Local government reforms must be done eventually: Finn

A day after the Liberal government shelved his report that would have radically transformed the province's municipal landscape, Jean-Guy Finn believes his recommendations will have to be adopted eventually.

Finn tabled his independent report on the future of local governance on Thursday that called for slashing the number of municipal governments to 53 from the current slate of 101 municipalities and 267 local service districts.

The report carried with it an $88-million price tag that the Liberal government promptly used to declare it too expensive to implement in these tough economic times.

'We need the changes that are being proposed in order to adapt local government institutions to the changes that have taken place in New Brunswick since 1971.' — Jean-Guy Finn, commissioner on local government

Finn said he hopes his report doesn't end up being ignored, the fate of the 25 other reports conducted on the same topic since 1971.

"This one is a comprehensive one. If it's not implemented, I think it's too bad," Finn said on Friday.

"We need the changes that are being proposed in order to adapt local government institutions to the changes that have taken place in New Brunswick since 1971."

Premier Shawn Graham came under fire on Friday in question period by the Opposition Conservatives for his refusal to act on the report that he commissioned. Graham maintained that his government is keeping its focus squarely on improving the economy and cannot afford to follow through on the Finn report's sweeping changes.

Kedgwick Mayor Jean-Paul Savoie, who is the president of the francophone municipalities association, suspects money isn't the only reason the report is being punted.

"It's very political sometimes; it touches the identity of municipalities. It's a very complex report," he said.

Savoie said he hopes the government will move ahead with some parts of the report.

Merger talks not a bad idea, need more study: mayor

Finn said on Thursday that he wasn't entirely wedded to the idea of 53 communities and he said a panel should be struck to review the specific boundaries. But he said he feels the province can only afford to have "50 to 55" municipalities.

The proliferation of small municipalities and numerous unincorporated areas is not sustainable, Finn concluded, because of the population and economic shifts since the last municipal overhaul in the 1960s. The current system is adding duplication and leading to fragmentation of services.

The new boundaries were selected with two criteria, a minimum property assessment base of $200 million and a minimum population of 4,000. The report says municipalities have to be big enough to survive, especially as populations are declining throughout the province.

The idea of forced amalgamations dominated the discussion in question period. But one mayor who would see his community's boundaries redrawn is not dismissing the findings.

Quispamsis Mayor Murray Driscoll said the idea isn't terrible, but would need more study.

"Quispamsis has always been interested in more and better co-operation. That's somewhat different than the suggestion of one entity," Driscoll said.

"So the area they describe here, individual areas, would be a very large area, and I think much discussion would have to take place."

The Finn report calls for changes to the Kennebecasis Valley's political landscape that would see the communities of Kingston, Rothesay, Quispamsis and a portion of Norton be merged together.