Are the Sheep Really Eating the Wolves?

Here we go again.

It seems like every time the people, the government or, God forbid, the premier of Newfoundland and Labrador does anything that rubs Ottawa or big business the wrong way the mainstream national media swiftly calls a team of verbal mercenaries into action to attack not only the action itself but the motives, agenda and personalities of anyone involved.

It’s the sort of yellow journalism that would have been all too recognizable to the late newspaper magnate, William Randolph Hearst, who built his empire by manipulating public opinion for his personal and political advantage.

Up to this point the attacks have been somewhat immature and asinine in nature, ranging from questioning the intelligence of every day Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to comparing premier Danny Williams to a South American dictator.

The latest assault, by the Globe and Mail, is far more sinister.

Not only does it question the actions of the Newfoundland and Labrador government but uses unsupported comments, supposition and presumptions in an all out character assassination against the Province’s premier.

Clearly as far as the Globe is concerned unbiased journalism is dead.

The editorial board of the Globe has now sunk to substituting unsolicited letters from individuals as hard facts worthy of spreading a conspiracy theory.

It makes me wonder if their lawyers have ever hear of the word “slander” because they may well learn what it means.

The latest attack has to do with the Province’s expropriation of Abitibi’s hydro and timber leases undertaken when the company decided to close its last paper mill in Newfoundland and Labrador.

In a February 19th Globe editorial the paper intentionally left the Canadian public with the impression that the Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador had secret plans to drive Abitibi out of the Province, at the cost of nearly a thousand direct and indirect jobs, so he could sieze control of their power supply to feed a planned smelter that would employ 450 people in another part of the Province.

I'm no genious but to me it makes no sense for anyone to sacrifice a large number of jobs to create a small number. This simple reality appears to have escaped the brain trust at the Globe, but then again, when has reality ever been a factor when it comes to propaganda?

The basis of the editorial was a letter from a single individual living near the soon to be closed Abitibi mill. The letter was sent to premier Danny Williams and copied to the media. The letter, written by someone who was clearly upset about the closure, used rhetoric that the Globe and Mail was more than happy to seize upon to serve its purposes. Reality be damned.

According to the Globe article, “Mr. Williams knew (the mill wouldn’t survive)…it now appears, (he) had other plans."

It goes on to “suppose” that the Williams government only made a token gesture to keep the mill open because it wanted the power to supply a new Vale Inco smelter in the town of Long Harbour and says, “This begs a question: Did Mr. Williams sacrifice the 800 Abitibi mill and woodlands workers in Grand Falls to provide 450 permanent jobs in Long Harbour and another 5,700 person-years of employment during the construction of the hydromet facility?”

“Few people in Newfoundland, where Mr. Williams is challenged at one's peril, would dare ask”, says the Globe.
It’s a conspiracy theory worthy of Oliver Stone himself.

The original author of the letter has since stated that the Globe took parts of his letter out of context. He admits not having any connection with the mill, the government or any political party, meaning he would not have been privy to what transpired between the mill operators, government officials or the unions in the months of negotiation leading up to the decision to close the mill.

Is this what passes substance in the Globe these days?

It apparently is, leading to one of two possible explanations. Either everyone at the Globe, from the editors on down, have no journalistic training and experience or they have no problem ignoring the facts in favour of self serving propaganda.

In reality, the contract that requires the building of a smelter in Long Harbour was signed by a previous Liberal administration under then premier Roger Grimes more than seven years ago. It was in place long before the current Williams administration took office.

Does anyone really believe that the mining company involved, Vale Inco, would have agreed to build a smelter, invested more than a billion dollars building a test plant in the Province and went ahead with plans to invest billions more in a seven year old agreement without ever knowing whether or not they would have any power to run the facility?

Surely nobody could have foreseen, when the original contract was signed back in 2002, that Abitibi would conveniently fall into financial difficulties and close its mill at the exact time the new smelter construction was about to go ahead. The speculation is ridiculous.

The Globe also states that, “Few people in Newfoundland, where Mr. Williams is challenged at one's peril, would dare ask”

What peril?

Would the Globe have people believe that Newfoundland and Labrador’s “dictatorial” premier is travelling the width and breadth of the land beheading the serfs or feeding their still wriggling carcasses to his wolf hounds?

Give me a break.

I’ve heard this fairy tale from the national media and partisan political types before but I’ve yet to find anyone who has suffered in any way, let alone lost their head, because they disagreed with the premier?

Sure, some comments may illicit a terse response and some cabinet ministers or caucus members have been disciplined in the past for not toeing the party line, a process I personally find disgusting, but that happens in all politcal parties. Neither response may not be something we all approve of but they're certainly nothing new under the sun.

I've yet to see anyone in the Province quaking in fear.

I’ve publicly questioned Mr. Williams’ tactics and his actions a number of times including his direction on the Lower Churchill hydro project, a project that appears to be something he's hoping will be his legacy.

