Massive creature makes rare appearance in Ireland. ‘Magic’ moment may be the new norm
Moira Ritter
Fri, June 23, 2023
Darren Craig, IWDG
James Garvey was recently in Donegal Bay, Ireland, when he had a “breathtaking” experience: a humpback whale that put on a 30-minute show.
“I don’t know the odds of winning the lottery but this was the same thing for a whale lover — a nature lover’s lottery win,” Garvey, who works with Rossnowlagh Surf School, told BBC.
“It was magic,” Rossnowlagh Surf School wrote in a June 21 Facebook post.
“Somebody wake me, I’m dreaming,” the school said in another Facebook post about the whale.
When the boat spotted the whale, known as HBIRL24, it was with about 10 to 14 Minke whales and hundreds of dolphins during a feeding frenzy, according to the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group. It was spotted a second time later that day.
Witnesses reported that the whale was breaching, fluke slapping and bubble netting — a feeding strategy that whales use, according to the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation.
“Every time you meet a whale it’s just an incredible experience,” Garvey told BBC. “It’s breathtaking every time, given their size, but it’s just breathtaking anyway, and how curious they are about people.”
Range expansion: a new trend
For the past 25 years, humpback whales in Ireland have kept almost exclusively to southwest waters, especially two hot spots in West Cork and Kerry. Now, experts have noticed a “complete shift” as humpbacks are moving north.
Since June 1, there have been 11 validated sightings of humpbacks, and they have all been in Northwest Ireland, according to a June 17 news release from the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group. Most of the sightings have been in Donegal Bay and Broadhaven Bay.
HBIRL24 has been documented in Ireland by experts for the past 11 years, with at least 45 sightings or captures since 2013, the group said.
In Broadhaven Bay, the group said its experts have verified sightings of a second humpback, known as HBIRL67, or Queen Medb. She has been documented in Ireland more than 45 times since 2016.
Between May 21 and June 13, there were eight confirmed sightings of Queen Medb in the area, the group said.
The group believes the trend north could be growing evidence of “range expansion” among the Irish cohort of humpbacks.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for whale watch enthusiasts living on the west and northwest to observe these magnificent mammals from both land vantage points or boats on your own local patch,” the group said in its news release. “That long trip down to West Cork or Kerry to see them, may soon become a thing of the past.”
British Museum apologizes for using Canadian translator's work without permission
The Canadian Press
Fri, June 23, 2023
The British Museum says it has removed a Canadian translator's work from its exhibition after using the translations without permission, attribution or compensation.
The museum says Yilin Wang's translations of poems by 19th century revolutionary Qiu Jin were displayed in the "China's hidden century" exhibition, as well as its brochures, though it says the catalogue acknowledges her work.
The institution says it has apologized and offered to pay Yilin Wang for the time her translations were displayed.
The British Museum says "unintentional human error" led to the slight.
On Twitter, Wang says her translations are labour intensive pursuits, and her work should be properly acknowledged.
The British Columbia-based writer says she's still in communication with the museum.
"This has been an incredibly and needlessly frustrating experience after experiencing copyright infringement," Wang tweeted. "I urge the British Museum to actually engage with me in good faith to show that they are truly apologetic. Otherwise, I do not and cannot accept their apology."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2023.
The Canadian Press
Defense industry dollars flowed to a Democratic senator after he gained a key role on spending
Fri, June 23, 2023
WASHINGTON (AP) — As Democrat Jon Tester headed for a surprise victory in his 2006 U.S. Senate race, he attacked his incumbent Montana Republican rival's close ties to lobbyists and committed himself to a rigorous ethics standard.
Now as he looks to win a fourth term in a race that could decide control of the Senate, Tester is embracing a practice he once held against his opponent: taking contributions from lobbyists and executives of corporations while helping craft a government spending package that directs billions of dollars.
After Tester became chair of the Senate Defense Appropriations subcommittee in 2021, he received campaign contributions totaling over $160,000 from employees and committees representing the defense industry. At one point last year, 49 Lockheed Martin executives and lobbyists — none of whom had given to the senator in the past — gave Tester's campaign a combined total of nearly $50,000.
