It’s time to require CCTV in Canadian slaughter plants
Use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) in slaughter plants is evolving globally. In preparation for Brexit, the U.K. passed legislation in May requiring CCTV in all British slaughter plants. Both countries and corporations recognize CCTV as an effective tool to ensure better treatment of animals. For example, Cargill, a multi-national slaughter company, adopted CCTV as policy, […]
Last call: Parliamentary Restaurant reopens in September, closes at end of December for 10 years
If you were thinking the Centre Block was closing this month for 10 years and just had to get in that one last lunch or dinner, you’re in luck. The historic sixth-floor Parliamentary Restaurant with the killer west view of the mighty Ottawa River is closed for the summer, but will reopen in September until December […]
Inside West Block, the House Chamber’s home for the next decade
With seven years of renovations nearly complete, the media got a tour on June 15 inside the West Block building, the interim home for the House of Commons Chamber for at least a decade once Centre Block closes in 2019. It was the first peek for the press inside the space, along with the new […]
Don’t blame supply management on U.S. dairy’s woes
As a childish, bullying, narcissistic, and hugely ill-informed U.S. president insults our own prime minister as “weak and dishonest,” we should not feel pressured to do what he wants–which is to use NAFTA negotiations to dismantle our supply management system for dairy, poultry, and egg producers–to appease him. U.S. President Donald Trump is a dirty […]
Centre Block closure, renos delayed until after summer
After months of uncertainty, it was made official today that Centre Block would be open for business this summer after all, delaying until January the planned decade-long renovation that was expected to begin after the House of Commons and Senate vacate the building after rising this month. The Senate’s Internal Economy, Budgets, and Administration Committee—a […]
Hill-union contract talks to pick up over summer, fall
As the core public service tries to nail down new contracts with the federal government, many of Parliament Hill’s unionized employees are also getting ready to exchange demands with their employers through the summer and fall. With most collective agreements between the House of Commons, the Senate, and their respective unions expiring this year, the […]
My love affair with the Library of Parliament
I don’t know how many love affairs have flourished on Parliament Hill over the years, but I want to tell you about one: mine, with the Library of Parliament. I’m very sad because, though this romance is far from over, I’ll likely never see my love again. She’s going to be boarded up in the […]
Loosen parties’ grip on backbenchers, say former MPs in sweeping, new Samara report
Many former parliamentarians grew increasingly disillusioned with the political process over their tenure as it became clear that protection of the party brand superseded their ability to make independent calls, according to a new study published Tuesday. In Flip the Script, a new report from Samara Canada, a non-profit organization that promotes civic engagement in […]
Why the youth vote matters
In 2015, just before the last federal election, we produced a movie, led by documentary filmmaker Robert Lang, about young people voting—or more accurately, not voting. In the course of filming of The Drop: Why Young People Don’t Vote, we found that so-called millennials didn’t think their vote mattered and that politicians neither listened to […]
House to decide next month if Centre Block will make its massive move out this summer
The House Board of Internal Economy will make a final decision on June 14 on whether or not the move out of Centre Block and into the West Block will take place this summer as originally planned, according to Government House Leader Bardish Chagger, a member of the powerul management board. There’s similar uncertainty in […]
