Newfoundland and Labrador MP Judy Foote held a news conference yesterday denouncing the decision of the Government to shut down the Search and Rescue sub-station in this province, and advocating for the decision to be reversed. She also ratcheted up the pressure on this province’s lone representative in the Conservative government – MP Peter Penashue from Labrador. The Intergovernmental Affairs Minister should be advocating to save the centres, she said. “If he can’t convince his colleagues and the prime minister that this is the wrong decision, then what’s he doing at that table?” Foote cited safety as the primary concern in the relocation: “If cuts are going to be made, the last place you make them is in life-saving situations, and this is very much a safety issue,” the Newfoundland and Labrador MP said. She also referenced the fact that the 12 staff located in St. John’s may not make the trip with the office to Halifax or Trenton: “All of that knowledge, 100 years of experience among the 12, will be lost.… That can be a very dangerous situation,” she said.
