A Senate report on bilingualism will lay the foundation for the federal government’s new official languages plan. But the government has so far not committed more money for second-language instruction — a key recommendation of the Senate Committee on Official Languages’ June 2015 report called Aiming Higher: Increasing bilingualism of our Canadian youth. Earlier this … Read more
The suicide of another female inmate in a federal prison this week reinforces the need for change at Correctional Services Canada, said Conservative Senator Bob Runciman. “The suicide of Terry Baker at the Grand Valley Institution has remarkable similarities to the Ashley Smith case,” Runciman said. “Disturbingly, it shows Correctional Services has learned nothing from Ashley’s … Read more
Members of the Senate Committee on Human Rights have been studying the integration of newly-arrived refugees, as well as the challenges faced by various levels of government, by private sponsors and by non-government organizations that provide services to refugees. The committee will table a full report with recommendations in the fall. However — in light … Read more
Conservative Senator Donald Plett confirmed at third reading in the Senate that the Trudeau Government and the Progressive Conservative Government of Manitoba were nearing the final stages of a deal in which the federal government would deliver all of the $20-million Employment, Workforce Development and Labour Minister MaryAnn Mihychuk (Kildonan-St. Paul, Man.) promised the provincial … Read more
The federal government must appoint a special representative to find solutions to address border crossing challenges for First Nations communities that straddle Canada and the United States or that are close to the border, the Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples said in a report. The report, Border Crossing Issues and the Jay Treaty, outlines possible solutions to … Read more
The federal government should reconsider its pricey plan to reduce eligibility for Old Age Security (OAS) from age 67 to age 65, senators argued in a detailed analysis of a government budget bill. Members of the Senate Committee on National Finance revealed potentially problematic aspects of Bill C-15, An act to implement certain provisions of … Read more
The Senate Committee on Human Rights urges the government to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to allow North Korean defectors to qualify for refugee status in Canada. In the short term, the committee is also recommending that the Minister of Immigration use his powers under the Act to allow the entry into Canada … Read more
The federal government has yet to spend a nickel of its $11.8-billion infrastructure budget, senators revealed in a report tabled on June 15. Members of the Senate Committee on National Finance scrutinized the government’s Supplementary Estimates (A), 2016-17, which sought Parliament’s approval to spend an additional $6.98 billion. The committee reiterated concerns that a lack of … Read more
Mind-boggling rules, dueling bureaucracies and maddening regulations are estimated currently to sap billions of dollars from the Canadian economy each year, the Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce has found. Senators released an extensive report on internal barriers to trade called Tear Down These Walls: Dismantling Canada’s Internal Trade Barriers in the context of … Read more
The Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade released a report called Perspectives on the Situation in Venezuela after hearing from four members of Venezuela’s National Assembly in May 2016 who risk persecution at home as a result of their public testimony. Committee members urge all branches of the Venezuelan political system to strike … Read more
