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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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, […]
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, […]
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 […]
PM to attend his last Gallery Dinner
On Saturday afternoon, Jean Chretien will likely put on his shirt, bow-tie and tuxedo, shine his shoes and tuck one of the year’s most highly-anticipated speeches into his inside breast pocket before setting off to the National Arts Centre for his final Parliamentary Press Gallery Dinner as Prime Minister of Canada. Don Martin, a columnist […]
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 […]
“Will Peter MacKay’s deal with David Orchard help the Liberals in the next federal election?”
Warren Kinsella Liberal strategist “What follows is Warren engaged in a conversation with Warren (something that, sadly, happens too often): “That wily old Paco Francoli… this one is clearly a trick question. It has to be. “I mean, it is so patently obvious that the answer is yes — it is so clear, so self-evident, […]
Here’s the bottom line on PM’s Campaign and Elections Finance Bill: Highly controversial Bill C-24 back in the House this week
The government’s proposed political fundraising law, Bill C-24, has emerged from the House Affairs Committee and will be back in the House this week, with several key improvements. Perhaps the most significant change made by the committee was a reduction in the individual donation limit from $10,000 to $5,000. While this amount is still far […]
