Tag: taxes

British Government Reportedly Plotting Internet Tax to Prop Up BBC

The left-wing UK government is reportedly planning to introduce an internet tax to prop up the financially struggling BBC public broadcaster.

Currently, everyone who watches broadcast television in Britain must pay the government an £180 ($239) annual licence fee, whether they watch the BBC or not. The fee was originally used to fund the BBC’s radio broadcasts, but was later expanded to incorporate TV following the Second World War. Now, amid the rise of streaming services, the left-wing Labour Party government is said to be planning on extending the effective tax to the internet.

According to The Independent, which cited a Whitehall source, plans to change the BBC’s charter will be made public before Christmas, with the present agreement set to expire in December of next year.

The source said the so-called “YouTube tax” will be imposed on internet-based video platforms to stop people from avoiding the television licence fee by watching content on computers, phones, or tablets. This comes as about two million people have stopped paying the BBC television licence fee over the past five years, and 539,000 over the past year, up to April.

If the government imposed an internet fee, an estimated three to four million more people would likely be on the hook to fund the BBC. Yet this would still likely be insufficient to meet the broadcaster’s budget shortfalls.

Nevertheless, the civil service source told the Independent that the additional money could be spent countering “conspiracy theories and fake news” that they claimed helped Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party rise in working-class regions of Britain.

This negative attitude by the civil service and the BBC towards Reform may reflect the party’s vow to abolish the BBC licence fee altogether and force the broadcaster to compete on an even footing with private media.

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Cobourg votes before it knows as local police face forensic audit

Two million dollars over budget and a record 20.5% increase — that’s the 2026 state of the Cobourg Police Service under the noses of the two people who were supposed to be watching the books. Now, the same two people are asking Cobourg voters to promote them.

Advance polls are open in Ontario’s “Feel Good Town,” and Deputy Mayor Nicole Beatty is running for mayor while Councillor Adam Bureau is running for deputy mayor. They are also the only two elected representatives on the Cobourg Police Service Board — the same board that, on Thanksgiving Sunday, announced it had referred its own finances to Ontario’s Inspectorate of Policing, consulted the OPP and begun moving toward a forensic audit.

A forensic audit isn’t a routine review. It’s an investigation into potential fraud, misuse of funds or financial irregularities.

The $1.6-million increase was approved by Beatty and Bureau in October 2025. Council sent it back in November, but the board returned it unchanged.

According to the board’s own account, its finance committee had repeatedly requested financial reports from the previous senior administration, to no avail. So the board couldn’t get its own numbers, and still approved a 20.5% increase? Not once did it tell the public, and the mayor claims that wasn’t shared with the rest of council, either.

Chief Chris Leather, who started June 1, said that the review that uncovered “unexplained expenditures” dating back to 2023 began in July at his recommendation.

Beatty and Bureau were appointed to the board in December 2022. That’s three and a half years of oversight, and a review that only started once the old administration was gone and a new chief asked for one.

The public record is equally unflattering. On August 26, Mayor Lucas Cleveland moved for an independent line-by-line review of police spending, but there was no seconder and thus, no debate. Despite both board members being at the table, neither spoke up to say a review was already underway.

The board’s first public word came 14 days later, with no mention of the discrepancies, missing reports, the Inspectorate or the OPP. Council and the town treasurer learned of the referral on October 11 — two days before the mayor’s special meeting. That Tuesday meeting was supposed to be about the town’s financial health. Instead, it collapsed into personal attacks on the record, with the mayor and deputy mayor trading accusations.

CAO Tracey Vaughan told council she has been flagging financial concerns since early in her 2020 tenure, some in closed session, and that at least some recommendations “have not been implemented.”

The next day, Cleveland filed a complaint with the Ontario Ombudsman alleging serial meetings — councillors coordinating motions and amendments outside public session while excluding one member: him.

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Italian Defense Minister Admits Most Italians Oppose Ukraine Aid, Sends It Anyway

Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto has told the BBC that for the most part, most Italians are against sending arms to Ukraine. He admitted this in an interview at his Ministry in Rome, the full text of which was released on Sunday. And, in the meantime, Italy continues to send aid.

