(Atlantic-Internet-Outage)
A global technology outage spread to parts of Atlantic Canada today including to the government of Newfoundland and Labrador’s online services.
N-L Health services says its main information system is back online and operational across all health-care zones.
Meanwhile, airports in major Atlantic Canadian cities are urging passengers to check with their airlines for up-to-date flight information as several carriers are impacted.
The Halifax Regional Municipality, New Brunswick’s two health authorities and the government of Prince Edward Island have reported no problems. (The Canadian Press)
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(Airports-Internet-Outage)
Halifax’s Stanfield International Airport says it has resolved flight information issues on its website, but it is still asking passengers to check with their airline for information about their flight.
The airport says a global I-T outage is causing disruptions for some airlines, including Porter and Delta.
The Charlottetown airport in P-E-I is also warning that its flight board may not be up to date and passengers should get information directly from their airline.
The St. John’s International Airport has issued a similar notice.
(The Canadian Press)
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An economist in New Brunswick says Blaine Higgs’ election promise to lower the province’s Harmonized Sales Tax is silly and fiscally irresponsible.
Richard Saillant, the former vice-president of the Université de Moncton, says New Brunswick needs more money to shore up its health-care system, which will cost more as the population ages.
He says he believes Higgs is making a flashy promise in a bid to get re-elected that will hamstring the government in the future.
The provincial Progressive Conservatives promised yesterday to cut the H-S-T by two percentage points if they win power again in this year’s election. (The Canadian Press)
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(NL-Missing-Vessel)
The search continues for a fishing vessel with seven people aboard that went missing off Newfoundland’s northeastern coast.
Four coast guard vessels, a Cormorant helicopter, a Hercules aircraft and a plane from PAL Airlines are searching for the missing boat, with help from a fleet of local fishers.
The vessel’s responder last transmitted a signal at around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday night and was reported overdue on Thursday afternoon.
Premier Andrew Furey has expressed his concern for the missing harvesters. (The Canadian Press)
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(SCOC-Crown-Liability)
A recent Supreme Court of Canada decision about unconstitutional laws is paving the way for a New Brunswick man to take the federal government to court.
Canada’s top court has ruled that governments can be required to pay damages for making unconstitutional laws.
Joseph Power was convicted of two offences in the 1990s and applied for a pardon in 2013, but was denied and lost his job as a result of the convictions.
Elements of laws that prevented him from getting a pardon were later declared unconstitutional, and with the Supreme Court ruling Power can now seek remedies. (The Canadian Press)
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(NS-Domestic-Violence-Support)
The federal and Nova Scotia governments are offering rent subsidies to people escaping domestic violence.
Applications are now available at transition houses and other shelters for vulnerable people.
Eligible families can receive up to $1,400 for an accommodation with three or more bedrooms.
The province’s 11.3 million dollar investment over four years will be matched by the Canadian government through the federal housing benefit. (The Canadian Press)
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(Vegan-Milk-Recall-Marketing)
After a recall on plant-based milk left one person in Nova Scotia sick, market experts say the brands must move quickly to regain consumer trust.
Danone and Walmart recalled a total of 18 Silk and Great Value plant-based beverage products including oat, almond and coconut milks due to Listeria contamination.
A marketing professor at York University says he has yet to see an apology from Danone.
David Pullara says if Danone wants to rebuild consumer trust then the company has to say, “We screwed up. We’re sorry. And we promise this will never happen again.” (The Canadian Press)
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(NB-Tentative-Agreement)
Two community colleges in New Brunswick have reached tentative collective agreements with the union representing their instructors.
The New Brunswick Community College and the Collège communautaire du Nouveau Brunswick reached the agreement with the New Brunswick Union, which represents nearly one-thousand instructors across both schools.
A news release says both parties will keep the details of the agreement confidential until it has been accepted by the union’s members.
(The Canadian Press)
