(October 13, 2021) – Barry Petten, PC Opposition Shadow Minister for Transportation and Infrastructure and MHA for Conception Bay South, says the Liberals should stop pretending they’ve done anything to “take the politics out of paving.”

Petten was responding to an ATIPP request by the PC Official Opposition that showed Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Elvis Loveless increased spending in his district from $1.5 million to $4.8 million in a single year – an over 300 per cent increase.

“These numbers are troubling. The Liberals committed upon taking to office to take the politics out of paving – but that’s not the story told through paving allocations on the Liberal watch,” said Petten.

“The five-year roads plan touted by the Liberals when they first took office is nothing but smoke and mirrors. It’s time the Minister took action to finally live up to the promise of this government to remove Liberal favoritism from the paving process.”

In 2019, the CBC reported an almost 900 percent increase in paving allocations over three years in then-Transportation and Works Minister Steve Crocker’s district, during his time at the head of the department.

“History is repeating itself before our eyes. The former Transportation and Infrastructure Minister played favorites with which districts got attention, and the current Minister is following suit,” said Petten.

“We are, as a province, meant to be over such favoritism in 2021. Yet, the numbers continue to show how Liberal favoritism comes at the cost of other roads in our province which sorely need attention.”
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Total amount of roadwork tenders/repairs done in the District of
Fortune Bay-Cape le Hune for the past three years.

Contacts:

David Maher

Director of Strategic Communications

(cell) 709-725-0984

DavidMaher@gov.nl.ca

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