Benefit Organized For Daughter Of Murdered Woman

A benefit will be held at the Q-Plex in Rothesay on June 23rd for the 6 year old daughter of 33 year old Tanya Shand who was murdered by her common law partner, May 23rd in her Dolan Road apartment. 

The little girl was in the apartment and saw what was happening. She's now living with her grandparents. 

It's hoped a scholarship fund will be set up for her. A Facebook page has been set up and is attracting large numbers and Rothesay Town Council is throwing its support behind the effort.

Higgs Cuts Some Tax Red Tape

Some provincial tax regulations are going to be a little easier to deal with thanks to changes announced in the Legislature by Finance Minister Blaine Higgs.

One of those changes will impact the amount of sales tax you pay on a used vehicle if it's not listed in the valuation books used by Service New Brunswick - the government agency will provide what Higgs calls "a common sense estimate."

But the Minister says you will still have the option of obtaining an independent appraisal of the vehicle for tax purposes - meantime Higgs is also reducing the amount of paperwork required by companies and independent businesses to claim tax free amounts of fuel - and - reporting will now be based on the company's fiscal year rather than the provincial government's fiscal year.

Woman Dies After Being Struck By Car At Marden's

A 49-year-old woman is dead after being struck by a car over the border.
Police say the incident happened around 1:20 yesterday afternoon in the Marden's parking lot.
Calais Police Sgt. Chris Donahue tells Tide News 74-year-old Kenneth Martin of Eastport, Maine was pulling his car into a parking spot near the entrance of the store and struck the woman.
Donahue says Zina Eller of East Machias died at the scene.
He says an investigation is underway and no further details are available.

Most Of Us Think Parliamentarians Fudge Their Expenses

86 per cent of us, according to a new poll, believe Senators and M-P's, are cheating on their expense claims. The overwhelming percent of people surveyed also want to see parliamentarians make public all their expenses online. 

The Atlantic Director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation Kevin Lacey tells Tide News they're just hoping the scandal over improper expense claims will just fade away which reflects how tone deaf they actually are.
 
Lacey says the one thing the Senators and M-P's agree on, no matter what party they belong to, is defending their entitlements. 

The Taxpayers Federation wants people to keep putting pressure on their M-P to bring about change and Lacey says if you look at how the M-L-A's pension plan was reformed after public outrage, it can be accomplished.

St. Andrews Native Wins Canadian National Sculpture Competition

Let the ARTrageous-ness begin!

The kick off the St. Andrews festival this afternoon, Kingsbrae Garden hosting the Canadian National Sculpture Competition Awards Ceremony.

Out of 15 finalists, St. Andrews native Alanna Baird winning the grand prize of $10,000.

Baird's sculpture titled "Salmon Vortex" features three wild salmon made from recycled copper roofing. The sculpture now sits in the centre of a pond at Kingsbrae Garden. Baird tells Tide News, "It's exciting for me as a sculptor to get my work out of my studio, out of the tools, out of a chaos, and get them into this kind of setting."

Tide News asked how long it took to make the piece. Her response? "Well, that's something everyone always asks me. I tell them it took me 21 years to figure out how to do it, and then 2 months to build it."

The ARTrageous Festival continues tonight at Kingsbrae with an evening of Jazz, and Saturday is all-day Free admission.

For details on events and tickets, go to their website www.artrageousnb.com .

Student Numbers Drop

Fewer students in the Anglophone South School District in the school year just ending means fewer teachers.
 
Enrollment numbers are down by 650 and Superintendent Zoe Watson says the one place where there had been increases, the Kennebecasis Valley, the numbers have levelled off. 

On the other side of the coin the number of foreign students this year at 15 schools exceeded 500. They're here from China,  Mexico, Colombia, Brazil and Europe.
 
The school district is hoping the foreign student programme will be expanded next year to 20 schools.

Security Exercise At Lepreau

Point Lepreau will be conducting a security exercise today.

It involves  the Nuclear Response Force team and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission testing security procedures.

Residents may see emergency vehicles in the community and hear radio communications simulating a security event at the station.

Pensioners Still Demanding Answers

Switching to the Shared Risk Model is an attempt by the provincial government to offload the pension deficit onto the shoulders of pensioners, according to Clifford Kennedy of the NB Pension Coalition.

