The real crime in the SNC-Lavalin affair is Canada’s role in Libya’s destruction
OTTAWA—In the wake of astonishing testimony by Jody Wilson-Raybould at the Feb. 27 House Justice Committee hearing, there has been plenty of finger pointing and howls of indignation leveled at the prime minister and his senior officials. As a result of the increased scrutiny, we are now aware of many of the more sordid details […]
Bill C-84 is an important first step
WINNIPEG—Bestiality is not a topic of polite dinner conversation. You won’t hear it being discussed over the clinking of glasses and scrape of cutlery across fine china. Even in less refined settings, most Canadians don’t want to think about bestiality, unless it’s wrapped in a joke—a common way to deal with things that make us […]
Grain farmers want to make agri-food economic strategy report a reality
This week, grain farmers from across Canada are in Ottawa for the second annual National Grain Week. Grain farmers come to Ottawa in February so that we can meet with legislators and policy-makers before the weather warms up and we get to work preparing for spring planting. Right now, farmers are ready to roll up […]
Canada carrying a hypocritical torch in stand against Maduro
OTTAWA—I must say that I find it quite disturbing that Canada has positioned itself at the forefront of what appears to be an imminent regime change in Venezuela. I say this not because I am a supporter of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, but rather because I consider myself a proud Canadian. We were born out […]
This year’s election will test populism’s allure in Canada like no other
OTTAWA—To get a glimpse of the state of politics in 2019, it isn’t necessary to witness the months of violence and vandalism in Paris or the plots in the United States by would-be killers intent on murdering prominent members of an opposing party. Just take a look at Conservative Senator David Tkachuk’s admonition to the truckers […]
Canada is a target, not collateral damage, in the U.S. trade war against China
It has become clear that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, in the ongoing diplomatic crisis between Canada and China, have relied heavily on courting support from the United States while dismissing Beijing’s criticism over Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou’s arrest. They claim Ottawa is just following the rule of law […]
Fair dealing is a right, not a privilege
This week at schools and campuses across the country, teachers, students, and librarians are celebrating Fair Dealing Week. This annual event increases awareness of a little-known—but well-used—feature of the Copyright Act: fair dealing. The Copyright Act touches all Canadians. At its core, copyright determines under what conditions artistic and literary works (including ebooks, computer software, […]
Justice officials told Senators SNC didn’t lobby them to get remediation agreements in law
Despite heavily lobbying ministers and political staff as well as some bureaucrats in other departments, SNC-Lavalin didn’t meet with Justice Department officials in the two years leading up to when the deferred prosecution agreements it wanted were ready to be used, departmental officials told Senators who studied the agreements last year. The Senate Legal and […]
Black public servants looking for political champions to fight battle in House, Senate
A new group advocating for the rights of Black public servants says that to combat the systemic racism employees face, specific data on Black Canadians is required to get a better picture of the issues it says need to be addressed. And with less than six years left in a UN decade for people of […]
Thanks to the internet, immunization is now controversial
OTTAWA—One of the benefits of social media is being able to maintain contact with old friends from around the world. As graduates of a high school in Montreal half a century ago, many of my former classmates followed the exodus out of Quebec in the 1970s and 1980s and now live in Toronto, Vancouver, and […]
