This week was all about A’s on Parliament Hill

Well, it’s been three weeks since Donald Trump was sworn in as U.S. president, and so far nothing terrible has happened to Canada.

That’s the nature of the strained attempt at optimism coursing through the capital as policy-makers muddle through the Trump-inspired confusion spilling around the world. With Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set to have his first tête-à-tête with the president on Monday, political Ottawa has been working full tilt to make sure the visit does more good than harm.

Even as three top cabinet ministers trekked to Washington, D.C., to till the soil for Monday’s visit, there were developments in Canada that touch everyday lives — on opioid addiction, Arctic sovereignty and government subsidies for corporations, specifically aerospace company Bombardier. Here’s how politics touched us this week:

ADDICTION

After years of political wrangling, the federal government has announced approval for three safe-injection sites for drug addicts.

All three will be in Montreal, but there are 10 others waiting for government approval for Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, Surrey, B.C., and another in Montreal. There are already two in operation in Vancouver.

At the same time, the federal Liberals and NDP are working together to amend legislation to make it easier to open new sites.

They are a key part of the federal government’s nascent approach to dealing with an alarming escalation of drug abuse and deaths linked to opioids. The RCMP is working with China to curb the flow of opioids into Canada and the government says it is building a fuller strategy set to be rolled out soon.

THE ARCTIC

Trudeau made his first prime ministerial trip to the Arctic this week, accompanied by his social development minister, his indigenous affairs minister and his health minister.

While the Liberals have not really set out a full-fledged Arctic policy, there are hints emerging about the federal government’s approach. In the long-running debate about whether sovereignty in the Arctic is best established through military presence or socio-economic development, Trudeau’s entourage suggests he favours the latter approach — although any government would officially say both are required.

Northern populations, especially Indigenous Peoples, face high rates of poor health and poverty, and are also on the front lines of global warming.

In Iqaluit, the ministers promised to make amends for how tuberculosis victims of the past were treated, and said they would focus on education and community development.

AEROSPACE

Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains finally announced how the federal government would address a long-standing request for $1 billion in aid for Bombardier Inc. He announced repayable loans worth $372.5 million for the Montreal aerospace giant to support the Global 7000 and CSeries aircraft projects.

The suspense may be over, but the politics are in full swing. In the absence of a clear policy, the Liberals were hammered with alternating criticisms of picking favourites, helping Quebec at the expense of others or not helping Quebec enough, and stirring up sovereigntist sentiment.

Bains says the funding will secure 4,000 jobs, but he did not produce the ironclad assurances from Bombardier he had insisted on earlier. The government had asked for a revamping of the company’s share structure and a promise that Bombardier would keep its head office and key jobs in Canada over the long term.