News Release
(Friday, October 29, 2004)
— The Atlantic Mayors’ Congress is meeting in Halifax
Regional Municipality this weekend to tackle common issues ranging
from the New Deal for Cities and Communities and foreign overfishing
to immigration and affordable housing.
“The Congress applauds the federal government’s commitment
to cities and communities, particularly its promise to work with
the provinces to transfer a portion of the federal gas tax to municipalities,”said
Mayor Peter Kelly, founder and chair of the Atlantic Mayors’
Congress. “Across Canada we’re seeing the Provinces
come on side and we’d like to see the provincial governments
in Atlantic Canada support the New Deal by the end of this year.”
Infrastructure and Communities Minister John Godfrey and Federation
of Canadian Municipalities President Ann MacLean will join Mayors
from Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Newfoundland
to discuss the New Deal today.
Fisheries and Oceans Minister Geoff Regan will highlight this year's
progress of Canada's two-pronged enforcement and diplomatic approach
to curb overfishing in Atlantic Canada. He will also outline future
Canadian initiatives to ensure that the world community treats the
conservation and rebuilding of global fish stocks as an international
priority.
The Congress will meet with provincial Community Services Minister
David Morse to talk about some tough issues, including affordable
housing and homelessness.
“Across Atlantic Canada, communities of all sizes are facing
stagnant income levels for the majority of the population, a growing
income gap, declining levels of social support, and problems with
housing affordability,” said Mayor Kelly. “Likewise,
our communities are struggling to address the many emerging and
diverse aspects of homelessness.”
On Saturday, Citizenship and Immigration Minister Judy Sgro will
join the Congress for a tour of Pier 21 and discuss improving immigration
in Atlantic Canada. The Atlantic provinces lag behind the rest of
Canada when it comes to attracting, integrating and retaining immigrants.
The Atlantic Mayors’ Congress represents 16 Mayors from Nova
Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Newfoundland &
Labrador, who meet bi-annually to discuss common issues, particularly
in dealings with the federal and provincial governments.
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John O’Brien
Corporate Communications Officer
(902) 490-6531
