A CBC commentator in 2019 received a five-figure contract to provide media coaching for a federal cabinet minister, according to records. Amanda Alvaro yesterday did not respond to questions. CBC ethics guidelines require disclosure of “specific interest” of any pundit: “Spoiler alert, guys, I’m a Liberal.”
Federal lawyers billed more than $130,000 in a failed bid to blacklist two media outlets from attending national TV election debates, accounts show. A federal judge called the government’s action against Rebel News Network Ltd. and the True North Centre for Public Policy “troubling”, “unreasonable” and “procedurally unfair”.
Green MPs yesterday said they will propose a statutory ban on corporate directorships held by senators. Serving in the Chamber should be a full-time job solely focused on public good, said Green House Leader Elizabeth May: “Most Canadians would be shocked.”
More than 50,000 illegal immigrants ordered removed from Canada remain in the country, say cabinet records. Appeals by individuals take more than two years to process: “Each individual’s case has its own complexities.”
Cabinet inflated claimed benefits of a 2019 tax cut, Parliamentary Budget Office data showed yesterday. Finance Minister Bill Morneau said an increase in the basic personal exemption would save working people $300 a year, though data confirm the largest benefits go to tax-filers earning more than $100,000: “They have got Robin Hood backwards.”
Environment Canada in Access To Information records complained it ran out of computers after spending millions on new computers. Managers said centralizing computer purchases was complicated: ‘It is not ideal.’
A $20 million program to pay women to become trade apprentices hasn’t worked, say labour department auditors. Few women, only 400 nationwide, applied for grants though they pay $3,000 a year: “The grants had no impact.”
Canada Post has agreed to research a pilot project on retail banking, a union said yesterday. Employees have long sought a return of postal banks disbanded in 1968 following complaints from retail banks: “There are so many people who don’t have financial services.”
A federal judge has ruled a billion-dollar class action lawsuit over paramilitary-style abuses in the RCMP may proceed. Federal lawyers sought to dismiss the case involving allegations that predate unionization of the force: “For decades the RCMP has struggled with the problem of workplace harassment.”
Cabinet yesterday re-introduced a bill for independent oversight of the Canada Border Services Agency, the only police force in Canada that is not monitored by a civilian board. Identical bills lapsed in the last Parliament: “I get letters and emails from people who have had tough times at the hands of CBSA.”
A British Columbia senator in an interview with a Hong Kong newspaper complained Canadians don’t like rich Asians. The remarks followed a cabinet proposal to impose a $217 million-a year equity tax on foreign real estate speculators: “For some weird reason we don’t like the rich ones.”
The Privy Council in Access To Information memos proposed to fund large-scale construction of subsidized greenhouses to grow carrots and tomatoes in the Arctic. Staff cited a “potential to launch” in 2020 or 2021: “A broad range of interventions and solutions are required.”
Cabinet will act quickly to introduce another gun bill following today’s resumption of Parliament, said Public Safety Minister Bill Blair. “There is no greater urgency than making sure our community is safe,” he told reporters.
The Canada Border Services Agency has been ordered to rehire an officer dismissed for taking delivery of hashish by post. A federal labour board awarded the employee two years’ back pay with benefits: “Termination was too severe.”
An Ontario court has denied workplace death benefits to a firefighter who dropped dead of a heart attack at 47. Heart attacks are the leading cause of death for fire crew: “Firefighters have a physically active job.”
