ST. JOHN’S, NL – The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is slamming the Furey government for wasting more than $250,000 on a public relations campaign to promote the new Churchill Falls deal, according to documents obtained by the CTF.

“Taxpayers shouldn’t be footing the bill for a government patting itself on the back,” said Devin Drover, CTF Atlantic Director. “If the deal is good, it should speak for itself without the need for a big taxpayer-funded spin campaign.”

The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, along with Hydro NL, spent the money on media consultants, marketing strategies, and advertising production aimed at selling the deal to the public. Most of the money went to a Toronto-based communications firm.

“Taxpayer money shouldn’t be used to line the pockets of downtown Toronto consultants while Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are struggling to make ends meet,” said Drover. “The government needs to cut spending and pay back the debt, not waste hundreds of thousands of dollars paying professional spin doctors in another province.”

The spending was uncovered through access to information requests filed by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. The documents are available here.