Nova Scotia’s premier says he’s disappointed the province’s Court of Appeal has declined to say which level of government has responsibility for the land bridge to New Brunswick.
In its decision released Friday, the court said the Nova Scotia government was potentially using the case for political purposes.
It added that the question posed by the province was imprecise and had political undertones, making it “inappropriate to answer.”
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In a statement, Premier Tim Houston says the court’s justification was not a legitimate reason to avoid answering the question.
Nova Scotia has long maintained that the federal government should pay the entire cost of upgrading protections for the Chignecto Isthmus — currently estimated at $650 million — but Ottawa has agreed to pay only half of the project.
In July 2023, the province asked the court to settle the constitutional question of whether the transportation, trade and communication links across the land bridge are within the exclusive legislative authority of Parliament.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 16, 2025.
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