Justin Trudeau responded to criticisms of Canada’s cozy relationship with the Chinese communist regime by lecturing Conservative MPs about “anti-Asian racism” and “diversity”, which Chinese dissidents say is actually a Chinese Communist Party tactic – to falsely equate criticism of the regime with criticism of the people. True North’s Andrew Lawton breaks it down.
Plus, peeing in a cup’s return to Canadian politics, and a look at provincial “reopening” plans that don’t actually end in reopening.
The Alberta Health Services (AHS) has dropped a contempt of court application against Calgary pastor Tim Stephens after lawyers fought to have the application thrown out once it was revealed that Stephens was never served with the order he was accused of breaking.
On Friday, the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, which represented Stephens in court, announced that their application to strike the contempt charge was approved.
“Faced with this undeniable evidence, AHS has conceded that continued prosecution and attempts to have Pastor Stephens found in contempt of court are hopeless. This drops the case against Pastor Stephens completely,” wrote the JCCF in a press release on the matter.
Stephens was arrested and thrown in jail by Alberta authorities after leading Fairview Baptists Church in a service on May 16, 2021. Stephens was jailed for allegedly breaking a prior court injunction regarding a former violation of public health orders.
According to JCCF, Stephens’ arrest and jailing was unlawful due to two reasons, one being that Calgary Police Service officers handed the injunction to the wrong individual.
“First, the Thursday, May 6, 2021 injunction, which originally applied to all Albertans who had notice of its terms, was amended by Associate Chief Justice Rooke on May 13 to only apply to Whistle Stop Café and individuals operating in concert with or under the direction of Whistle Stop Café or its proprietor. Pastor Stephens has no connection to either party,” wrote the JCCF.
“Second, Pastor Stephens was never served with a copy of the court injunction, a prerequisite for the enforcement of an injunction. On May 9, 2021, Calgary Police Service (CPS) officers erroneously served a copy of the injunction upon another individual who is not Pastor Stephens. At no time did CPS ever serve the injunction upon Pastor Stephens.”
Additionally, JCCF lawyer Jay Cameron said that the outcome of the case proves that Alberta Health Service officials were more concerned with “punishing dissent” than following the law.
“By waging constant war on civil liberties and by refusing to justify demonstrably, with evidence put before a court, the ongoing violations of Charter rights and freedoms, it is AHS and the Alberta government who are disobeying the rule of law,” said Cameron.
In its statement Friday, AHS said it “strongly condemns the intentional disobeying of COVID-19 public health restrictions.”
The AHS says it will continue to enforce the order on “all other organizers of advertised illegal gatherings and rallies that breach COVID-19 public health orders.”
Conservative MPs slammed the Liberal government for carelessness after Liberal MP William Amos admitted to urinating while in a House of Commons Zoom meeting on Wednesday.
“This is the second time Mr. Amos has been caught exposing himself to his colleagues in the House, and the House of Commons, virtual or otherwise, must be free of this type of unacceptable behaviour,” said Conservative MP and Deputy House Leader Karen Vecchio in a statement.
“It’s now clear that Trudeau’s Liberals failed in their duty to ensure a safe work environment following the first incident. We can’t have more of this from Liberal members of Parliament and Conservatives will explore all potential options to ensure this never happens again.”
On Thursday, Amos posted a statement on his personal Twitter account claiming that he had accidentally “urinated without realizing (he) was on camera” the night before.
“It is important to have a safe workplace environment for everyone on Parliament Hill and we take these matters extremely seriously,” Liberal government whip Mark Holland told CBC News.
“Mr. Amos has stepped aside from his role as Parliamentary Secretary and from his committee duties.”
The incident was the second of its kind after Amos was photographed naked during a separate Zoom call in April.
Amos later admitted to the incident and said that it was an “unfortunate mistake.” According to Amos, he was in the middle of changing after he had gone out for a jog when the Zoom meeting was in progress.
Eventually Bloc Québécois MP Sebastien Lemire apologized for taking a screenshot of the moment.
A group of Ontario pastors is taking worship to the streets.
Four outspoken pastors, Jacob Reaume, Aaron Rock, Nate Wright, and Michael Thiessen, are planning to host a Worship in the Square in Waterloo, Ont.’s Town Square Sunday afternoon.
The event is advertised as an open-air church service, with all four men offering to minister to attendees.
