The Department of Agriculture is reviewing labour practices under a migrant farm workers’ program in place since 1966. The department acknowledged “some criticism from some groups” citing abuses: “Is there a more effective way of determining wages?”
Canadians rate perfumed candles a greater health risk than radon gas, according to in-house research by the Department of Health. Environmental groups have petitioned Parliament to encourage home testing for radon, known to cause cancer: ‘What do you think poses a risk to your health?’
A Saskatchewan court has allowed a bankrupt tax debtor to pay 6¢ on the dollar to settle a Canada Revenue Agency claim. The Agency said the ruling sent the wrong message: “You don’t see cases like this every often, and as a taxpayer it drives you crazy.”
A federal labour board has upheld the dismissal of a Canada Border Services Agency staffer for moonlighting on government time. The nine-year employee spent hours emailing business associates and a friend at the Embassy of Gabon in Ottawa: “He had no excuse.”
Federal Competition Act investigators seek confidential records held by one of the country’s largest brand name pharmaceutical companies, Sanofi Canada Inc. The Competition Bureau detailed allegations in a Federal Court affidavit: “I am aware of Sanofi denying access to one of its drugs…”
The Department of Public Safety says shopping centres are a “unique” target for terrorists. Staff in an Access To Information memo expressed alarm over the prospect of gunmen and bombers attacking Canadian malls: “Mall terror plans involve groups which would open fire on the crowds within Canadian malls, resulting in mayhem.”
Municipalities cannot claim privacy in concealing details of government contracts or bid selections, says a Nova Scotia information commissioner. The ruling cited case law from Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island in concluding the expenditure of public funds is taxpayers’ business: “Nothing is more central to the goal of accountability.”
A rare cabinet veto of a CRTC ruling on program funding was prompted by 89 petitions from unions and associations. Heritage Minister Melanie Joly in a statement urged the broadcast regulator to “reconsider” a May 15 directive: “It was a bad decision.”
Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland says cabinet wants to “cut red tape” in a regulatory dispute that prompted an outcry from Canadian food processors five years ago. MPs yesterday expressed unease with Freeland’s remarks at the Commons trade committee: “Fortunately our negotiators know what I’m talking about.”
A federal judge has ruled Canada Revenue Agency auditors cannot claim unlimited powers to interrogate taxpayers. The ruling came in a successful appeal by 25 executives with the nation’s largest uranium producer, Cameco Corporation: “Audit powers are broad but not unlimited.”
A campus newspaper faces a human rights hearing after rejecting free articles from a Sri Lankan-Canadian contributor. The University of Guelph’s Ontarion student weekly had appealed for volunteer writers to submit their work: ‘They lost interest when they saw me.’
The Federal Court of Appeal has ruled ancient Indigenous trapping rights do not include exemption from the GST. The judgment is the second in two years that extended tax liabilities to First Nation suppliers conducting business off-reserve: ‘The obligation is to remit taxes collected from non-Indian customers.’
The Department of Public Safety says regulators should consider new restrictions on lawyers as “enablers” of white collar crime. Attorneys described the research paper as outrageous: “There is nothing in the report to support the truth of the claims.”
A federal agency says bank tellers should act on “hunch or intuition” in the lookout for suspicious cash deposits, even if amounts are trivial. The Financial Transactions And Reports Analysis Centre in a bankers’ guide said it sets “no monetary threshold” on deposits that must be reported to investigators: “It doesn’t really matter.”
Health Canada says even a judge cannot compel it to retrieve public records under the Access To Information Act. The claim in Federal Court documents follows a lawsuit by a retired researcher who alleges the department withheld data on the impact of wireless devices: “This has huge health implications.”
