Prostitution is a high-risk “economic activity” that the law doesn’t force people into, and the best protection of sex-trade workers is not Parliament’s obligation, the federal government of Canada is arguing.

Prostitution is a high-risk “economic activity” that the law doesn’t force people into, and the best protection of sex-trade workers is not Parliament’s obligation, the federal government is arguing.




Ottawa has filed court documents indicating the positions it is taking in an appeal of a ruling striking down three key prostitution laws.



An Ontario Superior Court judge ruled last year that laws against keeping a common bawdy house, communicating for the purposes of prostitution and living on the avails of the trade were contributing to the danger faced by prostitutes.



Justice Susan Himel said the laws violate the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms by forcing prostitutes to choose between their liberty and their security.



In appealing that ruling to the Court of Appeal for Ontario, the federal government argues that under the law no one is obligated to be involved in prostitution.



“It is the practice of prostitution in any venue, exacerbated by efforts to avoid the law that is the source of the risk of harm to prostitutes,” government lawyer Michael Morris writes.



“Prostitution is not a fundamental life choice; it is an economic activity that carries high risks for all those who engage in it.”



Ottawa also argues the lower court erred in assuming that Parliament has an obligation to “minimize hindrances and maximize safety” for people in such activities.



“As a whole, the impugned laws are aimed at deterring prostitution because it is risky and dangerous,” Morris writes.



“In this case, the effect of finding a deprivation of security of the person by the court below is to impose a constitutional duty on Canada to minimize the risk of harm to individuals who flout these very laws.”



The federal government also asks the court that if it upholds the ruling striking down the laws, that an 18-month stay be imposed on it so Parliament can have time to fill the regulatory void that would arise.



While the Superior Court decision struck down the application of the law in Ontario, it remains to be seen if courts in other provinces will follow the Ontario decision. It is more likely they will await the outcome of this case, which could be taken all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada.



The ruling deals with adult prostitution offences and does not affect Criminal Code provisions involving people under 18.



The appeal is expected to be heard in June.

National Building Code of Canada (NBC) 2010.

The recently published 2010 National Model Construction Codes contain close to 800 technical changes that were approved by the Canadian Commission on Building and Fire Codes. Summarized below are the most significant technical changes. Free online presentations providing more detailed overviews of these changes will be available in February 2011 on the national codes web site (www.nationalcodes.ca). They replace the cross-country seminars traditionally offered during past model code launches.




National Building Code of Canada (NBC)

Part 3: Fire Protection, Occupant Safety and Accessibility

Protection Against Falls from Residential Occupancy Windows. A requirement has been introduced providing for a guard or a mechanism that prevents a window from opening more than 100 mm.



Part 4: Structural Design

Live Load Due to Use and Occupancy. Crane and vehicle loads are more explicitly defined. The minimum live loads for areas in arenas, grandstands and stadia having fixed seats with backs has been reduced and the requirement extended to include churches, lecture halls and theatres.



Wind Loads. Buildings with very long periods of vibration, one of the most important factors determining how a structure will respond to external forces, must now be designed by experimental methods; dynamic calculations are no longer acceptable.



Earthquake Design. Revisions were made to requirements related to site properties, irregularities, steel structures, static and dynamic procedures, and diaphragms.



Part 5: Environmental Separation

Structural Loads. Seismic effects will now be taken into account only for post-disaster buildings (i.e. buildings essential to the continued provision of services in the event of a disaster).



Part 6: Heating, Ventilation and Air-conditioning

Ventilation. New requirements relating to acceptable building air ventilation have been added. They specify maximum levels of particulate matter, ground-level ozone and carbon monoxide in air for building ventilation purposes.



Part 9: Housing and Small Buildings

Secondary Suites in Houses. Changes in requirements include limiting their size, making “secondary suite” a defined term, and inserting “house” into many requirements that previously only applied to dwelling units.



Lateral Loads. A probabilistic-based approach for exposure to wind and seismic forces using environmental load data was added, as were prescriptive requirements for high-load areas. The concept of braced wall panels was introduced. Requirements for fastening and framing based on local wind and seismic conditions have also been added.



Low Permeance Materials in the Building Envelope. A simplified approach to requiring the correct position and properties for low air and vapour permeance materials in building envelopes was introduced.



Garage Floors. Inconsistencies were resolved in the requirement that garage floors be sloped to the exterior to limit heavier-than-air gas inflow into habitable spaces below the garage floor level.



Tables A-9.10.3.1.A. and A-9.10.3.1.B. Two footnotes were added to clarify requirements for adhesives employed in finger joined studs and prefabricated I-joists used in assemblies requiring a fire-resistance rating in buildings.



Parts 3 and 9

Spatial Separation between Buildings. Additional fire protection requirements were introduced relating to the construction of all buildings and houses in proximity to one another or to the property line.