There is no indication the contributions swayed Tester’s decision making or that he committed any wrongdoing. But the donations came at a crucial juncture for both the defense budget and Lockheed Martin.
Senators at the time were crafting an $858 billion military package, and the Defense Department had submitted a late request for $1.4 billion for its F-35 fighter jet program after the cost for Lockheed to make the aircraft had overrun what was budgeted due to inflation and the pandemic. Without the extra funding, the previously approved planes were at risk of being canceled. The aircraft manufacturer was also looking to close out a multi-year deal with the Defense Department for the next round of its premier fighter jet.
Tester’s subcommittee successfully pushed to add $1.8 billion “for the restoration of all 19 at-risk aircraft,” according to an explanatory statement from the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Tester’s office declined interview requests with the senator for this story. Spokeswoman Sarah Feldman said in a statement, “Every decision he makes is based on one thing: what’s in the best interest of Montana and our national security, and he’ll never back down from defending the Montana way of life or defending this country from enemies that want to do us harm.”
Tester’s fundraising haul from federal contractors after he became chair of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee is just a recent example of the way money flows to senior figures in Washington.
Most all lawmakers, Republicans and Democrats alike, accept campaign donations from lobbyists and corporations. Two other lawmakers who hold key roles on committees that determine military spending — Republican Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Democrat Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut — each took in more than $60,000 in campaign contributions from Lockheed employees last year.
In recent campaign cycles, Democrats have faced calls to reject checks from corporate political action committees. But Tester is also under reelection pressure as he faces a potentially challenging race back home in Montana, where his small-town farming roots and populist reputation have helped him survive the state's increasingly conservative tilt.
Republicans tried to defeat Tester in 2018, attacking him for accepting money linked to corporations, but he still defeated the GOP nominee, Matt Rosendale, by four percentage points.
Rosendale is considered to be eyeing another run, as is Montana Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke, the former Interior secretary. Top Senate Republicans have also tried to recruit Tim Sheehy, a military veteran and CEO of a Montana-based provider of aerial firefighting and wildfire surveillance services, who could self-finance a campaign.
Tester has proven politically resilient, now as the only Democrat to hold statewide office in Montana.
Calling himself a “seven-fingered dirt farmer” after losing three fingers in a meat grinder as a child, Tester still returns home to work a farm in Big Sandy, Montana, that his family has held for three generations. When he is in Washington, he ambles the Capitol halls with a signature flattop haircut, seasons his statements to reporters with curse words and files bills aimed at “cleaning up” the lobbying industry as part of a mission to “reduce the power of big-moneyed interests in politics.”
He was among a group of Democrats who swept their party to the Senate majority in 2006, knocking off incumbent Republican Sen. Conrad Burns.
Tester in that race positioned himself as a fighter for the middle class who could take on a government that had become “an auction where the folks who get representation isn’t based on what’s right but who can write the biggest campaign check.”
Burns was linked through campaign contributions to lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who was convicted of conspiracy and fraud charges, and also faced scrutiny for working closely with lobbyists to craft spending packages.
In a 2006 debate, Tester accused Burns of casting “votes based on money that’s passed to you.”
“That is wrong, and it shows the fact that Sen. Burns has lost touch with Montana,” Tester said, adding: “Washington has changed him, it will not change me.”
After defeating Burns, Tester committed to having a judge conduct regular audits of his office’s relationships with interest groups. Feldman, Tester’s spokeswoman, said the audits have found no cause for concern, though a review for 2021 through 2022 has not yet been completed. Over the years, his office has intermittently released the reviews to the public.
Tester also abides by a commitment to post a public schedule of all the official meetings he takes, and in 2018 successfully proposed a requirement for senators to electronically file quarterly financial reports.
Feldman said those actions and others show he “holds himself to the highest standard of honesty, integrity and personal responsibility, going above and beyond his colleagues in Congress to crack down on lobbyist influence and increase accountability and transparency.”
