The Trouble With Normal Is It Always Gets Worse Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Hire a man to get timely, factual data from our Government... So I had a conversation with Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page today. Lil' ol' me. I picked up the phone, called 613-992-8026, spoke to his secretary, explained who I was and left my number. Huh. I'd intended to only ask a few questions, keep it simple, try not to take up too much of his time. 30 minutes later I hung up feeling, to say the least, incredibly positive about this man - his clear love of his work and the system that he maintains (which, incidentally, helps to keep our Government accountable to us). The questions I asked were: How best can Canadians support you in your work to keep our Government accountable? What other departments should Canadians be supporting as they work to protect us? Do you have any advice for those Canadians who feel disenfranchised from the current Government? With that said: $5.4 billion is being cut in our budget but from where? What's the plan?
Some helpful suggestions for would-be Liberal leaders Martha Hall Findlay made a brave move when she defied Liberal party custom and urged that special protected status be removed from the milk and egg industries. It was a brave precedent and a good start if, as seems to be the assumption, Ms Hall Findlay decides to run for the leadership. (It was common wisdom that Bob Rae would run as well, which tells you all you need to know about common wisdom.) Here are a few more ideas the Liberals might consider if they’re serious about being brave, daring and innovative as they restructure their party. • Tie the party to accountability. • In similar vein, develop a plan to change the proceedings in the House of Commons to comply with the various reform plans that have been put forward. • Televise the entire proceedings, not via the dull single camera now used, but with enhanced sound and multiple cameras, which would allow live commentary and simultaneous online response. • Expand and enhance the power of the Parliamentary Budget Officer.
NDP, Liberals urge government to make PBO officer of Parliament — now A House of Commons committee reviewing how federal politicians examine spending estimates is recommending the government conduct a review of one aspect of the review system: the Parliamentary Budget Officer. The committee is recommending the government consider a study about whether to make the spending watchdog an officer of Parliament, rather than an office inside the Library of Parliament. Becoming an officer of Parliament would give the PBO more independence from the government, and report directly to Parliament. However, the opposition parties weren’t happy with the idea of considering to conduct a study. The NDP and Liberals, in dissenting opinions attached to the report wanted the government to move faster and make the PBO an officer of Parliament, similar to the auditor general, privacy commissioner or information commissioner. The Liberals made a similar argument in their attachment to the report. Here’s what the majority report said: And the wording of the actual recommendation:
The Commons: If Kevin Page has overstepped his mandate, maybe it’s time to expand it - Beyond The Commons, Capital Read The Scene. It was just two years ago, Peggy Nash reported to the House, that a Conservative MP was heard to remark that the Parliamentary Budget Officer had “improved the decision making of Parliament.” But just yesterday, Ms. Ms. Tony Clement stood here to try to clarify the record. “Mr. Taking his iPad from his desk, Mr. The sentence cited here appears in this report authored by the standing joint committee on the Library of Parliament. What does this particular issue have to do with Mr. Ms. Mr. Bob Rae dared suggest next that the Conservatives rely on their own campaign promises. How then, Mr. “As the leader of the Liberal Party noted, it was in fact this party, this government, that established the parliamentary budget office,” the Prime Minister congratulated himself, “so this government is more than familiar with its intention in terms of the mandate it set up.” This was less an explanation than an assertion. Never mind now what precipitated the last election. The Stats. The Stats.
Press Release First time: U.N. puts Canada on human rights watchlist over Quebec demo law Contact: media1@unwatch.org Tel: +41 22 734 1472 GENEVA, June 17 – Canada will be put in the company of some of the world’s worst abusers of human rights tomorrow when the UN’s highest human rights official expresses “alarm” over Quebec’s new law on demonstrations during her opening address to a meeting of the 47-nation UN Human Rights Council, revealed the Geneva-based monitoring group UN Watch, which obtained an advance copy of her speech. Other states on the UN watchlist include Syria, Pakistan and Zimbabwe. “Moves to restrict freedom of assembly continue to alarm me, as is the case in the province of Quebec in Canada in the context of students’ protests,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay will say tomorrow, according to her draft speech. The rights czar reserves her sharpest language for Canada. “She just needs to keep things in proportion.
Canada News: It’s like a movie:’ Tourists find Grand Prix protests fascinating zoom MONTREAL—The daily protests in Montreal have become a source of fascination for some the thousands of tourists descending on the city for Grand Prix weekend. Over the past few days, visitors to the city have been witness to a march of near naked protesters, crowds of people banging on pots and pans, and lines of riot police. Demonstrations have been held daily since festivities surrounding the Formula One race began on Thursday, and have become riveting viewing for many taking in the city. “It's like a movie,” one man said Saturday, as he watched a line of riot police block off a street in Old Montreal. Tourists were given a first-hand look at the protests during a daytime march on Saturday. A large crowd gawked and snapped photos as the protesters circled the street corner under the watchful eye of police. “I think the police have been well organized,” said Dragan Mlikota, visiting from Chicago for the race. “That’s a mistake,” he said.
