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Now the new business arrangement Morneau presented to Canadians seems like a good one. Not that he came up with it himself. It is, after all, what Section 27 of the Conflict of Interest Act lays out — that cabinet ministers and other prominent persons on the Hill either sell their shares or go into a blind trust. It’s ... |
Morneau even gave media and his company the impression, back in 2015, that this is exactly what he was going to do from the beginning. But along the way it seems that he, or one of his representatives, paused and looked around to see if there was any possible way he could keep the shares on hand. How else did he come u... |
That meant he held the shares “indirectly”, which ethics commissioner Mary Dawson apparently confirmed to him did not violate the Act. However she made clear that she did not specifically counsel that he take this course of action. Far from it, as Dawson had told the government back in 2013 that this was a loophole tha... |
It seems Morneau’s priority wasn’t following Section 27. It was finding some creative way to keep his shares while not breaking that section. |
Some observers thought Morneau was going to resign Thursday. Far from it. He said he had “naively” thought consulting with the ethics commissioner was enough. He talked about how the public and press were “getting distracted about my personal situation,” as if people’s genuine concerns were a trifle and a waste of his ... |
It was disappointing to see this tone from a minister who had previously behaved in a manner above reproach. |
One almost wants to join the pile-on calling for Morneau’s resignation, were it not for the fact that there’s no obvious alternative in the Liberal caucus with sufficient experience to take his place. Canadians are now stuck with the devil they know. |
afurey@postmedia.com<|endoftext|>The European Court of Justice has delivered a major blow to government mass surveillance and data retention practices by a ruling that upholds basic privacy rights and safeguards access to EU citizens’ online data communications. |
The ECJ has ruled that indiscriminate storage of private citizens’ communications data is in breach of EU law. |
Common Dreams reports: |
The European Union’s highest court on Wednesday issued a landmark ruling against mass surveillance in a judgment that challenges key portions of the U.K.’s so-called “Snooper’s charter,” a sweeping surveillance bill that was set to become law by the end of the year. |
The decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which directly calls into question both the British law and a similar bill in Sweden, finds that indiscriminate storing of private citizens’ communications data is illegal under EU law. |
The court’s ruling finds that data retention is only allowable when government agencies are investigating a “serious crime,” such as terrorism. |
The “general and indiscriminate retention” of emails allowed by the the “Investigatory Powers Act,” or Snooper’s charter, is therefore illegal, the Guardian reports. |
“Today’s judgment is a major blow against mass surveillance and an important day for privacy,” said Camilla Graham Wood, legal officer with the rights organization Privacy International. “It makes clear that blanket and indiscriminate retention of our digital histories — who we interact with, when and how and where — c... |
The Guardian notes: |
The finding came in response to a legal challenge initially brought by the Brexit secretary, David Davis, when he was a backbench MP, and Tom Watson, Labour’s deputy leader, over the legality of GCHQ’s bulk interception of call records and online messages. |
Davis and Watson, who were supported by Liberty, the Law Society, the Open Rights Group and Privacy International, had already won a high court victory on the issue, but the government appealed and the case was referred by appeal judges to the [CJEU]. The case will now return to the court of appeal to be resolved in te... |
The long-awaited judgment “raises significant questions about whether vast swathes of the [Snooper’s charter] should now be repealed,” observes Privacy International. |
The advocacy group summarizes the key portions called into question by the decision: |
In particular, the judgment raises concerns about the viability of the mandatory communications data retention powers (Part 4 of the Investigatory Powers Act), which are carried over from DRIPA. Under the new Act, communications data — which includes the who, when and where of our telephone calls, emails and instant me... |
The judgment also demands a rethink of the government’s significant expansion of data retention powers to so-called ‘Internet Connection Records’, which could include the retention of browsing histories for the past 12 months. |
The judgment may also mean that the U.K. government is forced to increase safeguards, such as judicial authorization and notification, for data that it keeps about us. These were shown to be lacking in DRIPA. The judgment could mean that the government will need to introduce new safeguards for accessing communications ... |
“In addition to rejecting generalized retention and narrowing down access to serious crime with independent authorization, the CJEU has further established that as a rule only the data of people suspected of direct involvement in […] crimes can be accessed,” observes the U.K.-based Open Rights Group. “Accessing other p... |