LaPresse quotes him as saying in an interview to the BBC at the Defense Ministry in Rome: “The majority of public opinion is against aid to Ukraine. But we have put together 12 aid packages and by the end of the year we will probably manage to put together another one.”

On Ukraine, Crosetto said: “We know perfectly well that our public opinion, also influenced from abroad, is mostly opposed to aid to Ukraine.” He added: “Above all, you cannot give in to public opinion when you believe public opinion is wrong.” He also said: “Ukraine will never be able to win the war. My objective is to ensure Ukraine survives and to bring the war to an end.”

Ukraine cannot win the war against Russia, Defense Minister Crosetto said in the interview to the BBC, adding that his goal is for Ukraine to survive and for the war to end. Victory for Ukraine, he said, would be “a victory for peace, a victory for justice, a victory for international law.”

A September poll by the Ixè institute found that only 18% of Italians want to continue to supply arms to Ukraine while the majority is looking on as prices skyrocket due to high energy costs. On Friday, in Rome, students from Italy’s secondary schools held a protest and chanted “We want more classroom, not more bombs” while truckers in the South have begun to block the roads in order to protest the sky rocketing prices of fuel. Crosetto blames the Russian disinformation campaign for the shift in public opinion. “It’s very hard to explain to a citizen who’s having trouble at the petrol pump that we can’t give any concessions to Russia right now,” he told the BBC.

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Feds spent $4.8 million on unused Microsoft licences, with more costs undisclosed

Federal departments purchased more than 53,000 Microsoft licences and subscriptions that went unused, costing taxpayers at least $4.8 million, according to government records reviewed by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

The actual bill remains unclear because departments did not disclose costs for nearly 20,000 of those unused subscriptions.

The findings come from a government response to an order paper question submitted by MP Adam Chambers, who requested details about Microsoft licences purchased over the previous year and how many remained unused.

“I understand forgetting about a few trial subscriptions, but how do these bureaucrats forget about 50,000 subscriptions?” said CTF federal director Franco Terrazzano.

Departments reported spending $4.8 million on 33,213 unused licences and subscriptions. Another 19,860 went unused without their costs being disclosed, according to the CTF.

Statistics Canada reported the largest disclosed spending total: nearly $1.2 million for 2,608 unused subscriptions.

That included $1,746 for 25 Teams Phone Standard subscriptions purchased for a pilot project. None were used. Asked why, an agency spokesperson told the CTF: “Technical challenges were encountered.”

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada reported the highest number of unused licences, with 7,443 costing taxpayers $138,500.

Employment and Social Development Canada spent $68,940 on 150 Microsoft Teams Rooms Pro subscriptions without using any. The department did not respond to the CTF’s request for an explanation.

The Canada Revenue Agency reported 4,588 unused subscriptions but withheld their cost. It also did not respond to the federation’s questions.

Other disclosures left significant gaps. National Defence did not identify the subscription types it purchased, while Transport Canada did not disclose how many licences were unused.

Shared Services Canada reported spending approximately $27 million on Microsoft subscriptions without disclosing how many it purchased or used. That spending was not identified as entirely unused.

“Taxpayers are paying for all these subscriptions so departments need to be fully transparent and show taxpayers the bill,” Terrazzano said.

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Transgender Neo-Nazi Accused of Plotting Mass Shooting at Hindu Temple in Chicago Suburb Will Receive Gender-Transition Hormone Injections in Jail, Judge Rules

A Cook County judge ordered the 19-year-old Palatine, Illinois, Taco Bell cashier held without bail on Wednesday after he was charged with plotting a racist mass shooting at a Hindu temple in Aurora, but the same order ensures that he will continue receiving hormone injections for gender transition while he sits in jail awaiting trial.

Alexandros Paporakis, a self-described white supremacist and neo-Nazi from Palatine, Illinois, was ordered held in custody by a Cook County judge on Wednesday, October 14, as he awaits trial on felony charges stemming from an alleged plot to massacre worshippers at a Hindu temple in Aurora.

But the judge also issued a healthcare order addressing the suspect’s ongoing medical treatment, including hormone injections associated with gender transition, according to the New York Post.

The order also addresses medications for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, and anxiety.

The ruling has brought renewed attention to the provision of medical treatment for defendants accused of violent crimes while they remain in taxpayer-funded custody.

