The Ice Man Cometh...

With a Bill sitting on Parliament Hill that supposedly clears up the Atlantic Accord mess, Bill Casey still in the news and a deal done over the Atlantic Accord in Nova Scotia, if you can call a verbal agreement with Stephen Harper a deal, it's more than a little interesting that the PM has found a feeble excuse to pay a visit to good old Newfoundland and Labrador this weekend. I would have thought someone with Harper's team of advisors could have thought of something more believable than visiting Fabian Manning and wishing him well on his nomination papers being signed.

Of course a meeting has been scheduled with Danny Williams but that's not the real reason for the visit (wink, wink).

Could it be that Harper is just trying to head off the next wave of ire from the Premier? I mean he couldn't be worried about another round of bad publicity could he? What with the last round, his handling of Afghanistan, Ottawa's obstructionist stand in climate change and a pending inquiry into Brian Mulroney's business dealings and his knowlege (or lack of knowlege) about them, he must be used to dealing with bad press by now.

Maybe not.

It should be an interesting meeting and an even more interesting few days afterward.

Hmmmm......

When Political Will and Sound Economics Align

When political will and sound economics fully align in a simbiotic way great things can happen. Let's hope this is one of those rare occassions.

There’s more than one way to skin a seal and it looks like Premier Danny Williams may finally be listening to voices in Newfoundland and Labrador when it comes to using lower Churchill power right here at home.

Ever since the Lower Churchill project moved from the back burner to the front there have been a number of proponents, from individuals to advocacy groups like NLDL.org and even yours truly, who have beaten the drum for local use of the power.

While there are those who spent most of their time debating the Quebec vs. Maritime route for exporting the power others loudly wondered why industry couldn’t simply open up shop where the power exists and in doing so help diversify the economy.

It just makes economic sense that if the province sells the power to Quebec, Ontario or whomever, the purchasers will charge their customers more for that power than the users would have to pay if they bought it straight from the source. Enter CVRD.

Recent reports say Danny Williams and a provincial delegation just spent a week in Brazil, the home base of CVRD, and discussed the possibility of building an aluminium smelter in Labrador.

According to a Telegram report, Williams said, "The province is actively seeking requests from various companies to look at the possibility of an aluminium smelter in Labrador, which would utilize the Lower Churchill power when that comes on stream around 2014, 2015,".

Brazil-based CVRD - is one of the largest mining and metal companies worldwide. CVRD became the owner of the Voisey's Bay nickel project when they took control of Inco a year ago. According to Williams the company plans to live up to all of its obligations in the province, including the building of a commercial nickel processing plant in Long Harbour.

Williams said CVRD is not the only player in the running for a possible aluminium smelter. He said discussions are under way with other companies.

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro is actively pursuing the issue, the premier said.

There’s no doubt some power will have to be exported in the short term, but if the province hopes to see any real benefit from Lower Churchill that benefit will only come from using the power to attract industrial development and manufacturing. Industries in desperate need of clean, low cost and dependable power.

Atlantic Accord Deception is Clear

The following appeard in the Nova Scotia Business Journal and is certainly worth a read heading into next week.

Atlantic Accord deception is clear: Casey
BY PAUL MCLEOD

Shunned Nova Scotia MP Bill Casey is using first-hand stories and public tapes in hope of showing that Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty lied about the Atlantic Accord. Casey shared stories with The Daily News on Tuesday that he believes prove the Conservative government was trying to mislead Nova Scotians.

Casey says when controversy over the Atlantic Accord first erupted earlier this year following the Conservative budget, he went to Flaherty and asked to know exactly what had been changed from the original accord. "He looked me in the eye and said, 'Not one comma was changed," said Casey. "He said that to me twice. And I was relieved ... but in the end, that's absolutely not true. I think they thought they could pass one by us without anyone noticing."

The MP also describes going to Harper and presenting him with two legal opinions opposing changes to the accord. "He looked at them, and he took his hand and he pushed them away. He said, 'It doesn't matter what they say, I decide what formally exists.'"

Casey also apologized to Nova Scotians yesterday for initially "going in the wrong direction" after the budget. Casey said he believed what Harper and Flaherty told him, which caused him to initially support the Conservative budget. Casey would later vote against the budget and get booted from the Conservative caucus.

Casey was supposed to see a copy of the new equalization deal on Tuesday, he said, but that appointment was delayed until next week. In the meantime, he expressed concerns the government couldn't be trusted to uphold its agreements.

Casey said he has collected a series of public tapes and quotes of Harper and Flaherty taking positions they would later back away from. He cites a February 2005 Harper speech honouring John Hamm, in which he calls the former premier a "great Canadian and dear friend."

"The ultimate victory in this campaign for fairness will be his greatest legacy," Harper said. "Your federal Conservative party was proud to support John's fight for fairness for Nova Scotia ... every single member of our national caucus supported that fight." And then every single member voted to take the accord away, added Casey.

He also presents a 2005 Flaherty quote saying Nova Scotia is entitled to keep all the "terms, conditions and benefits," of the Atlantic Accord. Casey contends this was deceptive, as the Tories changed how equalization was calculated

Ottawa-based group Democracy Watch also scolded Harper for going against an earlier promise. The group claims Harper broke his commitment to "ensure that party nomination and leadership races are conducted in a fair, transparent, and democratic manner."

Democracy Watch cited Harper's fight with Casey's riding association over its selection of Casey as a candidate as an example of refusing to democratize elections. – The Daily News