Cabinet cannot cut spending without risking an economic depression, says Treasury Board President Jean-Yves Duclos. This year’s deficit is near $400 billion: "Doesn’t that mean there is no ceiling then on the spending?"
Media smears against the Communist Party of China have misinformed Canadians, says Ambassador Cong Peiwu. The envoy in webinar remarks to a Beijing-friendly group in Ottawa complained of poor press coverage: "Speak out."
Cabinet yesterday approved another pandemic relief measure for Canada Student Loan borrowers. Students forced to take temporary leave of their studies due to illness or parenting are granted a reprieve from payments: "More students may experience illnesses including mental health challenges."
Local authorities cannot name and shame neighbours they suspect of breaking pandemic rules, says Newfoundland & Labrador’s privacy commissioner. The warning came in the case of a small town mayor who took to social media to name residents he claimed breached the Quarantine Act: "Keep the village idiots off the streets!"
The Department of Foreign Affairs is building a multi-million dollar monument to itself. Managers yesterday detailed plans for a mammoth sculpture as a “lasting tribute” to their work: 'Difficult realities of foreign postings can temper enjoyment of opportunities.'
Canada cannot risk another general shutdown of the economy even with Covid-19 infections on the rise, Health Minister Patricia Hajdu said yesterday. The infection rate since September 1 has jumped twenty percent to the highest number of new weekly cases since June, a total 4,502 a week: "It doesn’t have to mean that everybody has to stay home."
Cabinet yesterday claimed a truce in an ongoing aluminum tariff war with the United States. Canada did not ask for a refund on millions paid in U.S. tariffs since August 16, said Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland: "How much is that?"
Top amateur athletes including Olympic contenders make a little better than minimum wage and typically rely on government grants and family loans to get by, says federal research. Data show athletes’ average incomes have remained unchanged since 2013 while costs rose dramatically: "Athletes are operating in the red."
Federal staffers hired under the Employment Equity Act say their workplace is riddled with cronyism. The report by the Public Service Commission indicated Equity Act employees had a dimmer view of merit-based hiring than their coworkers: "I do want to talk about nepotism."
The Department of Industry acknowledges its federal job creation claims are based purely on assumptions and estimates. The admission came in an audit of a program intended to create jobs through defence spending: "This was deemed not feasible."
Cabinet will press ahead with new green fuel regulations, Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said yesterday. The oil and gas industry had petitioned for a delay in the so-called Clean Fuel Standard due to recession job losses: "Canadians want their government to think about the future."
First Nations people have no right to insist Indigenous judges hear their legal claims, says an Alberta court. The legal system would collapse if all judges were suspected of bias based on their ancestry, said a Provincial Court judge in Red Deer: "What would the result be?"
The Department of Natural Resources yesterday said it will permanently install seismographs within a 200-kilometre radius of seven cities considered hot zones for a major earthquake. Hundreds of sensors will be deployed as part of an early warning system: "There could be up to several hundred extended network stations."
Cabinet will impose dollar for dollar retaliatory tariffs against American duties on aluminum, Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne said yesterday. U.S. President Donald Trump on August 6 served notice of ten percent charges on Canadian aluminum deemed to “impair the security of the United States”.
Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault has drafted legislation to regulate legal internet content but will not release it to the public. Guilbeault’s department said anyone wanting to read a confidential discussion paper detailing the regulations should file a $5 Access To Information request: "It has not been shared publicly."
