By the time you hit play on this episode, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will likely be preparing for his first call of the new year with premiers, where vaccine rollout is expected to top the agenda. Thousands of doses are still waiting in freezers to be administered, which has Rosie and Elamin wondering: what’s the hold up? And is there more the federal government can do, to speed up getting shots in arms?

The two also take a close look at the outrage that continues to simmer over certain public officials choosing to travel abroad during the holidays. What kind of damage has it done to public trust and political parties?

Vaccines and vexing vacations

A political primer for every kind of concerned citizen co-hosted by Rosemary Barton and Elamin Abdelmahmoud. From CBC News and CBC Podcasts.

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Party Lines Introduces: A Special Front Burner Edition from the Ground in Ottawa

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Alberta Premier Jason Kenney continues to face criticism from all sides for his handling of the pandemic in the prairie province, where doctors are begging for an immediate lockdown as the health care system remains on the brink of collapse. Other premiers and leaders across the country have not faced the same kind of crisis in this fourth wave — how did Alberta get here, and what happens next? Rosie and Elamin also look ahead to what priorities Justin Trudeau is hoping to tackle as his Liberal Party will continue to govern and as Parliament is set to return before the end of the fall.

Party Lines is also saying farewell for now — but you can expect to hear Elamin and Rosie back here in your feeds, whenever the next federal election rolls around.

Alberta’s COVID crisis and what’s topping Trudeau’s agenda

Now that Rosie and Elamin have mostly — mostly — caught up on sleep after Monday’s big night, they’re ready to look ahead at what happens next. Sure, this new Parliament may look pretty similar to the last, but each federal party now has plenty of questions to grapple with: how do the Liberals move forward with their agenda in another minority? Will the Conservative Party have to re-identify who they are? Will the NDP devise a list of demands they expect the Liberals to fulfill in order to secure their support? And what happens next with the Green Party, and the People’s Party of Canada? As Rosie points out, there’s an endless stream of stories to follow once an election wraps up — and a new Parliament could very well bring significant change to this country.

Another minority. What happens next?

This is it: the final stretch before election day. Rosie and Elamin have noticed that the major party leaders have shifted their tone into more negative territory this week — but does that risk alienating voters and reaffirming the worst feelings people have about politics? And what about the risk of people feeling more divided than ever before? Elamin also breaks down some of the biggest differences between what the major parties are putting on the table as they continue to court voters, and Rosie maps out what she’ll be watching for, come Monday evening (which could, potentially, be a very late night).

Vaccines and vexing vacations

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