Just a big coincidence

Since the middle of June, the Ministry of Information has issued 106 press releases in which the government makes a funding announcement of one or more dollar amounts, and in which the the district or districts where the money is being "invested" is specifically mentioned.

This is usually in the context wherein the sitting Progressive Conservative Dunderdale2011 MHA for the district or districts where the money is being "invested" is named and "quoted" in the body of the press release.

This count does not include press releases in which the Progressive Conservative Dunderdale2011 announces:

- that it is spending money (or has spent money), but where a specific district or MHA (other than the Minister responsible) is not identified, even though the spending obviously attaches to a given local area. (However, if the Minister doing the announcing is also the MHA for the lucky district, it still counts);

- that it is spending money (or has spent money), but where the funding is provincial or regional in scope, and not attached to any particular district; or

- that it is doing something that necessarily involves (or involved) spending money, but where the dollar amount is not given — most conspicuously, in connection with highways work and Firetruck Summer (formerly Firetruck Month).

Only four of the announcements pertained, in whole or in part, to districts not currently held by a sitting Progressive Conservative Dunderdale2011 MHA.

By end of press release business day Friday, the Progressive Conservative Dunderdale2011 government and its MHAs had announced (or recycled) over $90-million in district- and MHA-specific funding.

This includes just the provincial share of federally or municipally cost-shared projects. It also excludes the recapitulations, often to be found near the bottom of the release (like this one) of past glories hand-delivered by the MHA, often in the form of oversized novelty cheques.

On the other hand, dollar figures which are obviously already spent are included in this total when they form the subject-matter of the release to immediate hand. Like this one and this one, both from Friday.

Now, here's where that dollar figure starts to get really interesting.

You will, of course, recall that two provincial cabinet ministers — Current Minister of Nothing, Derrick Dalley, and former Minister of Nothing Kevin O'Brien — recently reassured the concerned public that the putative ramp-up in spending announcements was nothing more than coincidence.

To suggest anything else, well, they might say, if they are still allowed to use the phrase, nothing could be further from the truth.

Now, far be it from this corner to deny the Ministers' firm denials. So, rather than do that, he will simply offer, without any attempt at explanation or editorializing, the following Pretty Chart, which shows the total amount of funding announced this summer, with specific MHA and district names intimately associated with the funding announcement, week by week. If it looks like there's a pattern, remember: that's just coincidence:

It will probably be fun to update this graph, on a go-forward bas—

Dang.

Phone is ringing.

Who the heck is this "CRA", and why on earth are they calling at this hour?