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Province to modernize Gaming and Liquor Act prior to cannabis legalization

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Minister Ganley and Minister Ceci are joined by Alain Maisonneuve, president and CEO, Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC) to discuss cannabis legalization and amendments to the Gaming and Liquor Act.

Updating legislation to prepare for legal cannabis

Albertans’ health and safety will be top priority as the province looks to modernize the Gaming and Liquor Act before cannabis is legalized by the federal government.

The amendments would give the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC) the tools necessary to oversee and enforce Alberta’s new cannabis market in advance of cannabis legalization, expected this summer.

“We remain focused on building a system for legal cannabis that prioritizes the safety and security of all Albertans. These amendments to the Gaming and Liquor Act represent another step in our continued work to prepare for the legalization of cannabis.”

Kathleen Ganley, Minister of Justice and Solicitor General

The updates, which include increased fines and naming restrictions, would help to further protect public health, keep cannabis out of the hands of children and limit the illegal market.

Restricting how cannabis retailers name their stores and products is an important step in protecting public health. Stores that will sell cannabis for recreational use are not pharmacies, nor will they have professional oversight from pharmacy practitioners. The Alberta College of Pharmacists supports this legislation.”

Greg Eberhart, registrar, Alberta College of Pharmacists

If passed, the proposed amendments would:

  • Prohibit naming and branding cannabis retailers and products with terms and symbols that have medical connotations such as “therapeutic” or “medicinal.”
  • Increase the maximum administrative fines for infractions of the Gaming and Liquor Act and regulation from $200,000 to $1 million.
  • Allow a court to rely on a law enforcement officer’s ability to infer that a product is cannabis based on its packaging, labelling or smell, for the purposes of offenses under this act, mirroring the current practice for alcohol and tobacco.
  • Create an offence to enable enforcement against an owner or operator of a premises who allows smoking or vaping of cannabis where it is prohibited, similar to existing rules for alcohol and tobacco.
  • Enable the legal blending and infusion of liquor products in an effort to modernize liquor policies.

The proposed changes would also provide new opportunities within the liquor industry, including ferment-on-premises. This would allow consumers to make their own beer, wine, ciders and coolers within licensed facilities.

“Our government has worked to eliminate unnecessary regulation that negatively impacts our restaurant and bar industry. Ferment-on-premises and blending of liquor products represent common sense changes that open new revenue streams for business and allows Albertans another way to responsibly enjoy themselves.”   

Joe Ceci, President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance

“This is something that my customers have been asking for years. I am pleased to see action being taken to allow ferment-on-premises in Alberta. I look forward to expanding my business in the future to offer this service.”

Al Henderson, Creative Connoisseur Inc.

President Todayville Inc., Honorary Colonel 41 Signal Regiment, Board Member Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Arts Award Foundation, Director Canadian Forces Liaison Council (Alberta) musician, photographer, former VP/GM CTV Edmonton.

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illegal immigration

In endorsing Trump, Border Patrol union pushes back against Biden, Harris claims

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From The Center Square

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The National Border Patrol Council, the union representing roughly 16,000 Border Patrol agents nationwide, endorsed former President Donald Trump for president while criticizing President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

On Monday, the union issued a statement, saying, “On behalf of the 16,000 men and women represented by the National Border Patrol Council, we strongly support and endorse Donald J. Trump for President of the United States.”

They did so after endorsing Trump at a Prescott, Ariz., rally on Sunday where Trump was joined by many Border Patrol leaders.

“If we allow border czar Harris to win this election, every city, every community in this great country is going to go to hell. The untold millions of people unvetted, who she has allowed into this country that are committing murders, rapes, robberies, burglaries and every other crime will continue to put our country in peril,” NBPC’s new president, Paul Perez, said.

“Only one man can fix that. That is Donald J. Trump. He has always stood with the men and women who protect this border, who put their lives on the line for the country.”

The union also said border experts want Trump to be president “so that the border can be secured without compromise. Only the drug cartels and Democrats want an open border – that’s what Border Czar Harris has given them and will continue to do in the future.”

The union’s leaders for the last nearly four years have joined Trump at border events in Texas and Arizona. After Trump announced he was running for reelection, the NBPC’s former president, Brandon Judd, endorsed him and joined him at campaign events.

The NBPC has repeatedly criticized the border policies of Biden and Harris, arguing they created the border crisis. The union has also repeatedly fact checked claims they’ve made, including refuting that it had ever endorsed Biden for president.

Prior to dropping out of the presidential race, during the June presidential debate, Biden claimed, “the Border Patrol union endorsed me, endorsed my position.”

In response, the union posted a statement on X, saying, “To be clear, we never have and never will endorse Biden.”

During the Sept. 10 presidential debate between Harris and Trump, Harris made comments related to “the importance of sovereignty and territorial integrity,” which the union criticized. “She apparently only cares about other countries’ sovereignty b/c when it comes to America, she and President Biden opened up the border, erasing any semblance of sovereignty,” it said.

