Foreign ownership of Canadian real estate is statistically insignificant, federal agencies yesterday reported. New data followed four years of research into claims that foreign speculators were to blame for high urban housing prices: 'It would be nice if the answer was that simple.'
The Department of Employment has settled a federal lawsuit alleging political interference in the Canada Summer Jobs program. Pro-life groups said they will be compensated for funding they should have received when 2017 contracts were cancelled: "This sort of ideological purity test is quite stunning."
The Department of Public Safety has failed an internal audit over the awarding of nearly a third of a billion dollars in grants. Auditors said money was paid without sufficient controls or oversight. The department yesterday did not comment: "Significant improvements are required."
Central bank research shows fewer than 3 in 100 Canadians own bitcoin, and only in paltry amounts worth an average $100 or less. Newly-released data by the Bank of Canada indicated most Canadians want nothing to do with the pseudo-currency despite media hype: 'The low rate of ownership may be surprising considering all the media attention.'
A former British Columbia Liberal appointee fired from a Crown utility five months ago has been named chair of Canada Post. Additional new hiring of a CEO and directors is pending as cabinet delays long-promised reforms at the post office: "The larger question is, what is the plan for this Crown corporation?"
Senators have deferred until 2018 a first-ever comprehensive parliamentary review of charitable tax credits. Fewer than 1 in 4 taxpayers give to charities, according to Statistics Canada data: "It is time to lay everything on the table."
In a case of taxpayer versus taxpayer, one Crown agency sued another over GST payments. The Farm Credit Corporation lost two court judgments in a long legal battle to lower its tax bill: "Now the taxpayers have the pleasure of paying for a legal fight that could have been determined by the government."
Health Canada has conducted polling on a Food Guide revision considered so radical, some respondents said it appeared to promote vegetarianism. Benchmarks for the new Guide urge Canadians to avoid prepared foods, eat vegetables and drink tap water: "It seemed to be steering Canadians towards a plant-based diet."
Transport Canada is delaying for another two years the introduction of new safety regulations on the nation’s interprovincial trucking fleet. MPs in 2015 urged mandatory electronic monitoring of drivers: "We are still stuck."
Poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, examines current events in the Blacklock’s tradition each and every Sunday: “Dear Santa, You left me disappointed last year. I didn’t get anything I asked for. And I was nice…”
Federal agencies continue to buy sports tickets in defiance of a 2015 cabinet directive that banned the practice. Six departments and Crown corporations spent thousands to attend sporting events this year, from tennis championships to Saskatchewan Roughriders season tickets: "I’m not sure what directive you are referring to, exactly."
The Senate yesterday ordered up hearings on a marijuana impairment bill with an appeal to sanction random testing. Railways and other industrial employers have sought a statutory right to test employees if Parliament legalizes recreational marijuana: 'This is completely dysfunctional.'
Federal regulators are cited for unnecessary delays in setting new safety standards on workers’ exposure to cancer-causing radon gas. The Canadian Environmental Law Association yesterday questioned years of inconclusive review by the labour department: "I know things grind slowly in Ottawa but this is ridiculous."
Transport Minister Marc Garneau says French language requirements at Air Canada have the airline operating with “one hand tied behind its back”. The former Crown corporation has protested it’s the only national airline subject to bilingualism law: "Unfortunately, they did leave a few strings attached."
The Commons industry committee yesterday proposed sweeping changes to a federal anti-spam law. MPs described current regulations as vague, overly broad and uncertain as to their effectiveness: 'It leaves many puzzled.'
