National securities regulator decision coming: Supreme Court ruling will not please all provinces.

The Supreme Court is ready to pronounce judgment on whether Ottawa's controversial attempt to create a national securities regulator — without the consent of some provinces — is legal.

The country's top court said Monday it will rule on the constitutionality of Ottawa regulating in an area that had previously been thought to be provincial territory.

The single regulator concept was championed by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty almost from the moment he took office in 2006, with Ontario initially the only ally. Following a lengthy study process, the minister was able win over a number of provinces.

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty backs the idea of a national securities regulator.(Canadian Press file photo)But with Quebec, Alberta and Manitoba still firmly in the no camp, and British Columbia and Saskatchewan vacillating, Flaherty decided to seek a clear legal green light.

The minister maintains a single regulator would be more effective in catching and prosecuting fraudsters.

"Those who commit securities fraud will face a tougher, more comprehensive regime. No more falling through the cracks," Flaherty said in the spring of 2010 when he announced plans to go to the court.

Ottawa's position has the backing of most national business groups as well as international bodies such as the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the International Monetary Fund.

Opponents have noted that the presence of a single regulator in the United States did nothing to head off the subprime mortgage disaster that triggered a global recession in 2008.

Appeal courts in Quebec and Alberta have already ruled that Ottawa is treading on provincial jurisdiction with its proposed legislation.

But in a recent interview with The Canadian Press, Alberta Finance Minister Ron Liepert said his province would be willing to co-operate with Ottawa if the top court rules against the provincial position.

"At the end of the day, we've fought the battle, the court will rule and we live with it and move on," he said.

That does not mean every province will fall in line, however, and Quebec in particular has not softened its stance.

The current legislation does not require every province to join. The intention is to establish a national regulator and have as many provinces as possible "opt in," leaving the door open for others to follow.

Securities regulation in Canada is currently a fiefdom of the 10 provinces and three territories, although under the "passport" arrangement company documentation approved by one province is recognized by the others.

In arguments to the court in April, federal lawyers said securities trading is critical to the country's overall economy and hence is a national concern. Aside from the jurisdictional issue, opposing provinces argue that the current system of co-operation functions well and that Ottawa is trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist.

Liberal Leader Bob Rae is accusing Stephen Harper of showing a "lack of respect" toward the troubled First Nations community of Attawapiskat.

ATTAWAPISKAT, Ont. — Liberal Leader Bob Rae is accusing the Conservatives and Prime Minister Stephen Harper of showing a "lack of respect" toward the troubled First Nations community of Attawapiskat.




On Saturday, as he wrapped up a visit to see the community's housing crisis first-hand, Rae chided Harper -- who has long claimed to have a soft spot for northern Canada -- for not travelling to the region himself.



"Where there are real people living, and living in really difficult conditions, the prime minister has nothing to say -- he's not there," Rae said in a telephone interview.



"There's a great concern about the lack of respect that's been shown to people here. You show respect by coming, not by insisting that people come to see you."



Harper's regular forays to remote northern communities since he took office have carried a strong emphasis on issues like defence and sovereignty, but rarely any evidence that the prime minister or the government has forged much of a relationship with the people who live there, Rae said.



"I don't think he has a great deal of credibility with the people who are living here, or the people who are living in a great many other northern communities, because this is not about planes flying by or about defending the north from the Russians," he said.



"This is about defending the north from poverty, from terrible conditions in terms of housing and poor substandard education."



Rae's visit is the second for an opposition leader in as many weeks. NDP Leader Nycole Turmel visited Attawapiskat last month and promptly urged Harper to do the same.



A spokesman for the prime minister said in an email on Sunday that Harper will not being going to Attawapiskat and the top priority is to get help to the community.



The government infuriated local leaders by appointing a third-party manager to take over the band's financial affairs. Chief Theresa Spence has appealed to the courts for an injunction to oust the third party, who is being paid $1,300 a day from band funds. A ruling is expected Monday or Tuesday.



