Military and civilian employees in the Department of National Defence have been cited for cheating on timesheets and fuel cards at taxpayers’ expense. No individuals were discharged though similar offences resulted in firings and police investigations in other departments: "We are constantly looking."
Diplomats in staff emails depicted Fiji as a backwater where it was hard to find office supplies or make a long-distance phone call, Access To Information records show. Liberal MP Randeep Sarai (Surrey Centre, B.C.), Secretary of State for International Development, last January 16 opened Canada's first Fijian mission in what cabinet called an important step in “Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy.”
A highway billboard calling the Prime Minister a liar was Charter-protected free expression, an Ontario Superior Court judge ruled yesterday. Counsel with the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms that won the case called the decision “a welcome affirmation of the importance of political expression.”
The Atlantic Lottery Corporation of Moncton yesterday was fined $212,025 for breach of anti-money laundering regulations. The penalty is the latest in a series of violations by casino operators: "Very suspicious."
Parks Canada in an internal report calls the creation of national parks culturally “harmful” and a “colonial injustice.” Management “now acknowledges this harmful historical legacy,” said the newly-disclosed report withheld from the public for two years.
Virgina Mearns, cabinet’s $181,000-a year Arctic Ambassador, has been cited for breach of the Conflict Of Interest Act and fined $400. MPs have long sought more serious penalties for violators: "There should be real consequences."
Liberal campaign organizer Tom Pitfield's Senate appointment was not patronage, Prime Minister Mark Carney said yesterday. The appointee had “deep technological knowledge” needed in the Senate, he said: "I am very pleased."
Urban women over 65 are most likely to worry over climate change, Statistics Canada said yesterday in a rare psychosocial questionnaire. No reason was given: "Climate-related hazards in Canada and abroad can have a mental health impact with some people experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression or anxiety."
The Department of National Defence yesterday commissioned a $1.2 million study on the feasibility of zero emission light armoured vehicles. Managers said they remained committed to meeting climate targets despite research indicating green military technology is non-existent, too costly or impractical: "We have a responsibility to show leadership."
Liberal MPs yesterday by a 5 to 4 vote quashed a Commons ethics committee probe of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s proposed $1.45 billion bailout of Metro Vancouver condo speculators. A British Columbia New Democrat MP joined Conservative and Bloc Québécois members in denouncing the plan as a costly giveaway: "No one is buying it."
Liberal Party organizer Thomas Pitfield, a senator’s son named principal secretary to the Prime Minister, yesterday was appointed to the Senate. The appointment came almost five years to the day that Liberal MPs blocked an investigation of public payments to Pitfield’s company, Data Sciences Inc. of Montréal: 'He has a wealth of experience.'
Raising the age of eligibility for Old Age Security benefits would punish about a fifth of retirees who have no other income, says a Department of Employment briefing note. The department acknowledged the cost of seniors’ benefits overall, soon to eclipse $100 billion a year, will peak at a quarter-trillion: "Retirement is expensive."
A federal judge yesterday upheld mandatory retirement in the Navy. It followed similar rulings involving airline pilots and firefighters who challenged mandatory age limits: "Age 60 is the compulsory retirement age for all Canadian Armed Forces members."
Cabinet in an executive order made public yesterday granted VIA Rail exemptions from federal regulations mandating full accessibility for disabled passengers. The waiver followed years of complaints, citations and a Supreme Court ruling that faulted VIA for inadequate service: "They’ve got the staff, they’ve got it all, and the remarkable thing is, they still got it wrong."
About a fifth of businesses anticipate a continued slowdown over the next 12 months, the Bank of Canada said yesterday in its first Business Outlook Survey since the economy fell into recession. The latest data were issued ahead of the next interest rate announcement due July 15: "Business sentiment has deteriorated."
