Tuesday, November 22 saw the Cons’ refusal to debate their own government bills reach absurd levels, as Con MPs spent more time arguing against a single opposition private member’s bill than they did defending some of their supposed key priorities. The Big Issue But then, one can hardly blame the
Continue readingTag: environment
On Ending Colonialism OR One Reason Why the Northern Gateway Pipeline Must Never Proceed
In light of the upcoming Crown-First Nations Gathering scheduled for this week — the one from which our Prime Minister will be “ducking out early” — trm thought it prudent to review some basics on Canada’s relationship with her First Peoples. Harper’s planned early exit, the crisis at Attawapiskat and
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Get Mad At SaskPower
I don’t know why I’m mad today at SaskPower. It’s not like they’ve gone out of their way to piss me off lately. I simply started thinking about how unjust it is that there are unscientific smear campaigns against wind power, but there aren’t as many well funded groups of
Continue readingthe reeves report: Saving Solar Power in Germany
German Solar Park. For most of the past winter, Germany’s 1.1 million solar power systems that crisscross the country have sat relatively idle. Overcast skies and a relative lack of sunshine has meant the powerful solar-generating system has produced little energy, forcing Germany to import electricity from nuclear power plants
Continue readingwmtc: another victory: historic reduction in unnecessary animal testing in europe
From HSI Canada: Humane Society International has just secured the biggest reduction in animal testing requirements in history! Our science team has been hard at work for more than two years, negotiating with companies, government authorities and elected officials in Brussels for major changes to European testing requirements for pesticides
Continue readingThings Are Good: USA Rejects Keystone XL Pipeline
Yesterday saw two very effective protest movements in the USA, one was in regards to SOPA/PIPA and the other saw the Obama administration reject the Keystone XL pipeline. There are also concerns about carbon emissions from oil sands production in Alberta, a western Canadian province. Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org,
Continue readingwmtc: sweet victories! ford budget defeated, tarsands pipeline dead for now
If Rob Ford and Stephen Harper are both unhappy, this must be a good day! Yesterday the voices of reason on the Toronto City Council united to defeat Rob Ford‘s most dangerous budget cuts. There will still be cutbacks, and layoffs, and there is still a fight. But note this:
Continue readingBlast Furnace Canada Blog: Harper: Right about Iran, but on the tar sands and "outsiders" …
This week, the Prime Minister expressed aloud concerns many of us Canadian of all stripes have had either openly or privately – that Iran is a ticking time bomb with its nuclear program which without a shadow of a doubt has only one aim, to create a nuclear bomb that
Continue readingJimBobby Sez: Enbridge lobbied 23 MPs, 3 deputy ministers, 1 chief of staff & other public office holders
(Reprinted from Lobby Monitor Newsletter)
Enbridge did fall lobbying blitz
January 12, 2012 – 9:22am | Lobby Monitor Staff
In-house lobbyists with Enbridge, the Calgary-based energy company behind the controversial Northern Gateway Pipeline, lobbied 23 MPs, three deputy ministers, one chief of staff and other designated public office holders this fall, communication reports filed with the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying show.
Registrations filed with the commissioner’s office have Patrick Daniel, Enbridge’s president and CEO, listed as the responsible officer for the firm’s in-house lobbying. D’Arcy Levesque, the vice president of public and government affairs, and Sonya Savage, the senior manager of government relations, are identified as the two company officials whose lobbying activities represent 20 per cent or more of their duties.
A communication report does not specify which officials did the lobbying, or if the communication was face-to-face or by telephone.
The registration says Enbridge officials were to lobby on “bills (such as C-606 “An Act to amend the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 (Prohibition against the transportation of oil by tankers on Canada’s Pacific North Coast) – measure or area of interest is the proposed ban on oil tanker traffic.”
It also noted there could be “discussions regarding the development of a national energy strategy and the approach to opening new markets for natural resources” and that the company would be “seeking improved efficiencies in the environmental assessment processes.”