Meanwhile, disturbing details emerging from the investigation suggest the alleged attack could have turned into a bloodbath if the suspect’s weapon had not malfunctioned.

According to prosecutors, Paporakis spent years fantasizing about carrying out mass murder and had allegedly identified the Hindu temple as a target months before the planned attack.

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They Bought a Warehouse to Shelter the Homeless—Then Paid Security to Keep Them Out

Sacramento County’s $64.7 million project raises questions about pandemic spending, years of delay and the decisions that left people waiting.

In California’s capital county, taxpayers financed a troubling contradiction: Sacramento County purchased a warehouse to shelter homeless people, then paid private security while homeless people were kept outside.

I visited and photographed the Watt Avenue property in April 2023. What I witnessed was private security keeping homeless people out of the property the county had purchased to shelter them.

The county’s federal spending records identify Patrol Solutions providing security at the North Highlands Safe Stay site during 2023 and 2024. The county did not announce its groundbreaking until January 23, 2025, more than two years after purchasing the property. [1,2]

The county’s publicized acquisition and construction figure is now $64.7 million. Its website still describes active construction and anticipates residents moving in during late 2026. [3,4]

How did an emergency response become a project that took years to deliver shelter?

“We had to spend it or lose it.”

I questioned former Sacramento County Supervisor Sue Frost about the purchase. Frost had worked in real estate. I asked her why the county would buy a warehouse for human occupancy when, in my assessment, its ingress and egress would never be approved by the fire department for that use.

Ingress means the way into a building. Egress means the way out, including the escape routes people need during a fire or other emergency. A warehouse’s suitability for storage does not establish its suitability for sleeping accommodations.

Frost’s response was: “We had to spend it or lose it.”

That was the explanation I received for a decision involving millions of taxpayer dollars.

A spending deadline does not establish that a property is suitable, reasonably priced or capable of providing help when people need it. The county’s inspection and feasibility records should show what officials knew before committing public money.

A premium purchase, followed by a different plan

The property at 4837 Watt Avenue in North Highlands, an unincorporated Sacramento County community, sold for $12.45 million in September 2021. About fourteen months later, the county purchased it for $22.8 million. An independent appraisal reportedly valued it at $16.9 million. [5]

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SURPRISE! Final Cost of Obama’s Hideous Presidential Center Now Projected at THREE TIMES the Original Estimate

Obama’s eyesore of a presidential center in Chicago opened barely three months ago and is now projected to cost three times more than originally estimated. How fitting!

Just weeks ago it was reported that employees at the center are already complaining about the working conditions and now this. Not to mention the contractors who were allegedly jilted out of money owed for work done.

At least Obama doesn’t have to worry about the extra costs. His party and all of their rich friends would never leave him hanging.

FOX News reports:

Obama’s billion-dollar baby: Chicago center’s price tag hits monumental milestone, tripling original estimate

The price tag for the beleaguered Obama Presidential Center is now projected to top $1 billion, nearly triple its original estimate, the foundation overseeing construction of the Chicago facility told Fox News Digital.

Confirmation of the 10-figure cost marks another chapter in the troubled history of the much-delayed project, which opened five years behind schedule amid controversy over its use of public parkland and claims that subcontractors were stiffed out of millions of dollars. It comes as newly released financial records reviewed by Fox News Digital offer a fresh look at the finances of the Obama Foundation, the former president’s private nonprofit that oversaw construction of the billion-dollar project.

The sprawling campus on the Windy City’s south side was originally expected to open in 2021, with construction costs estimated at $300 million to $350 million. But years of federal reviews, legal challenges and construction delays preceded its eventual opening in June 2026, by which time projected costs had skyrocketed to approximately $850 million.

Hailed by Democrats and supporters as a historic investment in the community and a tribute to the former president’s legacy, the center was promoted as a catalyst for jobs, economic growth and new opportunities for underserved communities.

Anyone want to take bets on how much this eventually ends up costing Chicago taxpayers?

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National Border Patrol Union SLAMS Talarico for Lying About Supporting Border Security – “He Labeled Border Security Funding as Wasted Money”

The National Border Patrol Union slammed Democrat-socialist James Talarico for lying about his support for border security.

