ALWARD - MORE PROGRESSIVE THAN CONSERVATIVE

When the political pundits get bored in the in the distant future and decide to do a historical search for “Canada’s Worst Provincial Premier EVER”. Shawn Graham would be NB’s nominee.

Comparing Alward to Graham is ridiculous in the sense that Graham performed so poorly that we would have been better served by a semi-retarded lump pulled from the Jobs Unlimited labour pool. In other words, Alward can only be measured by his actions. Lets have a look at some of them.

1.The New Brunswick Energy Commission: Remember this? Bill Thompson and Jeannot Volpe roaming the province with their “public engagement” entourage. What were their final recommendations?

a.Provide more bureaucratic over-site for the already bloated crown corporation,

b.Ban electric baseboard heaters and

c. Increase power rates for those who already have them installed.

Not bad content for a 10 yr energy plan. Somebody should dig this report out if or when Craig Leonard decides to do something with his portfolio other than open an office in Fredericton and make sure his sister has cushy job in the Premier’s office.

2.The Cell Phone Legislation: The list of unnecessary legislation is long but this one may be the proof that the PC Party of NB is really not in the business of doing anything that really makes a difference. The Nanny State grows yet again. What’s next? Tanning beds?


3.Cut Spending and Lower Taxes: What is the correct word for a government that says one thing but does the exact opposite. Gas tax up, booze tax up, gov’t spending up 63 million. Not to mention this gov’t is trying to soften the ground for an HST hike. This isn’t governing, this is pandering.


4. INVEST NB: WTF?? They created ANOTHER gov’t agency! This all we needed…more government. Whatever the current moniker of age old gov’t sponsored economic development, the results are always the same, cronyism and the vanishing of taxpayers money.


5. Alward DID NOTHING to help New Brunswickers get to the bottom of the ATCON scandal. $70 million gone forever and tory backbenchers silenced on the issue.

That being said, the most disappointing aspect of Alward, year 1, was the budget. They missed the best opportunity in decades to tackle the size of government.  I will end with a question. Do fiscal conservatives exist?