The news is out that longtime Harper cabinet minister Peter Mackay is about to make his exit from federal politics. There is no shortage of editorial cartoons. His appearance goes way back beyond the last decade…
Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday April 18, 2015
The city is willing to take Canada Post to court over its plans to unilaterally install controversial super-mailboxes across the city.
Council enacted a new bylaw Wednesday that requires the Crown corporation to apply for a $200 permit for each of an estimated 4,000 community mailboxes meant to replace door-to-door mail delivery in Hamilton.
That means city bylaw officers can now lay provincial offences charges if Canada Post ignores the new rules and begins installing the unpopular “super-mailboxes” this week on the Mountain.
The agency argued Wednesday it isn’t bound by the bylaw.
The city should charge the Crown corporation anyway in the case of a violation “and let the courts decide who is right and who is wrong,” said Coun. Terry Whitehead.
Whitehead put forward what he called an “unprecedented” municipal regulation motion.
“There ought to be some regulations that apply when Canada Post does this, because it sounds like they’re going to continue on (with mailbox installation) whether we like it or not,” said Mayor Fred Eisenberger. “I think they ought to be a little more understanding and work with the city … to access our right-of-ways and roadways.”
Canada Post has no plans to delay the first wave of installations on the Mountain, said spokesperson Jon Hamilton, who nonetheless wouldn’t speculate how the Crown corporation will react if it is charged under a municipal bylaw.
He reiterated that Canada Post believes it continues to have the “jurisdiction” and “authority” to install mailboxes in municipal road allowances. The agency is willing to “work collaboratively” on locating the boxes, he added, but that doesn’t include following the bylaw or applying for individual permits. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)
Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday April 16, 2015
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau says he would “maybe” be more open to the idea of forming a coalition with the NDP if Tom Mulcair was not running the party.
Asked on Tuesday whether having someone other than Mulcair as leader would change the dynamic in terms of a coalition between the two parties, Trudeau replied: “I don’t know…. Honestly, I don’t want to get into hypotheses. Maybe, but maybe not.
“There are no problems in terms of personality,” he told The Canadian Press in an interview from Oakville, Ont. “Mr. Mulcair is a veteran politician who has proven himself.
“His style is anchored in the old way of practising politics. Politics needs to be about rallying. And we have very different perspectives on how politics should be practised.”
Some recent polls have suggested the possibility of a minority government in Ottawa after this fall’s election.
Mulcair reiterated his openness last month to a possible coalition with the Liberals if it is necessary to topple Stephen Harper’s Conservatives.
The Opposition leader accused Trudeau at the time of putting personal interests ahead of those of Canadians because the Liberal leader had repeatedly expressed his lack of interest in discussing coalitions.
“Whenever we have opened that door, Justin Trudeau slams it shut,” Mulcair said. “My first priority is to get rid of Stephen Harper. The first priority of Justin Trudeau is Justin Trudeau.” (Source: CBC News)
By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Premier Kathleen Wynne wants to fling open the doors of government.
Dogged by the lingering controversy over the Liberals’ shadowy cancellation of two gas plants at a cost of up $1.1 billion, Wynne is pushing for greater transparency at Queen’s Park.
“Together, let’s do government differently,” the premier writes in an unusual open letter to Ontarians to be released Monday.
“We need to make information easier to find, understand and use, so that we can design services that deliver better results to the people of Ontario. We must also unlock public data so that you can help us solve problems and find new ways of doing things.
Ontario Premier Kathleen Can’t Wynne on spelling
CHRIS YOUNG / THE CANADIAN PRESS
“I believe that government data belongs to the people of Ontario and so we will make government data open by default, limiting access only to safeguard privacy, security and confidentiality.”
To that end, the premier will turn to a top academic, a respected former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister, business leaders, and a bevy of experts on “open government” to improve public access to the inner workings of the province.
Wynne wants her administration to “open up more data and information” so Ontarians can “engage in the decision-making process and the development of policy.”
She hopes that along with making government more accountable, the availability of more data will “boost innovation and economic productivity.”
“By putting data online for fresh analysis, we can spark innovative discoveries that could help grow our economy and improve peoples’ lives,” she writes in her letter. (Source: Toronto Star)
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By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday, September 14, 2013
During the one year that Karima Al-Ouatiq has worked at a daycare in the St-Laurent borough, not one parent has complained about the fact that she wears a hijab.
But if the Quebec government has its way, Al-Ouatiq and three of her fellow daycare workers may have to choose between removing their hijabs or quitting their jobs.
“The fact that I wear a hijab is irrelevant,” Al-Ouatiq said on Tuesday. “No one should be able to tell me not to wear one, the same way we don’t tell people not to wear pants or T-shirts.”
The Quebec government released details of its controversial charter of values on Tuesday. If the charter is adopted by the National Assembly, it will ban government employees from wearing religious symbols in daycares, secondary schools and other educational institutions.
Al-Ouatiq said the daycare where she works is multicultural, and many Muslim parents are happy that some of the educators wear hijabs.
“You can’t tell a Muslim woman wearing a hijab that she can’t work with children,” she insisted.
She said she expects the Muslim community to protest against the government’s plan.
“The Muslim community and the Arab community will do something,” she said. “They won’t just sit on their hands.”
Al-Ouatiq said she believes Quebec’s proposed restrictions on religious symbols are part of a “wave that is coming from Europe.” (Source: The Montreal Gazette)
FEEDBACK
This cartoon was featured in a gallery of Editorial Cartoons in the Yahoo! Canada News for September 2013, and here. It received lots of likes, shares, and colourful commentary on the Yahoo! Canada News Facebook Page. It caught the attention of people on the Graeme MacKay – Editorial Cartoonist Facebook Page.
