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The federal government rejected a plan to reform Canada’s ailing access to information program, and instead, conducted a limited internal review that produced no substantive change.
The Treasury Board put together a plan in 2019 that involved appointing a team of independent experts to study the Access to Information Act and come up with major changes to it.
But the federal government went ahead with a more modest process led by government staff, even though the Treasury Board had warned that such an internal review could lack legitimacy and harm public faith in the government.
Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Monday, Aug. 21, 2023.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
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Smoke aids B.C. fire fight as more than 55 buildings damaged in Kelowna area
Firefighters battling wildfires in British Columbia got some help over the weekend as a thick blanket of smoke helped cool the Okanagan region enough for crews to confirm that more than 55 homes and other buildings were damaged by the blaze.
Firefighters also found five neighbourhoods in West Kelowna that were threatened had escaped intact, local emergency officials said.
Crews will be taking advantage of the cooler weather to go into neighbourhoods and extinguish fires around homes and create a guard against the flames, which could be hit by higher winds from Tropical Storm Hilary this week, local fire chiefs said.
- Trudeau accuses Facebook of prioritizing profits by blocking news access during wildfires
- Wildfires could delay Northwest Territories fall election by a month
Federal government should look at cap on student visas, Housing Minister says
Ottawa should re-examine its policy on student visas and consider a limit on the program as the growing number of international students is putting a strain on rental markets and driving up costs across the country, Housing and Infrastructure Minister Sean Fraser said yesterday.
The number of international students in Canada has more than doubled since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took office in 2015, government data show. At the end of 2022, it sat at 807,260.
Postsecondary schools in Canada have relied more and more on international students for their revenue streams because their tuition fees are much higher than the fees paid by domestic students.
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Also on our radar
Trudeau accused of stalling on inquiry: Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is accusing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of stalling on launching an official probe into foreign interference, eight weeks after talks between the Liberal government and opposition parties began on the matter.
Ontario to provide funding to increase housing: Premier Doug Ford announced yesterday that his government will give 50 large municipalities $1.2-billion over three years to help them achieve housing targets. Governments across Canada are grappling with a housing crisis and leaning on municipalities to speed up development.
Office tenants are looking for more concessions: As vacancy rates in downtown offices remain high, tenants are seeking more concessions from landlords. In addition to cheap rent, smart building features, flexible lease terms and decarbonization strategies are among the top demands from tenants, according to a report from Deloitte.
Sudan civil war threatens African heritage: Sudan has the largest concentration of pyramids in the world and the civil war has put its ancient treasures in the line of fire. The National Corporation of Antiquities and Museums has identified 77 archeological sites and museums across the country threatened by the hostilities. Many are no longer accessible, or in need of resources that have been redirected.
Morning markets
World stocks extend rally: Global stocks extended their comeback rally on Tuesday, while benchmark Treasury yields scaled 16-year highs on concerns that interest rates could stay higher for longer and the safe-haven U.S. dollar pulled back from recent 10-week highs. Around 5:30 a.m., Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.47 per cent. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 added 0.91 per cent and 1.09 per cent, respectively. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed up 0.92 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 0.95 per cent. New York futures were positive. The Canadian dollar was higher at 73.90 US cents.
What everyone’s talking about
André Picard: “It’s essential that we restore some hope in medicare, a cornerstone public policy in this country. That requires bold action. As the federal Health Minister said: ‘We need to engage in transformative change on a scale that’s never happened before.’ And it’s not enough to just say it – we have to do it.”
Editorial: “If the land in question is flipped this year or next, and if the government’s deadlines around progress come and go without consequence, it will be clear what the purpose of the exercise really was. The same thing goes if the public gets stuck with the bill for the infrastructure needed for the 50,000 new homes Mr. Ford says will be built in the Greenbelt. Mr. Ford may think he has put the matter behind him, but he has yet to show Ontario voters that his government’s actions were in the public interest.”
Today’s editorial cartoon
Editorial cartoon by Brian Gable, Aug. 22, 2023.Illustration by Brian Gable
Living better
How ‘social jetlag’ may harm you
A new study published in the European Journal of Nutrition adds to growing evidence that even small sleep disruptions associated with shift work, what is known as social jetlag, may have a negative effect on your health. Researchers found strong connections between social jetlag and sleep deprivation, mental fatigue, increased heart rate, weight gain, insulin resistance, reduction in good cholesterol, elevated blood triglycerides (fats), depression and poor diet.
Moment in time: Aug. 22, 1935
William Aberhart of the Alberta Social Credit League, Aug. 30, 1935.
Social Credit wins landslide victory in Alberta
Desperate times call for desperate measures. That saying had no greater resonance than during the Great Depression, when Canada faced an economic crisis of epic proportions. The destitution and disillusionment fed a search for answers – and new political parties. Few seemed more unorthodox than the Social Credit party in Alberta. In the early 1930s, Calgary educator and evangelist William Aberhart began mixing social credit theory into his weekly radio broadcasts from the Prophetic Bible Institute. Aberhart glided over the more controversial features of social credit, especially its antisemitic underpinnings, in favour of a simplistic version: Consumers lacked sufficient purchasing power. He proposed that Alberta citizens be given a monthly $25 social credit dividend. Aberhart eventually formed a new Social Credit party, which contested the provincial election held this day in 1935. Social Credit roared to victory, winning 56 of 63 seats and garnering over 50 per cent of the popular vote. The United Farmers of Alberta, after governing the province for 14 years, didn’t win a single seat. The day after the election, Albertans began lining up outside government offices for their social credit dividends. But as premier, Aberhart balked at introducing social credit legislation, claiming that people really wanted good government. Bill Waiser
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