News

PUBLICATION: WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
PAGE: A7
WORD COUNT: 494
BYLINE: Mia Rabson

Aboriginal inmates in Canada make up too high a percentage of Canada's prison population and tend to get harsher sentences and less programming, a report from the country's prison watchdog said Friday.

Howard Sapers, the Correctional Investigator of Canada, said the situation for aboriginal inmates in this country is appalling and called upon the Correctional Service of Canada to create a deputy commissioner for aboriginal corrections.

PUBLICATION: WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
PAGE: A7

Manitoba MP Pat Martin has now apologized for accusing the Conservatives of turning the Olympic torch relay into a partisan romp through their own ridings after he learned the Olympic flame will hit his downtown riding.

Kenny Boyce, the chairman of the Olympic torch relay planning committee in Winnipeg, said Friday The Forks is the best location for a big event that can handle large crowds and adverse weather conditions.

There will be a big torch celebration event at The Forks Jan. 5.

PUBLICATION: WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
PAGE: H2
WORD COUNT: 621

PUBLICATION: WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
PAGE: D5
SECTION: Outdoors
WORD COUNT: 557
BYLINE: Robert D. Sopuck

Sopuck Firearms owners and hunters throughout Manitoba are cheering the results of a parliamentary vote that brings the long-gun registry one step closer to elimination.

PUBLICATION: The Toronto Star
PAGE: A09
BY: Les Whittington
SOURCE: Toronto Star

The Olympic torch relay will be celebrated most of next month in Ontario but residents of ridings held by the Harper Conservatives will have a much better chance of taking part in the celebrations.

As it travels across the province from Dec. 11 to Jan. 4, the highly anticipated torch-bearing run will make pit stops at relay events in 29 Conservative-held ridings, seven NDP-held ridings and three ridings held by the Liberals.

PUBLICATION: WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
PAGE: A4
SECTION: Top Columnist

An otherwise unremarkable question period last Monday took on a whole new dimension when it turned into a melee.

Dozens of environmental activists in the public gallery, watching the events on the floor of the House of Commons, erupted into a flash-mob-style protest. One stood up first to chant "pass bill C-311," followed by dozens of others.

C-311 is a private NDP member's bill to force the government to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

PUBLICATION: WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
PAGE: A8
BYLINE: Mia Rabson

The federal Conservatives launched a publicity campaign this week trolling for enough votes to push through legislation that would scrap the federal long-gun registry.

But at least one Manitoba MP says the plan might be backfiring and actually welcomed the campaign as free advertising for himself.

The bill, introduced by Manitoba Conservative MP Candice Hoeppner, comes up for its first vote in the House of Commons Nov. 4. It would end the requirement for Canadians to register unrestricted guns.

KEYWORDS: CONSTRUCTION ECONOMY LABOUR POLITICS
PUBLICATION: cpw

OTTAWA _ The Harper government has dumped three boxloads of information about its efforts to stimulate Canada's sputtering economy on Parliament's independent budget watchdog.

Kevin Page had asked for more information, complaining that the sketchy data provided up to now made it impossible to tell whether $12 billion in stimulus spending is having any impact on the economy.

PUBLICATION: WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
PAGE: A4

Manitoba NDP MP Jim Maloway was among the thousands of people whose hope to get the H1N1 shot this week was dashed by long lines and confusion.

Lineups at Ottawa flu clinics, like those in Winnipeg and elsewhere in Canada, have ranged from two to three hours at most sites every day this week.

Maloway attempted to get his shot Tuesday night but the long lines meant the clinic stopped accepting patients hours before closing time to ensure they all got through.

PUBLICATION: The Ottawa Citizen
SECTION: News
BYLINE: David Akin
SOURCE: Canwest News Service

Opposition politicians accused officials in the Prime Minister's Office of threatening the integrity of the independent Commissioner of Lobbying, in the wake of revelations that the watchdog was investigating a lobbyist firm with close connections to senior federal Conservatives.