Bernard Lord

W

ith a population of a mere 757,000, roughly split between rural locations and its seven major cities, New Brunswick is successfully navigating the transition of its economy from fishing, forests and minerals to the equally natural resource of high-tech brainpower. Leading that charge has been the latest in a line of young premiers, Bernard Lord, whose administration has staked the prospects for its 10-year Prosperity Plan on a heady blend of maritime tradition, the knowledge economy and a low-cost location that is not as removed from the nodes of commerce as one might think.
        Companies like Xerox, Bombardier Aerospace, ICT, OAO Technology Solutions, German machinery manufacturer URBAN Machinery and a bevy of 80 plastics firms employing 2,000 people have found a home in the only officially bilingual province in Canada. They are drawn by a solid digital communications infrastructure, low-cost and reliable electricity and natural gas, and a pleasing array of educational and business facilities ­ both in cities like the capital of Fredericton and in coastal villages.
        A native New Brunswicker, Lord, 37, has brought his penchant for action home to roost, matching his education in social science, law and economics to the goals of the Progressive Conservative Party, where he rose to leadership at the ripe age of 32. On the occasion of a Canada Day luncheon July 1 in Atlanta marking the country's 135th anniversary, Premier Lord took some time to talk to Site Selection managing editor Adam Bruns about the economic outlook for his province.

        Site Selection: Among your many titles is "Minister responsible for red tape reduction." Can you talk about what you've been able to accomplish in this realm, and how your efforts have jibed with those of other provinces?

        Bernard Lord: We set up a blue ribbon private sector panel, and I said, "Tell us how we can simplify the process, tell us what we can do better." And still respecting the rules and obligations to the citizens, the consumers, the public health and safety, how do we do these things while at the same time reducing red tape? They came up with seven recommendations, and we accepted five. Most of them are either implemented now, or well underway toward that, including things like having a single business registry, at one phone number.
        New Brunswick is moving very quickly to ensure that there are more services available online through the government ­ real transactions, not just information. It simplifies the business process and reduces red tape. Last week I received a report looking at our systems. Now that we have a road map, the next step is to simplify the road map. If you talk to people who have built in New Brunswick, even before I came in, they found us easy to deal with already, and we're just making it that much better and simpler. My Minister of Finance says there are two types of people: those who are simplifiers and those who are complicators. We try to be simplifiers.

        Site Selection: A lot of people talk a good game when it comes to regional collaboration, but when it comes down to deal-making, they break up into their same old parochialism. It seems like the Atlantic provinces have established a true regional collaboration. Describe how that's worked.

Irving Oil recently completed a C$1 billion upgrade of its Saint John, New Brunswick, refinery. The project, dubbed "The King of Cats," employed 2,000 people at its peak.

        Bernard Lord: It's worked really well. We still have our own interests and don't agree on everything, but if you compare what is taking place in Atlantic Canada with the rest of North America, you'll probably find the strongest inter-jurisdictional collaboration here. It's probably due to necessity more than anything else. I believe there were too many obstacles to doing business in Atlantic Canada, and we needed to streamline some of these things. So we created the Council of Maritime Premiers, which became the Council of Atlantic Premiers when Newfoundland and Labrador joined us. The first meeting took place in New Brunswick in May 2000. Since then, we've been working on a joint plan. There are cultural, political and economic development issues. One clear result of this cooperation is we came up with a document called "Working Together," and in the last few months we've harmonized the transportation regulations for big trucks, so you can travel from one place to another with the same regulations. That's concrete. Now we're looking at other sectors where we can streamline regulation. What it does for all of us is it creates a bigger critical mass. We're small provinces: New Brunswick is 750,000, Nova Scotia is about 900,000, PEI is about 150,000, Newfoundland is about 600,000. Add all that up, it's still not a lot of population, and we have everything to gain from working cooperatively and streamlining some things. Personally I'd like it to move a little faster, but we are moving.
        Also, the four premiers work on common trade missions. What it does is it creates a more favorable business climate. It makes it easier for smaller businesses to expand, and for other businesses to come into Atlantic Canada and set up shop. Of course my preference is they set up shop in New Brunswick, but if they set up in Nova Scotia or Prince Edward Island, it's still a benefit to us, because our economies are so closely linked. The peripheral effect will be felt.

