Former prime minister Brian Mulroney personally petitioned the Liberal cabinet to approve full combat benefits for Canadian veterans of the Persian Gulf War, newly-disclosed Access To Information records show. Cabinet dismissed the appeal: "They must not now be forgotten."
Cabinet will send taxpayers’ aid to Cuba, the Department of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. The pledge came as Cuba’s Ambassador to Canada said fuel and food shortages had ground the island to a standstill: 'It's important to be there for the people.'
The Persian Gulf War rates as a “smaller, less costly conflict” that doesn’t warrant inscription on the National War Memorial, according to Access To Information records from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Recognition has been sought by Canadian veterans of the war that ended 35 years ago this week: "They did lobby."
Cabinet will “bring more order” to labour relations at Canadian ports, Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon said yesterday. His remarks followed a succession of cabinet orders quashing legal strikes by port workers: "Canada must urgently solve this."
Cabinet yesterday ruled out any repatriation flights for Canadians in Mexico. The Department of Foreign Affairs urged vacationers to follow curfews amid public disorder: "Are you considering sending in planes?"
The National Research Council last year wrote down more than $12 million in subsidies to now-insolvent companies, records show. Taxpayer-backed bankrupts ranged from an Alberta shrimp hatchery to a brewery in Prince Edward Island: "The pandemic created major challenges."
The Department of Health will not support a Senate bill mandating health warnings on liquor labels, according to a briefing note. The Canadian Medical Association endorsed the bill after blaming alcohol for 17,000 preventable deaths annually: "People in Canada make informed decisions about their alcohol use."
Cabinet spent more than $18 million refitting an Italian office to showcase “Canada’s efforts to combat climate change,” Access To Information records show. The spending on a consulate in Milan was approved at the same time cabinet claimed to cut unnecessary spending: "How do you convince Canadians that you are serious about this?"
A federal hate crimes bill would outlaw “obstruction” of Indigenous sacred sites including purported unmarked graveyards, says a Department of Justice memo. Attorney General Sean Fraser made no mention of it when he introduced Bill C-9 An Act To Amend The Criminal Code last September 19: "Why isn’t Indian Residential School denialism proposed in this bill?"
The CBC prompted protests from Seoul by repeatedly identifying South Korean athletes as Chinese at the Winter Olympics. It was the biggest gaffe of its kind since the Government of Canada put up German flags to welcome a delegation from Belgium: "We want people of all backgrounds, identities and abilities to feel valued, seen and heard by CBC."
The federal IT department Shared Services Canada has awarded millions in “rolling” sole-sourced contracts to the same suppliers over 90-day periods, records show. Cabinet in 2018 granted federal managers new powers to award contracts without competitive bidding: "How many instances have occurred?"
The transport department is hiring private sector consultants to monitor spending on a multi-billion dollar high-speed rail venture. Cabinet said it needed “financial analysis” of the project that has been announced and re-announced for years: "This is real now."
Prime Minister Arthur Meighen lived for years on tree-lined Cooper Street in Ottawa. He owned a rambling Georgian Revival-style home. Meighen raised a family, sent his three children to Ottawa public schools and crafted the most momentous legislation of his era. Today the house is gone, replaced with an ugly apartment block.
Twenty-six percent of all new federal prisoners have already served time, which begs the question: Whatever happened to the other 74 percent who served time and never returned? On The Outside looks for answers. The result is fresh and compelling research on life after prison.
The authors interview longtime inmates including those jailed for serious violent crimes that once earned the death penalty. One hides his past from his children and “aspires to a simple life filled with laughter.” Another complains he must learn how to buy groceries: “People have been cooking my meals for twenty-two years and all of a sudden I gotta cook my breakfast.” A third ex-convict is upset by the loss of civility in polite society: “Personal rudeness in the prison system is not tolerated under any circumstances, at least in the old days when I was there.”
On The Outside is no celebration of rehabilitation. Former inmates interviewed by the authors appear broken men, some guilt-ridden, some unapologetic.
Canadians are indifferent to claims of labour shortages by businesses that rely on foreign workers, says Department of Immigration research. Even people with mild views on immigration were “unpersuaded” by complaints from employers: 'Some suggested they may depress wages and used foreign workers to drive down costs.'
