http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national National News brought to you by Tbnewswatch.com Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:24:05 GMT 5 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/images/tbnewswatchlogo.JPG http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285681/Summertime-for-MPs-as-House-of-Commons-adjourns OTTAWA - Prime Minister Stephen Harper is set to return from his European trip but he won’t have to endure another grilling in the House of Commons for a while. All parties agreed late Tuesday night to end the most bitter spring sitting of Parliament since Harper's Conservatives came to power more than seven years ago. They packed it in a few days early after almost a month of late-night sittings, as the House of Commons calendar had MPs remaining at work in Ottawa through the end of this week. Proceedings had devolved into acrimonious mud-slinging. The government remains under a potentially criminal cloud over a $90,000 cheque that was provided by the Prime Minister's chief of staff to pay off the improper housing expense claims of Senator Mike Duffy. The Conservatives responded with a loud counter-attack that involved questioning Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau's past moonlighting as a paid public speaker and the driving habits of NDP Leader Tom Mulcair. Harper has spent the past week in Europe for a G8 summit, avoiding the scrutiny of the daily question period in the Commons, but he returns to Ottawa on Wednesday morning and will begin preparing for a Conservative party policy convention in Calgary later this month and an anticipated summer cabinet shuffle to shake up his front bench. The prime minister's Conservative majority mandate has hit the midway point to the fall 2015 federal election but the government is in a deep malaise. He returns from Europe without a long-sought free trade deal with the European Union, and other promised trade agreements have yet to come to fruition. The Conservatives' heavy emphasis on oil and gas exports as a Canadian economic driver has also been undermined by the politics of pipeline construction, both in Canada and the United States. But it has been the taint of scandal that has most hurt the government's image this spring. Three Harper-appointed senators resigned from the Conservative caucus over various expense and personal failings and the fallout from Senate audits is not over yet. The RCMP has confirmed a criminal investigation into the actions of Nigel Wright, Harper's former chief of staff. The government also continues to fend off accusations of election improprieties from the 2011 campaign, including an ongoing Elections Canada investigation into fraudulent robocalls in dozens of ridings across the country. The governing party was also hurt by the departure of Brent Rathgeber, an Edmonton backbench MP whose scathing, insightful critique of the heavy-handed tactics of the Prime Minister's Office summed up years of Conservative command and control tactics. Rathgeber left the Conservatives to sit as an Independent after the government gutted his civil service salary disclosure bill, and his critique touched a nerve with an increasingly restless Conservative base.   Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:46:38 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285681/Summertime-for-MPs-as-House-of-Commons-adjourns http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285706/Rae-resigns OTTAWA - Bob Rae, former interim Liberal leader and one-time NDP premier of Ontario, is resigning as an MP, winding up a political career that stretched over 35 years and two parties. Rae began in politics as a New Democrat and later shifted to the federal Liberals, even seeking the party leadership at one point. He was first elected to the Commons in a 1978 byelection, but moved to Ontario provincial politics four years later, when he became provincial NDP leader. He was premier from 1990-95 during troubled economic times and left a controversial legacy. In 2006, having joined the Liberals, he unsuccessfully sought the party leadership, but won a seat in the Commons in 2008. He became the party's interim leader after Michael Ignatieff lost his seat in the 2011 election. Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:12:38 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285706/Rae-resigns http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285707/Up-to-30,000-homeless-in-Canada-on-any-given-night OTTAWA - Homelessness in Canada affects about 200,000 people every year and comes with a $7 billion price tag, the first-ever national report on the issue has found. The results paint a picture of a disaster in communities across the country, said Tim Richter, one of the report's authors and the president of the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness. "In a natural disaster, the loss of housing or life happens because of a fire or flood or something like that," he said. "In the unnatural disaster of homelessness, the same things are happening, but it's happening because of poverty, disability, addiction, mental illness and trauma." But whereas natural disasters are met with