I still have my head, my job, my home, my family, all of my appendages. I have yet to hear any hounds baying outside my windows and I don’t expect to hear them any time soon.

It seems that after crying foul over the abitibi expropriation, screaming that the little Province of Newfoundland and Labrador is about to single handedly destroy NAFTA and using every means possible to question the legality of the Province’s actions, the Globe has reached a point of desperation that has led them to skirt the edges of libel and slander in an effort to meet their objectives.

As one proud Newfoundlander and Labradorian recently put it, “They’d have you believe the sheep is going to eat the wolf.”

NL Legislature Determined to Protect Public Interest

Today I’d like to offer the entire Newfoundland and Labrador legislature, both government and opposition members, my heart felt congratulations for their combined efforts this week.

By working together to quickly enact legislation intended to secure the people’s water and timber rights from Abitibi-Bowater, each of the Province’s elected members have shown that they can indeed work together in a non-partisan way for the betterment of the Province, when the situation calls for it.

Perhaps their federal counterparts in Ottawa would do well to learn from this fine example.

On Tuesday the Williams government presented the Abitibi expropriation bill to the opposition members, met with them to discuss its contents and all parties worked together to move the bill through 3 readings, the committee stage and royal ascent. All of this was accomplished in under 5 hours.

That process spoke volumes about the ability of all the parties to put aside their partisan differences and work together for the greater good of the people they represent and for that they deserve a pat on the back.

The bill, which will see the Province expropriate all water & timber rights as well as any power generating facilities held by Abitibi once that company closes its last remaining mill, is something that had to be introduced to ensure that the company could not simply walk away from the Province and continue to retain control of valuable provincial resources.

Unfortunately the logic and importance of the effort put out by the Newfoundland and Labrador legislature is something that appears to have been lost on some Central Canadian quasi-news agencies and corporate mouthpieces.

Apparently some of these highly paid shills think the Province should have simply allowed Abitibi-Bowater to close its mill operations, throw a thousand people out of work yet sell or even retain the valuable natural resources of the Province so nobody else could have access to them.

Globe and Mail journalist (and I use the term journalist very loosely) Konrad Yakabuski even decided that the time was right to break out the “Danny Chavez” rhetoric once again and to slam the province for ensuring that its resources are not sold off to the highest bidder so Abitibi could continue to profit from the Province even after it has closed its doors.

In his commentary Mr. Yakabuski, who comes across as being very upset that Abitibi will not be able to sell those assets to pay down debt, attacked the Williams government for “Bludgeoning” the company.

He went on to say that this legislation will, “sour any sensible business person with an eye to investing in the province…”.

The position taken by Mr. Yakabuski leads this writer to wonder where his pay cheque comes from or if he is truly that obtuse.

In a feeble attempt to justify his attack Mr. Yakabuski wrote in the Globe that while, “It is true Abitibi has been so stingy with new capital that the mill might have been doomed by its obsolescence. But the hydro assets are still valuable. Abitibi had been counting on them to ease its own financial difficulties.”

Go figure.

Personally I can only say that it’s about time the Globe took another shot at Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Ontario based paper hasn’t taken a good shot at Williams or the Province for weeks now and this fact alone had almost convinced me that the Premier had slipped into the same sort of complacent “giveaway” mentality that has plagued the Province’s leaders since entering Confederation.

I guess my worries were unfounded.

Now that Canada’s national rag is on the attack again (as long as “national” means Central Canada) I’m more convinced than ever that the provincial government (all parties) must be doing the right thing on this file.

Mr. Jakabusi’s editorial attack makes me wonder what the Globe’s reaction will be should the Ontario government decide to take similar steps with Abitibi. Already the legislature in that province is expressing deep concern about the company’s plans to sell off similar assets there and are meeting with mill workers to gather their input.

It would be interesting to see the Globe’s spin on something like that.

“Sour any sensible business person with an eye to investing…” indeed.

As one letter I received from a reader just this morning so eloquently pointed out:

“Someone should remind the Globe that when it comes to attracting business the Ontario elite have no room to talk."

"What was it Jim Flaherty said about Ontario, "It is the last place anyone would want to invest."

"Meanwhile Newfoundland and Labrador is now a "Have" province while Ontario is a "Have Not."

"Newfoundland and Labrador has a (1.3 billion dollar) surplus, Ontario is running a deficit."

"Newfoundland and Labrador has record car and home sales, Ontario's sales are in the toilet."

"Oil, gas and other companies are investing in new activity in Newfoundland and Labrador all the time including during this economic downturn."

"It seems to me that the folks at this Ontario based rag have very little right to tell Newfoundland and Labrador how to deal with corporate interests."

Well said, well said indeed.

Federal Conservatives Out of Touch with Provinces

Are you wondering what the federal government is up to?

Has the actions taken by Ottawa (especially the conservative government) got you thinking they are on your side and on the right track?

Then you need to dig past the headlines.

To say I'm not a big fan of the Globe and Mail is the understatement of the year, but every now and then one of their columnists actually maks a point worth noticing. Although the writer clearly missed the point in reference to Newfoundland and Labrador's premier and his attacks on Ottawa, (he was already well above 70% in the polls prior to the election) what follows, from the Globe's Report on Business, is interesting

It raises points that should be considered when it comes to federal/provincial discussions. The question being, who really needs who the most. The conservatives might also want to reconsider their statement that relations between the two levels of government "have never been better in Canada".

From the Globe and Mail:

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is a master of the headline-grabbing declaration. In the last year, he has told Canadians that Canada's total net debt will be eliminated by 2021; that fiscal balance has been restored; that a planned common securities regulator will enhance regulatory efficiency; and a that corporate income tax rate of 25 per cent by 2012 will be a powerful brand for Canada globally.

The one thing that unites all of these federal claims, aside from the fact that they make short, sweet media hits, is that they won't happen without provincial support. So one would assume that Mr. Flaherty, a former Ontario finance minister, has gone the extra mile to ensure he has buy-in from all his provincial colleagues before presenting his latest plan.

Apparently not.

Spokesmen for a number of provincial finance ministers said this week they hadn't heard a peep from Ottawa before Mr. Flaherty announced his goal of a 25 per cent combined corporate income tax rate. (Ontario's responded with some meaningless twaddle about not wanting to speculate about whether consultations had indeed occurred, but that may have been due to confusion in the new minister's office).

It points to a rather high-handed approach to the very people Mr. Flaherty needs co-operation from if he is to realize the lofty national goals he has set. Running roughshod over the enfeebled opposition parties in Ottawa is all very well. They are, after all, the opposition and would do the same if they had a chance. But the provinces should not be regarded as such if Canada is to work.

Yet if you look at the state of federal-provincial fiscal relations these days, there are lots of signs of acrimony.

Earlier this month, the government of Saskatchewan filed a lawsuit against the federal government over the equalization plan Mr. Flaherty said would restore fiscal balance. Premier Danny Williams of Newfoundland has mused about joining in on the equalization suit, but for now is contenting himself with bad-mouthing the prime minister and threatening to campaign against federal Conservative candidates in the next national election.

Monique Jerome-Forget, the Quebec finance minister, blasted Mr. Flaherty for his tactics, which she called aggressive, in pushing a common securities regulator. She suggested he should spend more time on consultations. And just about every provincial finance minister claims that they are sending more money to Ottawa than they are getting back and want the situation addressed. Some of these provincial utterances can be dismissed as political bombast.

A certain amount of federal-provincial jostling is inevitable when it comes to financial matters, especially if a province is headed for an election, as was the case with Newfoundland and is the case with Saskatchewan. Still, Mr. Flaherty must know that if he wants provincial support for his ideas, it's advisable to at least give his counterparts a heads-up beforehand, rather than forcing them to scramble after the fact.

On the matter of corporate income tax, he acknowledged that the provincial part was not his jurisdiction. But then he announced a goal of 25 per cent that he can't deliver on his own.

A cynical observer might conclude that it's the headline that matters and not the actual achievement. The lowest corporate tax rate in the G7 countries (which is what a 15 per cent federal tax and 10 per cent provincial tax would be as long as everyone else stood still) has a definite ring to it. With luck, media reports will feature that figure rather than digging deeper to see if it is realistic.

Look what has happened with the Alberta royalty changes announced last week: news reports repeated the Alberta government's claims (and oil industry gripes) even though royalty experts noted that it was mathematically impossible for the government to meet its announced targets. A less cynical interpretation is that Mr. Flaherty expects to persuade the provinces to go along on grounds that a low corporate tax rate will attract new business and allow existing businesses to flourish.

Setting aside the lack of groundwork done to prepare for this happy eventuality, there is another problem: the provinces may have other plans for their taxpayers' money. Carole Taylor, the B.C. minister of finance, alluded to this in her immediate response to the federal plan, saying she would have to see how it fit with the province's overall economic plan.

Among the challenges that all provinces face are increasing demands from municipalities for more money, the mounting cost of social programs, and aging infrastructure that urgently needs to be repaired or replaced. Any one of these may appear more urgent to a provincial finance minister than going along with Mr. Flaherty's plan to lower corporate income taxes.

In the past, the federal government could use the promise of more money from Ottawa as a sweetener when asking for provincial support on a particular plan. But the Conservative government says it plans to reduce spending in areas of provincial jurisdiction, a move that will also lessen its clout with the provinces.

The upshot of all this is that unless you are a business operating in Alberta, where the provincial corporate tax rate is already 10 per cent, don't plan on paying a combined rate of 25 per cent any time soon.