Kennedy tells Tide News the members are considering legal action, but it's difficult where  there's no other case they can find when a guaranteed plan has been switched to the Shared Risk Model over the objections of the plan members.

Finance Minister Blaine Higgs has said despite the plan's strong returns in the past year, the changes are going to go ahead; however, Kennedy calls it "damning" that the government hasn't released to the pensioners the actual amount of the deficit.

Distracted Driving Pays High Price

Jim Morrison was right when he sang "keep your eyes on the road and your hands upon the wheel."

CAA is warning you that cellphones and texting aren't the only dangerous distactions to drivers. Gary Howard of CAA tells Tide News anything that takes your attention of the road dramatically increases your chances of having an accident, including audio books and even your onboard GPS.

A University of Utah study found drivers had slower reaction times, compromised brain function, and less awareness of cues like stop signs when they were distracted by a GPS system or listening to an audio book.

Howard points out phones conversations are more distracting that those you might have with passengers in the vehicle, because the person on the other end of the line can't see whether you're doing a tricky lane change or coping with difficult road conditions, and don't adjust their conversation accordingly as would a passenger.

Widespread Internet Outage Across Maritimes

If you can read this, you're one of the lucky ones.

According to a Bell representative it's not you....it's them. Customers have been complaining of no internet service all over the Atlantic provinces. The representative was unable to say how many customers are affected but confirmed it's a significant number.

Bell says it's working to resolve the problem as quickly as possible. In the meantime, you can stop desperately re-setting your router and spending your precious time on tech support.

20 Year Old Playground In Need Of Repair

A local playground -- built by the hands of many Charlotte County volunteers -- is in desperate need of a make-over.

Chair of the St. Andrews Community Playground Restoration Fundraising Committee Isabelle Micheud tells Tide News the unique playground was built 20 years ago. She says, "After 20 years, things have deteriorated. There are pieces that need to be replaced. Areas where the children are walking or touching with their hands, those are all made of wood and need to be replaced with a composite material for safety reasons."

Micheud tells us it's a really big fundraising project with a budget of $120, 000. "So far, we aren't doing too bad. We currently have raised about $70,000, but we need to raise another $50,000 by the end of July."


She adds a Lobster Roll-A-Palooza -- as part of the Seafood Festival -- will be a major fundraiser this Saturday for the project. A 62 foot lobster roll will be sold in 4-inch sections with a drink and chips. She says tickets are $15 and the event will take place at Town Hall on Water Street in St. Andrews, starting at 11am. She tells us Water Street will be barricaded off to vehicles.
Tickets for the Lobster Roll-A-Palooza can be bought at the Vincent Massey Elementary School and Cockburn's Drug Store. If you want to get your tickets Saturday, they will begin selling them at 10:30 with the big roll being made at 11am.


Micheud says they are also looking for volunteers to help rebuild the playground between September 25th to the 29th. For details on volunteering or fundraising, go to their website at www.standrewsplayground.com .

Premier Optimistic Pipeline Will Diversify Economy

The premier says the province is not putting all their eggs in one basket. That basket being the west-east pipeline. 

David Alward tells Tide News he feels better than he has in many years, because that's not the case. He says it's actually diversifying the province's opportunities.
 
He says the pipeline would spur additions in refining and the potential for petrochemicals. He adds, if we're able to tap into natural gas reserves there's even more possibility for development.

Alward and Mayor Mel Norton delivering a keynote speech to Port Days delegates. Alward telling the room, there's a sense of optimism in the province that hasn't existed in a long time.

CBS Looking For 100 Donors In Charlotte County

During National Blood Donor Week, Canadian Blood Services wants you to consider rolling up that sleeve and donating.

Michelle Thibodeau-Coates of CBS tells Tide News there is someone on the other end of that blood donation with a story.

She says there is someone who needs that blood donation to help them feel better a little longer or to potentially save their life.

There will be a blood donor clinic next Thursday, June 20th, at the Magaguadavic Centre in St. George, from 5-8pm. CBS says they are looking for at least 100 donors.

To book an appointment, call 1-888-2-DONATE (1-888-236-6283) or book online by clicking 
here

More Rain For Charlotte County

A special weather statement has been issued by Environment Canada about more rain beginning today. 

