Thursday, February 24, 2022

Effective tool already loosened - sounds like good governing to me

News from Canada:

The Canadian government began lifting a freeze on more than 200 bank accounts linked to recent protests in the country, officials said on Tuesday.

As many as 210 accounts holding nearly $8 million collectively were frozen under authorization from the nation's Emergencies Act, which was invoked in an effort to quell protests against COVID-19 restrictions, Canadian Assistant Deputy Minister of Finance Isabelle Jacques told a parliamentary committee, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) reported...

Some conservative members of Parliament have said constituents reported that holds were placed on their accounts after they donated to the protests, according to the CBC.

But the RCMP said it only provided banks with the names of convoy organizers and the owners of trucks who had remained in the protest zone in Canada's capital city of Ottawa, the CBC reported.

According to the CBC, Jacques told the parliamentary committee that the financial measures in the Emergency Act were designed to put financial pressure on protesters to go home. She said it was unlikely people who donated small amounts to the protests would be captured in the freezing of bank accounts, but not impossible.

"It's not impossible in view of the order, but in view of the exchange of information and the focused approach that was taken to stop the illegal funding of these activities, it would appear to be unlikely that this occurred, but not impossible," she told the committee, the CBC reported

As far as I know, there was one claim by a conservative politician that a "single mom" had her account frozen over a $50 donation - but no actual proof that this was true.  The politician refused to supply her name, and (as far as I can tell) offered no proof.

It would not be at all surprising if it was a lie from a wingnut.

Update:

All use of the Emergency Law is over:

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is revoking the use of the Emergencies Act, the powerful legislative tool that was deployed in response to protests and blockades that erupted in Ottawa and at border crossings over recent weeks.

"The situation is no longer an emergency," Trudeau told a news conference.

"We are confident that existing laws and bylaws are now sufficient to keep people safe."

The Governor General signed off on the revocation on Wednesday afternoon, which formally ended the state of emergency.

 Wingnuts will have to find something else to hyperventilate about. 

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