Canadian Parliamentary Crisis III

[Fake Boris]

You dismiss your buffoon every once in a while, but you always call him back.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Oncle Boris
You dismiss your buffoon every once in a while, but you always call him back.

This doesn't make any sense.

[Asher]

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/553440

Harper Tories keep big lead in poll

Canada's ruling Conservatives would win a strong majority in Parliament if elections were held today, according to a poll showing the new leader of the opposition Liberals has done little to boost public support.

Canadians favour the Conservatives over the Liberals by 45 per cent to 26 per cent, an Ipsos Reid poll showed. The New Democrats (NDP) had the backing of 12 per cent.

The 19-point lead for Prime Minister Stephen Harper's party is only slightly narrower than what the Conservatives enjoyed in a Ipsos Reid poll released Dec. 5, before the Liberals replaced the unpopular Stephane Dion with Michael Ignatieff.

The Conservatives, whose minority government was returned to power in Oct. 14 elections with 37.6 per cent of the vote, would need at least 40 per cent to win a majority of the seats in the House of Commons, political analysts say.

Dion, who led the Liberals to one of their worst election defeats in history, bowed to pressure within his party to step down this week, instead of in May, clearing the way for Ignatieff to take the reins Wednesday,

The switch follows Harper's decision to suspend Parliament rather than face a no-confidence vote by opposition parties over his budget proposals.

The opposition's threat to vote down the government when the House reconvenes in late January has raised the prospects of fresh elections or the formation of a Liberal-NDP coalition government supported by the separatist Bloc Quebecois.

The latest poll, conducted for Canwest News Service and Global National, shows most Canadians would prefer neither of those options. Almost two-thirds of the respondents said they would prefer that Ignatieff find a compromise with Harper to keep the Conservatives in power.

On Friday, Harper held his first meeting with Ignatieff since the former Harvard don assumed the Liberal leadership. The two talked about the economy and the upcoming budget, a Liberal spokesman said.

Opposition parties want the Conservatives to move aggressively to stimulate the economy in the face of the global financial crisis. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said he would hold talks on the budget with senior Liberals Monday.

Ipsos Reid conducted telephone interviews with 1,001 adults from Tuesday through Thursday. The results are considered accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times in 20.

[Victor Galis]

The latest poll, conducted for Canwest News Service and Global National, shows most Canadians would prefer neither of those options. Almost two-thirds of the respondents said they would prefer that Ignatieff find a compromise with Harper to keep the Conservatives in power.

The trick now is to make a reasonable offer, and blame Harper if he refuses it or claim credit for reigning him in if he accepts.

I didn't expect an immediate bounce from replacing Dion. I expect results once he demonstrates that he has a much better command of the English language than Dion.

[notyoueither]

Nice response to calls by politicians for widespread intervention in the economy.

http://business.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081215.wrbailouts1216/BNStory/Business/home

Industries seek aid on taxes and credit, no bailout

DAVID EBNER AND ANDY HOFFMAN

From Tuesday's Globe and Mail

December 15, 2008 at 9:31 PM EST

VANCOUVER/TORONTO — Canadian industries are pressing for federal aid in the form of government-backed credit or changes to tax regimes, but not auto-style bailouts.

In the runup to the Jan. 27 federal budget, many sectors are calling for a wide range of measures in response to the mounting economic crisis.

The embattled manufacturing sector wants access to credit. The hard-hit forest sector wants tax changes, as do miners, while the construction industry wants the government to push ahead on infrastructure spending.

“In general, bailouts are bad,” said Hank Ketcham, CEO of West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd., Canada's No. 1 forest company by market capitalization. “It impedes the return to efficiency and productivity. For our industry, it's not good, for sure. This industry, in my opinion, does not need a bailout, it simply needs federal and provincial attention to the drivers of success.”

The Conservative government has committed aid to the auto makers. And as it prepares the budget, spurred on by opposition parties, Ottawa has now floated an initial plan to help such other industries as forest products and mining.

Industry Minister Tony Clement said on the weekend the government is poised to help industries “under distress.” To date, beyond autos, the government has also moved to help the major banks.

