Blacklock's Reporter

An Information Commissioner in the harshest verdict to date has cited a public agency for wholesale violations of Access To Information law. Nova Scotia Commissioner Catherine Tully faulted the province’s Department of Energy for overcharging fees, hiding records and stalling disclosure of documents for years at a time: “It has been unbelievable.”

Canadian drivers are suspicious of robot cars, says in-house research by the Department of Transportation. Only 33 percent of motorists surveyed said they would be comfortable as a passenger in a fully automated vehicle: "My driving is good."

A federally-regulated trucking company has been ordered to pay $7,000 in damages after a manager uttered a racial slur against an Indigenous driver. The incident was despicable, ruled the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal: "These types of racial insults are highly reprehensible."

A public employee in Alberta has lost a bid to divert union dues to a local charity. The Alberta Labour Relations Board ruled there was no evidence the applicant was sincere: "They said I was vexatious and just trying to stir up trouble."

The Canada Revenue Agency in an Offshore Compliance Audit Manual recommends auditors use Google and Facebook searches to find tax scofflaws. “The internet is a wonderful resource,” said the manual obtained through Access To Information: "Auditors should use their judgment."

Conservative MPs yesterday petitioned the Commons ethics committee to reopen televised hearings on SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. The committee’s Liberal majority last March 26 vetoed any investigation of complaints the Prime Minister and senior aides went to extraordinary lengths to quash a criminal prosecution of the company: "Canadians deserve fulsome answers."

More than a quarter of passengers surveyed are unaware airlines are obliged to pay for lost or damaged luggage. The research at airports nationwide was conducted by the Canadian Transportation Agency prior to the July introduction of a passenger rights’ code: "Did you know airlines can be held liable?"

A British Columbia judge has explained a seven-figure corporate fine for an offshore spill that breached three Acts of Parliament. The $2.9 million penalty over the sinking of the tug Nathan E. Stewart is equivalent to less than one percent of the operator's revenues: "The offence was not intentional."

Senior Liberals including the Prime Minister and aides arranged at least 49 separate meetings and phone calls to discuss SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. legal troubles, Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion yesterday disclosed. The full extent of attempts to save the company from criminal prosecution is not known since officials concealed documents from investigators, wrote Dion: "The focus is on the Prime Minister."

SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. has continued to receive millions in federal contracts even as it sued the Government of Canada in an unsuccessful bid to avoid trial on bribery and fraud charges. Contracts totaling more than $15 million were awarded in six months, accounts show: "Why was SNC-Lavalin brought in?"

Canadians typically spend more on generic drugs than patients in Australia or the U.K., a federal agency said yesterday. Generics account for about 25 percent of drug sales, said the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board: "Canadians spent more on generic medicines than residents of any other OECD country except the U.S."

More Canadians drown in swimming pools than lakes or ponds, says the Public Health Agency of Canada. Analysis of years’ worth of hospital records confirmed June, July and August are the worst months for swimming fatalities: "The majority occurred in swimming pools."

There is no evidence climate change caused Canada’s costliest flood, says a Department of Environment report. Researchers said incidents of heavy rainfall are “rather random” with no detectable trends, though Environment Minister Catherine McKenna has cited extreme weather events as proof “climate change is happening now”.

The federal trademark office in Access To Information records has detailed applications rejected last year as vulgar or scandalous. Under the Trademarks Act regulators may veto slogans or symbols: "Jeez-Us so nearly resembles as to be likely mistaken for Jesus and therefore would be offensive."

Ontario's Human Rights Tribunal in the first case of its kind in Canada will rule on whether landlords may evict tenants for keeping marijuana. Landlords complained Parliament’s 2018 legalization of cannabis would lead to years of court challenges over use in rental buildings: "Do I understand the Government of Canada would leave it totally to the courts?"