Articles by Bill Curry

Oct 9 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer says that Elections Canada issued a ruling in support of the party’s advertising practices, but the elections watchdog is contradicting that claim.The agency said it simply provided guidance to the Conservatives in an e-mail this week, including a suggestion that the party should consider how the public might perceive its advertising […]

Oct 9 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — A company with ties to the federal Conservatives is receiving contracts to produce election ads for both the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers and the Conservative Party.Records filed with Elections Canada show that One Persuasion Inc. – also known as One Persuades – has received four payments totalling $15,404 from CAPP, the industry group representing […]

Sep 18 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Infrastructure Minister François-Philippe Champagne intervened in a decision by the Canada Infrastructure Bank’s independent board regarding the performance pay of the bank’s CEO, according to documents obtained by The Globe and Mail.The documents show that, rather than accepting the board’s recommendations, the minister applied his own “broader criteria” to assess Pierre Lavallée’s performance.How that intervention […]

Aug 29 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — The Conservatives are using the Parliamentary Budget Office to help estimate the cost of the party’s election promises, in spite of concerns the new process creates a risk that their campaign announcements will be leaked. On the ninth floor of an office building just two blocks south of Parliament Hill, a team of economists and […]

Aug 2 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Several energy industry executives are listed as organizers for a federal Conservative Party fundraising event that featured Leader Andrew Scheer, providing another sign of how Canada’s oil patch is working to oppose the Liberal government’s record in an election year.During the June 4 event at Calgary’s Westin Hotel, Mr. Scheer chatted onstage with radio host […]

Jul 23 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Canada’s municipalities received a surprise $2.2-billion windfall in this year’s pre-election Liberal budget in the form of a one-time doubling of the federal gas tax transfer – and now they’re calling on federal parties to support making that boost permanent. In an announcement to be released Tuesday, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) will make […]

Jul 2 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Some senators are calling for a review of ethics rules after discovering that the Senate Ethics Officer can obtain their e-mails without their knowledge or consent – even if they are not the subject of an investigation. Conservative Senator Elizabeth Marshall stunned many of her colleagues in the final days of the Senate’s June sittings […]

Jun 24 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — On the eve of a federal election and after years of study, the Liberal government will announce Tuesday that the Canada Infrastructure Bank will play a role in Via Rail’s multibillion-dollar plan to build a new rail line exclusively for passengers through Quebec and Ontario. Government sources, to whom The Globe and Mail granted anonymity […]

Jun 13 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Canadians have strong concerns about how political parties use their personal information, but a new survey of Canadian voters found the vast majority of respondents are unaware that parties are exempt from federal privacy laws. Only 9 per cent of survey respondents said they knew parties are exempt from Canadian privacy laws, while 85 per […]

Jun 6 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Elections Canada is launching a campaign this month that will see the independent agency pay YouTubers, musicians and other social-media stars to promote voter participation in this year’s federal election. The $650,000 campaign will target demographics with below average voter participation rates, particularly young Canadians. The challenge for the non-partisan agency is that the voting […]

May 30 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — The Senate has temporarily suspended the use of a private security company as it examines a sole-source contract that quickly and quietly grew from $24,000 to $95,000. Senate finance and security officials appeared Thursday before the Senate internal economy committee – which is responsible for overseeing spending – to explain why they approved the contract […]

May 27 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — The Senate has hired a private security company through a sole-source contract to work in its new premises without seeking approval from the committee responsible for spending in the Red Chamber.Men in dark suits began appearing in Senate hallways and outside committee rooms earlier this year when senators moved into their new temporary chambers in […]

May 17 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — The Ethics Commissioner’s report into the SNC-Lavalin affair will not be finished before Parliament rises in June but could come out on the eve of the federal election, according to an updated timeline provided by the office. The office is working on the SNC-Lavalin probe and three other active investigations, MPs were told this week.

May 13 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Conservative senators will attempt this week to block a $15,000 payment for a public-opinion poll they say is being used by independent senators to support the Liberal Party’s 2019 election campaign. The Senate’s internal economy, budgets and administration committee is expected to decide on the matter Thursday. The committee’s vice-chair, Conservative Senator Denise Batters, said […]

Apr 24 2019 — Bill Curry — Globe and Mail — Elections Canada is putting Facebook, Google and other web giants on notice that they still have to comply with new federal election laws even if they don’t allow political ads on their own platforms. The independent agency will release a new guidance document on Wednesday with detailed explanations about how new election laws will be […]