SNC-Lavalin nuclear contracts at risk if it’s convicted
If SNC-Lavalin is denied a deferred prosecution agreement and is convicted of fraud and corruption, this could prevent the engineering company from bidding on federal government contracts in Canada. But it could also jeopardize its current and future contractual obligations with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), power producers Bruce Power, China National Nuclear Corp., […]
How to turn a good idea into a big mess
It’s tax season. Suppose the Canada Revenue Agency owed you $2,000 but instead of giving you the money, it offered you 20 gift certificates that it chose without consulting you: $50 for chicken, $80 for books, $100 in bus tickets, and so on. Don’t need chicken? Too bad! The gift certificates are not transferable. That’s […]
Clean fuel standard will lead to a tug-of-war between economy and environment
In 2015, a fresh government came into office with the mindset that the environment and the economy go hand-in-hand—that one cannot thrive without the other. Just as Parliament entered its final stretch ahead of the 2019 federal election, the government’s federal carbon price came into effect as its preferred mechanism to reduce emissions. Existing provincial […]
Canada can’t coast through this climate catastrophe
Canada is always trying to punch above its weight and prove itself from under the shadow of its southern neighbour. Well, congratulations, Canada. We’ve managed to shine once again, by being a world leader in how quickly we can warm our section of the globe. Canadian scientists have determined, in a report released April 2, […]
That other election to watch: Newfoundland and Labrador
OTTAWA—This week the time has come for me to write on something other than the SNC-Lavalin Liberal mess. I just can’t muster the energy to swim any longer in that turd soup. So what is the best thing to do when you are feeling worn down by federal politics? Look east. Canada’s Far East: Newfoundland […]
The Kenney campaign con and the new meaning of narrative
The word “narrative” as a political term of art is by no means new. The concept has been around since long before the days when Hollywood production values migrated to the White House with Ronald Reagan. From “the boy from Baie-Comeau” defining Brian Mulroney’s rise from son of an electrician in a Quebec mill town, […]
Is the Canadian Coast Guard underfunded?
OTTAWA—Is the Canadian Coast Guard underfunded? “When there is more ice, you need more icebreakers. When there is less ice, you need more icebreakers.” At first, I was puzzled by this statement from a Canadian Coast Guard officer. The first part is obvious enough, the second part was less so. The reason for the second […]
Canada’s current approach to Arctic short-term in nature
When discussing marine shipping in the Arctic, the answer—as with most questions on the North—requires a whole-of-government approach. On April 30, 2018, a review of the 1972 Pilotage Act was submitted to the minister of transport as part of the Oceans Protection Plan (the last substantial changes to the act were passed in 1998) by […]
Transport Minister Garneau says Ottawa’s ‘interested’ in potential benefits from West Coast high-speed rail proposal
Transport Minister Marc Garneau says he expects a report from a government-struck task force on school bus safety to be available before he meets with provincial and territorial transport ministers in the spring. In an email Q&A interview with The Hill Times for today’s transportation policy briefing, Mr. Garneau (Notre-Dame-de-Grâce-Westmount, Que.) said the task force—bringing together […]
Canadian icebreaking capabilities not up to snuff, experts say
The town of L’Anse-au-Loup, N.L., sits on north shore of the Strait of Belle Isle, just over 20 km east of the lower north shore of Quebec. The 600-person community relies on a ferry service to provide them with everything from groceries to propane. “All our grocery stores rely on it for their produce and […]
