Trudeau government only spending 70 per cent of what’s needed to end First Nations boil water advisories: PBO
The federal government needs to bolster spending on water and wastewater treatment by the hundreds of millions, if not billions, if it hopes to put an end to the alarmingly high number of boil water advisories on First Nations reserves, the Parliamentary Budget Office has found. In a new report released Thursday, the spending watchdog determined […]
Politics This Morning: Singh visits University of Ottawa to talk political engagement; McKenna heads to China; Joly, Hehr open Parliament skating rink
Good Thursday morning, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is visiting the University of Ottawa to discuss the next wave of political engagement in Canada. Mr. Singh is the special guest at an 11 a.m. iVote-jeVote event titled Breaking the Mould: The Next Generation of Political Engagement, hosted by the university’s Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy. […]
Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc diagnosed with leukemia
Fisheries and Oceans Minister Dominic LeBlanc announced Wednesday that he has been diagnosed with cancer, but has ruled out resigning from cabinet or Parliament as he seeks treatment. Mr. LeBlanc (Beauséjour, N.B.), who turns 50 next week, revealed his diagnosis in a statement to the media, saying the chronic lymphocytic leukemia was detected during his […]
New lobbying watchdog could help bridge gap between her office and ethics commissioner’s, lobbyists say
Some Ottawa lobbyists have long advocated for the government to merge the lobbying and ethics commissioners’ offices to avoid confusion and improve coordination. While the Liberal government’s nomination last week of a new lobbying commissioner makes that prospect unlikely, some lobbyists say the appointee’s past experience working in the ethics watchdog’s office could help bridge […]
Ex-StatsCan chiefs make last-ditch appeal to fix ‘egregious flaw’ in stats agency governance bill
A pair of former chief statisticians made a last-ditch plea to Senators last week to fix what one said was an “egregious flaw” that “fundamentally undermines” a government bill’s aim to give Statistics Canada more independence. In an appearance in front of the Senate’s Social Affairs, Science, and Technology Committee Nov. 30, Wayne Smith and […]
Status of government bills
HOUSE OF COMMONS Second reading: S-5, An Act to amend the Tobacco Act and the Non-smokers’ Health Act C-5, An Act to Repeal Division 20 of Part 3 of the Economic Action Plan 2015 Act, No. 1 C-12, An Act to amend the Canadian Forces Members and Veterans Re-establishment and Compensation Act C-27, An Act […]
Liberal Senator tables legislation to force CRA to reveal tax gap, after ongoing ‘mystery’ of reticence
Following the recent Paradise Papers revelations of Canadians involved in offshore tax havens, a Senator is reinvigorating his push for greater transparency from the Canada Revenue Agency, after years of what he said has been hitting “roadblocks” thrown up by the agency. Liberal Senator Percy Downe (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) introduced his bill, S-243, to change the […]
Committee recommends MPs not be docked pay for parental leave
Two MPs with young children are applauding a new House committee report that recommends the House not count parental leave as absence, and formalize that infants are allowed in the House Chamber. Two MPs who are mothers of babies, NDP MP Christine Moore (Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Que.) and Bloc Québécois MP Marilène Gill (Manicouagan, Que.), agreed with the recommendations, […]
No Phoenix civil suits for public servants, but unions filing loads of grievances
If you’ve wondered why federal public servants have not filed a class-action lawsuit against the government over the problem-plagued Phoenix pay system, it’s because they can’t. Section 236 of the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act, which governs the rules between the federal government and its employees, says unionized workers are not allowed to individually […]
Deep bench bolsters NAFTA trade team facing ‘unworkable’ U.S. demands
As Canada rejects what its chief NAFTA negotiator calls “entirely unworkable” U.S. proposals, a deep bench is working around the clock to keep the tripartite agreement alive. After appearing before the House Trade Committee Monday, Steve Verheul said Canada has yet to offer a counterproposal on American demands some consider “poison pills”—among them attacking supply […]
