CBC staffers return to the airwaves, but many still angry over what they say was an unnecessary eight-week, bitter lockout
CBC got back into federal political coverage last week, but CBC staffers say locking out employees every two years has to stop. Although the eight-week-long lockout at the CBC is over and CBC operations returned to normal last week, CBC staffers’ anger and frustration toward senior management will take some time to return to normal, […]
Gomery report to introduce new clouds on Liberal horizon
If the government plans to get to a spring election with its feet dry, it will have to weather the first Gomery downpour. Paul Martin, at an apparent loss over how to get his prime ministerial act together during his first year in power, has landed back on his feet since setting his sights on […]
‘The minister has an obligation to tell us who was disciplined and why, this is a scandal of national importance’: Williams [Sponsorship scandal]
Public Works Minister Scott Brison admitted last week that public servants have been disciplined in connection with the Sponsorship Scandal, but he’s not saying who, when or why. There needs to be assurances from the government that whistleblowers who came forward with information on the Sponsorship Scandal haven’t been punished, says Conservative MP John Williams, […]
Industry Minister Emerson hires three new top staffers: Former OLO QP coordinator Nancy Heppner joins Tory MP Dave Batters’ constituency office
Industry Minister David Emerson,who is also one of the two powerful political ministers for British Columbia along with Leader of the Government in the Senate Jack Austin, has hired three new staffers in his ministerial political office in Ottawa. They are: Benjamin Little, senior policy adviser; Adam Johnson, director of Parliamentary affairs; and Savik Sidhu, […]
Prime Minister’s Office and Press Gallery try to get along
Earlier this year, the Parliamentary Press Gallery executive made it a priority to improve relations with the Prime Minister’s Office because of a variety of problems, including the lack of notice when Prime Minister Paul Martin makes public appearances, granting year-end interviews only to TV news media and Prime Minister Martin’s unavailability during foreign trips, […]
The week ahead in Parliament
Both the House and the Senate are back after its week and two-week break and committees will be up and running The House will begin debate for the first time on the following bills: C-37 The Do Not Call Bill C-63 The Canada Elections Act and the Income Tax Act Review Bill C-64 Vehicle Identification […]
Dingwall and transparency
Revenue Minister John McCallum has been facing a lot of flak in the House of Commons on a daily basis over former Royal Canadian Mint president David Dingwall’s severance package. Rightly so. This whole Dingwall story makes it painfully obvious that severance packages and contracts for such top jobs should be fully transparent and open […]
PARLIAMENTARY CALENDAR: Graham White to talk about concentration of power at the apex of our Parliamentary system of government
Andre Blais, Kenneth Carty and Richard S. Katz will talk about the ‘political hot potato’ proportional representation on Oct. 27 in Ottawa. MONDAY, OCT. 10 The House – The House of Commons is adjourned until Monday Oct. 17. TUESDAY, OCT. 11 The Senate – The Senate is adjourned until Oct. 18. For more information, please […]
Dingwall and his pack of gum
So, was it double mint gum? Selfdecommissioned Canadian Mint boss David Dingwall may go down in history as the first public official to have screwed himself by being such a colossal tightwad. His travel and expenses tab were huge and pretty lavish, but in his line of work and given the turnaround in the Mint’s […]
Canada needs more Newman: Fan
Re: “Changes needed in higher echelons of CBC, says NDP culture and communications critic Charlie Angus.”Like I said before, I have missed Don Newman’s Politics. It was and is the most reliable program on Parliament Hill. The other stations don’t cover Parliament the way CBC does.The CBC is the heart of the nation. Don Newman […]
