A different kind of P3
Paul Lane won Mount Pearl-Southlands in 2015 by a mere 241 votes.In 2011, he won a seat in the House of Assembly by 700 votes.Anyone who tells you Paul Lane…
Ed Hollett
Did you hear the one about the Lane and the Ball? #nlpoli
Paul Lane has taken Dwight Ball's measure.How Ball and the Liberals respond to Lane's challenge will determine the fate of the administration.You can tell by the way Lane threw down…
A dose of reality for Lorraine and her friends #nlpoli
During Question Period in the House of Assembly on Tuesday, Lorraine Michael asked the finance minister for the information that showed that 35% of the tax filers in the province…
Six Rationalisations Pretending to Be Policy #nlpoli
Policy solves problems.At it's simplest level, policy answers a question.Cancelling Muskrat Falls is a good example. We are facing a financial crisis. Muskrat Falls is a huge expense. There's the…
Responsible Government #nlpoli
Many of you may not have heard of Jerry Dean until this past week.Jerry is from Botwood. Last fall the people on Exploits district elected him as their member in…
Up the harbour and down the shore… once more #nlpoli
Here's another one that started life as a column at the old Independent. And, as with "The politics of history" is can serve as a reminder of just how little…
The politics of history (again) #nlpoli
Originally written for The Independent in 2003 "The politics of history" has become a post that continues to resonate with your humble e-scribbler if no one else. it first appeared…
Stunnel mania #nlpoli
Right off the bat, let's fess up to a mistake.The 2004 research into the Stunnel cost "cost a total of $351,674, with a contribution of $281,339 from ACOA and $70,335…
Choices and values: ideologically-driven nonsense versus reality #nlpoli
Memorial University history professor Robert Sweeny discovered something recent. he discovered that the finance minister's budget speech and the Estimates contained two different sets of numbers.Hot on the trail of…
Measuring Thick: either or edition #nlpoli
While Des Whelan was clacking out his column for Saturday's Telegram one of the editors - Brian Jones - came at the government's financial mess from another direction the day…
Measuring Thick: business edition #nlpoli
You cannot manage what you cannot measure, says Des Whelan, president of the Board of Trade this year. Des gets a column in the province's largest daily newspaper.Des is right.…
Hole in ground to give Labrador "advantage of fixed link" to mainland: premier #nlpoli
The provincial government will spend $750,000 this year to study the feasibility of digging a hole from the Great Northern Peninsula to Blanc Sablon, in Quebec.SRBP told you on Tuesday…
The other side of the hill – choices and values 2 #nlpoli
Wednesday's post - Choices and values - came from the perspective of someone outside the echo chamber of politics in Newfoundland and Labrador.Ordinary voters - who mostly do not work…
Choices and values #nlpoli
Gerry Rogers, a New Democrat member of the House of Assembly, got a bit enthusiastic on Twitter the other night about "building budget fr set of values/priorities," as if that…
Province to spend $750K to study feasibility of hole in the ground #nlpoli
At a time when the provincial government does not have any money to spend foolishly, it is hard to fathom why cabinet is taxing books to raise $1.0 million and…
A cut too far #nlpoli
There's a scene in the movie A Bridge too far where the British soldiers are trying to push down a road as part of a major attack on the Germans…
Flying the checklist – Government’s comms problem Part II #nlpoli
The Liberals under Dwight Ball have had a steady run of problems with managing issues, policies, and positions. The current mess they face with the 2016 budget is really nothing…
Not fit for it, indeed #nlpoli
Once upon a time not so long ago, you would think politics in this province was a mash up of Nineteen eighty-four and Animal Farm.These days, the Orwellian times in…
Winston Churchill and taxes #nlpoli
You have probably seen the quote and a picture of Winston Churchill flying around Facebook or Twitter since the provincial government introduced its budget in the House of Assembly a…
MQO poll shows big Liberal slide #nlpoli
Just for the fun of comparison, here's the CRA polling results for a year covering the last time the provincial government saw a change of party and the new crowd…