There will be no side deal for New Brunswick! said a disgruntled Jim Flaherty last week.
Maybe Shawn Graham just needs to get creative.
$900 million for the ‘aerospace’ sector (read: Quebec). New Brunswick’s total aerospace exports in 2006 were $3.2 million. Quebec’s aerospace exports were $8.2 billion. Or about 8.156 bilion more than New Brunswick. Give or take a few dollars.
Who do you think will get this $900 million?
In order for Shawn to get money for his side deal, he just needs to do a couple of things.
He needs to add, say, 6 million population to actually be noticed by the Federal government.
Second, he needs to craft a national strategy that will benefit only New Brunswick. What industry do we have in New Brunswick that can only be found in trace amounts in the rest of Canada?
Fiddleheads.
I propose a $900 million national Strategic Fiddlehead and Atlantic Salmon Initiative. But, you say, Quebec’s aerospace sector already benefitted disporportionately from the current and very active Technology Partnerships Canada program and the federal government defence contract procurement system.
Fair enough.
I propose a $900 million national strategic Fiddlehead and Atlantic Raised Salmon Effort(FARSE) to supplement the $3.5 billion Blueberry Partnerships Canada fund and the $5 billion Federal government FMP (farmed mussel procurement) program. Come on. Think this through. $5 billion worth of mussels from New Brunswick sent to the third world to raise Omega 3 levels among the poor.
In all seriousness, you have to wonder how long Western Canadians will put up with this. Eventually, another Reform Party will have to emerge. Unless they continue to buy the notion that this is all just to form a national government and then Up with the West!