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Canada's new Conservative government has passed its first test as it ended the parliamentary session with bills dealing with scandals, sex and guns.
"We're establishing a record that we can eventually run on - if and when we have to," Prime Minister Stephen Harper said of his minority government's record as the summer break began.
The hallmark of the Conservative election campaign - cleaning up spending scandals in the federal government - resulted in the passing of the Accountability Act. It awaits Senate approval.
The government also plans to raise the age of sexual consent to 16 from 14, saying kids need better protection from adult predators in the Internet era.
As well, it wants to scrap the controversial and costly gun registry law enacted by the previous Liberal government.
A poll by Decima Research found 60 percent of respondents are prepared to see the Conservatives govern for the next four years. With a minority position in the Commons, the government could fall at any time in a no-confidence vote.
A nation in name only?
The Quebec National Assembly has passed a motion calling the mainly French-speaking province a nation.
While saying he doesn't agree with it, Prime Minister Harper said he recognizes Quebec's right to call itself that.
Meeting with his Cabinet in Quebec City, Harper said he's not sure of the legal significance of the motion and he would continue to defend national unity in Canada.
He also criticized the separatist Parti Quebecois for raising the possibility of holding another vote on independence from Canada should it win the next Quebec provincial election.
News in brief
* Prime Minister Harper has apologized for the "great injustice" when Canada imposed a racist head tax on Chinese immigrants and a subsequent 24-year ban on immigration from China. Payments of $20,000 in compensation to each survivor's family are a token and cannot make up for the suffering caused by the 1923 Exclusion Act, he said. It effectively banned further immigration from China until 1947.
* The funeral was held last week in Toronto for Ken Thomson, Canada's wealthiest man, worth an estimated $20-billion U.S. He was 82. The newspaper industrialist never shook his Depression-era upbringing, saying he'd "walk a block to save a dime at a bargain discount store." He is survived by his wife, Marilyn, three children and their families.
* The Dalai Lama is being given honorary Canadian citizenship. Members of Parliament agreed unanimously to grant the honor to the Tibetan spiritual leader. He will visit Vancouver in September, his second trip to Canada in as many years.
Facts and figures
High gasoline and electricity prices helped push Canada's annual inflation rate in May to 2.8 percent from 2.4 percent in April.
The jump was higher than economists had predicted and could prompt the Bank of Canada to continue increasing its key interest rate to dampen inflationary pressures. The rate is 4.25 percent while the prime lending rate is 6 percent.
Lower commodity prices drove Canada's dollar lower to 89.01 cents U.S. Friday while the U.S. dollar returned $1.1234 in Canadian funds before bank exchange fees.
Stock markets are mixed, with the Toronto composite index down at 11,213 points and the Canadian Venture Exchange up at 2,569 points.
Lotto 6-49: Wednesday 4, 17, 34, 39, 41 and 46; bonus 26. (June 17) 11, 14, 20, 25, 31 and 36; bonus 48.
Regional briefs
* Two senators want the Constitution amended to end the underrepresentation of western provinces in Canada's upper house. Jack Austin and Lowell Murray have given notice of their intention to significantly increase the number of western members in the nonelected Senate. Under their proposal, British Columbia's Senate seats would double to 12 while Alberta would have 10 and Manitoba and Saskatchewan would each have seven senators.
* The Ontario government will buy its way out of a native standoff in Caledonia. The government will pay $12.3-million to a developer to buy a controversial 600-lot housing subdivision under construction. The site has been occupied by aboriginal protesters since February. Members of the Six Nations Reserve say the land is native-owned.
* In Winnipeg, the Canadian National Railway is seeking a court order to prevent Manitoba First Nations protesters from blocking its rail lines. They are protesting the Canadian government's handling of aboriginal land claims negotiations.
* The Nova Scotian government plans to crack down on a growing number of grocery stores that open on Sundays. Premier Rodney MacDonald said the province's Sunday shopping ban - the last of its kind in the country - would be amended to prevent large grocery stores from bending the rules.
Jim Fox can be reached at canadareport@hotmail.com.