Canada’s net neutrality shortfall: peeking behind the curtain of consumer complaints
Canada’s net neutrality rules, which require internet providers to disclose how they manage their networks and to treat content in an equal manner, were established in 2009. The policy is administered by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), which releases quarterly reports on the number of complaints they receive and whether any have been […]
Parties shed little light on how to revive and recharge the economy
TORONTO—The first election 2015 TV leaders’ debate must have been a huge disappointment to Canadians who hoped it would shed fresh light on how each of the political parties would revive and recharge Canada’s faltering economy. The Conservative position is best known—the Harper government has, after all, produced a budget. The problem is that it’s […]
MacDonald’s death marks ‘the end of an era’
Some 20 years ago, Flora MacDonald had been invited to be one of the speakers at the annual “How Ottawa Spends” seminar of Carleton University’s School of Public Administration. The seminar launches the annual journal, which analyses several federal priorities each year. She was asked to address foreign affairs and she did so with her […]
Harper won the debate
TORONTO—The first debate has come and gone, and was seen by all the hacks in the land. Every politico was glued to their armchairs, watching Stephen, Thomas, Justin, and Elizabeth duke it out—and, occasionally, switching channels to take in some of the Republican presidential freak show. But real folks? Joe and Jane Frontporch, as we […]
Campaigning ain’t all it’s cracked up to be
OTTAWA—Are we having fun yet? One of the keys to being successful in anything is loving what you do. I have always felt that career pursuit should not be based on money, but rather on passion. If you love what you do, you will never work a day in your life. And a key part […]
Harper throws a curve ball designed to upset momentum
OAKVILLE, ONT.—Warren Spahn, a baseball Hall of Famer, once famously said, “Hitting is timing. Pitching is upsetting timing.” And although I can almost guarantee you that Prime Minister Stephen Harper has never heard of Warren Spahn, (Harper’s a hockey guy after all), he seems to have adapted this pitching maxim to the sport of politics. […]
It’s Canada’s first billion-dollar election
The 2015 election will be Canada’s first billion-dollar election. The average election is five weeks and is usually estimated to cost taxpayers $400-million to $475-million, but this election is the longest since 1872 at 11 weeks and could see expenditures go over a billion dollars. Make no mistake about it; it will cost the taxpayers, […]
Elections campaigns matter, especially this one
Prime Minister Stephen Harper walked out of Rideau Hall last Sunday morning, up to the podium, and announced the start of the longest election campaign since 1872, also the costliest, and possibly the dirtiest. Mr. Harper, who is campaigning on the economy and security, didn’t appear to be too excited about the 11-week election campaign, […]
It’s Mulcair vs. the Senate
OTTAWA—Tom Mulcair recently said that if he becomes Prime Minister after the Oct. 19, 2015, general election, he would appoint no Senators while he negotiates with the provinces to amend the Constitution to abolish the Senate. That’s certainly a clear and succinct statement of the NDP position. It reminds me, however, of the old riddle […]
Five factors to watch for in this election
TORONTO—Campaign length: Much has been made at the outset about the historically long 79-day writ period. In the 1960s and 1970s the average election (there were eight of them) was 61 days. While this campaign is extra long by recent standards, with more than one-third of it in the vacation-filled month of August, the extended […]
