Cabinet will rewrite anti-spam rules following business complaints that 2014 regulations are onerous, vague and ineffective in combating malicious emails. “The more explicit the legislation and its obligations are, the more effective the Act will be,” said Industry Minister Navdeep Bains.
Cabinet yesterday finalized regulations allowing companies to forego individual notices to customers whose personal information is hacked or stolen. The rules take effect November 1: “To protect consumers, we avoid notifying consumers. It’s bizarre.”
Canada Post is “very open-minded” on reviving retail banking services, the newly-appointed chair of the board yesterday told the Commons committee on government operations. Jessica McDonald said she will consider releasing a redacted 811-page analysis obtained by Blacklock’s in 2014 that rated postal banks a “win-win” for the corporation.
“Postal banking has been under a tremendous amount of discussion and continues to be,” said McDonald; “While postal banking is not a specific part of my mandate letter, I do think it’s important to note Canada Post does provide some financial services, and I think we need to be very open-minded.”
Canada Post currently has a money transfer service and sells a version of certified cheques. The post office for a century took retail deposits until the service was closed amid protests from banks and credit unions.
Public Services Minister Carla Qualtrough in a January 24 mandate letter urged the Canada Post board to consider “best practices and successful innovations in other countries”, but made no mention of reviving postal banks disbanded in 1968. Access To Information records indicated management studied retail banking from 2009 to 2013.
“This would be a win-win strategy,” read one report Banking: A Proven Diversification Strategy. The corporation has never released an uncensored copy of its banking files that cited average profits of 20.5 percent a year by online banks like ING, PC Financial Inc. and Canadian Tire Bank.
“The study Canada Post did on banking, when will that be made public?” asked MP Brian Masse (Windsor West, Ont.), New Democrat industry critic. “Why has it not been made public? Those are some of the potential solutions out there. We need to see if there is really some value there.”
“I have asked for that report to be looked at again,” replied Chair McDonald; “I have asked for new advice about the content of the report.”
“I do think it’s important in all of these conversations to be open and transparent,” said McDonald; “I would like to focus personally on new conversations about enhanced services.”
McDonald, a former CEO of British Columbia Hydro, was appointed chair of the post office last December 12. McDonald yesterday told the committee:
“We now have several years of positive financial results,” said McDonald. “This does give breathing space to the corporation to find the path to move forward.”
“Given that we do have positive financial results over the past few years, that trend is expected to continue,” said McDonald. “For how long?” asked Conservative MP Kelly McCauley (Edmonton West). McDonald did not reply.
Canada Post in 2016 reported a $55 million net pre-tax profit despite the $110 million cost of a threatened lock-out of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers. Previous profits were $63 million in 2015, and $194 million in 2014.
By Tom Korski 
Amendments to a marijuana bill will be considered following a flawed process that saw cabinet present Canadians with a fait accompli, says the deputy chair of the Senate aboriginal peoples committee. “The cake is baked,” said Senator Scott Tannas (Conservative-Alta.).
A national guaranteed income program would cost about $43.1 billion a year and benefit 7.7 million Canadians, the Parliamentary Budget Office yesterday calculated. The report followed a 2017 Senate vote urging that cabinet investigate such a plan: “It doesn’t cut to the key question of behavioural impact.”
Universities yesterday appealed to the Commons industry committee to uphold a “fair dealing” provision of the Copyright Act that allows free copying for research purposes. Skeptical MPs questioned claims that schools spend millions on materials while revenues decline for small Canadian publishers: “Where is the money going?”
A cabinet rewrite of oil and gas regulations is unprecedented in its scope, a Suncor Energy Inc. lobbyist yesterday told the Commons energy committee. The bill would mandate a federal assessment of cumulative environmental impacts of all new oil and gas projects: “Proceed with great care.”
Marijuana searches will lead to longer border lineups, trucking executives and a border city mayor yesterday told the Senate national security committee. Cannabis remains contraband at Canada-U.S. crossings even if Parliament passes a legalization bill: ‘We’ve heard through the grapevine there are concerns out there.’
Liberal MPs on the Commons human resources committee yesterday rejected union proposals to strictly define harassment in an anti-harassment bill. Labour Minister Patricia Hajdu in a letter to MPs said details should be left to regulators: “Do not say you’ll fix it in regulations.”
The higher home prices go, the faster consumers expect them to rise, according to Bank of Canada research. The Bank based its findings on a survey of 1,000 households that asked, “What would you say is the percent chance that, over the next 12 months, the average home price nationwide will increase or decrease?”
Cabinet’s proposal to legalize marijuana will set back anti-smoking efforts, health advocates yesterday told the Senate social affairs committee. Health Canada has targeted a reduction of 3 million tobacco users nationwide even as it co-sponsored legislation to legalize cannabis: “We’re absolutely concerned about an increase in marijuana consumption.”
A computer error in a cross-border Customs database has prompted a federal lawsuit. A British Columbia trucking company says it was unfairly fined thousands of dollars over an electronic glitch at the Canada Border Services Agency: “Nobody wants to listen to our side of the story.”
The Public Prosecution Service will not disclose the number of Canadians arrested for marijuana possession since cabinet introduced its bill to legalize cannabis. More than 15,000 were arrested in the 18 months prior to the bill’s tabling: “What is really going on?”
More than 420,000 low income Canadians have skipped millions in benefits by failing to file a yearly tax return, says an Access To Information memo from the Canada Revenue Agency. Earlier federal research concluded many poor Canadians find dealing with the Agency to be stressful and unpleasant: “Others are fearful they will get in trouble.”
Air Canada has lost a bid to block disclosure of safety inspections that found the airline in breach of Canadian Aviation Regulations. The Federal Court ruled that, while disclosure “could cause the public to be concerned”, it was no reason to conceal records: “Airlines have had negative disclosures in the past.”
