The King and Queen of Belgium swept into Queen's Park Wednesday as part of the first visit to Canada by a Belgian royal couple in more than 40 years.

Lt.-Gov. Elizabeth Dowdeswell greeted the heads of state in her suite, surrounded by state officials, a gaggle of media and portraits of viceroys past.

After their chat shortly before noon, King Philippe and Queen Mathilde shook hands with Premier Kathleen Wynne — no bows or curtsies — for a photo-op down the hall.

The duo wore smiles, despite a perceived diplomatic snub Tuesday by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for not meeting with them in Ottawa, as his father did with King Philippe's uncle King Baudouin in 1977.

Le Roi Baudouin et la Reine Fabiola sont venus en Visite d'Etat au Canada en septembre 1977 et ont planté un arbre dans le parc de Rideau Hall. Le 12 mars les souverains belges @MonarchieBe planteront un arbre à leur tour à l'invitation @GGJuliePayette pic.twitter.com/vJXfOJs8Rw

— Raoul Delcorde (@RaoulDelcorde) March 3, 2018

Another wrinkle appeared at a tree-planting ceremony at Ottawa's Rideau Hall Monday when a German flag — virtually identical to the Belgian flag, but with horizontal stripes, not vertical — was placed on a tree planted by Belgian Queen Fabiola in 1977.

Both Canadian and Belgian monarchies have had their tensions with cultural communities, with calls to sever ties with Buckingham Palace coming part and parcel with secessionist sentiment in Quebec, and the Flemish separatist movement picking up steam over the past two decades (though the Belgian monarchy is often seen as a bridge between communities, not a wall).

Bilateral trade numbered above $6 billion last year, according to Global Affairs Canada, with stronger commercial ties between the two nations expected following ratification of the Canada-E.U. free trade deal.

Another pretense for the trip, which includes a delegation of 150 state officials, academics, business leaders and journalists, is the bond forged during the First World War and the liberation of Belgium.

The president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) lashed out Wednesday against Doug Ford, slamming him for his conduct and policy positions during the new Progressive Conservative leader's media blitz this week.

"He's already acting like he's premier, but he is spouting off about privatizing the sale of alcohol and cannabis, without giving any thought to the consequences," said Warren (Smokey) Thomas in a release. "His superficial grasp of the issues proves he's all tip and no iceberg."

The union referenced Ford's combative interview with Robyn Bresnahan on CBC's Ottawa Morning, where the one-term Toronto city councillor floated the idea of a free-market cannabis retail system, as opposed to the retail monopoly now in the works by the Liberal government.

"If we can't trust corporations to sell bread responsibly, why should we trust them to sell alcohol and cannabis responsibly?" Thomas asked.

The Liquor Control Board of Ontario oversees the agency responsible for rolling out marijuana sales in Ontario, which will happen via the freshly branded Ontario Cannabis Store. The LCBO's roughly 8,000 unionized members are part of the 130,000-strong OPSEU.

Thomas didn't limit his shots to one target. "I thought the Liberals had cornered the market on arrogance, but this guy is off the charts," he said.

Wrapping up, Thomas seemed to equate majority political wins to corporate strangleholds. "Doug Ford says he doesn't like monopolies. But he's boasting he's going to win the biggest political majority in Ontario history. That would make him just as powerful as any corporate monopoly," he said.

Economist Sheila Block, from the left-leaning Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, is arguing against Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford's proposal to have low-income earners pay no tax, rather than raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.

Block said in a blog post that minimum wage earners would be better off with a wage increase than a tax break, arguing that for the 34 per cent of Ontarians with incomes under $30,000, who paid tax, the average provincial income tax bill was only $485 in 2015, or 0.9 per cent of their total income.

Ford has come out against raising the minimum wage to $15 on Jan. 1, 2019, as planned by the Liberal government, arguing recent wage hikes have resulted in job losses.

Ford has said his tax plan will result in minimum-wage earners taking home an extra $160 a month, but he has not yet outlined how he plans to implement the tax break.

In Brief: Belgian blue bloods, Ford ‘all tip and no iceberg,’ and the minimum wage

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