Conflict Commish Vows to Ignore 'All' of Reporter's Requests

As a reporter, Bob Mackin is used to feeling on occasion that powerful people are ignoring the at-times uncomfortable questions he asks, but it's rare he has it confirmed that he's being ignored.

That confirmation came Friday in an email from British Columbia's conflict of interest commissioner Paul Fraser, who writing on his BlackBerry about an email from Mackin wrote, "Let's continue to ignore all of his requests."

Clark's Pay from Donors Too Tied to Real Estate Moguls: Eby

The interests of BC Liberal Party donors who fund Premier Christy Clark's salary top-up appear to be determining the government's response to the housing affordability crisis in the province, says NDP critic David Eby.

A lot of BC Liberal donations come from wealthy people in the real estate industry, and the party's person in charge of keeping them flowing is himself a top marketer of condo developments, Bob Rennie.

Commissioner's Role in Clark's Conflict Review Questioned

A conflict of interest review of Christy Clark's private meetings with people in return for big donations to the BC Liberals has run into potential problems before it has even started.

Conflict of Interest Commissioner Paul Fraser agreed Thursday to investigate Clark's practice of holding private dinners or meetings with people in return for donations of up to $20,000 to the party.

But in 2012, Fraser stepped aside from a review of allegations against Clark, acknowledging that his son's senior role in the Liberal government and ties to the Premier could create the ''perception'' of a conflict of interest.

Mayor’s Ties To Developers Threaten To Derail Plan For Better Homeless Shelters In Nation’s Capital

Washington, D.C.’s primary homeless shelter is a dangerous, decrepit place and Mayor Muriel Bowser’s (D) plan to replace it with several smaller, distributed housing and shelter facilities has almost unanimous support from the advocacy community.

But that popular plan may now be in jeopardy.

Most of the sites Bowser proposes building shelter spaces are currently owned by people and companies who donated to her campaign, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday. These landowners would see a windfall from the plan as currently designed.

John Tory doesn't seem to get what a conflict of interest is

On the afternoon of Thursday, February 4, City Council was confused. This was not a terribly unusual state of affairs, but the particular circumstances were.

Councillors were debating a motion from Mike Layton concerning "competitive and affordable internet prices." It asked Council to express its support for a July 2015 decision by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) requiring big telecom corporations to open up their next-generation networks to smaller companies at wholesale prices. Just as internet service providers like TekSavvy are now able to make use of current Bell and Rogers lines to offer their own products, the July ruling extends the conditions to the newer, higher-speed infrastructure that is now being built out.

Raises for MPs and senators beat those offered to public service unions

MPs are in line for a 2.3-per-cent raise in pay, about five times the increase the Conservative government is offering employees in the public service.

Under legislation, MPs’ yearly salary increases are tied to the average wage settlements negotiated in private-sector companies that have more than 500 employees. That means they are automatically entitled to the average 2.3 per-cent wage hike private sector employers gave their employees in 2014.

The secretive Board of Internal Economy, a group of MPs who oversee the administration of the House of Commons, has been advised of the increase and it’s expected that all MPs will soon be notified of the raise, which kicks in April 1.

Diane Finley, PMO Under Fire For $1-Million Violation Of Conflict-Of-Interest Rules

OTTAWA — Opposition parties demanded to know Wednesday why the Prime Minister’s Office influenced a $1 million funding decision that the ethics watchdog said broke conflict-of-interest rules.

“What was Nigel Wright doing in the approval process?” NDP leader Thomas Mulcair asked Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the Commons.

As Fords exit mayor's office, conflict probes intensify

When Toronto city councillors were debating a zoning change in 2011, Doug Ford withdrew from the discussion because it could have affected a property leased by packaged-meats giant Maple Leaf Foods — a major client of his family printing business.

But then when the matter came up weeks later for final approval at city council, Ford and his brother, Mayor Rob Ford, voted on it.

As the Fords pack up their City Hall offices after last month's Toronto municipal elections, which saw Doug lose his bid for the mayoralty and Rob reduced to councillor, scrutiny of those votes and others is only intensifying.

Is Scalia Too Bigoted to Serve on the Next Gay Marriage Case?

The issue of same-sex marriage is destined to return to the Supreme Court, perhaps as early as next term, to resolve once and for all whether gay couples should have a nationwide constitutional right to wed. When it does, Justice Antonin Scalia—to quote a line from the old James Bond movies—must be shaken, not stirred, from any notion that he is fit to deliberate on the subject. As a matter of fundamental fairness and decency, he should recuse himself as soon as any new case reaches the high court’s docket.

‘Private interests’ in the Senate: How business conflicts are everywhere in Canada’s top legislative body

In the dry tone reserved for routine business, Senator Larry Campbell made a note for the parliamentary record: “I believe that I have a private interest that might be affected by Bill C-290.”

The bill, still awaiting the Senate’s approval, would allow Canadians to bet on individual sporting events; currently, legitimate establishments allow wagers on the outcomes of three combined games. This increases the odds of losing, which discourages gambling, which is why the industry wants a change.

