(NB-LeBlanc-Finance)
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has tapped New Brunswick M-P Dominic LeBlanc to replace Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland after she suddenly tendered her resignation from cabinet yesterday.
LeBlanc was sworn into his new role yesterday in a ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa.
He represents the riding of Beauséjour, and he has held a number of cabinet portfolios throughout his tenure in the Liberal government.
Freeland’s resignation letter said she and Trudeau found themselves at odds for weeks about “the best path forward for Canada,” and it has reignited calls for Trudeau to step down.
(The Canadian Press)
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(Canada-Post-Strike)
A Fredericton woman brought Christmas cards and Tim Hortons gift cards for Canada Post employees yesterday.
Mary Bardsley says she’s not worried about her holiday mail being held up.
She says she tries to give the Canada Post employees a Christmas card and gift every year and has been doing it for more than a decade.
Canada Post trucks, conveyors and mail carriers are moving again after a month-long strike by more than 55-thousand postal workers left letters and parcels in limbo.
(The Canadian Press)
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(NB-Remains-Charges)
Police in Saint John, New Brunswick have arrested three people after an investigation into human remains found in a wooded area of the city in August.
The city force says it arrested a 56-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman and a 65-year-old man for crimes ranging from first-degree murder to being an accessory after the crime.
They were arrested late last week and earlier this week, and they all have dates set to appear in court.
Police say they were arrested after an extensive search and investigation.
(The Canadian Press)
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(NB-Contraband-Seized)
Correctional Service Canada says officials allegedly seized a package containing contraband at a maximum security prison in Renous, New Brunswick.
The items seized allegedly included crystal methamphetamine, shatter, ectasy and marijuana.
Officials say the total estimated institutional value of the seizures is over 400-thousand dollars.
A news release says police have been notified and the institution is investigating.
(The Canadian Press)
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(NL-School-Devices)
Younger students in Newfoundland and Labrador won’t be able to use their cellphones in school after the Christmas break.
The province is rolling out new rules forbidding students in Kindergarten to Grade 6 from using personal electronic devices during school hours.
Those students are encouraged not to bring phones to school at all.
Students in Grades 7-12 will only be allowed to use cellphones during recess and lunch hour.
(The Canadian Press)
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(Atlantic-Border-Figures)
The Canada Border Services Agency is noting their seizure figures in the Atlantic region for the first 10 months of 2024.
The agency recently released the numbers in its annual review.
It says 206 weapons and 64 firearms were seized, and over one thousand, 500 kilograms of cocaine was nabbed.
Meanwhile, 132 stolen vehicles were intercepted at the marine ports of Saint John, New Brunswick and Halifax.
(The Canadian Press)
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(NL-Que-Churchill-Falls)
Some in Newfoundland and Labrador are urging the province to take a sober second look at the massive energy partnership with Quebec announced last week.
Historian Jerry Bannister worries the province will repeat the mistakes it made with the Muskrat Falls hydroelectric dam, which inched over the finish line in 2023 after years of delays and billions of dollars in cost overruns.
The associate professor at Dalhousie University says politicians promised Muskrat Falls would usher in a new dawn for Newfoundland and Labrador — just as Liberal Premier Andrew Furey did last week when he announced a tentative agreement with Quebec.
Bannister says the government must commit to robust oversight of any new hydroelectric installations in the deal — a step the province did not seek for Muskrat Falls.
(The Canadian Press)
