Tory MLA Chris d’Entremont said delaying the announcement of the new funding and then holding it on a Sunday is a major hit to confidence in the process and the government’s management of the file. “How can people in southwest Nova Scotia be confident that (the Liberals) have got their eye on the ball to make sure that we have a ferry service for 2015?” he said. D’Entremont said the marketing plan for the service needs to be made public so people know what steps are being taken to increase the number of passengers. A full accounting of the remaining steps to get a contract would help, too, he said. Liberal minister was mum on pre-Christmas cash for Nova Star ferry MICHAEL GORMAN PROVINCIAL REPORTER Published January 19, 2015 - 3:23pm Last Updated January 19, 2015 - 7:12pm Michel Samson asked many times about further contribution The province paid Nova Star Cruises, operator of the Nova Star ferry, $2.5 million on Dec. 23, though it was only announced on Sunday. (THE CHRONICLE HERALD / File) The province paid Nova Star Cruises, operator of the Nova Star ferry, $2.5 million on Dec. 23, though it was only announced on Sunday. (THE CHRONICLE HERALD / File) The latest round of funding for Nova Star Cruises was actually given to the company on Dec. 23, despite the Liberal government only announcing it Sunday. The government waited until midday Sunday — four days after releasing a report on the ferry’s expenses — to announce it was giving the company that operates the Yarmouth-Maine ferry an additional $2.5 million to cover berthing fees and staffing and transportation costs to move the ship to South Carolina from Shelburne. A department spokeswoman on Monday said Economic and Rural Development Minister Michel Samson was not available for an interview. Samson has been asked repeatedly in the last three weeks about additional funding for Nova Star Cruises and at no point did he indicate more money had been paid out. Sarah Levy MacLeod said in an email that when the $2.5 million was approved “we believed we were announcing an agreement the first week of January and would talk about the whole plan and funding for 2015.” Such an agreement never came to pass, and Samson has been asked subsequently on multiple occasions whether or not the company asked for and/or received additional money from taxpayers. Tory MLA Chris d’Entremont said delaying the announcement of the new funding and then holding it on a Sunday is a major hit to confidence in the process and the government’s management of the file. “How can people in southwest Nova Scotia be confident that (the Liberals) have got their eye on the ball to make sure that we have a ferry service for 2015?” he said. D’Entremont said the marketing plan for the service needs to be made public so people know what steps are being taken to increase the number of passengers. A full accounting of the remaining steps to get a contract would help, too, he said. The agreement is taking longer than expected, said MacLeod. The department decided to include the news of the $2.5 million in a news release on Sunday that provided further information about the KPMG report. That release was deemed necessary after it was learned that redacted figures in an initial copy of the report could be seen if the file was copied and pasted into a Microsoft Word document. Company officials have refused past requests for information about the cost of tying up in Shelburne, saying Nova Star Cruises was covering those fees. NDP MLA Denise Peterson-Rafuse said it seems like the government wouldn’t have released news of the extra funding were it not for the mistake with the report. The move flies in the face of claims by the Grits that they would be the province’s most transparent government ever, said Peterson-Rafuse. “It just leaves a big question mark of what other dollars are being spent behind the backs of Nova Scotians? This is a true example of doing the opposite of what (the government) has promised.” The NDP posted a video on YouTube from a media scrum last Thursday in which Samson was asked about more more for Nova Star Cruises. He doesnt mention the $2.5 million. The Nova Star remained tied up in Shelburne until it was moved on Thursday. Efforts to find winter work for the vessel have continued to prove unsuccessful. To date, Nova Star Cruises has received $28.5 million in provincial government money. An initial fund of $21 million intended to last seven years was used before the May-October season was complete. The service received an additional $5 million, in part to settle the books and in part for contingency costs, just as it was wrapping up for the season in October.
Posted on: Tue, 20 Jan 2015 00:15:43 +0000
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