Ferguson Doesn't Back Down At Defamation Trial

Former Common Councillor John Ferguson testifies at his defamation trial about the infamous conversation he had with a Pension Board member about disability after the Mayor's breakfast at the City Market.



Ferguson says he asked David Gould, the former President of the outside workers union and then Pension Board trustee about the high expense of disability. Ferguson told the jury Gould explained when workers who were on sick leave and approaching retirement, they were boarded. He asked if it was illegal and Gould told him it was but compared it to drinking and driving but people do it everyday.
Ferguson also testified Common Council didn't know what to do about the pension plan's deficit in 2005 and it was always suggested taxpayers would have to pay but he did not have confidence in senior city staff who were on the Pension Board because of the conflict of interest and their own admission of not being experts on pensions.


Ferguson revealed he got legal advice from lawyer Arthur Doyle, who specialises in securities, and also heard from the President of the Saint John Construction Association Pat Darrah.
 
 It was after what they told him that Ferguson made the statement about there being damning evidence of gross negligence which he still stands buy. He also stands by his claim the Pension Board walked away from recovering money through the misapplication of disability and Common Council simply didn't have enough information.

Nominations Fast And Furious At Elections NB

Expect a flurry of activity at the Elections NB office as the deadline for nominations approaches in the May vote.

Paul Harpelle tells CHSJ News they have over 800 nominations so far in the province and over the last few days, hundreds have been filed.

He adds back in 2008, over 300 nominations were filed in the last two days adding a lot of people wait until the last moment in order to size up the competition.

The deadline is tomorrow afternoon 2pm.

Biggar May Bring Home ECMA Hardware

A Saint John entertainer will be busy with several performances around Moncton for this weekend's East Coast Music Awards.

Mike Biggar tells CHSJ News he is nominated in the Gospel Recording of the Year category.

He says it's for his Christmas record "The Season" that came out last year.

He tells us he is unveiling his new band the Big Country Breakfast at some of the performances this weekend and performing with Matt Anderson.

Tonight at 6, Biggar takes the stage at the Music New Brunswick showcase at the Tide and Bore.  At 9 tonight, he plays the ECMA members lounge in the Delta.

Tomorrow night, Mike Biggar and the Big Country Breakfast play the Country music showcase at the Manhattan.

Dental Society Say Province Is Stalling Contract Talks

The New Brunswick Dental Society is firing back at the Social Development Minister.

Sue Stutlz recently put the blame on dentists for holding up services for the poor due to stalled contract negotiations between dentists and province -- people on social assistance get subsidized dental care but dentists says reimbursement rates need to go up due to increase costs.

Dental Society President Dr. Kent Orlando tells CHSJ News the 70 percent reimbursement rate is unsustainable and they want the rate to increase to 85 percent.

He says the group has been trying to negotiate new contract for over a year and it is up to the province to figure out what it wants to provide to its clients.  He says it's the government that is stalling the process.

He adds no dentist wants to see a patient in pain and while there is no contract at the moment, dental work is being done.  However, payments are handled between the province and the client.

Fullerton Running In Ward 2

She's not political but she's so frustrated and furious she's running in Ward 2 to make a difference.

Business owner Susan Fullerton tells CHSJ News the City must immediately cancel spending on public art.

She says the City is spending its money like drunken sailors adding if you can't afford to buy bread and milk then you can't afford to buy art.

Fullerton says common council needs to have a backbone adding she doesn't think people really understand the level of mess that Saint John is in.

Campaign Launched To Remake Playground In Rothesay

A new playground at Rothesay Elementary School won't come cheap.

The estimated cost exceeds 626 thousand dollars for what is being called a natural playground that bears a striking resemblance to a park.

Amanda Fowlie of the Playground Committee tells CHSJ News there are more benefits for the children with such a setting which allows them to better use their imaginations. She's also making the claim it will reduce or even eliminate bullying.

Fowlie says the goal is to make it a community playground but she concedes there is not a lot of funding available from School District 6 because of the tight budgets these days.
 
She has been told by Rothesay Town Council to first approach Rothesay M-L-A and cabinet minister Margaret Ann Blaney to see what she has to say.

John Ferguson Defamation Trial

Entrace And Parking At Regional Hospital To Return to Original Locations

With the completion of the new emergency department, the main entrance and the parking lot at the Regional Hospital will be returning to its old locations.

The entrance will now be located off Tucker Park Road and the parking lot will also be returning to the front of the main entrance.

The change over will be finalized on April 15th.

Drivers Who Have To Fill Up Get A Price Break

For a change, there has been a drop in gas prices after the weekly setting. 

Self serve regular in the city is now being sold for $1.38.3 a litre, a drop of just over one and a half cents but diesel has gone down by over two cents a litre to an even $1.36. 

Heating oil also declining by a couple of cents to $1.19.4 a litre and the listed price for propane is virtually unchanged at $1.04.8 a litre.

Anti-Homophobic Policies Needed In Schools

While bullying at school has been in the spotlight lately, a specific kind of bullying also needs to be dealt with according to one educator.

Shawn Corey is the co-founder of Pride in Education, which is calling for anti-homophobic policies and education programs to be adopted in New Brunswick Schools.

He says regular anti-bullying initiatives just don't cut it because suicide is the leading cause of death for sexual-minority youth and they are 7 times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual peers.

He believes the issue of anti-gay bullying needs to be addressed specifically and School District 10 is the only one in the province to formally adopt anti-homophobia policy.

Corey gave a presentation to the the District 8 Education Council -- it will be writing a letter to the Minister of Education supporting such policies if adopted.

