fbpx
Saturday, July 5, 2025

$1 million in Covid fines tossed out in major legal victory

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

The Democracy Fund (TDF) has announced that its lawyers have successfully defeated a cumulative $1 million in Covid–related fines faced by 14 different clients. 

In a Thursday news release, the law advocacy organization revealed that in the last two weeks $56,000 in fines faced by British Columbians have been defeated and a whopping $950,000 in Ontario has also been thrown out. 

The Ontario fines were for three tickets citing the Quarantine Act and the Reopening Ontario Act sent to business owners.

Lawyer Adam Blake-Gallipeau said that he hopes to continue to “vigorously defend” clients who have had their rights breached by government lockdowns and mandates. 

“The legal team at TDF represents clients across the country who have been fined in connection to legislation related to COVID-19. Many clients are unable to pay fines or would be forced to close their businesses if convicted,” the TDF explained. 

Various challenges to Covid measures are ongoing and some have even found success.

In July, the Alberta Court of Appeals overturned fines for jailed Pastor Artur Pawlowski. 

A ruling by Justice Barbara Lea Veldhuis, Justice Michelle Crighton and Justice Jo’ Anne Strekaf ordered Alberta Health Services (AHS) to reimburse Pawlowski any fines or penalties he had paid for disobeying public health orders. 

“The Pawlowskis’ appeals are allowed. The finding of contempt and the sanction order are set aside. The fines that have been paid by them are to be reimbursed,“ the judges wrote.

“The chambers judge awarded costs to AHS payable by the Pawlowskis jointly in the amount of $15,733.50, calculated at 2.5 times column 1. That costs award is set aside and the Pawlowskis are awarded their costs payable by AHS in the proceedings below and in this Court calculated on the same basis.”

In May, the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms also defeated 24 public health order tickets for three British Columbian pastors totalling $55,200.

Alberta Justice Minister says province could lead in provincial policing

By
Rachel Parker
-

Alberta Justice Minister Tyler Shandro unveiled the government’s blueprint for provincial policing on Tuesday, which promises to add hundreds of officers for rural municipalities. 

A provincial service has long been debated as a means to give Alberta more autonomy. It was recommended in the provincial government’s Fair Deal Panel Report released in June 2020. 

It’s incumbent on the provincial government to look at innovative ways to improve policing in its communities, Shandro said.

“This is a conversation that is happening everywhere in the country,” he told True North. “And we think that Alberta is on the precipice of being a leading voice and modernizing policing in the country.”

A government proposal released this week said its provincial police service would add 275 police officers to the 42 smallest detachments. The model also proposes a minimum of 10 front-line police officers. There is no minimum number of officers at RCMP detachments and some have as few as three.

The new model plans to increase front-line response by reducing the number of police officers deployed in headquarters and administrative roles and providing better access to specialist policing services in rural Alberta.

Edmonton, Calgary and other municipalities have police forces governed by the province. The remaining roughly 20% of Albertans are policed by the RCMP.

The 2001 Alberta Agenda, referred to as the Firewall Letter, co-authored by future Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper to former Premier Ralph Klein also advocated for provincial policing.

The Alberta government has not yet made a decision about establishing a provincial police service, but the proposal ensures the province is ready to transition if needed — such as if Ottawa decides to end financial support for contract policing. Ottawa contributes $170-million under a cost-sharing agreement.

Alberta is having a conversation on provincial policing along with the rest of Canada, Shandro said. Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are also studying the feasibility of a provincial service. 

The PricewaterhouseCoopers report said it costs Alberta about $500-million a year for the RCMP. That cose would rise to $735-million each year for a provincial service on top of $366-million in startup costs, the report found.

United Conservative Party (UCP) leadership candidates Rebecca Schulz and Brian Jean will not implement a provincial police if either are elected Premier of Alberta.

Shandro said he thinks UCP leadership front runners are all supportive of a provincial police service. 

Recent polls show Danielle Smith and Travis Toews leading the remaining five candidates. Party members will elect a new leader and Premier on October 6.

China blacklists Canadian journalist over Hong Kong views

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-
Source: PIxaby

Journalist and former editor of the Chinese-language media outlet Sing Tao Daily Victor Ho was blacklisted by China for speaking out against the regime’s takeover of Hong Kong in July.

The blacklist prompted agents with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) to visit Ho and check on his well being. 

According to Ho, two agents paid him a “friendly and courteous” visit on Wednesday. Ho and the agents have agreed to meet again on Friday to further discuss the situation. 

Chinese authorities placed Ho on a blacklist promising to “spare no efforts in pursuing” him after he was part of a July 27 news conference in which a Hong Kong “parliament in exile” was announced. The announcement featured a group of Hong Kong activists who promised to hold elections for the said parliament and to form an “electoral organizing committee.” 

