Ottawa Insider

Natasha Bulowski reports from Ottawa with a slant on how federal policy is impacting British Columbians.

Canada's National Observer is a proud participant of the Local Journalism Initiative, which supports the creation of original civic journalism that covers the diverse needs of underserved communities across Canada.

829 Articles

Environment Minister says he needs to be convinced shipping terminal won't harm endangered killer whales

“Certainly I’ve been very clear, about all major projects, that if there are significant environmental impacts, they would have to be addressed in very substantive ways, for projects to be able to go ahead,” said the minister.

Carl Meyer

August 6th 2020

Environment minister says he shares concerns of B.C. hunger strikers

James Darling says he doesn’t know what Wilkinson meant when the minister described his cause as being about sustainable forestry, given that logging old-growth forests is an “inherently unsustainable” practice.

Carl Meyer

August 5th 2020

How Green Party leadership hopefuls would address B.C.’s opioid crisis

"I have to say that the road to drug addiction, and dying on the street, is one that I’ve seen myself close to," said leadership contestant Amita Kuttner.

Carl Meyer

July 31st 2020

Canada agrees to tax homegrown wine

The British Columbia Wine Institute estimates that the cost of a case of Canadian wine would rise by about $6, if a new provision in Canada’s trade truce with Australia comes to pass, following a two-year grace period.

Carl Meyer

July 28th 2020

B.C. refugee society, MPs call for end to ‘unconstitutional’ federal treaty

Justice Ann Marie McDonald said she had heard compelling evidence that refugee claimants were being thrown in detention simply for having attempted to make a claim.

Carl Meyer

July 27th 2020

Trans Mountain losing insurer as Zurich to drop coverage: Report

The news comes roughly a year after the large Swiss insurance company declared it would reject companies that operate "purpose-built" transportation infrastructure for oilsands products, including pipelines.

Trans Mountain

Carl Meyer

July 22nd 2020

B.C. would welcome talks with feds over basic income guarantee

The Senate finance committee released an interim report July 14 on COVID-19 that recommends “full, fair and priority consideration” be given to a federal basic income guarantee, in consultation with the provinces, territories and Indigenous governments.

Coronavirus in Canada

Carl Meyer

July 22nd 2020

Federal payment for people living with disabilities could reach 1.7M Canadians

Over a fifth of Canadians 15 years or older identify as having a disability, according to the 2017 Canadian Survey on Disability, a figure that rises to almost 40 per cent of Canadians over 65 years old.

Coronavirus in Canada

Carl Meyer

July 21st 2020

Delta set to discuss asking Trudeau to reject container terminal

The July 15 report, endorsed by the city manager, recommends that a letter be sent to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson requesting that the project be rejected based on the findings of a federal review panel.

Carl Meyer

July 17th 2020

Feds commit to national paid sick leave program championed by Horgan

The federal government is offering a "temporary income support program" that will provide workers without access to paid sick leave 10 days if it is related to COVID-19, Trudeau's office announced.

Coronavirus in Canada

Carl Meyer

July 16th 2020

Trudeau urged to boost Canada's post-COVID economy by investing in nature

Almost 50 B.C.-based groups are included in a letter telling Trudeau they “stand ready to provide staff, research and resource support” to help Canada devise a strategy to achieve its biodiversity and climate targets.

Carl Meyer

July 15th 2020

Green Party ejects leadership hopeful after 'inappropriate' remarks

The party said it "will not provide a platform to normalize racism and discrimination," following comments by Dylan Perceval-Maxwell that accused his opponent of being "angry that a white person came up with an idea."

Carl Meyer

July 13th 2020

Trudeau ministers welcome decriminalization endorsement as opioid crisis deepens

The police chiefs said in a report that the "compelling case" for change had been made by public health officials addressing the opioid crisis, which killed over 15,000 Canadians between January 2016 and December 2019, and continues to kill.

Coronavirus in Canada

Carl Meyer

July 10th 2020

Trudeau urged to help women and immigrants hurt by COVID-19

There is evidence that the closure of child care spaces "has greatly affected employed women’s job performance" and unemployed women’s ability to return to work, the federal government said in an analysis released Wednesday.

Coronavirus in Canada

Carl Meyer

July 8th 2020

Vancouver MP Kwan supports ending police street checks

Jenny Kwan’s comments come the day Vancouver city council is expected to deal with a motion put forward by Mayor Kennedy Stewart that would have him inform the Vancouver Police Board it was council’s priority to end the practice.

Carl Meyer

July 8th 2020