Friday, August 27, 2010

What A Joke... maybe a "dinosaur award"...

For those of you in the public who were to busy with real things to do and didn't have a chance to delve into the Bowels of IRAC to listen to the gas bar hearings then here's what the Gas Dealer's Dale Mader had to say... “What about the people that live at either end of the Island?”... well Dale, in the real world of free enterprise they would more than likely drive into a bustling community like Tignish or Souris to get their gas and if you really think about it a new gas bar in Stratford is not going to make a bit of difference and you don't have to be a rocket scientist like those political flunkies at IRAC to figure that out. Just think about this. At one point during the "Hearings" there were at least 8 lawyers, 3 commissioners (a couple of which earn over $100,000 a year) and at least 4 Commission staff talking about the silliness of "proving the necessity" of a gas bar before someone is allowed to build one... IRAC is almost an industry on its own for high priced lawyers and political appointments.... there was not one single soul "from the public" who voiced their concerns about these new proposed gas bars being allowed to open... I'm thinking that the Captain of the Don't Get Ahead Gang (Allan Rankin) should draft Dale Mader on to his Team or at the very least put him up for this year's very allusive "dinosaur award".... Why shouldn't the people of Stratford have another gas bar option and why shouldn't Islanders get some benefits of lower gas prices when competition is allowed to prevail.. remember Mr. Mader is being paid by the existing gas bar operators to prevent competition so what else would you expect him to say...

Regulation serves Islanders well, P.E.I. gasoline retailers say
The Guardian
August 26th, 2010
The Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission has been doing a good job for Islanders, says a representative for the P.E.I. Gasoline Retailers Association.
Dale Mader made the remark in response to APM president Tim Banks’ criticism of IRAC on Monday during the final day of a hearing on two applications to open gas stations in Stratford.
Mader said regulation has been around for a long time and IRAC has been following the mandate the provincial government gave it.
“I think the process has served Islanders very well for many years,” he said.
During his appearance before the commission, Banks called IRAC a red tape regime, said it was making a mockery of free enterprise and should spend less time policing things it can’t control, like gasoline prices.
But Mader said Banks’ vision of free enterprise would work great in an ideal world, which doesn’t exist on P.E.I.
“The petroleum market is not an ideal world.”
Nova Scotia sells 10 times as much gasoline as P.E.I. while Quebec and Ontario sell tens of billions of litres more than Island stations, which sell about 200 million litres a year, he said.
Mader said people should be able to buy gas with a reasonable amount of convenience and there would be clusters of them in populated areas with none in rural areas if there wasn’t regulation, he said.
“What about the people that live at either end of the Island?”
Free enterprise could put rural stations out of business and the commission’s role is to do what’s best for Islanders, he said.
“The government has made it clear, I believe, that the Island should be treated as one Island community.”
During his appearance at the hearing, Banks said a lot of rural stations have closed despite
regulation in the industry.
Mader agreed a lot of stations have closed, but said a lot more would close without regulation because of the low volume of gas sold on P.E.I.
“The market on P.E.I. has not been growing.”
In the case of new applicants, like the ones for the Stratford stations, IRAC needs to consider the effect they would have on existing retailers because the market isn’t growing, he said.
“The bulk of what they achieve, by their own admission, will come from existing retailers.”
Mader said the free market isn’t always ideal and while regulation isn’t necessarily in place to keep businesses afloat, it is there to make sure Islanders can fill up near where they live.
“The regulation is probably more directed to make sure all Islanders, no matter where they live, have access to gasoline.”

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I love the Island. Generally, I love Islanders as well. Sadly, my experience at the very shallowest end of the economic pond has amply shown that many (not all) do not like competition and look upon free enterprise with unrestrained hostility. --SH