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Auditor general calls for online application portal for refugees amid severe backlogs

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

Refugees are being left behind by Canada’s oversized immigration backlogs, and the federal auditor general is calling on the government to immediately create a way for them to apply online.A report from Auditor General Karen Hogan released on Thursday suggests that while processing times improved for most permanent residency programs in 2022, they remained long for refugee and humanitarian programs.Some applicants had waited almost three years for a decision, and as of the end of last year, 99,000 refugee applications were still waiting to be processed.“Many applicants will wait years for a decision in the current processing environment,” Hogan said in her report.She said refugees would benefit from a secure online application process that was recently introduced for other immigration streams and is calling for it to be created “without further delay.”The government had already planned to make online applications available to refugee claimants and hopes...

Anti-discrimination efforts falling short in the public service: auditor general

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

OTTAWA — The federal auditor general says Canada’s efforts to combat racism and discrimination in major departments and agencies are falling short.Auditor General Karen Hogan found in a report released today that bureaucrats are failing to use data to understand how racialized employees are feeling, and this results in “missed opportunities” for change. The office examined the Department of Justice, Public Safety Canada, the RCMP, the Canada Border Services Agency, Correctional Service Canada and the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, which account for about one-fifth of federal workers.All of those organizations have established equity, diversity and inclusion action plans, but Hogan says bureaucrats have no way to know whether they are working, and there is no comprehensive reporting on outcomes. The audit found that accountability for behavioural and cultural change was also “limited and not effectively measured.” About one-fifth of employees in t...

Five things to know about the auditor general’s reports on the federal public service

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

OTTAWA — A new round of reports from auditor general is once again revealing gaps and delays across the federal public service, including on access to antimicrobial drugs, the processing of immigration applications and discrimination in the public service.Auditor General Karen Hogan’s audits also look at the public service’s efforts to modernize its information technology systems and the way that benefits such as employment insurance are delivered.Here are five things to know from the reports.Canadians lack access to new antibiotics of last resortAs the growing threat of resistance to antibiotics and other antimicrobial drugs continues to grow, the auditor found the government’s efforts to address to the problem were inadequate.Hogan said the government’s plan to address antimicrobial resistance doesn’t include any measurable goals or timelines, and it hasn’t done enough to secure new antibiotics that are available in other countries.The auditor f...

Slovakia’s president rejects appointment of climate change skeptic as environment minister

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — Slovakia’s president announced Thursday that she is postponing the appointment of a new Cabinet following last month’s parliamentary election because she cannot accept the nomination of a climate change skeptic as environment minister.Liberal President Zuzana Caputova said Rudolf Huliak, who was nominated by the ultranationalist and pro-Russian Slovak National Party, could not ensure the proper functioning of the ministry because he opposes the government’s long-term environmental policies and Slovakia’s international obligations.“A candidate who has not recognized the scientific consensus on climate change and asserts no real climate crisis exists cannot be in charge and represent a ministry whose main role is the protection of nature, landscape and the Earth’s climate system,” Caputova said in a statement.She also mentioned Huliak’s advocacy of violence against environmentalists as a reason not to swear him in. Huliak, the mayor of the town ...

Japan and Australia agree to further step up defense cooperation under 2-month-old security pact

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Japan and Australia agreed Thursday to further expand defense ties, including with joint military exercises, under their upgraded security pact that took effect two months ago amid mutual concern about China’s growing influence in the region. The two countries have rapidly developed close defense ties in recent years, and Japan considers Australia as a semi-ally, its closest security partner after the United States, its only treaty ally. Japan’s Defense Minister Minoru Kihara and his Australian counterpart, Richard Marles, also agreed during talks in Tokyo to step up their three-way military cooperation with the United States, the Japanese Defense Ministry said in a statement. Kihara and Marles said that deepening their operational cooperation and joint exercises, and enhancing interoperability, were important steps in increasing their bilateral defense ties. The two ministers confirmed that there was continiung progress in those areas under their Reciprocal...

