Updates to Library of Parliament Summaries

The Library of Parliament has recently updated 2 documents I have mentioned in the past:

• Electoral reform initiatives in Canadian provinces, revised June 12, 2006: "Discussion about electoral reform in Canada is not new. Every time the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system returns a lopsided or distorted result, including the under-representation of women and minorities, there are renewed calls for reform. As a result, five provinces have recently undertaken studies to see whether reform of the electoral system might help to alleviate Canada’s 'democratic deficit'." First mentioned in the January 3, 2006 post Electoral Law Resources on the Internet
• Bill C-2: The Federal Accountability Act, 21 April 2006, revised 23 June 2006: "Bill C-2, An Act providing for conflict of interest rules, restrictions on election financing and measures respecting administrative transparency, oversight and accountability (the Federal Accountability Act) was given first reading in the House of Commons on 11 April 2006. The bill makes a series of amendments to existing legislation and proposes two new Acts, in diverse areas that are generally linked to political accountability. The bill’s short title, the Federal Accountability Act, is the name under which it became known as part of the Conservative Party of Canada’s platform in the recent election campaign." Major changes made to this legislative summary since April are in bold. First mentioned in the July 1, 2006 post Recent Library of Parliament Publications on Access to Information

Other recent Library of Parliament publications include:

• Civilian Oversight of the RCMP's National Security Functions (11 January 2006)
• Parliamentary Committee Review of Regulations (30 January 2006)
• Procurement, Contracting and Advertising Management in the Federal Government: Latest Developments(6 February 2006)
• Reproductive Technologies: Surrogacy, and Egg and Sperm Donation (9 February 2006)
• The Ethics Commissioner (16 February 2006)
• The Gomery Commission Report, Phase 2 - An Overview (16 February 2006)
• Telecommunications and Lawful Access: I. The Legislative Situation in Canada (21 February 2006)
• Political Financing and Campaign Regulation (23 February 2006)
• Telecommunications and Lawful Access: II. The Legislative Situation in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia (28 February 2006)
• The Possible Establishment of a Federal Director of Public Prosecutions in Canada (2 March 2006)
• The Federal Lobbyists Registration System (8 March 2006)
• Conflict of Interest Codes for Parliamentarians: A Long Road (10 March 2006)
• Crown Corporation Governance and Accountability Framework: A Review of Recently Proposed Reforms (16 March 2006)
• Duplicate Private Health Care Insurance: Potential Implications for Quebec and Canada (20 March 2006)
• Committees and Estimates: Powers, Performance and Possible Strategies (22 March 2006)
• Aboriginal Roundtable to Kelowna Accord: Aboriginal Policy Negotiations, 2004-2005 (4 May 2006)
• Bill C-10: An act to amend the Criminal Code (minimum penalties for offences involving firearms) and to make a consequential amendment to another Act (10 May 2006)
• Bill C-9: An Act to amend the Criminal Code (conditional sentence of imprisonment) (12 May 2006)
• Security Sector Reform: Defence Diplomacy [In Brief] (17 May 2006)
• Bill C-14: An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (adoption) (29 May 2006)