Here are five developments shaping Ottawa and the National Capital Region today, with context on why they matter.
Ottawa police still project a nearly $22-million deficit for 2026
Ottawa police expect to finish 2026 with a $21.8-million deficit, and overtime makes up nearly half of it, CBC News reports. That is only slightly better than the $21.6 million projected about three months ago, though it improves on the $28.9-million shortfall in 2025. Along with about $10 million in overtime, mostly for front-line policing, court security and the communications centre, the service points to roughly $4.6 million for a landfill search tied to a homicide investigation, about $3 million for recruiting and onboarding, and about $1 million for fuel. A spending-restraint plan in place since February has saved about $9 million, police are looking for another $2.2 million, and the third-quarter report goes to a police services board committee on Friday, Nov. 6. With police deficits around $10 million at the start of the decade, the overrun will weigh on the next city budget, one of the first major tasks for Ottawa’s new council. Sources: CBC News via Yahoo News and CTV News Ottawa.
Canada and EU launch “alliance for the future” as Montreal summit wraps up
Canada and the European Union closed their two-day summit in Montreal on Friday by launching what they call an “alliance for the future,” agreeing to spend the next eight months negotiating toward associate membership for Canada, The Canadian Press reports. The European Commission said the two sides concluded talks on a digital trade agreement covering cross-border data flows, e-signatures and online consumer protection, which still needs formal signature and approval on both sides. Other agreements let the European Investment Bank fund critical raw materials projects in Canada, give Canadian AI researchers access to European supercomputers, and see Canada join an EU loan program for Ukraine with an initial 500 million euros. Leaders also discussed the EU’s carbon border measures, which could affect Canadian goods, and a Canadian official said talks on recognizing Canada’s emissions pricing are advanced but not finished. Conservatives say Prime Minister Mark Carney has not won better access for Canadian pork and beef, while the Bloc Québécois wants Quebec involved because the talks touch provincial jurisdiction. The summit opens a long negotiation rather than closing one, with more details expected when Carney meets European Council President António Costa in June. Sources: The Canadian Press via National Newswatch, European Commission and Al Jazeera.
Canada’s economy stalled in August, with a dip expected in September
Canada’s real GDP was essentially unchanged in August, missing the 0.2 per cent gain economists had expected and following flat growth in July, according to Statistics Canada figures reported by The Canadian Press. A flash estimate points to a 0.1 per cent decline in September, led by manufacturing and by mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction. In August, wholesale trade fell 1.4 per cent while retail trade rose 1.2 per cent. StatCan’s early estimate puts third-quarter growth at 1.3 per cent annualized, down from 3.3 per cent in the second quarter, with official figures due next month. The data lands days after the Bank of Canada raised its key rate to 2.5 per cent, and economists said it supports a pause at the bank’s December decision. For households and businesses, it means higher borrowing costs are arriving just as the economy loses momentum. Source: The Canadian Press via National Newswatch.
Ottawa fast-tracks $5.9-billion Roberts Bank port expansion in B.C.
The federal government has listed the planned Roberts Bank Terminal 2 expansion at the Port of Vancouver as a project of national interest, Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon announced Friday in Delta, B.C. The three-berth terminal, proposed by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, would add capacity for 2.4 million containers at an estimated capital cost of $5.9 billion. The designation could move commercial operations up by as much as four years, to 2035, and Ottawa estimates the project would support about 17,000 jobs. MacKinnon warned that without more capacity, port congestion could push shipping costs above $800 million a year by 2035. Tsawwassen First Nation Chief Laura Cassidy said her nation consents, but its support is “not unconditional.” The move shows Ottawa using its new fast-track powers to expand trade infrastructure on the West Coast, where shipping bottlenecks affect costs for businesses and consumers across the country. Sources: The Canadian Press via National Newswatch and CTV News Vancouver.
Early voting surges ahead of Tuesday’s U.S. midterms
More than 43 million Americans had voted early, in person or by mail, about five days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, nearly 10 million more than at the same point in 2022, The Associated Press reports. In Texas, more than 6.3 million people had already voted, up 50 per cent from four years earlier, and early voting rose more than 30 per cent in Maine, Michigan, North Carolina and Kansas, all of which have competitive Senate races. Republicans currently control both the House and the Senate, and Tuesday’s vote will decide control of Congress two years into President Donald Trump’s second term. Recent polling cited by The Canadian Press found eight in ten registered voters want Congress to prioritize lowering the cost of living. For Canada, which is still working toward a trade deal with Washington, the balance of power in Congress will help shape the political climate for those talks. Sources: The Associated Press via National Newswatch and The Canadian Press via Lethbridge Herald.
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