New Brunswick to spend $25 million in effort to create jobs for youth

FREDERICTON – The New Brunswick government will spend $25 million dollars in the coming year in an effort to boost the number of young people working in the province.

A government source says Premier Brian Gallant will announce the initiative — to be part of next week’s provincial budget — today during a noon hour speech to the Moncton Chambre of Commerce.

Gallant says for too many years, too many young people have left the province in search of work.

The source tells The Canadian Press the initiatives will add to programs already offered by the province, such as the Youth Employment Fund, One Job Pledge and Workforce Expansion program.

New Brunswick’s unemployment rate improved during 2017 to 7.8 per cent in December, but Statistics Canada says that’s the result of fewer people participating in the labour force.

The Gallant government will release it’s 2018-2019 budget on Jan. 30.