"In this release Burke claimed she made the project a priority while Hodder claimed it was proof of the commitment of the Williams government to rural Newfoundland and Labrador," said Grimes. "I would like to set the record straight. This project was approved over a year ago by the Liberal government and I find it hard to believe that they would dress this up to sound like new money and try and sell it as an initiative of a new government. It just goes to show desperate they are to look effective.

"The sewage plant, the new hospital, the College of the North Atlantic Headquarters, the Provincial Library Board, the deep water well system, the new stadium and several other initiatives were made possible by the Liberal government. All Mr. Hodder and Ms. Burke have done over the past nine months is allow programs and services to be stripped away from the region.

"This is not the first time the Williams government has attempted to mislead the public by reannouncing Liberal initiatives. It is time they started bringing forward some of the promised new programs and make new investments in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. The public is tired of this smoke and mirror approach."