Good morning,
NB Power’s plan to save money through early retirement packages for some staff a couple of years ago was a failed exercise, says the province’s auditor general Paul Martin. Martin released a report Tuesday on the management team’s plan, which he said overstated savings and did not meet one of the program’s main objectives. Instead of decreasing staff, the utility has more workers than when it began handing out the early retirement packages. NB Power CEO Lori Clark told Brunswick News in an interview only staff who weren’t essential were offered packages. However, the overall staff complement has grown, she said, because certain parts of the organization required new positions.
Premier Susan Holt says the possibility of a second nuclear reactor at Point Lepreau is part of a nation-building project pitch to the federal government. Holt says there’s already been talks with Ontario Power Generation over a partnership to build it. It’s the pitch currently being formulated by the region’s premiers in the aftermath of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s call for major projects in the national interest that, if accepted, will be prioritized and receive expedited federal approval. The thrust in the province for roughly the last decade has been small modular nuclear reactors. But with original timelines to see the two New Brunswick-based companies that the province and the feds have heavily invested in build SMR reactor demonstration units at the Point Lepreau Generating Station by 2030 are now well off the mark.
And a new poll shows well over half of New Brunswickers are satisfied with the performance of the Holt government. But even with 59 per cent of New Brunswickers polled stating they’re relatively happy with the provincial government, it’s a score that ranks last amongst the Atlantic provinces. The Holt government is also facing lower scores than neighbouring provinces over how it’s responding to U.S. tariffs. Exactly half of New Brunswickers polled say they are satisfied with the Holt government’s efforts in response to tariffs. That’s as satisfaction is 59 per cent in P.E.I., 63 per cent in Newfoundland, and 64 per cent in Nova Scotia.
