Blacklock's Reporter

A little-known Florida company is applying to Industry Canada to trademark a proposed online brokerage to popularize the sale of racehorse shares. The application is backed by Frank Stronach, retired auto parts tycoon now campaigning to become chancellor of Austria, a source close to the project told Blacklock’s. Stronach Group, led by daughter Belinda, a former two-term MP, would not take questions.

A Maine-based photographer has won – and lost – a Federal Court challenge against Canadian media that used her imagery of the 9/11 terrorist attacks without paying for it. The photographer sued the CBC for more than $21 million after the public broadcaster acknowledged it mistakenly used her images without permission.

A federal department unwittingly waded into prickly Pacific politics by erasing Taiwan from the map. Authorities called it an “editorial choice,” not a change in government policy. Taiwanese diplomats expressed disappointment. “That is too bad,” said one.

A year after launching its multi-billion dollar national shipbuilding program, the federal government continues “preliminary design work” with no sign of construction of up to fifteen promised new combat and research vessels. “There are a lot of questions left to be answered about timing and costing,” said an MP seeking an up-to-date accounting of the naval program.

The author, an Israeli-born biologist, examines current events in the Blacklock’s tradition.

The phrase “Harper government” is now published an average of more than four times a day across the civil service, document show. Sessional papers filed in Parliament disclosed the descriptive noun was used 597 times in a 143-day period.

Teamsters representing some 16,000 Canadian rail workers expressed “shock” over a blistering management letter from CP Rail that stated reckless employees have put the public “at risk.” Members of Parliament reacted to the claim from a Canadian Pacific vice president, saying the allegations warrant investigation.

Ottawa’s municipal bus system has won a federal appeal on the right to refuse service to a shoeless rider. The Canadian Transportation Agency ruled OC Transpo was within its rights to forbid an Ottawa woman from riding barefoot on city buses.

Managers of Canadian pension plans have warned a House committee that beneficiaries will face higher costs and lower benefits under a bill to force disclosure of even minor transactions in any plan with a union component. “This seems very unfair to us,” one manager told MPs.

The Federal Court has dismissed an appeal from a convicted con man who argued he was unjustly jailed for parole violations after landing an honest job. “How does anyone get their life back?” said Shaun Rootenberg, jailed for defrauding family and acquaintances. “What employer will take a chance on an employee in a management position if they can be re-incarcerated on suspicion?”

Canadian cities and towns are appealing for public support in pressing for renewal next spring of federal subsidies to rebuild municipal works.

“So much of our everyday lives rely on quality municipal infrastructure,” said Karen Leibovici, president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities; “When something goes wrong, whether it’s an aging water main that breaks and floods our street or traffic gridlock that prolongs our commute, we immediately feel its impact on our families and businesses.”

The federation launched a new initiative, the Great Canadian Infrastructure Challenge, to raise awareness of the importance of public works.

“We know that Canadians have busy lives and don’t have a lot of time to talk about fixing roads and water pipes,” said Leibovici, an Edmonton councilor. “But in the next few months the federal government will be making critical decisions that will affect Canada’s infrastructure for the future.

“It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity we cannot afford to miss and we need all Canadians to be involved in the debate,” Leibovici said.

Cabinet has promised to renew a $33 billion Building Canada program that expires in 2014, but has yet to detail terms or conditions.

The federation and supporters in a Municipal Infrastructure Forum have appealed for details by the end of this fiscal year March 31 to allow time for engineering studies and tendering of contracts.

The Forum noted any new federal subsidies should include broad funding commitments through a 20-year timeline; guarantee that increases in subsidies are linked to growth; permit “strategic” investments in local projects regardless of partnerships with private investors; and gauge subsidies to needs of large and small communities.

Forum partners include the Insurance Bureau of Canada, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Toronto Board of Trade, Engineers Canada, Canadian Union of Public Employees, Canadian Construction Association and the Canadian Public Works Association.

By Alex Binkley

An obscure Senate bill will end a tradition, dating from 1841, that grants Canadians “their rightful access to the laws and regulations that govern their daily lives,” critics warn. Conservative senators declined interviews on the little-known measure that would permit unseen rules from unknown sources.

Significant changes to Canada’s labour law whipped through a House committee in mere minutes amid concerns MPs had no time to summon expert testimony on the bill’s impact. The measures rewrite ten sections of the Canada Labour Code, granting new powers to federal inspectors to dismiss employee complaints deemed “frivolous.”

Canadian Pacific Railways claims incompetent employees have put the public “at risk,” threatening to fire anyone who fails to put in “a fair day’s work,” according to a blistering management letter obtained by Blacklock’s. Disclosure of the letter prompted a demand that Parliament investigate the allegations public safety has been jeopardized by CP workers.

Federal consumer product safety inspections have dropped 60 percent since Parliament enacted a new safety law, even though the government hired more inspectors. The Consumers’ Association of Canada called the decline “absolutely astounding.”