Kris Austin's moment, the Oland saga and plowing it forward: your weekend briefing

Good evening,

Here's what we're talking about this week:

Video of the week

Fredericton is just going in circles. The capital city could add up to seven more roundabouts, pending council approval. That would bring the number of roundabouts in city limits to 12. The ratio of roundabouts to Fredericton citizens would roughly be 1:4,850 (do what you want with that information).

Check out the CBC social team's video on the proposal and keep an eye out for a cameo from Oprah.

Fredericton's roundabout count to rise

6 years ago

Duration 1:25

Fredericton is getting seven new roundabouts. What do you think of them?

Read the full story.

The PC minority

The Progressive Conservatives delivered their throne speech on Tuesday, outlining an agenda that, among other things, seeks to balance the budget and make health care more accessible.The Tories took the first step to making the latter a reality the day before the lieutenant-governor read the speech.

Premier Blaine Higgs announced a new dedicated service for non-emergency transfers of hospital patients as a way to alleviate the strain on paramedics responding to urgent calls. It was announced in the style of a standard government news conference, but there was an unusual twist with the presence of Higgs's new political ally.

Provincial affairs reporter Jacques Poitras offers an analysis of the announcement:

There's a conceit in place at government news conferences that these announcements are not political and are not crafted with a partisan agenda in mind that the government's sole motivation is the public interest and that the events, organized by politically neutral public servants, do not overtly promote any party.

But that conceit fell by the wayside this week as part of the "unprecedented era of cross-party collaboration" now in place.

The first major announcement by the new Progressive Conservative government, on changes to the provincial ambulance service, included a speaking role for People's Alliance Leader Kris Austin.

This itself is new, and a reflection that Higgs's minority government is relying on the three Alliance MLAs to help it stay in power and pass legislation. The Tories brought Austin into its meetings on the ambulance issue, which the Alliance leader has been flagging for years.

Even more striking than Austin's presence, and his appearance at the podium, was what he said.

He referred, repeatedly and in explicit terms, to his party and its stance on the issue.

Austin congratulated Higgs for "recognizing and delivering what the People's Alliance has long been fighting for." He noted that "the People's Alliance has worked tirelessly to bring a better ambulance system to the province." And he promised that "the People's Alliance will continue its efforts to ensure quality health care for all New Brunswickers."

Three references, by name, to Austin's party: that's three more than what Higgs, Health Minister Ted Flemming, or former PC Premier Bernard Lord uttered about their party. The result was that only the Alliance got credit by name for the announcement, while the PCs did not.

Premier Blaine Higgs announces new non-emergency ambulance service

6 years ago

Duration 0:58

The new system will be for ambulance transfers, and pre-identify patients' language of choice, removing the need for a bilingual ambulance crew.

Austin said later in the week that his remarks hadn't been cleared by the provincial government. "We drafted our own speech," he said. He didn't seem to think the direct naming of his political party breached any protocol. "It showed we can collaborate on some issues. That's the way this is supposed to work."

Higgs also brushed off the question, calling the partisan call-out part of the new normal.

"There's a lot of announcements that will be different in the next while, because we're in a different time and space in New Brunswick," he said. "He will speak on what he feels and how he feels. I expect that."

According to Higgs, while he has an obligation to stay above the partisan fray, rhetorically at least, Austin has no such obligation.

"I'm in government," he said. "I'm the premier, so it's a different message from me, from government, as it is from him as a party in the legislature. I can appreciate that that sends a different message, a different tone."

Different indeed, and striking in the wake of the first election in almost a century to not produce a majority government.

But it's intriguing to wonder how such partisan self-promotion will go over as this year's election recedes in time and the next one approaches a campaign in which, presumably, the PCs may want to try to win back those three Alliance ridings, and in which they may be less inclined to let another party share in the spotlight and claim credit for policy.

The Oland (re)retrial

The third trial, or second retrial, of Dennis Oland in the 2011 death of his father, multimillionaire Richard Oland, got underway this week the same week a mistrial was called in the first retrial. Here's where we stand:

• Oland was found guilty of second-degree murder by a jury in December 2015. That verdict was overturned almost a year later by the New Brunswick Court of Appeal, which cited an error in the trial judge's instructions to the jury.
• A retrial was ordered, and a jury of 16was selected earlier this fall. Justice Terrance Morrison was set to preside over the new jury trial, but he declared a mistrial on Tuesday and discharged the jury.
• The mistrial was called after the court learned a Saint John police officer who sat with the Crown during jury selectionhad screened potential jurors using a police force database that shows any interactions people have had with city police. Oland's legal team argued it was "juror shopping" and said it would call into question the jury's eventual verdict.
• Morrison is now presiding over a judge-alone trial, which began Wednesday in Saint John Court of Queen's Bench.

OK, all caught up. The trial is in full swing now, and the CBC's Bobbi-Jean MacKinnon and Robert Jones have been bringing us the play-by-play and daily recaps.

We've heard the opening remarks from the Crown and the defence, which said Oland will testify in his own defence. We've heard the testimony of the woman who found Richard Oland's body and greeted his son hours before the murder. Maureen Adamson, the victim's secretary, remained on the stand Friday as the defence posed question after questionrelated to the accused's blood-stained brown sports jacket.

We also learned this week Oland's defence team attempted to a get a judge-alone trial a year ago even commissioning a public opinion pollthat suggested it would be difficult to find an impartial jury.

What about the police officer involved in jury selection? Const. Sean Rocca role will be investigated by the New Brunswick Police Commission, but only when all criminal proceedings are completed.

Worth a read

• From spring flood to winter freeze, homeowners along St. John River survive
• Boy hit while boarding school bus awaits surgery
• Saint John scrap-metal plant ordered to shut down immediately
• Number of children living in poverty rises to 31,400
• Fredericton Police Chief Leanne Fitch to retire in 2019

Feel good story of the week

With mid-January weather two-thirds of the way through fall, Mother Nature has given New Brunswickers plenty to grumble about. But here's a heartwarming story to lift your mood.

A Fredericton man is offering to plow driveways at a flat rate of $30. But here's the catch: for every driveway paid for, Joel Doherty will plow the driveway of a senior, single parent or someone else in need free of charge.

Check out our video below.

Snowplow owner 'paying it forward'

6 years ago

Duration 0:49

Joel Doherty wants to create a network of snowplowers who are willing to pay it forward too.

"We pay it forward and we do another driveway for somebody who needs a hand at no charge," said Doherty, who runs the service Pay It Forward Snow Removal.

And he's hoping his spirit will catch on. Read the full story.

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