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All new relationships run into a few bumps along the way, and the exhilarating love story between the Liberal government and the federal public service is no exception.

Six weeks in, the initial intoxication has worn off and the other’s annoying habits are being exposed.

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Exasperated senior Liberals complain the public service has not functioned as an effective bureaucracy should for a very long time.

Under the Conservatives, all tour logistics and stakeholder outreach, such as relations with the provinces, were handled by political staff.

Thus, when Justin Trudeau went overseas for four international summits, or sought to convene a first ministers’ meeting, the public service struggled to respond, they say.

We’re pulling political levers and finding out the levers are not attached to anything

Neither did the bureaucracy know how to prepare briefing books for question period — another function that, under Harper, was assumed by the political issues management staff in the Prime Minister’s Office.