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Jun 5 2024

Mystery Randy. Modi misses. Netflix taxed: The Roundup

Jun 5, 2024
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
Ethics commissioner to look into Minister Boissonnault’s business dealings
The parliamentary ethics commissioner has reversed course and said he will examine the business dealings of federal cabinet minister Randy Boissonnault. [Global]
Minister Randy Boissonnault and his business associates face questions from the Parliamentary Ethics Committee about payments, contracts and grants. [Global]
The Liberals are refusing to say which federal politicians “wittingly” cooperated with foreign interference schemes after an explosive new report. [Global]
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he disagrees with a member of his caucus who says he wants to see more restrictions on abortion and would vote against same-sex marriage if there’s a future bill on the issue in Parliament. [CBC]
Longtime politician looks for spot as MP in Courtenay-Alberni. New Democrat Gord Johns is the incumbent. [Nanaimo News Bulletin]
At the request of the House of Commons, auditor general Karen Hogan probed 97 contracts awarded to McKinsey between 2011 and 2023, with a total value of $209 million. [Global]

Report No. 11 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women. [House of Commons]
Report No. 40 of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. [House of Commons]

Report No. 20 the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates. [House of Commons]
From the Provinces
Le Parti québécois accuse le juge en chef Richard Wagner de faire de la politique
 Le juge en chef de la Cour suprême du Canada, Richard Wagner, fait de la politique lorsqu’il laisse entendre que des élus québécois ont sombré dans la désinformation, estime Paul St-Pierre Plamondon. [La Presse]

Premier Andrew Furey sent a strong signal on Tuesday morning that the province's interest in offshore oil won't be going anywhere, despite mounting pressure within the industry to diversify before global demand tails off. [CBC]
A police officer for almost 30 years, Singh Dhillon was the first RCMP officer to wear a turban whilst in uniform. [CityNews]
Jennifer Blatherwick, a School District 43 trustee, has announced she will look to land the NDP's nomination in Coquitlam-Maillardville for the 2024 B.C. election. [Tri-City News]
Murray Rankin has been one of the more prominent and popular figures who has served the government as part of both the federal NDP and BC NDP.  [Victoria Buzz]
Elsewhere
Sunak, Starmer clash over taxes and health in 1st U.K. election debate
Conservative leader Rishi Sunak sought to boost his party’s dismal outlook, while Labour’s Keir Starmer aimed to cement his status as favourite to become the next prime minister. [Global]
The results are a personal blow to Mr Modi, who has always secured majorities in elections as both chief minister of Gujarat state and India’s prime minister, and dominated the country's politics for a decade. The verdict marks a surprising revival for the Congress Party-led INDIA opposition alliance, defying earlier predictions of its decline, and sharply diverging from both exit polls and pre-election surveys. [BBC]
A new Romney-Manchin bill would shrink the federal hiring pool. Of interest, of course, to the current Canadian debate on the same subject. [Substack]

Eligible applicants from the U.K., U.S. and Canada will be able to apply to join the Australian Defence Force beginning in January 2025. [National Post]
Media

Online streaming services like Netflix and Spotify are being told they must start contributing money toward local news and the production of Canadian content. [Global]
Instagram has confirmed that it’s rolling out “unskippable” ads that prevent you from scrolling through your feed until you finish watching an ad. [The Verge]
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Science and Tech
Coastal erosion threatens to wash away D-Day beaches
Those who wish to pay their respects to the sacrifices made along that coastline in 1944 are doing so on borrowed time. As a result of coastal erosion, some of the beaches of D-Day are disappearing. [CBC]
More political deepfakes exist than you think, according to this AI expert
With so many elections happening globally this year, TrueMedia founder Oren Etzioni hopes the company's deepfake detection tool can help reduce disinformation. Here's how. [ZDNet]
The Calendar
  • 0700 ET: St John's - Labour Min Seamus O'Regan speaks at the Energy NL conference
  • 0800 ET: Ottawa - PM Trudeau departs for Deauville, France.
  • 0930 ET: 025B West Block -  The CPC national caucus will meet.
  • 0930 ET: West Block -  The NDP national caucus will meet
  • 1000 ET: 225A West Block -  The LPC national caucus will meet.
  • 1540 ET: Deauville, France - PM Trudeau arrives at Deauville-Normandie Airport, France.
  • 1630 ET: 035-B West Block - Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) | Meeting 104 - Pension Transferability and Access to Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF), and Delays in Permanent Residence and Visas for Hong Kongers
  • 1630 ET: 430 Wellington - Foreign Affairs and International Development (FAAE) | Meeting 112 - Appointment of Carolyn Bennett as Canada's Ambassador to the Kingdom of Denmark / Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and Current Situation in Iran
  • 1630 ET: 125-B West Block - Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) | Meeting 127 - ArriveCAN Application
  • 1630 ET: 415 Wellington - Indigenous and Northern Affairs (INAN) | Meeting 112 - Tax Revenues from Businesses on First Nations Territories
  • 1630 ET: 410 Wellington - National Defence (NDDN) | Meeting 108 - Rising Domestic Operational Deployments and Challenges for the Canadian Armed Forces
  • 1630 ET: 025-B West Block - Public Safety and National Security (SECU) | Meeting 112 - Bill C-70, An Act respecting countering foreign interference
  • 1630 ET: 330 Wellington - Veterans Affairs (ACVA) | Meeting 99 - Committee Business
  • 1830 ET: 315 Wellington - Industry and Technology (INDU) | Meeting 128 - Recent Investigation and Reports on Sustainable Development Technology Canada
Issued this day ...
… in 1968: Scott # 482 pb: Voyage of the Nonsuch. Design: George Sarras Fanais.

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