The senator's campaign touts his fundraising, which totaled $8 million since 2021, as a “grassroots effort” powered by Montanans. Tester has also received over $1 million from industry groups, including those representing the financial industry, pharmaceutical corporations, defense contractors and boutique lobbying firms.
Business interests have shown up on Tester's list of campaign donors before. When he joined a bipartisan group of senators in 2018 to roll back bank regulations, he held meetings with executives from Bank of America, Citigroup, Discover and Wells Fargo, as well as dozens of Montana banks. That year, he received $302,770 from the banking industry.
Tester's office said he has repeatedly pushed legislation that industry opposes, including by regulating pharmaceutical pricing, supporting enhanced safety regulations on railroads and working to increase competition among meatpackers.
Saurav Ghosh, who directs the Campaign Legal Center’s advocacy for campaign finance reform, said there's nothing surprising about defense contractors donating to Tester's campaign after he received a senior role crafting military spending.
“In some ways getting your voice heard in Washington often involves money,” Ghosh said, adding that corporate campaign committees and employees are within their rights to support candidates seen as friendly to their interests.
But he added: “When you take money from an industry that you’re responsible for regulating, that sends a message to the public that really calls into question whether you’re making policy decisions that are in the public’s best interest.”
The series of contributions to Tester from Lockheed employees came in November and December as Congress was crafting its broad military spending package. Among the programs at stake in the massive bill were 19 F-35 fighter jets that could have been cut from a Department of Defense contract with Lockheed Martin because the plane's production costs had increased. The Pentagon in November requested that Congress provide $1.4 billion in the military's budget to make up the funding shortfall.
Tester's subcommittee included $1.8 billion to cover the higher production costs “once all relevant factors are considered," though it also called for more congressional oversight of the F-35 program.
In a statement at the time, Tester praised the funding package for boosting pay, training and equipment for soldiers, as well as “shifting resources toward cutting-edge programs that’ll maintain our fighting edge over adversaries like China and Russia.” He also said the bill would bring $182 million to Montana universities and businesses with Defense Department contracts.
Tester has long pushed for robust military spending as well as medical care for veterans as a way to deliver for his home state, where the Malmstrom Air Force Base in Great Falls oversees the Minuteman missile program.
The expensive F-35 weapon system is seen by many lawmakers, including Tester, as crucial to keeping a fighting edge over potential adversaries. But the program has also faced criticism from some in Congress after repeated delays in its development.
Earlier this year, the military suggested, in an “unfunded priority list” — representing spending above the Defense Department's proposed budget — adding still another 19 F-35 aircraft to the 61 it planned to purchase. At one point, Tester proposed adding six of those 19 jets to the budget, but Feldman, his spokeswoman, noted that by the end of the year, none of those additional jets made it into the final spending package.
Still, the spending package directed billions to defense contractors, Lockheed Martin among them. The corporation was looking to close a $30 billion, multi-year contract with the Defense Department for 398 F-35 aircraft. Congress also included funding for 16 of Lockheed's C-130J Super Hercules aircraft in the legislation.
Lockheed Martin CEO James Taiclet, who gave $1,000 to Tester's campaign in November, told investors in a year-end call that passage of the budget package was “positive for the future."
Stephen Groves, The Associated Press
Georgia congressman wants to block US agency from slowing boats to protect endangered whales
Fri, June 23, 2023
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia congressman moved Friday to stop a federal agency from imposing new speed restrictions on boats and ships in order to protect critically endangered whales.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration proposed a year ago to broaden the geographical area of its seasonal speed restrictions along the U.S. East Coast and expand the types of vessels required to slow down. The rule change is intended to protect North Atlantic right whales, a species that scientists say is perilously near extinction with a dwindling population of less than 340.
U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, a Republican whose district includes Georgia's 100-mile (160-kilometer) coast, introduced a bill Friday that would prohibit NOAA from spending federal dollars to implement the rule change until its parent agency, the Department of Commerce, develops and deploys new technology to monitor Atlantic waters for right whales.
Carter said the enhanced slowdown rules would be restrictive enough to cause charter fishing boats to quit the business and to disrupt the efficiency of busy seaports like the Port of Savannah.
