Province will pay $3 million for a dead cat
Posted Jan 28, 2010 04:24:28 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The province will be paying Bay Ferries $3 millions this year as part of an agreement for shutting down.
Nova Scotia’s Minister of Economic and Rural Development says he doesn’t have a choice in the matter and will have to sign a series of cheques paying the Yarmouth company.
“As part of an agreement with the previous government, there was a $3 million transition fee that should Bay Ferries not exist there was going to be $3 million to help them through the transition of not operating,” Percy Paris told reporters, following his weekly cabinet meeting today at One Government Place.
The current government decided to stop subsidize the catamaran service between Yarmouth and Maine. Paris says he had asked the company for its business plan when discussing whether or not to continue subsidizing the service.
“The reaction was, from Bay Ferries, ‘Mr. Minister we can’t give you a good business case why you’d want to continue this marriage with us,'” said Paris.
Under the deal, Bay Ferries will not have to account for how it spends the money. Cheques in the amount of $500,000 are to be issued to the company each month over a six month period starting April 1.
