Rob Russo

I would say it could be better.

You're never going to hear someone like me complain that we have too much access to the PM.

And they certainly are mindful of overexposure.

But that's their problem and not mine.

I think he's probably accessible once or twice a week.

And as Althea says, we prefer backdrops.

Backdrops that he would prefer.

The trip that I was on to China, Qatar and Davos, there were two or three days when he was not available.

And I think there was some legitimate grumbling by reporters about that.

There might not be a preferred list in the way Stephen Harper used to do it, but it's in effect reporters agree among themselves that, OK, we only got 20 minutes.

So you didn't get a question this time.

So last time, so you're going to get one this time.

And because time is limited, often there is discussion about making sure that we cover all the bases and ask pertinent questions across a broad spectrum in a way that tries to give everybody a chance.

So there's not an overabundance or even an abundance of time sometimes to ask the Prime Minister's questions and reporters are mindful of that as well.

Oh, well, with Poiliev during the campaign, I went to one of his campaign stops and there was very, very little access in comparison, I would say.

He made sure the local reporter always got a question.

The local reporter was often armed with a question, it seemed to me.

It was often a question that was on an issue that Mr. Poiliev wanted to talk about.

At the news conference that I went at, the reporter came in thinking he was going to ask one question, a local radio reporter, and he was encouraged to ask a question about crime rates.

He ended up asking that.