Harper should do more to advance Pacific Gateway Strategy
In designating David Emerson, my former Liberal Cabinet colleague and fellow co-regional minister for British Columbia as minister for International Trade and the Pacific Gateway, Prime Minister Stephen Harper appeared to be recognizing the vital importance of Asia Pacific to Canada. However, there was no acknowledgement of this critical priority in the Speech from the […]
FAA ushers in sweeping new changes to doing politics
As well, the New Access to Information Act could cost $120-million more than it does today. Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s massive omnibus Federal Accountability Act promises to usher in bold and sweeping changes to campaign financing, lobbying and whistleblowing and to make federal deputy ministers more accountable to Parliament. Moreover, implementing a new Access to […]
Conservative Prime Minister Harper’s highly-touted federal Accountability Act a recipe for more broken rules
Rule One in the national capital is that rules are made to be broken. From the most stringent election statute to the most flaccid regulation, rules crack under the weight of self-interest and are then reshaped by the law of unintended consequences. A short stroll down memory lane is a reminder of how things work-or […]
Harper’s newly-released federal Accountability Act a step in the right direction
And as long as the Tories can maintain an image of honesty and accountability, they will be half way to a majority The Conservatives have learned perhaps the most important lesson of modern Canadian politics. It is a lesson drawn from the last three instances where parties were tossed out of federal office. In each […]
New lobbying rules to change little in the world of lobbying: critics
Under the FAA, lobbyists will have to keep a list of meetings with public servants which could create a chill in the government-relations industry, says one critic. The federal government’s sweeping new lobbying rules will change little in the world of lobbying, say its critics. The proposed act, tabled last week, intends to clamp down […]
MPs who took part in last Monday night’s debate on “Canada’s significant commitment” in Kandahar, Afghanistan which is currently under the U.S. Operation Enduring Freedom
Conservatives 1. Defence Minister Gordon O’Connor (Carleton-Mississippi-Mills, Ont.) 2. Conservative MP Rick Casson (Lethbridge, Alta.) 3. Conservative MP Laurie Hawn (Edmonton Centre, Alta.) 4. Conservative MP Brian Fitzpatrick (Prince Albert, Sask.) 5. Conservative MP Larry Miller (Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound, Ont.) 6. Conservative MP Jason Kenney (Calgary Southeast, Alta.) 7. International Cooperation Minister Josée Verner (Louis-Saint-Laurent, Que.) […]
Some media mourn federal Liberals’ defeat, focus on Grit leadership
They say a human being pushed head-first from an airplane will achieve a constant speed of 300 km/hour-the point at which friction and gravity achieve near-perfect balance. What leadership campaign does this remind you of? Like a man without a parachute, Liberals have the exhilarating sensation of wind in their hair in a perfectly-balanced plunge […]
Press Gallery, PMO not talking, relations continue to deteriorate
Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Cabinet ministers won’t explain move to hold secret Cabinet meetings. Prime Minister Stephen Harper may be holding secret Cabinet meetings, much to the chagrin of the national media on Parliament Hill. But don’t ask his Cabinet ministers to explain the Prime Minister’s prerogative. “Why are you asking me? I’m the wrong […]
Grit Senators brace for showdown on proposed ethics officer
After proposing a single ethics commissioner for the House and the Senate under the massive Federal Accountability Act, Grit Senators are voicing their concerns, setting the stage for a partisan showdown in the Senate. Grit Senators say they oppose the idea of a single ethics commissioner because the Senate traditionally has been independent of the […]
Rubec new press gallery president, promises to improve relations and communications with PMO
This just in…Stephanie Rubec, a reporter with the Sun Media on the Hill and the newly-elected Parliamentary Press Gallery president, says one of her major priorities as the spokesperson for the national media will be to obviously improve relations and reopen the line of communications with the Prime Minister’s Office. “They’ve basically put up a […]
