Blacklock's Reporter

Vietnam Airlines has won federal approval to operate a scheduled service with Canada for the first time since the end of the Vietnam War. Trade boosters said they hoped for increased sales with Vietnam, currently a smaller Canadian export market than North Dakota: “It is very crucial”.

The government’s Financial Consumer Agency mandated to monitor consumer protection codes says it deliberately did not fine banks or other violators under an enforcement “philosophy”. In one year the agency counted more than 2000 complaints without punishment: “We do not wag our fingers very much”.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s alma mater claims energy exports are worth almost $9000 for every Canadian household. However one analyst said the figure appeared misleading and abstract: “It’s not like $9000 of free cash flow”.

Telecom regulators have selected Metro Vancouver as the first municipality in the country to offer a texting 911 service for the hearing and speech impaired. It comes 55 years after Canada’s first three-digit emergency code was introduced in Winnipeg: “We have a strategy”.

Winter is delaying the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway shipping season with ice cover on the Great Lakes passing 91 percent, the biggest freeze-up since 1979. A quarter-million jobs depend on the seaway and Great Lakes trade: “The ice won’t go away fast enough.”

A federal order to boost Prairie grain shipments under threat of six-figure fines will be put to the test amid confirmation that penalties aren’t automatic. Transport Canada confirmed any fines for non-compliance are up to judges: “A court of law will ultimately decide”.

Environment Canada is conducting research on bird collisions with windows amid estimates that deaths run into millions a year. Authorities proposed a scientific estimate of the problem, especially for migratory birds travelling through urban landscapes in spring and autumn: “This is a very serious problem”.

An industry group has privately lobbied cabinet to reform Canada’s milk quota system as a “luxury” that threatens jobs. The Dairy Processors Association petitioned the Prime Minister and cabinet to revise the decades-old supply management system: “The pressure will come”.

Parks Canada cuts are marking a close to research and recovery of artifacts dating from among the earliest Western Canadian settlements. Authorities served notice they will catalogue and store the last of 9500-year old tools, fossils and other treasures recovered from archaeological digs: “It’s come to an end”.

The federal mortgage insurer CMHC is researching new condo sales in selected markets in an initiative consumers’ advocates say is overdue. The agency will track construction, sales, footage, and units left unsold or rented by developers: “Government-backed insurance wasn’t intended for market speculation”.

Bankers stung in a spectacular check kiting fraud have lost a Supreme Court bid to hear their case. Justices declined further appeals in the fraud estimated at $12 million: “That shows you just how uncertain the law is – and it really is”.

The national health care system should deploy teams of specialists to treat patients with addictions, mental illness and other ailments to lower costs, says a think-tank. The Conference Board said billions could be saved: ‘It’s more seamless care, better co-ordination’.

A businessman who claimed he made most of his money at the casino has had to fold ‘em in Tax Court. Canada Revenue concluded the man under-reported his business income 72% by posing as a lucky gambler. Casino winnings are not taxable in Canada: ‘There is a problem’.

A federal anti-trust agency has okayed a $110 million consolidation in the armoured car cash delivery business amid union worries on guards’ safety: “By driving down costs it becomes a race to the bottom”.