Canadian legislatures should narrow defamation law to protect public figures from so-called SLAPP lawsuits when speaking out on terrorism, says the Senate national security committee. The panel yesterday urged measures to shield lawmakers and pundits from “vexatious litigation” by groups accused of terrorist affiliation: “Those who have a different ideology have brought libel suits”.

Employment Canada faces a revived class action lawsuit after misplacing financial data and Social Insurance Numbers belonging to more than half a million student loan recipients. The Federal Court of Appeal said the department should be made to answer allegations of negligence and breach of confidence: “They have to work much harder”.

Environment Canada has approved the use of two oil spill dispersants as safe and “practically non-toxic” following an evaluation by federal scientists. One advocacy group disputed the claim: “Sheer bollocks”.

Cabinet has enacted a flawed union bill despite Senate warnings it must first correct sloppy drafting that compromises a federal labour board. The labour department yesterday confirmed Bill C-525 came into force June 16 though one Conservative senator called it defective: “The government is aware”.

Authorities are installing new metal detectors and X-ray screeners at every federal court in the country. Officials would not say if the security program is related to passage of Bill C-51 the Anti-Terrorism Act: “For security reasons we will not be commenting”.

Introduction of a West Coast oil spill preparedness plan after Parliament vetoed a tanker ban smacks of “sloganeering”, says an MP. Cabinet yesterday proposed $2.1 million in aid to municipalities and First Nations to develop oil spill responses: ‘We don’t have a world class system’.

A federal ruling on unsafe work conditions is prompting renewed calls for regulation of the armoured car industry. Two-man crews were deemed a “danger” under the Canada Labour Code with guards susceptible to ambush, assault and injury: “Banks and major customers need to rethink their positions”.

Air cargo shippers may see new screening fees of 15¢ per kilogram under a Transport Canada program to take effect next year. New “voluntary” security rules would see shippers apply to screen cargo at their own expense or face anticipated charges: “How do you apply it?”

Canada Revenue Agency has won a court judgment that confirms sweeping access to confidential documents for tax audits. The ruling came amid protest from one of the nation’s largest oil companies that accused auditors of “fishing” for unreported taxes: “Every taxpayer is accountable”.

Federal agencies must do more to help small and medium-sized businesses enter export markets, says a Senate report. The recommendation follows data that only 11,000 of some 1.1 million small companies sell to foreign markets outside the U.S.: ‘It would provide a considerable boost’.

Federally-regulated workplaces including small businesses must introduce health and safety committees under revisions to the Canada Labour Code. The requirement also mandates training standards and regular safety audits: ‘Everyone says safety first; in reality it is not’.

Six-figure cash transactions by judges, MPs, senators, their spouses and children will be subject to anti-terror surveillance under a Department of Finance proposal. Regulations would also target senior civil servants and CEOs of Crown corporations: “They are seen to be at higher risk”.

The Department of Labour after fifteen years’ worth of consultation is revising workplace safety regulations for thousands of railway employees threatened with hearing loss. Engineers, brakemen and other workers face unusually high rates of partial deafness, officials said: “Every one of us has hearing loss”.

A Vietnamese-Canadian airline passenger broke federal law in failing to declare five cans of ready-to-eat haggis, a tribunal has ruled. The violation netted an $800 fine by the Canada Border Services Agency, earlier accused of racial profiling in targeting non-Caucasian air travelers: “Look at the names”.

Health Canada is considering gruesome new tobacco labels featuring “medical images” of tumours and diseased organs. The Canadian Cancer Society praised the proposal: “They reach every smoker, every day”.