Ferguson Finally Testifies

After over 40 days of testimony, John Ferguson finally took to the stand at his defamation trial this afternoon. His lawyer, Rod Gillis, had the former common councillor outline legal battle has effected him, before launching into the pension debacle.

Ferguson said the trial has been “difficult,” and effected his job as as St Stephen's chief administrative officer. He said the town gave him 6 weeks paid leave to attend the trial, but as it drew on it came out of his vacation time. He says with 3 young children, one of whom has Down's Syndrome, the trial has presented challenges to his family life. Later on Ferguson appealed to the jury saying he was just as overwhelmed by data as they while he was on council.

Later on, Ferguson called the information former Finance Commissioner Andrew Beckett's provided to councillors on the pension plan a basic overview that didn't much help his understanding. He said Beckett's presentation glossed over the problems, and he felt they needed more information from qualified professionals to back up their actions. He felt uncomfortable simply following recommendations from staff and waiting because he felt councillors weren't adequately protected in case things went wrong.

Mayoral Candidate Decides To Run For Council Instead

The political race for mayor and council has taken a new twist -- Graeme Stewart-Robertson has decided to pursue a spot on Common Council rather than the mayor's seat.

He tells CHSJ News he feels he can make the most impact as a city councillor by being able to make motions and make submissions.

He says the slew of candidates could lead to a very productive council.

He adds he initially ran for Mayor because no one else had thrown their hat into the ring.

Man Dies Near Passekeag Today

A 58 year old man died after a single vehicle crash this morning on the Passekeag Road.

RCMP found a vehicle on its roof in a wooded area next to the road about 9:40 this morning.

The driver, who was the only person in vehicle, died at the scene and he was wearing a seatbelt at the time.

Police Commission Willing To Help Out With Possible Communication Issue

With the police union accusing the Chief of Police of being uncooperative and non-communicative with its members, where does that leave the police commission?

Commission Chairman Chris Waldschutz tells CHSJ News he is willing to hear from all sides and moves things forward if necessary.

But he adds the issue may not be so cut and dry as every side to the story has a certain degree of spin.

Uptown Business Closing Next Month

After 28 years in operation including 20 years on King Street, an Uptown business is closing its doors for a few reasons.
 
Pictures Plus owner Diana Alexander tells CHSJ News she's is approaching retirement and she also learned of a 40 per cent increase in her rent starting April 1st.

She says it would take a year or two to sell it and moving to a new location would cost up to $30,000 to do it well so she decided it was time to retire and the store will close for good at the end of May.

Alexander adds she wasn't pleased when the City increased parking rates and fees uptown adding it sends the wrong message to consumers.

Rothesay Gets Glowing Report On Its Finances

The town of Rothesay is in solid financial shape.......That word delivered to town council by its auditors and the timing couldn't be better for Mayor Bill Bishop who's running for re-election. 

The town's debt servicing ratio is 6.6 per cent which is lower than the provincial average of 11.3 per cent and the Mayor says the town is also in good shape with it somes to its pension liability, especially as compared to other municipalities.
 
The auditors report the town's revenues are continuing to increase because of growth which they warn will have to be managed. 

Town Council has been told a fifth building being proposed for Marr Road and Hampton Road has been put on hold pending a traffic study.

City Solicitor Finishing Up Gruelling Cross Examination

City Solicitor John Nugent coming under fire at the defamation trial of former Common Councillor John Ferguson. 

His lawyer Rod Gillis suggested the changes being proposed now to the city's pension plan could have been made back in 2003 but that would have adversely affected Nugent's own pension and that of then City Manager Terry Totten.

Nugent revealing the Superintendent of Pensions still hasn't signed off on those recommended changes. He's also unsure whether the M-L-A who had agreed to sponsor a private members bill to make the changes is still prepared to do so. Nugent couldn't give Gillis an answer when asked if all the civic unions are on board.

The jury has seen video of a Common Council meeting that shows other Council members were also concerned about the early retirement buyouts and city pension plan.

Then Common Councillor Ivan Court is shown agreeing with some of the things Ferguson was saying about the cost of the early retirement packages. 

Councillor Bill Farren expresses support for Ferguson saying there was mass confusion, mixed messages, walls being put up and city staff not wanting to give information to the extent he was beginning to suspect things and those raising questions were accused of nit picking.

Mayor's Leadership Style Questioned

Mayor Ivan Court getting a bit of a critique of his leadership style as the May election approaches. Councillor Gary Sullivan motioned in common council the mayor's ability to vote be curtailed, allowing council to focus more on consensus building.

Councillor Mel Norton, who is running for mayor, suggested voters would appreciate a mayor who was listening impartially instead of always jumping into the fray.

Deputy Mayor Stephen Chase said while he's had a problem with Court's tact over the years, the mayor should be able to express his opinion on the issues.

SJ Energy Gives $50K To NBCC

Higher learning in greater Saint John receiving a nice shot in the arm from Saint John Energy.
 
The company is donating $50,000 the New Brunswick Community College over 5 years.

The money will be used to equip the multi-purpose Public Engagement Facility which will be in the new “E” Building at NBCC Saint John opening in September.
 
The building will offer students and staff hands-on workshops and professional development training and also be available to business and industry leaders.

 

Pedestrian Killed on Whitehead Island

District 1 RCMP Grand Manan are investigating a fatal pedestrian motor vehicle collision that occurred on April 10, 2012, at approximately 7:15 a.m., on White Head Island off the coast of grand Manan.

A 75-year-old man died as a result of the collision. Police are looking into what caused the crash.