Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday denied he was ever lobbied by developers to endorse a $1.45 billion plan to buy distressed Vancouver condos at taxpayers’ expense. Carney did not say if he personally held shares in any British Columbia development as he does in Ontario: "Mark Carney helped build this system." READ MORE
The Department of National Defence in a newly-declassified report described Ukraine as a “no man’s land” of organized crime and political corruption. The confidential document was written in 1992 following the collapse of the Soviet Union: "Bribery and theft are rife." READ MORE
Federal regulators yesterday disclosed the Royal Bank paid $4.25 million in fines for overcharging hundreds of thousands of credit card customers in breach of the Bank Act. It was the largest fine to date against RBC: 'It reflects significant harm to customers.' READ MORE
The Department of Foreign Affairs yesterday would not disclose the cost of reopening a consulate in Phoenix that was closed 14 years ago to save taxpayers’ money. The new Arizona office follows an internal audit that complained of costly missions in the United States: "Canada maintains a large mission footprint in the United States requiring considerable effort and expenditures." READ MORE
Muttering that you’d like to kill your boss is not an automatic firing offence, a British Columbia labour board has ruled. The decision came in the case of a North Vancouver cleaning lady, 60, fired last Christmas after a bad day at work: "She does not pose a danger." READ MORE
Cabinet should adopt as a principle the validity of “Indigenous laws,” says a Canadian Human Rights Commission report. “Indigenous ways of life and Indigenous laws are not seen as valid as Canadian law,” wrote the Commission. READ MORE
First Nations schools operated by Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty’s department have failed an audit for the second time in five years. Records show the federal system spends 29 percent more per capita than the national average yet has the highest dropout rate in Canada: "There has not been measurable improvement over time." READ MORE
Canadians would first treat me as a kind of fanatic, as though I ate babies for breakfast, but then acknowledge I was always respectful of the Canadian people. I never denounced Canada, I was for Québec. Canada is a great country, but it is not my country. I respect Canadians, and sense we share more similarities than differences. We will make good neighbours one day, and would like to know you as friends. In a democracy you face realities. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Nobody is happy in defeat, but we always respect the verdict of the people. I remain convinced I will see a sovereign Québec in my lifetime.