        Site Selection: In the present atmosphere of security awareness, data centers and customer service centers are looking to disperse from center cities. How many queries are you seeing from that sector?

        Bernard Lord: We're seeing that. It existed before for us, but before people would look at us for cost effectiveness and loyalty, for the quality of the work force and high-tech infrastructure. Now they're also looking at us for security, because they don't want all their eggs in the same basket. It's a new phenomenon, and we certainly provide a safe environment. We expect that to continue. It's part of the package we offer. We have the technology and the expertise. And it's also true not only in high-tech or business-to-business services, but in manufacturing. Sometimes it's not the best thing to have everything lumped into the same place, and having another plant in another part of the continent can be a good thing. People wonder how close we are to the big markets like Boston and the rest of the eastern seaboard, and I tell them,"If you go to Yankee Stadium and have a hot dog, a lot of those hot dog buns are from New Brunswick, and they're fresh." That's how close New Brunswick is to the eastern seaboard.

        Site Selection: What kind of manufacturing would you like to see?

        Bernard Lord: We like innovative manufacturing in the sense that there is a good combination of capital and people. Because of the energy costs we can offer, we've targeted plastics, metals fabrication, value-added products. We have some of the most sophisticated textile mills in North America. They're very capital-intensive, and the reason we're able to do that is we're close to the markets, and we have low energy costs.

        Site Selection: Tell me about your relationships with the New England governors.

        Bernard Lord: Excellent. We have very good relationships. They were formally established 25 to 30 years ago, called the New England Governors-Eastern Canadian Premiers conference. We meet every year. Last year we met in Connecticut, and this year we're meeting in Quebec. We work on real issues. A few months ago there was an energy conference in Saint John, New Brunswick, which has really become an energy hub for northeast North America. This opens other possibilities for plastics development and so forth. We know that the new reality of free trade is proximity, and a new strength and emphasis on north-south trade instead of just east-west.
        Also, last year, there was all this discussion about whether the U.S. was going to sign the Kyoto Protocol or not. Canada signed Kyoto but never ratified it. But the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers agreed on a regional action plan to reduce emissions. It's unprecedented, as an international group of local jurisdictions. Of course it's dependent on both our federal governments working with us and working together, but 11 of us agreed on it, which demonstrates the strong relationship between the premiers and the governors. Also, the other three Atlantic provinces go through New Brunswick to get to New England, so there is a close relationship between New Brunswick and Maine, and between myself and Governor Angus King.

        Site Selection: I know from recent visits to Maine how much a company like MBNA has impacted the economy of midcoast Maine. What if a company like that wants to grow right up the coast into your province?

        Bernard Lord: That's what we want to see. And we have some of our companies growing into Maine. The history and heritage between Atlantic Canada and New England is real and it's strong. The trade corridor before confederation was north-south. New Brunswick was probably the most prosperous jurisdiction at the time of confederation in 1867 because of the trade we did with New England. That has changed over time, but we've started to re-establish it. Our exports have grown by 143 percent in the last 10 years. The trade flows both ways -- Canada is the biggest trading partner with the U.S.

        Site Selection: People tell me there's a big homing instinct among New Brunswickers. Are you seeing evidence of that now that they're seeing more companies locating there?

        Bernard Lord: More and more. Everywhere I go, I meet New Brunswickers or other Atlantic Canadians who intend to go back. The way of life is great, and most people, even in our cities, can get from home to work in 10 minutes. You can buy a really nice house for a lot less than anywhere else on the East Coast of North America. Our beaches are actually relatively warm, close to 70 degrees in the summertime, which is warmer than anywhere north of Virginia, because of the way the currents work. You wouldn't think that when you see the map, but that's how it works out. The quality of life is great, and people spend time with their families instead of sitting in their cars. That's a great enhancement. It's safe, and a great place to raise a family. That's why so many people want to come back. But they won't come back if we don't offer jobs. The opportunities must be exciting, and that's the overall objective. All this doesn't happen overnight, but at the same time, nobody ever starts from scratch. We're taking the good things that were there and building on them, and we're fixing the things that were not so good to make them better.