emergency response plans to get people back to their normal lives, the response to homelessness is stuck in crisis mode, Richter said. "It's time for Canadians to shift gears from managing homelessness to ending it," he said. On any given night, at least 30,000 people are in homeless or domestic violence shelters, sleeping outside or temporarily housed in places like prisons or hospitals, the study found. As many as 50,000 more could be considered the "hidden homeless," temporarily staying with friends or family because they have nowhere else to go, the State of Homelessness in Canada: 2013 report concludes. The study, a join effort by the Canadian Homelessness Research Network and the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness, marks the first time researchers have looked at the issue on a national level. Several municipalities do count the number of homeless in their communities, but to get national numbers, the study's authors drew on new research on the number of people in the shelter system and added in estimates of those who are often overlooked in regular counts, such as women in domestic violence shelters. The provinces and the federal government are increasing their involvement in the search for solutions to homelessness, said Stephen Gaetz, the lead author of the report and the director of the Canadian Homelessness Research Network. That is driving the need for better information, he said. "Those decisions on how to respond to homelessness need to be based on evidence, what we know that works, not just on ideas we pull out of the air," he said. "We have to move forward with solid evidence on how to do this. We've got some of that evidence but now it's time to scale it up across the country and get everybody pulling in the right direction." The report made recommendations to improve the situation. It said communities need to develop and implement plans to end homelessness, supported by all levels of government and that those governments need to increase the supply of affordable housing. Another recommendation called for a housing-first approach to ending homelessness. Some communities are already following these approaches and are making significant progress, the report said. Among recent successful efforts is the At Home/Chez Soi pilot program in five cities, backed by $110 million in federal funding from the Mental Health Commission. It tries to get the homeless into subsidized housing first, before then supplying them with services designed to address the underlying problems that put them on the street in the first place. The last time a price tag was placed on dealing with homeless was in 2007, when the Sheldon Chumir Foundation estimated that the emergency response to homelessness cost between $4.5 and $6 billion annually, including shelters, social services, health care and corrections. The latest report raises that to just over $7 billion, based on the new count of the homeless and new research into the costs of housing them that came from the At Home/Chez Soi program. What's happened is that a system designed for emergencies has become a long-term response, akin to keeping refugees in camps for decades, Gaetz said. "When we start warehousing people, it can lead to a sense of complacency: 'well, it isn't the best situation to be sleeping with 50 other strangers in a room but it's a best we can do','' he said. "The reality is it isn't the best we can do at all." The report calls for more research into the issue, suggesting the federal government should consider co-ordinating a national homeless count. Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:09:35 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285707/Up-to-30,000-homeless-in-Canada-on-any-given-night http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285686/Indiegogo-defends-campaign-for-Rob-Ford's-alleged-crack-video TORONTO - A campaign that raised $200,000 dollars to purchase an alleged video appearing to show Toronto Mayor Rob Ford smoking crack was a "beautiful example" of the fundraising power of the Internet, says the website that hosted the controversial crusade. "That campaign really just speaks to what crowdfunding is about, which is giving the power to people to decide what matters to them and to fund what matters to them," said Danae Ringelmann, co-founder of crowdfunding website Indiegogo. The video fundraising campaign was launched by Gawker, a U.S. website whose editor John Cook claimed he'd watched the video, which was being shopped around for $200,000 by drug dealers. Ford has said the alleged video does not exist and that he does not use crack cocaine. Ringelmann said crowdfunding gives people the power of choice. "It was actually a beautiful example of exactly that, just as people can vote on the ballot to elect what politician they'd like to see, crowdfunding enables people to vote with their dollar to fund what they'd like to see come to life, whether it's a video of a politician or a baby or a film or what have you." Ringelmann dismissed concerns about the money being raised for a transaction with alleged drug dealers. "The campaign was for a reporter at Gawker, the funds were going to a reporter at Gawker, and I