“We care about the whales too,” Carter said in phone interview. "We want to protect them, but not at the expense of destroying our commercial fishing and slowing down our port traffic to the point where it has an enormous impact on our economy.”
Carter's proposal comes less than three weeks after a House subcommittee heard testimony from supporters and opponents of the expanded speed restrictions.
Scientists say being struck by vessels and entanglement in fishing gear are the two biggest threats to right whales, which are dying faster than they are reproducing.
“Even one human-caused mortality puts the species at risk of extinction,” Jessica Redfern, a conservation scientist at the New England Aquarium, told the U.S. House subcommittee at a June 6 hearing.
She said scientists have documented 13 right whale deaths from boat collisions in the past 15 years.
Opponents said the restrictions would force fishing boats, harbor pilots and recreational vessels to slow down to speeds that are often unsafe in choppy seas or inclement weather.
Frank Hugelmeyer, president and CEO of the National Marine Manufacturers Association, told lawmakers the rule change would endanger vessels and any people onboard by forcing them to move at “the speed of a bicycle.”
Hugelmeyer’s association has estimated the new rule would affect 60,000 vessels from fishing boats to yachts.
A similar bill was introduced in the Senate earlier this month by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican Sen. John Boozman of Arkansas.
Giant right whales can be found close to shore along the Atlantic coast during different times of year. From spring until fall, they are often found feeding and mating in waters from New England northward into Canada. During winter, adult females migrate south to give birth off South Carolina, Georgia and northern Florida.
Right whales swim close to the surface, making them vulnerable to collisions with boats and ships.
A NOAA spokeswoman, Lauren Gaches, said the agency had no comment on the proposed legislation. She said the agency plans to take final action on the proposed rule changes later this year.
NOAA wants to expand areas where mariners are required to slow down to 10 knots (11.5 mph or 19 kph) during seasons when right whales are likely in the water. The new slow zones would cover the entire East Coast from northern Florida to Massachusetts, filling in large gaps where no restrictions currently exist.
The restrictions would also require more vessels to comply by applying them to boats and ships 35 feet (10 meters) or longer. Currently, the speed limits apply only to those longer than 65 feet (20 meters).
Federal authorities spent a few years reviewing the speed regulations used to protect the whales. The rules have long focused on a patchwork of slow zones, some of them mandatory while others are voluntary.
Environmental groups have made the case that many boats don’t comply with the speed restrictions and that the rules need to be tighter. Environmental organization Oceana released a report in 2021 that said noncompliance was as high as nearly 90% in voluntary zones and was also dangerously low in the mandatory ones.
Russ Bynum, The Associated Press
Parks Canada says bison herd to remain the backcountry of Banff National Park
Bison are seen in Banff National Park in Alberta in this undated handout image received April 22, 2022. The historic restoration of bison to Banff National Park returns a key native species to the landscape, fosters cultural reconnection, inspires discovery, and provides stewardship and learning opportunities. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Parks Canada-K. Heuer
The Canadian Press
Published June 23, 2023
BANFF, ALTA. -
A final report on a five-year project to bring plains bison back to Banff National Park in Alberta says the herd will stay on the mountain landscape.
Parks Canada published the report, as well as a summary of the public comments on the project, online earlier this week.
Officials say the herd has grown to more than 100 animals, including this year's calves, from the 16 that were relocated to the Banff backcountry in 2017 from Elk Island National Park near Edmonton.
Banff bison pilot project 'a success,' Parks Canada says
They say the herd has thrived in the 1,200-square kilometre area on the park's northeast side for the past five years.
More than 50 comments were submitted by regular Canadians, environmental and industry groups and First Nations as part of the public consultation on the project.
Overall, Parks Canada says there is strong support for the bison to stay in Canada's first – and busiest – national park.
"Based on results of the pilot and what we heard, bison will remain on the landscape within Banff National Park for the foreseeable future," said the report.
"What that looks like and how bison will be managed moving forward will be explored by Parks Canada through the development of a bison management plan."
