Latest news with #DerekMombourquette
CTV News
14-07-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Cape Breton Regional Municipality to ask province for help with abandoned buildings after fire
The former Morrison School in Glace Bay, N.S., was destroyed by fire on July 10, 2025. Last Thursday's fire at the long-abandoned Morrison High School in Glace Bay, N.S., threatened homes in the nearby area. Residents, firefighters and elected officials said the thought the fire was bound to happen. 'These are becoming an issue in the community,' said councillor Gordon MacDonald of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM). On the Northside, which includes MacDonald's District 1, a number of fires have been set at the former North Sydney post office. MacDonald estimates it would cost about $1 million to get rid of the building. 'And they're left to cash-strapped municipalities like us who don't have the resources to be able to tear them down because we don't have the budget available for the high cost of doing it,' MacDonald said. A spokesperson for CBRM told CTV Atlantic that abandoned buildings will be a significant item on the agenda at Tuesday evening's council meeting and the municipality will likely ask the provincial government for help with the issue. 'I think the province should definitely sit down as part of negotiations with the CBRM and look at the issue', said Derek Mombourquette, interim leader of Nova Scotia's Liberal party and MLA for Sydney-Membertou. Mombourquette said CBRM's case might be unique because it has so many derelict buildings - roughly 400 of them. 'The sheer size of it compared to other municipalities around the province, I would argue it probably has a more significant case of this,' Mombourquette said. MacDonald says they also have to consider buildings that aren't empty yet but soon will be. 'We're going to have the North Sydney hospital - the Northside General Hospital - coming up,' he said. 'That's going to be abandoned in the near future, and people have to start planning what is the next step for a building like that?' Tuesday's council meeting begins at 6 p.m. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
CTV News
10-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Nova Scotia pushes clean energy exports but grid infrastructure remains a barrier
Nova Scotia continues to tout its clean energy ambitions and broader interprovincial cooperation but little progress has been made and questions remain about how the province will transmit energy to other markets. Premier Tim Houston says discussions with the federal government are ongoing as Nova Scotia positions itself as a key player in Canada's energy future. 'There's lots of discussions that are ongoing with the federal government about Nova Scotia as a contribution to the energy superpower opportunity that Canada has,' Houston said. The province's focus remains on offshore wind, now repackaged under the name WindWest. Canada's Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson acknowledged that projects across Atlantic Canada, including those in New Brunswick, are being considered as part of a broader regional energy strategy. 'That will buttress a number of projects around Atlantic Canada and would work in conjunction with some of the projects that New Brunswick is talking about,' Hodgson said. Some critics say WindWest and the province's clean energy goals can't succeed without a significant infrastructure investment, including a transmission cable that would allow Nova Scotia to move electricity in and out of the province. 'WindWest is nothing without the grid, without the cable,' said Liberal MLA Derek Mombourquette. 'If there's any ask that comes from the province to Ottawa, that's where the ask has to be… Without that, WindWest, or whatever you want to call it, can never happen.' Nova Scotia is expected to issue its first call for offshore wind project bids later this year. Houston says that before any large-scale development can move forward, the province and the federal government must determine what kind of transmission is feasible. 'If we can get a sufficient transmission line, then we can do bigger bids,' Houston said. The province believes Ottawa is open to supporting infrastructure development but so far no commitment has been made. Wilkinson said the federal government is willing to consider all proposals but stopped short of endorsing any specific projects. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
CBC
02-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Interim Liberal leader unsure if he wants job permanently as party releases leadership rules
Social Sharing Nova Scotia's interim Liberal leader said Monday he hasn't given much thought to whether he wants the job on a permanent basis, as the party released the rules for next year's leadership race. The new leader will be selected at a convention on Nov. 28, 2026 — two years after the party suffered its most devastating election performance ever and returned to Province House with just two MLAs. Candidates have until July 28, 2026, to submit their nomination package, but whether that shortlist will include interim Liberal Leader Derek Mombourquette remains to be seen. "That would be a conversation I would have with my family, which we haven't really talked about at length to date," the MLA for Sydney-Membertou told CBC News. Electronic and telephone voting for the party's next leader will run Nov. 21-28, 2026, using a preferential ballot. Leadership candidates must be at least 18 and a member of the Liberal Party — and no other party — and submit a non-refundable nomination fee of $25,000, paid in three instalments, plus a $5,000 compliance deposit. The deposit is returned to the candidate following the election as long as all required financial filings have been made. The nomination package must include at least 100 signatures from members in good standing, at least 10 of whom are young Liberals. The signatures must also include members from at least 10 different electoral districts and 15 new members of the Angus L. Club, the party's monthly donor program. All would-be candidates are subject to a greenlighting process before they can be officially considered in the race for leader. 1-member, 1-vote system Campaigns are subject to a $250,000 expense limit, which includes the value of donated goods and services, but not the nomination fee, compliance deposit or expenses related to accessibility or family. The borrowing limit for each campaign is $30,000. The election of the new leader will use a one-member, one-vote system, weighted by provincial district. Each district is worth 100 points, meaning there is a total available 5,500 points based on there being 55 electoral districts. A candidate requires 2,751 points to win the leadership. If no candidate has that total after the first tabulation, the candidate with the lowest total is dropped and their points are reassigned to another candidate based on the second selection on the ranked ballot. That process will continue until a candidate reaches 2,751 points. Former Liberal MLAs Patricia Arab and David Wilton are co-chairing the leadership committee. Rankin not running Mombouquette has served as the party's interim leader since last December when Zach Churchill stepped down after losing his seat in the provincial election. The party's bylaws state that whoever holds the role of interim leader must agree in writing to remain neutral and not run in the election of the party leader. When Mombourquette took the helm on an interim basis, it was understood he would do so temporarily and at some point the role would shift to Timberlea-Prospect MLA Iain Rankin, the party's other member in Province House. Rankin, who previously served as premier and party leader until the Progressive Conservatives defeated the Liberals in the 2021 provincial election, told CBC News on Monday that he's not interested in another run at the job.
