News 1. Power outages “Three-and-a-half days after Dorian knocked out power for more than 400,000 homes and businesses in the province, Nova Scotia Power issued a news release Tuesday evening, Sept.10, saying it had restored electricity for 75% of these customers,” reports Jennifer Henderson: “We have the most crews working in Nova Scotia history,” boasted the […]
The province spent $4 million to replace the Halfway River aboiteau, and just months later it is already failing
Morning File, Tuesday, August 20, 2019
News 1. Halfway River aboiteau In 2017, the Halfway River aboiteau collapsed. The aboiteau was essentially a dike or dam that at low tide allowed water to flow out to the Bay of Fundy but restricted the flow of water back into the river at high tide. It was an ancient construction — I haven’t been […]
Stephen McNeil dodges questions about the proposed Inverness airport and the “conquered peoples” case
Nova Scotia cabinet ministers met for the first time in three weeks yesterday. After their meeting, journalists had the opportunity to ask the premier a few questions. Inverness airport One question: How much has the Province been asked to contribute to an $18-million airport in Inverness, Cape Breton? The joint venture would make it easier...
“Hands off our protected areas, and lay off our Crown land”
The proposed Inverness airport will either encroach on or be very near to the Masons Mountain Nature Reserve, a protected nature reserve. It's not the kind of place one wants to have commercial jets “screaming in and out," says the Raymond Plourde, the Ecology Action Centre's wilderness coordinator.
In the past month or so, an awful lot of people — especially people with nothing to gain from a new airport that would serve a couple of luxury golf resorts in Inverness — have put forward more than enough good reasons for both the federal and provincial governments to tell Cabot Links and Cabot […]
Alex Cameron’s “conquered people” brief is odious, but he’s got a good case against the McNeil government
Morning File, Thursday, July 18, 2019
News 1. “Conquered people” secrecy “The Nova Scotia government has won another temporary victory in its attempts to keep court documents sealed relating to a controversial brief that suggested the Mi’kmaq in Nova Scotia were a conquered people,” reports Jean Laroche for the CBC: On Wednesday, Supreme Court of Canada Justice Russell Brown sided with the province […]
The Cabot Links airport uses a “social enterprise” designation created for farmers’ markets
Morning File, Thursday, July 11, 2019
News 1. Halifax Transit turns down electric buses “City staff are ‘mothballing’ an electric bus pilot project for which council had already approved $1 million in funding, in the process turning down another $2.25 million in federal funding secured to help fund the project, according to documents obtained under a Freedom of Information request,” reports […]
Is executive fraud behind the bankruptcy of VistaCare Communications?
Morning File, Tuesday, July 9, 2019
News 1. Power rates “Nova Scotia Power has filed an application that would see power rates rise 1.5% a year for residential customers in each of the next three years, if approved by the Utility and Review Board (UARB),” reports Jennifer Henderson: The increases are related to rising fuel costs and purchases of imported power. […]
Climate change is killing the right whales
Morning File, Thursday, June 27, 2019
News 1. Why aren’t Cabot Links or Ben Cowan-Dewar registered as lobbyists? “You would have to be completely foolhardy to question the brain trust that has formed to support spending public money to build an airport in Inverness but foolhardy’s my middle name so — hold my beer,” writes Mary Campbell for the Cape Breton Spectator: […]
We’ll all be rich if we give Ben Cowan-Dewar an $18 million airport
Morning File, Friday, June 14, 2019
News 1. SIRT is not equipped to investigate rape by cops The Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) is tasked with investigating police, but it has no written policies for preserving rape kit evidence and its investigators have no specialized training in dealing with victims of sexual assault. Reporter Maggie Rahr brings us the case of […]
We could have given every person in Inverness $12,000 in financing; instead we gave $17 million in financing to one rich guy
Morning File, Monday, June 4, 2018
News 1. Public Accounts Writes Stephen Kimber: The Gormless Gang of the Fang-less Five Liberal members of the Public Accounts committee — the Liberal MLA/space-filler members of the committee are Gordon Wilson, Suzanne Lohnes-Croft, Ben Jessome, Brendan Maguire, and Hugh MacKay — would rather play reliable cheerleader for Premier Stephen McNeil than do their job. […]