Tougher Conflict of Interest Act needed following SIRC controversy, say experts

The part-time nature of the Security Intelligence Review Committee and inadequate conflict-of-interest rules are behind the recent furor that led committee chair Chuck Strahl to resign, say ethics experts and a former SIRC member.

Mr. Strahl spoke with The Hill Times three days before he announced his resignation from the committee on Jan. 24. He expressed frustration at the criticism he had received for lobbying the B.C. government on behalf of Enbridge while chairing the Security Intelligence Review Committee, but gave no indication that he was considering resigning from the intelligence oversight committee.

David Anderson, Tory MP, Lobbies CRTC On Sun News Case In Possible Ethics Violation

OTTAWA - A Conservative parliamentary secretary has intervened in the federal broadcast regulator's deliberations on carriage of all-news services — just months after three colleagues landed in trouble for sending letters to the same court-like body.

In his Sept. 4 letter to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, Saskatchewan MP David Anderson urges the regulator to take a "much more market driven approach" to both news and entertainment channels.

Larry Summers' Citigroup Problem

Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers' consulting gig with the banking behemoth Citigroup could come back to haunt him if he is nominated to succeed Ben Bernanke as chairman of the Federal Reserve. Bernanke's term expires in January, and Summers and Janet Yellen, the central bank's vice-chair, appear to be front-runners for the post, with media reports suggesting that President Barack Obama is fond of the controversy-prone Summers. But there may be a hitch with a Summers appointment. After Obama took office in 2008, he enacted sweeping ethics rules that say that no presidential appointee can work on matters directly related to a former employer for two years after taking a government job. That means that unless Obama grants Summers an exemption from the rules—a move that could be politically controversial—the former Treasury secretary will have to recuse himself from a slew of Fed decisions involving Citi, which is the third-largest bank in America. Experts say those recusals could hamper Summers' ability to run the Fed effectively.

Lisa Raitt met with ethics watchdog ahead of shuffle into Transport

Hours before she was named as transport minister Monday, Lisa Raitt spoke to the federal ethics commissioner about her new job.

Raitt’s common-law husband, Bruce Wood, is the president and chief executive officer of the Hamilton Port Authority, a federally mandated organization with considerable regulatory involvement with the department she now leads.

Raitt’s press secretary, Ashley Kelahear, would not say what the minister and Ethics Commissioner Mary Dawson spoke about Monday morning, or whether Raitt was given any guidance on the matter.

Kerry-Lynne Findlay Lobbied Rona Ambrose On Constituent's Behalf, Letters Show

OTTAWA - One of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's parliamentary secretaries looks to have run afoul of conflict-of-interest rules by lobbying on behalf of a man in her riding.

British Columbia Tory MP Kerry-Lynne Findlay wrote to Public Works Minister Rona Ambrose last year encouraging her to get her department to enter into talks to renew its lease on a building owned by a constituent.

No rule changes for MPs despite expense scandal

If you were imagining that these past months of Senate expense scandals would surely lead to tighter controls on how MPs and senators spend taxpayers' money, you will just have to go on imagining.

This week, MPs headed home for their summer vacations having changed not a single rule affecting their own expenses, and how they will blow through almost $450 million this year on everything from office supplies to martini dinners.

Its Top Regulator a Petro Insider, Alberta Faces New Major Spill

A Houston-based pipeline company responsible for three major oil spills in Alberta in three consecutive years has a questionable safety record in both the United States and Canada, according to regulatory documents.

On June 15 Plains Midstream, a subsidiary of Plains All American Pipelines reported a 1,000 barrel condensate spill near Manning, Alberta.

More than 40 workers are involved in cleaning up the highly toxic condensate which is used to dilute thick bitumen so it can move through pipelines.

MPs quietly increase their travel budgets 6.7 per cent

Members of Parliament from all parties have quietly approved a 6.7-per-cent increase to their travel-related expense budget in addition to a 1.6-per-cent salary hike.

The decisions were made behind closed doors on March 25 by the House of Commons board of internal economy. However, the increase to the travel status expenses account for all MPs was only made public Thursday, when the minutes of the meeting were tabled in the House of Commons.

Supreme Court Bans Protests On Its Grounds

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has come up with a new regulation banning demonstrations on its grounds, two days after a broader anti-demonstration law was declared unconstitutional.

The regulation bans activities on the court's grounds or building such as picketing, speech-making, marching, vigils or religious services "that involve the communication or expression of views or grievances, engaged in by one or more persons, the conduct of which is reasonably likely to draw a crowd or onlookers."

BC Liberal Pay Raises Put Finance Minister On Defensive

VICTORIA - The Opposition New Democrats say the cost-conscious Liberal government has found some extra cash to approve pay-scale raises for some of its top staff bureaucrats.

The New Democrats point to a June 3 order-in-council document signed by a Liberal cabinet member that increases salary ranges available to a chief of staff and some ministerial assistants.