A little less than a week after joining Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in Calgary to announce a newly-inked deal that lays the groundwork for the federal government to fast track the approval of a new pipeline, Prime Minister Mark Carney is booked in for what will likely be a highly-charged tête-à-tête with B.C. Premier David Eby in Vancouver. (9:30 a.m. PT)

During a back-and-forth with reporters yesterday, Eby warned that “Canada cannot work if ‘separatist premiers’ get all of the attention of the federal government,” Canadian Press reports.

“’The reality is that there is a very real and present threat of a referendum on separatism in Alberta, enabled by decisions made by the Albertan government,’ Eby said, when asked how much of his comment about separatist premiers was aimed at Smith. ‘I believe that that is part of why we are seeing the federal government engage differently with Alberta than other premiers across the country.’”

Eby served notice that he intends to deliver that message to Carney during their face-to-face meeting today, and said “he doesn’t understand how Ottawa’s carbon agreement with Alberta is going to be implemented across Canada, because national policies need to be negotiated with all premiers, not just one,” CP notes.

“’The prime minister needs to answer for why he made that decision,’ Eby said. ‘It’s not one I agree with.’ A spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office said in an emailed statement late Tuesday that it will work with all provinces and territories on getting ‘big things’ built to benefit British Columbians and all Canadians.”

Before his closed-door chat with Eby, Carney will take part in a “featured conversation” hosted by the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, according to his office. (8:15 a.m. PT)

Also making the rounds on the West Coast today: Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin, who is slated to headline a $250-per-ticket fundraiser for the Vancouver Quadra Federal Liberal Association (6 p.m. PT) and, separately, Veterans Affairs Minister Jill McKnight, who will mingle with local Liberals at a $300-per-ticket ‘Wednesday Social’ in support of her home riding association in Delta, B.C. (6:30 p.m. PT)

Delta-area MP Jill McKnight headlines a xxx fundraiser for her local riding association.

Other Team Carney front benchers hitting the ministerial hustings today:

• Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon joins Spain’s King Felipe VI and Spanish deputy prime minister Carlos Cuerpo for a mid-morning event at MaRS Discovery District in downtown Toronto, where, as per the advisory, the trio will “formalize cooperation” between Canada and Spain to “advance artificial intelligence.” (10:15 a.m.)
• Elsewhere in the city, Defence Minister David McGuinty is booked in for a “keynote address” and a “short fireside session” on the main stage of what the advisory notes is the “inaugural” CIBC Defence and Resiliency Summit. (8 a.m.)
• Agriculture Minister Heath MacDonald wraps up two days of “outreach” activities in Saskatchewan by meeting with his provincial counterpart, David Marit, along with an appearance at a “ribbon-cutting ceremony and celebration” at the Cargill Regina Canola Processing Facility.
• Meanwhile, Women and Gender Equality Minister Rechie Valdez, whose portfolio also includes small business, teams up with Secretary of State (Rural Development) Buckley Belanger to “highlight” their government’s support for “brewers, distillers and winemakers” during a visit to Regina-based District Brewing. (12 p.m. CT)
• Moving still further west, Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski will “mark the 10th anniversary of the Fort McMurray wildfire,” and share the details of new “disaster recovery funding” across the province, during a midday event hosted by the Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce. (12 p.m. MDT)
• Rounding out the roster, Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson is in Iqaluit to outline fresh federal support for “Arctic infrastructure in northern communities,” as well as “critical minerals projects” across Nunavut. (11:15 a.m. ET)  

Back in the precinct, members of the Senate HUMAN RIGHTS committee are set to assemble for a rare mid-recess session as they begin going through the fine print of Justice Minister Sean Fraser’s plan to expand and update Canada’s anti-hate laws — which, after a prolonged Conservative-initiated standoff in both the chamber at and committee, ultimately cleared the House of Commons in March, courtesy of a cross-aisle deal between the Bloc Québécois and the then-still-minority Liberals, but wasn’t referred to committee until April 30 due to a dispute over which committee should take the lead in studying the legislation, as iPolitics reported at the time. (12 p.m.)

“The anti-hate bill could also face a rewrite in the Upper Chamber,” iPolitics noted. “Senate sources told iPolitics there’s discussion about introducing an amendment to add residential school denialism to the Criminal Code, though it’s unclear if it will come to pass or win broad support.”

Over the course of the six-hour meeting, senators will hear from the Canadian Bar Association, Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group, as well as the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the Toronto, Edmonton and Ottawa police services, Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission Chair Shawna Paris and representatives of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, B’Nai Brith Canada, World Sikh Organization of Canada and the Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic, among others.

Also on the radar: The Parliamentary Budget Office releases its preliminary assessment of the “federal commitments and costs associated with co-hosting the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup,” which, as per the advisory, was prepared “in response to parliamentary interest,” and will be published online this morning. (9 a.m.)

IN THE CHAMBER

Regular parliamentary programming will resume on May 25, 2026.

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Committee highlights courtesy of our friends at iPoliticsINTEL.