Category: watchdog

Head of Federal Telecom Regulator Did Not Breach Conflict of Interest Act: Watchdog

The federal ethics watchdog says the head of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission did not breach the Conflict of Interest Act when he held meetings with large telecom providers while they had files before the regulator. One of the meetings scrutinized involved CRTC head Ian Scott and senior BCE Inc. and Bell Canada executive…


Spy Watchdog Panel to Review How Agencies Intercept Communications

The committee of MPs and senators that oversees the security and intelligence community says it plans a review of how these agencies intercept communications during investigations. The review by the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians will examine the legislative, regulatory, policy and financial framework for monitoring communications. It will include a look at…


National Institutes of Health Failed to Make Sure Clinical Trial Results Were Reported: Watchdog

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) violated policy that requires the agency to make sure results from trials it funds are published, and did not impose consequences on parties that broke federal law governing the reporting, a watchdog has found. Out of 72 NIH-funded studies in 2019 and 2020, half of which were conducted by…


Ontario Fiscal Watchdog Projects Smaller Deficit Due to Lower-Than-Planned Spending

Ontario’s fiscal watchdog is projecting a deficit $5.4 billion smaller than the most recent figure projected by the government. The Financial Accountability Office said it arrived at its $8.1 billion deficit figure after reviewing government spending and finding that the province spent less than planned across all programs. The government had projected a deficit of…


Watchdog Launches Probe Into Actions of Police in 8 BC Departments

British Columbia’s police complaint commissioner has set off an investigation into the conduct of 19 officers from eight separate police departments. A statement from the commissioner says the serious nature of the alleged misconduct means it will seek the appointment of a special provincial constable to complete an investigation independent of any B.C. police agencies….


Toronto Man Shot Dead by Police Was Carrying a Fake Rifle: Police Watchdog

A Toronto man shot dead by the police on May 26 was carrying a fake rifle, which was what raised alarms and prompted several Scarborough schools to go into lockdown, an Ontario police watchdog says. A spokesperson for Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) told reporters on May 27 that the weapon carried by the 27-year-old…


Boris Johnson Did Not Put Pressure on Over Lebedev Peerage, Says Watchdog Chief

No pressure was exerted by the Prime Minister or Downing Street when it came to recommending Lord Lebedev for a peerage, according to a Lords watchdog. Lord Bew, chairman of the House of Lords Appointments Commission (Holac), told MPs the assessment for the media mogul, whose father was a former KGB agent, was a “unique”…


Watchdog Warned UK Government of Spyware Infections Inside 10 Downing Street

Digital rights watchdog group Citizen Lab said on Monday it had warned British officials that electronic devices connected to government networks, including some inside the prime minister’s office and foreign ministry, appeared to be infected with Israeli-made spy software. The spy software is known as Pegasus, a product of Israeli cyber arms dealer NSO Group,…


Dutch Watchdog Fines Apple Again in App Store Dispute

AMSTERDAM—The Dutch antitrust watchdog on Monday fined Apple a further 5 million euros ($5.71 million) for failure to comply with an order to open its app store to alternative payment systems for dating apps in the Netherlands. The new fine brings the total amount levied by the Authority for Consumers and Markets against the U.S….


RCMP Commissioner Breached Duty With Slow Response to Watchdog Report, Judge Rules

OTTAWA—RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki flouted the law by failing to respond promptly to a watchdog report about alleged spying on anti-oil protesters, a federal judge has ruled. In a newly released decision, Federal Court Associate Chief Justice Jocelyne Gagne said Lucki breached her duty under the RCMP Act by not submitting a response to the…