Beyond the Headlines

In his first speech from the throne Premier Stephen McNeil promised to put Nova Scotians first.

Now with the appointment of Glennie Langille to a plum patronage post, the opposition says that pledge should come with an asterisk: long-time Liberal loyalists and failed candidates first, then the rest of us.

Ms. Langille is now Nova Scotia's Chief Protocol Officer, replacing Florence Sissine, a civil servant who is retiring.

To ensure Ms. Langille wouldn't have to go through a civil service competition to win the job, the McNeil government made the post a contract position, and simply gave it to her.

Ms. Langille will earn $85,000 a year to head the Protocol Office. According to the government's website "The Protocol Office co-ordinates official ceremonies and events, as well as official visits by Members of the Royal Family, Heads of State and Government, Ambassadors, High Commissioners and Consuls General."

So what are Ms. Langille's qualifications for this prestigious post? Well, she was a journalist, including a number of years at the CBC. After working in newsrooms for almost 35 years I can tell you most journalists' default mode is to challenge power and authority, not bow to their traditions and protocols.

In 2008 she was hired by the Liberals as the party's Director of Communications, where she worked closely with leader Stephen McNeil. She was then given the job of working the grassroots to build the Liberal brand in Pictou County, before leaving to become the Liberal candidate in Pictou West. (For the record the Progressive Conservatives won all three Pictou seats).

To be fair, Ms. Langille could be the best qualified person in Nova Scotia for this job. If the province had advertised the position, put together a short list of candidates, and put them all through a rigorous interview process, Ms. Langille may still have won the job.

But since the Liberals chose patronage over transparency, we'll never know.

Ms. Langille's appointment comes just weeks after voters overwhelmingly voted to kick Darrell Dexter and the NDP out of office for failing to live up to expectations.

There was a series of events that led to the NDP's colossal collapse, but you could argue voters disillusionment with the Dexter government began with his handling of the MLA expense scandal.

Dexter, who we learned, purchased an expensive DSLR camera, top of the line Apple computers, and a $350 leather briefcase, all on the taxpayers' account, resisted all calls for a wider probe into MLA spending.

Then he steadfastly defended billing taxpayers thousands of dollars for his Barrister Society membership fees, until an avalanche of public opinion forced him to change his mind.

It was the moment that many Nova Scotians began to think that Dexter and his party, who were elected with so much promise and expectation, were really no different than the rest.

You have to wonder if Glennie Langille's patronage appointment will have the same effect on Stephen McNeil and the Liberals.