‘Archives bill could have profound impact on 20th century’: Critics say the bill would extend copyright protection for anywhere from 14 to 34 years
Canadian historians and research librarians are crying foul over legislation before the House of Commons that includes a controversial clause that would extend copyright protection for unpublished works for up to 34 years after the death of the writer. Critics of the move claim that the clause, which is buried within the fine print of […]
Maloney’s riding disappears, Whelan fights to keep farming area: MPs, Cabinet ministers plead their cases to Subcommittee on Electoral Boundaries Committee
A flurry of Ontario Liberal MPs, where the governing Liberals hold 98 of the 103 seats, has descended upon the Procedure and House Affairs Subcommittee on Electoral Boundaries on the Hill armed with maps, pens, pencils — and their own ideas about how the Ontario electoral map should be redrawn. The committee is hearing presentations […]
Motorcycle Mamma eager to ride off into sunset: Outgoing Alberta Alliance MP Deb Grey loves motorcyling, I mean loves it
If there is one thing that Alliance MP Deborah Grey is looking forward to this summer, it’s that feeling only motor-bikers get when cruising under an open-sky canopy during a serene ride in the Rocky Mountains. Admittedly, this coveted sensation has been difficult for Ms. Grey (Edmonton North, Alta.) to experience over the course of […]
Privacy and access should come under one roof: ‘There is not much conflict between the Privacy Act and the Information Act’: John Reid
Information Commissioner John Reid urged a Parliamentary committee last week to consider merging his office with Privacy Commissioner George Radwanski’s, given that the legislation governing the two offices are “joined at the hip” and that no other jurisdiction in the world operates in this way. Mr. Reid made the comments before the Commons’ Government Operations […]
Tell us the ideological biases
TORONTO–One of the time-honoured ways that advocacy groups use to inflict their viewpoints on an unsuspecting public is to create a “non-partisan” group and proceed to do a study on a “problem” of their choosing. There is nothing inherently wrong with that, of course. The problem comes in the reportage. When advocacy groups are right-of-centre, […]
Ukranian students say it’s a ‘life-changing’ experience: Hill interns get exposure to ‘a more civil Parliament,’ Canadian society, volunteerism
Working on Parliament Hill in MPs’ offices in Ottawa for the last month has been a “life changing” experience, say Ukranian students who are currently in Canada as part of the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program. The internship program, created for students from the Ukraine to work on Parliament Hill, has been in existence for the last […]
CanWest decimates bureau
A hell of a mistake… Even in these days of regular layoffs of reporters, the Bloody Wednesday axing of six veteran reporters from the CanWest (formerly know as Southam) News Service Hill bureau shocked the Parliamentary Press Gallery and the body politic alike. The condemned were called up to what is fast becoming known as […]
As LBJ once said ‘it’s better having them inside the tent pissing out than outside the tent pissing in’
KINGSTON–While I was driving back to Kingston from last weekend’s Tory leadership convention in Toronto, I could only think of one thing — the words of a more experienced Ottawa hand and journalist I spoke with soon after I arrived in the Parliamentary Press Gallery. It was 1994 and the Chretien Liberals had been in […]
Bravo to U.S. President Bush: Bush also tackles issue in first term as opposed to waiting until safety of his second term
Bravo to President Bush! Because of his efforts, there is new hope and momentum in the Middle East to resolve the lingering Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has claimed thousands of innocent lives on both sides. The United States President whom some least expected to tackle international issues is doing just that. However, Mr. Bush is familiar […]
Senators feuding over committee budgets
Changes made to the way travel funds are handed out to Senate committees have several Senators feeling short-changed, particularly high-profile Ottawa Liberal Senator Colin Kenny, chair of the National Security and Defence Committee, who says the changes will make it almost impossible for committees like his to plan for the long-term. Under the new rules, […]
