Reasons to Oppose the Federal Budget Bill #C-38

via Douglas Connors home page:

"You only need to be concerned over one of these to come out and express your displeasure at the way ALL of these are being rammed down our throats without the slightest bit of examination, discussion, or negotiation. And almost none of it was in the election platform of a year ago.”"

There were those who heeded the call made above to visit Member of Parliament's offices to show opposition to what I call the O-B-B the Omnibus Budget Bill, Bill C-38 which wihen passed into law will make the changes listed below . I came across this just now on a Facebook site and thought I'd pass it on:

"Some pics from the BlackMark protests today." http://2012federalbudget.tumblr.com/

Anita Nickerson’s 'List of Reasons to Oppose the Federal Budget Bill'

Bill C-38 has something in it for everyone.

Concerned about the Environment? This bill:

- repeals The Kyoto Protocol Implementation Act;
- dismantles The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act;
- excludes concerned citizens from assessments of major projects like the Enbridge pipeline;
- downloads responsibility for most environmental assessments to provinces;
- gives final say over pipeline projects to Conservative cabinet ministers­regardless of environmental impacts.
- lays off the entire Canadian scientific community looking at ocean contaminants. Did you know we have a lot of coastline?  Meaning there’s a lot of ocean not being examined, which will impact the worldwide science in this area.
- eliminates habitat protection from The Fisheries Act;
- limits the waterways protected by The Species at Risk Act and The Fisheries Act;
- dismantles the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, leaving natural areas vulnerable

Perhaps you are concerned about Health. This bill:

- shortchanges cash-strapped provinces of expected health transfers by $31 billion;
- weakens food and drug regulations at the discretion of the Minister of Health;
- ends vital Auditor General oversight of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency;
- paves the way for private contractors to perform food safety inspections.

Is it Employment that interests you? This bill:

- forces Canadians to work two years longer, to age 67, to qualify for Old Age Security;
- cuts workers off Employment Insurance if they don’t take any job the Minister of Human Resources deems “suitable”;
- repeals The Fair Wages and Hours of Labour Act;
- removes federal contractors from the protection of The Employment Equity Act.
brings in foreign workers and allows them to be paid 15% less than our minimum wage.

Is it Democracy that interests you? This bill:

- reduces the Auditor General’s powers to hold government accountable to Canadians;
- removes independent oversight from 12 key government agencies­including the - Northern Pipeline Agency, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the Canada Revenue Agency;
- eliminates organizations that produce independent policy research­including Rights & Democracy, the National Council of Welfare, and the First Nations Statistical Institute;
- dissolves the Public Appointments Commission designed to ensure key positions are assigned based on merit instead of insider connections;
- allows the FBI to come into Canada and arrest Canadians on Canadian soil.

You only need to be concerned over one of these to come out and express your displeasure at the way ALL of these are being rammed down our throats without the slightest bit of examination, discussion, or negotiation. And almost none of it was in the election platform of a year ago.”

This list was created by Anita Nickerson, who volunteered to lead the Kitchener-Waterloo Blackmark day of action. Additional thanks to Jennifer Ross for compiling this ever-growing list.

WE NEED A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO BAN SUCH OMNIBUS BILLS!