Most Atlantic provinces fare poorly in red tape report card

HALIFAX — The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has handed out poor grades to three Atlantic provinces for the way they deal with red tape.

The federation’s latest red-tape report card gave Newfoundland and Labrador a grade of C, Prince Edward Island received a D, and Nova Scotia was handed a D+.

The federation says New Brunswick escaped scrutiny because it’s too soon to evaluate the province’s new Liberal government.

The premiers of all four provinces met Monday in St. John’s, N.L., where they agreed to do more to streamline government regulations.

As well, the Newfoundland and Labrador government issued a statement saying the federation did not offer a rationale for its grade even though the group acknowledged the province’s recent regulatory reforms were an “important step in the right direction.”