Category: Saint John

Treaty Day was celebrated in Fredericton yesterday to mark the signing of treaties between the British Crown and the Maliseet First Nations in the 1700s.

Tobique First Nation Chief Ross Perley told CBC the Maliseet are considering filing an Aboriginal title claim in the courts for traditional lands in western New Brunswick. He says they are talking to their elders to gather all the traditional knowledge they can as well as looking at hiring an ethno-historian to build their case.

An Aboriginal title claim could give First Nations a greater say over any resource development in the area. In the last year the Mi’kmaq have filed an aboriginal title claims against the federal government for lands in the southeast part of the province.

The Workers Compensation Fund has dropped significantly over the last year.

WorkSafeNB’s report was tabled late last week and Brunswick News reports it shows the accident fund dropped last year from about $287 million to $172 million. Acting president Tim Petersen admits that’s one of the factors behind the increase in Workers Comp premiums for businesses.

Businesses complained last year about a 33% hike in premiums but labour groups pointed out their still among the lowest in the country. Still, the Gallant Government last week appointed a task force to look into the issue and report back by November.