Regulatory Reform Team in Place
The province's Office of Regulatory Affairs and Service Effectiveness will be well-positioned to work toward a more competitive business environment in Nova Scotia after the hiring of four key staff.
Fred Crooks, chief regulatory officer of Nova Scotia, announced the new team today, July 30.
"This team, while small, represents a powerful combination of proven leadership and practical experience. Each of them is a leader in their field and has an impressive track record of getting things done," said Mr. Crooks. "Premier Stephen McNeil has given us an important mandate and the members of this team are ready to roll up their sleeves and, working closely with New Brunswick, get on with the job ahead."
Fred Morley will join the office as chief economist, responsible for policy and research. Mr. Morley has been a senior policy leader and economic advisor to both business and government and most recently served as executive vice-president and chief economist of the Greater Halifax Partnership. He will bring to the office a capacity for objective policy and economic analysis, a key requirement for understanding the true impact of regulation and regulatory change on business and citizens.
Joan Penney will serve as executive director of project implementation and customer service. Ms. Penney is a former vice-president of customer care at Bell Aliant, where she led thousands of customer-facing employees and focused on customer service results and cost efficiency. She will drive project implementation and oversee the office's customer service improvement agenda.
Leanne Hachey will join as executive director of stakeholder relations and intergovernmental initiatives. Ms. Hachey is currently a director at EfficiencyOne and previously served as vice-president, Atlantic, of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. She has a deep appreciation of the perspective of business on regulation. She will ensure businesses and citizens are properly consulted and informed about the work of the office, and oversee initiatives to eliminate inconsistency and duplication of regulations between provinces.
Dana MacDonald will serve as director of regulatory modernization. Ms. MacDonald currently serves as director of procurement for the province with the Department of Internal Services and has strong experience in leadership, negotiation, and project management. She will lead development of a sustainable process within government to ensure regulations are developed and changed with meaningful consultation with stakeholders, and appropriate assessment of the impacts of these changes.
In March of this year, Premier McNeil and New Brunswick Premier Brian Gallant announced the two provinces would work together to reduce red tape.
"We appreciate the support we've seen from the business community for this initiative and look forward to working collaboratively," said Mr. Crooks. "Fred, Joan, Leanne, and Dana have a strong passion for the task ahead and an appreciation of the urgency and economic significance of regulatory reform. We're very lucky to have them on board."
The mandate of the office is to reduce the regulatory burden on citizens and businesses while protecting public health and safety, the environment, and employee and consumer interests. It will also focus on collaboration with New Brunswick to eliminate regulatory overlap between the two provinces and improve policy collaboration.
Since its establishment, the office has begun discussions with the other Atlantic provinces to explore opportunities to remove barriers to interprovincial trade and for regulatory and service co-ordination. It has also started identifying areas of highest priority to streamline regulation in Nova Scotia and opened initial channels with the province's business community.