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. […]
The economic development grift, Cape Breton edition
Morning File, Thursday, May 23, 2019
News 1. Health Authority “For the first time since the McNeil government dismantled nine regional health authorities and created one provincial agency to run hospitals four and a half years ago, the Nova Scotia Health Authority opened a portion of one of its Board meetings to the public,” reports Jennifer Henderson: Yesterday’s meeting took place […]
Taxing Issues
Morning File, Wednesday, March 20, 2019
News 1. John Risley’s South African Adventure Out from behind the paywall: Tim’s epic piece on how Nova Scotia billionaire John Risley wound up in bed with an arms dealer suing the South African government over an apartheid-era contract. The short version: After his racing career, Portuguese Formula 1 driver Jorge Pinhol became an arms […]
Science will determine just how much you people are pissing off your bartenders
Morning File, Tuesday, March 12, 2019
I’m Suzanne Rent and I’m filling in for Tim this morning. You can follow me on Twitter @Suzanne_Rent News 1. Here’s a tip: Be nice to your servers and bartenders Oh, how I can relate to this story. Vanessa Myers, a psychology graduate student at Saint Mary’s University, is researching how customer interactions affect the […]
The North End Pub fire still burns: insurance company asks the court to declare Grafton-Connor bankrupt
Morning File, Friday, January 4, 2019
News 1. North End Pub A fire destroyed the North End Pub on March 7, 2007, but the insurance fight continues. Local lore has it that the day of the fire there was a guy on a winning streak on the VLT machines who refused to leave on his own accord when the fire engines […]
Former cop Chris Mosher is asking for a publication ban
Morning File, Thursday, December 20, 2018
News 1. Chris Mosher In October, I reported that the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) had asked the Nova Scotia Supreme Court for a judicial review of the city’s agreement with former cop Chris Mosher. The background: After he was charged with sexual assault and then for repeatedly violating the conditions of his release, […]
Poo in the water, and other calamities
Morning File, Friday, August 24, 2018
Good morning, folks. Erica Butler here at the Morningfile keyboard today. News 1. Burnside jail “The prisoner protest at the Burnside jail is in part sparked by the move to the direct supervision model,” reports El Jones: Both staff and prisoners say that the change to new day rooms has been disorganized, that there is […]
Another day in Halifax: resignations, engtanglements, and delays
Morning File, Tuesday, July 31, 2018
Hi folks, Erica Butler here filling in for Tim today. News 1. Halifax to lose another director: Bruce Zvaniga resigns Director of transportation and public works Bruce Zvaniga has resigned, reports Zane Woodford of The Star/Metro. Zvaniga has only been at the helm of the massive public works department since 2015. Zvaniga is the third […]
American ports are spending billions of dollars on upgrades, making Maritime port schemes look ridiculous
Morning File, Wednesday, July 25, 2018
News 1. Donkin mine “The operator of the Donkin coal mine is facing sanctions under the temporary foreign worker program after an investigation found the company was paying American workers far more than it said it would when the jobs were advertised to Canadians,” reports Tom Ayers for the CBC: A 2016 investigation by Service Canada […]
Forest fairy tales and other frightening stories of Nova Scotia
Morning File, Friday, May 25, 2018
News 1. Motor Vehicle Act “The province has put out an open call for input on a new Traffic Safety Act to replace the much-amended and much-maligned Motor Vehicle Act (MVA),” writes Examiner transportation columnist Erica Butler: The call-out is remarkably open ended, simply asking people to read over the current MVA and “tell us what […]