Opposition finance critic Sarah Stoodley calls government’s decision to cancel the new hospital proof that government has “given up hope” on the Churchill Falls MOU.

Stoodley says the fact that government is scrapping so many infrastructure projects is because they know the revenue won’t be there.

“There’s a lot of money associated with (a finalized deal with Hydro Quebec),” Stoodley told reporters after Minister Barry Petten’s news conference yesterday, “the Minister of Finance could reasonably be expecting the first two years of payments coming up shortly, and the fact that they’re coming out now saying there’s a lot of stuff they’re not doing and they’re cancelling, tells me that they’ve given up hope.”

Stoodley says there are 30,000 people living in the immediate vicinity of Kenmount Crossing and the hospital project would have meant more than just the facility itself, it would have also resulted in improved infrastructure to the area.

She says Paradise needs new roadways, and the Elizabeth Park area is in need of a new water tower. “This was all a very large plan to take care of many municipal and provincial needs of that whole area of the northeast Avalon.”

Stoodley wants to hear what Minister Paul Dinn thinks of the decision which will affect a large part of his district.