Articles by Alex Boutilier

May 21 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — The federal government’s new “digital charter” will emphasize Canadians’ control over their own personal information and promises “strong enforcement” of transnational internet giants that break the law. The Liberal government will not take any immediate steps to impose regulation on companies like Facebook, Google and Amazon, according to a copy of the digital charter obtained […]

May 16 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says social media platforms and tech giants have failed Canadian users and it’s time the government stepped in. According to prepared remarks obtained by the Star, the Liberal government is set to unveil a framework for reining in tech giants like Facebook, Google and Amazon. The so-called “Digital Charter” will outline […]

May 8 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — A Conservative government under Andrew Scheer would ban Chinese telecom giant Huawei from participating in Canada’s next generation wireless networks, the Star has learned. Scheer’s office confirmed Wednesday that the Conservatives would ban Huawei products from Canada’s 5G infrastructure if they form the government after this fall’s federal election.

May 7 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Gerald Butts, the former principal secretary to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, is working with a global consulting firm to advise private sector clients on risks associated with climate change. Butts, who resigned from his position in the Prime Minister’s Office in the wake of the SNC-Lavalin scandal, will work with the Eurasia Group to develop […]

May 7 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Andrew Scheer is taking aim at China and Russia in his first major foreign policy speech, while advancing cautious criticism of U.S. President Donald Trump for pulling back from traditional alliances in a new era of “Great Power” rivalry. In a speech in Montreal today, Scheer will lay out the broad strokes of a Conservative […]

May 6 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Andrew Scheer will announce tomorrow that a Conservative government would start talks with the Trump administration to join the U.S. continental missile defence program, the Star has learned. While the U.S. has sought the Canadian government’s co-operation on a missile defence program since the early 2000s, successive governments — both Liberal and Conservative — have […]

Apr 29 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — The federal Conservative party has yet to decide whether it will remain committed to the climate-change targets set out in the Paris Agreement, the Star has learned. Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer was expected to reveal the party’s climate change and environment policy last week, but delayed that announcement to potentially as late as June.

Apr 10 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Andrew Scheer condemned “anyone who promotes racist ideology” after a Conservative senator questioned whether white supremacy was not a significant threat to Canadian communities. Scheer told reporters Wednesday that he “100 per cent” denounces anyone who “promote white nationalism, promotes any type of extremism.”

Apr 8 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Canadian political parties have already been targeted by at least one foreign state-backed hacking campaign, the Star and BuzzFeed news have learned. The Communications Security Establishment said Monday that “political parties, candidates and staff” were the target of one tenth of state-sponsored hacking campaigns against the democratic process globally in 2018.

Mar 29 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — On the eve of the imposition of the Liberal government’s new carbon tax, new polling data suggests a majority of GTHA residents “accept” Ottawa’s plan. The data, released by Clean Prosperity and University of Toronto researcher Peter Loewen, suggests 60 per cent of residents of the Greater Toronto and Hamilton area — including Durham, Halton, […]

Mar 15 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer issued a second statement after facing a storm of criticism for failing to mention the terrorist attack in Christchurch was perpetrated against Muslims during Friday prayer. Other leaders, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, U.S. President Donald Trump, and Premier Doug Ford all made specific mention to the victims being Muslim or […]

Mar 10 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — The Liberal government will keep the country’s top bureaucrat as the person ultimately responsible for alerting Canadians to foreign interference in the 2019 election, despite the opposition parties’ lost confidence in Michael Wernick’s neutrality. Cameron Ahmad, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s deputy director of communications, told the Star Saturday they’ll keep Privy Council Clerk Wernick on […]

Mar 8 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Canada’s two main opposition parties say their lost confidence in the country’s top bureaucrat means he can’t be trusted to warn voters about foreign interference in the 2019 election, the Star has learned. Wernick is the most senior member of a five-person panel tasked with alerting Canadians to the kind of foreign meddling seen in […]

Mar 6 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Ottawa’s top public servant faced a withering barrage of questions from opposition MPs Wednesday over his role in the SNC-Lavalin affair and allegations of “partisanship” in his defence of the Liberal government’s actions. Michael Wernick, the clerk of the Privy Council, stated “categorically” that he had “never given advice or done anything for partisan purposes,” […]

Mar 6 2019 — Alex Boutilier — Toronto Star — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was warned that Jody Wilson-Raybould could connect her removal from the justice portfolio to her refusal to offer a deferred prosecution agreement to SNC-Lavalin, one of his former top aides says. Gerald Butts said former Treasury Board President Jane Philpott told Trudeau on January 6 that Wilson-Raybould might view her shuffle […]