The BP Union pointed out that James Talarico is lying about calling out the Biden regime for failing on the border.

This is the same far-left extremist James Talarico who said border security funding was “wasting money on dumb things.” Talarico instead supported diverting $800 million in funds away from protecting our US borders.

The Border Patrol Union added, “At least 25 million illegal aliens invaded the US during the 4 years of the disastrous Biden Administration and openly advocating for pathways to citizenship is NOT putting America First and will lead to the destruction of America as we know it. We CANNOT afford another disaster on our borders!”

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A California Scandal Reveals How The State Is Governed Under Single-Party Democrat Rule

You can abuse taxpayer funds, but be warned: You won’t get away with it for more than a decade or two.

Last month, the inspector general for California’s High-Speed Rail Authority reported that consultants on the state’s much-delayed bullet train project had used hundreds of thousands of dollars in state funds to pay for “trips to gyms, a nightclub, an escape room, a tiki bar and a cigar lounge.” Traveling on taxpayer dollars, consultants also “flew first-class and were reimbursed without questioning, in violation of contracts and state policies.”

Last week, accountability arrived. Well, sort of. In an October 9 special meeting, the board that oversees the High-Speed Rail Authority sharply limited the ability of CEO Ian Choudri to personally approve contracts on the project.

If you dig into the details, though, the accountability part becomes fuzzier. Board member Lynn Schenk said she was outraged to learn about the improper use of public funds. Also, Schenk has served on the oversight board since 2003. Read these details from a report on the news website CalMatters carefully:

Board member Henry Perea suggested the travel payments are so egregious that the state should end its contract with the firms right away, something Gov. Gavin Newsom has also floated. However, Perea said he worried that doing so could set back the long-delayed rail project even further.

“I’d terminate these four (contracts) tomorrow or today, but I understand there’s a question of operational needs that we have with these folks,” he said.

These contractors have abused us in an outrageous manner, and what a shame it is that they’re going to continue serving as our contractors.

Also, as CalMatters put it, “the board did not grill the authority’s top executives for failing to catch the behavior.” Money was misspent, so don’t do that again. Anyway, moving on…

At the board meeting, Choudri walked away from reporters who tried to ask him questions. In a state with frequently complicit and docile legacy media, California journalists are pursuing this story with considerable seriousness, prompting state officials to run and hide.

But you can watch Choudri’s statement to the board, and this is where things get especially interesting.

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Justice Canada funds $222,058 training for sexual-orientation court reports

The Department of Justice has signed a $222,058 contribution agreement with Black LGBTQ Justice Canada Inc. of Toronto to train and certify authors of “Black LGBTQ Justice Affirming Assessment Reports,” a new kind of court report that brings a defendant’s sexual orientation and gender identity into their dealings with the criminal justice system, according to the federal grants disclosure database. 

The agreement runs from July 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027 under the department’s Legal Aid program.

The record describes the reports as “Similar to Impact of Race Culture Assessments” and says they “incorporate sexual orientation, gender identity, and other intersectional considerations into reports that supports Black LGBTQ individuals’ interactions with the criminal justice system”. The project will “offer training and certification” in the reports, “accredited through the Law Society of Ontario”, through a four-module curriculum delivered in three sessions in Vancouver, Halifax and Montreal.

Impact of Race and Culture Assessments, known as IRCAs, are pre-sentencing reports that Justice Canada says “help sentencing judges to better understand the effect of poverty,” marginalization and racism, and that “have been used primarily for Black offenders, both adults and youth, at the sentencing stage.” 

Ottawa committed $6.64 million over five years to IRCAs, followed by $1.6 million a year.

Rebel News has covered IRCAs in our Justice Watch series, including a Nova Scotia case in which a judge cut a sex offender’s sentence after a race and culture assessment.

Black LGBTQ Justice Canada says its mission “charts the course for justice-impacted Black LGBTQ individuals through holistic, affirming support.” Its website lists Dr. Wesley Crichlow as founder and a board co-chaired by Emma Joseph and Tandy Clarke, and already advertises a “BLGBTQJAA Certification” with pages for Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and British Columbia. 

The record does not say whether the new reports are meant for sentencing, bail or elsewhere, or whether any court has yet accepted one.

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