Mid-Week Post

Your mid-week candy break ...




The scandal that just won't die:

A Quebec judge has ruled there is enough evidence to send SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. to trial on charges of fraud and corruption, surprising few and prompting a further tumble in the beleaguered firm's share price.

"Given the threshold to be met by the prosecution at the stage of the preliminary inquiry, this outcome was expected," said SNC-Lavalin chief executive Neil Bruce in a statement.

The company has previously pleaded not guilty and Bruce said that "we will vigorously defend ourselves to get the right outcome and be acquitted."

The Montreal-based engineering and construction giant is accused of paying $47.7 million in bribes to public officials in Libya between 2001 and 2011. The company, its construction division and a subsidiary also face one charge each of fraud and corruption for allegedly defrauding various Libyan organizations of $129.8 million.

The decision is the latest step in criminal proceedings that began last fall after SNC-Lavalin failed to secure a deferred prosecution agreement, a kind of plea deal that would have seen the firm agree to pay a fine rather than face prosecution.

Over the past four months, SNC-Lavalin has been at the centre of a political controversy following accusations from former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould that top government officials pressured her to overrule federal prosecutors, who had opted not to negotiate a deferred prosecution agreement with the company.

"The director of public prosecution has made a decision in that regard," said prosecutor Richard Roy, asked by reporters whether SNC-Lavalin could still secure an agreement and sidestep a trial.

Despite the high profile afforded to the case, "SNC-Lavalin will have a fair trial," he added.

 
How curious that an unelected judge from Quebec is seeming to throw the book at the company Justin himself defended vociferously and in an election year, too.

Which underling will end up in prison?




Two men who ensured that Vice-Admiral Mark Norman was positioned under the wheels of a bus testify along side him:

The Senate’s national security and defence voted Tuesday to call Vice Adm. Mark Norman and Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan to testify about the legal case against the senior naval officer.

Senators voted 7 to 5 in favour of the motion by Conservative Senator Jean-Guy Dagenais.

Dagenais’s motion called for the committee to “examine and report on the circumstances that led the RCMP to lay” the criminal charge against Norman.

Norman had been charged with one count of breach of trust after the RCMP alleged he had promoted a plan by Davie Shipbuilding in Quebec to convert a commercial ship, the Asterix, into a naval refuelling and supply vessel. The federal police force also alleged that Norman tipped off Davie in the fall of 2015 that the Liberal government was considering delaying the project which had been set in motion by the previous Conservative government.

The case against Norman collapsed May 8 because of new evidence. The naval officer, who entered a plea of not guilty, always maintained he had done nothing wrong.

The motion Tuesday noted that the committee would be authorized to call defence minister Sajjan as well as the Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jon Vance and other witnesses. The witness list has yet to be finalized. It is unclear what other witnesses could be requested to testify. The committee would submit its report by no later than June 20, 2019.

Committee members acknowledged that Norman may decline to testify. Sources say Norman’s legal team is examining a lawsuit against the federal government.

**

Sajjan sidestepped questions over whether the Trudeau government has an opinion on Norman’s desire to return to duty after the breach-of-trust case against him was dropped earlier this month.

“We respect the chief of defence staff’s space to be able to manage the people,” the minister told reporters following a morning speech at the annual Cansec arms-trade show. “When it comes to the management of the people, it’s the chief of defence staff’s space.”

Coward.




Are people tiring of Justin's stellar leadership already?:

A group of Liberal Party insiders has discussed the possibility that Bank of England Governor Mark Carney could replace Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as leader of their party, the Toronto Star reported.

Carney’s name came up in a conference call of “backroom players” discussing Trudeau’s waning fortunes ahead of an October general election, according to the newspaper, which cited an unidentified participant on the call. A poor showing for Trudeau could open the door for Carney to succeed Trudeau, the Star said.

He is less likely to hoist himself by his own petard.




Let's try no:

New Canadians will soon swear to honour the rights of Indigenous Peoples if a proposed legislative change is adopted.

Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen has introduced a bill that contains new language for the oath of citizenship that includes a pledge for new citizens to faithfully observe the laws of Canada, including the Constitution, which “recognizes and affirms the Aboriginal and treaty rights of First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples.”

(Sidebar: the same "unCanadian" Ahmed Hussen has absolutely no problem with FGM.)




