Canada continues to delay decision on COVID vaccines IP waiver
The Canadian government maintains it hasn’t made up its mind on a waiver that potentially could allow increased vaccine production around the world, a delay some say is equivalent to opposing the initiative. The waiver was brought forward to the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) last October […]
New contract keeps distance interpreting definition deemed problematic by association
New contract terms for federal freelance interpreters are out, and while one proposed aspect flagged as problematic has been reversed, a definition of distance interpreting that’s been criticized as likely to open up the workforce to greater health and safety risks has been maintained. “Because they’re putting it down in the contract for the very […]
‘Breathtaking’ childcare pledge to pay dividends beyond recouping pandemic losses: labour experts
The Liberal government deserves some praise for centring in its budget a billion-dollar plan to address the pandemic-propelled she-cession that has seen women exit the labour force in record numbers, say labour experts, who note a more even economic recovery is likely to hinge on smaller-ticket items, at least in the short term. Childcare as […]
Feds’ ‘feminist’ budget pitches plan to stop ‘uneven recovery’; deficit to hit $354.2-billion
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s first “feminist” budget comes with commitments the government says will address social inequities, ease anxieties about the unrelenting pandemic, and tackle the climate crisis. Clocking in at 724 pages, the document titled “A Recovery Plan for Business and Growth” features a slew of new measures aimed at lifting workers and sectors […]
Feds give $35-million boost to National Capital Commission
The Trudeau government’s pandemic budget sets the stage for a host of spending measures in response to the public-health crisis and other ongoing commitments that would be found in any given year, including a $35-million boost to the National Capital Commission. The 724-page document, titled, “A Recovery Plan for Jobs, Growth, and Resilience,” was tabled […]
Ottawa earmarks $18-billion on Indigenous spending
Budget 2021 lays out expansive spending on Indigenous services, reaching $18-billion over five years, to address longstanding inequities that Ottawa says have been exacerbated by COVID-19. The largest promises, typically over a five-year time frame, are assigned to infrastructure projects ($6-billion), pandemic support ($1.4-billion), addressing the “national tragedy” of missing and murdered Indigenous women and […]
Liberals tight-lipped on labour standoff near party’s Montreal heartland
This story has been updated to include a statement from the Maritime Employers Association and additional comments from Michel Murray. Liberal MPs and cabinet ministers from ridings around the Port of Montreal are keeping quiet about a labour dispute that has businesses calling on the government to intervene. A labour dispute between longshoremen and their […]
Toronto ‘getting shortchanged’ on vaccine distribution, say some Toronto Grit MPs
Toronto Liberal MPs are accusing Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative provincial government of playing politics with the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, demanding more detail about the allocation process of vaccines and suggesting that areas represented by the Conservatives are getting an adequate supply while the ones represented by the Liberals are not. “The rollout certainly has some […]
‘It’s getting worse, we’re going backwards’: Ontario MPs say constituents confused, frustrated, angry with vaccine supply issues, and partisan ‘finger-pointing’ as COVID cases skyrocket
Canada’s most populous province is facing an increasingly uphill battle in reining in the pandemic with new cases of COVID-19 hitting all-time highs last week, intensive-care units stretched to capacity, and what a number of Ontario MPs describe as confusion, frustration, and anger with the vaccine rollout among their constituents. Ontario recorded 4,250 new COVID-19 […]
Bill to raise debt ceiling to $1.8-trillion advances to Senate
A bill that would raise the maximum limit for federal debt to more than $1.8-trillion passed through the House of Commons April 15, and will now face scrutiny from Senators as the government unveils new budgetary commitments that will require borrowing billions more in the years ahead. The government is already on track to borrow […]
