Any re-elected Liberal cabinet will never tax Canadians’ home equity, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau yesterday told reporters. Trudeau said he recognized ownership represented lifetime savings by homeowners to finance their retirement: “We want to protect people who have equity in their house.”
The Department of Public Works in internal emails acknowledged a mistake in shipping $655,501 worth of Covid shelters to a Manitoba hamlet that never asked for them, but said the community “can keep the tents.” Public Works Minister Anita Anand had said she was shocked to learn of a contractor’s conflict of interest in the case: “How is it your office was not aware?”
New Democrats will “do whatever it takes” on climate change, leader Jagmeet Singh yesterday told reporters. Singh would not comment when asked if the Party supported an increase in the federal carbon tax beyond cabinet’s current target of a 40¢ per litre charge on gasoline: ““I really want to be clear on this.”
The Department of National Defence next month will launch a marketing campaign promising “purpose” and “empowerment” for women enlisting with the Canadian Armed Forces. It follows a criminal charge against the former commander of the Armed Forces in an ongoing sex scandal: “The intent is to demonstrate what life in the Canadian Armed Forces is like for women.”
The Department of Public Safety expanded tax-free grants to families of fallen first responders after the program came 35 percent under budget, according to an audit. Grants were extended to families of prison guards and probation officers, but not doctors or nurses: “I think we have put our front line health care workers in harm’s way.”
Nursing home operators pleaded with federal agencies to ship Covid masks within days of the pandemic’s outbreak, according to internal emails. Minister of Seniors Deb Schulte was “upset” cabinet had no help to offer as the Prime Minister’s Office referred calls to the provinces: “Every government has a responsibility to protect Canadians.”
A Liberal candidate’s “Jew” insult on Twitter was online hate, says Green Party leader Annamie Paul. “It happens all too often,” said Paul, the only Jewish party leader at this week’s campaign debates: “I hope everyone will call out hate when they see it.”
Federal scientists refused to speak with Canada’s doctors on pandemic planning “in light of the election,” says the Canadian Medical Association Journal. The chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, said she could not discuss the incident: “We are trying to help.”
Farm gate prices have seen their largest increase in 42 years due to drought and rising exports to feed China, according to Statistics Canada data. Researchers said consumers should expect to pay more for groceries, but within limits: “Even a doubling of wheat prices will have little impact on the price of bread.”
The CEO of Porter Airlines of Toronto took a 100 percent pay reduction in a bid to cut costs, according to submissions in a federal labour arbitration case. Managers predicted the company will take years to recover from Covid despite layoffs and subsidies: “The pandemic has been devastating to the airline industry.”
Blacklock’s Reporter pauses today to observe the 127th Labour Day in tribute to Canadian workers nationwide. We will be back tomorrow — The Editor
I stare at a picture
of giant flakes
on a cereal box.
At the bottom,
fine print:
“Enlarged to show texture.”
An ad for a dating site
pops on my screen.
(Editor’s note: poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, writes for Blacklock’s each and every Sunday)
Federal agencies considered issuing garbage bags to nurses for use as medical gowns, according to an internal email from the Prime Minister’s Office. Authorities were so short of rationed supplies they also suggested front line health care workers try aprons and coveralls: “Explore fallbacks should everything else be insufficient, for example heavy duty garbage bags.”
A cabinet order by Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland that extends temporary election-time relief cheques for the jobless will cost more than $2.1 billion, by official estimate. Cheques worth $300 a week were to run out just after Election Day: “I am so grateful to Canadians.”
A federal labour board has upheld the firing of a Department of Health manager who wrote in an email she’d like to shoot her supervisor. The work environment in the department’s Burnaby, B.C. office appeared “toxic” but did not warrant death threats, wrote an adjudicator: “In hindsight, it might not appear that the danger was imminent.”