One communication shows Enbridge lobbied 22 MPs, all of them Conservative, at once. Another communication shows Enbridge’s in-house lobbyists lobbied Louis Levesque, deputy minister of international trade at Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada. Michael Wernick, deputy minister at Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada and Michael Horgan, a deputy minister at the finance ministry, were also lobbied, according to two separate communications.
Enbridge is also working with outside consultants, the registry showed. Ensight Canada’s Jacquie LaRoque, Gregory Kolz and Robin Sears are registered to lobby the House of Commons and the Senate on behalf of the company.
Continue readingJimBobby Sez: Enbridge lobbied 23 MPs, 3 deputy ministers, 1 chief of staff & other public office holders
(Reprinted from Lobby Monitor Newsletter)Enbridge did fall lobbying blitzJanuary 12, 2012 – 9:22am | Lobby Monitor Staff In-house lobbyists with Enbridge, the Calgary-based energy company behind the controversial Northern Gateway Pipeline, lobbied 23 MPs, three deputy ministers, one chief of staff and other designated public office holders this fall, communication
Continue readingJimBobby Sez: Enbridge lobbied 23 MPs, 3 deputy ministers, 1 chief of staff & other public office holders
(Reprinted from Lobby Monitor Newsletter)Enbridge did fall lobbying blitzJanuary 12, 2012 – 9:22am | Lobby Monitor Staff In-house lobbyists with Enbridge, the Calgary-based energy company behind the controversial Northern Gateway Pipeline, lobbied 23 MPs, three deputy ministers, one chief of staff and other designated public office holders this fall, communication
Continue readingCanadian Progressive World: Naomi Klein Debunks “Ethical Oil” Fiction
As she delivers this brilliant rebuttal of the corporate-funded Ethical Oil fiction, Naomi Klein brands herself “an expert in corporate crap”. We don’t have ethical oil in Canada. We’ve tar sands oil, which is like …Read More
Continue readingThings Are Good: Madrid Turned a Highway into a Park
Madrid made a very wise urban planning decision and buried a highway to make room for people and nature. Thanks to a lack of foresight, the Rio Manzanares was surrounded by concrete and industrial spaces that made for depressing scene. The smart people in Madrid decided to change that and
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Lana Payne juxtaposes massive profits and public concessions for Caterpillar and Rio Tinto against their attacks on Canadian workers: (T)he demands by ElectroMotive, a subsidiary of equipment giant Caterpillar, are about as outrageous as they get, including a 50 per cent cut in
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Roundup
Yes, it’s only been a couple of days since my last roundup post. But I’ll let the pace of news determine how often I put them up – and the end of this week offered loads of material for discussion. – Niki Ashton made a statement on LGBT equality in
Continue readingExcited Delirium: Zero Growth
Is ‘zero growth’ achievable? Maybe so if we set our minds to the idea.
Continue readingHarper—the prime minister of oil
In the paranoid corridors of Harperworld, opponents of tar sands development are radicals. And the most dangerous among the radicals are those who receive funding from foreigners. This is a rather curious accusation coming from Stephen Harper. After all, he faithfully serves the oil industry, much of which is foreign-owned.
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Good To See
There are some very interesting links to explore today. I hope you made some time available to browse. The UK is also experiencing strange weather, and there are photos and a hashtag to explore. == An excellent summary of the oil news tearing up the newspapers in Canada this week.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Carol Goar criticizes the tax giveaways that have blown a massive hole in the federal budget: But there is one area of government activity that will escape (Tony Clement’s budget-slashing) scrutiny. Every year Ottawa gives up billions of taxes in deductions, exemptions, deferrals,
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: Is It Just Me, or Do These Pork Barrels Reek of Bitumen?
Once in a while, something crosses my desk that makes me cross my eyes and pound my head against the desk in frustration. This is not one of those things. This is one of those things that makes me crinkle up my face and exclaim “What the hell?” If you
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