Federal budget goals may be achievable
June 6th, 2013 | Comments (0)
A new report says the cuts proposed in the 2012 federal budget are achievable in the near future, but it’s unclear if they will be able to be sustained in the long term. The Parliamentary Budget Office says federal departments did not provide it with enough information to fully assess the Conservative savings plan. The report says the data that was passed along suggests the government is ahead of schedule in chopping the federal workforce, but doesn’t explain how the departments will reach their performance targets with fewer resources.
Alberta Conservative MP resigns
June 6th, 2013 | Comments (0)
Alberta MP Brent Rathgeber says he barely recognizes the Conservative party. In a new blog post, Rathgeber says he quit the Tory caucus last night to become an Independent because he believes the party no longer supports transparency and an open government. The Edmonton-St. Albert MP says he’s had doubts for about a year, but the final straw was the Harper government’s decision to water down his private member’s bill to expose the salaries of senior federal civil servants.
Serious threat made against the family of Doug Ford has police investigating
June 6th, 2013 | Comments (0)
Toronto police are looking into a threat that has been made against a member of the Ford family. Mayor Rob Ford confirmed an investigation is ongoing, but couldn’t make any specific comments related to the situation. According to reports, the threat was made against the daughter of Councillor Doug Ford. Police Chief Bill Blair called the email threatening and concerning and officers are taking it very seriously.
Deletion of gas plant emails by senior Liberals was against the law according to the privacy commissioner
June 6th, 2013 | Comments (0)
The deletion of emails regarding cancelled gas plants by top staff in the Dalton McGuinty administration was against the law. That was the conclusion from Privacy Commissioner Ann Cavoukian, who found deleting the material violated the Archives and Recordkeeping Act. The opposition parties believe the liberals were trying to cover up the true cost of cancelling the gas plants in Mississauga and Oakville, which is now up to $585 million. But Cavoukian says she can’t say with certainty there was inappropriate deletion of emails as part of the transition of power from McGuinty to Premier Kathleen Wynne. The Progressive Conservatives are asking police to get involved in order to determine how widespread the document destruction was and if any of the missing data can be recovered.
Big changes on the way for Ontario’s teacher colleges
June 5th, 2013 | Comments (0)
The number of spaces available at teacher’s colleges are being cut in half to deal with the overflow of new instructors. The plan has been announced by Ontario’s Liberals along with doubling the length of time it takes for teachers to receive a degree from one year to two starting in 2015. These were re-election promises from former premier Dalton McGuinty made just before the 2011 election.
Another twist in the alleged Rob Ford ‘crack video’
June 5th, 2013 | Comments (0)
It’s becoming more and more unlikely that the alleged Rob Ford crack video will ever be viewed by the public. U.S.-based gossip website Gawker.com, claims its contact has been told the video is gone and that the drug-dealing owners want to be left alone. Editor John Cook says he doesn’t know if that means the video has been destroyed or bought by someone. The website raised more than $200,000 to buy the video, which three reporters who have seen it say, shows Toronto’s mayor smoking from a crack pipe. Ford says he does not use crack cocaine and there is no video.
The Municipality of Clarington is looking for incentives to attract developers and businesses
June 5th, 2013 | Comments (0)
Incentives for businesses could be Clarington’s ticket to more growth. As some increased development charges come into play, Mayor Adrian Foster says they need to do something to make the municipality more attractive to companies and developers. Foster says they’re offering incentives for hotel construction, but no one has taken advantage of it. He says moving forward, they will need to talk with developers to see what kind of incentives are worthwhile to businesses.
Ontario is introducing legislation to crack down on strategic lawsuits that are used to silence critics
June 4th, 2013 | Comments (0)
The province is moving to end the use of strategic lawsuits used to silence critics speaking out on matters of public interest. The government is introducing legislation on Tuesday to crack down on such manoeuvres, which environmentalists say are being used to limit their criticism of development projects. The proposed law would allow courts to quickly review lawsuits alleged to be strategic and would include a legal test to help a judge decide if a case should be dismissed. Ontario’s attorney general says at the moment, Quebec is the only province with such a law.
Senate leader calling on the Auditor General to look into expenses
June 4th, 2013 | Comments (0)
Government Senate leader Marjory LeBreton is introducing a motion on Tuesday calling on the auditor general to conduct a full audit of expenses. She wants Auditor General Michael Ferguson to launch a full audit and not a public inquiry because she says that would costs too much and take too long.
The town of Ajax is introducing online voting for the next municipal election
June 4th, 2013 | Comments (0)
Soon you’ll have no reason not to vote in an election, at least in an Ajax municipal election. The town has introduced online voting, something Deputy Clerk Nicole Wellsbury says will be a lot like filling out a survey. She says once the vote is cast, it’s struck off the voter’s list automatically and will be severed from the elector’s identity, so there’s no way to link a person to a ballot.
Federal Government unveils anti-bullying program
June 3rd, 2013 | Comments (0)
Bullying is hoping to be squashed by the Federal Government, who are joining up with the Canadian Red Cross for a new National Anti-Bullying campaign. Heritage Minister James Moore, the Prime Minister’s wife Laureen, and Ottawa City Councillor Allan Hubley, were in attendance at the Ottawa High School that Hubley’s late son had attended. Jamie Hubley had committed suicide back in 2011 when he was 15 after being bullied for years for being the school’s only openly gay student.
Relief coming for wireless customers
June 3rd, 2013 | Comments (0)
Wireless customers will be able to cancel their cellphone contracts after two years without any penalties even if they’ve signed up for longer terms under a new code of conduct unveiled Monday by the C.R.T.C. The Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission says the new code will apply to new wireless contracts starting December 2nd. It’s part of a new set of national standards for the content and clarity of cellphone contracts. The C.R.T.C. is also capping extra data charges at $50 per month and international data roaming charges at $100 per month to avoid huge, surprise bills. The regulator will require providers to allow customers to unlock their devices after 90 days, or immediately if they pay the full amount of the device. Customers will also be allowed to return their cellphones within 15 days and specified usage limits if they’re unhappy with their service.