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National Post
4 minutes ago
- National Post
Conservative MP says federal inaction on wildfires led to Atlantic Canada forest bans
OTTAWA — An Alberta Conservative MP is blaming the Liberal government for a pair of contentious provincial bans on outdoor activities, saying federal officials didn't do enough to stave off tinder dry conditions in Atlantic Canada. Article content Michelle Rempel Garner told reporters in Ottawa that years of Liberal inaction on wildfire preparedness forced Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to take the unprecedented action of closing off wooded areas to the public. Article content Article content Article content 'Four full wildfire seasons ago, the Liberals promised more water bombers, more firefighters. Where are they?' said Rempel Garner, referring to a 2021 Liberal campaign promise to dedicate $500 million to community firefighting. Article content Article content '(W)henever there's a major crisis, what the Liberal government has done by their inaction has conditioned Canadians to expect that the only response they can see … is to restrict their movement,' she continued. Article content Rempel Garner wouldn't say whether she objected to the provincial bans themselves. Article content The sweeping provincial forest bans have divided conservatives along both regional and ideological lines, with some drawing drawing comparisons to COVID restrictions. Article content Ontario MP Leslyn Lewis, for example, speculated on social media that the bans could spiral into broader lockdowns. Article content 'While the government says this is to prevent forest fires, the approach has left many feeling discouraged, disconnected, and wondering if there's a bigger purpose at play,' tweeted Lewis. Article content Article content Other Conservatives, such as ex-national campaign manager Fred DeLorey have defended the measures. Article content DeLorey, who is from Nova Scotia, wrote in a recent Substack post that the province's forest ban was the product of 'hard-earned wisdom.' Article content 'Here's the problem: Nova Scotia is built differently than the rest of the country … When conditions are this dry, even low-risk activity becomes high-stakes,' wrote DeLorey. Article content DeLorey is a close ally of Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, who last week announced a 12-week ban on entering the woods, carrying a fine of $25,000. Article content New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt followed Houston's lead over the weekend in closing off the woods to recreational activities. No fine had been set as of press time. Article content Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre hasn't said whether he supports the provincial restrictions. Article content The office of Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Rempel Garner's accusation of Liberal inaction on wildfire preparedness. Article content
CBC
5 minutes ago
- CBC
Conservatives vow to introduce bill preventing judges from weighing immigration status in sentencing
Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner says she'll introduce legislation when Parliament returns that would amend the Criminal Code, preventing judges from considering a non-citizen's immigration status during sentencing.
CBC
35 minutes ago
- CBC
White House hopes monthly U.S. jobs report to continue despite claim by labour statistics nominee
Donald Trump's selection as next commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) threatens to bring a new level of politicization to what for decades has been a nonpartisan agency issuing reports on the nation's economic health, according to Democrats and some economists. While many former Labour Department officials say it's unlikely that as commissioner of the department's Bureau of Labour Statistics, E.J. Antoni will be able to distort or alter the economic data, he could change the way it is presented. Antoni was nominated by Trump after the BLS released a jobs report on Aug. 1 that showed that hiring had weakened in July and was much lower in May and June than the agency had previously reported. Even as the rest of the report contained positive data points for the Trump White House, the president asserted, without evidence, that data had been "rigged" for political reasons and fired the then-BLS chair, Erika McEntarfer, who had been put in the position with bipartisan Senate support. McEntarfer's firing was criticized even by some Republican Congress members, including senators Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming and Thom Tillis of North Carolina. Antoni has been a vocal critic of the government's jobs data in frequent appearances on podcasts and cable TV. He has publicly said that the Labour Department should stop publishing the monthly jobs reports until its data collection processes improve, and rely on quarterly data based on actual employment filings with state unemployment offices. WATCH l Concerns that firing will have a chilling effect on data collection: Trump fires U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics head after weak jobs report 11 days ago Revisions common, understood by Wall Street The monthly employment reports are probably the closest-watched economic data on Wall Street, and can frequently cause swings in stock prices. When asked at Tuesday's White House briefing whether the jobs report would continue to be released, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the administration hoped it would be. "I believe that is the plan and that's the hope," Leavitt said. Leavitt also defended Antoni's nomination, calling him an "economic expert" who has testified before Congress, adding that "the president trusts him to lead this important department." Yet Antoni wrongly claimed in the last year of Joe Biden's presidency that the economy had been in recession since 2022; called on the entire Federal Reserve board to be fired for not earning a profit on its Treasury securities holdings; and posted a chart on social media that conflated timelines to suggest inflation under Biden was headed to 15 per cent. His argument that the U.S. was in a recession rested on a vastly exaggerated measure of housing inflation, based on newly purchased home prices, to artificially make the nation's gross domestic product appear smaller than it was. "This is actually maybe the worst Antoni content I've seen yet," Alan Cole of the centre-right Tax Foundation said on social media on Tuesday, referring to his recession claim. Many economists share, to some degree, Antoni's concerns that the government's jobs data has flaws and is threatened by trends such as declining response rates to its surveys. The drop has made the jobs figures more volatile, though not necessarily less accurate over time. "The stock market moves clearly based on these job numbers, and so people with skin in the game think it's telling them something about the future of their investments," said Brian Albrecht, chief economist at the International Center for Law and Economics. "Could it be improved? Absolutely." Katharine Abraham, an economist at the University of Maryland who was BLS commissioner under president Bill Clinton, said updating the jobs report's methods would require at least some initial investment. The government could use more modern data sources, she said, such as figures from payroll processing companies, and fill in gaps with surveys. UBS economist Alan Detmeister estimates that BLS is now collecting about 18 per cent fewer price quotes for the inflation report than it did earlier this year. He thinks the report will produce more volatile results, though averaged out over time, still reliable. Ex-commissioner doubts data can be changed William Beach, who was appointed BLS commissioner by Trump in his first term and also served under Biden, said he is confident that BLS procedures are strong enough to prevent political meddling. He said that when he served as commissioner, he didn't see the figures himself until two days before publication. "The commissioner does not affect the numbers," Beach said. "They don't collect the data. They don't massage the data." Regarding the odds of rigging the numbers, Beach said, "I wouldn't put it at complete zero, but I'd put it pretty close to zero." WATCH l Will Trump wait for Fed chair Powell's term to end before acting?: Why Trump wants to get rid of Fed Chair Jerome Powell | About That 26 days ago U.S. President Donald Trump has been increasingly critical of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell. Andrew Chang explains why Trump is so upset with the man he nominated in 2017, and explores the way in which the president could attempt to remove Powell. Images provided by Getty Images, The Canadian Press and Reuters. Before launching his political career, Trump frequently accused Barack Obama's administration of juking the stats to produce more favourable economic reports, without providing evidence. As president, Trump has frequently assailed the Federal Reserve chair he nominated back in his first term, Jerome Powell. Antoni requires Senate confirmation. Sen. Patty Murray, a senior Democrat, called on Sen. Bill Cassidy, the Republican chair of the Senate health, education, labor and pensions committee, to hold a confirmation hearing for Antoni as soon as possible. It took about six months after McEntarfer was nominated in July 2023 for her to be approved. She was confirmed in an 86-8 vote, meaning she had support from dozens of Republicans.
