I see all this money (or talk of money) being doled out as economic stimulus and I have to say the best spending annoucement to date is this one. The feds are putting another $8 million into PEI’s nascent nutraceutical…
Continue ReadingDanny Chavez back in business
Believe it or not my colleagues and I have great debates about old Danny Williams and his tactics on Newfoundland and Labrador. There is no doubt that he has tapped into a long standing but latent view among residents on…
Continue ReadingCanadian Social Values Survey
Hey, I just completed the online Environics social values survey. Here are a few of the upfront questions on the survey. Currently, the Province of New Brunswick relies on money from the federal government, called Equalization Payments, to fund a…
Continue ReadingRecession blues
All this talk about recession has me recessed. Or is it depression talk has me depressed. Not sure. One month ago our PM was saying that things were unsettled but there was no need to panic and now he is…
Continue ReadingThe Diefenbunker to be data centre
I knew CoRDA was up to something – not sure what until now. IT start-up Bastionhost has purchased an former government continuity bunker in Novia Scotia as part of its plan to build a “Dataville” of data centers in the…
Continue ReadingJob creation announcements
I don’t know if I blame the media or the government spin guys for this but job creation announcements in New Brunswick are getting thinner and thinner with the information these days. I am not opposed to government using tax…
Continue ReadingMariner Partners expands in Saint John
This is a good story. Mariner is adding 30 new well paid IT positions in New Brunswick. The firm is headed up by former NBTel boss Gerry Pond and other ex-NBTelers. This is an important story on several levels. First,…
Continue ReadingIt’s the Economy, Stupid! December 2/08
Check this out – the second edition of this video podcast. Next time I think I will break things up into the “Good”, “Bad” and “Ugly” of economic development in the region to make it a little less boring. Comments…
Continue ReadingTurning the focus inward
I have received several emails lately that have turned my thinking inward towards our locally based businesses and their role in long term economic development. When I say our local businesses I am talking exclusively about those that are exporting (products…
Continue ReadingActivist journalism at its finest
Al Hogan must be a case study for journalism classes everywhere. It’s fascinating to watch. The Times & Transcript has featured over two dozen stories about tax reform in New Brunswick and the central theme of virtually everyone of them…
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