Keep Canada in the United Nations! - Liberal.ca - Liberal.ca<link rel="canonical" href=" /><meta property="og:url" content=" Larry Miller, the Conservative MP for Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound, wants Canada to withdraw from the United Nations, outrageously suggesting we be the first of 193 countries to leave the international organization that has promoted peace, cooperation and human rights since 1945. In response, Liberal Foreign Affairs critic Dominic LeBlanc issued the following statement: “Conservative MP Larry Miller’s ignorant comments calling for Canada to withdraw from the UN are symptomatic of a government that has no interest in protecting Canada’s place on the world stage. Their foreign policy, comprised of press releases, criticizing others and throwing hissy-fits when others dare criticize them, has damaged our international reputation, and affected our ability to work collaboratively with other governments and multilateral organizations. We live in an interconnected world where we can only protect Canada’s interests by playing a positive role internationally. Fight to keep Canada in the United Nations.
What the Supreme Court will really decide in the Etobicoke Centre case Anyone who has ever worked at a polling station knows how chaotic elections can be. Volunteers get flustered. Ballots go missing. Writ hits the fan. “It is inevitable that there will be some errors in the process,” admitted Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand, in Elections Canada’s written submission to the Supreme Court before Tuesday’s hearing on voting irregularities in Etobicoke Centre during the 2011 federal election. But how many errors does it take—and how serious must they be—before we toss out the vote tally and start from scratch? For decades, lower courts have used the “magic number” test in deciding disputed elections: when the number of questionable ballots exceeds the margin of victory—as in Yukon in 1957 and Ontario in 1990—courts have ordered fresh elections. The magic number test implies that, in an election, who won matters more than who voted for whom. But this raises a simple question: why count every vote unless every vote counts? It has good reason to do so.
Carleton University admits to issues with $15-million donor deal for politics school Carleton University says the $15-million donor agreement for its showcase school of political management, fronted by Preston Manning, does not reflect the university’s academic policies and will be renegotiated. The concession comes as the Canadian Association of University Teachers prepares a broadside at what it calls “unprece-dented and unacceptable” provisions in Carleton’s secret deal with Calgary businessman Clayton Riddell. The latest incident highlights what James Turk, CAUT’s executive director, called a worrisome trend in which some cash-strapped Canadian universities have given up their academic independence to the highest bidder. “The integrity of what universities are is at stake,” Mr. Carleton quietly released the donor agreement on the Friday afternoon before Canada Day after stonewalling The Canadian Press for almost a year to keep it under wraps. The contract reveals the Riddell Foundation effectively appointed three of five people on a steering committee. Said Mr. Mr.
Over 30 cities set to rally against 'Black Mark Budget' this Saturday This Saturday, Canadians from across the country are gathering at Conservative MP offices to protest the Omnibus Budget Bill, Bill C-38. The "Blackmark Day of Action" is uniting Canadians opposed to a Budget Bill that contains a sweeping agenda to remake Canadian society, an agenda that is being rushed through Parliament without fair and open debate. The Bill, which makes changes to over 70 laws, has drawn criticism from across the political spectrum. This is far more than a budget bill -- these changes would gut our environmental protections, hollow out our economy and make our lives less secure. We believe that if the Bill passes unchanged, it will put a black mark on Canadian democracy. It's time to stand up. You can find an action in your city here, or sign up to organize your own here. List of ralliesNOVA SCOTIA Halifax - Halifax, NSNew Democratic Party MP, Megan LeslieSaturday, June 2nd, 2012 @ 12:00 PMAddress: 2207 Gottingen Street, Suite 1, Halifax NS, B3K 3B5 South Shore--St.
Canada News: Federal Budget 2012: Canadian government plans to scrap fair wages law OTTAWA—Hidden in the Conservatives’ massive budget legislation is a measure removing the federal fair wages act — another in a flurry of measures by the Harper government that critics say will keep wages low for a middle-class that has seen little improvement in income for decades. Scrapping the wages act is one of approximately 70 changes to federal law crammed into the 425-page budget bill. The move went largely unnoticed until spotted by New Democrat MP Pat Martin a few days ago. Known in full as the Fair Wages and Hours of Labour Act, the law requires contractors who have been awarded federal government construction projects to pay their workers the prevailing wage in the region as well as overtime. Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government has been under pressure to eliminate the law, which stems from the Depression era 70 years ago but was updated in 1985. “The reality is, today, that this is really provincial jurisdiction,” Raitt added.
AnonymousNorth : We have the power. Dont le...