The report said that plan will include longer-term monitoring, adaptive management and continued consultation with the province, Indigenous groups and others.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2023.
Highway wildfire closure drives home B.C.’s need to think big about climate measures
Local Journalism Initiative
Fri, June 23, 2023
British Columbia’s enormous effort to speed the partial reopening of Highway 4 on Vancouver Island — closed for upwards of two weeks due to a wildfire — is another illustration of the dramatic costs tied to climate impacts, says an economist.
“It’s a huge hit to the restaurants, hotels, and all the services that would normally be making money at this time of year and potentially jeopardizes their whole summer,” said Marc Lee, senior economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
“The economic disruption and costs associated with already existing climate change is something that we don't often think about enough.”
The province’s Transportation Ministry has been pulling out the stops to get the key transportation corridor — the only paved road serving Port Alberni, numerous First Nations and the West Coast tourist hot spots of Ucluelet and Tofino — open to single-lane alternating traffic by the weekend.
The route was closed for safety reasons June 6 after a wildfire tore across steep, rocky bluffs above the highway stretching along Cameron Lake, dropping charred trees and large rocks hundreds of feet onto the roadway.
Canadians, and B.C. residents in particular, have become acutely aware of the huge costs associated with the climate crisis, and the need to radically cut oil and gas emissions and invest in adaptation and resilience measures, Lee said.
The impacts on the B.C. economy due to the combined effects of the 2021 heat dome, savage wildfire season, and widespread fall flooding likely cost more than $17 billion, making it the most expensive climate disaster in Canadian history, a CCPA study by Lee showed.
Workers, households and businesses collectively lost an estimated $1.5 billion to $2.6 billion as a result of the cumulative emergencies, the study said.
The province’s costs to repair Highway 4 from the wildfire won’t be anything near those incurred two years ago. But they will still be significant and are another example of the increasingly expensive and frequent problems associated with the climate crisis, he said.
And the province’s costs won’t reflect the financial impacts on workers, businesses and the tourism operators affected by the two-week highway closure, Lee said.
The highway reopened Friday at 3 p.m., and pilot cars will lead the single-lane alternating traffic on a rotating basis 24/7 along the two-kilometre Cameron Lake stretch of road, the province said, adding drivers should expect lengthy delays and ensure they have sufficient fuel, water and food.
A crew of 50 people, four cranes, two excavators and 25 other pieces of equipment were deployed on the route during the week to string up large metal mesh nets to keep any debris from falling on the highway and to set up roadside concrete barriers.
MacMillan Provincial Park (Cathedral Grove) and the day-use parks at Cameron Lake and Beaufort in Little Qualicum Falls are temporarily closed to ease traffic congestion until the highway fully reopens mid-July.
To maintain the supply chain for essential goods to the isolated communities, the province established a twice-daily piloted convoy for commercial vehicles and made road improvements along a four-hour-long detour route using gravel forestry roads that will remain open until the highway is fully open.
Approximately 1,000 vehicles, including commercial trucks, have been travelling the detour route, ensuring that food, fuel and medical supplies arrive in the affected communities, the province said.
However, when asked by Canada’s National Observer, the Transportation Ministry could not provide any details, estimates or insights on the costs incurred to date, or those expected in the future, for the highway repairs or the detour route.
“It’s too early to provide an estimate of the costs and the breakdown,” the ministry said in an email.
“The full estimate is being calculated as we are still completing the works along Highway 4.”
Beyond the costs of climate impacts, the provincial and federal governments need to be investing more aggressively in reducing fossil fuel use, particularly liquefied natural gas (LNG) provincially, and into large-scale, prioritized adaptation measures, particularly around public infrastructure like highways, bridges and dams to make them more resilient, Lee said.
B.C. has treated the fossil fuel industry, particularly natural gas, with “kid gloves,” he said.
LNG production has more than doubled since 2007 despite the province making little headway on reducing emissions, he added.
Although Lee can envision a future where personal electric vehicles dominate, gains in commercial transportation and public transit investments are slow, as is major investment for zero-emission buildings, he added.
