Federal Government: 1)(Updated) Ottawa ‘very seriously’ considering social media ban for kids, minister says; 2)Liberals return to Parliament with majority after three byelection wins; 3)(Update) Liberals suspend federal fuel excise taxes until Labour Day; 4)Carney issues call for unity, says no time for ‘politics as usual’

1)(Updated) Ottawa ‘very seriously’ considering social media ban for kids, minister says

Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press

By Anja Karadeglija, April 15, 2026.

Marc Miller speaks at a Liberal Party convention in Montreal while discussing potential social media restrictions for kids

The federal government is “very seriously” considering introducing a social media ban for kids, Culture Minister Marc Miller said Wednesday, days after party members voted in favour of a such a ban at the Liberal party convention.

“I respect and acknowledge the work that’s been done and the concern where that policy proposal came from,” Miller told reporters on Parliament Hill.

“The grassroots have spoken. We do have to study that.”

In Montreal on Saturday, party members passed a non-binding resolution calling on the government to set 16 as the minimum age for access to social media accounts.

A ban could be an important tool but it’s not a solution to the bigger problem of online harms, Miller said.

“I do think it could be an important layer, but it has to be seen as that and not as the answer to everything. Online harms don’t end as soon as you turn 15 or 16 or 17,” he said.

Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said the government would take the will of the convention into consideration.

“Our policies are informed by a range of different stakeholders, including what people at conventions say. And this was a convention with over 4,500 people, a very loud voice and a very significant voice, but we’ve also heard from Canadians from coast to coast to coast,” Anandasangaree told reporters.

Justice Minister Sean Fraser said the government is considering a number of different options. He added the government takes note of party members’ decisions, but isn’t bound by them.

“We would give it the consideration that it deserves, but we want to make sure that we have the full benefit of the deep policy advice from people whose full-time job it is to understand the consequences,” he said.

“Resolutions that are adopted by the party obviously have a broad base of political support, but they aren’t necessarily benefiting from the same level of advice and consideration.”

Last December, Australia became the first country to pass a law enforcing age limits on social media accounts. The idea has since gained traction elsewhere.

The EU has developed an age verification app that will be available for use soon, Reuters reported Wednesday. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the app will require users to upload their passport or ID card to confirm their age anonymously, the news agency reported.

It noted at ​least a dozen European countries are considering or have put in place legislation that sets a minimum age for social media use.

In Canada, the federal government plans to introduce an online harms bill and is consulting with an expert advisory group on what the legislation should look like. Miller, who is taking the lead on the file, declined to give a timeline for introducing the bill.

The government’s move to consider age restrictions for social media and chatbots received support from Conservative and NDP MPs Wednesday.

Conservative MP Michael Barrett said it’s an important question and a committee study “where we could hear from experts, instead of simply a proclamation from government or from people in the industry about what they think it should look like, is the best way to proceed with it.”

NDP parliamentary leader Don Davies said every parent in the country is worried about their kids accessing inappropriate content online, and there is a need for government regulation in this space.

While he said he didn’t want to comment specifically on age restrictions, Davies added, “I know some other countries are moving in that direction, so I think it’s something Canada should look at.”

The government is leaving it to the expert group to weigh in on whether the legislation should also cover access to AI chatbots, Miller said.

“The more these things become prevalent and people have access to them and they are in fact causing harm, then you feel the people that are supporting these platforms or the owners of these chatbots have a responsibility,” he said.

On Saturday, the Liberals also adopted a similar non-binding resolution to set age restrictions for AI chatbots.

— With files from Kyle Duggan

2)Liberals return to Parliament with majority after three byelection wins

Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press

By Canadian Press Staff, April 14, 2026

The Liberals are set to return to the House of Commons with significantly more power after a set of byelection wins granted them a majority on Monday night.

The governing party swept all three byelections, giving them 174 seats in the House of Commons. Prime Minister Mark Carney’s federal government is the first in Canada’s history to switch from a minority to a majority between elections.

Once their new MPs are sworn into office in a few weeks’ time, the Liberals will have far greater control over the House of Commons, reducing the chances of an early election. The next federal election doesn’t have to be called until 2029.

“Tonight, voters have placed their trust in the new government’s plan,” Carney said on social media after the results came in.

