Talks underway for ‘ambitious’ clean fuel standard not broad enough, says Tory critic
Consultations on the development of a clean fuel standard to reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions aren’t broad enough, according to the Conservative environment critic, though stakeholders say they’re generally content with the process the Liberals are using to obtain feedback. “The quality of the clean fuel standard will ultimately be the product of the quality […]
Strange bedfellows: industry and eco-advocates lobby together on CEPA reforms
Two leading environmentalist groups and Canada’s largest chemicals industry association have formed an unexpected alliance in pushing the federal government for consensus reforms to what is arguably the country’s most important environmental law. While industry and environmental advocates diverge on certain issues, they’ve established common ground on a series of recommendations for updating the 1999 […]
Defence deputy minister to start sweeping procurement-rules review this summer
Department of National Defence deputy minister Jody Thomas says she’ll work through the summer to review how the Canadian government buys defence equipment, with a view to paring down the procurement process to get projects out the door quicker. That could even mean more use of sole-source contracts, when it doesn’t make sense to hold […]
Feds must act to protect nuclear workers’ pensions
This fall, 3,400 of Canada’s best and brightest nuclear workers will find themselves unable to contribute to their public service pension plans. In fact, any recently hired federal nuclear worker never even had the chance to do so. Hidden away in one of the previous government’s many omnibus budget bills was a provision that doomed […]
Minister Carr tops lobbying list as groups ramp up on environmental assessment, fisheries bills
Energy and environment groups focused their April lobbying efforts on Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr, as they pushed the pros and cons of environmental assessment and fisheries bills, and continued to press the government on getting construction started on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. A May 17 search of the lobbyists’ registry showed groups logged […]
Liberals ‘doing themselves real damage’ out west by delaying CPTPP, says analyst
With many countries on the road to ratifying and implementing the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Liberal government is facing increasing pressure from the agriculture industry to get a move on tabling legislation that would bring the 11-country trade deal into effect. The Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA), which represents 13 industry […]
Lobbying czar calls for ‘transparency by default,’ cutting 20 per cent rule
When MPs sit down to review the Lobbying Act this fall, they should look at getting rid of the 20 per cent threshold required before someone has to register with the commissioner’s office, according to the new lobbying watchdog, a suggestion welcomed by Parliamentarians, an ethics advocate, and members of the government-relations community. It’s “too […]
With eight sitting days before Kinder Morgan’s deadline, no word on pipeline legislation
With only eight sitting days in the House of Commons until Kinder Morgan’s May 31 deadline to gain more certainty on the future of its Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, there’s still no word on when or if the federal government is planning to table legislative measures it’s been considering to support the pipeline. In a statement […]
Who’s lobbying who on the Trans Mountain pipeline?
The company behind the controversial Trans Mountain pipeline extension and other energy-related stakeholders are looking to the federal government for reassurance the pipeline will get built and a timeline for construction as legal and political wrangling plays out in the courts and on Parliament Hill. Parliamentarians who have been communicating with lobbyists from Kinder Morgan—which […]
AFN’s role, relationship with feds expected to be deciding factors in upcoming national chief race
The Assembly of First Nations will vote to decide on its national chief for the next three years in July, and with four names currently in the ring, debate over the AFN’s raison d’être and its relationship with the federal government are expected to once again help shape the race. “Two of [the candidates] are primarily […]