The province and the federal government have committed a lot of funding to rebuilding communities and public infrastructure after 2021, but not much beyond that in terms of ensuring climate resilience on a broad scale.
“We really need to start thinking hard about what our investment plan is around adaptation,” Lee said.
“We’re now seeing the impact of climate change, and these conversations around resilience and adaptation may lead us to push harder for reducing our emissions and changing our ways,” Lee said.
“At least, that’s the hope. “
Rochelle Baker / Local Journalism Initiative / Canada's National Observer
Rochelle Baker, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada's National Observer
Calls for New Brunswick premier to resign grow louder as another minister resigns
The Canadian Press
Fri, June 23, 2023
FREDERICTON — Troubles for New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs worsened Friday as Labour Minister Trevor Holder reportedly resigned from cabinet, and four past Progressive Conservative party presidents joined the chorus calling on the premier to step down.
In the letter released Friday to several media organizations, Holder said Higgs lacks empathy and cannot work collaboratively with members of the caucus.
"Under the leadership of Premier Higgs, caucus has been less about consensus and more about him getting his own way," Holder said in the letter.
Holder, whose portfolios also included post-secondary education and training, is the second minister to resign this month citing Higgs’s leadership style. Dorothy Shephard resigned June 15 as social development minister.
Shephard has accused the premier of not trusting his cabinet and criticized him for the decision to change the sexual orientation policy in schools, known as Policy 713. The main change to the policy is that it will no longer be mandatory for teachers to use the preferred pronouns or names of transgender or nonbinary students under the age of 16, starting July 1.
On Thursday, Higgs repeated in a statement that the vast majority of caucus had supported the changes and added "it is extremely unfortunate that all of this gets lost with the strategically planned political drama that is now unfolding."
Holder, who will remain in office as member for Portland-Simonds, said he tried talking to Higgs about the need to work collaboratively, and offered to help the premier in any way he could.
"Unfortunately, this offer to help has simply been met with nothing but more frequent caucus meetings where he simply tells us his position and that if we don't agree with him then we don't have the resolve needed for the job," he said in his resignation letter.
Holder said Higgs demonstrated a lack of empathy and an inability to lead the province because the premier is unable to listen to valid concerns from caucus members.
"No one has a monopoly on wisdom," Holder said. "The party is greater than any one person."
Calls and emails to Holder's office were not immediately returned, and Higgs's office did not immediately return a request for comment.
Also Friday, a two-page letter from ex-party presidents Claude Williams, Jason Stephen, Lester Young and Brian Harquail, obtained by The Canadian Press, says despite the premier's achievements there have been significant missteps that stem from Higgs's top-down, authoritarian style of leadership. They say Higgs ignores input from his cabinet, caucus, the party and civil servants.
"The members of the party have never had a say in the direction of the party under his leadership. That is not how democracy works," the four past presidents say in the letter.
"Instead, the premier depends on an echo chamber of confidantes who do not seem to understand the nuances of New Brunswick society and the delicate balance required to govern this province effectively."
Changes made to the province's policy on sexual orientation in schools, they said, was just the tipping point in a long line of disrespect Higgs has shown to the party.
"Premier Higgs would have you believe this deep dissatisfaction with his leadership is about Policy 713," the presidents' letter says. "Nothing could be further from the truth, the dissatisfaction stems from the one-man rule he has imposed on our party and the province."
On Wednesday, 26 out of 49 current riding presidents signed letters asking for Higgs to step down, claiming his leadership has divided the party.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2023.
Hina Alam, The Canadian Press
Recount confirms ex-Alberta justice minister Tyler Shando lost seat in election
The Canadian Press
Fri, June 23, 2023
EDMONTON — The last of Alberta’s two bitterly fought election contests is officially over.
Former United Conservative justice minister Tyler Shandro has conceded victory to his NDP rival after a second, judicial recount of votes in the constituency of Calgary-Acadia.
Diana Batten and the NDP say the recounts show Batten defeated Shandro by 22 votes.
Batten was declared the winner on election night with a seven-vote margin, a total that rose to 25 after the first recount.
