Officials last night blamed a computer glitch for garbling millions of Canada Pension Plan statements. The mistake was made after a premium rate hike took effect January 1: “We apologize for the error.”
Cabinet yesterday ordered all seaplane passengers to wear in-flight lifejackets as recommended by federal crash investigators in a 2011 report. Most seaplane operators surveyed by Transport Canada opposed the measure as costly and unnecessary: “In the 1960s people didn’t want to wear seatbelts in cars, either.”
The Treasury Board says only 51 percent of employees strongly agree their co-workers “act ethically”. Data contained in an internal audit prompted an order that all executives endorse an Every Day Commitment oath stating “Every day, every employee is excited about making an important contribution to Canada.”
One third of Canadians take pick-up jobs like snow shoveling and babysitting at less than the minimum wage, says Bank of Canada research. The Bank attributed the incidence of so-called “informal work” to a weak economy despite cabinet boasts the jobless rate is at its lowest level since 1974: ‘They do so as a result of weak economic conditions.’
Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion in an Advisory Opinion cautions MPs to avoid sweetheart deals in awarding 2019 Canada Summer Jobs grants in their ridings. The notice follows lawsuits against MPs accused of favouritism in rejecting applications from certain groups: “You should not make any recommendation.”
Residents of Victoria, Vancouver and Toronto are the heaviest debtors in the country, Statistics Canada yesterday calculated. Analysts noted Canadian household debt levels overall are worse today than in the United States at the time of the 2008 financial panic: “This is the highest level recorded.”
The Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed a challenge of the Transportation Safety Board’s investigative powers. The operator of a Great Lakes tour boat complained the probe of a minor accident was so intrusive it breached privacy rights: “We’ve cooperated in every way.”
A federal agency in Access To Information records warned of significant cost overruns on the taxpayer-owned Trans Mountain Pipeline, including costs per “day of delay”. A total 601 pages of cost-benefit reports were withheld from MPs and senators: “There continues to be a risk of cost escalation.”
Treasury Board President Dr. Jane Philpott yesterday resigned after describing cabinet’s role in a growing political scandal as indefensible. Philpott is the third official to quit amid allegations of political interference in a criminal case: “Sadly, I have lost confidence in how the government has dealt with this matter.”
The Department of Canadian Heritage refused a request for a courtesy video of Minister’s greetings to a group it deemed too “Anglo-focused”, according to Access To Information records. The department yesterday did not comment. Other requests for greetings to Francophone, Chinese, Hindu and Kurdish groups were approved: “Hold on this one.”
Internal government polling shows a majority of Canadians support stricter gun laws. Data released through Access To Information do not include direct questioning of whether people would endorse an outright ban on handguns: “We’re prepared to take whatever measures will be effective.”
An Ontario court yesterday ordered the Globe & Mail to face trial in a $125 million defamation lawsuit. Million-dollar defamation awards are rare but not unprecedented in Canada: ‘This is a case that could go either way.’
The nation’s largest newspaper chain says it’s tightening editorial standards after publishing a fake news story about the Prime Minister’s Office. A press ombudsman, the National News Media Council, dismissed a reader’s complaint in the case.
“Our mandate is to examine reader complaints against the backdrop of widely-accepted industry and community standards,” Brent Jolly, spokesperson for the Media Council, wrote a complainant: “Indeed, the error was unfortunate. However, the news organization has fulfilled all the requirements of membership to clarify the error and correct the public record. The apology is reasonably read as a show of good faith to readers.”
Postmedia Networks Inc.’s Sun dailies in four cities on February 14 published a story quoting a senior aide to the Prime Minister as remarking Justin Trudeau was dishonest and that Liberals “should be punished”. The story was published in Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto and Ottawa.
The Ottawa Sun version appeared with a headline Liberals In Turmoil? and stated: “Using the hashtag StandingWithJody, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s senior political adviser Gerald Butts tweeted Wednesday: ‘Whether the SNC case is clear illegal interference or a grey edge with regular government business, Trudeau has shown a lack of integrity, transparency and respect.’”
Then-Principal Secretary Butts did not make the statement. The remarks were posted by an anonymous author on a fake Twitter account @GeraldButtts, spelled with three T’s. The fake account also stated: “Liberals should be taught a lesson at the polls.” The account has since been disabled.
‘Mistakes Happen’
The newspaper chain acknowledged the error, apologized and published a February 15 correction in its print dailies. A Sun subscriber in Alberta filed a complaint to the ombudsman describing the article as so improbable it appeared editors rushed it to print without elementary fact-checking.
“The editorial bias is a likely cause for the rush to publish without complying with journalistic standards,” read the complaint: “I am a subscriber to the Edmonton Sun and I read it that morning. I immediately thought, ‘This can’t possibly be true.’”
“This was obviously a fake,” said the complaint: “Sun editors were only too eager to report this without doing any fact-checking whatsoever.”
Mark Iype, editor-in-chief of the Edmonton Sun, said the newspaper chain has since taken new steps to combat fake news but did not elaborate. “The error in the story was corrected online and in print as soon as it was discovered,” Iype wrote the complainant. “Postmedia has since apologized for the mistake and measures have been taken to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.”
“It was simply a mistake, something that happens at news organizations,” wrote Iype.
Postmedia Networks and other Canadian dailies seek federal subsidies under a proposed $595 million, five-year aid program to be detailed in the March 19 budget. Publishers in appeals to the Department of Canadian Heritage obtained through Access To Information described subsidies as critical.
“We need to…reaffirm the critical role newspapers like us all across the country play in Canadian democracy,” wrote one publisher. “This is the most serious crisis we have faced in our history,” said another.
By Staff 
Statistics Canada is including the cost of recreational marijuana in its benchmark Consumer Price Index. Canada is the first country to add narcotics to the basket of goods used to calculate its official inflation rate: ‘Cannabis is of relevance to Canadian households.’
Cabinet seeks to block Senate hearings including testimony by the Prime Minister on political interference in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. “Let’s not try to get into the act and play junior league second-guessers,” said Senator Peter Harder (Ont.), Government Representative in the Senate.
