Port aux Basques -
Mayors on both sides of the Gulf of St. Lawrence have known for years what Canada's auditor general would see when a special examination of Marine Atlantic was done.
Mayor Brian Button of Port aux Basques says he has seen the neglect of the Crown corporation and wants the federal government to follow auditor general Sheila Fraser's advice and commit to fixing the service.
Meanwhile, Mayor John Morgan of Cape Breton Regional Municipality has seen the results of under-funding for years at a stretch.
In a 42-page document, Fraser reports the Crown corporation isn't able to ensure its assets are "safeguarded" and the company isn't being run efficiently or effectively. It cites an aging and overworked fleet, and deteriorating shore infrastructure as major problems.
The sad part of the report as far as Button is concerned is it's big news in Newfoundland, but isn't a blip on the radar screen in the rest of Canada. It's time Marine Atlantic got moved up a few places on the totem pole and this report might just be the ammunition to do it, he said.
After all the constitutionally guaranteed Gulf ferry service is the highway to Newfoundland and Labrador, says Button, and he wants it treated as such.
"If tomorrow there was a collapse in the 401 (highway) in Ontario the federal government would be there with an infusion of money to fix that it faster than the news reporters could report there was a problem," Button said. "Because this is a service for Newfoundland and Labrador, and it's a ferry service, there's always reservations. I don't know what the reservations would be. This is a highway."
Now that the auditor general has given voice to the shortcomings of the service, the corporation and the federal involvement he believes things may change.
The governance has been reviewed, taking care of the one of the 13 recommendations in the report and that gives Button some comfort that it's being taken seriously.
Getting the report implemented and making big steps instead of baby steps are not only the responsibility of Marine Atlantic, he said.
"All too many times we've blamed Marine Atlantic ... A lot of the blame has to be focused on where it's directed from. This is a Crown corporation that is operated by the federal government."
Morgan agrees the federal government needs to make up for cutting back during the bad times and not beefing up the service during the good times.
The stress Marine Atlantic has been under for years has been a concern on both sides of the ferry. Most of the goods coming to Newfoundland go through the ferry service and he said the service is important to Nova Scotia, too.
"We've been seeing the organization fraying at the edges for years from this side with backups as there have been various mechanical problems with the vessels over the years," Morgan said.
In a prepared statement, Judy Foote, Liberal Commons member for Random-Burin-St. George's, said the issues raised by the auditor general are huge concerns.
The Gulf service's 10 per cent on time record for 2008 stands out for her as an appalling statistic that shouldn't be tolerated. Tourism is a big part of the province's economy and most of the goods that are imported to the Island of Newfoundland arrive by ferry.
A press release from Kelvin Parsons, Liberal legislature member for Burgeo-Lapoile, said the report on Marine Atlantic confirms many of the problems that the people of the southwest coast have complained about over the past number of years.
The part of the document that says Marine Atlantic has inadequate cost recovery is a sore spot for him.
"I agree with most of the recommendations in this report, except for potentially increasing the rates to recover more on the cost of supplying this service," said Parsons.
