The Department of Public Works is urging that federal agencies use generic terms, not brand-name labels, when contracting millions of dollars’ worth of food and drink. The government buys more than $149 million worth of groceries annually. No authority would agree to an interview on the National Food & Beverage Procurement Strategy.
Importers anticipate the Department of Finance will ensure complete repeal of a $16 million border tax on TV monitors and other electronic goods. A lobbyist for the nation’s largest electronics firms and retailers said the dispute will be resolved this autumn: "We think we have persuaded the government of the unfairness."
Police notebooks are exempt from public scrutiny following the Supreme Court's dismissal in the case of a Toronto man involved in a subway scuffle. The complaint involved allegations of assault at a train station on Valentine's Day 2003: "I find it unusual that a case like this would go to the Supreme Court."
Scientists warn of hotter, dryer summers in whole regions of the Prairies. Research by the University of Alberta anticipates “drier and drier” conditions as rising temperatures speed evaporation of what rainfall does occur: "It's basic physics."
The Department of Finance is giving itself high marks for accounting though it’s missed its own deadline to balance the budget three times. Deputy Finance Minister Michael Horgan, in a memo marked “SECRET”, praised the treasury’s forecasting prowess despite overestimating revenues in three of the past five years.
Cabinet’s Treasury Board is examining how much public servants earn compared to workers in the private sector. The board confirmed it is budgeting up to $1.77 million for a series of comparative studies on pay and benefits: "They can commission whatever studies they want."
Telecom regulators are reviewing rates and terms Canadians face for wireless roaming fees, ranked among the highest in the industrialized world. Canadians pay three times the OECD average: "'I went to the U.S. and Europe and now have a bill for $4000.'"
Regulators at the Copyright Board have rejected a fee on secure digital memory cards despite an appeal from songwriters and publishers. The board told Blacklock’s the proposed tax on micro SD cards was not feasible despite demands from copyright owners: "It is a shame."
Newly-released documents expose the sinister side of public life with the publication of an entire file of death threats against Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The hate-filled notes and emails total 108 -- the equivalent of one every three weeks since the Prime Minister took office: "Disturbing."
Canada should use its pending foreign investment agreement with China as leverage on human rights abuses, including the fate of a former McGill student imprisoned on trumped-up charges, says an MP. Cabinet has yet to ratify its 2012 investment protection pact with the People's Republic: "A standing insult."
War and hockey play prominent themes in Department of Canadian Heritage plans for the nation’s 150th anniversary. Documents detailing cabinet planning note the “over-arching theme” is of a “strong and free” country forged in war, without mention of achievements in science, engineering, business, labour or federal legislation: "The picture is incomplete."
Canadian attempts to promote seal exports remain “a priority in our dealings with China” despite a continued ban on the trade, according to cabinet-level documents. China has failed to ratify a 2011 agreement with the Department of Fisheries to lift the ban: "They are pitching it as the last hope to keep the industry alive."
The Department of Agriculture has won a multi-million dollar dispute over farm subsidies paid to Hutterite colonies. The judgment turned on a narrow definition of eligibility under a grant program, AgriInvest. The Federal Court ruling saved the department $3.42 million in payments: "Such an outcome cannot be said to be unreasonable."
The Correctional Service says a computer-generated system of tracking substance abuse has been effective in curbing contraband in federal prisons, though more than 1 in 10 inmates test positive for drugs or alcohol: "People try to get around the rules outside of prison, too."
The Department of Canadian Heritage is silent on why it cut funding for the country’s only independent labour periodical while paying millions to media corporations under the same program. Newly-released Access to Information documents confirm subsidies to the periodical Our Times were cut 65% as five-figure grants were paid to Sun Media Corp., Torstar Corp. and others: “We never got a good answer.”
