It is always fresh to view the nation from a different perspective. Calgarian Mark Milke explores Canada’s story without mentioning French explorers or the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway. His is a tax-eye view. Who is not wiser on learning the first Canadian tax was a 50% export levy on beaver pelts for top hats?
The Supreme Court today upheld one province’s bid to regulate the cost of generic drugs. The ruling is expected to set a regulatory pattern nationwide, a legal analyst told Blacklock's. Justices in a unanimous 7-0 judgment concluded Ontario was within its rights in attempting to enforce a price cap by banning rebates paid to pharmacies by drug manufacturers.
Legislators are questioning a little-noticed bill that would see Natural Resources Canada sell nearly 50,000 acres of pristine wilderness for coal mining. The property has been preserved as Crown land since 1905, and borders an area protected from mining by the B.C. legislature: 'Beautiful -- it's also an area well-known for high quality coal.'
Hunters’ ammunition may pose an ecological hazard, says Environment Canada. The department is reviewing the green impact of lead bullets, estimating that tons of the material litter forests and shooting ranges nationwide: “There is no issue here; this is a political correctness issue.”
Cabinet is requesting that MPs undertake a winter-long report on rail shipments of dangerous goods with a mandate to suggest reforms in 2014. The "starting point" will be the fatal Lac-Mégantic wreck, said the vice chair of the Commons transport committee: "What's going to happen in the next 12 to 15 years?"
The Department of Finance has formally apologized for mistakenly doubling taxes on credit unions. Senior officials told the Commons finance committee they were sorry for the mistake, which required an Act of Parliament to remedy: "We do apologize for that error."
Agriculture Canada is keeping an eye on railways’ performance in shipping the first bumper crop since Parliamentary passage of a rail service reform bill. The department said it is “closely monitoring" the shipment of this year’s Prairie harvest following complaints of haphazard service: "They know we are watching."
Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz says the notion of retirement is now so vague he has acquaintances working past 65 to meet expenses. Poloz told a Senate committee he's concerned by trends in the nation's aging population: "I too know people who have decided to stay in the workforce longer than they originally planned."
Federal staff acknowledge landmark revisions to labour laws were written without consulting any business, union or legal analyst. Critics caution the amendments upset decades-old policies on right-to-strike and workplace safety: "It seems kind of a curious way to make policy."
The Department of Fisheries is levying $815,000 in new fees on B.C. aquaculture but stopped short of proposing national legislation to standardize fish farming practices across Canada. The drafting of a fee schedule followed years of study: "How are we supposed to make any progress on the real issues?"
Transport Canada is ordering railways to publicly report shipments of dangerous goods through towns and cities. However more substantial amendments to the Rail Safety Act are still awaiting the outcome of a probe of the Lac-Mégantic wreck, said the transport minister: "I expect we'll talk about it some more."
Social Development Minister Jason Kenney says cabinet is “giving people the shelter they need”, but would not commit to renewal of subsidies for 200,000 low-income households. Advocates caution that tenants may face eviction without federal support of below-market rents: "Are we going to tackle this problem?"
A Euro trade pact is needed to stem a 20% decline in transatlantic seafood exports, the Fisheries Council has told MPs. The industry group called the tentative agreement “a game-changer” for producers of B.C. salmon, Prairie pickerel, and Atlantic shrimp, lobster and mackerel: "Right now we're not in the game."
Industry Minister James Moore is silent on withering criticism from business over a federal anti-counterfeiting bill. Executives and attorneys told a Commons committee the legislation is so clumsy it would be simpler for property owners to buy counterfeiters' goods and destroy the shipments: "I just don't have any comment on that right now."
Environment Canada is being cited by industry, science and advocacy groups for failing to comply with its own standards. Delegates to a University of Ottawa conference said regulators had largely failed: “Industry requires government to do its job.”