Emergency supplies continue to pour in -- including washing machines, detergent and blankets. However, large families remain crammed into cold, mould-stained shacks with no bathroom or running water. In one case, 20 people are living together in a two-room house.



The federal government has promised 22 new houses and a retrofit of a local healing centre to help ease the crisis.



The government's attempt to "turn the political tables" by trying to put the spotlight on how the band has managed its funds is "disgraceful," said Rae. He blamed the prime minister for cancelling the Kelowna accord, a Liberal initiative designed to improve living conditions for First Nations communities, and for abandoning various investments to aboriginal communities.



"He (Harper) has to wear this thing, he has to take personal responsibility for what's happened," Rae said.



"I certainly don't intend to let him off the hook."

New public health campus coming to downtown Montreal : will soon be the site of the largest public health school in North America.

A portion of the site that houses Montreal’s new downtown bus terminal will soon be the site of the largest public health school in North America.




The centre, which will be called the Norman-Bethune Public Health Campus, will be built at the corner of Berri Street and de Maisonneuve Boulevard, the current site of the Îlot Voyageur.



It will be affiliated with the University of Montreal.



More than 600 students

When it’s finished, 225 professors and researchers will work at the campus and more than 600 students will study there.



A spokesperson for the University of Montreal said the new facility would bring all of the school’s medical facilities into one place. Right now, they’re scattered across different buildings.



The project will cost $160 million, the majority of that coming from the provincial government.



The government of Quebec bought the Îlot Voyageur site for $200 million after another Montreal university, the University of Quebec at Montreal, bought the building with plans to turn it into student housing.



That project was one of two that almost brought the university to the brink of bankruptcy.



The government will sell off a large portion on the north end of the site for $100 million. It will not be used for the campus.



Michelle Courchesne, head of the treasury board, admitted that deal will amount to a loss, but said it’s worth it, given the prestige the campus will bring to the new health district.



Officials hope to see phase one of the public health campus open within the next four years.

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews acted unreasonably when he refused to allow two Canadians imprisoned in the United States to serve out their sentences in Canada, a Federal Court judge has ruled.

OTTAWA — Public Safety Minister Vic Toews acted unreasonably when he refused to allow two Canadians imprisoned in the United States to serve out their sentences in Canada, a Federal Court judge has ruled.



In two decisions posted to the Federal Court website Thursday, Justice James O’Reilly overturned Toews’ rejection of applications under the International Transfer of Offenders Act filed by Montreal native Franco Tangorra and Tomaso Villano, of Richmond Hill, Ont. Both men were arrested by American authorities for trying to traffic in or import large quantities of the drug Ecstasy.



Tangorra mailed 30,000 units of Ecstasy, concealed in motorcycle helmets, to an undercover agent. He was arrested in 2007 when he tried to collect payment and is now serving a sentence of seven years and three months in a U.S. prison. He is due for release in 2014.



Villano and an accomplice were caught in a New York State parking lot in 2006 with two garbage bags containing more than 100,000 Ecstasy pills. His sentence runs until October, 2012.



Tangorra had no previous criminal record, and Villano’s only other conviction was for failing to stop at the scene of an accident. Tangorra’s file included a supportive letter from his MP and a declaration from his wife that he was a good husband and father.



In rejecting the two applications, Toews disregarded evidence presented by the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) that neither Tangorra nor Villano was likely to re-offend and that their transfers would pose no threat to Canada’s security.



According to O’Reilly’s written decisions, CSC said both men have social and family ties in Canada. If not transferred, CSC told Toews, they’d be deported to Canada at the end of their sentences and would not be subject to any supervision or control.



The rationale for transferring offenders is that it will aid in their rehabilitation and reintegration to society. “Our argument is that public safety is better served by the transfer,” said John Conroy, the Abbotsford, B.C. lawyer who represents both Tangorra and Villano.



