bell School of Public Policy

Campaign Week 1, featuring an assist from Danielle Smith   The original Conservative on our Panel, the great Garry Keller, won his nomination battle in Nipissing—Timiskaming. Now he’s off trying to get elected to Parliament. (Note to readers who worry that this corner might be endorsing somebody: Please vote for whoever you want!) So, in a move reminiscent of Season 2 of Bewitched, we’ve got a new Darrin: Say hi to Jason Lietaer, the veteran of Harper-era campaign tours who is now President of Enterprise Canada.   We’ve got a lot to talk about, because this is the first of five (or six) weekly Panels as we follow the election campaign. Joining Jason are our Panel veterans, Allison Gifford of Clear Strategy and Marci Surkes of Compass Rose. On the menu: ballot-question framing, campaign performance, and Alberta premier Danielle Smith’s decision to tell Breitbart News that Pierre Poilievre would get along much better with Donald Trump.