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WELCOME TO OTTAWA PLAYBOOK, I’m your host, Nick Taylor-Vaisey. Today we get a Throne Speech, the highlight of the second sitting day of Parliament replete with arcane-but-entertaining Westminster custom that launches the government's legislative agenda. The hitch: The clock is ticking and these crucial first weeks of the session will require cooperation — an oft-elusive concept in the House — if anything is to get done before 2022.

THE BIG FOUR — Government House Leader MARK HOLLAND sorta stole Governor General MARY MAY SIMON's Throne Speech thunder on Monday when he set the Liberal agenda — at least for the legislative rush to the end of the year.

Holland identified four priorities: Covid relief for targeted industries, a new law to protect health-care workers from abuse, 10 days of paid sick leave for federally regulated workers and the Liberals' third attempt to pass a bill that would ban conversion therapy.

NDP House leader PETER JULIAN told CBC's Power and Politics that his party would support the government on at least sick leave and conversion therapy. But he said the end of the last suite of Covid relief programs left thousands of Canadians without the financial help they need. Those are the NDP's table stakes, anyway.

Counting today's mostly perfunctory sitting, the House has 20 days until the holiday break. Most Canadians return to work shortly after New Year's Day. MPs won't be back in the Commons until Jan. 31. "I'm not looking to tolerate a lot of obfuscation or political games," Holland told reporters (with a straight face, after calling an election that delayed regular House business for more than a month). Clearly, the countdown is on until Christmas.

— Roadblocks: ZI-ANN LUM made a crucial point in our bureau Slack. Whatever the Commons sends to the Senate still needs to emerge from a round of sober second thought. Senators refused to rubber stamp the last bill that banned conversion therapy. And royal assent runs through their approval.

— For POLITICO Pro subscribers: 6 issues to watch as Parliament returns.

— What Holland didn't mention: When all the parties were jockeying for headlines after the election, Trudeau repeatedly identified several other priorities: "finishing the fight against" Covid, "addressing affordability" in housing and childcare, and advancing reconciliation for Indigenous peoples. Count on the Throne Speech to fold these themes into the government's dreams for 2022 (and maybe subtweet Ontario for resisting a child-care funding deal).

— Related reading from CBC's AARON WHERRY: Whatever else happens, this Parliament looks set to be (mostly) about climate change.

DAY 2 — Get stoked for more pomp and circumstance today — a procession to the Senate chamber, a gaggle of MPs waiting behind the shiny bar of the Red Chamber, and a literal throne from which the GG will read the government's priorities.

The Canadian Press reports this morning, "The most novel aspect of the speech may well turn out to be the person who delivers it: Mary Simon, the first Indigenous person to hold the office of Canada's governor general."

Throne speeches are not built for surprises. When they follow elections, they're predictable. Which means the broad themes in Liberal platform, which mirror Trudeau's post-election telegraphing, offer a useful blueprint.

Playbook will be watching for a few other early-session highlights:

— More key players: All of Ottawa, but especially Liberals who were snubbed from Cabinet, are still waiting for the announcement of a roster of parliamentary secretaries. This is the ministerial stand-in and support crew, a role that varies by minister but can involve substantive contributions — and also identifies key up-and-comers in the governing caucus. As the Commons gets down to work, parlsecs are essential to House debate. (They also get a salary bump of C$18,100.)

— Private members' bills: Every session, MPs draw straws to determine the order of precedence for who gets to table PMBs. The lottery doesn't guarantee anything, but MPs with numbers closer to the top have improved odds of seeing their ideas receive royal assent. Only six got lucky in the last session and saw their bills become law.

— The chosen backbencher: In 2019, Liberal MP LYNE BESSETTE delivered the address in reply to the Speech from the Throne. In 2015, the honor fell to Liberal MP RÉMI MASSÉ. What do they have in common? They're newcomers to the governing caucus, and they typically team up with another rookie who seconds a motion “to offer our humble thanks” for the "gracious speech" they just heard.

The chosen one isn't necessarily destined for greater things. But they're part of history (and solid candidates for future Playbook trivia).

THE (LITERAL) FRONT BENCH — Playbook talks a lot about Cabinet committees as a strong indication of the executive branch's pecking order. But there's more to it than that. The Commons seating plan offers powerful visual hints of who's who in JUSTIN TRUDEAU's orbit. It's all about location, location, location.

— Movin' on up: Defense Minister ANITA ANAND shifted from the second row to the first, three seats down from Trudeau. Rookie cabinet minister MARCI IEN sits directly behind her, visible behind the PM when he's speaking. Foreign Minister MÉLANIE JOLY is Ien's neighbor. Whip STEVEN MACKINNON is right behind Trudeau, replacing MARK HOLLAND — now the House leader on Trudeau's left. KARINA GOULD, the government's face of childcare, is beside MacKinnon.

