Canadians doing business in China should beware of Communist Party fronts, extortion, bid-rigging and other corrupt practices, says the Trade Commissioner Service. A federal guide for Canadian investors also warns of “bribery required to get things done.”
First-ever legislation requiring federally-regulated private employers to promote French will be introduced, Languages Minister Mélanie Joly said yesterday. Joly blamed the internet for overwhelming French in an “ocean” of English: “We know there is a decline of French in Québec and in Canada.”
Cabinet last night put taxpayers back in the airline business for the first time since 1988. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland approved the purchase of $500 million in Air Canada shares after Parliament privatized the carrier 33 years ago: “We wanted a good deal, not just any deal.”
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan last night said he was unaware the People’s Liberation Army attended winter training exercises in eastern Ontario three years ago. Sajjan said he personally put a stop to the practice following the detention of two Canadian businessmen in Beijing: “I wasn’t aware it was actually taking place.”
The plastics industry yesterday protested a cabinet proposal to list their product as toxic under federal law. Executives said the listing under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act unfairly stigmatizes household goods from food containers to intravenous tubes: “Industry has been lobbying hard against this approach.”
Arctic sea ice grew 27 percent last year, the Department of Environment reported yesterday. The figures contradicted claims by then-Environment Minister Catherine McKenna that the Arctic “is literally melting”: “Is that what we want?”
Criminal money laundering in Canada is worth up to $113 billion a year, says a federal report. The mafia is mainly active in three cities while motorcycle gangs operate nationwide: “The Covid-19 pandemic has created ripples throughout the criminal marketplace affecting the operations of different organized crime groups.”
Superintendent of Financial Institutions Jeremy Rudin is warning of climate activism in the courts. “Governments in Canada have already seen the launch of some litigation related to climate change,” said Rudin: “We are seeing an increase in activism using the courts.”
Public Safety Minister Bill Blair’s department is endorsing a legislated ban on universal criminal background checks as discriminatory to convicted felons. The proposal follows new research indicating the jobless rate for parolees is fifty percent: “Employer bias is a barrier that individuals with criminal records commonly encounter.”
The Federal Court is repealing “Christmas.” Amendments to 1998 Federal Court Rules propose to delete references to the Christmas recess as non-inclusive for lawyers, plaintiffs and defendants who practice other religions or none at all: “Not all litigants before the Courts celebrate Christmas.”
Newly-released figures show suspiciously high rejection rates of Disability Tax Credit claims by the Canada Revenue Agency. Paperwork should be “a lot more user-friendly,” said the vice-chair of a federal advisory panel: “There are definitely more questions to be answered by looking through the data.”
Rideau Hall has stripped a former police chief of his federal Order of Merit of the Police Forces. Officials did not explain if they’ll attempt to retrieve the 2011 medal from Frank Elsner, ex-chief of police in Victoria: “He stood in a position of power and responsibility.”
A First Nation tobacco wholesaler that ships millions of cigars a year must pay tax, Ontario Divisional Court has ruled. The judgment came in the case of a tobacconist who claimed tax exemption under the Indian Act: ‘The purpose is not to give First Nation persons a general economic advantage.’
In the lobby of a federal building
three faces were smiling from the wall:
Her Majesty the Queen,
The Right Honourable Prime Minister,
and The Honourable Minister.
On the way to the parking lot
I saw a few
who did not smile that day;
however,
they were further down the hierarchy.
(Editor’s note: poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, writes for Blacklock’s each and every Sunday)
Federal internet censors should target hurtful words against politicians, says Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault. The Minister added pending regulations may include an internet kill switch to block websites deemed hurtful, but called it a “nuclear” option: “News regulations for online platforms are needed.”
