Cabinet had a “moral duty” to rescue Afghan allies trapped behind Taliban lines, Canadians told in-house researchers with the Department of Immigration. Federal focus groups found the public upset that translators and other friends of the Canadian Armed Forces were left behind: “We have a responsibility to the Afghans who helped us.”
Federal spending on election-year public opinion research jumped 17 percent, says a Department of Public Works report. Executives commissioned polls at the rate of three a week in 2021: “Ensure Canadians get the best value when such research is deemed necessary.”
A 106-year era in veterans’ care has ended in Québec Superior Court. A judge formally closed a successful class action case to compensate patients of the last federally-run hospital for soldiers, sailors and air crew: ‘The bills have been paid.’
Nudists have gathered enough signatures to certify a Commons petition protesting a federal ban on public nakedness. Advocates called it an environmentally friendly proposal: “Clothing and the process of washing it is known to cause significant water pollution.”
Attorney General David Lametti used emergency powers against the Freedom Convoy on fears protesters would block railways, according to Department of Justice records. Briefing notes did not explain why cabinet allowed 2020 First Nations blockades of railways without invoking the Emergencies Act: “The result of a railway blockade would be significant.”
A cabinet advisor appointed to help manage $595 million in media subsidies says racist Canadians share an “omnipresent belief in white supremacy.” Professor Karim Karim made the remarks at a federally-funded workshop by the Community Media Advocacy Centre, the same group subsequently stripped of funding for anti-Semitism: “Media workers continue unconsciously to reproduce racial hierarchies and portrayals.”
Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez will not speak to reporters on why his department paid $133,822 for media workshops led by an anti-Semite who said Jews deserve a “bullet to the head.” Rodriguez did not reply to interview requests though he previously boasted he liked tough questions: “We sometimes do not want to answer, but it is our job.”
Canadians think of electric vehicles as town cars unfit for long commuting or highway driving says in-house federal research. Drivers expressed skepticism over cabinet’s target of abolishing gas and diesel-powered vehicles by 2050: ‘A common worry was running out of power in a remote area.’
Canadian insurers paid out fewer death benefits in the first year of the pandemic than they did in 2019, new data show. Insurers said the unexpected finding was due to an anomaly in methods used to compile statistics: “Covid-19 numbers seem low.”
Blacklock’s Reporter pauses today to observe the 128th Labour Day in tribute to Canadian workers nationwide. We will be back tomorrow — The Editor
Canadians widely oppose federal regulation of the internet says confidential in-house research by the Privy Council Office. Consumers, not cabinet, should determine what is fit to watch, wrote federal pollsters: “Most participants felt these decisions should primarily be left to the viewer.”
A federal advisory committee yesterday said Canadians may consider getting a Covid shot every 90 days. The Department of Health only weeks ago said a booster every nine months was sufficient: “The messaging has changed a little bit.”
The Public Health Agency of Canada has been censured for awarding a contract to the highest bidder. A lower priced supplier spotted the breach of regulations after the winning bidder mistakenly “replied all” in an email disclosing its price schedule: “At times like these Canadians must be assured their government is exercising responsible stewardship over public funds.”
Canada faces a persistent farm labour shortage despite hiring migrant workers, says a Department of Agriculture report. The findings follow a 2020 appeal by members of the Senate agriculture committee to have taxpayers pay bonuses to jobless Canadians to work in agriculture: “To put food on the table Canada needs to increase the hiring of its domestic workforce.”
Debt collectors will track accounts for years and never close a file even after a borrower’s death, according to industry practices detailed in the British Columbia Supreme Court. Commissions and billing practices were disclosed in a six-figure commercial dispute: “Collection may have to await distribution of a deceased or bankrupt debtor’s estate.”
