The Commons transport committee by a 5 to 4 vote has summoned all confidential records detailing $1.1 billion in federal financing to buy Chinese-made vessels for British Columbia Ferry Services Inc. “We can stop this loan,” said Conservative MP Dan Albas (Okanagan Lake West-South Kelowna, B.C.), sponsor of the motion.
A lawyer at the Department of Finance in Ottawa, Timothy Huyer, is the first federal employee to withdraw tweets under a new Treasury Board policy prohibiting vulgar and partisan social media posts. Huyer tweeted 9 to 10 times in a typical workday including messages ridiculing Conservatives and profane posts like one that boasted: “The nice thing about being in government is being able to introduce laws that allow you to f—k up without people being able to sue you for it.”
New Democrat MP Gord Johns (Courtenay-Alberni, B.C.) complained of “an affront to democracy” after being sidelined at a Commons committee hearing. Other parties signaled they had no interest in making concessions to New Democrats after they were reduced to seven seats in the April 28 election: "I think I have a lot to offer."
The federal prison system now has more employees than inmates, according to Correctional Service figures. It follows a finding by the Correctional Investigator that Canada has one of the costliest prison systems in the world: "In some institutions the number of correctional officers alone exceeds the number of inmates."
Cabinet expects the post office and its largest union to come to terms “as soon as possible,” says Labour Minister Patty Hajdu. One business group proposed Parliament impose back-to-work legislation on the Canadian Union of Postal Workers for the third time in 14 years: "The government is monitoring this situation closely."
Blacklock's pauses for the August bank holiday with warmest regards to subscribers. We wish you a safe, happy holiday. We're back tomorrow -- The Editor.
Poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, examines current events in the Blacklock’s tradition each and every Sunday: “‘I believe in equality for everyone, except reporters and photographers.’ Gandhi’s words…”
The National Gallery of Canada’s director of publishing and new media was on the line. Blacklock’s asks: What is your acquisition policy on folk art please? Pause. “Well, we don’t have a collection of folk art.” Pause. “What you consider folk art and what I consider folk art is probably not the same thing.”
The Gallery’s Acquisitions Policy running to 16 pages decrees the national collection must reflect aesthetic qualities “of the highest possible nature.” No whirligigs. No macramé. Folk art gets no respect.
It is the squeezebox accordion of the Canadian art world, so ill-defined it’s confused with Christmas crafts or macaroni glued to a tin. “The term is unclear,” note authors John Fleming and Michael Rowan, and is hobbled by raw assumptions that folk art “is aesthetically unsatisfying,” “empty of any serious purpose or moral end,” “unimportant and even trivial” and “requires no formal training.”
A Tax Court judge has faulted the Canada Revenue Agency for misunderstanding its own regulations in penalizing a couple over an RRSP withdrawal. Parliament to date has rejected Opposition calls for an enforceable "duty of care" owed taxpayers when the Revenue Agency is wrong: "There really isn’t any legal recourse."
A Liberal-sponsored petition is asking the Commons to criminalize political lies. MP Karim Bardeesy (Taiaiako’n-Parkdale, Ont.), parliamentary secretary for industry, sponsored the petition: "MPs have been accused of making important public statements that are false and without evidence."
The number of long-term boiled water advisories on First Nations is up 32 percent from last year, says Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty’s department. Dozens of First Nations still have tap water unfit to drink more than four years after cabinet promised to eliminate all water advisories at a $3.6 billion cost: "Advisories remain in effect."
The president of the Canada-Israel Interparliamentary Group yesterday said he will “continue to work with like-minded colleagues” in the Liberal caucus despite the Prime Minister's unilateral recognition of Palestine as a country. MP Anthony Housefather (Mount Royal, Que.) in the past called legitimization of Palestine “a really bad precedent.”
Canadian banks typically disregard federal guidelines requiring that they answer all customer complaints, says a Financial Consumer Agency of Canada report. Access To Information records show the Agency itself disregarded tens of thousands of consumer complaints: "Banks failed."
Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday made diplomatic history with Parliament in summer recess by announcing recognition of Palestine as a country. MPs including members of the Liberal caucus voted down an identical proposal in 2024: "I am speaking for Canada now."
Federal employees who post partisan, self-serving or vulgar comments on social media even by anonymous personal accounts should expect scrutiny and criticism, says a new Treasury Board directive. The policy, the strongest yet, warned provocative posts on Twitter, Instagram and other social media undermined public trust in the Government of Canada: "Ask yourself how this post could be perceived by a reasonable person."
