
IN THE NEWS

Blacklock's Reporter
Staff
Ng’s Friends Named As Front
Trade Minister Mary Ng will not comment on her association with a group one parliamentary witness on Friday named as a Communist Party front. Ng is one of four Liberal MPs to publicly endorse the Confederation of Toronto Chinese Canadian Organizations.

Drumheller Mail
Lacie Nairn
Bill C-21 amendments could impact rural farmers, hunters
The Liberal federal government brought forward several proposed amendments to its gun control legislation, Bill C-21, in late November which could potentially lead to many rifles and shotguns commonly used for hunting prohibited.

Drumheller Mail
Lacie Nairn
Kneehill County drafts letter to MPs over rural economic development concerns
Conservative Members of Parliament Damien Kurek, Shannon Stubbs, and Jacques Gourde have reached out to rural municipalities, including Kneehill County, to inquire about issues the region faces for rural economic development.

Drumheller Mail
Lacie Nairn
Travel Drumheller welcomes one new, returning board members during AGM
Travel Drumheller held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Wednesday, April 5 and welcomed one new member to the board, and one returning board member.
The evening started off with greetings from Drumheller Mayor Heather Colberg and Battle River-Crowfoot Member of Parliament Damien Kurek, as well as presentations from Travel Alberta Chief Executive Officer (CEO) David Goldstein.

Blacklock's Reporter
Staff
Secret Contract Talks Are OK
The Lobbying Act permits corporations to secretly negotiate sole-sourced federal contracts without disclosing the fact, the Commons ethics committee has learned. MPs questioned the practice in cases like Baylis Medical Co., a firm run by former Liberal MP Frank Baylis that subcontracted a $237.3 million order for pandemic ventilators.

Hill Times
Kevin Philipupillai
Ethics committee chair slams RCMP’s ‘point-blank refusal’ to provide information on spyware tools
New federal Privacy Commissioner Philippe Dufresne tells the House Ethics Committee his office learned about the RCMP’s use of spyware on phones and other devices through the media.

Drumheller Online
Jason Blanke
Owners Of Happy Belly Very Happy To Have Grand Opening
They've been open for a few weeks now but on Monday, May 15th, they officially opened Happy Belly Restaurant at Grove Place in Drumheller.
A number of dignitaries were on hand for the official ribbon cutting on Monday just after noon, including MP Battle River-Crowfoot Damien Kurek, Nate Horner, Mayor Heather Colberg, Deputy Mayor Crystal Sereda, and many others from the Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce and Community Futures Big Country. Rahul Gunjal Owner / Manager of Happy Belly is excited about opening this new venture. "As a team we are really excited. We don't have anything where people can have breakfast until 3 o'clock, so we decided to open something where people can have a good place, from 7 am to 3 pm.

Blacklock's Reporter
Staff
I’ll Name Names, Says Ex-Spy
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service has 30 years’ worth of records on federal ridings that are “hunting grounds” for Chinese Communist agents, says a former chief analyst. The retired spy told the Commons ethics committee he was prepared to name names.

Western Standard
Matthew Horwood
Treasury Board regulations further delay Access to Information Act requests
New regulations by Treasury Board President Mona Fortier would further delay Access To Information disclosures that currently stretch into years. The Board, in a Christmas Eve notice, said Canadians seeking public records should be required to show their birth certificate or other proof of citizenship, according to Blacklock's Reporter.

Drumheller Mail
Lacie Nairn
MP Kurek calls on federal government for three-digit mental health hot line
Battle River-Crowfoot MP Damien Kurek is imploring the federal government to keep its promise to implement a three-digit mental health crisis line and helping to raise awareness and reduce the stigma around mental health in a new mail out.

BioMetric Update
Tyler Choi
Canadian lawmakers demand clearer answers on facial recognition from national police
A standing committee of Canadian Members of Parliament examining face biometrics use in the country saw further clarification of the RCMP’s use of facial recognition and the expected safeguards. The hearing was also beset by allegations from lawmakers that unclear testimony from the RCMP is leading to a lack of trust.