Liberal MP’s private member’s bill will test backbenchers’ willingness to exercise free votes
Government backbenchers’ ability to exercise their independence by voting against the party line could soon face its first real test this fall when the House returns. The government has come out strongly against Liberal MP Peter Fragiskatos’ (London North Centre, Ont.) private member’s bill, which seeks to create a Criminal Code offence for inflicting torture […]
‘I’d like to see it fixed tomorrow,’ Foote vows to solve problem-plagued Phoenix payroll system, still can’t say when
The federal minister responsible for the government’s new and problem-plagued Phoenix payroll system, which has affected the pay for 82,000 public servants, says she wants the massive problem fixed as soon as possible, but still has no idea when that will happen, and the government’s largest public service union wants the government to use the old […]
U.S. deeply divided by race
OTTAWA—The United States is a country deeply divided by race. A compelling wordsmith, Barack Obama spoke from the heart in Dallas last week, with a sobering reflection on the state of race relations within his country. Even his emotion-wracked appeal did not lower the temperature. After 11 separate murder massacres during the Obama term, the […]
Former Conservative cabinet minister could be first opposition MP to pass private member’s bill this session
Conservative MP Rob Nicholson, a former Harper-era cabinet minister, is primed to be the first opposition MP to have a private member’s bill pass this Parliament. Bill C-233 will create a national strategy for Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, however, Mr. Nicholson voted against a similar bill in the last Parliament. His colleague Conservative MP Steven Blaney (Bellechasse-Les Etchemins-Lévis, […]
Senators want to pass Bélanger’s gender neutral national anthem bill this fall
Senators say they are confident Canadians will soon be singing the new gender-neutral version of O Canada proposed in Liberal MP Mauril Bélanger’s private member’s bill, C-210, which is currently before the Red Chamber and could become law this fall. Officially known as An Act to amend the National Anthem Act (gender), it will change two […]
Shared Services Canada’s email migration still on hold, eight months later
Eight months after the migration of government email systems by Shared Services Canada was put on hold, 90 per cent of federal employees’ inboxes remain untouched. According to emails obtained by The Hill Times, the ongoing decision not to restart migrations is due to “missing critical functionality” that Bell Canada and CGI Information Systems—the companies contracted […]
Transparency should start before decisions are made
The Liberals and Foreign Minister Stéphane Dion have found themselves in trouble over a lack of transparency in three foreign policy decisions: weapons sales to Saudi Arabia and Thailand, and a “Joint Action Plan” with Gulf allies. This is in contrast to early pronouncements by the Liberals that openness was going to be a hallmark of […]
Treasury Board recommits to Shared Services, committee of deputy minsters to oversee progress
The Treasury Board last week recommitted to Shared Services Canada’s key objectives and introduced a deputy-minister oversight committee aimed at keeping its plans on track. On Wednesday evening, the new information technology plan was released and included new timelines for the core projects Shared Services has been working on, as well as introducing new government IT initiatives. […]
Public service negotiations: government gestures well received but contract offers still unpalatable for unions
Despite the Liberals coming into office with the promise of treating the public service with more respect than their Conservative predecessors, most public servants are continuing to work on expired contacts, and government offers remain a long way from what unions are demanding. “This Liberal government has come to the table with the same Conservative […]
Conservatives promise to push Bill C-14 media leak probe in the fall, Liberals try ‘sweep it under the rug’
Conservative MP Blake Richards says the Procedure and House Affairs Committee’s study into the question of a breach of parliamentary privilege over an alleged leak to media about the government’s assisted dying legislation before it was released “should be the priority” for the committee when Parliament returns in the fall. “At this point right now, I […]
