The Prime Minister’s Office will not say if it will appeal a Federal Court judgment faulting staff for refusing to disclose public records. The Prime Minister in 2015 Ministerial Mandate letters pledged to “set a higher bar for openness and transparency in government.”
MPs must sanction random workplace drug tests if Parliament legalizes recreational marijuana, says an attorney for employers. The Commons health committee yesterday was told the marijuana bill is “a very complex social experiment” that affects jobsites nationwide.
Cabinet intends to enforce an as-yet unwritten passenger rights code within a year, says Transport Minister Marc Garneau. Members of the Commons transport committee yesterday faulted Garneau for leaving details to regulators: “Our hope is it will be in place in 2018.”
The Canada Revenue Agency faces a federal lawsuit by a Québec millionaire for failing to disclose records. The Federal Court in 2014 cited the Agency for concealing audit documents from a taxpayer in a separate case: “Abuses and excesses happen every day to Canadian taxpayers.”
Transport Minister Marc Garneau says cabinet will restrict access to workplace cameras mandated for locomotives nationwide. Unions object to a cabinet bill that exempts train crew from privacy laws: “Only certain people will have access to the data.”
Airline executives are appealing to the Commons transport committee for limits to a passenger rights bill. Neither Air Canada nor WestJet detailed the number of complaints they receive each year: “We don’t need to be regulated to tell us to do the right thing.”
Property owners predict endless squabbles between condo and apartment renters under a federal bill sanctioning home cultivation of marijuana. Landlords in at least two provinces will be unable to write a cannabis ban into existing leases: “Landowners will essentially lose the rights to their own property.”
Parliament will see a “Wild West” in maritime shipping with further deregulation detailed in a federal bill, the Commons transport committee was told yesterday. Legislation would expand the rights of foreign vessels to ply Canadian ports: “What does this mean for the future?”
Air passengers have lost another legal challenge of fuel surcharges. The British Columbia Court of Appeal dismissed a proposed class action lawsuit against Air Canada and four other carriers over fuel “taxes” charged through travel agents: “Airlines are legally entitled.”
Police are pleading for time with amendments to a cabinet proposal to legalize recreational marijuana. Law enforcement yesterday told the Commons health committee police are unprepared for the impact of the legislation, and lack necessary funds and training: “It’s impossible.”
Union executives yesterday protested a bill to exempt railroaders from federal privacy law. Legislation would allow live streaming video and audio of locomotive crews: “It’s easy to give away someone else’s privacy.”
Railways claim a federal bill promising competitive freight rates will cost Canadian jobs. Executives yesterday appealed to MPs to reconsider amendments to shippers’ regulations: “This takes jobs away. “
Cabinet is seeking candidates with experience in labour relations as new directors of Canada Post. The current 10-member board is comprised of Conservative appointees faulted in Parliament for cutting home delivery, raising stamp prices 35 percent, and advocating 2011 back-to-work legislation later found unconstitutional: “It’s like they’re running a candle factory after lightbulbs were invented.”
The Canada Revenue Agency says it’s losing nearly $9 billion a year in unpaid income tax, not including unreported billions squirreled in offshore accounts. Long-sought data on the “tax gap” still fails to capture all losses, said a Liberal senator: “That’s a guesstimate.”
The Canadian Transportation Agency says it is now averaging 20 to 40 complaints a week from airline passengers. The regulator fields more complaints in a month than it did in entire years due to introduction of a passenger rights’ bill: “It’s lunacy.”