CBC
29-05-2025
- Politics
- CBC
N.S. Liberals call for emergency meeting on Nova Scotia Power ransomware attack
Politicians are demanding action following the Nova Scotia Power ransomware attack, with the Liberals calling for an emergency meeting with the utility's executives. Interim Liberal Leader Derek Mombourquette said Thursday the matter is an urgent one considering the personal information of 280,000 customers has been compromised. Mombourquette said Nova Scotians deserve answers and the utility's executives should appear before the all-party public accounts committee to provide them. "This is an opportunity for Nova Scotia Power to speak publicly on what took place and explain to Nova Scotians — as [Nova Scotia Power] asks for more money on their rates — what happened," Mombourquette told reporters in Halifax. Nova Scotia Power confirmed last week it was the victim of a ransomware attack and that hackers who stole data published it on the dark web. The roughly 280,000 customers it has sent letters to warning about the attack represents more than half of the utility's customers in the province. The president of Nova Scotia Power said no ransom has been paid and the utility is working with cybersecurity experts as it investigates the situation. In a letter to the chair of public accounts, Mombourquette requested that Nova Scotia Power leadership appear before the committee for an examination into what he has described as "one of the most significant privacy breaches in Nova Scotia's history." NDP Leader Claudia Chender said the cyber attack is "scary" and another reminder people need to take steps to protect their personal information. She is in favour of a comprehensive examination of what happened. "We absolutely support a deeper probe from government into how this happened, how it is being dealt with, and making sure it never happens again," Chender said. The chair of the committee, NDP MLA Susan Leblanc, agreed the matter is urgent "and deserves discussion." Committee members are now being asked to vote on whether to try to schedule a meeting for next week. It needs to be unanimous for that to happen. Nova Scotia Cyber Security Minister Jill Balser is encouraging those who received alerts from Nova Scotia Power to sign up for the credit monitoring service and do things like change passwords to their accounts. Balser said resources and help are also available from her department. "I want us to be a place where Nova Scotians can get that support," Balser said.
CBC
29-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Nova Scotia government refuses to release environmental racism panel recommendations
Social Sharing Opposition leaders say it's disgraceful that the Nova Scotia government is refusing to release the recommendations of a report it received on environmental racism. Justice Minister Becky Druhan is also refusing to say if she's even read those recommendations. "Obviously, they're not releasing it for a reason. We have major concerns over that," interim Liberal Leader Derek Mombourquette told reporters in Halifax. "It's disgraceful what I heard today." The creation of the panel and its subsequent report was the product of an amendment proposed by NDP MLA Suzy Hansen to the Progressive Conservative government's Environmental Goals and Climate Change Reduction Act in 2022. reported on Wednesday that the province has received the report but is withholding its recommendations. Minister provides no explanation Speaking to reporters following a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Druhan would not provide any explanation for that decision. "That work happened at [the Office of Equity and Anti-racism] prior to my tenure here. We are moving forward with those recommendations in mind." The minister said she is "personally committed to transparency and to the sharing of information." Druhan refused to answer repeated questions about why the government is not making the recommendations public, whether the panel recommended reparations and whether she's even read the recommendations. "It predated my time at the office," she said. 'They don't want to be held accountable' NDP Leader Claudia Chender said the government's decision to withhold the recommendations is "disheartening" for the people who worked on the panel and the communities that have experienced environmental racism. "The only conclusion I can draw is that they don't want to be held accountable to [the report's] recommendations," she told reporters. "The reason that they did this panel was to understand the legacy — the harmful legacy of environmental racism in this province — and understand how not to repeat it. So let's see what those recommendations were and let's all work together to make sure that we don't repeat that legacy, that we don't perpetuate it." Druhan said a "key insight" to come from the report is the need for "systemic and foundational change" to the way the province handles and addresses discrimination and racism. One step toward doing that is a previously announced plan to modernize and improve the province's Human Rights Commission, she said. "We're really excited about that work, which will support addressing racism, addressing discrimination in all its forms across Nova Scotia — including issues around land use and environmental racism." The minister noted that municipalities are also developing equity and anti-racism plans following a provincial directive.
