This creates high paying jobs for hundreds of thousands of Canadians and helps build the middle class back to the strength is deserves.

This is important because all 530 acres of land belonging to Six Nations will be used for the Empire Homes housing development and a park. As it stands now we would lose 330 acres of this land and receive 200 acres elsewhere. Six Nations people want land for their children and grandchildren so they can build homes in the future. This proposed deal is not a fair deal for us. We can no longer afford to accept" it's better than nothing"

Short Term Rentals (STR's) will bring down my property values, interfere with my right to a peaceful and quiet life that I paid a premium to acquire here. Had I wanted to live next door to a motel I would have chosen so, instead I chose to live in a residential area, not a commercial one. I do not want you to change my zoning nor approved usage of property within that residential zone.

Scientists tell us that Grassy Narrows’ river, their lifeblood, can be made safe again. We should seize this momentous opportunity. Get the facts / sign up to get alerts / take action / join the River Run www.freegrassy.net The provincial and federal governments are talking of forging a new relationship with aboriginal peoples. This requires righting outstanding wrongs, something that is an urgent imperative in Grassy Narrows. Ontario and Canada must take decisive action to resolve the ongoing legacy of mercury poisoning in Grassy Narrows, and all other outstanding issues. This includes apologizing, cleaning the river, providing state of the art care for mercury survivors, adequate compensation for all who have been impacted, and establishing a Grassy Narrows run environmental health monitoring station. To ensure that this never happens again we must respect Grassy Narrows' decisions for their territory. Never again should harmful decisions be imposed on Grassy Narrows people and the territory that they depend on.

Right now hundreds of transgender people in BC are on wait lists for gender affirming health care. That's because these services, including timely access to experienced surgeons, are extremely limited and under resourced in BC - and in Canada. A recent arson at a Montreal clinic has shed light on this situation. The clinic is the only location in the country that offers gender affirming lower body surgeries. It will not be fully operational for a lengthy period of time due to damages from the arson. [1] Some progress is being made in BC - the new Trans Care BC program is designed to improve health care options for transgender people. Trans Care BC will be submitting a business case to the Ministry of Health to create a provincial gender affirming surgical program. [2] But this process will take time and right now access to gender affirming care in BC remains very limited and wait lists continue to grow. We, the undersigned, ask that until timely access to gender affirming health care is available in BC and Canada, the Ministry of Health a) increase access to MSP funding for out-of-province and/or out-of-country surgeries beyond the program at the Montreal clinic, and b) expedite plans to create a BC surgical program for trans care. Trans people in BC need access to care now. Please sign and share. Sources: [1] http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/genital-reassignment-clinic-postpones-surgeries-after-fire-1.3571262 [2] http://www.phsa.ca/transgender/Documents/Gender-Affirming%20Surgery.pdf This petition is supported by the Catherine White Holman Wellness Centre

Food is life. You are what you eat. People need vitamins and minerals that are increasingly hard to maintain through diet with over-farming and conventional farming practices. Not to mention the pesticides act as estrogen and are also making the current generation sterile. Why does "organic" labelling cost so much? I can understand minor price increases based on season and availability, but most of the cost is to cover the 3rd party "organic" labelling costs or just plain price-gouging. This 3rd party should be abolished and conventional farming practices should be converted to organic farming practices. Every person should be able to afford properly grown foods within their salary regardless of class or social rank. With increasing evidence supporting poor diet promotes depression, this would make the greater population happier and less dependant on toxic/deadly pharmaceuticals.

In the throne speech on May 17, 2016, Premier Wall announced to the world that he disagrees with 97% of climate scientists and still believes climate change is a hoax. His words, given by the Lieutenant Governor through the Throne Speech: "It is troubling that today, there are some in this country who, given the opportunity, would shut down major parts of Saskatchewan’s economy and put thousands of hard-working Saskatchewan people out of work, all in the name of some misguided dogma that has no basis in reality. "There are those who are not comfortable with and even oppose much of what we produce in Saskatchewan and how we produce it. They would prefer that those sectors did not exist. They look at those jobs like they are somehow harming the country and the world." Unfortunately Mr. Wall, there is now a firm global consensus that fossil fuels are harming the world. When you say climate change is a "dogma" you are going against the Pentagon, the World Bank, the Pope, and the leaders of 177 countries around the world who recently signed the Paris climate agreement last month. It is time to join with the rest of the world, realize the limits of the fossil fuel economy while it slowly phases down, and start to invest in high quality, safe, clean energy jobs to ensure Saskatchewan has a strong, resilient and modern economy for the future.

