National Newswatch

Poilievre and Tories will suspend TikTok accounts after ban

Feb 27 2023 — Rachel Gilmore — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has suspended his TikTok account — and he’s expecting his MPs to follow suit, according to a spokesperson for his office. As of Monday afternoon, Poilievre’s account on the popular social media application had more than 230,000 followers. But just hours after the government announced its plan to ban the use […]

Canada needs an inquiry into Chinese election interference: ex-spymaster

Feb 25 2023 — Rachel Gilmore — Canada needs a public inquiry into allegations of Chinese election interference, Canada former spymaster says. Speaking in an interview with The West Block‘s Mercedes Stephenson, airing Sunday, Richard Fadden, the former head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and former national security advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said he “can’t see any compelling reason […]

TikTok on government devices under assessment in Canada

Feb 24 2023 — Rachel Gilmore — Ottawa is weighing recent moves by allies that banned the controversial social media application TikTok from government devices, but there’s no word yet if a similar ban could happen here. The Treasury Board Secretariat, the nerve centre of federal government processes and functioning, said in a statement sent to Global News on Friday that it […]

TikTok is facing a joint investigation from Canadian privacy watchdogs

Feb 23 2023 — Rachel Gilmore — Canada’s federal privacy watchdog has launched a joint investigation with three provincial counterparts into the controversial social media application TikTok. The federal privacy commissioner announced Thursday that their office will join privacy watchdogs in Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta to “jointly investigate the short-form video streaming application,” a post on the federal watchdog’s website said. […]

Liberals ditch gun law reform critics said would ban hunting rifles

Feb 3 2023 — Rachel Gilmore — The government has withdrawn a controversial amendment to its proposed firearm legislation — one that critics warned could have restricted access to hunting rifles. The Liberal amendment to gun law reform Bill C-21, which was tabled in a committee meeting in November, faced questions about how far it would have expanded the scope of weapons […]

Ottawa’s new anti-Islamophobia advisor is facing backlash. Here’s what to know

Jan 31 2023 — Rachel Gilmore — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he is standing behind Amira Elghawaby, Canada’s first special representative on combating Islamophobia, as officials in the Quebec government continue to call for her resignation. Elghawaby, who was appointed last Thursday, has faced criticism since her appointment was announced over an opinion piece she co-wrote in 2019. In the piece, […]

Mendicino, RCMP will face committee over contracts to firm now tied to China

Jan 30 2023 — Rachel Gilmore — Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino is slated to testify before a parliamentary committee on Monday about federal contracts awarded to a firm that has ties to the Chinese government — a revelation that came amid increased concerns about foreign interference last month. Last month, reports emerged that Ontario-based Sinclair Technologies had been given 24 contracts […]

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