Fire Alarm Systems and Smoke Alarms. New requirements and clarifications were introduced for smoke alarm placement, commissioning of life safety and fire safety systems, and when fire alarm components must be installed.



Penetrations Through Fire Separations. Definitions for “fire stops” and “fire blocks“ have been added, as were several changes addressing penetrations through fire separations. Requirements involving attics that don’t have sprinklers were clarified.



Exit Signs and Markings. Requirements addressing green pictograms conforming to ISO standards and photoluminescent exit signs were introduced.



Stairs, Ramps, Handrails and Guards. A set of 31 changes address inconsistencies between Part 3 and Part 9 regarding the respective requirements for stairs, ramps, handrails and guards. Many clarifications were also added.



Parts 5 and 9

Windows, Doors and Skylights. A new, harmonized North American standard for windows, doors and skylights is now referenced in the NBC. This resulted in a substantial reorganization of Sections 9.6. and 9.7.



Sealant Standards. Outdated standards for sealants were replaced with current ASTM standards that address relevant product categories and contain equivalent or similar performance criteria.



Parts 5, 6 and 9

Radon. The new Health Canada guideline of 200 Bq/m³ for indoor radon concentration has been referenced in the Appendix. Parts 5 and 6 now require that engineers and designers consider radon protection in their designs. Air barrier requirements in Part 9 were consolidated and prescriptive measures on providing a rough-in for a future radon mitigation system added.



Appendix C, Table C-2

Seismic Values and Climatic Data. Climatic data and localities were updated and the equation derived to fit the seismic observational data was improved.



National Fire Code of Canada (NFC)

Leak Detection and Monitoring. Changes dealing with leak detection and monitoring, as well as handling of certain dangerous goods, have been introduced. Existing requirements relating to the detection and monitoring of storage tanks, sumps, and piping systems containing flammable and combustible liquids were revised and new ones added.



Storage of Flammable and Combustible Liquids in Buildings. Limits to quantities of flammable and combustible liquids stored within buildings have been updated. New passive and active fire protective measures have been added.



Fire Safety at Demolition and Construction Sites. Adjacent buildings or facilities must now be protected from fires originating from demolition or construction sites. Requirements for fire safety plans and fire department access to sites were improved. Specific requirements on the commissioning and decommissioning of standpipe systems, as well as restrictions on rooftop bitumen kettle placement, have been added.



NBC and NFC

Care Occupancies (NBC Part 3, NFC Part 2). A new occupancy classification for residential care facilities has been created (Group B3 occupancy) that relaxes requirements for smaller care occupancies having a limited number of occupants. New construction, sprinkler, emergency power and fire alarm requirements were added.



Relocation of technical requirements. To draw a clear line between the roles of the NBC and the NFC, building design requirements presently in the NFC were moved to the NBC (except for spill control measures). Appropriate cross-referencing between the two codes was added.



National Plumbing Code of Canada

Water Pipe Sizing. Pipe sizing requirements were updated to accommodate the current standard practice of using water-conserving appliances and fixtures in buildings and facilities.





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Alberta Health Minister Gene Zwozdesky said Friday there is no need for a public inquiry into allegations physicians were intimidated or paid to keep quiet about cancer surgery wait lists.

Alberta Health Minister Gene Zwozdesky said Friday there is no need for a public inquiry into allegations physicians were intimidated or paid to keep quiet about cancer surgery wait lists.




"I don't see any grounds upon which anyone could possibly think a public inquiry would be required at this time," Zwozdesky said.



Wildrose Alliance Leader Danielle Smith, NDP Leader Brian Mason, Liberal Leader David Swann, Alberta Party Leader Sue Huff and Independent MLA Dr. Raj Sherman called for the public inquiry in a rare joint news conference Friday morning.



They want the inquiry to investigate claims health-care workers were threatened, attacked or intimidated by the Tory government for speaking out, or that any health professional was paid for their silence on health-care issues.



The call came one day after a CBC News investigation revealed a lawsuit in which thoracic surgeon Dr. Ciaran McNamee claimed he was forced out of his practice by Capital Health and two senior managers after he complained publicly to the governing Conservative caucus, the health minister and senior bureaucrats about surgery wait times and inadequate resources for his patients.



"Without a public inquiry, conducted independent of government interference and intimidation, Albertans will be left to wonder just how many more cases like Dr. McNamee are out there," Smith said.



Zwozdesky said his government has already called on the Health Quality Council to investigate claims of inadequate cancer surgery and emergency room wait times, a probe he says the opposition has called for repeatedly.



Because McNamee's case was later resolved and did not go to trial, none of the allegations in his statement of claim have been proven in court. McNamee declined comment about what he received or even how the matter was resolved



Tory leadership candidate wants inquiry

The calls for the inquiry are not just coming from the opposition. Battle River-Wainwright MLA and Tory leadership contender Doug Griffiths said his constituents want an inquiry and are asking why the government wouldn't want to hold one.