Life as they know it is over for many workers in Fort Murray. A few days ago they were working. Today, many have no home, no job, and none of their personal items. Workers in Fort McMurray come from Newfoundland, PEI, Nova Scotia. Some temporary foreign workers have come from as far as the Philippines. Not everyone worked in the oil sands. These are Tim Horton workers, gas station attendants, and caregivers. Right now many of them cannot get Employment Insurance because of stiff rules. The Federal Government needs to relax the EI rules so that workers can get the income they need to get back on their feet. Sign this petition to support ALL worker evacuees from Fort McMurray. Migrant workers have additional restrictions. They come to Canada on a closed work permit. Under immigration laws, they are only allowed to work for one employer, at one location, at one time. But their workplace has likely been destroyed by a fire. Many migrant workers paid agencies over $8,000 to come work in Canada. Many took loans for those fees and are under massive debt. They’ve been sending what little they can save from their minimum wage job to their families back home. Many migrant workers sick parents, or children or siblings that need them to keep sending money. Migrant workers are ready to look for work, to get back on their feet to support their families and continue to build Alberta’s economy. They just need the federal government to fix the rules that are stopping them from doing so. Sign this petition and please share it. This tragedy shows how broken rules are for migrant workers. The federal government is currently reviewing the temporary foreign workers program. Find out more and take action at http://migrantrights.ca/

Thousands of people need to come to Canada for safety from terror and dangerous regimes. The people of the Lower Mainland want to do everything they can to help our new neighbors. It is difficult for Refugees to find jobs, attend schools, and integrate into the community, not to mention the danger of social isolation. To combat these issues, forward thinking cities across Canada, such as Victoria [1], Fredericton [2], and Halifax [3] have made transit free for Refugees for a year once they arrive. Many other cities are considering similar programs. We, the undersigned, ask Translink to offer the same support. Reports from city councils and transit authorities report the cost of the passes is minimal compared to the how much they could help Refugees get established and included in society. When one talks to the community, neighbors, support workers, and refugees emphasizes how much their current lack of transportation is an obstacle to getting settled. It's time to help our new neighbors - please sign and share. [1]http://bctransit.com/victoria/news/article?nid=1403645555016 [2]http://www.capitalfm.ca/local-news/2016/01/11/city-council-agrees-to-offer-transit-passes-to-syrian-refugees [3]http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/halifax-refugees-to-get-temp-transit-passes-1.3340148

