Columnist Bob Wakeham. Photo by FileArticle contentOnly a scattered seagull eyeing food scraps for its unfussy gullet could possibly have had a bigger smile down at the St. John’s Harbour Monday afternoon, Aug. 17, 2026 than the three politicians vying for the most continuous display of their respective set of pearly whites.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentFortunately, those ritualistic ear-to-ear smiles on the mugs of Premier Tony Wakeham, Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette, and Prime Minister Mark Carney, prompted by their announcement of a new energy agreement described in superlatives that must have worn out the thesaurus handbooks of their speech writers, weren’t altered by any impolite droppings gulls are known to indiscriminately deposit from above.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentBut, I mean to say, who or what could possibly poop on a parade that had, among many lucrative floats, the “largest clean energy investment in North American history?”Article contentWell. I don’t have the flatulent power of a gull, but, like thousands of my fellow Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who can’t claim expertise in matters of energy, and whose eyes glaze over with mention of kilowatt hours, transmission lines, and megawatts this and megawatts that, we’d like to be able to raise the odd question here and there, and have them answered, and have a say.Article contentIn fact, we have that right.Article content From left, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Tony Wakeham and Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette walk towards the podium on Monday, Aug. 17, 2026 to announce a new Churchill Falls deal. Photo by Keith Gosse/The TelegramArticle contentBROKEN PROMISEArticle contentIt won’t be through a referendum, as we now know. Wakeham, using a wishy-washy excuse of timeliness, has broken his promise to have such a vote conducted. I still believe, even given the enormously complicated nature of the new contract, that its content could have been explained in a way that would have allowed for a sensible and credible referendum.Article contentIn any case, Wakeham has opted, instead, to open the House of Assembly and let the MHAs handle matters. And we all know how well such responsibilities have worked out so many pathetic times in the past. Nevertheless, we, the unwashed, the ordinary souls, can only hope there are more than a few principled members with half a brain who can ensure this deal is as good as touted by the three back-slapping musketeers down at the harbour the other day.Article contentArticle contentI guess at this point we’ll have to take their word that this deal is much better than the original MOU signed in 2024 by then Newfoundland premier Andrew Furey and then Quebec premier Francois Legault, and, in fact, better for both provinces, especially with the intervention, in terms of billions of dollars, by Carney and company.Article contentIMPORTANT QUESTIONArticle contentIronically, two of the many Kool-Aid swallowers there on Monday, Fréchette herself, a minister of energy in the Legault government, and Jennifer Williams, the head of Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro, were involved in negotiating that first MOU, and both thought and voiced at the time that it was the deal of the century.Article contentAs I noted here a while back, Williams was on radio describing the Furey-Legault agreement as if it was the best thing since a slice of homemade bread, fresh out of the oven, and smothered with butter.Article contentI wish someone on the harbour front had asked Fréchette and Williams what changed in the meantime, other than a change of government in Newfoundland. Why was a MOU they negotiated and sold to their bosses and the public ultimately determined to be not in the best interests of either province?
BOB WAKEHAM: All smiles at the harbour, but could NL be left with nothing after two potential Churchill Falls deals?
