The Department of Foreign Affairs closed its embassy in Kabul though it knew Canadian citizens remained trapped inside Afghanistan. Cabinet had claimed all Canadians were “safely on their way back to Canada.” The department would not account for poor planning after a 2019 federal report correctly predicted Afghanistan “could collapse quickly” once U.S. forces withdrew: “The only reason rockets are not raining down on Kabul today is because of the presence of foreign forces in Afghanistan.”

Staff in the Prime Minister’s Office complained it was “totally unacceptable” for the Public Health Agency to offer medical advice without first checking with political aides, according to 2020 internal emails. Staff debated whether to order removal of a web page recommending essential workers wear Covid masks when federal agencies knew masks were in short supply: “They’re not ready.”

The Department of Natural Resources in a briefing note says it’s relying on private landowners to help fulfill a Liberal Party promise from the last election campaign to plant two billion trees. The department earlier acknowledged it had no detailed plan to ensure “the right tree is planted in the right place.”

We Charity has served libel notice on a Toronto publisher who first disclosed payments of six-figure talent fees to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s family. A lawyer for the Kielburger brothers accused Canadaland of a “pastiche of falsehoods” in a podcast: “We are extremely concerned.”

Voters in select ridings in high-growth provinces are heavily underrepresented in Parliament, according to Elections Canada data released Saturday. Constituency boundaries are up for revision beginning in 2022 based on new Census figures: ‘The goal is each electoral district contains roughly the same number of people.’

The Department of Health will pay burial costs for Canadians killed by federally-approved vaccines. “Serious and permanent vaccine injuries are rare but as with any medical product they do occur,” staff wrote in a briefing note: “The program will provide death benefits and support for funeral expenses.”

Cabinet aides in internal emails said federal agencies should keep quiet about donations of pandemic supplies from China. The messages were prompted by Liberal MP Han Dong (Don Valley North, Ont.) who questioned why Canada was not celebrating charity by Chinese corporations: “We aren’t touting any.”

Hockey Canada is asking a federal judge to seal records detailing what it does with millions in subsidies. The governing body in a rare Federal Court application claimed it faced “material financial loss” if information was disclosed: ‘Ask how they spent the $9 million.’

The Department of Transport turns an average eight percent profit on mandatory security fees for air travelers, records show. Net profits over a five year period totaled a third of a billion: “It has become a cash cow, not a fee for service.”

Judges have ordered a fresh trial in Canada’s longest-running bribery case. Executives with an Ontario software firm are accused of plotting large cash payoffs to win an Air India contract. The investigation dates from 2007: “A fair trial is a trial which satisfies the public interest in getting at the truth.”

Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault yesterday said his agency will strictly enforce any local mask requirements on Election Day, September 20. Maskless voters will be ejected from polling stations if they defy local health orders, he said: “I think electors have a responsibility.”

Facebook Canada yesterday named the CBC as an election campaign fact checker. The Crown broadcaster’s French-language service Radio Canada will monitor other media’s news stories to ensure accuracy, though the network has acknowledged multiple errors in its own news coverage: “We are committed to doing our part.”

Cabinet yesterday gave banks until 2022 to comply with new federal consumer protection laws. Regulations follow 2017 hearings of the Commons finance committee that detailed unethical practices: “Sales goals were an insidious thing for all branch employees.”

Federally regulated private sector companies should be subject to Québec language regulations, Opposition Leader Erin O’Toole said yesterday. O’Toole said any Conservative cabinet within 100 days of taking office would “work with Québec to apply Bill 101 to federally regulated businesses.”