The labour department will spend $39 million a year on surprise inspections of employers who hire migrant workers, say budget documents. The program follows a 2017 audit that found weak enforcement of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program: “We have to end this.”
Airlines yesterday appealed for amendments to a first-ever passenger rights bill. Executives told the Senate transport committee that service standards for carriers should also apply to airport authorities, ground crew, security staff and air traffic controllers: “All these organizations should have the same requirements.”
Cabinet yesterday promised more employment insurance benefits and unspecified help for workers owed wages and benefits from bankrupt employers. The proposal follows the 2017 collapse of Sears Canada that left retirees and employees with a $266.8 million pension shortfall: “Sears employees were told to go to the back of the line.”
The premier of the Northwest Territories says a national carbon tax appears costly with no obvious plan to mitigate expenses. Environment Canada has named Arctic territories as a main beneficiary of its climate change plan: “Our Arctic is melting.”
Cabinet will spend an extra $41 million a year to have the Canada Revenue Agency answer the phone. The Agency estimates taxpayers now have a 50-50 chance of speaking to a live agent on their second or third attempt when contacting its toll-free call centres: “It is really, really bad.”
The Commons transport committee has passed a bill requiring owners of all large ships to carry wreck removal insurance. MPs rejected New Democrat and Green Party amendments to expand the bill to include virtually all commercial vessels: ‘People push the limits of the law.’
The Department of Finance anticipates revenue of at least $100 million a year from legalized cannabis, according to budget documents. Finance Minister Bill Morneau today said he would cap the federal share of marijuana tax gains, with most revenues earmarked for provinces: “The approach we’re taking on cannabis is very much about protecting Canadians.”
CBC ad revenues remain half what they were since the TV network lost NHL licensing rights, says the Crown broadcaster’s latest Annual Report. The CBC has asked cabinet for an additional $400 million a year in budget funding to offset the loss of advertising: “If you’re not informing and you’re not entertaining, people will go somewhere else.”
The Consumers’ Association of Canada says a federal bill mandating plain tobacco packaging is ineffectual federal overreach. Testifying at the Commons health committee, Association president Bruce Cran said the bill sets a “dangerous precedent for all consumers”.
The Department of Justice says it is looking for “wiggle room” from a Supreme Court decision to obtain client information from Canada’s 27,000 law firms. The department earlier lost a $3 million court battle over an Act that compelled lawyers to disclose clients’ cash transactions: “It won’t be easy.”
MPs yesterday gave approval in principle to a Liberal bill mandating an Indigenous perspective on historic commemorations. Legislators faulted the Historic Sites and Monuments Board for celebrating European-themed people and places since its creation in 1919: “We have come a long way since then.”
Copyright owners blame ideological cost-cutting for a federal lawsuit by school boards over payment of millions in photocopy fees. Educators in eight provinces – all but Ontario and Québec – have sued over royalties: “This is an attempt to avoid paying authors and publishers for their work.”
Legislators have a moral obligation to defeat a bill to legalize marijuana, says a senator. Cabinet has sought a Second Reading vote on agreement in principle with its cannabis bill within 24 days: “That is clearly bad legislation.”
The Department of Finance says it can’t help consumers who complain of price gouging since the 2012 elimination of the penny. Access To Information records detail complaints from Victoria to Québec City over price rounding on credit and debit transactions at gas stations and other retailers: “Is this legal?”
A federal regulator has rejected a claim for lost wages by an airline passenger who suffered a three-day flight delay. The Canadian Transportation Agency said the onus is on travelers to prove actual damages until Parliament enacts a passenger rights bill: ‘Regulations would be binding; that’s the distinction.’
