Legicrawler News : : Canada Spotlight 2010 In this edition: LEGISLATIVE TRACKING IN CANADA'S PROVINCES: TAX, ENERGY ISSUES IN PLAY Upcoming Dates for Canadian Legislative Sessions |
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LEGISLATIVE TRACKING IN CANADA'S PROVINCES: TAX, ENERGY ISSUES IN PLAY
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The season of lawmaking has begun in Canada's provinces, with energy, tax and related economic issues topping many agendas. Canada's close economic ties with the United States are a major factor in politics and policymaking. And government relations experts increasingly see legislative tracking in Canada as a natural adjunct to bill-watching in the U.S. Because "75 percent or so of our exports go to the United States," Canada's Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said recently, "(t)he weakness in consumer demand in the United States economy is a concern" despite Canada's relatively strong performance during the recession. 1/ Energy and tax issues are shaping policy debates across Canada. Clean energy is a high priority, particularly in Ontario, but traditional energy sources are still very much in play. In Quebec, the opposition Parti Quebecois has resurrected a jurisdictional dispute with the province of Newfoundland and Labrador over oil exploration in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The underwater oilfield "remains one of the largest untapped hydrocarbon reserves in Eastern Canada," according to The Globe and Mail. 2/ Responding to the criticism, Quebec Premier Jean Charest pointed out that the opposition "did nothing to sign a deal with Ottawa securing Quebec's rights when the party was in power." 3/ Energy is also a big issue in Saskatchewan, where polls show that most residents oppose a bid by Australian-based BHP Billiton to buy Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. 4/ New Democratic Party (NDP) critics are raising tax and ownership issues surrounding Potash, a once-public company privatized by a Progressive Conservative government nearly two decades ago. 5/ Legislative sitting days are scheduled in the province from Oct. 27 to Dec. 9. Meanwhile, British Columbia and Ontario are roiled by reaction to a value-added sales tax which provides revenue to both federal and provincial governments. Called the harmonized sales tax (HST), it combines the federal Goods and Services Tax with a provincial sales tax. Three provinces - New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia - have had the HST since 1996, while British Columbia and Ontario introduced it on July 1. BC has scheduled a referendum for next September on its HST, and the tax is becoming a hot political issue in Ontario, as well, which has a general election a year from now. BC Premier Gordon Campbell will deliver a televised speech on the HST issue on October 27, but NDP Leader Carole James, who heads BC's official opposition, has urged the premier to bring back the legislature to set an earlier referendum date. 6/ The next sitting of the BC legislature is scheduled to begin on Feb. 8, 2011. Canada is a federation, with 10 provinces and 3 territories. Election cycles have always been a familiar benchmark in the U.S., but not in Canada, which has a democratic parliamentary-style of government called the Westminster system. There the prime minister and provincial premiers may technically call elections at any time. However, now most provinces have adopted fixed election dates. In New Brunswick's first fixed-date election, held Sep. 27, Progressive Conservatives (Tories) won impressively, ousting the Liberals who had been in control. David Alward, NB's premier-elect, has said he would freeze NB's HST rate and energy costs even as the province faces a significant deficit and cost overruns on a nuclear plant refurbishment. 