The Department of Environment has finalized new terms of a federal fuel standard expected to further raise the cost of fuel. An environmental advocacy group yesterday said it was told of the proposal at a confidential briefing: "At the end of the day politicians have an obligation to the public to tell them the straight goods."
Federal agents have intercepted just one shipment of suspected slave goods from China since issuing an advisory against suspicious imports more than a year ago. MPs on the Commons foreign affairs committee yesterday expressed astonishment at the low rate of inspections: "I am a bit stunned by that response."
Federal employees have filed more than 7,000 complaints of workplace violence and harassment since Parliament passed an anti-harassment bill, records show. Cabinet four years ago said the bill would curb inappropriate behaviour from sexual violence to Twitter gibes: "It’s going to apply to any activity linked to work."
Canadian consumers quickly overcame fears of Covid and adapted to pandemic precautions, federal data show. Bank of Canada researchers said lockdowns, not public anxiety, were to blame for the worst economic impacts: 'Canadians were adapting to restrictions and becoming more familiar with new ways to consume.'
Parliament should raise taxes on real estate investors and use the money to subsidize affordable homes, the Commons finance committee was told yesterday. The submission by an ex-Toronto city planner follows disclosures CMHC identified the number of Canadians who own second properties: "We know Canada’s housing system is broken."
Cabinet must regulate the internet in Canada to curb Russian disinformation, says Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly. A federal ban on Kremlin-funded TV is not enough, said Joly: "My mandate as foreign minister is really to counter propaganda online."
The self-described “national voice of Canadian journalists” breached its own ethics code in reporting on a pipeline protest, records show. The Canadian Association of Journalists said it would not correct misleading statements that accused police of illegal conduct: "Accuracy is the moral imperative of journalists."
Freedom Convoy truckers posed a threat to “social cohesion,” a Department of Public Safety manager testified at the Commons transport committee. Ryan Schwartz, acting director general in the department’s cybersecurity branch, said protesters’ use of the internet was disruptive: 'It can cascade across social media platforms and be used to incite certain responses.'
Quarantine hotel rooms for cross-border travelers cost taxpayers up to $139 a night, according to records. The Public Health Agency as late as February was contracting for thousands of hotel rooms every month: "This is not a success story."
Authorities must prioritize benefits claims by the neediest veterans, says Veterans Ombudsman Colonel (Ret’d) Nishika Jardine. Tens of thousands of former soldiers, sailors and air crew remain on waiting lists for disability benefits: ‘They walked out the door with their little baggie of three months’ worth of medications.’
Taxpayers are collecting no interest on sweetheart export loans to China that run to 2045, documents disclose. Loans deemed in the “national interest” were approved by successive cabinets dating back decades: "I was taught that being a Canadian meant our nation stood for something."
Repeated cabinet claims that most Canadians see net gains paying a carbon tax are untrue, a Parliamentary Budget Office report said yesterday. The finding came as Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault again claimed all but “the richest among us” are better off paying carbon taxes: "Most households will see a net loss."
Proposed reforms drawn from We Charity investigations yesterday survived a vote in the Commons ethics committee. Liberal MPs lost a bid to bury a report recommending tougher conflict of interest laws: "Ensure Canadians have a chance to see this."
Authorities yesterday contradicted a Toronto Star story claiming Ottawa police recovered loaded shotguns from Freedom Convoy truckers. No charges have been filed regarding loaded shotguns, said the police chief: "Were loaded firearms found, yes or no?” "No, not relating to any charges to this point."
A parliamentary review of cabinet actions against the Freedom Convoy must not delve into cover-ups or concealment of evidence, legislators were told last night. New Democrat MP Matthew Green (Hamilton Centre, Ont.), who supported use of the Emergencies Act against protesters, said the review must be wide-ranging and above board: "The cynicism, the lack of trust, the erosion of faith in our democratic institutions is still very much a topic at hand."
