Offshore money accounts for 25 to 49 percent of residential property sales in Canada’s largest cities, says a newly-released federal report. Cash buyers from China, Russia and the Middle East are among top investors, according to a study commissioned by the Financial Transactions & Reports Analysis Centre. The research was obtained through Access To Information: 'Cash is very common'.
A federal bill mandating disclosure of confidential labour records will not see a constitutional test in court. An Alberta union that was the first to challenge Bill C-377 is adjourning its lawsuit on a cabinet promise to repeal the measure: "It’s still possible to revive that application if things take an unexpected turn".
Cabinet is postponing a decision on whether to approve a permanent nuclear waste disposal site on the Great Lakes. Opponents cheered the delay, the first environmental regulatory decision by the new Liberal cabinet: 'The fact it’s right on the shore makes it very contentious'.
Cabinet faces a tough sell with any federal climate change program, says Natural Resources Canada research. A $152,235 department study concluded most Canadians oppose a carbon tax; do not understand cap and trade; and rate local pollution issues a higher priority than global warming: ‘Most expressed cynicism about how money from a greenhouse gas tax would be spent’.
Newly-released accounts show the Library of Parliament spent $32,300 for out-the-door interviews with retiring MPs to ask what they thought of – the Library of Parliament. Management earlier spent thousands on public "outreach" Facebook ads, though it's inaccessible to the public, and hired a patent lawyer to trademark its image for key chains and coffee mugs: "That's $566 an hour".
Taxpayers face billions in rising clean-up costs for federal toxic sites, says a secret Department of Finance memo. The document conceals current actual costs, but noted expenses invariably go over-budget: "Costs are revised, generally upwards".
Cash-strapped Parks Canada spent hundreds of thousands on theatre ads most people never saw, and fewer than 1 in 100 said prompted them to actually visit a park. The agency yesterday declined to reveal total costs of advertisements that ran in cinemas nationwide: "Some respondents recalled forests, lakes or mountains".
Cabinet is expected to continue issuing mom ‘n pop Canada Savings Bonds despite a consultants’ report that cast them as obsolete. The Government of Canada has sold small denomination bonds to individual investors since 1917: "There is currently no valid economic rationale for the program".
The Department of Health says it is still pondering regulation of electronic cigarettes eight months after a Commons committee urged ad bans and curbs on sales. Twenty percent of youth have used e-cigarettes, according to Statistics Canada: "There are still a lot of questions".
Regulators in recognition of one of the country’s fastest-growing religious groups are proposing to codify Islamic processing rules. The Standards Council said it seeks public input into a halal code: 'Standards promoted by the government will make it easier for the consumer'.
A federal judge has struck down a charitable tax scheme that saw donors claim a 2,600% markup on hockey sticks given to a church. Tax Court testimony showed the retail value of Spanish-made wooden sticks was declining when the transaction occurred: 'They were not making a gift'.
Elimination of a Depression-era drought agency was short-sighted in the face of climate change, an Ottawa conference has been told. Cabinet in 2014 folded the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration into the agriculture department and ordered the release of millions of acres of federally-controlled grasslands: "We need a coordinating agency".
Rideau Hall is hiring a publicist to boost nominations for an award so obscure few Canadians have bothered to apply for it. The office of the Governor General said it needs help to “stimulate more nominations” for civilian Meritorious Service Decorations: "The Tories made us thirsty for pride".
The federal Competition Bureau in a “puzzling” policy document says municipalities should deregulate taxis. The Bureau declined comment on whether it favours similar deregulation of federally-supervised railways, airlines and interprovincial busing and trucking companies: "They are trying to destroy an industry that works".
RCMP are reporting failure in a feasibility study to equip officers with miniature cameras. The Mounties complained of numerous difficulties. The study followed the 2007 death of a Polish airline passenger, Robert Dziekanski, in police custody: "No camera has been identified that meets all of the RCMP’s needs".
