Masters of their own proceedings
Tory Leader Joe Clark raised a good point last Tuesday in the House of Commons when he said it’s absolutely ludicrous that MPs can’t get the minutes of Commons committee meetings, or the blues, in both official languages, and, promptly. This is a huge problem and it’s been escalating over the past several weeks. It […]
MPs’ and Senators’ Birthdays
*Alliance MP James Moore, 27, June 10, 1976 *Liberal MP Mark Joseph Assad, 63, June 14, 1940 *Independent Sen. Doug Roche, 74, June 14, 1929 *Liberal MP Mauril Belanger, 48, June 15, 1955 *Liberal MP Lucienne Robillard, 58, June 16, 1945 *Ind. Sen. P. Michael Pitfield, 66, June 18, 1937 *Liberal Sen. Rose-Marie Losier-Cool, 66, […]
Privacy and access should come under one roof: ‘There is not much conflict between the Privacy Act and the Information Act’: John Reid
Information Commissioner John Reid urged a Parliamentary committee last week to consider merging his office with Privacy Commissioner George Radwanski’s, given that the legislation governing the two offices are “joined at the hip” and that no other jurisdiction in the world operates in this way. Mr. Reid made the comments before the Commons’ Government Operations […]
Anderson has no plan
Kate Malloy’s interview with Environment Minister David Anderson (“Cutting GHG ‘most important challenge facing the world,’” The Hill Times, May 26) shows that if the emperor had no clothes the minister has no plan. A plan, “noun: a way of making or doing something that has been worked out beforehand,” is more than just a […]
Ukranian students say it’s a ‘life-changing’ experience: Hill interns get exposure to ‘a more civil Parliament,’ Canadian society, volunteerism
Working on Parliament Hill in MPs’ offices in Ottawa for the last month has been a “life changing” experience, say Ukranian students who are currently in Canada as part of the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program. The internship program, created for students from the Ukraine to work on Parliament Hill, has been in existence for the last […]
Manitoba’s unexciting election could be preview federally
Some senior Liberals are worried Manitoba’s no frills and lacklustre election campaign last week is a preview for the next federal election campaign under the Prime Minister’s Campaign and Elections bill. Manitoba Premier Gary Doer’s NDP swept to victory last week, capturing 35 out of 57 seats — making it the NDP’s largest majority in […]
As LBJ once said ‘it’s better having them inside the tent pissing out than outside the tent pissing in’
KINGSTON–While I was driving back to Kingston from last weekend’s Tory leadership convention in Toronto, I could only think of one thing — the words of a more experienced Ottawa hand and journalist I spoke with soon after I arrived in the Parliamentary Press Gallery. It was 1994 and the Chretien Liberals had been in […]
‘Archives bill could have profound impact on 20th century’: Critics say the bill would extend copyright protection for anywhere from 14 to 34 years
Canadian historians and research librarians are crying foul over legislation before the House of Commons that includes a controversial clause that would extend copyright protection for unpublished works for up to 34 years after the death of the writer. Critics of the move claim that the clause, which is buried within the fine print of […]
Senators feuding over committee budgets
Changes made to the way travel funds are handed out to Senate committees have several Senators feeling short-changed, particularly high-profile Ottawa Liberal Senator Colin Kenny, chair of the National Security and Defence Committee, who says the changes will make it almost impossible for committees like his to plan for the long-term. Under the new rules, […]
Maloney’s riding disappears, Whelan fights to keep farming area: MPs, Cabinet ministers plead their cases to Subcommittee on Electoral Boundaries Committee
A flurry of Ontario Liberal MPs, where the governing Liberals hold 98 of the 103 seats, has descended upon the Procedure and House Affairs Subcommittee on Electoral Boundaries on the Hill armed with maps, pens, pencils — and their own ideas about how the Ontario electoral map should be redrawn. The committee is hearing presentations […]
