Parliament is back. And so is House Party. As Prime Minister Mark Carney faces off against newly re-elected Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre while grappling with the trade war, the rising cost of living, the housing crisis, the climate crisis, a budget that ain’t gonna be pretty, two overseas wars, a possible national unity crisis or two… need we go on? Sure, because co-hosts and political nerds Catherine Cullen, Daniel Thibeault and Jason Markusoff have got the party started and are here to talk about how Mark Carney is handling it all.

Ahead of MPs returning to the House of Commons, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre joins The House for a sit-down interview in studio to discuss the federal government’s major projects list, his views on climate change and his worries about his family’s security in a time of growing political violence.

Then, Catherine Cullen talks to Dan Myerson, CEO of the Foran copper mine in Saskatchewan that made the top tier of Carney’s projects list, and Martin Imbleau, the CEO of Alto, the high-speed rail project connecting Toronto to Quebec City that still has work to do before moving up to the A-list.

Plus, Tonda MacCharles of the Toronto Star and Stuart Thomson of the National Post evaluate whether Carney can walk the political tightrope and keep provinces and territories happy.

Finally, former federal environment minister Catherine McKenna discusses her new memoir, Run Like A Girl, and explains how she coped with sexist attacks and the increasingly toxic nature of political life in Canada.

This episode features the voices of:

• Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Conservative Party of Canada
• Dan Myerson, CEO of Foran Mining
• Martin Imbleau, CEO of Alto
• Tonda MacCharles, Ottawa bureau chief for the Toronto Star
• Stuart Thomson, parliamentary bureau chief for the National Post
• Catherine McKenna, former federal environment minister and author of Run Like A Girl

Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced billions of dollars in funding and a new Buy Canadian policy to help Canadians fight back against the U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Does that mean we’re in it for the long haul with this trade war? Industry Minister Mélanie Joly joins The House to answer that question and more about whether Canada is straying away from international free trade.

Then, as Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre demands the federal government axe the temporary foreign worker program, Catherine Cullen speaks to industry leaders and an immigration lawyer about the impact this proposal could have.

Plus, the Public Health Agency of Canada is shaving roughly 10 per cent of its employees as it continues to shrink in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Globe and Mail health columnist André Picard explains what those cuts will mean for Canada’s ability to counter vaccine misinformation as skepticism rises in Canada and the United States.

Finally, some of Canada’s NATO allies have been preparing their citizens for war or natural disasters for decades. Alex Wilner, director of Carleton University’s Infrastructure Protection and International Security program and Eva Cohen of Civil Protection Youth Canada join the show to discuss whether Canada too should ask ordinary citizens to be ready to help in the event of everything from weather-related emergencies to terror attacks.

This episode features the voices of:

• Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry
• Kelly Higginson, CEO of Restaurants Canada
• Gabriel Miller, CEO of Universities Canada
• Mark Holthe, immigration lawyer
• André Picard, health columnist for the Globe and Mail
• Alex Wilner, director of Carleton University’s Infrastructure Protection and National Security program
• Eva Cohen, Founder of Civil Protection Youth Canada