The House Ethics Committee began a long overdue review of the federal Lobbying Act on Feb. 12. While it’s a chance to shake up Canada’s lobbying regime, which hasn’t been significantly updated in more than a decade, lobbyists are pushing back on some of the potential changes.
Canada already lacks adequate safeguards and oversight for medical assistance in dying. Pausing the practice for mental illness should only be the start.
Renewing the ban on MAID for mental illness would create additional injustices for the disabled community.
We are headed further down the golden-brick road to more privacy invasions drawn from giant personal metadata pools by both government and corporate surveillance teams.
The House Subcommittee on International Human Rights’ May 7 report was 780 words long, and didn’t declare whether a genocide is unfolding in Sudan, disappointing some past witnesses.
The Liberals have adjusted the makeup of House committees to reflect their new majority, shifting to a structure of seven Liberal members, four Conservatives, and one Bloc Québécois member on Liberal-chaired committees, compared to the previous four-four-one structure.
Slow and fragmented processes to turn ideas into usable solutions means homegrown firms look abroad for clients, while Canada has to rely on foreign production, says Jean Belzile of the École de technologie supérieure.
Canada was one of the few U.S. allies not to strike a deal after the Trump administration enacted emergency tariffs that were later struck down by the top American court.
With their newfound majority, the Liberals could take control of committees, giving them final say over the extent of Bill C-22’s sweeping new surveillance powers.
Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon will table a motion ‘in the coming days’ to change Parliament’s standing orders and boost Liberal representation on committees by two seats.
Sheila Copps joins The Hot Room to talk about the new Liberal majority government, questions about its legitimacy, and how it could change the dynamic on the Hill.
Hopefully, the majority of the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying will find the courage to recognize the rightful choice of those few Canadians who are suffering intolerably from a mental illness despite years of treatment.
A joint parliamentary committee is studying recommendations for the eligibility of medical assistance in dying for those whose sole condition is mental illness. It’s currently set for implementation in 2027, following two delays in the last three years.
‘It provides a small degree of operational relief,’ says Christa Dickenson of the monthly three-cent-per-subscriber boost, ‘but the reality is that [cable] subscriber losses are accelerating, and this increase has been a long time coming.’
Air Canada is subject to the Official Languages Act, and its CEO, Michael Rousseau, will retire after facing numerous complaints for not communicating in French, following a condolence video for two Canadian pilots who died on March 22. Commissioner Kelly Burke says the scope of the reaction shows ‘official languages are highly valued in this country.’
The recommendation calling for a leader of the government in the Senate to be appointed to cabinet faced some opposition at the committee table.
If a government were to use its numbers to force through standing orders changes for a reallocation of committee seats, it would be acting within its formal powers—but outside long-standing convention and the guardrails against tyranny-of-the-majority would begin to look optional.
While the House does an ‘excellent job’ of protecting the cybersecurity of MPs while travelling, Tory MP Stephanie Kusie says she sees a gap in information and training on general security.
The Hill Times’ deputy editor Tessie Sanci said the repeated interruptions and demands for her to stop recording ‘made it hard for all of us in the room to do our jobs.’
Before they can evaluate the new nominee, the Tories have ‘a lot of concerns’ about the process by which the government dealt with the interim parliamentary budget officer and the choice to leave the post vacant until a permanent appointment was named, says Conservative MP Stephanie Kusie.
Non-affiliated Senator Marilou McPhedran says while the report is a small step forward in recognizing challenges faced, she’s not optimistic about the ‘minimalist’ changes proposed.
Witnesses told MPs that global conflicts and new U.S. policies should motivate the federal government to improve its regulatory processes to ensure that companies want to produce their pharmaceuticals in Canada.
Nearly 60 per cent of rulings by committee chairs are being reversed when appealed, which is an increase from past minority Parliaments.
Members of the Senate Social Affairs and Human Rights committees say they aren’t waiting on government bills before pursuing accountability, enforcement powers, and clearer safety standards for the rapidly evolving technology.
Require parties to run equal numbers of men and women, including in winnable ridings. Those that fail to comply forfeit their right to compete. Period.
