An independent committee has released its first report on the response to the inquiry into the 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia, but there’s no assessment of the progress made to date. The report includes a thorough accounting of the actions taken by the federal and Nova Scotia governments and the Mounties, but chairwoman Linda Lee Oland declined to say whether the committee was satisfied with those measures. Oland says that over the past seven months, the 16-member committee has developed a rating system to track progress, but she says it won’t be used until after the committee meets with government and R-C-M-P officials in June. Oland says there has been “momentum” when it comes to the changes called for by the federal-provincial inquiry, but she would not go further than that.
Wednesday was the first annual First Responders Day in Nova Scotia. In a statement, Premier Tim Houston marked the day saying first responders play a critical role in keeping Nova Scotians safe and he thanks them for their “unwavering commitment” to the province. Houston introduced legislation last fall designating May 1st as a day to recognize the dedication and achievements of professional and volunteer first responders. In 2013, Ontario was the first province to pass legislation to officially recognize May 1st as First Responders Day.
Nominations have closed for the byelection in the Nova Scotia provincial riding of Pictou West.
Elections Nova Scotia says four candidates are on the ballot including Marco MacLeod for the Progressive Conservatives, Mary Wooldridge-Elliott for the Liberals, Melinda MacKenzie for the New Democrats and Clare Brett for the Green Party.
The byelection was called by Premier Tim Houston after last month’s surprise announcement by legislature Speaker Karla MacFarlane that she was retiring from politics.
The byelection day is set for May 21st.
Nova Scotia’s chief electoral officer has given official notice that the Atlantica Party Association of Nova Scotia has voluntarily deregistered as a political party. Dorothy Rice says the deregistration took effect Tuesday. Party officials announced on March 13th that they were voluntarily deregistering the party, which has never won a seat in the provincial legislature. They cited a lack of volunteer support for the decision.
The 2024 East Coast Music Awards festival is underway in Charlottetown with an opening concert. The main event is the awards show which will take place at 8 p-m tonight at the ballroom of the Delta Prince Edward. PEI’s The East Pointers lead the way with seven nominations, including album of the year and group recording of the year.