Corporate Research Associates and the provincial Conservatives played up the change in government satisfaction in the release of CRA’s quarterly advertising poll on Wednesday. But CRA’s satisfaction numbers don’t mean anything, as regular readers of this corner recall from last month. CRA doesn’t explore “satisfaction” to see what it means
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The Sir Robert Bond Papers: And then things went horribly wronger… #nlpoli
John Crosbie, the elder statesmen of Conservatives in the province took a shot at Danny Williams for his continued interference in the internal affairs of the provincial Conservatives. Danny blew a gasket and willingly gave interviews to every media outlet in town, thereby guaranteeing that the story that can only
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: John, Danny, and voter apathy #nlpoli
Every now and again, someone will talk about voter apathy. Last week, Steve Kent was circulating the link to an article that claimed that youth engagement – getting young people more involved in the community and in politics – was a way of getting more people to vote at election
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: No sense of irony at all #nlpoli
The smart guy they could have had – but frigged over twice - told Canadian Press: “The understanding of the [provincial political] climate isn’t as sophisticated as it should be for those who are working with Mr. Coleman on the strategic side.” Without knowing what the smart guy said, one
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Playing with the Ferryman #nlpoli
The ferry service between Newfoundland and Cape Breton is economically important to the province as a whole, but it’s especially sensitive for Port aux Basques. Marine Atlantic announced a change in the summer ferry schedule on Thursday. The company will reduce the number of crossings daily and put one of
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Grimes on Frank, Tom, and the Kami project #nlpoli
Roger Grimes’ is through his heart surgery and nice vacation and that has left him with a new vigour. He called VOCM’s BackTalk on Tuesday to talk about the Kami project, the Friday Night Massacre, and Humber Valley Paving. 15 minutes. Worth the time. Hat tip to Dave Adey for
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Coleman, Marshall, and the Broken Chain of Accountability #nlpoli
The Telegram’s James McLeod started a story that appeared on 26 May with the following sentence: Premier-designate Frank Coleman says he wants to run a premier’s office with fewer people, and he’s starting that already — six weeks before he becomes premier. What neither McLeod, nor his editors, nor anyone
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Contrasting Speeches #nlpoli
Liberal leader Dwight Ball and Conservative leader-designate Frank Coleman delivered speeches in St. John’s last week and you couldn’t have scripted more startling contrasts. Ball delivered a speech at an event that reflected his party’s standing in the polls: more than 500 people who paid $500 a head to attend.
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: McGrath comments “preposterous”: surety association #nlpoli
From the industry association representing companies that provide sureties and other bonds, released May 26, 2014: News Release For Immediate Release: May 26, 2014 Recent remarks by Nick McGrath, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure for Newfoundland and Labrador about the use of surety bonds on public projects are completely preposterous.
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: The Friday Night Massacre #nlpoli
Frank Coleman recorded CBC’s On Point with Peter Cowan on Thursday or Friday afternoon. During the show, Coleman acknowledged that he had a personal financial interest in a decision by transport minister Nick McGrath to let Humber Valley Paving out of a contract without calling the performances bonds associated with
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Tom Marshall’s puppet government #nlpoli
Whatever is going on in the Premier’s Office these days, it isn’t an orderly and organized transition from one premier to another. That’s certain. Every transition from one premier to another since 1949 – whether it involved a change of party or not – has happened in a matter of
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Politics and the Fishery #nlpoli
For those who missed it, here’s the podcast from the Fisheries Broadcast for May 22, complete with your humble e-scribbler talking about politics and the fishery. -srbp-
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Politics and the Fishery #nlpoli
For those who missed it, here’s the podcast from the Fisheries Broadcast for May 22, complete with your humble e-scribbler talking about politics and the fishery. -srbp-
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Another inside deal #nlpoli
If you want to get a sense of how the New Democratic Party convention actually ran last weekend, take a few minutes and listen to Tony Adey’s interview on CBC’s Corner Brook Morning Show. Adey attended the convention but announced afterward that he was leaving the party. Adey believes that
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Nalcor and Conflict of Interest #nlpoli
Is anyone else having trouble trying to figure out what all the fuss is about Cathy Bennett, Nalcor, and conflict of interest? Seriously. Here’s the story in a nutshell. (Read more…)
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Kremlinology 47: If only saying it made it so #nlpoli
According to New Democratic Party leader Lorraine Michael, the party convention this past weekend was “a room of people who are saying, ‘we’re new, we’re moving forward.’" [quote via CBC] Would that merely saying the words made it so. The reality is that the party isn’t new. They aren’t moving
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Always read the large print #nlpoli
The Conference Board of Canada released a report last week that assessed economic performance in each of the provinces in Canada. “The resource-driven economies of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador can boast A+ grades for their economic performance,” read the first sentence of the news release accompanying the report,
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: The left-wing conservatives #nlpoli
In 2010, the provincial Conservatives had a chance to reinvigorate their party in time for the 2011 general election. They deliberately stuck with an interim leader in order to avoid what they considered a potentially decisive leadership contest. After the 2011 election, the Conservatives kept Kathy Dunderdale, even though she’s
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