“How come our government keeps silent so long?” said Ho. 

“They have full responsibility to take care of the safety of citizens because they are elected by the voters, that is you and me.”

Ho fears that if he ever returns to Hong Kong, he will be imprisoned. Additionally, he has concerns that agents operating on behalf of Beijing are already seeking him out in Canada. 

“Various methods and techniques are in place to combat foreign actor interference within the RCMP’s mandate,” Public Safety Canada spokesperson Tim Warmington told the Vancouver Sun. 

Critics have called on the Canadian government to crack down on foreign interference activities by creating a foreign agent registry. 

In 2020, CSIS warned that agents working for the Chinese Communist Party are actively working to intimidate and silence the dissident Chinese diaspora. 

“Certain foreign states routinely attempt to threaten and intimidate individuals around the world through various state entities and non-state proxies. These states, such as the People’s Republic of China, may use a combination of their intelligence and security services as well as trusted agents to assist them in conducting various forms of threat activities,” CSIS head of media relations John Townsend told the Globe and Mail. 

“Importantly, when foreign states target members of Canadian communities, these individuals, for various reasons, may not have the means to protect themselves or do not know they can report these activities to Canadian authorities. The fear of state-backed or state-linked retribution targeting both them and their loved ones, in Canada and abroad, can force individuals to submit to foreign interference.”

Liberals say “misinformation” behind farmers’ fertilizer fears

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

In a recent interview, Liberal Minister of Agriculture Marie-Claude Bibeau dismissed farmers who are afraid that federal emissions targets on fertilizer threaten to upend the industry. 

On Aug. 9, Bibeau claimed there was “a lot of misinformation going on” about the Trudeau government’s 30% emissions reduction target. 

“I just wanted to reiterate that we’re really talking about reducing emissions caused by fertilizer. We’re not talking about having any intention of limiting the use of fertilizer itself. The idea is to use them in the most sustainable way possible,” said Bibeau.

Last year, the government unveiled a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the agriculture industry by 30% below 2020 levels by the year 2030. 

As exclusively reported by True North, in April Agriculture Canada further targeted grain farmers as producing crops with the highest “emissions intensity” in the world. 

According to Grain Growers of Canada manager of policy and government relations Brenden Leslie, farmers are already going to great lengths to get the most out of their fertilizer use and the government hasn’t acknowledged that enough. 

“I think it’s important that we try to balance the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from fertilizer applications and more broadly from on farm use against farm profitability and productivity and economic growth and global food security,” Leslie told The Western Producer. 

Similar heavy-handed government mandates have sparked farmers protests abroad, including in the Netherlands which has seen weeks of farmers convoys taking to the streets. 

In an interview with True North, president of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Gunter Jochum said that should Canadian farmers have their backs placed against the wall, a similar scenario could happen here. 

“We have talked to other producer groups, we’re very concerned about exactly that same scenario. And will we go to these lengths like what’s happening in the Netherlands? I don’t know,” Jochum told True North. 

“But, you know, all I can say is, if you push farmers back right up against the wall where their livelihood is at stake and it’s a direct result of government overreach and non science based policies, then, who knows what could happen?”

A recent poll found that 72% of farmers agreed that crop yields and food production could plummet should the government follow through with its plan.

French language on decline in Canada: StatsCan

By
Noah Jarvis
-

A report from StatsCanada reveals that compared to English and other languages, French is becoming proportionately less significant in the lives of Canadians.

While the total amount of French speakers has risen, the number of English-speaking Canadians has grown at a much faster rate, making French speakers a proportionately smaller group when compared to English speakers.  

While the use of English as the first official language of Canadians rose 74.8% to 75.5% from 2016-2021, the use of French as a first language dropped from 22.2% in 2016 to 21.4% in 2021. 

Despite the federal and provincial governments pushing English-speaking Canadians to learn French, the trend of proportionately fewer Canadians knowing and primarily speaking French is happening across Canada in all provinces, including Quebec. 

Canadians outside Quebec who are bilingual have declined from 9.8% in 2016 to 9.5% in 2021.

The number of Quebecers who predominately spoke French at home rose from 6.4 million in 2016 to 6.5 million in 2021, but the growth was outrivaled by Quebecers who don’t speak French in their homes, decreasing by 1.5 percentage points. As well, Quebecers whose mother tongue was French dropped from 77.% in 2016 to 74.8% in 2021. 

Despite Quebec premier Francois Legault’s strict language policies meant to preserve the French language in the province, English has become a more important language in the day-to-day lives of Quebec residents. 

