The Hook: Political news, freshly caught
Federal gov't cuts off marketing funds for indie publishers
After a dozen years of support, the federal government has decided to pull funding from a marketing co-op for independent Canadian publishers, leaving many members uncertain who'll sell their books next fall. Read more…
Should There Be More Regulations on Big Tech?
- Yes.
- No.
- I don’t know.
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Are you watching the winter Olympics this year? Read the results of that poll here.
Polls show gains for BC, federal NDP
An Angus Reid poll released yesterday shows the B.C. NDP well ahead of the provincial Liberals, while other polls indicate the federal party is leading in the Maritimes, Quebec, and B.C. and close behind the Conservatives in Ontario. Read more…
'Free My Grapes' bill moves on after MPs vote to revise outdated wine law
A unanimous vote by MPs has moved the country closer to wiping out a prohibition-era law that makes it illegal to carry a bottle of Canadian wine across a provincial boundary. Read more…
Conservative MP calls for 'review' of Canada in UN
An Ontario Conservative MP has called for "a review of Canada's participation in the UN" in response to criticism of Canada by UN agencies. Read more…
BC Premier Clark backtracks on promise to consult on CETA
British Columbia Premier Christy Clark has nixed a promise to consult with the public on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between Canada and the European Union. Read more…
As websites go dark, ministers sell Tory vision of resource exploitation
OTTAWA -- In a show of organizational strength from both sides of the debate, the Conservative government squared off against its environmental opponents Monday in duelling cross-country campaigns about proposed changes to Canada's environmental protection laws. Read more…
Online, offline protests of Bill C-38 planned for coming days
As the omnibus budget Bill C-38 marches forward with the weight of the Conservative majority government behind it, opposition groups BlackOutSpeakOut and Leadnow continue to search for ways to block it. Read more…
Committee chair's pesticide conspiracy email was 'impolitic', says recipient
Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett seems to view environmentalists as a threat to freedom, said a person who received a blunt and dismissive email from him this week. Read more…
Canada withdraws from UN body, accuses it of making Mugabe tourism 'ambassador'
Canada is withdrawing from the United Nations World Tourism Office, a move it said was formalized this week over the agency's recognition of Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe. Read more…
Oil sands sparked 'uniquely Canadian strain' of Dutch Disease: report
A new report by the Pembina Institute argues that Alberta's oil sands boom has given other parts of the country a dramatic case of the Dutch Disease or what it calls "oil sands fever." Read more…
BC Premier Clark 'making up' scheduling conflict, says NDP's Horgan
Premier Christy Clark has repeatedly blamed missing the Western Premiers' Conference this week on a conflict with the debate on her office's budget.
But NDP House Leader John Horgan says the estimates were never scheduled in conflict with the meeting and Clark is "making it up." Read more…
Human rights groups blast Tories' reaction to UN envoy
Dozens of human rights lawyers, including David Eby of the BC Civil Liberties Society, endorsed a letter sent to Prime Minister Stephen Harper and members of the Conservative caucus today, condemning the federal government's response to a recent visit from the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food. Read more…
Koch Industries-supported think tank praises Harper budget
The Stephen Harper government's highly contentious budget plan to streamline environmental assessments is a model the U.S. should follow, argues the Institute for Energy Research (IER).
This same American think tank once received hundreds of thousands of dollars from Koch Industries, a corporate heavyweight in the spotlight for its financial support of libertarian causes, including the Tea Party movement. Read more…
Legal challenge to Quebec protest law delayed to Friday
A legal challenge against Quebec's controversial Bill 78 requiring protests and rallies of more than 50 people to give police eight hours notice of expected attendance and route, will be heard in Quebec Superior Court on Friday. Read more…
Despite public support for a BC pesticide ban, Clark waffles on promise
British Columbia Premier Christy Clark backtracked today on her promise to introduce a province-wide ban on the cosmetic use of pesticides, despite public support for such a ban. Read more…
Quebec students, government to resume negotiations over tuition increases
Quebec students and the provincial government will return to the bargaining table today in a high-stakes attempt to end the months-long dispute over tuition fees. Read more…
AFN national chief Shawn Atleo to launch re-election bid
TORONTO - The current national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Shawn Atleo, is going to officially launch his campaign for re-election in Vancouver later today. Read more…
Citizens group releases video to fight undead Bill C-30
Openmedia.ca released this video and renewed its campaign against Bill C-30 a week after the minister responsible said the bill was not dead. Read more…
Conservative MP says he might vote against budget, then 'clarifies' his position
Kootenay-Columbia Conservative MP David Wilks caused a stir on Wednesday when videos were released of his conversation with Revelstoke constitutents, in which he suggested he might vote against his own government's budget -- if 12 other Conservative MPs would do the same. Within hours of the release of the videos, Wilks "clarified" his remarks. Read more…
Genetically modified plants won't take root with councillors in Richmond, BC
RICHMOND, B.C. - Richmond City Council says engineered crops and plants have no place in the gardens of Metro Vancouver. Read more…