Sidney Powell pleads guilty in case over efforts to overturn Trump’s Georgia loss and gets probation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Lawyer Sidney Powell pleaded guilty to reduced charges Thursday over efforts to overturn Donald Trump’s loss in the 2020 election in Georgia, becoming the second defendant in the sprawling case to reach a deal with prosecutors.Powell, who was charged alongside Trump and 17 others with violating the state’s anti-racketeering law, entered the plea just a day before jury selection was set to start in her trial. She pleaded guilty to six misdemeanors accusing her of conspiring to intentionally interfere with the performance of election duties.As part of the deal, she will serve six years of probation, will be fined $6,000 and will have to write an apology letter to Georgia and its residents. She also agreed to testify truthfully against her co-defendants at future trials.Powell, 68, was initially charged with racketeering and six other counts as part of a wide-ranging scheme to keep the Republican president in power after he lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden. P...

China is building up its nuclear weapons arsenal faster than previous projections, a US report says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Pentagon report on China’s military power says Beijing is exceeding previous projections of how quickly it is building up its nuclear weapons arsenal and is “almost certainly” learning lessons from Russia’s war in Ukraine about what a conflict over Taiwan might look like. The report released Thursday also warns that China may be pursuing a new intercontinental missile system using conventional arms that, if fielded, would allow Beijing “to threaten conventional strikes against targets in the continental United States, Hawaii and Alaska.” The China report comes a month before an expected meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and President Joe Biden on the sidelines of next month’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco. The annual report, required by Congress, is one way the Pentagon measures the growing military capabilities of China, which the U.S. government sees as its key threat in the region and America’s primar...

Film star Donald Sutherland depicted in profile on new Canadian stamp

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

Donald Sutherland, celebrated star of stage and screen, can add a new accolade to his CV.Canada Post has released a stamp featuring an image of the 88-year-old New Brunswick-born actor.The Crown corporation says the stamp is meant to commemorate Sutherland’s storied career, which has seen him appear in more than 200 films and TV programs.The stamp depicts Sutherland in profile, overlaid with the titles of some of his most iconic projects, including “Ordinary People,” “The Italian Job,” and “M*A*S*H*.” Sutherland originated the role of Hawkeye Pierce in the 1970 film “M*A*S*H*,” before Alan Alda picked up the torch for the TV show that premiered two years later.Sutherland went on to star in the 1978 remake of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and the 2005 version of “Pride & Prejudice.”Sutherland has won two Golden Globes, a lifetime achievement Governor General’s Performing Arts Award and an honor...

Timing, patience key to nabbing affordable concert, sports resale tickets: fans

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

TORONTO — When Jagger Long heads to the Rogers Centre to watch a Toronto Blue Jays match, you’ll often spot him in the first row behind home plate and at Scotiabank Arena, he’s a pro at snagging seats with access to the venue’s tunnel where you can bump fists with the Toronto Maple Leafs.There’s seldom a show or game that goes by that the Toronto-based personal trainer-turned-resale ticket website owner can’t get access to — and sometimes, he and his Karma Tickets customers don’t even wind up paying full price to attend.It’s an impressive feat given how ticket prices for many concerts and sports events have soared and shows with top billing artists like Drake, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé sell out within minutes, often forcing many to the resale market where seats can go for thousands of dollars.Yet Long and other live music and sports fans insist there are still ways to save, if you time your purchase and stay patient.“My biggest advice i...

Honda to produce Civic Hybrid in Alliston, Ont. starting next year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:58:08 GMT

Japanese automaker Honda says it will start producing the Civic Hybrid next year at its plant in Alliston, Ont.The company says the Ontario plant will produce the sedan version of the car.The hatchback version of the Civic Hybrid will be manufactured at a plant in Indiana, according to the automaker.Honda already produces the hybrid version of its CR-V sport utility vehicle in Alliston and at the plant in Indiana.The company says the Civic Hybrid is a key step in its electrification strategy, which includes equipping its core models with hybrid-electric systems.It says it expects Civic Hybrid sales to represent more than 40 per cent of Civic sales in North America.