— Similar digs: Several ministers didn't budge much. Deputy PM CHRYSTIA FREELAND sits to the right of Trudeau, and FRANÇOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE is still right beside her. Trade Minister MARY NG keeps her second-row seat just over Trudeau's right shoulder. Infrastructure Minister DOMINIC LEBLANC remains in his spot beside the House leader. Heritage Minister PABLO RODRIGUEZ, Employment Minister CARLA QUALTROUGH and Health Minister JEAN-YVES DUCLOS shifted over just a smidge.

— The formers: On the far flank of the front bench is where you'll spot MARC GARNEAU, JIM CARR and BARDISH CHAGGER — the three cabmins dropped in the post-election shuffle. Rumors have swirled that Garneau would head to France as Canada's next ambassador, but he tweeted he's staying put. Chagger's neighbor is NDP MP CHARLIE ANGUS, one of her chief adversaries in the WE Charity scandal.

— On the oppo benches: The cluster of MPs surrounding Tory leader ERIN O'TOOLE is strikingly similar to its pre-election configuration. Notable changes: MELISSA LANTSMAN, a rookie MP and shadow minister for transport, sits directly behind the leader (and was sporting a Toronto Blue Jays mask on her first day in the chair). RANDY HOBACK, formerly a fourth-row resident, now has a front-row seat as shadow minister for trade and supply chain resilience.

Tory MP MARK STRAHL used to sit in the front row. Now he's back in Row 4. Strahl's previous neighbor, SHANNON STUBBS, is now seated in the fifth row. MARILYN GLADU, another former front-rower, was also relegated to the fourth. Such is the cost of challenging a leader whose post-election hold on his job isn't exactly a sure thing — and when vaccinations are a persistent wedge.

HALLWAY CONVERSATION — Playbook asked two key stakeholders: What do you need to see in the Throne Speech for it to be a success?

BRIAN KINGSTON, CEO of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association: We know the government committed in their platform to 100 percent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035 — a very ambitious target.

If they're going to get there, we're going to need a very clear action plan to achieve that. What that means is far more ambitious investments into consumer incentives, more investments into charging infrastructure, and a bigger initiative to build consumer awareness around electric vehicles.

The United States has committed $174 billion to winning the EV market. This includes consumer incentives and a massive national infrastructure rollout. If we're going to hit our targets and keep up with the U.S., we need to plan.

JEFF MORRISON, executive director of the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association: We're looking for them to do what they said they would do during the campaign — notably, address housing affordability, particularly for low-income and vulnerable populations.

Specifically, we're looking for them to enact their campaign promises regarding putting in place an urban, rural and northern Indigenous housing strategy; building more affordable housing supply by putting in more money through the National Co-investment Fund; developing a plan and a strategy to enact their promise to end chronic homelessness in Canada, which they also promised in the Throne Speech last year; and means to address financialization of housing, that notion of housing as only a commodity, rather than than what it is.

MR. SPEAKER — Liberal MP ANTHONY ROTA won Parliament's first vote. The returning Speaker of the House of Commons will earn C$274,500 a year for the thankless task of keeping the chamber in order.

Pro subscribers can read about Rota's to-do list. Here's one item worth watching:

— CHARLES ROBERT, the clerk of the House, is under fire for overseeing an unhealthy workplace after CBC News reported on complaints from several senior managers in Robert's administration. Tories want Rota to investigate the claims made against the clerk. An editorial in the Hill Times newspaper called on Robert to step aside and for his conduct to be fully investigated.

— The speakership has its perks: There's the official residence, a country estate in nearby Gatineau Park known as The Farm. There's the honor of hand-picking an official scotch. (Typically, there's also a small apartment in Centre Block where the speaker can stay — not an option for most of the next decade as the building is gutted and renovated.)

— Wisdom from the dean: As Playbook hoped, Bloc Québécois MP LOUIS PLAMONDON imparted advice to rookies in the House just before first ballots were cast in the Speaker's election. Plamondon brought the funny:

"In my riding, there was an old mayor who was very skillful at always getting into the middle of a confrontation. Any time someone was questioned or harassed or insulted, he would be there. And one time a lady asked him, 'Mr. Mayor, aren't you tired of being insulted, harassed and questioned all the time?' And he answered, 'My dear woman, a good politician is a pillar. Sometimes a little dog will come along and take a little pee on the pillar and continue on his way. It doesn't hurt the pillar, but it hurts the dog a lot.' So to my young colleagues, let us be pillars."

We don't totally get the punchline. We'll check Hansard this morning for the interpreters' official translation.

POTATOES — P.E.I. Premier DENNIS KING was fuming on CBC's Power & Politics Monday, furious with a federal decision to suspend potato exports to the United States. He pointed the finger at Ag Minister MARIE-CLAUDE BIBEAU, who ordered the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to enforce the measure.

— Why a suspension? As Zi-Ann wrote in our Pro Canada PM newsletter, potato wart fungus was detected in two fields on the island last month. Americans applauded the move. GREG DONALD, the general manager of the province's Potato Board, dismissed the move as "solely a politically based trade disruption."

