Justin Trudeau Promises New Gun Control, a Smaller Canadian Military, and

The freshly-elected Liberal government has reaffirmed their pledge to legalize marijuana as Governor-General David Johnson addressed the parliament with a speech that outlined the legislative agenda for the coming year.

The speech also expanded on five themes that were central to the Liberals’ election victory, which ended the near-decade-long Conservation Party’s reign.

To implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and launch an inquiry into missing or murdered Aboriginal women and girls.

“We will undertake these and other initiatives while pursuing a responsible and transparent fiscal plan suited to challenging economic times”.

The Liberals also campaigned on a plan to cancel income-splitting and roll back contribution limits to tax-free savings accounts, but they were not mentioned in the speech.

Last February, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down the ban on physician-assisted dying and gave the federal government one year to craft legislation that recognizes the right of clearly consenting adults who are enduring intolerable physical or mental suffering to seek medical help to end their lives.

“The times we live in demand nothing less”, Johnston said.

Justin Trudeau is signalling that his government will make a clean break from the policies and practises of its Conservative predecessors with a relatively short Speech from the Throne that promises a cleaner environment, an enhanced social safety net, and a new era of openness and transparency.

“Bottom line is there is no mention of the private sector, which was very concerning when we’re thinking of the fact that we need job creation in this country and we have to focus on the economy”. The government is also promising a new system to appoint Senators and more open debates and free votes in the House of Commons.

Defence spending: Repeating language from the Liberal election platform, the Speech suggests the new government may not move ahead with all of the military purchases planned under the Conservatives.

Canada is “fundamentally a safe and peaceful country” and the government will work to keep Canadians it that way, he said. But, said Mr. Johnston, the government intends to “make real change happen”.

That plan, the government promised, will include robust consultations with First Nations and aboriginal people. Marijuana use for medical or industrial purposes is legal in Canada with government issued license.

We will strengthen our relationships with our allies and continue to work with them in the fight against terrorism, provide assistance to the world’s most vulnerable, contribute to greater peace throughout the world, invest in our Armed Forces, and negotiate trade agreements that expand our economic opportunities.