7/ Developments in other provinces include the continuation of Ontario and Quebec's legislatures, now in session, and the return of Alberta's on Oct. 25; New Brunswick, Oct. 26; Nova Scotia, Oct. 28; and Manitoba, Nov. 16 (estimated). Newfoundland and Labrador's fall sitting schedule should be announced by the end of October, according to the Clerk's Office in the House of Assembly. Legicrawler tracks federal and provincial legislation in Canada. Please contact us at 253-857-6590 for more information. ----------------------------------------------------- 1/ Politics and the Nation Postmedia News, Canada.com, Aug. 26, 2010, http://communities.canada.com/shareit/blogs/politics/archive/2010/08/26/potash-takeover-proves-need-for-national-securities-regulator-flaherty.aspx Retrieved 2010-10-16 2/ Seguin, Rheal, "Quebec, Newfoundland square off over offshore oil," The Globe and Mail, Published Monday, Oct. 11, 2010, updated Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2010 http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/quebec-newfoundland-square-off-over-offshore-oil/article1752623/ Retrieved 2010-10-19 3/ Ibid. 4/ Deslongchamps, Alexandre, "Poll Shows 55% in Saskatchewan Oppose BHP-Potash Bid," Bloomberg Businessweek, Oct. 14, 2010, http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-10-14/poll-shows-55-in-saskatchewan-oppose-bhp-potash-bid.html Retrieved 2010-10-18 5/ See, e.g. Wood, James, "NDP raises potash ownership, Sask. Should explore stake in PotashCorp, Lingenfelter says, The StarPhoenix, published in The Vancouver Sun, Oct. 7, 2010 http://www.vancouversun.com/business/raises+potash+ownership/3636286/story.html Retrieved 2010-10-18 6/ MacLeod, Andrew, "Campbell should recall Leg, James tells UBCM," The Tyee, Sep. 30, 2010 http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/BC-Politics/2010/09/30/JamesSpeech/ Retrieved 2010-10-16 7/ The Canadian Press, The Guardian, "Premier David Alward's Conservative government assumes power in New Brunswick," Oct. 12, 2010 http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/Canada---World/Business/2010-10-12/article-1841950/Premier-David-Alwards-Conservative-government-assumes-power-in-New-Brunswick/1 Retrieved 2010-10-18
| Seattle: Oracle/Sun: Datacenter Conference October 13, 2010 San Jose: All About Mobile: Software & Information Industry Assn. Conference November 16, 2010 New Orleans: American Legislative Exchange Council: 2011 Annual Meeting August 3, 2011 San Antonio: National Conference of State Legislatures: 2011 Annual Meeting August 8, 2011 
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LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR FOR CANADA:
| Parliament of Canada: In session. Daily weekday sittings in House of Commons and Senate through Dec. 17, 2010, except for Nov. 8 - 12. (Note: Nov. 11, 2010 is Remembrance Day in Canada) 1/ Legislative Assembly of Alberta: Oct. 25, 2010 2/ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia: Feb. 8, 2011 3/ The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba: Nov. 16, 2010 (estimate) 4/ Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick: OCT. 26, 2010 5/ House of Assembly - Newfoundland and Labrador: will meet at least 4 weeks this fall, per Parliamentary Calendar; schedule expected to be announced by the end of October 6/ The Nova Scotia Legislature: 10/28/2010 7/ Legislative Assembly of Ontario: In session Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island: Nov. 12, 2010 8/ National Assembly of Quebec: In session The Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan: Oct. 27, 2010 9/ 1/ House of Commons Calendar - 2010 http://www2.parl.gc.ca/housechamberbusiness/ChamberCalendar.aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=40&Ses=3 Retrieved 2010-10-19; Senate Calendar - 2010 http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/about/process/senate/calendar/cal2010-e.htm Retrieved 2010-10-19; Note: Nov. 11, 2010 is Remembrance Day in Canada http://www.pch.gc.ca/eng/1266366005340/1268758174102 Retrieved 2010-10-19 2/ "The Third Session of the 27th Legislature will resume on October 25, 2010, at 1:30 p.m. http://www.assembly.ab.ca/ Retrieved 2010-10-19 3/ Interview, Office of the Clerk, Legislative Assembly of British Columbia 4/ Source in Legislative Assembly of Manitoba 5/ First Session of the 57th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, http://www1.gnb.ca/legis/calendar/index-e.asp?m_year=2010&m_month=10 Retrieved 2010-10-19 6/ http://www.assembly.nl.ca/business/standingorders/standing_orders_appendix.pdf Retrieved 2010/10/18; also source in Clerk's Office, 2010-10-19 7/ Calendar, The Nova Scotia Legislature http://nslegislature.ca/index.php/calendar/ Retrieved 2010-10-19 8/ http://www.gnb.ca/cnb/live/index-e.asp Retrieved 2010-10-18 9/ http://www.legassembly.sk.ca/ Retrieved 2010-10-19
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