Canada Question Period: Conservatives heckle PM Carney over NATO spends, GC contract controversy
Watch all the action in the House of Commons as Canada's elected officials debate the issues of the day. Conservatives cornered Prime Minister Mark Carney and the Liberal government over contracts to GC Strategies, which was embroiled in controversy during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada under former PM Justin Trudeau. The conservatives also cornered Carney over military and NATO defence spends.Keywords: Mark Carney, Canada politics, House of Commons, GC Strategies, Liberal government, Conservative Party, COVID-19 contracts, Trudeau scandal, Canadian Parliament, government accountability, political debate, procurement controversy
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Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
India may ease small car fuel norms amid SUV boom, Maruti could benefit: Report
Maruti Suzuki has had a commanding position in the small car segment for decades, with vehicles such as the Alto and WagonR leading the charge Notify me In a potential policy pivot, the Indian government is considering easing fuel efficiency norms for small cars to counter declining sales in the budget segment. The move follows lobbying efforts by Maruti Suzuki, India's largest carmaker, which has seen its entry-level car sales shrink in the face of a booming SUV market, a report by Reuters stated, citing multiple industry and government sources. Small cars losing ground Maruti Suzuki has had a commanding position in the small car segment for decades, with vehicles such as the Alto and WagonR leading the charge. However, consumer preferences and trends have all changed rapidly. Before COVID-19, small cars accounted for nearly two-thirds of Maruti Suzuki's sales, but this has now dropped to below 50 per cent out of the 1.7 million cars it sold in FY2024–25. The fall-off in this segment is emblematic of the wider automotive shift in India, with compact and mid-size SUVs representing the bulk of new car purchases. Also Read : Maruti Suzuki India eyes 4 lakh exports in FY26 to counter domestic market slowdown The government, too, is reportedly concerned about this trend. A senior official told Reuters that sliding demand in the affordable segment could hurt the overall growth of the passenger vehicle industry and limit mobility access for India's lower-income consumers. Proposed norms target sub 1,000 kg cars Under India's current Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency (CAFE) regulations, permissible CO₂ emissions are tied to a car's weight. To comply, automakers must maintain fleet-wide efficiency, often by pushing electric or low-emission models. The proposed revision would ease emission targets specifically for cars weighing under 1,000 kg—offering regulatory relief to companies with a sizable share of small vehicles. Maruti Suzuki, with 10 of its 17 models under this threshold, would be the biggest beneficiary. Hyundai, Renault, Toyota, and JSW MG Motor also sell lightweight models and may gain from the relaxation, though none have formally responded to requests for comment, according to Reuters. Industry pushback The Ministry of Heavy Industries held a closed-door meeting on June 17 with automakers including Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Volkswagen to discuss the possibility of granting small cars more leeway under the upcoming fuel efficiency norms, which are due to take effect in April 2027. However, some automakers are reportedly uneasy. Four sources told Reuters that such a move could disrupt the previously agreed industry consensus on emission standards and potentially grant Maruti an unfair advantage in the market. Also Read : Renault Kiger, Kwid and Triber get benefits of up to ₹ 40,000 Venkatram Mamillapalle, country head of Renault India, told Reuters that the company trusts India's auto industry body to "represent the collective voice of the industry that benefits all stakeholders." Environmental trade offs The sustainability report for 2024, by Suzuki Motor Corporation, Maruti's Japanese parent company, said small cars are environmentally sound—not just because they are driven less and, therefore, happier, but it also consumes less material and energy during production. While the environmental merits of small cars are not in dispute, applying differentiated norms based on size or weight was not part of earlier consultations, four industry sources told Reuters. If implemented, this shift could reshape the policy landscape and affect how future fuel efficiency standards are negotiated. Get insights into Upcoming Cars In India, Electric Vehicles, Upcoming Bikes in India and cutting-edge technology transforming the automotive landscape. First Published Date: 29 Jun 2025, 08:30 AM IST
New Indian Express
5 hours ago
- New Indian Express
Swelling pile of unsold housing stock in top seven metros
NEW DELHI: India's urban housing market is sitting atop a swelling pile of unsold stock—5.59 lakh units across the top seven metros, as per Anarock's Q1 2025 report. Though the total is 4% lower year-on-year, the numbers mask a deeper structural problem—homes are being built, but not for those who actually need them. Mumbai tops the chart with 1.8 lakh unsold units and an overhang of 16 months. A major contributor: a 36% jump in luxury housing stock, driven by misplaced optimism about post-Covid demand. Developers have resumed high-end launches, but buyers haven't returned in equal measure. The result: unsold towers and frozen capital. Delhi–NCR is barely doing better. With 84,500 unsold units, the region saw a 78% spike in luxury inventory. The public housing sector is equally troubled. The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) failed to sell even a third of its stock in the 2025 scheme—just 2,628 flats sold out of 9,887 by February. In Narela, nearly 40,000 flats lie unsold, despite deep discounts and government efforts like feeder buses. The DDA is now saddled with Rs 18,000 crore worth of unsold inventory and a Rs 9,600 crore deficit. Hyderabad, once the model for affordability, now holds nearly 98,000 unsold homes—a 177% increase in five years. Most alarming: it's the only city where unsold affordable housing stock actually rose.
