Transportation minister wants answer on Maine support for ferry

Nova Scotia’s transportation minister just wants to know if Maine is in or out.

Geoff MacLellan will be heading south at the end of the month to try to get an answer on funding for the Nova Star Ferry.

Maine governor Paul LePage had said during the state’s last election that he’d put legislation forward to get a $5 million line of credit to the ferry operator. But since he was sworn in in January, there’s been no further mention of that plan, and the current sitting of the state legislature ends on June 17.

MacLellan says he hopes to meet with LePage the week of June 22.

He wants a straight answer from LePage, but says he’ll move on no matter what that answer is.

Meantime, Nova Scotian companies will supply the lion’s share of the ship’s provisions this season, not Maine companies.

In an article in the Portland Free Press, business owners in that city lament the state of the dollar, which gives Nova Scotia companies an advantage when bidding for work. Plus, those companies realize the pressure on Nova Star Cruises caused by massive subsidies from the province, that have yet to be matched by the state.

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