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Ottawa is preparing to crack down on employment-insurance recipients who are not seeking work in areas where employers are forced to bring in foreign workers to fill jobs. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said Wednesday the government wants to reduce disincentives to work by creating a “greater connection” between the EI program and the temporary foreign worker program, which is under Mr. Kenney’s purview. “What we will be doing is making people aware there’s hiring going on and reminding them that they have an obligation to apply for available work and to take it if they’re going to qualify for EI,” Mr. Kenney told the National Post editorial board on Wednesday. He was touting immigration reforms that will try to streamline the entry of immigrants and foreign workers, favouring entrepreneurs, innovators and those with high quality professional credentials. The reforms would require unemployed Canadians to accept local jobs that are currently being filled by temporary foreign workers. “Nova Scotia province-wide has 10% unemployment, but the only way Christmas tree operators can function in the Annapolis Valley is to bring in Mexicans through this agricultural worker program,” he said, also pointing to the increased number of Russians working in Prince Edward Island fish processing plants and Romanians working at the Ganong chocolate factory in New Brunswick. “Even on the north shore of New Brunswick, which has the highest unemployment in the province, the MPs keep telling me the employers definitely need more temporary workers. What’s going on here?” Minister of Human Resources Diane Finley will soon address the issue in further detail, Mr. Kenney said. The coming changes were first revealed in last month’s federal budget, which proposed spending $387-million over two years to align EI benefit amounts with local labour market conditions. The government will consider more measures to ensure the Temporary Foreign Worker Program will continue to meet those labour needs by “better aligning” the program with labour demands, according to budget documents. At the same time, businesses will have to have made “all reasonable efforts” to recruit from the domestic labour force before they seek workers from abroad. When an employer looks to the government for a labour market opinion, which is one step in getting approval to hire foreign temporary workers, Mr. Kenney said the government will soon point out the number of people on EI in that employer’s region and ensure the people collecting EI are aware of that job opportunity. “If you don’t take available work, you don’t get EI,” he said. “That’s always been a legal principle of that program.” http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/04/18/conservatives-want-unemployed-to-fill-jobs-going-to-temporary-foreign-workers-jason-kenney/

Canadian provinces' budget gaps at 'tipping point'

Hydro-Quebec and NB Power : Power talks continue Last Updated: Thursday, October 22, 2009 | 8:54 PM AT CBC News Opposition Leader David Alward says Premier Shawn Graham has a responsibility to be clear to New Brunswickers.Opposition Leader David Alward says Premier Shawn Graham has a responsibility to be clear to New Brunswickers. (CBC)New Brunswick Opposition Leader David Alward is calling on Premier Shawn Graham to clear the air about the future of NB Power and say whether it is for sale. Alward said he's been hearing speculation that Hydro-Québec, the provincial energy utility, wants to buy NB Power, a provincial Crown corporation. "It's important at this time that the premier be transparent, be open to New Brunswickers," he said. "If these are just rumours, if this isn't true, then he has the opportunity to tell New Brunswickers. He has the responsibility. If they are true, he has a responsibility to tell New Brunswickers what's going on." Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams told CBC News he has also heard rumours about a possible deal between NB Power and Hydro-Québec. In a statement Thursday, his communications director, Elizabeth Matthews, said Williams "can't imagine the people of New Brunswick would allow their government to sell their energy asset and put that power into someone else's hands." Graham began discussions with Quebec Premier Jean Charest last summer about energy issues, including possible relationships between Hydro-Québec and NB Power. Those talks spawned rumours that NB Power would be sold to Hydro-Québec. Late Thursday, Graham's office issued a statement that neither confirms nor denies those rumours. "We're having a variety of conversations with Quebec, but they have not concluded," said Graham's communications director, Jordan O'Brien. "It's not in anybody's interest to talk about a possible outcome." NB Power has been owned by the province since 1920. In the last provincial election, Graham promised to keep it as a publicly owned utility. ________________________________________________________________ N.L. premier watching N.B., Quebec energy talks Fri Oct 23, 7:06 AM Reports that have been circulating in New Brunswick about the possible sale of that province's energy utility have the attention of the premier of Newfoundland and Labrador. In a statement Thursday, Danny Williams's communications director, Elizabeth Matthews, said the premier "can't imagine the people of New Brunswick would allow their government to sell their energy asset and put that power into someone else's hands." The rumours say that New Brunswick is on the verge of a deal to sell its utility NB Power to Hydro-Québec. New Brunswick Premier Shawn Graham isn't commenting. But the province's Progressive Conservative Leader David Alward is calling on Graham to clear the air about the future of NB Power and say whether it is for sale. Alward said he's been hearing speculation that Hydro-Québec, the provincial energy utility, wants to buy NB Power, a provincial Crown corporation. "It's important at this time that the premier be transparent, be open to New Brunswickers," he said. "If these are just rumours, if this isn't true, then he has the opportunity to tell New Brunswickers. He has the responsibility. If they are true, he has a responsibility to tell New Brunswickers what's going on." Graham began discussions with Quebec Premier Jean Charest last summer about energy issues, including possible relationships between Hydro-Québec and NB Power. Those talks spawned the rumours that NB Power would be sold to Hydro-Québec. Late Thursday, Graham's office issued a statement that neither confirms nor denies the possibility. "We're having a variety of conversations with Quebec, but they have not concluded," said Graham's communications director, Jordan O'Brien. "It's not in anybody's interest to talk about a possible outcome." NB Power has been owned by the province since 1920. In the last provincial election, Graham promised to keep it as a publicly owned utility. À lire les commentaires sur le site de la CBC, je crois que les gens du NB sont en désaccords, bref du bon vieux Quebec-bashing comme on l'aime. Ceci est très divertissant par contre. Enfin, de dire que le Canada n'est pas vraiment divisé en deux solitudes indifférentes tient purement du délire.

I just returned from my annual vacation on Prince Edward Island. One thing that strikes me every time is the sheer time it takes to get from Montreal to PEI. IMO, this could be significantly shortened if Quebec Autoroute 10 were to be extended through Maine (passing adjacent to Bangor) and connecting with New Brunswick Highway 1. This would allow for a quicker passage from Montreal, Ontario and Western Canada to the Maritimes. The proposed divided highway would be about 400 KM (250 miles) in length, and would be significantly shorter than the alternate route by way of the TransCanada/Autoroute 20/NB Highway 2.