C-24 won’t be complete without C-34
Chief Electoral Officer Jean-Pierre Kingsley returned to Parliament last week to remind Senators that Prime Minister Jean Chretien’s Political Finance Bill leaves open a major loophole allowing donors to make secret donations to political trust funds. The Senators on the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee heard that Bill C-24, officially known as an Act to […]
Canadian help key to build International University of Baghdad, says an academic
Canada has an opportunity to play a leading role in the reconstruction of Iraq by helping to build an international university in the Iraqi capital city, says an Iraqi-born Canadian academic. Tareq Ismael, a professor of political science at the University of Calgary, is currently in the process of promoting the idea of building an […]
MPs’ and Senators’ Birthdays
*Treasury Board President Lucienne Robillard, 58, June 16, 1945 *Ind. Sen. P. Michael Pitfield, 66, June 18, 1937 *Liberal Sen. Rose-Marie Losier-Cool, 66, June 18, 1937 *PC Sen. John Lynch-Staunton, 73, June 19, 1930 *NDP MP Bill Blaikie, 52, June 19, 1951 *Liberal MP Beth Phinney, 65, June 19, 1938 *Ind. MP Pierre Brien, 33, […]
Radwanski’s ugly showdown with Parliament
I find it patently absurd that George Radwanski, the Privacy Commissioner and therefore an Officer of Parliament, is publicly fighting those Members of Parliament for whom he is supposed to be working for in keeping the government of the day honest. Radwanski asserts that he should be free from any confidence votes that Parliament might […]
Some winners and some stinkers at Press Gallery Dinner: Clarkson: the Alliance would get their Triple-E Senate: ‘Elected, Efficient, and E-merican’
OTTAWA–It was billed as Prime Minister Jean Chretien’s last Parliamentary Press Gallery dinner, the biggest and the best… and the meanest ever. Well-read and influential National Post columnist Don Martin predicted in The Hill Times the Monday before that since it would be Prime Minister Chretien’s last dinner he may as well “settle scores” with […]
‘Political nightmare’ awaits Libs on National Archives bill
The bill to amalgamate the National Archives and the Library of Canada moved one step closer to law last weekcomplete with controversial proposed changes to the Copyright Act that would extend copyright protection for unpublished works for as long as 42 years after death. But what was supposed to be a simple housekeeping bill could […]
Mr. Harper, no means no
This is a message to Canadian Alliance Stephen Harper: A clear majority of PC voters repeatedly rejecting a coalition with the Alliance means no. The PC constitution requiring the party run 301 candidates means no. That not one of the four main PC leadership contenders was in favour of a split-slate of candidates means no. […]
Media’s due diligence?
Recently, The Toronto Star ran a picture of veteran anti-smoking zealot Garfield Mahood on page B4 proclaiming the news that he and two others had received the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medals for their work against smoking. Mahood, 62, has been executive director of the non-profit — but hearty recipient of taxpayers’ cash — Non-Smoker’s Rights […]
Alliance mean-spirited
“God if there is a God, save my soul if I have a soul,” that was the despairing prayer of 1917. Tories can be forgiven if they echo these lines as they contemplate another round of the “unite the right” follies. The “unite the righters” fail to understand that the majority of Canadians will vote […]
Ethics rules for MPs and Senators: seventh time lucky?
As Parliament rises for barbecue season, the fate of Prime Minister Jean Chretien’s promised code of conduct for MPs and Senators is uncertain. Those following the ethics code debate will find all of this somewhat familiar. This is Parliament’s seventh — yes, seventh — attempt at passing such a code. Given the code’s tendency to […]