After Harris made claims about her border policies at a campaign event in Douglas, Ariz., the union said, “VP Harris claimed that she played a role in increasing Border Patrol Agent overtime pay. This couldn’t be further from the truth. As with all things border related she was no where to be found when we needed her.”

In response to Harris claiming that Border Patrol agents needed more resources, the union said, “We have apprehended over 8 million illegal immigrants over the last 4 years and now you realize we need more help 38 days before the election.

“Vice president Harris has ignored the border problem she created for over three years. She goes down there for 20 minutes for a photo op and decides to repeat some of the things the NPBC has said before. But again, where has she been the last 3 1/2 years?”

During the debate and at campaign rallies, Harris has repeatedly claimed she would sign a Senate border bill into law, which she says allocated funding to hire 1,500 Border Patrol agents. She and others claim Trump killed the bill.

On Sunday, Trump vowed to immediately ask Congress for funds to hire an additional 10,000 Border Patrol employees, give existing agents a 10% raise, and create a $10,000 retention and signing bonus, if elected president.

“I will always stand with the incredible men and women of Border Patrol,” he said. “They have a tremendous shortage because they haven’t been treated right. They want to do their jobs. You know, they consider it bad treatment when you’re not allowed to do your jobs.”

The Senate border bill does the opposite of what Harris and other proponents claim, according to the bill language, including allowing an unlimited number of illegal foreign nationals into the country due to numerous exceptions. The bill would codify existing policies created by DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for which he was impeached in February, which Republicans argue is facilitating the ongoing crisis.

Texas officials also argued the bill would codify mass migration and nullify state sovereignty.

U.S. Senate Democrats and Independents ultimately didn’t support it; Senate Democratic leadership never brought it to a vote.

U.S. Senate Democrats have also sought to distance themselves from Biden-Harris border policies as local communities grapple with increased crime and social services costs associated with illegal border crossers. Senate leadership also refused to consider a border bill passed by the U.S. House.

Despite Harris’ recent campaign claims, while a U.S. senator, she sought to reduce funding and staff of federal border agencies, including seeking to eliminate U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement, the agency responsible for removing some of the most dangerous criminals.

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Trudeau gov’t suggests federal funding of media outlets an attempt to buy ‘social cohesion’

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From LifeSiteNews

By Clare Marie Merkowsky

The Liberal-run Heritage Department is backing a program that offers 100% payroll rebates for mainstream journalists.

Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge’s department admitted that federally funded media outlets buy “social cohesion.”

According to information obtained October 7 by Blacklock’s Reporter, the Canadian Association of Journalists praised a program from Canada’s Heritage Department, run by the Liberal St-Onge, that offers 100% payroll rebates for mainstream journalists.

“The crisis in local journalism is a threat to social cohesion,” the report claimed, failing to explain what it meant by “social cohesion.”

The report praised the Local Journalism Initiative and the rebates for mainstream media up to $19.6 million annually, effectively making federally funded journalists government employees.

“The Local Journalism Initiative contributes to social cohesion by having journalists tell stories about and for communities,” the report continued. “Local journalism helps to preserve a sense of community identity and social cohesion.”

“Local journalism relays information that has an impact on the daily lives of readers and reports on the political and social situation,” it claimed.

“It strengthens the reader’s connection to a community, emphasizing their role as a citizen in a democracy,” the report continued. “With the ever-increasing influx of digital information, local journalism is of paramount importance in the life of a community.”

While the report failed to explain exactly what “social cohesion” means, media funded by the Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government has become infamous for propping up the Liberals while tearing down any opposition to the party or its radical agendas.

In fact, in September, House leader Karina Gould directed mainstream media reporters to “scrutinize” Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre, who has repeatedly condemned government-funded media as being an arm of the Liberals.

Indeed, there have been multiple instances of the CBC pushing what appears to be ideological content, including the creation of pro-LGBT material for kids, tacitly endorsing the gender mutilation of children, promoting euthanasia, and even seeming to justify the burning of mostly Catholic churches throughout the country.

Despite this, beginning in 2019, Parliament changed the Income Tax Act to give yearly rebates of 25 percent for each news employee in cabinet-approved media outlets earning up to $55,000 a year to a maximum of $13,750.

The Canadian Heritage Department since admitted that the payouts are not even sufficient to keep legacy media outlets running and recommended that the rebates be doubled to a maximum of $29,750 annually.

Last November, Trudeau again announced increased payouts for legacy media outlets that coincide with the leadup to the 2025 election. The subsidies are expected to cost taxpayers $129 million over the next five years.

Similarly, Trudeau’s 2024 budget outlined $42 million in increased funding for the CBC in 2024-25.

The $42 million to the CBC is in addition to massive media payouts that already make up roughly 70 percent of its operating budget and total more than $1 billion annually.

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