King promised to lobby hard for the "best potatoes in the world." (File this under: Serious Public Policy Issues That Also Meet Classic Stereotypes.)

— Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU is chairing Cabinet this morning at 9. Trudeau will head over to the Senate at 12:35 for the Speech from the Throne. At 4 p.m., he'll meet the President of the Republic of Kosovo, VJOSA OSMANI-SADRIU. She attended the Halifax International Security Forum over the weekend.

— Cabinet ministers will scrum with reporters in West Block's third-floor foyer at 11 a.m. That's the same time Conservative MP PIERRE POILIEVRE is scheduled to hold a presser on inflation.

— Governor General MARY MAY SIMON will read the Speech from the Throne at 1 p.m. Later today, she'll also meet Osmani-Sadriu in Rideau Hall's Large Drawing Room.

— At 1:35 MST, the Manitoba legislature returns with Premier HEATHER STEFANSON and a Throne Speech from Lt-Gov. JANICE FILMON.

— Out in Vancouver, Mayor KENNEDY STEWART delivers his final State of the City address at 12:30 PST.

What are you hearing that you need Playbook to know? Any questions about the newsession of Parliament? Send it all our way.

Birthdays: HBD to JANE PHILPOTT, former Liberal cabinet powerhouse and current dean of health sciences at Queen's, who's 61 today. … Liberal MP ARIF VIRANI celebrates the big 5-0 today. … Former Northwest Territories premier FLOYD ROLAND is 60. … BRAD WARD, a cabinet minister in BOB RAE's NDP government, is 65. … Former Quebec MNA NORMAND JUTRAS is 73. … ANDREA KHANJIN, Ontario's deputy House leader, welcomed OLIVER STUART ROYAL into the world

Spotted: LEAH TAYLOR ROY and JOANNE THOMPSON, new seatmates on the Liberal backbench.

Movers and shakers: MEGAN BUTTLE, a former Liberal staffer on the Hill who served stints at Spark Advocacy and NATIONAL, is now principal of digital strategy at Earnscliffe.

KEVIN BOSCH registered with his first client as managing partner of the Sandstone Group: The City of Brampton. Bosch will also rep Imperial Oil on the Hill for H+K.

Britishvolt, which wants to build a Lithium-ion battery plant in Canada, posted four new lobbyists from Ernst & Young: JAN WOJNICKI, GYPSIE KHIT, LOUIS-PHILIPPE COTÉ and FRANÇOIS TELLIER. The company also enlisted Summa's LINDSAY STEVENS and ADAM YAHN. Former Quebec premier PHILIPPE COUILLARD, now a senior business adviser at Dentons, has also taken meetings for the company.

If you are a subscriber, catch our latest Pro Canada PM newsletter: After 5-month hiatus, a 20-day sprint.

In other news for Pros:

— B.C. braces for more rain as MPs appeal for emergency debate.
— POLITICO Pro Q&A: Gen. Wayne Eyre, Canada's acting chief of defense staff.
— Failure to vaccinate poor countries fans fears of uncontrolled outbreak.
— Biden renames Powell to lead Fed, risking the left’s wrath.
— POLITICO Pro Q&A: U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

— JENNIFER DLOUHY reports for Bloomberg: Keystone pipeline developers seek $15B from U.S. for cancellation.

— ZI-ANN LUM is on POLITICO’s Energy podcast to talk about the pipeline war between Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Enbridge.

— Top of POLITICO this morning: Trump zeros in on his 2024 map.

— The Globe's EMMA GRANEY reports: Trans Mountain closer to returning oil line to operation following floods.

— In The Narwhal, STEPHANIE WOOD considers how to build back B.C.’s flood infrastructure better.

— Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister MARC MILLER tells ALEX BALLINGALL of The Star that he is “very concerned” rising tensions over the Coastal GasLink pipeline could spiral into another nationwide solidarity movement.

— JOE BIDEN passed on an opportunity to put the central bank under the helm of a woman and a Democrat for years to come. Why? POLITICO’s BEN WHITE explains.

Monday's answer: Canada Post unveiled a commemorative stamp featuring BUFFY SAINTE-MARIE last week. APTN has video of the ceremony. In 1983, she won the Oscar for Best Original Song for “Up Where We Belong.”

Props to KEITH COOPER, BOB GORDON, BRAM ABRAMSON, JOHN ECKER, SEAN WEBSTER, GARY ALLEN, DON YOUNG, LEIGH LAMPERT, GREG MACEACHERN, PATRICK DION, DAN MCCARTHY, MICHAEL MACDONALD, JOHN GUOBA, DIANNE SHERRIN, HÉLÈNE CHEVALIER, MONIQUE SMITH, BEN ROTH and JENN KEAY.

Tuesday’s question: In what year were parliamentary proceedings first broadcast live on television to Canadians.

Send your answers to [email protected]

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Playbook wouldn’t happen without Luiza Ch. Savage, editor Sue Allan, Zi-Ann Lum and Andy Blatchford.