Electing more women politicians is good for the nation’s health, says a University of Waterloo study. Researchers suggested women in office, regardless of political party, are more likely to spend on programs that lower mortality rates: “Yes, women in government do in fact advance population health.”
Labour organizers yesterday protested the dismissal of criminal charges against a concrete company accused of negligence in a truck driver’s death. Cabinet two years ago promised to step up enforcement of a law that made employers criminally liable for needless industrial accidents: ‘Consequences must be more than a cost of doing business.’
The Commons justice committee yesterday voted 5 to 4 against summoning ex-attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould to testify on alleged political interference in the Department of Justice. Liberal MPs agreed to investigate allegations, but set no hearing schedule or deadline to report to Parliament: “This is really a joke.”
A proposed climate change rewrite to the National Building Code will not force homeowners to renovate older properties, the National Research Council said yesterday. Realtors and builders had protested owners could face costly refits when selling: “It is not mandated that everyone refit their homes.”
A press ombudsman has dismissed a complaint against the National Post for ridiculing a woman’s name. Snide or derisive remarks about private citizen’s family names are “juvenile” but meet newspaper standards, ruled the National News Media Council: “This was an atrocious example of bad journalism.”
Fewer than 4 in 10 Canadians get a winter flu shot though influenza kills more people than car accidents, says a new federal report. The Public Health Agency of Canada blamed a CBC news story in part for low vaccination rates: ‘Recent media reports may be contributing.’
The Commons justice committee is expected to vote today on whether to investigate lobbying by SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. to avoid prosecution on corruption charges. The hearing follows the abrupt cabinet resignation of Jody Wilson-Raybould, former attorney general: “We must stand together.”
More than a quarter-million was spent last year on meals, hotel rooms and airline tickets by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, according to accounts. The panel will finish its work six months past deadline: “We are not there to decide if this is a good expenditure or a bad expenditure.”
Health Canada faces a federal lawsuit over licensing of a bestselling weed-killer cited as “probably carcinogenic” by the World Health Organization. The advocacy group Safe Food Matters Inc. yesterday filed a Federal Court application to cancel the license: “We don’t know how pervasive it is.”
The last federally-owned marine service in the country failed to raise fees as mandated by cabinet, auditors reported yesterday. Subsidies for the Newfoundland & Labrador ferry service cost taxpayers the equivalent of $379 per passenger last year: “We found weaknesses.”
Auditors are citing the Department of Finance for sloppy security of confidential budget records. Fully 25 percent of staff fail to take basic steps like locking file cabinets to secure pre-budget data, says an internal audit: “The department is responsible for a significant amount of highly sensitive information.”
The Commons transport committee yesterday confirmed it will conduct hearings on bus passenger safety. It follows fatal accidents involving the Humboldt Broncos charter bus and Ottawa’s municipal OC Transpo operator, the public transit system with the worst safety record in the country: “We just want all the facts laid out.”
An Environment Canada office was so poisonous one employee searched ceiling tiles for hidden cameras, while a manager wore a bulletproof vest for fear of assassination. Accounts of dysfunction at the department’s Nanaimo, B.C. branch were detailed at a federal labour board hearing: ‘It was akin to water torture.’
Cases of drug overdose in federal prisons have nearly doubled since Parliament passed a Drug-Free Prisons Act, say penitentiary managers. The Correctional Service of Canada described drug abuse as a crisis: ‘It is closely tied to the opioid crisis in the community.’
The Canada Revenue Agency paid a pollster nearly $55,000 to confirm taxpayers expect call centre agents to pick up the phone. The research followed disclosures the Agency dropped 29 million calls a year: “We’re still going to see these crappy results coming out of CRA.”
