Post Tagged with: "clement"

Staying the Course: The Real Significance of the Paradis Digital Economy Speech

Christian Paradis delivered his first public speech yesterday as Industry Minister at the Canadian Telecom Summit. The media and attendees may have been hoping for a sense of the Paradis perspective on many digital economy issues (telecom, foreign ownership, spectrum, digital economy strategy, copyright), but what they got was a very slightly modified version of former Industry Minister Tony Clement’s digital economy speech from November 2010. That includes the government’s yet to be fully articulated position on telecom foreign investment and the forthcoming spectrum auction.

Several reports from the speech have focused on these telecom issues, suggesting that government is sounding “more ambiguous and indefinite” on telecom foreign investment. I don’t see it – the government has been saying the same thing for months. For example, the Globe points to this comment from Paradis calling for a:

predictable regulatory framework that ensures an appropriate balance between competition and investment

as evidence that lobbying from incumbents has had an impact on Conservative thinking.

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June 1, 2011 3 comments News

Clement Commits to Open Data

New Treasury Board President Tony Clement has said he’s committed to advancing the government’s open data efforts. Clement noted that initaitive is consistent with what he was trying to do as Industry Minister on the digital economy strategy.

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May 24, 2011 Comments are Disabled News

The Cabinet Shuffle: Why a New Industry Minister May Not Mean Changed Policies or Big Delays

Yesterday’s cabinet shuffle sparked considerable discussion over the implications for digital policy issues including the digital economy strategy, telecom, copyright, and privacy (Reuters, Globe, Nowak). The changes – which see James Moore remain at Canadian Heritage but install Christian Paradis as the new Industry Minister – create a new ministerial combination that is often tasked with jointly addressing issues such as copyright and communications policy.

Tony Clement made digital policies a core part of his agenda both in terms of prioritizing the issues and using technology to actively communicate and interact with the public. Given the uncertainty of Paradis’ priorities and the need to become familiar with some complex files, it is understandable that many speculate the cabinet shuffle will slow the process of change and possibly alter the substance. I must admit that I’m not so sure. Every minister has the chance to put their own mark on departmental policies, but I suspect both the core substance of Canadian digital policy and the speed of change will remain largely unchanged.

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May 19, 2011 9 comments News

Clement Open To Penalties for Data Breaches

Industry Minister Tony Clement says he is open to adding new penalties for privacy breaches to a bill that would establish mandatory security breach disclosures.  The comments come following the high profile Sony PlayStation Network breach and calls from the Privacy Commissioner of Canada for tougher penalties.

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May 9, 2011 1 comment News

Clement Vows to Overturn CRTC if UBB Decision Unchanged

Industry Minister Tony Clement told a University of Alberta audience yesterday that “We asked (the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission) to review their decision, and if they come back with the same decision the cabinet would overrule it because it wouldn’t be consistent with government policy…promoting competition and choice.” Clement […]

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February 24, 2011 18 comments News