The Maclean’s Political Panel: Fantino, O’Toole and a growing cabinet

Our Ottawa bureau on the stories that mattered this week

<p>OTTAWA, ON- OCTOBER 23  &#8211;  The flag on the Centre Block of Parliament Hill flies at half mast as Canada mourns the death of Cpl. Nathan Cirillo. Police continue to investgate in  the aftermath of a shooting in Ottawa, where a soldier murdered at the War Memorial and a gun battle in Parliament killed the alleged gun man. in Ottawa. October 23, 2014.</p>

OTTAWA, ON- OCTOBER 23 – The flag on the Centre Block of Parliament Hill flies at half mast as Canada mourns the death of Cpl. Nathan Cirillo. Police continue to investgate in the aftermath of a shooting in Ottawa, where a soldier murdered at the War Memorial and a gun battle in Parliament killed the alleged gun man. in Ottawa. October 23, 2014.

Each week, the Maclean’s Ottawa gathers in the OMNI studios to talk about the political stories that matter in the nation’s capital. This week, they take on Julian Fantino’s dismissal from veterans affairs, the ever-ballooning federal cabinet, and persistent rumours of a spring election (spoiler alert: the panel is skeptical of a vote before autumn):