Scroll.in
6 hours ago
- Scroll.in
‘My boss is the app': Venture capitalists fuel boom in worker surveillance technology
This article was originally published in Rest of World, which covers technology's impact outside the West. Technologies that promise to track, manage, and supervise workers, increasingly using artificial intelligence, are getting entrenched in the developing world, according to a new report by a labour rights nonprofit based in New York. Audits of more than 150 startups and regional companies based in Kenya, Nigeria, Colombia, Brazil, Mexico, and India showed workplace surveillance is expanding in scale and sophistication, the researchers said. While large corporations are known to develop surveillance technologies, a so-called Little Tech ecosystem of mostly unregulated, venture capital-funded startups and small vendors making these products has grown since Covid-19, the report found. The term 'Little Tech' was popularised by the VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, which argued that excessive regulation was stifling innovation. Algorithmic management and surveillance tools are getting even more intrusive in gig work, and are entering offices and the informal labour sector as well, Wilneida Negrón, director of research and policy at and a co-author of the report, told Rest of World. 'The pressure of the hyper-surveillance creates a lot of stress and creates a lot of uncertainty for workers. It brings a culture of suspiciousness,' she said. Investments by Silicon Valley-based VC firms led to a boom in tech startups globally after Covid-19, Negrón said. This has carried over to companies building bossware products in the developing world, she said. The technologies include biometric tracking, AI-powered productivity monitoring, and predictive analytics, the report found. Worker data is continuously collected and analysed by algorithms with the stated aim to improve hiring, evaluate performance, and optimise processes. Most managers in wealthier nations say algorithmic management tools improve their decision-making, according to a 2024 survey of over 6,000 employers by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. More than 90% of American managers used such tools, especially to reward or sanction employees. Many tools are first deployed in Latin America, where labour laws are less strictly enforced, according to Ayden Férdeline, a tech policy researcher in Berlin and a co-author of the report. 'There is a Latin America testing ground for products,' he told Rest of World. 'If they are successful, they tend to be deployed in other jurisdictions, oftentimes with additional safeguards, sometimes not.' Many workers are unaware of how their information is collected and used, Férdeline said. Some gig workers in Kenya, Guatemala, and Brazil said bossware tools make them feel surveilled, and that they have less control over their work. In Porto Alegre, Brazil, Uber driver Carina Trindade told Rest of World she feels the app monitors her continuously, tracking her speed and braking patterns. The app has permissions to access her mic and camera, she said. Uber spokesperson Gabriel Gabira said drivers have the option to record trips and privacy terms are followed to access the footage. In Nairobi, Godfrey Sanya Wanga, a driver for ride-hailing firm SafeBoda, told Rest of World he felt the app undercharged a customer. 'I really wanted to ask [the customer] to pay me more, but I remembered that I was being monitored and this would bring me trouble if the client reported me,' he said. SafeBoda did not respond to a request for comment. Several nations have data protection and privacy laws, including Brazil, Nigeria, and Kenya. But enforcement is inconsistent, the report said. Here are five current uses of algorithmic management tools. The companies mentioned below did not comment, unless otherwise stated. 1. Timekeeping and attendance systems What: Platforms that track the attendance of workers, often using geolocation and biometrics to verify presence. Example: Rankmi, based in Chile, uses biometrics and geolocation to track workers. The platform also gives workers continuous performance feedback and evaluates job applicants using AI. 2. Biometric and identity verification tools What: Tools that use fingerprint and facial-recognition checks, special digital signatures stored on a secure network, and official records to confirm a worker's identity before granting access. Example: Cincel, based in Mexico, provides identity verification tools that do various checks including biometrics, and also cross-check against government databases and blacklists. 3. Performance and productivity monitoring platforms What: Dashboards that score workers using tracked metrics such as keystrokes, transaction counts, customer interactions, and task completion times. Example: Ahgora, based in Brazil, offers HR software that allows managers to continually 'oversee team attendance in real-time' and that tracks productivity. It uses the data to offer predictions about work, such as potential issues with attendance, which can inform decision-making. 4. Algorithmic management and predictive analytics What: Platforms that automate HR functions, such as hiring shortlists, performance reviews, attrition forecasting, and also unionisation-risk scoring. Example: Visier's AI-powered analytics platform analyses HR data and provides insights, including resignation risk. The platform is used by global firms including Deloitte, Accenture, and Tata Consultancy Services. Andrea Derler, principal of research and customer value at Visier, told Rest of World the platform only 'processes data that organisations load into the platform, and we are not responsible for the way the data and insights we help provide is being used'. 5. Gig economy and field workforce tracking What: Apps that use the workers' smartphones to dispatch and route deliveries. They use location, trip history, and ratings to allocate jobs and evaluate performance. Workers are managed mostly by platforms rather than humans. Example: Rappii, a Colombian delivery app, tracks workers in real time. It has auto accept, where a rider can't decline orders – and it's mandatory to qualify for bonuses. Delivery worker Carolina Ramírez told Rest of World she works 14-hour days to earn a bonus of 100,000 pesos ($25) every week, leaving her little time for anything else. 'My boss is the app. It's unfair because to earn a good salary, I have to dedicate myself almost exclusively to this,' she said.