The manufacturing sector, which was hit hard long before the crisis entered its harshest phase, wants Ottawa to provide access to credit to avoid more layoffs and plant closings, said Jayson Myers, president of the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters.

Manufacturers are dealing with buyers that cannot get access to capital, Mr. Myers said, and have suffered a plunge in customer orders this fall.

“The first priority here is to ensure that companies that see this sharp downturn in new orders continue to have access to credit. … The issue is really about credit right now,” Mr. Myers said.

The Canadian Manufacturing Coalition, which represents a wide range of industries, including forest products, auto parts, mining and petroleum products, has asked for the same. In a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the coalition urged Ottawa to provide temporary loan guarantees and lines of credit.

The forest sector, in turn, plans to unveil in Ottawa today a five-point plan for aid to companies that account for 300,000 direct jobs across the country.

Among the requests are incentives for research and development and the development of bio-energy.

Forest companies cannot accept direct aid because that would be considered a subsidy under the softwood lumber agreement with the United States.

The sector also wants an accelerated capital cost allowance that would allow the industry to write off investments in new equipment and technology more quickly.

This request is similar to ones from other industries. Alberta wants Ottawa to reinstate the break for oil sands upgraders because such projects are being delayed.

For miners, falling commodity prices have led to mines closing, profits plunging and job losses. But a bailout would not likely reduce the impact of that, Toronto-Dominion bank economist James Marple said.

“What the government may be able to do is provide bridge financing to enable them to get through in terms of cash flow, but there is very little the government can do in terms of commodity prices, and that is really what is hurting the sector,” Mr. Marple said.

Even some industry professionals believe the government should not be throwing a lifeline to struggling mining operations.

“You'd just wind up putting money into projects that shouldn't operate,” said Kerry Smith, a mining analyst with Haywood Securities.

The mining sector is not seeking a bailout, said Paul Stothart, vice-president of economic affairs at the Mining Association of Canada. Instead, the association is asking Ottawa to waive interest charges on tax payments due in 2009. Miners also want a longer period of time to top up their pension plan obligations.

Mineral processing facilities such as smelters are looking for tax credit or capital costs allowance incentives to help them reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The mining sector is also asking to immediately be allowed to deduct investments in new or expanded mine assets up to 100 per cent of projects.

For construction, the best thing the government can do is push ahead on public infrastructure because more workers are available as private sector projects are cancelled or stalled, said Keith Sashaw, president of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association.

[Wezil]

*bump*

True to form, Harper leaves John Tory to hang. It doesn't matter if you are a fellow Conservative only that you are a "friend of Steve". Bye bye Tory.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081222.wsenate1222/BNStory/Front/home

[Asher]

[Asher]

John Tory is a massive idiot, I'd rather have the Olympic athletes over him.

[Wezil]

Tory wasn't looking for an appointment for himself...

[Asher]

He doesn't matter. Don't know why you and the media talk about him at all. He's dead weight, move on.

[Wezil]

In other words, you don't know anything about the topic.

[notyoueither]

Originally posted by Wezil
*bump*

True to form, Harper leaves John Tory to hang. It doesn't matter if you are a fellow Conservative only that you are a "friend of Steve". Bye bye Tory.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...ory/Front/home

Just one question.

Why is Tory's situation a problem that Harper needs to solve?

I lied, second question,

If Tory is such a doofus he can't get his own caucus to observe the normal manner of dealing with leaders defeated in a general election, why should Harper bother? Wouldn't prolonging his time be counter to the interests of Conservatives in Ontario?

[Ben Kenobi]

Neufeld is a good man. Glad to see him picked out here in BC.

[Kuciwalker]

Originally posted by Wezil
In other words, you don't know anything about the topic.

I don't either. Could you clue me in on who John Tory is and why that article - which doesn't mention him at all - is related to him?

[Asher]

He was the premier of Ontario king of tons of stupid ideas (most notably the concept of public "faith-based" schools, a terrible idea in Canada).

He's widely hated by many conservatives, which is why I'm perplexed with the media and people like Wezil being forever curious about him, especially in the context of federal politics. He's ****ing useless dead-weight.