Pallister pledges money for Churchill, blasts Ottawa for inaction

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This article was published 01/09/2017 (2958 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Premier Brian Pallister promised Friday to pump at least $500 million into Churchill development over the next 10 years, and at the same time directed blistering criticism at Ottawa for not accepting its own responsibility to help save the beleaguered town.

A majority of Canadians believe that the future of Churchill is important to the entire country,” Pallister told a news conference in his office Friday, but didn’t say what he was basing that statement on.

“We believe Churchill is a unique and valuable asset to the country. Churchill deserves to be invested in,” he said. “Manitoba is prepared to invest significantly in our areas of constitutional responsibility. This package has a conservative value of $500 million for the next decade.”

He said the $500 million would include new money, as well as existing spending and some expansion of existing spending. He’ll detail all of that “in due course,” he told reporters.

The rail line to Churchill has been unusable since it was damaged by overland flooding in May. Its owner, Denver-based Omnitrax, has estimated repairs will cost between $20 million and $60 million and it is refusing to pay because it says the line is a perennial money-loser.

Ottawa insists the company is required to fix the line.

And with winter looming on the horizon and no other overland link to the south, anxiety is taking hold in the town of about 900, with residents wondering how they’re going to afford fuel and food. Prices of many items are expected to triple or beyond, in line with the difference in cost between shipping by rail and by air.

Pallister said Manitoba would spend exclusively within its constitutional responsibilities: health care, social services, economic development, infrastructure, protection and arts and entertainment.

“We’re prepared to make a very significant commitment,” he said, adding he decided to make the announcement as an incentive for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to take action in federal areas of responsibility.

The premier said he has sent Trudeau several letters and talked to him personally about the Hudson Bay town’s plight.

“There has been only a small amount of progress made,” he said.

“All successful partnerships depend on people playing their roles appropriately,” said Pallister, who several times used baseball analogies and his days as a fastball pitcher to emphasize that everyone on the field is part of a team.

“The federal government is responsible for railways and ports. We need the shortstop to play shortstop, we need the outfielders to play the outfield,” he said.

“The people of Churchill don’t go out every morning and say, ‘That’s federal, that’s local, that’s provincial.'”

Pallister said that he has not yet presented details of his $500-million package to the prime minister.

And he refused to speculate on when the rail line may be repaired.

“That’s a federal responsibility,” he said.

New Democrat Andrew Swan later lashed out at Pallister, calling the timing and content of his announcement bizarre and ridiculous.

“There’s almost 4,000 Manitobans out of their homes — this was the day the premier decided to muse about Churchill,” Swan told reporters. “It’s a bizarre way to do things.”

On the Friday of a long weekend, Swan said, Pallister chose to attack the federal government and make a promise about Churchill with no details, and without consulting with Ottawa, Churchill or Omnitrax.

“The premier and his government have done nothing on the Churchill file,” Swan said.

Swan asked if Pallister would withdraw provincial funding from Churchill if Ottawa doesn’t act to his satisfaction. He doubted much, if any, of the $500 million is new money. “There’s many, many places the government spends money in Churchill” on a daily basis on regular government services and programs, he pointed out.

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca