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Harper refuses to identify spending cuts
Monday, April 11th, 2011
Apr 10, 2011
The party has pledged to cut $4-billion from the roughly $80-billion that federal departments spend directly to deliver government programs — less than a month after saying it imprudent to book those savings now in the federal budget tabled March 22… “Anybody who says that you can’t find money in Ottawa without cutting vital services to people, simply is living in a fantasy world,” Mr. Harper continued… But after four years, the government has only found $2.8-billion in ongoing savings.
Tags: budget, ideology, tax
Posted in Governance Debates | 1 Comment »
Canadians’ unpaid tax bill grows to $25-billion
Monday, December 13th, 2010
Dec. 13, 2010
The $25-billion figure, the amount owing as of March 31, represents an increase of more than 35% over the total owing five years ago, when overdue taxes stood at $18.5-billion. the Canada Revenue Agency wrote off $1.9-billion in taxes as uncollectible in the most recent fiscal year. Such write-offs have been relatively stable in the past five years. The battle against delinquent taxpayers comes as Ottawa looks for ways to tackle the federal deficit, projected to hit $45 billion this year.
Tags: budget, standard of living, tax
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »
New records show the power of lobbying
Monday, November 8th, 2010
Nov. 7, 2010
Lobbyists bent the ear of MPs and senators nearly 700 times in a little over a month… That works out to an average of more than 17 contacts between Canadian parliamentarians and lobbyists each business day — seven times as many contacts as lobbyists declared with cabinet ministers over the same period… Duff Conacher, co-ordinator of Democracy Watch, a non-partisan advocacy group, said the records show only the tip of the iceberg. He said there is a lot of “hidden lobbying” of MPs on Parliament Hill, because the law is full of holes…
Tags: ideology, participation
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »
Records show which lobbyists have the prime minister’s ear
Friday, October 1st, 2010
Oct. 1, 2010
Lobbyists for Canadian industry — particularly those representing the country’s leading chief executives and the oil sector — top the list of those who got the most access to Prime Minister Stephen Harper over the last two years, government records reveal. By comparison, groups lobbying on issues such as health care and the environment barely got a foot in the door — even though the state of medicare and climate change have been major public policy issues.
Tags: ideology, participation, rights
Posted in Equality Debates | No Comments »
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