Amnesty International Canada calls on Freeland to push for UN investigation into murder of Jamal Khashoggi
Amnesty International Canada is pushing Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland to call for a UN investigation into the reported torture and murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Arabian consulate in Turkey on Oct. 2, calling the government’s response to date “disappointing.” “It has been notable and a bit disappointing that Canada’s not […]
Canada made history last week, and it was a long time coming
OTTAWA—Canada made history last week, becoming only the second country in the world to sell legal cannabis. And judging by long lineups on the first day of sale, the decision was a long time coming. Marijuana distributers are predicting shortages for several months as product has been flying off the shelves in provinces with storefront […]
It’s too late to turn back legalization
It is not a drill. When legal cannabis hits the shelves in Canada on Wednesday, it will be there to stay. Come next year’s federal election, no party will be committing to turn back the clock on Justin Trudeau’s signature policy; not even the Conservatives, who spent the last campaign painting nightmare scenarios about the […]
Politics This Morning: Finance Department to release budget update
Good Friday morning, Here’s what’s happening today: The Finance Department will release the Annual Financial Report of the Government of Canada at 11 a.m. ET. The report will show the federal budgetary balance as of the end of the last fiscal year, March 31, as well as data on the financial position of federal, provincial, […]
Canada needs Saudi Arabia ‘whether we like it or not,’ says booted Canadian envoy
Canada—and the world—needs Saudi Arabia “whether we like it or not,” according to Canada’s recently expelled ambassador to the kingdom, but a path to renewed relations is unclear with the impulsive Saudi crown prince showing no sign of backing down. As “imperfect as it might be,” a stable Saudi Arabia is key in the Middle […]
Elections debate commissioner coming before 2019 election, but not through legislation: Minister Gould
With less than a year before the 2019 writ drops, the Liberal government is abandoning any possibility of introducing legislation to establish an independent leaders’ debate commissioner before the next election, though it says a commissioner will be in place. Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould (Burlington, Ont.) told the Procedure and House Affairs Committee (PROC) on […]
Pot lobbying to remain high in wake of legalization, insiders say
Since the Liberals came to power with a promise of cannabis legalization, a sophisticated government relations industry has bloomed out of the historic policy shift, with lobbying skyrocketing and the companies registered since 2015 having doubled those in the arena compared to three years before. That comes as no surprise to any involved in the […]
Mali mission is more modern colonialism than altruism
OTTAWA—A Canadian Press news story last week about Canada’s United Nations peacekeeping mission to Mali said an internal UN report noted that the violence level in that war-torn West African nation has actually increased since Canadian troops first deployed in June. Probably even the most self-delusional of Canada’s defence pundits would have realized that the […]
Large gaps, questions remain in federal support for research
For many years, Canadian researchers have seen a gradual, but significant decline, in funding from the federal government. For example, from 2013 to 2015, Canada’s average investment in research was 1.6 per cent of GDP, compared to a G7 average of 2.3 per cent. The 2017 Naylor Report found that Canada is falling behind on […]
On populism, Harper buys into right wing’s old ruse
OTTAWA—I won’t be buying Stephen Harper’s book. As was usually the case when he was prime minister, Harper seems in his new tome to be keeping his real thoughts to himself—in this case in favour of some fairly mundane observations and warmed-over conservative shibboleths. Apparently worried about maintaining his celebrity status among U.S. billionaires, the […]
