By Canadian Press

New Brunswick expected to announce decision on hosting Francophonie Games

Jan 30, 2019 | 7:29 AM

FREDERICTON — The New Brunswick government is expected to announce its decision today on whether the province will host the 2021 Francophonie Games.

Last month, the Tory government of Premier Blaine Higgs announced the Games could prove too expensive for the province, as cost estimates ballooned to $130 million from the original bid of $17 million.

Five members of the organizing committee resigned when the numbers were released to the public.

Higgs has said the government will stick with the province’s original commitment to spend $10 million on the Games, and won’t spend anything more.

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Earlier this month, New Brunswick’s minister responsible for La Francophonie, Robert Gauvin, said if the partners behind the Games couldn’t draft a plan to find more funding by today’s deadline the province would be unable to host the event.

The original bid would have seen Ottawa and the province paying up to $10 million each, with the two host municipalities, Moncton and Dieppe, paying $750,000 each and the balance coming from ticket sales.

However, a federal consultant’s report pegged a reasonable cost at between $72 million and $115 million.

The Canadian Press