Does this apply to people why buy guns illegally?:

The Senate has passed a Liberal government bill expanding the scope of background checks on those who want to acquire guns.

Question about an applicant’s history will cover their entire lifetime, instead of just the five years immediately preceding the licence application.

Oh, just put up a firewall the way the Chinese do. Isn't that the "basic dictatorship" people love?:

"Regulation is around the corner" if tech companies don't comply with Canada's declaration on electoral integrity online during the next election says Minister Gould #ctvpp #cdnpoli

More at https://t.co/uCQmGSpNgb pic.twitter.com/yKFiY58AD4

— CTV Power Play (@CTV_PowerPlay) May 28, 2019

A new hotline to support victims of human trafficking doesn't address that there are cultures that have no problem mistreating those victims:

A national hotline to help victims and survivors of human trafficking is now taking calls, with the organization behind the service saying it hoped the new resource would also fill crucial gaps in public knowledge about the issue.

The multilingual, accessible hotline, an initiative of the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking, launched at 7 a.m. ET on Wednesday.

The centre’s chief executive officer said the line is meant to serve as a one-stop shop for everyone from victims seeking help, to tipsters wanting to flag a potential case, to members of the public wanting to learn more about the subject.

The Liberals are frightened of the Andy:

Instead, a motley collection of unions and leftists, Engage Canada, is launching a new front – an attack ad claiming “weak” Andrew Scheer will cut taxes for “his wealthy friends”, cancel child benefits and privatize Canada’s health care system.

This is the same group that warned if Stephen Harper was re-elected in 2015, it would be the end of history.

Thankfully, reforms to the elections advertising rules mean Engage Canada will have nowhere near the firepower it had four years ago when unions like Unifor and the United Steelworkers contributed more than $400,000 each. The new rules limit third parties to a cap of $1 million in the pre-campaign period, from June 30 until the writ drops.

Despite the curb on its ability to sow alarm and apprehension, Engage Canada is intent on undermining Scheer while he remains an unknown commodity to many Canadians.

**

If elected prime minister, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer says he would put an end to "illegal" border crossings in Canada.

I'll believe it when I see it.




Quelle surprise:

A former imam who gained international attention for speaking at a funeral for victims of the Quebec City mosque shooting has won the Liberal nomination in the Montreal riding of Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, the first time the party has nominated a non-Italian in the Liberal stronghold.

Hassan Guillet said the Liberals were reluctant to have him run in Saint-Léonard, afraid of antagonizing the large Italian community. But he pushed ahead, and insists that he represents the community “better than everybody else,” pointing out that the riding is increasingly diverse and is now home to sizeable North African and Haitian populations as well.

Arrivaderci, Italians.




It's time Canada started to mine its own rare metals:

While China accounted for about 80% of US rare-earth imports, such a move by China could backfire in the long-term.

There are ample supplies of rare earth elements in the United States, Australia, and other friendly nations. Production would be ramped-up, reducing China’s control over the market and cutting their leverage.


This is also an opportunity for Canada.

So far, Canada has not made much of our rare-earth resources, but as noted in a past article by Tina Kremmidas – Chief Economist for the Canadian Chamber of Commerce – our rare-earth resources are abundant:

“Canada has significant quantities of rare earths locked in black shale deposits (the Alberta Black Shale Project) that were previously not recoverable unless large amounts of cyanide and arsenic are used to liquefy the ores — a process that is considered dangerous and illegal in many parts of the world. Now, a more cost-effective and environmentally friendly new technology that uses water, air and microbes (a technique known as bioheap leaching) can be used to release the rare earth from the black shale deposits. The new technology has a limited track record — only one mine (operated by Finland’s Talvivaara Mining Company Plc.) is producing metals with bioheap leaching technology. Toronto-based DNI Metals, a junior mining company, has said it needs $1 billion to get the project going.

Several other Canadian mines show great potential.

Avalon Rare Metals Inc.’s Nechalacho Rare Earth Element Project located at Thor Lake in the Mackenzie Mining District of the Northwest Territories, has exceptional wealth of heavy rare earth elements. Avalon estimates a 2015 possible start date for full capacity production.

Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.’s Hoidas Lake Project (located in northern Saskatchewan) has one of the highest proportions of neodymium present in any known rare earth deposit. The company is working on designing an optimal concentration/leaching process with the goal of starting production in 2015-16.

This China:

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland says she wants to talk to China’s foreign minister about the two detained Canadians China has accused of undermining its national security.

That discussion hasn’t happened yet, Freeland told the House of Commons foreign-affairs committee Tuesday.

Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have been in Chinese custody since December, held in apparent retaliation for Canada’s arrest of high-tech executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver on an extradition warrant from the United States.

“When it comes to my contacts with my Chinese counterparts, I have spoken on a few occasions directly with the Chinese ambassador to Canada,” Freeland said.

“I would be happy at any time to have a direct conversation with Wang Yi, the Chinese foreign minister. We have been clear with the Chinese authorities that we are prepared for that conversation at any time.”

But ... but ... pipelines in Canada are bad!: 

Back in April, unusually high levels of the chemicals known as organic chlorides were discovered in Russian crude flowing through the giant Druzhba pipeline, built in the 1960s to carry crude from the U.S.S.R. to allied countries in Eastern Europe. The chlorides can severely damage oil refineries and on April 24 Russia’s state pipeline operator, Transneft PJSC, halted shipments. Moscow pledged to resolve the issue right away; four weeks later, the flow of Russian oil into Europe is little more than a trickle.

The length and scope of the crisis has given it a political dimension. On Thursday, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki decided to get personally involved in finding a solution, but said talks were “very difficult, very tough.”

Druzhba usually supplies as much as 1.5 million barrels a day of Russia’s benchmark Urals blend to central Europe — more than the total production of OPEC member Libya. The crude goes directly to refineries through two separate pipeline spurs and via tankers from the Ust-Luga export terminal in the Baltic.

Despite repeated pledges from Russian authorities to resume shipments in days, the crisis is proving bigger, longer and costlier than almost anyone expected and a solution could still be weeks away.

Canada makes a claim for the North Pole and no one cares:

After years of delay and political debate, Canada has submitted its scientific argument for control of a vast portion of the Arctic seabed, including the North Pole, to the UN body that will evaluate it.

Denmark and Russia have already released their own evidence that the Pole and good bits of the sea floor around it — including any resources they hold — should belong to them.

“All of the countries involved recognize that there will have to be boundary negotiations at some future point,” said Michael Byers, professor of international law at the University of British Columbia.

Last Thursday, Canada submitted 1,200 pages of scientific evidence to prove that the continental shelf from the High Arctic islands extends past 200 nautical miles from shore. It includes a contested section of sea floor that stretches from the top of Ellesmere Island along an undersea ridge to the Pole and more than 200 kilometres past it.

Who would give this idiot money?:

The Australian teenager who cracked an egg on the head of a politician for his remarks about the New Zealand mosque massacre has donated over CAD$90,000 to people affected by the killings.

Will Connolly, 17, became known worldwide as “Egg Boy” for assaulting right-wing federal Sen. Fraser Anning, who had drawn scorn for saying Muslim immigration was to blame for the March massacre, in which 51 people were killed.

As police investigated the incident, supporters of Connolly raised 99,922 Australian dollars (CAD$93,382) through two crowdfunding accounts to pay for his envisaged legal fees.

What the hell have people done with the peace and security you fought for?

They ruined the place:

Six days before D-Day, Max Meisels and his fellow Jewish soldiers got an order from their commanding officer.

(Sidebar: this D-Day.)

"If the Germans catch you, you're dead," the officer told them. "You have 10 minutes. Go to the telephone book and get a new name."

Meisels emerged from that meeting as Martin Maxwell, the name he carried throughout his time in the British army and bears to this day.

Maxwell went on to play a key role in the early hours of D-Day, the opening salvo of the bloody Allied invasion that ultimately led to the defeat of the German army.

At the time, Maxwell felt he had helped strike a decisive blow against the rabid anti-Semitism that fuelled Adolf Hitler's rise and led to the killings of millions of Jews, including his own relatives.

But today, as hate crimes against Jews surge dramatically in Canada and around the world, the longtime Toronto resident and decorated veteran isn't so sure.

"I feel like I'm reliving the 1930s," Maxwell, 95, said in an interview. "The rise of anti-Semitism is something unbelievable."