In the Nord-du-Québec region, the percentage of residents whose first official language is French is only 31.1%, a 3.6 percentage point decline from 2016. 

The Quebec National Assembly, controlled by the Coalition Avenir Québec, recently passed Bill 96, which tightens Quebec’s language laws, forcing employers to operate in French and more. 

Premier Legault has openly admitted that French is on the decline in his province and that Bill 96’s passage was intended to increase the use of French.

“When we look at the statistics, the language most used in the home is in decline, the language most used at work is in decline,” said Legault to reporters this past June.

“It becomes a question of time. If this decline continues, it will take how many years before French is not used a lot?”

Other languages continue to become more important to the lives of Canadians, with a lot more citizens now speaking Punjabi, Arabic, Spanish, Mandarin and more. These trends are largely driven by Canada’s immigration regime, as the population expanded by more than 5% from 2016-2021, largely as a result of new families coming to the country.

Toews says assisted dying should not be offered to those with mental illness

By
Rachel Parker
-

United Conservative Party (UCP) leadership candidate Travis Toews says doctor-assisted suicide should not be offered to those suffering from mental illness. 

Parliament recently expanded assisted dying legislation to include the disabled, whereas previously, only those with a terminal illness were eligible. The Liberal government also expanded eligibility to those suffering solely with a mental illness beginning March 2023.

Legalizing and expanding doctor-assisted suicide creates a “slippery slope” as evidenced by the shifting conversation to protect those with mental illness, Toews said. 

“(As Premier) I would do everything in my power to ensure that (assisted dying) isn’t offered to those who were suffering from mental illness,” Toews told True North.

“It’s one thing to offer (assisted dying) to somebody that’s terminally ill and in their last days… and now we see it applied to individuals who perhaps have years of life and where treatment options are available.”

Premier Jason Kenney’s former finance minister also said many people suffer from mental illness at one point in their life, but many are able to recover and lead healthy lives. 

“And that’s the incredible risk with offering (assisted dying) to those individuals that suffer from mental health when they need to be offered hope.”

Earlier this week, Global News reported that a Canadian Forces veteran seeking treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury was unexpectedly and casually offered assisted dying by a Veterans Affairs Canada employee.

Sources told Global News the VAC service agent brought up medical assistance in dying unprompted in the conversation with the veteran seeking treatment.

A recent report from the Associated Press quoted secretly recorded audio from a London, Ontario hospital that appeared to show the director of ethics raising the subject of euthanasia with a disabled patient and saying the patient was costing the system “north of $1,500 a day.”

“That’s immoral,” Toews said. “That simply should be illegal to even mention the cost of services in that conversation.”

An internal Smith campaign poll from earlier this month shows Smith winning on the fourth ballot with 51.4% of the vote, followed by Toews with 28.5%, as reported by the Calgary Sun.

Assisted dying is becoming one of Canada’s leading causes of death. In 2021, Canada saw 10,064 cases of assisted death, representing 3.3% of all national deaths – a 32.4 % increase from the previous year.

“All provinces continue to experience a steady year over year growth,” reported Health Canada.

In 2020, a report by the Parliamentary Budget Office estimated that each assisted suicide represented approximately $17,000 in savings on “end of life costs.”

Canadians are divided on whether those with mental health issues should be allowed to access doctor-assisted euthanasia, a recent Leger poll found.

In July, Leger reported that 45% of Canadians supported making the option available to those with serious mental illness. Another 51% of Canadians supported allowing those who are under the age of 18 to have the option to seek a medically assisted suicide should they show a “certain level of maturity and decision-making ability.”

The government can’t create jobs!

By
Jasmine Moulton
-

Politicians of all stripes like to claim that they’re able to create jobs by spending your money. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

On this week’s episode of Reality Check with Jasmine Moulton, Jasmine breaks down how governments actually end up doing more harm than good when it comes to stimulating the job market. In reality, the government’s wasteful and unsustainable spending is at the core of this issue.

As Canadians are likely to face a recession soon, Jasmine shows us how the government is unequipped to handle it.

Tune in to Reality Check with Jasmine Moulton! 

SUBSCRIBE TO REALITY CHECK WITH JASMINE MOULTON

Unvaccinated woman denied organ transplant appeals court decision

By
Elie Cantin-Nantel
-

An unvaccinated terminally ill woman who was denied an organ transplant for not receiving a Covid vaccine is appealing an earlier court decision that ruled in favour of the mandate.

As reported by the Edmonton Journal, 57-year old Annette Lewis had originally filed an injunction against Alberta Health Services (AHS) and six doctors after she was told she would not be able to receive a transplant unless she got vaccinated.