“We are building a stronger economy to make life more affordable, to create high-paying jobs, to take care of each other and to determine our own future.”

The byelection results, combined with five opposition MPs who crossed the floor to the Liberals in recent months, have pushed Carney’s party over a threshold it could not reach in last year’s election.

The Liberals won 169 seats last April, shy of the 172 needed for a bare-bones majority.

Carney is set to make an announcement on affordability today.

Susan Smith, a Liberal commentator and founder of Blue Sky Strategy Group, said the byelection results show support for stability in Ottawa.

“With these byelection results and the effect of the floor crossings, you see what Canadians want, which is a stable government, and they want Mark Carney at the helm,” she said.

Canada hasn’t had a majority government since former prime minister Justin Trudeau swept to power in 2015. His government was downsized to a minority in 2019.

Gaining a majority means the governing Liberals have more than half of the votes in the House. That means they can survive confidence votes without the support of another party.

Not only can the Liberals pass legislation more easily without the support of other parties, but they can also cut down the time it takes to move legislation through Parliament by limiting debate.

Currently, opposition MPs dominate House committees in the minority Parliament. They control the agenda and can stall legislation or rewrite parts of it.

That means the Carney Liberals may seek to reset the committee structure, which can be done through a majority vote to change the Standing Orders, rules that govern the House of Commons.

That means some opposition MPs risk losing their committee seats to Liberal MPs.

But the Liberals only managed to scrape together a slim majority, which comes with its own headaches.

It gives their MPs greater leverage, but also creates problems with winning votes when a caucus member gets sick or is travelling abroad.

That puts greater pressure on the party whip, who will need to ensure MPs don’t miss key votes and see that Liberals who defected from other parties don’t step out of line.

Speculation about more floor crossers is still running rampant on Parliament Hill.

Conservative MP Billy Morin told The Canadian Press on Monday the Liberals were trying to “poach” him, and later said in a social media post that he is “proud to be a part of a strong opposition.”

Other Conservative MPs have said in recent days that they would remain with the Tories.

Liberal MP Wayne Long denied that the party was trying to poach Morin. Asked if he’s expecting more Conservative floor crossers, Long replied: “Not that I’m aware of, no.”

More byelections are also expected in the future, which could further fluctuate the makeup of Parliament.

Liberal MP Nate Erskine-Smith is exploring a run for the Ontario Liberal leadership and is expected to step down from his seat of Beaches—East York once Premier Doug Ford calls a byelection for a vacant Ontario seat.

3)(Update) Liberals suspend federal fuel excise taxes until Labour Day

Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press

By Craig Lord, April 14, 2026

The Liberal government will suspend the excise fuel tax on gasoline and diesel until Labour Day as the Iran war sends energy costs surging, Prime Minster Mark Carney announced Tuesday.

Carney said the tax break will start April 20 and is expected to save Canadians 10 cents per litre on regular gasoline and four cents on a litre of diesel.

Speaking to reporters on Parliament Hill, Carney said suspending the excise tax is a “responsible, temporary measure” that offers “real relief” to Canadian families.

“There is an enormous shock in the global economy that is undergoing right now because of the conflict. And we have to assess what’s the best approach, given our core plan and what can we do in the short term,” Carney said.

Gas prices have surged in Canada and worldwide in recent months as the conflict in the Middle East constrains global oil shipments.

While average gasoline prices are down roughly 10 cents from the national peak a week ago, CAA’s gas price tracker shows an average cost of $1.73 per litre at pumps across the country on Tuesday — more than 40 cents higher than a year ago.

A media statement about the federal plan said it will also reduce prices for truckers and other businesses with heavy transportation costs. Carney said the excise tax will be waived for jet fuel domestically as well, as airliners contend with ballooning energy costs.

Carney’s announcement stops short of the Conservative party’s call for the excise tax and GST on gas and diesel to be waived for the rest of the year, and for a permanent end to the clean fuel standard and industrial carbon tax.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has said his proposal would cut the cost of a litre of gasoline by 25 cents.

Carney told reporters that waiving the excise tax for a little over four months will cost the federal government roughly $2.4 billion, while the Conservatives put the price tag for their proposal at around $5 billion.