Three of the four have faced huge fines for presiding over church services throughout Ontario’s lockdown, with the provincial government succeeding in getting a court order to lock one of them out, Trinity Bible Chapel, of their building.
“We decided on this because we have been prohibited from leading services in our church buildings and we desire to maintain a public witness to the glory of Christ. We also believe that people will be blessed by singing together, by praying together, and by exchanging warm greetings with one another in that context,” Trinity’s pastor, Reaume, told True North.
In Ontario, indoor and outdoor religious services have a gathering limit of 10 people.
According to the government, if the rules for gatherings are not followed, organizers may be fined $10,000 and each attendee may receive a $750 ticket. The government has also given enforcement personnel the right to break up the gathering and temporarily close the premises.
The pastors have been all critical of Ontario’s restrictions on religious services, with the men and their congregations making national headlines for defying public health orders.
“It is certainly an act of protest,” Reaume added.
“The emphasis of the time will be on Jesus Christ, His supremacy, and the free grace He offers to all peoples. “
In early May, a judge ruled that Trinity Bible Chapel should be locked indefinitely, until public health orders allow it to operate.
Speaking on The Andrew Lawton Show, Reaume said his church collectively received approximately $50 million worth of fines.
In December, Rock, of Harvest Windsor, was charged for holding an in-person service that allegedly violated the Reopening Ontario Act (ROA).
In January, Thiessen of Grace Alliston was also charged under the ROA for holding an unrestricted service as a protest against public health orders.
Thiessen also organized and led a campaign to encourage churches to open for worship on Good Friday and Easter Sunday regardless of provincial restrictions. In total, 79 churches in nine provinces joined in his campaign.
Waterloo Town Square has been the site of regular demonstrations against public health orders. A previous anti-lockdown rally hosted by Pastor Reaume and Independent MPP Randy Hillier drew hundreds of attendees.
On Thursday, Conservative MPs Nelly Shin and Kenny Chiu lashed back against accusations of anti-Asian racism levelled by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau against the official opposition earlier this week.
On Wednesday, Trudeau lectured Conservatives about “anti-Asian racism” and “tolerance” in response to being grilled on what he’s doing to protect Canadian research institutions from Chinese interference.
Recent reports have revealed that at least seven scientists employed at Winnipeg’s National Microbiology Laboratory were collaborating with an organization affiliated with China’s People’s Liberation Army on classified infectious disease research while in Canada.
Conservative MP Nelly Shin, born in South Korea, raised in Toronto, representing Coquitlam, raises a point of order on Justin Trudeau throwing accusations of "anti-Asian racism" at the Conservatives yesterday. Powerful statement. Watch and RT #cdnpolipic.twitter.com/WCC8iLH7T6
“As members know, the official opposition has been questioning the Prime Minister on the topic of security at Canada’s top microbiology lab and the partnership of scientists with ties to the Chinese military. Instead of addressing this important issue, the Prime Minister made accusations of racism against those members asking these vital questions of national interest,” said Shin during a point of order in the House of Commons.
“In addition to the Prime Minister casting aspersions upon members of this House who are only trying to do their job, I find it offensive that the Prime Minister is diminishing the significance of the anti-Asian crisis in Canada by using it to deflect attention away from an unrelated political issue of national security.”
Shin ended her comments by calling on the prime minister to apologize for his “divisive and destructive” remarks.
Today I addressed Trudeau's claims that standing against foreign threats from the CCP is racist. It is shameful to see our Prime Minister downplay these concerns. https://t.co/f8mvwqafai
Additionally, Chiu accused the prime minister of hiding behind anti-Asian racism as a way to avoid being accountable for his handling of Canadian research security.
“Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister suggested that asking questions about the threat from China’s government is anti-Asian racism. I am an Asian-Canadian and I am deeply offended by this. How dare the wearer of blackface and brownface use the painful experience of racism to shield this government’s callous dereliction to protect Canada from hostile foreign regimes?” said Chiu.
“Pointing that out is not racism. Suggesting otherwise plays into the propaganda effort of our opponent. That is something of great concern in my home of Richmond. To see our national leadership downplay these concerns is simply shameful. Many critics of the CPP are of Asian descent themselves, either born as equal partners in Canada or having joined the equal partnership as immigrants.”
The Trudeau government internet’s regulation bill has caused a major uproar in Canada. Canadians from across the political spectrum are sounding the alarm and calling Bill C-10 an attack on free speech.