“If a person isn’t transferred, then they’ll be deported free and clear, without any restriction,” Conroy said. “A gradual release we know is far more in the public interest in terms of public safety than having someone go to warrant expiry, then unlocking the door and kicking them out.”



O”Reilly’s intervention doesn’t clear the way for Tangorra and Villano to return to Canada, however. Instead, their cases will go back to Toews for reconsideration. Conroy said re-hearings — which typically occur within 60 days — are usually successful, but not always.



When Liberal governments were in power, they routinely approved transfer applications. But in a policy shift that has created a diplomatic flap with the United States, Conservative ministers have begun to reject a majority of them.



According to CSC data, the minister of public safety approved just 27 per cent of 89 transfer applications he considered in 2009-10, the latest year for which figures are publicly available. Nearly two-thirds of denials over the past decade involve people convicted of drug offences.



After judicial review, the Federal Court has been overturning a significant number of more recent ministerial denials. But the government’s omnibus crime bill, which received third reading in the House of Commons earlier this month, broadens the grounds under which the minister can deny transfer requests in future.



Until now, he could only reject applications on the basis of national security or if offenders were affiliated with organized crime. But the amended law says transfers can be denied if the minister believes offenders would endanger public safety or the safety of a child, or would continue to engage in criminal activity.



The Canadian Civil Liberties Association has argued that the amendments give the minister “an unconstitutional level of discretion” over whether Canadian citizens incarcerated abroad can return to Canada.



Irwin Cotler, the Liberal justice critic, said the changes raise the possibility of “untrammelled discretion” for the minister in approving or rejecting transfer requests. “It takes an objective assessment and makes it not only subjective, but he can actually, in an open-ended way, make a determination on any consideration whatsoever.”



Lisa Filipps, a spokeswoman for Public Safety Canada, said in an email that the government is “taking action to emphasize the protection of society as the paramount principle of our federal corrections system.”



It’s acting, she said, to ensure that Canadians “are safe and secure in their communities and, at the same time, that offenders are held accountable for their actions in Canada and abroad.”



In his review of Tangorra’s case, O’Reilly noted that Toews alluded to information that identified him as being linked to organized crime. According to CSC, those links were as a courier. Given the “unique facts and circumstances” of his case, Toews concluded, “a transfer would not achieve the purposes of the Act.”



But O’Reilly pointed out that the law requires him to intervene “where the decision does not include a conclusion that would justify the denial. A decision should also be quashed when it is based on information to which the applicant had no opportunity to respond. Both grounds apply here.”



In the case of Villano, Toews also cited the “unique facts and circumstances.” He noted that Villano’s offence involved a large quantity of drugs. Because he had an accomplice, Toews said others were probably involved who would have benefited financially had Villano been successful.



However, said O’Reilly, the minister didn’t actually conclude that Villano would commit an organized crime offence if transferred to Canada. “In fact, there was no evidence before him of any connection to organized crime.”



A spokesman for Toews said it would “not be appropriate” for the minister to comment on the cases.







Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Federal+judge+overturns+minister+attempt+convicts+jailed+from+serving+sentences+Canada/5867864/story.html#ixzz1gj6wcCD2

A class-action lawsuit by travellers who paid extra for seats on Air Canada flights because they were obese or disabled has received permission to take off from a Quebec judge.

A class-action lawsuit by travellers who paid extra for seats on Air Canada flights because they were obese or disabled has received permission to take off from a Quebec judge.



The lawsuit has been authorized by Quebec Superior Court Judge Catherine La Rosa, the Quebec-based law firm handling the case said Monday.



David Bourgoin, lead lawyer for the class-action suit, said 10 to 20 people have come forward with an interest to join to class, adding there has been "a lot of interest" from organizations and groups that represent people with medical conditions that may make them eligible for inclusion.



He said the intention is for those groups to encourage people they work with to come forward.



"We've asked for punitive damages and moral damages, too," said Bourgoin, of BGA Barristers and Solicitors, which has offices in Montreal and Quebec City.