"Probably the best way to clear the air right now is to do a public inquiry and look into it and clear the air for the public's benefit," he said.



"Most of the constituents I talk to are really worried that this will just go on and on and on, and the opposition will keep calling for it and there will be more ambiguity and uncertainty."



Independent MLA Dr. Raj Sherman and the leaders of Albera's opposition parties held a news conference Friday to call on the Tory government to hold a public inquiry into health care. CBCSherman, who stunned the legislature last month with allegations doctors were paid to keep quiet about lung cancer patient deaths, said he has been vindicated.



The former Tory MLA was kicked out of caucus in November after speaking out against emergency room backlogs.



"Each time, I told the truth and other health-care workers in this province told the truth, and other Albertans told the truth," Sherman said. "This government sought to smear, discredit and punish those who wanted to make this a better place to live."



The Health Quality Council probe will review 322 emergency room cases between 2006 and 2010 in which patients are alleged to have received inadequate care.



The investigation will also look at Sherman's allegations that 250 lung cancer patients died while waiting for surgery in the early part of the last decade.



But opposition members say the review by the Health Quality Council is not the same as an independent public inquiry.

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (原子力安全・保安院, of the Japanese government.

Nuclear and Industrial Safety



The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (原子力安全・保安院, Genshiryoku Anzen Hoanin?) is a Japanese nuclear regulatory and oversight branch of Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the organization directly above it is the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy. It was created in 2001 during the 2001 Central Government Reform. It has a main office in Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda, Tokyo that works with the Japanese Atomic Energy Commission as well as providing other functions. It also has regional offices. It performs oversight for industry as requested by the Japanese government

The Canadian Environmental Law Association and Sierra Club Canada have launched legal action against a plan to ship radioactive waste through the Great Lakes.

The Canadian Environmental Law Association and Sierra Club Canada have launched legal action against a plan to ship radioactive waste through the Great Lakes.



The two groups want the Federal Court of Canada to hear a judicial review of two approvals issued by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission that would allow Bruce Power Inc. to ship and export 16 decommissioned steam generators.



The shipment would take the generators that have radioactive substances through the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway and across the Atlantic Ocean to Sweden to be recycled.



Theresa McClenaghan, executive director of the Canadian Environmental Law Association, said the shipping of the waste is such a large and complex project that an environmental assessment should have been done.



"What they're proposing to do has never been done," Mc-Clenaghan said of the Bruce Power plan.



"We've never had any precedent for sending radioactive waste out of our nuclear facilities out of the country in the first place at all."



If allowed, the shipment could go along the Detroit River. Derek Coronado of the local Citizens Environment Alliance said Tuesday there are concerns about a spill and that this is a precedent-setting case. If allowed, it could increase the risk of the potential for a nuclear accident on the Great Lakes, he said.



Coronado said approvals still need to be sought in the United States and in Europe.



In a coincidence, the parliamentary natural resources committee was holding hearings on this issue Tuesday and Thursday in Ottawa.







Read more: http://www.windsorstar.com/technology/Suit+filed+over+waste/4414339/story.html#ixzz1GGzRui3c

Tories slapped by 2 rulings by House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken.

There's a case against the government for breach of privilege after it refused to hand over detailed cost estimates of its anti-crime agenda, and a minister may have misled MPs, House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken said Wednesday in a ruling reasserting Parliament's authority.




Milliken ruled there was a "prima facie breach of privilege" — in other words, enough evidence to send two separate motions back to MPs to decide the next step.



One motion complained the government is refusing to give financial information to the House and the other alleged International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda may have misled a Commons committee.



In the first case, Liberal MP Scott Brison had argued the government breached his parliamentary privilege by not handing over documents detailing the costs of its anti-crime initiatives.



Milliken referred to previous rulings, saying the House has never set a limit on its powers to produce documents and the rules are categorical in repeatedly asserting the powers of the House.



"There's no doubt the order to produce documents is not being fully complied with, and this is a serious matter that goes to the heart of the House's undoubted role in holding the government to account," he said.



The government and opposition have been duking it out over the issue, with the government maintaining there will be no major costs associated with its tougher sentencing legislation but providing few numbers to back that up.



After the Speaker's ruling, the House voted to send the matter back to committee, asking it to report back by March 21, the day before the federal budget.



Brison says the government's refusal to hand over the financial information is an affront to Parliament and an insult to Canadians.



Oda may have misled

Milliken had also been asked to rule on whether there's a case for breach of privilege against International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda over statements to the House and a Commons committee.



Opposition MPs accused her of misleading a parliamentary committee when she said she didn't know who inserted the word "not" into a signed document. The insertion changed the meaning of a memo signed by top CIDA staff, denying $7 million in funding for aid organization Kairos. Oda later said she had instructed her staff to insert the word.