think in general there was interest among the community that people wanted this video to come to life," Ringelmann said. "What's interesting about this campaign is that no one complained about it; not even the mayor's office, nobody else. In general the community really wanted it to happen." Ringelmann also announced that Indiegogo is planning how-to crowdsourcing workshops in Toronto and Montreal in the coming weeks and will now accept payments in Canadian dollars, which will reduce fees for users in Canada. Canada is Indiegogo's second largest market after the U.S. Among the most successful Indiegogo campaigns launched by Canadians was last year's bid to raise money for Karen Klein, a 68-year-old bus monitor from Greece, N.Y., who was recorded on video being bullied mercilessly by young students. It started as a modest campaign to raise $5,000 to pay for a vacation, but after the video went viral more than $700,000 was collected for her. More recently, a campaign to launch the Matterform 3D Photon Scanner, which scans objects to be reproduced by 3D printers, raised more than $470,000 for two Toronto-based entrepreneurs. And Canadian metal band Protest the Hero raised more than $340,000 from fans to help produce their next album independently. The Indiegogo workshops in Canada are scheduled for June 26 in Toronto and July 11 in Montreal.     Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:55:20 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285686/Indiegogo-defends-campaign-for-Rob-Ford's-alleged-crack-video http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285685/Border-agency-warns-of-telephone-scam,-says-it-doesn't-make-calls OTTAWA - The Canada Border Services Agency is warning of a possible telephone scam. The CBSA says it has recently learned that people purporting to be employed at the agency's Border Information Service have been calling Canadians and requesting personal information and payment over the phone. It says the CBSA BIS call centre is a free information service for general enquiries regarding CBSA programs and services. The federal agency adds that the unit is not designed nor is it mandated to make phone calls requesting personal information or payment over the phone. It says anyone receiving such calls should immediately contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre toll free at 1-888-495-8501.   Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:53:19 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285685/Border-agency-warns-of-telephone-scam,-says-it-doesn't-make-calls http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285679/RBC-takes-more-optimistic-view-of-Canadian-economy TORONTO - Canada's growth outlook appears to be stronger than previously thought, thanks to an improving trade picture and the strength of corporate balance sheets, economists at the Royal Bank of Canada said Wednesday. RBC Economics raised its estimate for the country's 2013 economic growth to 1.9 per cent and says 2014 growth will be about 2.9 per cent. RBC's estimates are higher than the Bank of Canada's most recent outlook for the 2013 and 2014 gross domestic product and also higher than several recent forecasts by private-sector and international economists. As others have noted, RBC says the United States has been more resilient than anticipated in the early months of this year but it is more bullish than some others about what that means for Canada. “The improving trade balance underpins our forecast for Canada’s economy to grow at rates which should help propel the economy to full capacity in early 2015,” said Craig Wright, RBC's chief economist. “Stronger demand for autos, houses and industrial machinery from the U.S. will help sustain the lift in export growth that Canada experienced so far this year for the remainder of 2013.” Wright added that company balance sheets are healthy and will allow Canadian firms to invest in growth at an accelerating rate. “After rising an expected 3.7 per cent this year, business spending will strengthen to 7.3 per cent in 2014,” Wright said. Canada's central bank lowered its 2013 growth forecast by half a point to 1.5 per cent in April and maintained that stance on May 29 when it announced its key lending rate would remain unchanged. The Bank of Canada has also estimated 2014 economic growth will be 2.8 per cent followed by 2.7 per cent growth in 2015.     Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:41:08 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285679/RBC-takes-more-optimistic-view-of-Canadian-economy http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285684/Commons-Speaker-sends-MP-suspension-question-to-committee OTTAWA - Manitoba Conservative MP Shelly Glover has changed her mind and decided to file a new expense claim with Elections Canada for the 2011 federal election. House Speaker Andrew Scheer announced the decision by the MP for St. Boniface on Tuesday as he handed a committee the tricky question of whether Glover and James Bezan, the Tory MP for Selkirk-Interlake, should be suspended over doubtful campaign spending. Scheer says it's up to the committee on procedure and House affairs to decide if they should lose their MP privileges until their fight with Elections Canada is settled. Scheer had earlier declined to suspend them because they had both gone to court to settle their disagreement with the elections watchdog. But he reconsidered the matter after Liberal complaints and decided to let the committee decide the fate of the two Manitoba MPs. The chief electoral officer wrote to Scheer last month requesting that voting and other MP privileges of Bezan and Glover be suspended for their failure to correct campaign expense records from the 2011 election.     Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:51:57 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285684/Commons-Speaker-sends-MP-suspension-question-to-committee http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285482/Leaders-leave-G8-meeting-without-Syrian-consensus ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland - Going into the Group of Eight summit, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said it was seven against one — Russia's Vladimir Putin — when it came to Syria. In the end, both sides bent a little, but neither got exactly what they wanted. The Russians still flat out refuse to acknowledge that the Syrian regime attacked its foes with chemical weapons and remain staunch allies of President Bashar Assad. The United States, meanwhile, maintains it has proof Assad's forces carried out such attacks. The rest of the G8 is split over whether the U.S. should arm the Syrian rebels, but generally sides with the American position that Assad must go. The final G8 statement on Syria sought the middle ground. It condemns any use of chemical weapons without admitting any attacks actually happened. "We condemn any use of chemical weapons in Syria and call on all parties to the conflict to allow access to the UN investigating team mandated by the UN Secretary General ... in order to conduct an objective investigation into reports of use of chemical weapons," the statement says. "The UN team should make their report and deliver it to the UN Security Council for their assessment. We are determined that those who may be found responsible for the use of chemical weapons will be held accountable." It also calls for some sort of transitional government without explicitly calling for Assad's ouster. "We remain committed to achieving a political solution to the crisis based on a vision for a united, inclusive and democratic Syria," the statement says. The G8 statement says talks aimed at ending the conflict should be held as soon as possible: "Both sides at the conference must engage seriously and constructively. They should be fully representative of the Syrian people and committed to the implementation of the Geneva communique and to the achievement of stability and reconciliation." The deep divisions between Putin and the rest of the G8 were laid bare when the Russian president and Obama openly admitted on the first day of the summit that their two countries do not see eye-to-eye on the deepening crisis in Syria. "Of course, our opinions do not coincide," Putin said through a translator on Monday. "But all of us have the intention to stop the violence in Syria and to stop the growth of victims and to solve the situation peacefully, including by bringing the parties to the negotiating table in Geneva. We agreed to push the parties to the negotiating table." Obama concurred. "We do have different perspectives on the problem, but we share an interest in reducing the violence, securing chemical weapons and ensuring they are neither used or are they subject to proliferation, and that we want to try to resolve the issue through political means, if possible," the U.S. president said. However, both sides seem to recognize the two-year crisis is spiralling dangerously out of control. Tensions have escalated in the last week after the United States announced it would supply weapons and ammunition to the Syrian opposition after it found proof the regime of President Bashar Assad attacked its foes with chemical weapons, including the nerve agent sarin. Russia — one of four G8 members with a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council — has been highly critical of the U.S. move to arm the rebels. The Russians have also scoffed at U.S. claims about the use of chemical weapons, saying they're based on flimsy evidence. On the eve of the summit, Harper predicted Putin would not give in to pressure from the G8 and drop Russia's support for Assad. In doing so, he made it clear that Putin is the outlier of the group. But I don't think we should fool ourselves. This is G7 plus one. OK, let's be blunt. That's what this is, G7 plus one," Harper said Sunday. While the G8 is split over Syria, there were agreements in other areas. They pledged to stop making ransom payments to terrorist kidnappers and to take action to combat hidden company ownership. Harper and Obama also chatted for 10-12 minutes Tuesday morning as they walked along a golf cart path at the lakeside Lough Erne resort.   Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:11:45 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/news/national/285482/Leaders-leave-G8-meeting-without-Syrian-consensus