Chan's Personal Blog

Canada's opposition parties brought an end yesterday to the turbulent life of Paul Martin's 17-month-old minority Liberal government, paving the way for an election that will see voters weigh the desire for change against the trustworthiness of Conservatives who would provide it. [...]

The election will almost certainly spell the political doom of one if not both leaders of the major parties.

Mr. Martin would have difficulty remaining Prime Minister more than a year or two if he wins only a minority government, and Mr. Harper would have a tough time staying on if he loses a second election. [...]

The campaign is expected to last about eight weeks, which would make it one of the longest in recent memory.

However, it's unclear who would benefit most from a long campaign. The Liberals believe it will give Mr. Harper more opportunities to stumble and them more time to recover if the second set of debates do not go well for them. The Tories believe it may give Mr. Harper extra time to make Canadians feel at ease with him.

The election will hinge on a few dozen seats in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia. In Ontario, the Tories believe they can win up to two dozen ridings.

In Quebec, the Liberals must, at the very least, hang on to the 21 seats they now have. That will be a challenge, given the government's difficulties in the wake of the sponsorship scandal.

The battle may come down to British Columbia, where the Liberals have made gains in the polls. The Tories cannot afford to lose many of their 22 seats there, lest that cancels out expected victories in Ontario.

Deputy Minister apologizes for Public Works edict

A federal government department has cancelled a three-day-old edict that essentially banned the hiring of able-bodied white men over the next several months.

The directive had said managers at the Public Works and Government Services Department could hire only the disabled, women, aboriginal people and visible minorities until at least the end of March." [...]

The policy was reversed in a memo issued late yesterday.

"While the measure proposed last week was short-term and not intended to be a ban on hiring individuals from non-designated groups, it could well lead to this impression," Mr. Marshall said in a new memo.

"As such I am rescinding this measure immediately," he said.

"Please accept my apologies."

The department received complaints from outside, while concerns were also expressed internally about the policy, said Pierre Teotonio, a Public Works spokesman.

Internal e-mail reveals hiring ban at Public Works

A major [Canadian] federal department has temporarily banned the hiring of able-bodied white men in an unusual move critics say could spark a backlash against the very disadvantaged groups it is meant to help.

Managers in the Public Works department must hire only visible minorities, women, aboriginals and the disabled, except with written permission from their superiors, David Marshall, the deputy minister, ordered in an e-mail circulated yesterday.

The policy, designed to address shortfalls in the department's employment-equity goals, will last at least until the end of next March and be reviewed then, the memo said.

"As executives and managers, our role includes ensuring that the public service is representative," Mr. Marshall said in the memo. "This involves providing direction and leadership by example, and demonstrating a firm commitment to an inclusive workplace."

Prime Minister Paul Martin warned the three opposition leaders today that they could offend religious and ethnic groups by forcing an election over the holiday season.

Martin told reporters en route to this port city for an Asian Pacific summit that the timetable he set for an election in March or April would allow Christians and Canadians of other religious faiths to celebrate their religious holidays without interruption from politicians knocking on their doors.

"When you are talking about the holiday season, there are also other religions that have different New Year's at different dates and their holidays at a different date and I think we have to be respectful of that -- the orthodox churches, for example," he said.