Ottawa fires dissident scientists
By BRIAN LAGHI
From Thursday's Globe and Mail http://www.globeandmail.ca/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040715.wxscientists15/BNStory/National/
"Health Canada has fired three well-known scientists who have become regular public critics of department policies, including the use of growth hormone in animals.
The three received termination notices yesterday morning, said Steve Hindle, president of the Professional Institute of the Public Service. He said he believes the firings were probably linked to the scientists' history of speaking out against the department.
“First reaction has to be that this is retribution for the whistle-blowing that they've done,” Mr. Hindle said. The three, Shiv Chopra, Margaret Haydon and Gerard Lambert, will appeal the ruling, he added."
The Liberal Government has no choice but to back up these decisions by the professional public service executives who handle the day-to-day operation of the Health Canada bureaucracy. Will they get support from Jack Layton and the NDP, or will the NDP figure that this is a good excuse to play some public service union politics? Could that play into the hands of Harper and the Conservative Barabarians?
And will the NDP try to push the Liberals into passing a so-called Whistleblower Protection Act that basically opens the door for ANY dissident public servant, including those who don't like bilingualism or abortions or equality rights to say anything they want to in public, while still being paid?