Past issues Subscribe

Mar 2 2023

Interference briefings. Spy fired. COVID conspiracies.

Mar 1, 2023
David Akin's Roundup
Clippings of #cdnpoli, #media, and #tech content aimed at those with an interest in Canadian politics and policy. And sometimes Canadian postage stamps.
Canada
Election Interference: An NDP motion and the Rosenberg report
Click on the image above or right here for our segment on Global National Wednesday night in which colleague Mackenzie Gray breaks down what the NDP and Conservatives are ready to do to investigate election interference then I do a reality check on why an election interference report released late Monday is not quite the political panacea the prime minister thinks it is. [Global]

Questions have been raised about whether Trudeau’s government has responded with appropriate measures to counter these national security threats. [Global]
The head of Canada's spy agency is among the witnesses expected at a Parliamentary committee studying allegations of foreign interference in elections Thursday. [Global]

Just published on the federal government's pro-active disclosure open data site: Binder prepared for the appearance of the Chief Electoral Officer before the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs on the study of foreign interference on November 1st, 2022. Includes Fact Sheets and Supporting Documents. [Elections Canada]
The donation was reportedly part of an alleged plot by the Chinese government to influence Justin Trudeau after he became Liberal leader, according to a Globe and Mail source. [Global]
From the Provinces
Alberta to introduce bill to include federal officials in trespassing rules
Alberta's government house leader is accusing federal officials of trespassing on private property, but Alberta Justice said there's no evidence of that occurring. [Global]

MLAs from across Manitoba returned to the legislature Wednesday for the first of 45 sittings during the final session before the provincial election. [CBC]

The New Brunswick government's focus on reducing its debt has been so successful it is on track to set a national fiscal record later this month. But the achievement is not without critics. [CBC]
Elsewhere
U.S. seeking allies for possible sanctions if China aids Russia in Ukraine: sources
The consultations are intended to drum up support from a range of countries, especially those in the G7, to coordinate support for any possible restrictions, U.S. officials said. [AP]
COVID and Vaccines
CSIS officer fired for complaining publicly about agency’s lack of COVID-19 masking
CSIS director David Vigneault fired Gary Vos Smith after a disciplinary committee found the intelligence officer had acted 'in an inappropriate manner.' [Global]
Health Canada said about 80,000 rapid tests in the federal inventory are set to expire within six months and 6.5 million within the year. [Global]

The inability to pin down COVID's origins has opened the door to politically charged speculation and fierce debate, but without concrete evidence, people are forming narratives based on incomplete information with major geopolitical consequences. [Axios]

While the lab leak theory has bounced around the internet since the pandemic began, references to it soared 100,000% in the 48 hours after the Energy Department report was revealed, according to Zignal's analysis, which combed through social media, blogs and other sites.

Many of the conspiracy theories contradict each other and the findings in the Energy Department report. In a tweet on Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, called COVID-19 a "man made bioweapon from China." A follower quickly challenged her: "It was made in Ukraine," he responded. [Medical Xpress]
Long COVID is associated with reduced brain oxygen levels, worse performance on cognitive tests and increased psychiatric symptoms such as depression and anxiety, according to new research studying the impacts of the disease. Researchers from the University of Waterloo combined the results of two new parallel studies: a laboratory study involving cognitive testing and imaging. [Press release]
Media
Foreign media in China endured strict Covid controls, widespread harassment and constant surveillance in 2022, a press group said Wednesday. Nearly half of foreign journalists in the country were ordered to leave a place or denied access on health and safety grounds last year despite presenting “no health risk by China’s own standards." [Hong Kong Free Press]
Tech
What time is it on the moon? Europe pushing for lunar time zone
The European Space Agency wants to give the moon its own time zone. That could be a challenge in a place where there are 29.5 Earth days between two sunrises and clocks run faster than they do on Earth. [CBC]
The U.S. government plans to expand minimum cybersecurity requirements for critical sectors and to be faster and more aggressive in preventing cyberattacks before they can occur, including by using military, law enforcement and diplomatic tools, according to a Biden administration strategy document released Thursday.  [AP]

Previous Issues

Load More