It cautions a low pressure system will approach the region today and then stall near Yarmouth tomorrow. Rain associated with this system will move into southwestern New Brunswick by this afternoon and spread northeastward throughout the day. 

The rain will be heavy at times, persisting into tomorrow. Rainfall amounts may reach warning levels especially for the southernmost areas of the province. Up to 50 millimeters is being forecast for the Charlotte County area.
The network says rainfall amounts may reach warning criteria. It states the worrisome issue is the ground is already quite saturated from remnants of tropical storm Andrea -- which dumped 90mms of rain on Grand Manan Island last weekend. 

NB Doctors Release Poll On Healthcare

The President of the New Brunswick Medical Society releasing a poll from Corporate Research Associates on how 400 people around the province view the healthcare system. 

Dr. Robert Desjardins says it should be a wake-up call for the Alward Government as the poll finds 11% of respondents strongly agree the government is doing a good job managing the health system.
 
It also shows only 14% strongly agree the Alward Government has a plan to improve health care delivery. 

Only 13 per cent of people in the southern part of the province say they strongly agree the government is effectively promoting the province as a good place to practice for new doctors.

The province, meantime, is asking for the Medical Society's lawsuit over caps on Medicare billing caps be dismissed.

Charlotte County Celebrates Seafood

For 4 years now, Charlotte county has been celebrating seafood during Bay of Fundy Seafood Week. 

Co-chair Andrew Lively tells Tide News it's been changing every year with new events including a very unique one this year.

He says this weekend people can buy a piece of a 62-foot lobster roll in St. Andrew's. 

The proceeds will support the local St. Andrews playground.

Today as part of the Seafood Academy, speakers at the Huntsman Marine Science Centre including Dr. Patti Johnston of Minto on the health benefits of seafood.

For more info, click here

Criminal Case Against Doctor Expected To Be Delayed

Don't expect to see the College of Physicians and Surgeons holding a hearing anytime soon into whether a doctor in the north end should have his license to practice medicine pulled. This, despite a favourable court ruling that paves the way for further investigation. 

Dr. Alan Cockeram faces several charges of sexual misconduct while treating female patients.
 
The Registrar at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Dr. Ed Schollenberg says no hearing can be held until the criminal proceedings are finished because its feared, if that took place, Dr. Cockeram's right to a fair trial could be jeopardised. 

The 60 year old gastroenterologist is facing 9 charges but more are expected to be laid when he appears for a preliminary hearing on June 17th. The preliminary hearing is not expected to go ahead until the fall.

In the meantime, Dr. Cockeram is prevented from treating female patients.

No Appearance For Snook In Newfoundland

Nothing transpired in court today in Cornerbrook, Newfoundland even though former Common Councillor Donnie Snook's name was in the docket. 

There were four summonses beside his name, two for sexual assault and two for sexual interference against a boy under the age of 14. 

Snook reportedly was not served with a summons to appear and there's no date for him to do so. 

The charges date back to the 1990's when Snook was in his early 20's and commissioned as a senior pastor at the now closed Salvation Army Citadel in Mount Moriah.

MP Says Government Doesn't Invest In Northern NB

The building of a west-east pipeline bringing Alberta crude to the Port City has drawn comparisons to the national railway, with premier David Alward saying it would revolutionize Saint John and the rest of the province. But one MP says the government has a history of not investing in one particular area.
 
Acadie-Bathurst MP Yvon Godin tells Tide News they constantly hear announcements about investments, but never see any money. He says they don't even have proper travel infrastructure, making it difficult to get around.

Godin says he doesn't see the government helping the people living in the northern region at all, and if nothing changes, residents will have to leave the area.

Health Networks Urge Docs And Province To Resolve Dispute

Both Horizon Health Network and Vitalité Health Network urging physicians and the province to put their differences aside, and put their heads together instead. 

Doctors and the Department of Health are in disagreement over cuts to Medicare, a conflict on its way to court. But the two health authorities are asking them simply sit down and talk it out, in order to find savings and create a sustainable system. 

Vitalité board chair, Paul Couturier, says that we know the present-day system is not sustainable, and is beyond what New Brunswickers can afford. He says it's vital all the players, including doctors, work together to solve the fiscal problem. Both networks rely on services from over 1,600 doctors, and say they need their involvement to find savings and build a sustainable, patient-driven system.

The doctors’ court case will be heard on Wednesday in Fredericton.