But what exactly does Bill C-10 aim to accomplish? Is the government attempting to regulate the internet? Why is it so controversial?
True North’s Candice Malcolm explains what Bill C-10 is and how it will affect Canadians.
A manager in the office of Employment and Social Development Canada has been fired after she twice helped her daughter get a job in the department without disclosing their relationship.
First reported by the Ottawa Citizen, the federal labour relations and employment board recently rejected Christine Petit’s appeal of her 2017 termination. Petit was her daughter’s direct supervisor for nine months before the relationship was revealed.
In 2016, Petit recommended her daughter for a three-month position in Employment and Social Development Canada, with the hiring committee accepting her because of the recommendation.
Before the position expired, Petit again recommended her daughter, this time for a one-year position. Petit signed declarations that stated she was not related to the candidate.
In her decision, adjudicator Nathalie Daigle ruled that management was justified in firing Petit.
“Even though she explained that she failed to disclose (the relationship) to ensure that she would obtain assistance quickly given the scale of the tasks she had to complete, nevertheless, she granted preferential treatment to a family member,” Daigle wrote.
“The grievor’s conduct went contrary to basic principles about the integrity of employees and of the federal public sector as a whole.”
In her defense, Petit stated that the department was desperate to fill the position and her daughter was the only qualified candidate she knew. As financial manager, Petit was dealing with the fallout of the Phoenix pay system disaster.
While Petit claimed she did not personally benefit from her daughter’s employment, Daigle noted that a manager having their child work under them has obvious benefits.
“Although the grievor made the point that she did not benefit personally from her alleged behaviour, my view is that I cannot accept it as a mitigating factor,” Daigle wrote.
“In my view, the evidence demonstrated that hiring her daughter was a quick and practical solution for her, so she certainly did benefit personally from it. In addition, she also provided a financial and professional benefit to her daughter.”
Employees with the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) were given a 2.8% raise for 2018, an additional 2.2% increase for 2019 and a 1.35% raise for last year.
Liberal MP and President of the Treasury Board Jean-Yves Duclos said that Canadians are capable of bearing the cost of the salary increase for public sector employees.
The Liberals are standing by their hotel quarantine program after a federal COVID-19 advisory panel recommended the government scrap it.
The recommendations came in the COVID-19 Testing and Screening Expert Advisory Panel’s fourth report, which deals with land and air border measures.
🚨BREAKING🚨 Fed govt expert panel recommends immediate end to quarantine hotel / outlines how to safely lift border restrictions. We call upon the Libs to end hotel quarantines and update quarantine reqts according to the latest evidence per this report. https://t.co/TMyjQxvTD2
— Michelle Rempel Garner (@MichelleRempel) May 27, 2021
“The current requirement for all air travellers to quarantine in government-authorized accommodations should be discontinued,” wrote the panel.
“However, travellers subject to quarantine must provide a suitable quarantine plan for approval and then adhere to this plan. If the traveller does not have a suitable quarantine plan, they should be required to adhere to an alternative one (for example, in designated quarantine facilities).”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first implemented the mandatory hotel-quarantine requirement for travellers landing in Canada on February 22. Since then, the program has been riddled with issues including several cases of sexual assault, inadequate food quality and reports of poor security measures.
In a statement released soon after the report’s publication, Health Minister Patty Hajdu wrote that current requirements including hotel quarantines “are working.”
“The Government of Canada will continue to monitor and review all available data and scientific evidence to inform future border and travel measures, and will be prudent in its approach, keeping the health and safety of Canadians top of mind. The Government of Canada will also consider the Panel’s recommendations to determine how testing and quarantine strategies should evolve to address vaccination status,” wrote Hajdu.
As reported by True North in March, Hajdu admitted that the Liberal government had insufficient data to justify the use of mandatory hotel quarantines when compared to at-home quarantines.
Additionally, the panel also recommended a plan to safely lift border restrictions as Canada moves out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Currently, the US-Canada border closure has been extended until at least June 21, 2021, however, both the US and Canada have indicated that they are in talks to discuss a reopening plan as vaccinations continue to proceed in both countries.
Despite the fact that Taiwan appears on a map as its own country, has its own flag and even a president, the Chinese regime continues to refute the fact that Taiwan is a country.
While it should come as no surprise China’s foreign policy is out of whack, this week, American wrestler and actor John Cena caved to China and apologized for saying Taiwan is a country.