Shandro took to Twitter to concede the win to Batten.
Earlier this week, a judicial recount confirmed NDP newcomer Nagwan Al-Guneid as the winner over incumbent United Conservative candidate Whitney Issik in Calgary-Glenmore.
Al-Guneid won by 48 votes, up from 30 on election night and 42 after the first recount.
The UCP and Premier Danielle Smith hold 48 seats in the legislature, good for a majority government, compared with 38 for the NDP along with one Independent.
The NDP said Batten received 10,959 votes to 10,937 for Shandro.
"I'm extremely grateful for this support from the people of Calgary-Acadia. I also want to thank my team, volunteers, and friends and family who supported me throughout the campaign," Batten said in a statement Friday.
"I can't wait to get to work representing the people of Calgary-Acadia and advocating for what matters to them — fixing our health-care system, lowering their costs and creating good paying jobs."
Shandro, in his tweet, congratulated Batten on her victory.
"I hope that the new legislature, including MLAs from both the UCP and NDP, will be successful in guiding our province," he tweeted Friday.
The legislature sat for one day this week to re-elect Nathan Cooper as Speaker of the house.
Legislators don't return to the chamber until the fall sitting begins on Oct. 30.
Shandro is a Calgary-based lawyer who was first elected in 2019 for the UCP.
He was a high-profile and controversial cabinet minister. As health minister, he tore up the binding contract the government had with physicians and imposed new rules and pay provisions.
That sparked years of public feuding with physicians during the COVID-19 pandemic before peace was restored and a new contract ratified under Shandro's successor, Jason Copping.
Shandro also served as labour minister and was justice minister when writs were issued for last month's election.
As justice minister, he figured prominently in a report last month by Alberta's ethics commissioner.
Commissioner Marguerite Trussler concluded Smith broke ethics rules and sought to undermine the rule of law when she tried in January to persuade Shandro to exercise his powers to make the criminal case of a COVID-19 protester "go away."
Trussler noted Shandro refused to do so.
"Shandro must have felt considerable pressure and concern for his tenure as minister as a result of (Smith's) call," wrote Trussler.
"Shandro stood his ground in defending the independence of the Crown."
Smith rose in the house earlier this week to apologize publicly for the Shandro phone call.
Shandro was one of several high-ranking UCP members to lose their seats in the election. Copping lost his seat, as did culture minister Jason Luan and deputy premier Kaycee Madu.
Shandro is currently in the middle of a hearing with Alberta's law society over allegations he broke the lawyers' code of conduct while health minister.
The complaints against Shandro include confronting a Calgary doctor in the front yard of his home, calling two Red Deer doctors on their personal cellphones, and contacting a woman who sent a message to his wife's company accusing the couple of being in a conflict of interest.
The hearing began in January, continued earlier this month and has been adjourned until Sept. 5 to give lawyers time to complete written briefs.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2023.
Dean Bennett, The Canadian Press
Sharing Our Stories: Her escape / Tsi iako’niakèn:’en
Local Journalism Initiative
Fri, June 23, 2023
The girls and the boys were split up between two buildings but they were only about 150 feet apart. We were at the Garnier Residential School and the girls were at the St. Joseph Residential School.
We would sometimes send messages to the girls’ school by paper planes if the wind was right.
We were separated, but we would hear what was going on.
One day, we heard that an Ojibwe girl had disappeared. No one could find her. They looked everywhere.
It turned out that my friend, Joe Marion, who was her older brother, had helped her escape. He had arranged all of it and did the research before.
He talked to some guys who had run away and been brought back. All of them had floated down the river on a boat or on a log to the farthest town they could get. From there, they’d access a train or hitchhike. As far away as they could get. That was the only way they could successfully escape.
In close proximity to the two schools, there were mounted police to bring us back. But if you got far enough away, the expense was too much to look for you so you were free.