Wood added: “The court has rightly recognized that our communications data is no less sensitive than the content of our communications. This is something that the U.K. government has willfully ignored, allowing a large number of public bodies to access our personal data without a warrant. The government must now urgent... |
Though a number of high-level law enforcement, intelligence and military sources on both sides of the border have provided Judicial Watch with evidence that Islamic terrorist cells are operating in Mexico, the Obama administration has publicly denied it, both to Judicial Watch and in mainstream media outlets. Now we ha... |
Hendricks contacted another ISIS operative, referred to as “CW-1”, who was arrested last summer, about working with him and several other terrorists to carry out attacks. “Hendricks allegedly told CW-1 that he ‘needed people’ and wanted to meet in person; that there were several ‘brothers’ located in Texas and Mexico; ... |
The Hendricks case points to a broader issue of, not only homegrown terrorism, but the immense threat along the southern border. Islamic terrorists are training in southern border towns near American cities and have joined forces with Mexican drug cartels to infiltrate the United States. Judicial Watch has investigated... |
Cellar Door Games is close to releasing the Mac and Linux versions of their chivalrous roguelike, Rogue Legacy. The studio has told Shacknews that it is splitting their upcoming patch into two pieces to help expedite the process. In addition to bringing the game to new platforms, the first patch will also add save slot... |
A second patch will include unspecified free content and is set to release after the Mac/Linux support patch. "We're still working on it, but we wanted to push up the first patch since we think it's important enough," Cellar Door's Teddy Lee told Shacknews. "We don't wanna go into specifics since things are still in fl... |
Rogue Legacy is available now on PC and is coming soon to PS4, PS3, and Vita.<|endoftext|>United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Texas man was indicted by a federal grand jury for mailing threatening communications. |
Carlos Kidd, age 33, was indicted in the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota on November 6, 2012, for mailing threatening letters to a federal judge in North Dakota. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Klein in Bismarck, North Dakota, on January 24, 2013, and pled not guilty to the ... |
The investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kelderman is prosecuting the case. Kidd was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. A trial date has not been set.<|endoftext|>Prime Minister Rami al-Hamdallah on Tuesday chaired the first meeting of ... |
Hamas seized the Gaza Strip in 2007 in fighting with Fatah forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas and has ruled the impoverished desert enclave of two million people since then. |
The cabinet session was the first in Gaza since 2014, Hamdallah told his ministers, and a major step in a reconciliation process promoted by neighbouring Egypt and other US-allied Arab countries. |
"Today, we stand before an important, historical moment as we begin to get over our wounds, put our differences aside and place the higher national interest above all else," he said. |
'We are not prepared to accept bogus reconciliations in which the Palestinian side apparently reconciles at the expense of our existence' - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu |
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would reject any reconciliation deal between the two leading Palestinian factions unless the Iran-backed Islamist movement Hamas disarmed. |
"We are not prepared to accept bogus reconciliations in which the Palestinian side apparently reconciles at the expense of our existence," Netanyahu said in a statement. |
"Whoever wants to make such a reconciliation, our understanding is very clear: recognise the State of Israel, disband the Hamas military arm, sever the connection with Iran - which calls for our destruction," Netanyahu added. |
The PA has signed a peace deal with Israel, but Hamas has not. |
In video message, Sisi celebrates 'opportunity' |
But Cairo, which has been a key backer of attempts at reconciliation, welcomed the development. |
In a pre-recorded speech addressing the two main Palestinian movements on Tuesday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said that Palestinian reconciliation could be an "opportunity" for wider regional peace, and called for global support for the initiative. |
"The whole world is waiting for your efforts to achieve reconciliation among the Palestinian people and appreciates your determination to address all obstacles," he said. |
"There is a chance to realise peace in the region, providing all the parties are united." |
The video was played as Egyptian intelligence head Khaled Fawzy met with Hamas and Palestinian Authority leaders in the Gaza Strip. |
"I am confident the major world powers, when they see the Palestinian parties are fully aware of the nature of this phase and the importance of dialogue to achieve the goal of peace, will help to realise this peace," he added. |
Hamdallah crossed into Gaza on Monday and was welcomed by a Hamas honour guard and hundreds of Palestinians. |
Young people in Gaza greet the arrival of Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah (MEE/Mohammed Asad) |
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