Conservative insider hired for provincial board
Last updated Dec 21 2005 10:14 AM AST
CBC News
A well-known Conservative political insider has been hired as a consultant to set up a new provincial board to oversee recycling.
Environment Minister Trevor Holder says the appointment of Bill Eaton had nothing to do with political ties. Holder says Eaton is a leading candidate to run the board once it starts operating.
Trevor Holder
Trevor Holder
Eaton is a well-known Conservative in the Saint John area. He helped organize Margaret-Ann Blaney's run for the PC party leadership in 1997. He's been a federal Conservative campaign manager and an executive assistant to provincial cabinet ministers.
Now Eaton has been hired on what the government calls a "personal services contract" to set up a stewardship board to oversee some provincial recycling programs.
Holder says Eaton's taxpayer-funded pay is confidential. He says it's Eaton's experience working for previous environment ministers and not his Conservative connection that qualifies him for the job.
In fact, Holder says Eaton is "absolutely" qualified to become CEO of the recycling board once it's up and running. "There's lots of former Liberal executive assistants working in government. They're doing a great job. They gain a lot of experience being an executive assistant. You basically shadow the minister."
Liberal leader Shawn Graham says Eaton's shift from political employee with no job protection to civil servant can only mean one thing. "This is indicative of a government that's in the dying days of its mandate, filling these important positions because individuals realize the government is not going to be re-elected."
Eaton himself is on a cross-country trip studying how other recycling boards operate.
