Canada
column for Sunday, May 12/13
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THE CANADIAN REPORT
(c) By
Jim Fox
Prime
Minister Stephen Harper is rejecting suggestions that three Senators defrauded
taxpayers by collecting nearly $200,000 in invalid housing allowances.
It’s a case of “fuzzy rules” rather than impropriety, Harper said after
independent audits into dubious housing allowance claims resulted in a Senate
committee demanding that the money be repaid.
The
allegations of impropriety involve Senators Patrick Brazeau, Mike Duffy and Mac
Harb.
“The auditor has concluded that the rules in place were not clear,”
Harper said, adding that the Senate “expects better judgment” from its members.
Harb
said he will challenge the ruling in court and has resigned from the Liberal
caucus until the matter is settled.
Duffy blamed confusing rules that led him to mistakenly claim about
$90,000 that he has repaid and that included money “erroneously claimed” as
expenses while on a Florida vacation.
The allowances are intended to compensate out-of-town Senators who must
maintain a second home in the capital.
A
separate audit into Senator Pamela Wallin's travel expenses is continuing.
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A
Canadian census survey shows there are more foreign-born residents in the
country than ever before, mainly from Asia while Africans are arriving in
greater numbers.
The
National Housing Survey shows that Canada is home to 6.8-million foreign-born
residents, or 20.6 percent of the population.
About one person in five is a visible minority, while in nine cities
they have become the majority.
It
found 91 percent of the immigrants live in metropolitan areas, with 63.4 percent
in the Toronto, Montreal or Vancouver areas.
While Toronto continues as the top destination, newcomers are
increasingly settling in the Prairies.
Winnipeg,
Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax and Montreal all saw their share of
newcomers grow.
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News in brief:
-
Former U.S. vice president Al Gore told the CTV television network he stands by
his criticism of Canada’s oilsands as one of the “dirtiest sources” of carbon
fuel. In an earlier interview with the Toronto Globe and Mail, Gore said he
understands the desire to exploit “the great wealth" oilsands can produce
but they damage natural landscapes and contribute to “the reckless spewing of
pollution.”
-
The continuing Quebec corruption investigation has led to the arrest of Gilles
Vaillancourt, 72, ex-mayor of Laval, and 36 others on charges ranging from
fraud to gangsterism. Those arrested included other politicians and aides,
lawyers and people with ties to the construction industry. Police said a
three-year investigation concerned corruption and collusion in the issuing of work
contracts.
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Facts and figures:
The
Canadian economy added 12,500 jobs overall last month as the unemployment rate
was steady at 7.2 percent.
The
Canadian dollar dipped on Friday to 98.87 cents U.S. while the U.S. greenback returned
$1.0113 in Canadian funds, before bank exchange fees.
The Bank of Canada’s key interest rate is steady at 1 percent while the
prime-lending rate is 3 percent.
Stock
markets were mixed Friday with the Toronto exchange index up at 12,563 points and
the TSX Venture index lower at 961 points.
Lotto 6-49: (May 8) 12, 21, 23, 24, 38 and 46; bonus 36. (May 4) 8, 9, 13,
22, 35 and 36; bonus 6. Lotto Max: (May 3) 4, 6, 21, 26, 30, 34 and 35; bonus
39.
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Regional briefs:
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Near-record high temperatures are taking some of the bloom off the Canadian
Tulip Festival in Ottawa. The more than 1-million colorful tulips began wilting
as the capital’s temperature rose into 80s at mid-week. The festival began in
1953 when the Dutch royal family sent 100,000 tulip bulbs to Ottawa as gratitude
for Canadians sheltering Princess Juliana and her daughters during the Second
World War’s Nazi occupation of the Netherlands.
-
Heavy equipment and mining company Caterpillar Inc. is closing a second Ontario
plant with the loss of 330 jobs. The latest casualty is the tunnel-boring
equipment plant in Toronto that Caterpillar bought five years ago. Last year, Caterpillar
closed its London, Ontario locomotive plant putting 465 employees out of work
during a lockout and moved production to Muncie, Ind.
- Sydney
Taylor, 21, an Acadia University student, fell to her death during a graduation
trip with 120 classmates in Cancun, Mexico. Taylor, who earned an honors in
political science from the Nova Scotia university, fell from a third-floor room
balcony at the Hotel Gran Caribe Royal. Police said alcohol was a factor in the
incident.
-30-
Jim Fox can be reached at canadareport@hotmail.com
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