Poilievre argued Ottawa ought to use the “windfall” of higher tax revenue to offer Canadians a break at the pumps.

Carney said the Liberals are largely paying for the excise tax cut by “recycling” the revenues from the boost Canada’s economy typically receives from higher gas prices.

The prime minister justified the excise tax cut as a more responsible approach to managing federal finances while supporting Canadians and the broader economy.

“We didn’t just say, ‘Get rid of all taxes on gasoline and let’s spend $9 billion as if we’re not in government,’ which is actually what you do say when you’re not in government,” Carney said.

“But when you are in government, you have to choose, you have to balance, and this is the balance we’ve struck.”

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday the American military had begun a blockade of Iranian ports as part of his effort to force Tehran to open the Strait of Hormuz.

— with files from The Associated Press

4)Carney issues call for unity, says no time for ‘politics as usual’

Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press

By Kyle Duggan, April 11, 2026

Prime Minister Mark Carney issued a call on Saturday for political unity and for Canadians to dispatch with “politics as usual” as the country confronts a crumbling international order it once benefited gainfully from.

Carney made the remarks to Liberal party rank-and-file in a speech to rally the troops on the closing day of the party’s national convention in Montreal.

Carney addressed two large existential threats posed to Canadians: the rapidly changing geopolitical environment, and major leaps forward in artificial intelligence technology. 

He assured supporters that such threats also present major opportunities for the country, if Canada acts to seize on them.

“This is not the time for politics as usual, for petty differences or political point scoring. United, we will build … a Canada strong that no one can ever take away,” Carney told the crowd of partisans, who cheered as he delivered the line.

“We are meeting in the middle of a transformation that will define this country for generations, and Canadians sense it.” 

The message comes just as his party is on the cusp of forming a majority government, anticipated to happen through three byelections on Monday — two seen as safe Liberal seats, and one hotly contest race against the Bloc Québécois in Montreal’s Terrebonne suburb. 

Nearly a year ago, Carney brought the Liberals back from the brink of defeat and was swept into office, after campaigning on his plan to combat threats posed by U.S. President Donald Trump and his global trade war.

Since Carney became prime minister, Trump has continued to sow global discord through pursuing punishing tariffs, starting a war against Iran, and threatening to withdraw from the NATO alliance and annex Greenland.

Diana Fox Carney, who delivered remarks just before her husband, said she and the prime minister have been “stopped on the streets” in Mumbai, Sydney, London and Paris, as well as domestically, by people who wanted to “thank Canada for our country’s global leadership” and for “providing a beacon of hope in a confounding world.”

The speech was focused on global politics more than domestic, but it also comes amid separatist movements in Alberta and Quebec that have the potential to grow, and amid swirling questions in political circles about whether there are more floor crossers waiting in the wings to join the Liberal caucus in Parliament.

Though the party’s brand and political fortunes have become anchored to Carney, the Liberal leader also nodded in his speech to major accomplishments of past Liberal prime ministers, including Justin Trudeau, who Carney says walked the path of reconciliation with Indigenous people.

Seen by many to be shifting the party to the centre-right of the political spectrum, Carney made it a point to underscore in his speech core values the party holds dear: the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the guarantee that “women always have the right to choose” and that Canadians can “love who you want to love.”

That comes after Liberals welcomed five new MPs under their tent during the convention, including Marilyn Gladu, a Sarnia, Ont., MP who defected from the Conservatives just a few days ago.

Galdu’s addition to the party three days prior stunned party insiders from the Liberals and the Tories, and raised questions since she has adopted many stances contrary to the Liberals in the past.

Soon after she crossed the floor, the anti-abortion group Campaign Life Coalition said in a news release that Gladu had a “solid record of supporting pro-life bills,” and it questioned whether this meant the Liberals were ready to soften their stance on abortion rights that had grown strong under Trudeau’s leadership.

But what followed in the ensuing days in the halls of the convention was an outpouring of support for Gladu from progressive Liberal MPs, who said Gladu knows what she’s signing up for. 

Gladu herself made it a point to vow that, while she has her own long-held “faith traditions,” she will protect the rights and freedoms of women to choose and “for people to be who they are and love who they love.”