AHS and the doctors said that the vaccine is required for patients receiving an organ transplant due to immune-suppressing drugs taken to prevent the organ from being rejected by that patient’s body. 

The drugs lower one’s chance of recovering from Covid, with AHS and doctors saying a group of unvaccinated patients on these drugs had a mortality rate of 40%.

Organ transplants are given to those who have the greatest chance of surviving.

Lewis lost that bid for an injunction, with Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Paul Belzil saying that applying the Charter to doctor’s clinical judgment would lead to the creation of “two classes” of organ recipients and “medical chaos with patients seeking endless judicial review of clinical treatment decisions.”

However, Lewis is not giving up on her fight and has now filed an appeal.

She is hoping the Alberta Court of Appeal will rule that the vaccination requirement is a “definitive violation of (her) fundamental freedom of conscience and rights to life, liberty, security of person, and to freedom from arbitrary discrimination.”

Lewis’ lawyers argue in their notice of appeal that the previous judge made an error when he found that the vaccine mandate was a clinical decision. 

They claim the requirement to get the Covid shots was rather an “imposition” by “state agents” executing an AHS policy.

Lawyers are also saying Justice Belzil made an error when he said AHS was not subject to charter scrutiny – since “AHS was simply mirroring the respondent physicians’ requirement.”

They are also questioning Justice Belzil’s conclusion that the Covid vaccines are “safe and effective.”

The Edmonton Journal says the dates that the hearings will take place are yet to be established. 

The woman’s organ, as well as the names of the doctors involved and their places of work are subject to a publication ban.

Ottawa shrugs off past SNC-Lavalin criminality and misconduct

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

Ottawa is continuing to deal with the Quebec company SNC-Lavalin despite recent criminal proceedings against its former executives. 

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, a Department of Public Works memo explains that the government sees the criminal activity of the company as belonging to the past. 

“The Government of Canada is committed to taking action against improper, unethical and illegal business practices and to holding companies to account for such misconduct,” officials wrote in Status Of SNC-Lavalin Under The Integrity Regime.

“The charges laid in September 2021 relate to alleged misconduct from 20 years ago.”

The company was charged last year with fraud and other criminal acts related to its Montréal’s Jacques Cartier Bridge project. 

Federal prosecutors offered the company a deferred prosecution agreement in which it could admit guilt while also avoiding more severe consequences such as being prohibited to bid on federal contracts. 

In May, SNC-Lavalin reached an agreement with the Quebec government by paying $30 million to the government to avoid criminal bribery charges related to the bridge.

After reaching a deal with Quebec, SNC-Lavalin was allowed to continue bidding on government contracts.

“SNC-Lavalin provides various architecture and engineering services in support of the Department of Public Works’ real property projects,” the federal government explained. 

Additionally, further “contracts have been awarded” to the company. 

In 2019, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was found guilty of breaking federal ethics laws after he attempted to have former justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould intervene in the prosecution against SNC-Lavalin. 

SNC-Lavalin has paid nearly $280 million in fines for trying to bribe officials in Libya. Additionally, the company received a $1.9 million charge for breaching the Competition Act.

Federal public servants complain about stress and lack of recognition in survey

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

Executives in Canada’s public service complained in an internal survey that they were exhausted and cynical about their work conditions.

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the study found that 76% of managers at government departments said they were overworked. 

“Seventy-six percent show high levels of exhaustion,” said the Executive Work And Health Study. “Thirty-nine percent report high levels of cynicism.”

Analysts described how executives who can earn on average $134,000 a year were “bruised, weary and looking for relief.” 

“One may describe executives as having weathered the storm of the pandemic,” researchers wrote. 

Additionally, managers complained that they were not being recognized for their work. 

“Executives indicate they are not being recognized for the level of effort and contribution they are putting forward. It should be underscored reward is not limited to compensation,” the report explained. 

48% of the 8,200 federal executives polled also said their average work day was stressful.

“They are fatigued and struggling to recover, mindful of the new challenges facing the federal government such as emerging fiscal pressures, climate shifts and reconciliation,” the report said. 

“Executives reported very high levels of pride in their work, 88 percent, and a firm dedication to serving Canadians but the long hours and impacts of virtual work have increased the extent of diminished energy and burnout across the breadth of the executive community.”

In April, the Association of Professional Executives of the Public Service of Canada revealed it was working with Liberal Treasury Board President Mona Fortier to boost the salaries and improve the working conditions for federal executives. 

Additionally, the number of executives working for the federal government has ballooned over the course of the pandemic by 21%. 

1...760761762...1,460Page 761 of 1,460

Related stories

© 2025 True North | Privacy Policy