Hour 1 of Ottawa Now for Wed. February 18th, 2026

Yet another Conservative MP has joined the Carney Liberals via floor-crossing. Matt Jeneroux, an Alberta-based MP who resides in Edmonton, had initially resigned from the Tories’ caucus in November. Instead of crossing the floor to join the Red Team, he simply stepped aside and remained as an Independent MP. However, Jeneroux’s tone has changed since then, pointing to Carney’s speech in Davos as the primary reason. Kristy Cameron delivers the latest developments as they become available. Shifting gears to provincial politics, Ontario’s Premier is standing behind his government’s decision to lift a freeze on College and University tuitions. In a conversation with reporters, Doug Ford said that some institutions could have been forced to shut down without the ability to generate additional revenue. At the same time, the province said it would decrease the proportion of grants offered through OSAP, down from roughly 85 percent of total funding to a maximum of 25 percent. Ontario Green Party leader Mike Schreiner offers his two cents on that idea in Hour 1. Plus, the City of Ottawa is hitting the brakes on a blanket ban for right-on-red turns, saying that such legislation on all intersections could create ‘potential safety impacts’ and ‘increased traffic congestion’. We gather instant reaction from Rob Attrell, who serves as the Main Director of Bike Ottawa.