A Winnipeg man who claimed pandemic relief benefits though he wasn’t eligible does not have to repay the money, the Manitoba Court of Appeal has ruled. The Court accepted as evidence a remark by a Department of Employment spokesperson to the Toronto Star: “Ensure vulnerable Canadians do not fall behind.”
The Department of Canadian Heritage promises “large-scale commemoration events” for a September 30 holiday for federally-regulated employees only. The holiday itself will cost $388.9 million, by official estimate: “It is hard for me to hear about the hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Health Minister Patricia Hajdu’s department shipped 350 Baylis Medical ventilators to India that couldn’t plug into wall sockets. The department forgot to include $9 electrical adaptors, according to a briefing note: “The ventilators require a different electrical cord for use in India.”
The Public Health Agency in a confidential memo warned legislators to avoid “flagrant appeals to fear” in enforcing pandemic control measures. Trying to frighten Canadians was counterproductive, “coercive” and “manipulative,” said the memo: “Some people tend to have low trust in institutions and authority figures.”
Elections Canada yesterday said it has not asked cabinet to postpone balloting for federal voters in pandemic hot spots. An obscure provision of the Canada Elections Act allows local votes to be delayed for weeks, even months in case of emergency: ‘It is the last resort.’
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole yesterday said he would not chase “the almighty buck with China” if prime minister. The Party previously endorsed a 2012 investment pact with the People’s Republic but opposed any direct free trade treaty: “It is time for Canada to get tough on China.”
Canadian National Railway Co. for the third time in four years has been levied a multi-million dollar fine for breach of environmental laws. Railway lawyers pleaded guilty in a British Columbia court to spraying herbicides in the Skeena River: “The company’s name will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry.”
Records in a Tax Court dispute disclose terms of confidential federal loans to corporations dubbed “contribution agreements.” A federal judge ruled terms in one case were so generous, about a third the cost of a commercial loan, it amounted to an outright subsidy by taxpayers: ‘It was significantly lower than the market rate.’
The Canada Revenue Agency awarded its employees $2,500 in compensation for payroll errors regardless of whether they were underpaid in the first place, according to labour board records. No explanation was given: “That didn’t work.”
New Democrat leader Jagmeet Singh yesterday dropped two candidates for inappropriate tweets. The Party platform advocated federal measures to counter online hate: “We’re seeing a scary rise in anti-Semitism and we are unequivocally opposed.”
A garbled TV headline breached a news code on ethics, a national broadcast regulator said yesterday. Canadians expect accurate pandemic news, said the Broadcast Standards Council: “I’m just asking people, don’t gather in large groups.”
The Afghanistan Veterans Association of Canada yesterday petitioned Rideau Hall to award the Victoria Cross to a Nipissing, Ont. man, Jess Larochelle. Advocates noted there was precedent in reconsidering nominees for an award so rare no Canadian has won it in 77 years: “The guy had a broken back and single-handedly fought off forty Taliban.”
Public Works Minister Anita Anand personally called a federal contractor in a cabinet colleague’s riding to “speak about your needs,” according to internal emails. Cabinet to date has not disclosed details of the sole-sourced $200,451,621 contract for Covid ventilators that were shipped for storage in an Ottawa warehouse: “I am reaching out to arrange a phone call.”
We Charity spent nearly $20,000 hosting the Prime Minister’s wife at an event in Britain a month before cabinet aides began negotiating terms of what became a $43.5 million federal grant to the charity, according to records. It was the costliest of eight We Charity appearances by Sophie Grégoire Trudeau: “She got Covid from attending the We Charity event.”
Canadians share a lingering fear of crowds even after Covid runs its course, says in-house research by the heritage department. Most say they are uncomfortable or unsure it would be safe to attend indoor concerts and events once pandemic restrictions are lifted: ‘It would make me anxious.’
