A bill that would effectively curb the proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline has been introduced in the Commons. New Democrats introduced the private legislation to ban oil tankers off the northern coast of British Columbia: 'This is borne out of a crisis'.
A promised balanced budget law may have far-reaching consequences, cautions the Parliamentary Budget Officer. Authorities warned that legislated restrictions on deficit spending could hurt essential services and off-load costs on provinces: "It's a political stunt".
A new Conservative bill would banish provincial welfare payments to refugee claimants. The measure follows earlier restrictions to claimants’ medical coverage that were struck down as “cruel and unusual” in Federal Court: "We are watching".
Canada’s marine industry is expressing growing alarm over confidential terms of a European trade pact that claims to “ensure a level playing field” in the sector. Shipowners and union executives alike questioned cabinet assurances that no harm will come from treaty negotiations to formally conclude Friday: "It just confirms our fears".
The Commons has rejected a motion to revive a subsidy program for home energy refits. MPs on a voice vote dismissed a New Democrat motion to restore a program cancelled by cabinet as an austerity measure in 2012: "This is disappointing".
The size of police departments varies as much as 45% in cities nationwide, says research by the think-tank Fraser Institute. The calculation follows a Commons report warning of unsustainable policing costs: "We have to take action to fix it".
Canadian National Rail Co. says it has received “no notice” of a mysterious fine, the first of its kind, for missing a federal grain quota. The Department of Transport claims it levied the fine after CN failed to meet minimum requirements to ship 536,250 tonnes of grain a week: 'No notice here'.
A federal lawsuit over the environmental impact of a new B.C. coal terminal highlights increased scrutiny of emissions, say analysts. Attorneys for the group Ecojustice filed the lawsuit to review a decision by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority to license a $15 million terminal: 'It's outrageous'.
Canada Revenue Agency faces questions over a “security state” scheme to bypass federal law in compiling a database of suspected fraud within the tax department. An MP and the union for senior staff questioned the ethics and legality of the program: “This is startling”.
Imported tea that violates federal standards on pesticide content is probably harmless, says Health Canada. The department’s Canadian Food Inspection Agency calculated a consumer would have to guzzle litres of tea daily to “elicit an adverse health effect” from trace chemicals: "75 cups a day".
Opposition MPs propose that cabinet appoint a national Seniors’ Advocate. The suggestion follows federal research that half of Canadians now age 20 will live to see their 90th birthday: "It is intelligent planning".
Railways, port authorities and shippers are being asked to a national summit to avoid a repeat of a transport snarl last winter that prompted federal quotas on grain shipments. The Canada Grains Council invited delegates to the November 25 conference in Ottawa: 'We need planning'.
Oil and gas companies pay two-thirds less federal income tax today than they did in 2006, according to records tabled in Parliament. Tax figures show collections from the whole energy sector including mining and refining declined by more than half in six years: 'It's hard to believe till you see the numbers'.
Poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, examines current events in the Blacklock’s tradition each and every Sunday: “The teachers’ union promises to keep parents informed during the strike…”
“Being a backbench MP in a majority government caucus is, without a doubt, the worst job in Canadian politics,” writes MP Brent Rathgeber. Irresponsible Government documents the misery.
MPs vote on bills they haven’t read, and deliver speeches they didn’t write. They are paid not to think, Rathgeber concludes; even behind closed doors the Conservative caucus is forbidden from casting free votes on any bill or motion: “The people’s elected representatives have failed miserably.” Rathgeber’s writing is clear and compelling; he damns the 41st Parliament with a methodical narrative you’d expect of a former trial attorney.
