sbv

Within five years, the construction of new homes in the country’s hottest markets is projected to slow to near-zero. Less construction, fewer homes, and fewer jobs – all at a time when the country needs more housing than ever.

The growing technical complexity of the Income Tax Act, which makes it harder for taxpayers to understand the rules and for the agency to apply them correctly, is likely one reason behind the rise in objections, Mr. O’Riordan said.

But the soaring number of objections could also signal that Ottawa has put increased emphasis on tax compliance in recent years without proportionally increasing resources to help taxpayers comply with the tax code and to review disputes, he said.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/personal-finance/article-canada-revenue-agency-objections-taxpayers/

The federal and provincial governments have been underfunding universities for decades. Recently, universities were able to start recruiting foreign students to make up for the shortfall, but it looks like that money tap will be turned down. It doesn't look like there's a plan to make up for it.

At the same time, the feds want to

recruit more than 1,000 top international researchers to Canada, with the budget injecting up to $1.7-billion into a suite of recruitment measures.

That'll be tough if universities see their income crater.

I played a few rounds in the new season, and I like it.

• The smaller map makes it easier to find fights.
• I'm glad there's a forecast tower again, although only having a single tower seems a bit repetitive.
• There seems to be slurp juice everywhere, which is a nice little bonus.
• I'm not a fan of the Simpsons cel shading on everything, but I like the locations.
• The Marge skin seems really popular. I've been killed by her so many times.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said after talking with Prime Minister Mark Carney he’s decided to pause the advertising campaign effective Monday so that trade talks can resume.

That was faster than I expected.

I've seen lots of posts about the ad, but not the ad itself. Here it is.

cross-posted from: https://piefed.zip/post/578325

Centurii-chan | Bluesky | XCancel

[The health minister] said Ottawa also wants to help provinces streamline licensing for immigrating physicians

I feel like this is the most important part. No matter how we redistribute our healthcare workers, we don't have enough. Encouraging immigration by qualified healthcare workers and recognizing their credentials immediately world be a great move.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-doctors-interprovincial-mobility-barriers-physicians/

Even with prices on the decline, homes are still prohibitively expensive for many buyers. Various metrics show that affordability has improved, but not by much. The Bank of Canada is poised to cut interest rates a couple more times in the coming months, but economists aren’t expecting a return to near-zero levels.

All to say, Canada’s housing crisis isn’t going anywhere, despite taking a back seat to trade concerns of late.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-canada-real-estate-housing-markets-charts/

A New Brunswick seafood processing company has been fined $1-million for violating rules of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program – the largest ever fine levied by the federal government against companies that use the program for migrant labour.

...

40 workers from Mexico and the Philippines began working at the processing plant in May, 2023, under employment contracts between six and 12 months in duration. But workers had their hours cut substantially from what was stated on their contract, according to MWAC. For example, they were initially scheduled to work 12- to 16-hour days, but had their hours reduced to 20 hours a week. They were still paid for 30 hours of weekly work, as per their employment contracts, but were told that the company was “owed” the difference and they would have to find some way of repaying the company, MWAC alleges.

Estefania Montes, a migrant worker from Mexico, told The Globe she struggled to cover her basic living expenses because Bolero only scheduled her to work for 16 of the 25 weeks in her employment contract. She entered Canada in May, 2023, on a one-year work permit under the TFW program and immediately began employment at Bolero. She said she could not afford to pay rent to her employer (Bolero provided migrant workers with accommodation) because her weekly wages were much lower than what was stated she would receive in her contract with Bolero.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-new-brunswick-seafood-processor-bolero-tfw-fine/

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/47121164

Ontario’s Auditor-General says the province’s selection process for $1.3-billion in grants to subsidize the hiring and retraining of workers was “not fair, transparent or accountable,” with the Labour Minister’s office approving hundreds of millions of dollars for unions, employers and other organizations that had earned low scores on their applications.

...

The funding is allocated to eligible employers, unions and other organizations to train or retrain workers with new skills.

...

The report found that more than half the applications selected by the Labour Minister’s office, resulting in $742-million in grants, were ranked by ministry bureaucrats as “poor,” “low” or “medium” when measured against the program’s objectives and selection criteria, which include an applicant’s “organizational capacity” and “delivery plan.”

The Auditor-General also said 670 applications that ranked “high” were not selected for funding.

...

The report also said similar programs in other provinces, such as Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador, do not involve a minister’s office in choosing which applicants to fund, leaving the decisions to non-political bureaucrats.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-ontario-skills-development-fund-auditor-general-report/