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Bar organizations are warning Ottawa that a new penalty regime to be applied to legal professionals — featuring penalties of up to $1.5 million for immigration and refugee lawyers determined by federal officials to have participated in clients’ misrepresentations — will be constitutionally challenged if lawyers are not exempted from the proposed regulations, which are expected to come into force later this year.

The proposed regulations prohibit a legal professional, who represents or advises someone for payment, from misrepresenting or withholding information, advising them to misrepresent or withhold information, or communicating misleading information.

The new administrative penalties regime would apply to the country’s approximately 12,000 immigration consultants and to all immigration lawyers.

The Canadian Bar Association, the law societies of Ontario, B.C. and Newfoundland and Labrador, the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association (CILA), and the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL) wrote to Immigration Canada objecting to applying the proposed penalty regime to legal professionals.

The Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association says “the proposed regulations would be unconstitutional and illegal in their application to lawyers.”.

The baseline penalties for the two types of violations are significant: $15,000 for misrepresentation and $5,000 for representation or advice without authorization.

Consequences for those found to have violated the regulations would include Immigration Canada publishing on its website their names and business information, as well as the nature of the violation(s) and the penalties imposed

https://www.law360.ca/ca/articles/2322169/constitutional-clash-brewing-as-ottawa-targets-immigration-bar-with-up-to-1-5-million-in-admin-penalties

Dans tous les domaines, il faut encourager les gens qui font de la qualité.

A vial of insulin costs far more in the U.S. than it does in Canada.

Drug prices are set by Canada’s Patented Medicine Prices Review Board which sets price caps by comparing drug prices across a group of 11 countries. The US used to be included in the formula, but was removed from the group in 2022 — because US drug prices are an insane global outlier.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patented_Medicine_Prices_Review_Board

A group of Pharma companies including Pfizer and Merck have asked the Trump administration to put pressure on Canada. They are accusing the country of unfair trade practices.

The american voters have really outdone themselves this time

Meet New York Council Member Inna Vernikov (R-Sheepshead Bay)

She has successfully gotten developers to cut affordable housing in half and build more parking spaces. During Tuesday’s City Council land use hearing, Vernikov signaled her support for the revised rezoning proposal at 2501 Coney Island Avenue.

This is the current location:

The new zoning measure will only allow four stories comprising 27 units and 35 parking spaces, down from the original proposal of 11 stories with 60 units and only 24 parking spaces. So, 33 fewer families can live in the neighborhood, but 11 more cars can.

“When this proposal first came to me there were significant concerns ... with what it would do to the character of the neighborhood, and also with parking which is always a concern with any new project in the district due to our traffic issues and lack of sufficient parking generally” Vernikov said at the hearing.

Meet London businessman Matt Clifford.

Keir Starmer wants AI at the heart of government. This week, the Prime Minister unveiled plans to digitize the UK civil service using AI, claiming it could save up to £45 billion.

Oh, and the man in charge? His name is Matt Clifford.

https://sifted.eu/articles/matt-clifford-to-oversee-ai-revolution-news

But while the government boasts about its ambitions, it has been less forthcoming about the business interests of the architect behind its flagship AI policy.

Entrepreneur First, the investment firm Clifford co-founded and co-owns, holds stakes in 449 tech companies. He also has dozens more holdings in his own name. Despite his central role in shaping AI policy, these financial ties were not publicly disclosed.

Documents obtained through the Freedom of Information reveal Matt Clifford has stakes in at least 8 companies involved in the Startup Coalition—an influential industry group funded by big tech.

The Startup Coalition has lobbied in favour of the UK government’s controversial plan to exempt AI firms from copyright law. This proposal is opposed by artists and the media

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/feb/25/why-are-creatives-fighting-uk-government-ai-proposals-on-copyright

https://pressgazette.co.uk/media_business/copyright-ai-ft-right-wrong-opt-out-exemption/

Labour ministers have met with the group to discuss AI regulation and copyright issues once a month, on average, records show. The Startup Coalition also receives funding from Google, which stands to benefit from AI copyright exemptions.

Professor Gina Neff, director of the Minderoo Centre for Technology & Democracy at Cambridge University, told Democracy for Sale that government should talk to a wider circle of experts.

“There are many in civil society who are frustrated at the lack of access to tech policymaking in government. The UK has incredible expertise in AI, and we want to see that diversity reflected in decision-making.”

Matt Clifford helped establish the UK’s AI Safety Institute—recently rebranded the AI Security Institute, reportedly to align with the Trump White House’s AI approach. He is widely regarded as a respected expert in the field. Starmer accepted all 50 recommendations from his AI plan, published in January.

However, some in the tech and media sectors are uneasy about his influence.

“Of course, you want entrepreneurs involved” one industry source told Democracy for Sale. “But you don’t give one man—who runs the firm with the most AI investments in Europe—the job of writing the policy, then accept all his recommendations the same day he publishes his plan.”

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and Matt Clifford have yet to respond to requests for comment.