"Taxes are what we pay for civilized society.'' — Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., U.S. Supreme Court Justice "Taken to its logical extreme, the Laffer curve makes no sense because, if you lower your taxes to zero, how are you going to get higher revenues?" — The Right Honourable Jean Chretien, 20th Prime-Minister of Canada Taxation is essential to the functioning of a society—indeed, it is a strong indication that “civilization” actually exists. Consequently, the manner in which tax is levied and administered has always been a vitally important question for society as a whole and this is truer today than ever before. Governments are increasingly being held to account for their spending yet they are finding it difficult to maintain their tax base in the face of a dematerializing economy and increasingly mobile and sophisticated taxpayers. Domestic and international rules on the taxation of cross-border profits have not kept pace with the fundamental changes brought about by globalization and new business practices in a digital environment where intangible assets and mobile capital become ever more important. Public perceptions and expectations as well as political dynamics have also changed drastically in a very short timeframe. At the same time, there is an intensive debate in the public about where the line between what is acceptable tax planning and what counts as aggressive and no longer socially acceptable tax avoidance should be drawn. As a result there is now a commitment to international cooperation between governments to a degree never seen before in the area of taxation. The public debate on compliance and fairness in taxation has become rancorous in many countries, carrying the risk of reputational damage for tax payers (and the professionals advising them) even when they comply with the law. This is an extremely complex subject and I believe that it should not be left to taxation authorities, taxpayers, their professional advisors and the public to decide what constitutes aggressive and undesirable tax avoidance/planning. It requires the acceptance by all relevant parties (legislators, taxation authorities, taxpayers and the profession) of their duties with a concomitant change in attitude to determine what constitutes responsible tax planning. I believe that this change must start with the legislators as they are in control of the matter. It should not be beyond the ingenuity of mankind to construct an integrated and fair taxation system, clear in its intention, logical and easy to understand. If legislators do not wish their legislation to be misinterpreted or misused it must be drafted to clarify the intent and remove the opportunity for misinterpretation. They also need to ensure that tax law applies equally to all tax payers. Governments lose credibility with their citizens, with a consequent reduction in tax morale, if the perception is that some sectors of society are above the law or that certain taxes are “optional” if one has sufficient resources and good advisors. Moving on to taxation authorities, it is their duty to collect the tax intended by the legislation—no more, no less. If the amount of tax due is unclear from the law, then the law should be changed. Leaving it to be decided in court always creates uncertainty. If taxation authorities want all taxpayers to abide by the legislation then all taxpayers should be, and be seen to be, equally targeted by administrative measures. Crucially, taxation authorities must recognize that the vast majority of taxpayers and their advisors are honest and have a genuine desire to fulfil their obligations. However, taxation systems are complex, mistakes will occur and tax authorities should not automatically assume that every failure to comply is deliberate and fraudulent. Regarding taxpayers, their duty is to pay the amount of tax that is due according to the law—nothing more and nothing less. In order to do this they need to be able to correctly determine the amount of tax, which brings us back to the point regarding clear tax legislation. However, they also need to appreciate that tax evasion and fraud are not victimless crimes—if they are not paying their share they are robbing other taxpayers who have to take up the slack. Tax avoidance is more complex, especially the vexed question of “aggressive” tax planning or avoidance. While this is not illegal, there is an increasing groundswell of opinion that it can be inappropriate, especially when based around “artificial” arrangements that defeat the purpose of the legislation. Like it or not, more and more people across constituencies see a moral dimension in taxation. Taxpayers rarely enter into such arrangements without consulting one of the several professions competing in the field of tax advice. Qualified professional accountants are prime providers of tax advice and the only one to abide by a global Code of Ethics. It is often said by the accountancy profession that is in a difficult position—sandwiched between its duty to clients, who demand to pay the least tax possible (a duty confirmed by many Courts of Law), and taxation authorities expecting them to act as unpaid tax inspectors. Taxpayers have become increasingly litigious where they feel that their accountant has failed to provide them with appropriate advice, including advice on what could be perceived by others as aggressive tax avoidance schemes. [...] Source: Fairness in Taxation, International Federation of Accountants, Friedrich Roedler is Chair of the Fédération des Experts Comptables Européens (FEE) Tax Policy Group. https://www.ifac.org/global-knowledge-gateway/viewpoints/fairness-taxation

CRA is the primary source of funding for the Canadian Government. The CRA is to act as an honest broker in gathering this funding. Our tax laws are enacted to provide that Canadians - individuals and corporations - are treated equitably and fairly in reference to their share of the costs of Government. Transferring this cost, by striking special reductions in special cases, imposes an unfair burden on those who don't receive special consideration. Making, or taking, a gift or gratuity in this regard, is abhorrent to the notion of fairness. The practice should be condemned and those doing it dismissed from the service.

WHEREAS In the last 12 months there have been three notable crashes on Seymour street between Dunsmuir and Pender (Cambie Hostel, mangled bike racks, window of A&W); WHEREAS The intersections at Dunsmuir and Pender streets are areas of high pedestrian traffic, with pedestrians occupying all corners throughout the day; WHEREAS Dunsmuir St is an arterial bicycle route that forms part of the AAA (all ages and abilities) bicycle network in downtown Vancouver and a public bike system is planned for Summer 2016; WHEREAS It is common to see drivers of motor vehicles attempting to enter the Dunsmuir separated bike lane when turning from Seymour St; WHEREAS There were 9 pedestrian fatalities in Vancouver in 2015; WHEREAS Traffic crashes are fixable problems, caused by dangerous streets and unsafe drivers; they are not accidents; THEREFORE, we the undersigned petition the City of Vancouver as follows: That the City of Vancouver conduct an assessment of current traffic patterns and possible traffic calming measures for Seymour street downtown in order to avoid pedestrian injuries or fatalities in the area.