Premier Rankin

RICHARD BELL: They Do It Because They Can

In this issue, we are confronting a single problem that corrupts the politics of the province: our Liberal government’s insidious, systematic refusal to allow the citizens of Nova Scotia to participate in making major government policy decisions. 

The issue at stake here, the tension between any government’s power and that government’s responsibilities to its citizens, is not a new one. In the first flowering of democracy in Greece, the Athenians wrestled with this problem. History shows us time and again how easily governments can con their subjects with “bright shiny objects” like promises of golf courses or long-delayed schools, today’s equivalent of the Romans’ bread and circuses.  

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By Save Owls Head, ago

Information Morning’s First Interview with Premier Iain Rankin

Newly sworn-in Iain Rankin joins Information Morning to talk about what’s on his to-do list as Nova Scotia’s new premier and the challenges ahead.

“I think it is really important that we listen to the community. There is an engagement plan that I don’t believe has been submitted yet by the proponent. I am really recommending they get going with that. And that does need to be approved by government, so that it is truly objective and hears all views.”

Listen Here>

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By Save Owls Head, ago

Letter: Leave Owls Head be

I think it is imperative to preserve wilderness lands in the province for recreational purposes. The COVID pandemic has underlined the importance of nature to our mental health.

Also, there is no question that the massive assault on wilderness areas the world over has placed our species, along with many others, in peril. We have so many unique and beautiful areas in Nova Scotia, and we can be a model for thoughtful conservation.

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By Save Owls Head, ago

EDITORIAL: New Nova Scotia premier-to-be Iain Rankin faces headwinds

Most prominently, Rankin put green policies, and growing a green economy, at the centre of his platform, including taking an even more aggressive approach than Stephen McNeil on tackling climate change.

Rankin would like the province to be off coal entirely, while generating 80 per cent of power with renewable energy, by 2030. He hopes to make Nova Scotia the first province to be net carbon-neutral.

…Observers will be closely watching what he does regarding the controversial proposal for a golf course at Owls Head.

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By Save Owls Head, ago

Group urges Rankin to revisit Owls Head property sale decision

“We are hoping that once Iain Rankin is sworn in as premier, he will reverse his decision on the sale of Owls Head Provincial Park,” said Sydnee McKay, who now lives in Gaetz Brook, 40 kilometres west of Little Harbour, where she grew up next to Owls Head on the Eastern Shore.

“His (Rankin’s) motto is listen, learn and lead so we are hoping he will listen to the thousands of Nova Scotians and the scientific data about the ecological values of the park and put it back on the Parks and Protected Areas Plan with a full designation as a provincial park,” said McKay, whose 89-year-old mother still lives near Owls Head, along with her brothers, aunts and uncles.

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By Save Owls Head, ago