UN expert Gay McDougall cites racial inequality in Canada

According to a recent report by the UN’s independent expert on minority issues, Gay McDougall, Canada still has a long way to go before it can claim to have eliminated racial discrimination.

District of North Van council to vote on politicians getting legal advice on conflicts of interest

Staff have recommended that $5,000 be set aside from the legal services budget for independent advice for council members.

Chinese New Year parade starts early in 2010

The marshal of Vancouver’s 36th annual Chinese New Year parade, Jun Ing, has a lot on his mind these days.

Can capitalism save the Earth from climate change?

Two members of the Pembina Institute have argued that with the right environmental policies, including a sharp increase in wind-powered electricity generation, the country’s gross domestic product could rise.

Vancouver bar surveillance questioned

Can bars and clubs in Vancouver legally scan your ID and take your photograph as a precondition for entry? There seems to be some confusion around the matter.

Vision Vancouver looks after businesses with tax shift

Vancouver residents may want to ask the mayor one question on December 3 when city council holds its final public consultation on next year’s budget. Why do they have to pay more taxes and receive fewer services while businesses get a tax holiday?

B.C. pushes private power projects

Plutonic Power Corp. CEO Donald McInnes uses words like shocking and mind-boggling when describing this past summer’s B.C. Utilities Commission ruling that B.C. Hydro’s 2008 Long Term Acquisition Plan was “not in the public interest”.

Hours-of-service bylaw rankles restaurateur

Vancouver council’s vote to allow longer liquor hours in licensed restaurants is giving at least one restaurateur a nasty hangover.

Proposed provincial law allowing removal of homeless from streets may violate Charter rights

A proposal to create a provincial law to allow authorities to forcibly remove the homeless from the streets may not stand the test of Section 1 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

TransLink hunts for money

More than five years ago, TransLink brought forward a three-year strategy and 10-year outlook, which explicitly acknowledged that spending vast sums of money wasn’t going to get many more people out of their cars and on the transit system.

Harmonized sales tax will raise ticket prices

The arts community, like the restaurant sector, has greeted the HST with concern.

B.C. cider prices questioned

Thanks to B.C.’s peculiar alcohol regulations, cider with a higher alcohol content is less expensive than cider with a lower percentage of alcohol. That concerns Tim Stockwell, director of the Centre for Addictions Research of B.C.

Oil prices may create more local tourism

A Royal Roads University professor says local tourism will survive a tough recession but that peak oil and localization of travel will affect the industry in coming years.

Ciclovia divides West End

A public-space-reallocation proposal for a ciclovia stretching from English Bay to Jericho Park sparked the greatest debate at the June 2 meeting of council's transportation and traffic committee.

City staff propose that "Summer Spaces" replace car-free days in Vancouver