2025 season episode 13

2025 season episode 13


20250329 Access and Privacy Online

Show Notes for Saturday March 29. Writing: Shaun Fisk  | Production: Patrick Farnsworth  | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder Send comments to: FIPAOnline @ fipa.bc.ca You can support these efforts by subscribing or donating.   Full Show Links Nova Scotia Legislation  In response to critics, Nova Scotia amends bills on interprovincial trade, info law  https://fipa.bc.ca/in-response-to-critics-nova-scotia-amends-bills-on-interprovincial-trade-info-law/   N.S. legislature sitting marked by moves to consolidate power: political […]

Read More


The feds raised doubts about a climate scientist’s LNG research. He says they sounded like fossil fuel lobbyists

Edward Burrier chuckled as he told his colleagues what he thought about an academic paper written by a prominent U.S. climate scientist. Burrier, a director of public policy at Canadian fossil fuel giant TC Energy, said the study was largely to blame for public skepticism about whether liquefied natural gas (LNG) is as environmentally friendly […]

Read More


N.S. legislature sitting marked by moves to consolidate power: political scientist

The Nova Scotia legislature has wrapped up a winter sitting that a political scientist says was marked by government moves to increase cabinet’s authority and shrink the legislature’s ability to provide oversight. Tom Urbaniak, a professor at the University of Cape Breton, said the government’s multiple omnibus bills paint the picture of a government working […]

Read More


Trump officials texted attack plans to a group chat in a secure app that included a journalist

WASHINGTON (AP) — Top national security officials for President Donald Trump, including his defense secretary, texted plans for upcoming military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic, the magazine reported in a story posted online Monday. The National Security Council said the text […]

Read More


Self-professed ‘DOGE person’ Frank Bisignano gets his confirmation hearing to lead Social Security

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Social Security Administration faced questions Tuesday at his confirmation hearing about efforts by the Department of Government Efficiency to close field offices and cut back on phone service at the beleaguered agency. Frank Bisignano, a self-professed “DOGE person,” was called to account for recent upheaval […]

Read More


Turkey’s opposition leader visits jailed Erdogan challenger Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu

ISTANBUL (AP) — The head of Turkey’s main opposition party visited jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu on Tuesday after six nights of massive protests calling for his release. Imamoglu, arrested on March 19 on corruption charges, is seen as the main challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 22-year rule. His arrest has been widely viewed […]

Read More


Protesters block traffic in Hungary in opposition to new law banning LGBTQ+ Pride events

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Several thousand protesters blocked a major thoroughfare in the center of Hungary’s capital on Tuesday in opposition to a recent law that effectively bans LGBTQ+ Pride events and restricts Hungarians’ right to assembly. The demonstration was the second within a week since Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party used its two-thirds parliamentary majority […]

Read More


School workers’ new deal includes wins for wages, school safety

Over 5,000 education workers in Nova Scotia have signed a new two-year deal with the province, after nearly a year of bargaining. In a member update Sunday night, the council of eight local union presidents told members they were “proud of what we have achieved” and that getting this deal “showed us what we can […]

Read More


Internal report finds major flaws in program to recruit foreign nurses to Quebec

Foreign nurses recruited to Quebec through a provincial government program faced “major obstacles” upon their arrival, including a lack of housing, child care and transportation, according to an internal report.  A rigorous training schedule, culture shock and fear of failure caused severe stress among the recruits, says the report produced by the province’s Immigration Department. […]

Read More


23andMe files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as co-founder and CEO Wojcicki resigns

23andMe has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and its co-founder and CEO has resigned as the struggling genetic testing company continues its push to cut costs. The company said Sunday that it will look to sell “substantially all of its assets” through a court-approved reorganization plan. The San Francisco-based company also said Anne Wojcicki […]

Read More


Tax season is a prime time for scams. IRS uncertainty could add to the issues this year

NEW YORK (AP) — There’s a lot of information (and money) on the table during tax season. That also makes it a prime time for scams. Year-round, fraudsters may use a handful of common tactics to try to steal your identity, money or other sensitive information. As you prepare your annual tax return, due April […]

Read More


Judge blocks DOGE from accessing sensitive information at US agencies

A federal judge on Monday blocked billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency from accessing people’s private data at the Education Department, the Treasury Department and the Office of Personnel Management. U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman issued a preliminary injunction in a case filed last month by a coalition of labor unions in federal court […]

Read More