Sudbury was one of those towns people would run away to. From there, they’ve got roads and trains that could get them away…
*
Wa’thatinenhrakháhsi’ ne rotisken’rakéhte’ tánon’ ne tsonathonwÃ:sen tha’tekanónhsate’ ahati’terón:take’ nek tsi 150 niwahsì:take khok tsi na’tetiatenonhsátere’. Garnier tsi ionterihwaienstáhkhwa’ tiakwaterihwaiénsthahkwe’ ne ionkwasken’rakéhte’ nok tsonathonwÃ:sen St. Joseph tsi ionterihwaiénstahkhwa’ tkonterihwaiénsthahkwe’.
Sewatié:rens ieniakhihiá:tonhse’ ne tsonathonwÃ:sen kahiatónhsera’ teká:tens eniatiónnia’te’ tánon’ tóka’ tkaié:ri tsi nÃ:ioht tsi iówerare’ ienakhiiatenniéhten’ tánon’ ién:wawe’.
Teionkhinenhrakháhsion, nek tsi eniakwarihwà :ronke’ oh niiawen’hátie’.
SewenhnÃsera, wa’akwarihwà :ronke’ tsi tseià :ta Tewa’káhnha na’eia’tò:ten’ wa’ontia’táhton’ . Iah ónhka teiakokwénion aiontatia’tatshén:ri’. Tsik nón:we wa’ontatia’tÃ:sake’.
Tsi na’á:wen’ kÃ: ontiatén:ro, Joe Marion, né:ne ronwahtsì:’a, wahshakohsnié:nen’ naie’niá:ken’ne’. Akwé:kon raónha rorihwahserón:ni tánon’ ohén:ton rorihwisákhon.
Wahshakohtháhrhahse’ tsi nihá:ti ronatè:kwen tánon’ tethonwatiia’ténha. Akwé:kon wahonhná:wenhte’ ne kahán:wakon, tóka’ ni’ karontà :ke ne iahón:newe’ tsi niió:re ne aonhà :’a Ã:non tkaná:taien. Tho ki’ nón:we, ohthiio’kéha enhontÃta’ tóka’ ni’ enhonthahÃta’. Tsi niió:re’ tsi enhatikwé:ni’ iahón:newe’. Thok thÃ:tsi enwá:ton’ enhatirihwaié:rite’ tsi enhati’niá:ken’ne’.
Aktóntie’ ne tekanónhsake tsi ionterihwaienhstahkwaniónhkhwa’, tehniiáhse’ iatenatanónhnha’ tho Ãthne’skwe’ taontaionkhiia’ténhawe’. Nek tsi tóka’ enhskwé:ni’ ia’tekaié:ri tsi niioháhes iáhsewe’, só:tsi iokarowá:nen ne aiesaia’tisákha’, né: ká:ti’ wáhi satatewennÃ:io.
Sudbury tkaná:taien nón:we thonte’kwahtáhkhwa’ nonkwe’shòn:’a. Tho ki’ nón:we, iohaténion tánon’ karistaténion nohthiio’kéha enwá:ton’ enhontÃta’ é:ren ahotiia’tenhá:wihte’ ne tho.
Story told by: Wayne Delormier, Written by: Emma McLaughlin - Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Translation by: Katsenhaién:ton Lazare, The Eastern Door
CANADA
Judicial oversight bill passes, creating new process for punishing judges
The Canadian Press
Fri, June 23, 2023
OTTAWA — A new process for how the Canadian Judicial Council will review misconduct allegations against judges has been written into the law.
A bill that received royal assent Thursday evening amends the Judges Act to clarify when a judge can be removed and changes the way the council reports recommendations to remove a judge to the federal justice minister.
The law also creates a new panel to review complaints and determine whether a judge's removal is justified, as well as a new process for how judges can appeal disciplinary decisions against them.
Justice Minister David Lametti says the new process will lead to timelier and more cost-effective resolutions, and replaces a more expensive, drawn-out process.
Anyone can make a complaint against a judge, but it must be done in writing and sent to the judicial council.
The judicial oversight process garnered heightened attention earlier this year when the council announced it would review a complaint against former Supreme Court justice Russell Brown, a probe that ended when Brown announced his retirement from the top court earlier this month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2023.
The Canadian Press
