A closed store front boutique business called Francis Watson pleads for help displaying a sign in Toronto on April 16, 2020.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
Onward, upward
Re “Canada’s chief technology officer accused of manipulating, destroying files at CBSA” (Jan. 26): As a former federal public servant, I am interested in, but not surprised at, the career paths of three of the individuals involved in this controversy.
Minh Doan, who was vice-president of the Canadian Border Services Agency, is now Canada’s chief technology officer. Cameron MacDonald, who worked as a director-general under Mr. Doan, is now an assistant deputy minister. And Antonio Utano, who worked with Mr. Cameron, is now himself a director-general.
These three gentlemen, now under scrutiny for their ethical behaviour, were given new assignments – in each case, via promotion.
David McGrath Kingston
Good deal
Re “Yes, Ottawa was right to tell Canadian businesses to repay their CEBA loans” (Report on Business, Jan. 26): The Canada Emergency Business Account was a generous loan program.
One-third of the loans were forgivable. The interest rate was zero per cent. The deadline was extended by two years.
Three-quarters of businesses met the deadline. As for the balance of businesses, a reasonable interest rate will be charged and they must, at some point, pay 100 per cent of what they owe. What’s the problem?
Borrowing to cover operating losses is always risky. There was no guarantee that the economy (and sales) would quickly recover. Without a plan or a change in strategy, a business could easily end off worse than shutting down and reopening later.
There are no guarantees of profit or survival in business.
John Shepherd Richmond, B.C.
Show ‘em
Re “The carbon tax is good for the climate and our wallets, but can you believe it?” (Jan. 22): In most provinces, Canadians receive more money from the carbon rebate than they pay in carbon tax. What’s not to like?
Government communications on the rebate are so poor that people might not know they receive any rebate at all. This seems completely understandable, when the only sign of the rebate is a quarterly bank deposit under a nondescript name.
There is an old-fashioned remedy for this: Show them the money. Once a year, mail everyone a cheque along with a letter explaining the details. British Columbia did this when introducing the first provincial carbon tax in 2008.
The cheques helped inform the public and softened resistance to the new tax, a smart move that Ottawa could imitate.
Blaise Salmon Victoria
Mining knowledge
Re “End the runaround on the Ring of Fire” (Editorial, Jan. 25): For all the hand-wringing about how long it takes to get mining projects approved, politicians and industry proponents do themselves no service by seeking to split up, speed up, minimize or avoid environmental assessments.
Not only can they undermine the protection of the environment and the involvement of affected communities, and limit opportunities to address technical problems – inviting complications and conflicts – they frequently prolong and complicate assessment and permitting processes.
In 2010, MiningWatch Canada won a Supreme Court ruling that it was illegal to engage in this kind of “project splitting.” The federal government wasted no time amending the law to allow it. Nonetheless the principle of “one project, one assessment” – espoused, if not followed, by all levels of government – remains valid.
A better way to increase efficiency is to ensure all parties are better prepared and have adequate capacity to contribute to the assessment process.
Jamie Kneen National program co-lead, MiningWatch Canada; Ottawa
Fix it
Re “To fix Canada’s crumbling health care system, we need better tools than duct tape” (Jan. 23): “If you’re in the right place at the right time, you get excellent care in Canada’s health system.” But what if you are not?
My brother felt like he won the lottery when he found a family doctor after being without one for four years. Continuing to promote a broken system, where patients rely on chance to obtain high-quality and timely care, feels terrifying.
We should have difficult but honest national conversations about new models of fair and equitable health care delivery, where patients are not asked to gamble with their health.
James Brooks MD, FRCPC; Ottawa
I have to refute the statement that the problems in health care are “all fixable.”
When Tommy Douglas envisioned socialized medicine more than 75 years ago, there were no MRIs, PET scans, expensive chemotherapeutic agents, organ transplants, etc. Health care was simple and inexpensive.
Medical advances lengthened our life expectancies and raised our expectations, but at what cost? The idea that we get health care for “free” doesn’t hold water with me. The cost of “free” health care will likely continue to grow until it is no longer affordable.
The “duct tape” is a reflection that we are likely already there.
Gerald Ashe MD; Brockville, Ont.
Re “To reduce ER wait times, hospitals must stop using them as in-patient warehouses” (Jan. 26): I welcome the analysis of emergency room wait times. But dictating that patients be admitted to an in-patient bed within a specified time would simply transfer the problem to a different location.
Many accompanying changes would be needed to make the admissions possible. As we’ve seen recently with kidney transplant cancellations in Alberta and cancer treatment delays across the country, moving the overcrowding from the ER to in-patient wards would only make the issue less visible.
People are waiting anxiously at home with urgent conditions labelled “elective” because they can be scheduled, not because they are any less urgent or life-threatening than many of the cases being admitted through the ER.
William Love Burlington, Ont.
Play it again
Re “At my piano recital, I cast aside my practised piece and banged out Beethoven” (First Person, Jan. 18) and “Short and sweet” (Letters, Jan. 24): I, too, have an interesting memory of my first childhood piano recital.
My mother, a talented pianist, watched in horror as I sat at the piano, recital hall full, and proceeded to play all the keys until I “heard” the correct note to begin my piece. Blessed with a good ear for music, I remain a slow and poor sight-reader today (but I did pass all my piano and theory exams).
At age 83, I still play by ear and share my music with seniors as a volunteer, at parties for friends and at church services. Thanks to my mother for passing on the gift of music. Pure joy.
It just goes to show: There is never one way of accomplishing a goal in life.
Nancy Birtch Aurora, Ont.
Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Keep letters to 150 words or fewer. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@globeandmail.com