In a little-noticed regulatory change, the Department of Northern Development has clawed back a requirement for public hearings on dumping toxic waste in the Northwest Territories. New rules allow oil and gas companies to dump waste on-site without public notice, rather than transport it to Alberta and B.C.
The Crown agency that produces the nation’s coins admits it made a seven-figure arithmetic error in its accounts. The Royal Canadian Mint acknowledged it mistakenly inflated the profit it reported to taxpayers. “This is ironic,” one MP told Blacklock’s.
Canada will battle any U.S. attempt to collect fees on goods or vehicles crossing the 49th parallel, says International Trade Minister Ed Fast. “We will certainly fight this,” he told reporters. The remark followed a U.S. agency’s musing it might charge border fees as a cost-recovery measure.
Taxpayers stand to gain new powers to take Canada Revenue to court over small disputes. A Commons bill raises the allowable limit of Tax Court claims that can be filed without a lawyer, up to $25,000. “This is progress,” Finance Minister Jim Flaherty told Blacklock’s.
Federal measures to protect endangered birds, fish and wildlife must recognize landowners’ rights, say national farm groups. MPs conducting hearings on the Species At Risk Act were told to avoid “confrontation” with ranchers and growers. “If a species at risk is viewed as a liability to the land manager, it will always be at risk,” testified one cattleman.
Regulators are proposing a warning label on garlic powder. Vinegar is also under scrutiny, as Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency puts kitchen staples under the microscope.
Questions are being raised over a federal program to draw private investment into public works. “This is an ideology, not a business plan,” said Paul Moist, president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees. The union cited a privatized Ontario toll road that charges drivers up to 28¢ a kilometre in rush hour.
Billions of dollars budgeted for 9/11 security were never spent for their intended purpose and cannot be traced, says the auditor general. Michael Ferguson warned, despite the investment, Canada still appears ill-prepared for cyber threats with a Response Centre that keeps shorter hours than a fire hall.
The Department of Finance is repealing tariffs on water skis and trampolines in a “healthy living” campaign. Authorities also promised tax relief for archers, curlers and trapshooting enthusiasts. The amusement tariff cuts were detailed for the first time in a budget bill tabled in Parliament.
Reliability of the nation’s search and rescue service is threatened by aging aircraft, deficient computer systems and looming personnel shortages, says the auditor general. Defence Minister Peter McKay told the Commons, “We have to do more.”
An RCMP officer is going to Federal Court after being demoted for throwing a pair of mittens. The Commissioner ruled the Mountie violated “core values” when he tossed the mittens in an argument with his estranged wife eleven years ago. The case comes as Parliament debates a bill granting the Commissioner new powers to discipline members.
Cabinet has repealed a policy blamed for costing thousands of Canadian entertainment jobs under its contentious Temporary Foreign Worker Program. The repeal follows other complaints the program was abused in the banking and mining sectors. Data show most foreign workers are from the Philippines, Mexico and the United States.
Legislation in the Senate to register all Canadians using medical devices is cumbersome and ineffective, say manufacturers. But a patients’ rights group says Parliament “has to take responsibility” for product safety. Some 1.4 million devices from pacemakers to oxygen tanks are currently sold in Canada.
The Department of Justice admits it used misleading data to promote a crime bill targeting the mentally ill. “The research changed,” a department official told Blacklock’s. Attorney General Rob Nicholson cited the inflated figures in proposing a new criminal category: high-risk mentally ill who commit “brutal” crimes.
Raises in municipal police salaries are prompting fears of future layoffs as MPs examine the cost of keeping the nation’s streets safe. A federal agency forecasts police budgets will cost a record $17 billion within two years. “Don’t price yourself out of a job,” one Conservative MP told police.
