Prime Minister Justin Trudeau yesterday proposed to discuss mandatory police body-worn cameras but stopped short of issuing a directive to the RCMP. A Conservative motion and Liberal Senate proposal to have all police wear cameras lapsed in Parliament over the past decade: "Why do police not want this?"
Rental arrears in public housing are running at about ten percent, a manageable level, advocates yesterday told the Commons human resources committee. Cabinet three years ago outlined a National Housing Strategy promising $2,500-a year rental aid to low income households in 2020: "No tenant has been forced to leave."
Canadians who falsely claimed to be jobless or refused work to qualify for $2,000 pandemic relief cheques face jail and five-figure fines. Cabinet will introduce legislation on penalties following suspiciously high claims for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit: "The numbers keep rising."
Made in Canada pandemic masks promised “within weeks” will not be available through an anticipated second wave of infections by Labour Day, says the Department of Industry. “The work is not done,” said Mitch Davies, senior assistant deputy minister: "Obviously this is important."
The Canadian Press is demanding 100 percent taxpayer grants, the equivalent of $500,000 a week, to offset revenue losses to year’s end. The news agency that calls itself the nation’s “trusted news leader” already received $1.3 million in sole-sourced licensing fees from federal agencies last year: "It would be most efficient if under such a program the grant be allocated directly to Canadian Press."
The Department of Employment has continued to approve labour permits for temporary foreign workers at the rate of more than 1,600 a week even as unemployment climbed to a postwar high. The department in a report sought by one MP said it will begin rejecting migrant permits in hotel, restaurant and retail trades: "We need to stay focused."
A CBC executive says the Crown broadcaster is reviewing ethics guidelines that forbid reporters from expressing “personal views” in the news. The internal email by Brodie Fenlon, editor in chief, was obtained by Press Progress. The CBC did not comment: "We are a beacon for that truth."
Thousands of recession-era jobs are riding on whether cabinet bans single use plastics, an industry lobbyist told the Commons industry committee. Regulations are expected in 2021.: 'Surely you’re not saying a plastic bag has a significant positive contribution to our economy.'
The Public Health Agency yesterday quietly erased China data from its pandemic reports as unreliable. Health Minister Patricia Hajdu earlier ridiculed questions over the plausibility of figures from the People’s Republic as an internet conspiracy: "We can confirm China was removed."
Infrastructure Minister Catherine McKenna yesterday invoked "privacy and security reasons” for refusing to disclose locations of subsidized public works to the Parliamentary Budget Office. Analysts have tried for months to find proof of 52,000 projects claimed by McKenna: 'They are mysterious.'
Former governor general Adrienne Clarkson yesterday said she has nightmares that cabinet will cut immigration quotas. Clarkson, 81, in a wide-ranging podcast also blamed France in part for racial turmoil in the U.S., and said women are smarter than men “ninety percent of the time”.
The Canada Revenue Agency has resumed taxpayers’ audits after a brief suspension. The Parliamentary Budget Office yesterday estimated auditors were assigned at ninety percent of their workload: "They anticipate a ten to fifteen percent reduction in audit activities."
A Liberal-appointed senator is reviving a proposed ban on parental rights to use force to correct children’s behaviour. Pandemic stay-home orders put kids at greater risk of spanking, the Senate social affairs committee was told: "It is not okay for parents to have that kind of permission."
Health Minister Patricia Hajdu yesterday said cabinet will be better prepared for the next pandemic, but did not comment on mismanagement of a national stockpile of medical supplies that cost $1.8 billion. MPs have demanded answers from a key official with the Public Health Agency responsible for maintaining the stockpile: "We're talking about money."
Cabinet has buried a whistleblower law passed by Parliament to protect bank employees who document illegal sales practices. It is the only major clause of a consumer rights’ bill that has yet to be enforced though MPs and senators voted for it two years ago: "It didn't matter."
