Charest to suspend spring semesters in bid to restore order
31.12.69
Polls suggest Charest’s unpopular government, facing a longshot re-election bid, might actually have public support for its tuition hikes. But the premier has responded angrily in recent weeks when accused of encouraging a climate of confrontation for his own political benefit.
Bracing for more of that criticism, the Charest government has bought ads in Thursday’s newspapers explaining how it has already made several adjustments to its tuition plans to soften the impact on the poorest students.
But his critics won’t easily be quelled. Late-night protests were already being held in Montreal, and some of the government’s most vocal opponents are promising further defiance.
Source: National Post
Avoiding a Lost Decade in Canada
31.12.69
[Series] Even in this time of austerity, bold investments are needed to break with the status quo and ensure the long-term health of Canada's economy.
This is the first article in a two-part series on understanding alternative scenarios for the future of employment and the Canadian economy. In April, Deloitte and the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA) released a report entitled CanadaWorks 2025 . Through discussions with 50 notable academics, CEOs, Chairs, ex-Ministers, and economists, the report outlined three alternative – but plausible – future scenarios for Canada, setting the foundations for a broader public-policy debate on what Canada needs to do to remain economically competitive.
Source: The Mark
3 things to know about the proposed mask law
31.12.69
Federal legislators are currently debating a proposed law that could carry a 10-year prison term for concealing your identity during a riot.
Introduced last November by Conservative backbencher Blake Richards, Bill C-309 was a private member’s bill inspired by the Stanley Cup riot in Vancouver last June and the G20 riot in Toronto in June 2010.
Richards said police had been seeking better ways to respond to public assemblies that become dangerous.
It is already illegal to take part in a riot, but Bill C-309 would create a separate offence criminalizing the use of a mask while participating in such an action.
The bill is back in the House of Commons on Monday before going to the Senate for final approval.
Source: CBC.ca