A $15 minimum wage is a “powerful tool when it comes to fighting poverty,” says Labour Minister Filomena Tassi. The labour department in a report said in fact there was only weak evidence suggesting minimum wages cut poverty rates: “Individuals in many poor families work very little or not at all.”
Blacklock’s pauses for the Canada Day observance to wish all friends and subscribers a happy First of July. We’re back tomorrow — The Editor
The Senate yesterday referred Bill C-10 to committee hearings as one legislator likened first-ever internet regulations to book burning. “I don’t think this bill needs amendments,” said Senator David Richards (N.B.). “I think however it needs a stake through the heart.”
Airbnb says it cannot meet cabinet’s deadline to begin collecting GST effective tomorrow. A lobbyist for Airbnb in a submission to the Senate national finance committee said the measure was unfair: “As written, it is impossible to comply with by July 1.”
More than a quarter of Canadian homeowners prone to flood risk expect taxpayer aid in case of catastrophe, says in-house research by the Department of Public Safety. About a million homeowners are at high risk on flood plains, by insurers’ estimate: “If you rely on taxpayer-funded bailouts there are no incentives to lower your risk.”
The Senate by a 60-19 vote yesterday passed into law a bill mandating that future cabinets draft successive climate change targets. One supporter described the cabinet bill as better than none: “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”
Taxpayers may be out three quarters of a billion on a federal buy-back program for prohibited firearms though final costs are “impossible” to forecast, the Parliamentary Budget Office said yesterday. Estimates of the number of banned weapons vary by hundreds of thousands: ‘Details remain unclear.’
Senators last night began proposing amendments to Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault’s Bill C-10, the first of two cabinet bills to regulate the internet. Legislators proposed lengthy committee hearings that would slow the bill: “Shouldn’t we ask Canadians if they even want the internet regulated in this way?”
Cabinet yesterday said it has “nothing to hide” over the firing of Chinese scientists at a federal lab, but defended a Federal Court reference to seal records in the case. The Court reference seeks to overturn four Commons orders that the files be disclosed to House lawyers under a citation for contempt: “What are you so desperate to hide?”
Climate change efforts to date are insufficient and must be stepped up, says a report released yesterday by the Department of Environment. The report follows a Parliamentary Budget Office warning that a 62¢ per litre carbon tax on gasoline is needed to meet emissions targets: “Future climate change costs for Canada will be high.”
Labour Minister Filomena Tassi yesterday said she will proceed with regulations on “the new reality of working from home.” Tassi has proposed overtime pay for federally-regulated employees who take after-hours Zoom calls, texts and company emails, a Canadian first: “The home is increasingly becoming the workplace.”
Canadians are wary of robot cars and don’t trust the software, says Department of Transport research. People surveyed by the department raised liability issues and concerns with computer glitches: “Some note technology is not infallible.”
The Canada Revenue Agency in an internal memo said it feared its own employees would help misappropriate pandemic relief money. The memo identified a “moderate” likelihood of misappropriation under one of the costliest pandemic relief programs, the $83.6 billion Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy: “Money has just been going out the door.”
Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault’s office has not received a single letter or email from the general public in support of internet regulation, say staff. Guilbeault had claimed broad support for first-ever controls on web content, claiming only “a minority” oppose it: “A very high proportion of Canadians are asking the government to step in.”
A bonus for pensioners will cost nearly $10 billion by 2026, says the Parliamentary Budget Office. The payments for seniors over 75 beginning August 1 are not income tested: “Why not target the most vulnerable seniors?”
