Featured Letter: Government strangling NB Power's ability

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Enough already!

In 2009/2010 the residents of New Brunswick told the government – and I don’t care if it was red, blue, green, pink or purple government, it was the government – told it loud and clear they did not want NB Power sold off to a foreign power.

The government relented and we are still in control of our own electrical power system.

That government and succeeding governments, of whatever leaning or colour, through the EUB, have strangled the ability of that corporation to act in a businesslike manner to provide a secure, reliable and safe electric energy supply to the province.

The fear of loosing votes because of increasing costs of electricity and the lack of intestinal fortitude to face reality has pushed NB Power to a level of debt that can probably never be cleared.

If any company in our province was forced to operate under these conditions they would see reality, quickly fold up their bucket trucks, hand the keys over and go bankrupt.

Is this and succeeding governments hoping the federal government will buy that debt for us? I would expect the fickle finger of federal finance to be raised firmly in the air as response to that request.

Let’s take a worldwide view of power costs.

NB Power, on its web site, claim “Residential Rates are the lowest in Atlantic Canada.”

Electricity costs more than we pay in New Brunswick every else in the world. And, in some other countries the more you use the higher the rate.

It’s time to think about the cost of responsible government and accept the fact someone is going to have to pay the bill. Do it now and let NB Power charge reasonable rates to cover the costs or suffer the results in the future.

Norman McKay

Dieppe