Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand hit back against Pierre Poilievre’s slam against him that he is somehow wearing team jersey. Mayrand says the only jersey he is wearing are the black and white stripes – the referee – and the changes in the new Fair Elections Act will mean that he’s no longer on the ice. With time allocation on the elections bill looming, the NDP decided to spend the first half of the sitting day yesterday engaged in procedural warfare, trying to delay the debate on time allocation, with a series of votes that eventually delayed QP itself. With those hurdles now cleared, they are proposing a motion in Procedure and House Affairs committee that they travel around all regions of the country to consult with Canadians on the bill, though I have some concerns about some of the groups they want to hear from. After all, Fair Vote Canada is the largest voter suppression organisation in the country (who else goes around telling everyone that their vote doesn’t count?), and Democracy Watch is pretty much run by a crank that doesn’t have a clue about civic literacy. But hey, consultations!

The Conservatives unveiled their new citizenship bill yesterday which increases the time requirement for having been a resident before applying, triples the fee for application, and extends the age rage for the knowledge test. They say that it’ll make the whole process go faster, but given the backlogs, the critics are quite obviously sceptical. They also included the largely symbolic part about stripping the citizenship of dual citizens who engage in treasonous activities, but did finally fix the loopholes around “lost Canadians” – mostly children of “war brides” born out of wedlock before 1947.

The drummer in Stephen Harper’s band, a teacher, has been charged with sexual assault and sexual interference by one of his former students. Harper’s office immediately put out a statement saying that he was “shocked and disturbed” by the charges.

Seven environmental charities are being subjected to audits by the CRA. They are claiming political interference, while the government claims that they can’t direct the activities of the CRA. It is suspected that at least one group is in danger of losing their charitable status – but if that’s the case, isn’t that an indication that they were in the wrong to begin with? The agency can’t simply revoke status without cause.

The Pembina Institute says that the proposed West-East pipeline will increase greenhouse gas emissions from the oilsands more than the Keystone XL pipeline will – but that doesn’t deter Thomas Mulcair’s enthusiasm for the project.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer says that public servants take an average of 11.5 sick days per year, not the 18 that Tony Clement has said – but that other factors like the size of the public service and wages has doubled sick-leave costs over the past decade. As well, direct comparisons with the private sector are difficult because of differing demographics.

The Retail Council of Canada says that government tariff reductions have resulted in lower prices – mostly in the $10 ranges – but the Consumer Association of Canada isn’t so sure.

Public Works budget cuts are affecting plant watering services, which has some – including the Leader of the Opposition’s Office – hiding their plants to keep them from being removed. Of course, the plants are Crown property and due to be auctioned off, so it looks like they’ll have to surrender them eventually. And seriously, how much work would it be for them to get new plants for their offices and water them themselves?

It sounds like the federal government may still be dragging its feet when it comes to turning over documents from residential schools to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, whose mandate has already been extended because of the delays.

Lisa Raitt says that she would have rejected rail companies’ proposals to reduce inspections, as they had been agitating for pre-Lac Mégantic, but Transport Canada is still granting exceptions for implementation of certain safety upgrades.

Four of our six Challenger jets used for transporting the PM and other ministers around have reached the end of their service lives and can’t be upgraded any further, and yet there is no plan to retire or replace them anytime soon.

Brad Trost’s motion about preferential ballots for electing committee chairs passed the House unanimously.

The NDP were wearing rainbow ties yesterday to protest anti-gay laws in Sochi. Their supporters in the gallery who were also wearing them were asked to remove them, which is actually standard protocol for any kind of political attire in the galleries.

After the sexist comments about Chrystia Freeland’s voice in QP this week, a speech pathologist reviews the tapes, and other recordings of Freeland and finds that her voice is just fine – when she’s not forced to yell over the heckling in the Commons.

Conservative Senator Fabian Manning is contemplating a bid for the provincial Progressive Conservative leadership – and subsequent premiership.

Michael Den Tandt rips the government a new one over their treatment of veterans, and quite rightly points out that a few big-ticket purchases aren’t enough to show that they really care more about the troops than any other party.

And Emmett Macfarlane writes about the no-win situation that the Supreme Court finds itself in, thanks to the political considerations of the Nadon reference.

Up today: Stephen Harper is supposed to announce new educational reforms for First Nations. James Moore is set to unveil the new framework for Canada’s space programme.