Canada

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/30547423

Coun. Gurpartap Singh Toor, who sits on both Brampton city council and Peel regional council, denies owning the house on Gardenbrooke Trail, in the northeast of the city. But property records show he has been on the title since 2021, and information obtained through a freedom-of-information request reveals the basement has been rented out illegally that entire time.

Toor's sister has owned the property since 2012, according to the records, and transferred him a one per cent share in 2021, making him a co-owner. It's one of at least four properties that Toor owns — property records show he also owns three houses in Caledon, Ont.

The city first inspected the Brampton property and issued a compliance notice in September, along with a $750 fine, noting that unregistered apartments could pose safety risks to occupants.

In the summer of 2023, a Canadian taxpayer logged into his Canada Revenue Agency account, falsely amended previous tax returns and wrongly claimed he was suddenly owed more than $40 million in refunds.

Then, without verifying the newly filed tax slips, the Canada Revenue Agency authorized the payments and promptly began making the initial instalments, according to sources.

An investigation by CBC's The Fifth Estate and Radio-Canada has learned the scam might never have been detected, except for one thing.

CIBC became alarmed after noticing the government of Canada had deposited an unusually large payment of $10 million to a customer's bank account.

The bank contacted the CRA to make sure it hadn't made a mistake.

A deputy fire chief in Cape Breton has apologized after some guests attended a Halloween dance at a fire hall dressed as members of the Ku Klux Klan.

Photos circulating on social media from Saturday's event at the North Sydney Firefighters Club show four people wearing white sheets and white pointed hoods — garb synonymous with the American white supremacist group. One of the partygoers is holding a large cross.

MacLean said he was frustrated that the four guests were not only admitted into the dance but allowed to stay.

"Obviously the door is open and some people are infiltrating the system," André Lareau, an associate tax professor at Laval University in Quebec City, said in an interview. "But the CRA does not seem to have found the key to lock the door."

Today, the CRTC is issuing its first decision under the Online News Act Application and Exemption Regulations(the Regulations). This decision will pave the way for Google to contribute $100 million annually to Canadian news organizations through the Canadian Journalism Collective (CJC).

The TL/DR is this: The allegation that David Pugliese is a Russian asset has floated around Ottawa for about a decade — often with various degrees of evidence behind it. It was in recent years that these documents, which appear to be real and which were furnished by Kyiv, were sent to Canadian intelligence agencies and were seriously investigated. While Pugliese has proved himself to be a willing customer for Russian disinformation, and while I believe he hasn’t appropriately disclosed his relationship with the Russian embassy, the idea that he is a paid agent of the Russian government is probably false.

But recent Kremlin influence operations have blurred the lines between asset and useful idiot. They invite us to, as I said repeatedly during my statement at committee, get serious.

cross-posted from: /c/britishcolumbia

The British Columbia NDP appears to have fended off the Conservative surge by a razor thin margin and will form the next provincial government, CBC News projects.

Whether the party forms a minority or majority government is still uncertain.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.vg/post/865515