"It's a violation of fundamental rights to discriminate against people with (medical) deficiencies."



The suit seeks $1,000 for "damages for pain, suffering or inconvenience with interest" and an additional $500 for "punitive and exemplary damages with interest" for all people involved.







Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Canada+class+action+suit+gets/5849679/story.html#ixzz1gT8W20wz

Evidence admitted despite Charter violations: G20 Geek,”

Evidence admitted despite Charter violations



This frame grab shows Byron Sonne being interviewed by Toronto police Det. Tam Bui on June 23, 2010. Sonne was jailed for 330 days in pre-trial custody before he was granted bail in May.



At times it was hard for Byron Sonne’s father to keep his exasperation to himself.



During the first day of his son’s trial, Bue Sonne shook his head so animatedly while the Crown reviewed photos of the various chemicals in his son’s garage and workshop that Bue’s wife, Valerie, had to shush him.



“I have this stuff in my garage,” he whispered.



Byron Sonne, a 39-year-old computer hacker dubbed the “G20 Geek,” is charged with possessing explosive materials and “counselling the commission of mischief not committed” in the lead-up to the G20 Summit in Toronto.



He was arrested on June 22, 2010, and accused of plotting to bomb the meeting of world leaders while allegedly using social media to encourage others to disrupt the security apparatus. Sonne, who has no criminal record, spent 11 months in pre-trial custody before he was released on bail in May.



The first month of his highly anticipated trial, before judge alone, was spent arguing legal motions regarding the admissibility of evidence.



While conceding that police violated Sonne’s Charter rights — at least in part — at various points in their investigation, Justice Nancy Spies ruled Monday to allow the bulk of the Crown’s evidence, setting the stage for a long and protracted trial that won’t conclude until the spring.



After this week’s hearings, the trial will adjourn to March 17, due to scheduling conflicts.



Spies did not provide the full reasons for her ruling, but she said despite some individual breaches of rights, including the evidence would not bring the “administration of justice into disrepute,” as Sonne’s lawyers had argued.



They had sought the exclusion of most of the evidence against their client, arguing that police showed a general disregard for Sonne’s rights and a pattern of Charter violations, ranging from how they unlawfully obtained his identification by threatening to charge him with jaywalking, to using search warrant applications — parts of which were later disproved — riddled with conjecture.



Spies dismissed the argument that the search warrant applications were deliberately misleading, instead favouring the Crown’s position that although there were flaws, taken as a whole there was sufficient evidence and reasonable grounds to obtain a warrant.



Sonne’s lawyers declined to comment on Spies’ ruling since she did not release the reasons for her decision.



Sonne, a hobby chemist and hyperactive tinkerer, admitted to police in recorded interviews — available on YouTube here and here — that he did in fact possess materials that could be combined to make explosives, but he had not combined them.



What police originally thought was a homemade detonator turned out to be an electric thermometer.



On Wednesday, an explosives expert will begin testimony about the materials found in Sonne’s house.

Former Parti Québécois cabinet minister Daniel Paille has been elected the new leader of the Bloc Québécois.

Former Parti Québécois cabinet minister Daniel Paille has been elected the new leader of the Bloc Québécois.




"We have work to do," he said in his victory speech in French. "But that work is exceptional. Imagine, we have a unique chance, as a people, to build our country. I believe this."



Paille won on a second ballot against Maria Mourani. His total vote was 7,868 or 61.2 per cent. Mourani placed second, scoring 4,972 votes or 38.7 per cent of the vote. Jean-Francois Fortin was third.



Paille, 61, won the leadership but the election was hardly impressive. A sign of how moribund the Bloc has become, of the 36,341 paid-up members eligible to vote, only 14,039 bothered to mail in their ballots. That represents a participation rate of 38.7 per cent.



At the time of the May 2 federal election where the New Democrats crushed them, the Bloc had 50,000 members. That means a quarter of the members did not bother to renew their cards.