Opposition energy critic, Fred Hutton (VOCM News)
Energy Critic Fred Hutton is convinced the provincial government is waiting to run down the clock on the Churchill Falls agreement and blame Quebec for its failure.
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is stepping down once a leader is chosen for his Coalition Avenir party, but with an election looming in Quebec and the separatist Parti Quebecois high in the polls, many are wondering if a favourable deal can be found once the current MOU runs out.
“We had the money in our hand,” Hutton told reporters this week. “We just had to get this MOU across the finish line. They wouldn’t even vote on it. There has been a concerted effort by them not to do a deal with Quebec….they’re going to run out the clock, Quebec will go to a Plan B, and we’ll be left with $20 million a year vs $1 billion a year for the next 17 years.”