AMHERST – A candidate for Liberal nomination in Cumberland North says it’s time for the province to accept the reality that this county is still part of the province.
“The provincial government has to accept the reality that Cumberland County is part of Nova Scotia. The limited investment that has been made in local industry is welcome, but does not compensate for the harm done by moving good paying jobs out of our area,” Terry Farrell said in a letter to Premier Darrell Dexter. “Please remember that we in Cumberland County are not second-class residents of Nova Scotia.”
Farrell is frustrated with the province’s decision to close the Criminal Intelligence Service of Nova Scotia office in Amherst in March.
He said it’s fair to say citizens in this part of the province feel they are under attack and will be suffering from the upcoming closure of the Cumberland Correctional Centre and the transfer of jobs from the maintenance enforcement office in Amherst to New Waterford.
“There have been no provincial jobs transferred to Cumberland under the current government’s plan to decentralize the civil service to aid rural communities,” Farrell said. “In addition to these losses, businesses in Cumberland were particularly hard hit by the two per cent increase to the HST which made competing with New Brunswick businesses an even greater challenge.”
