The Ontario government pushed forward TC Energy’s proposal to build a large pumped storage project on Georgian Bay, despite early expert advice it would be costly and not meet the province’s current energy needs. That advice was shared by the provincial Crown corporation responsible for the supply and demand of energy, the Independent Electricity System […]

A newly released spy watchdog report says the Canadian Security Intelligence Service lacked adequate policies and procedures to manage a secret technology for collecting information. The National Security and Intelligence Review Agency says CSIS mischaracterized a novel technical capability as an extension of existing know-how. The report says this led to CSIS not consulting Public […]

Global Affairs Canada says deteriorating stability worldwide is causing a massive expansion in the work required to protect Canadians abroad, with the department warning Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand that Canadians might need to pay more and expect less. That’s according to the briefing binder prepared for Anand when she took on the role in […]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday vetoed landmark legislation that would have restricted children’s access to AI chatbots. The bill would have banned companies from making AI chatbots available to anyone under 18 years old unless the businesses could ensure the technology couldn’t engage in sexual conversations or encourage self-harm. “While […]

Immigrants selling food, flowers and other merchandise along the sidewalks of California will have new privacy protections intended to keep their identities secret from federal immigration agents. The measure, signed into law this past week by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, comes on the heels of other recently enacted state laws meant to shield students in […]

The Liberal government’s efforts to revise Canada’s national security strategy hit a snag when it became clear earlier this year that many of the assumptions underlying the work were “no longer valid,” a newly released memo reveals. John Hannaford, the Privy Council clerk at the time, told Prime Minister Mark Carney in the memo that […]

This is your Access and Privacy News Summary for Saturday, October 11th.   We have important legislative updates — from Ottawa’s ongoing border bills to new reforms in New Brunswick and consumer protections in Quebec.  Across the provinces, the fallout continues over Ontario’s Greenbelt scandal, while privacy and surveillance make headlines from local hockey rinks to federal […]

Gibsons council took a step toward finalizing its updated Official Community Plan (OCP) at its Oct. 7 regular meeting, endorsing a series of policy recommendations informed by months of public engagement. The OCP update, developed with support from planning consultants McElhanney, aims to guide growth and development in Gibsons over the next decade.  The second […]

Prime Minister Mark Carney has asked each of his cabinet ministers and secretaries of state to identify three to five “key objectives” that will help the Liberal government achieve its core missions. In a July 8 letter, Carney gave the ministers and secretaries less than three weeks to map out these priorities for action over […]

Front-line housing workers in central Newfoundland say the province is transporting local homeless people out of their communities to other towns with more services — sometimes buying them bus tickets all the way to the capital, St. John’s. Sherri Chippett in Grand Falls-Windsor says people needing housing in her area used to be able to […]

The president of the group representing local governments in British Columbia says she welcomes proposed changes that would make it easier for First Nations and municipalities to meet behind closed doors. Cori Ramsay, president of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities, said her group and First Nations requested the changes, saying they give nations “the […]

An expert on anti-fascist groups who teaches at Rutgers University says he is fleeing with his family to Spain after getting death threats amid a campaign by the campus chapter of Turning Point USA and other conservative groups to get him fired. Mark Bray, an assistant professor of history, said Thursday that he decided to […]