[Taeolas]

It seems to me we really have 3 regions that are shrinking. Northern NB, Cape Breton and Southern NS. Cumberland, Queens and Charlotte counties feel more like aberrations than actual areas in trouble. (And in Queens' case, that's mostly empty space anyway, isn't it?)

Kent and Carleton counties in NB I suspect will recover just from proximity to Moncton and Fredericton. I know Carleton's numbers are basically stable, neither growing nor shrinking so while not the best, it's not too bad either.

As for what we do with those regions? It is a tough question, both politically, emotionally and realistically.

The realist in me says to leave them on life support for now; let the populations atrophy until they get back to a level the region can support economically. So while we shouldn't abandon them completely, we need to make sure the investment that is put into them is investments that make sense, and not just investments to try and see what sticks. Don't throw money at someone who comes in and says "I'll open a Banana farm in Bathurst if you give me X$ to start up."

It seems to me that all three of those regions are in various transition stages at the moment; with their old industries in decline and the new ones that fit the areas still getting sorted out. The key for the governments is to figure out which new growth industries in those areas will work and to nurture those ones which is not a trivial problem to solve.