An extension of a freeze on Confederation Bridge tolls and Marine Atlantic fares, along with another step toward turning a chain of islands along the North Shore into a national park reserve were among the federal budget measures of interest to P.E.I.
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland presented her latest budget to Parliament on Tuesday.
It included $71.9 million, to be spent over the next 12 years, to establish Canada’s 48th national park at Pituamkek.
The chain of islands making up Pituamkek runs from the mouth of Malpeque Bay up to Alberton along P.E.I.’s North Shore. The islands are a unique sandhill ecosystem, and of great cultural significance to the Mi’kmaq.
“Home to multiple archaeological sites, rare geological formations, and ceremonial lands, protecting Pituamkek means ensuring that the connection of the Mi’kmaq to these ancestral lands is protected and preserved,” the budget notes.
The federal government first announced an interest in turning the area into a national park reserve in 2019.
Holding the line on tolls
Ottawa is also extending a program to maintain the current tolls on Confederation Bridge, and also freezing the cost of riding the Wood Islands ferry to Nova Scotia.
