The government of Newfoundland and Labrador appears poised to push ahead with its provincial budget Thursday even as members of the media and an entire political party have opted to stay out.
The provincial NDP issued a press release at 10 a.m. NT saying its members would not attend the budget, as hundreds of fish harvesters protested outside Confederation Building in St. John's.
The protest was met by dozens of Royal Newfoundland Constabulary officers in riot gear.
"The premier has let the situation get out of control," said NDP Leader Jim Dinn in the press release. "If the premier had shown the same determination in resolving this issue even a year ago, as he has demonstrated in pushing his own agenda, we wouldn't need police in riot gear."
A spokesperson for the government sent a memo to reporters at 8 a.m., saying the budget would be going ahead. They followed up later, telling reporters to enter the building with a police escort at 9:30 a.m.
At least five of the province's media outlets — CBC, NTV, VOCM and the St. John's Telegram — opted not to cross the protest line. CBC executive producer Peter Gullage cited safety concerns and uncertainty in minute-by-minute decisions being made by the provincial government.
Before the media agreed not to cross the protest line, the provincial government had already cancelled budget lock-ins — when groups are given copies of the budget to review in advance of its official release — for unions and members of the public due to safety concerns. Those decisions were not relayed to media outlets.
Earlier in the morning, police were seen having a cordial conversation with protest leaders, urging them to avoid a repeat of Wednesday's raucous events — particularly with a court-ordered injunction now in place that prohibits protesters from blocking safe access to Confederation Building, which is both home to the legislature and the main government complex.
Protest leader John Efford Jr. addressed the crowd a few minutes later.
"We're just going to make our presence known to the people that are going to work this morning. But we are going to be peaceful," he said over a megaphone. "Do not, do not get caught up in cat-calling. Do not get caught up in incitement. If anybody says anything to you today, say, 'Have a nice day.'"
The group of mostly fish harvesters has been protesting since early March on a number of conditions. For one, they want to be allowed to sell their catch to buyers outside the province. As it stands, they can sell only to buyers within the province at a price negotiated by the Fish, Food & Allied Workers union and the Association of Seafood Producers.
They also want processing limits lifted on independent fish plants to allow them to compete with the few companies that largely control processing in the province.
"Basically our message is free enterprise," Efford Jr. told CBC News on Thursday morning, adding the current system is "against what Canada believes in."