Milliken said he considered the fact Oda was subject to harsh public criticism but ruled there was enough doubt about what happened to warrant more discussion.



"At the very least, it can be said that (Oda's statements) caused confusion," Milliken said. "The confusion persists."



With the rulings, the Liberals could try to find Oda or the government in contempt of Parliament and could try to include a call for a vote of confidence.



But Liberals say their understanding is the Speaker would not allow a confidence motion on either point of privilege.



A spokesman for the prime minister said the government will review the ruling on the financial information and decide whether it can release anything further. The government is arguing cabinet confidence prevents it from disclosing more than it has.



Dimitri Soudas also said he's confident a fair hearing will vindicate Oda's position.



"It is clear that the Speaker ruled only that there is continuing confusion — there was no finding whatsoever against Minister Oda," Soudas said in an email.



Oda rose in the House to talk about Kairos for the first time since Feb. 14. She has answered questions since then, but Government House Leader John Baird has answered the questions about the inserted "not."



"From the ruling made, it has been indicated that there appears to be confusion regarding the facts," Oda said. "I believe I have been clear. I accept the ruling and look forward to provide all the clarity needed, truthfully and respectfully, at committee."



The unexplained 'not'

Opposition MPs on the foreign affairs committee, led by Liberal MP John McKay, argued Oda misled the committee over her responses to questions about Kairos funding last December.



Oda told the committee she couldn't remember whether she had signed the memo that had, prior to the insertion of the unexplained "not," sought a funding renewal for Kairos.



Lukiwski said the document with the "not" inserted was meant only to communicate the minister’s decision. He said it wasn’t intended to be made public.



The party later distributed a memo that said Oda was out of town when the decision was due and her staff inserted the "not" at her instruction and used a machine called an Autopen — which mimics her signature — to sign the document.



Conservative MPs filed a supplementary report to the foreign affairs committee report, saying they don't agree Oda was in breach of privilege or she intended to mislead the committee.



"The minister does understand that she could have more clearly communicated the purpose and intent of why and how her office implemented her direction, and she has apologized to the House of Commons for how this issue has been handled," the Conservative response read.



"In that statement, she clearly said that it was never her intention to mislead either the House of Commons or the committee."

Civil Liberties Association challenges long solitary confinement protocol of Canada Corrections.

Some female prison inmates are spending years in solitary confinement at the discretion of prison authorities and the B.C. Civil Liberties Association says that’s unconstitutional.




The association launched a civil suit Monday, challenging laws that allow federal prisons to keep inmates in segregation for prolonged periods.



The suit is hinged on the case of an aboriginal woman who has spent almost four years in segregation.



Grace Pastine, a lawyer with the association, said the suits seeks drastic reform of what she calls an “extremely problematic” system that’s increasingly used as a means to maintain order in correctional facilities.



“We don’t think solitary confinement should be used as a tool for housing prisoners long term at all,” she said, adding the current system violates human rights and does not encourage rehabilitation.



The association is targeting the so-called management protocol system which gives prison authorities the discretion to impose segregation indefinitely.



Pastine noted there are no limits to how long a prisoner can be kept in solitude under the protocol. While there are ongoing reviews of the segregation, there isn’t independent or judicial oversight.



At present, female prisoners are expected to “earn” their way out of long-term solitary confinement but Pastine said there is no objective criteria for determining when the segregation must end.



The management protocol is different than disciplinary segregation laws that permit inmates to be isolated for up to 45 days. Pastine said the association wants that limit applied to all cases of solitary confinement.



“We are asking the courts for a lot,” she said.



“Ideally what we hope the court will do is find that no one — no man, no woman — should be subject to these lengthy periods of solitary confinement with no limitations and no judicial oversight.”



The lawsuit was filed on behalf of BobbyLee Worm, a 24-year-old aboriginal woman who has spent over three-and-a-half years in a concrete cell at the Fraser Valley Institution since her sentence began in June 2006.



Deemed a “high risk” to herself and others, Worm is deprived of “significant human contact” for 23 hours a day. She has been involved in fights with other prisoners and was ordered to remain behind bars by Canada’s parole board.



Pastine said Worm has suffered severe physical, psychological and social trauma during her time in isolation. She said Worm was unable to receive adequate treatment for her existing depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.



Worm, a first-time offender originally from Saskatchewan, is currently serving six years and four months for offences including robbery.



She is scheduled to be released in October 2012 but is eligible for another statutory release review this May.



Pastine said about 10 per cent of federal inmates have been subjected to solitary confinement in 2008 and 2009, with 37 per cent of those having spent 60 days or more in isolation, according to a Correctional Service of Canada report.



A total of seven women have been put on the management protocol system since its introduction in 2005, all of them aboriginal.



A spokesman for Canada Corrections was not immediately available for comment.