The Province of Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of the three Maritime Provinces located in
Eastern Canada. It comprises of a peninsula on the mainland and
Cape Breton Island. With an area of 21,345 square miles,
including 751 square miles of inland water, it is Canada's
second smallest Province. Nova Scotia is situated in the
Atlantic Ocean and is almost completely surrounded by water; no
part of the province is more than 35 miles from the ocean. The
peninsula is joined to the mainland and the Province of New
Brunswick by a narrow strip of land called Isthmus of Chignecto.
To the North is Prince Edward Island (PEI) and to the West is
Maine, USA.
The Province is in the Atlantic Time Zone which is Greenwich
Meantime -4 hours. Between the months of April and October
Daylight Saving is in effect and the difference is GMT -3 hours.
There is a population of 940,000 people (Jan 2002) and most of
the larger towns are located along the seacoasts. The provincial
capital is Halifax located on the south coast and an
international seaport. Dartmouth, across the harbour from
Halifax, is the Provinces second largest town. There are dozens
of fishing villages and towns scattered around the coastline of
Nova Scotia.
There are hundreds of rivers and small streams; thousands of
lakes and many areas of bogs throughout the Province. The Cape
Breton Island is home to the highest point of Nova Scotia 532
metres above sea level and is very hilly. The mainland has two
ridges that run over 100 miles long. Both the mainland and the
Island are an outdoor enthusiast's paradise being rich in
recreational opportunities and over 120 Parks to enjoy.
There are several areas of the Province that lie below sea
level with huge dikes that hold back the sea, allowing for
thousands of acres of farmland. Nova Scotia is famous for its
many gravel and sand beaches, but the ocean temperatures only
allow for swimming during July and August. January is generally
the coldest month of the year with an average temperature of -4
degrees Celsius near the coast; the hottest month is normally
July when the average temperature is 16 degrees Celsius. The
interior of the province has colder winters and warmer summers
by a few degrees. An average of more than 45 inches of rain
falls annually and more than 70 inches of snow covers most of
the province in the winter. Ice storms and rain can also happen
during the winter.
The Provincial Government of Nova Scotia is led by newly
elected Premier Rodney Macdonald, the leader of the Progressive
Conservative party. The past few years have seen the Province
turn around its fortunes and have now balanced the budget and
are attracting several large IT companies to the Halifax area.
The Province has an active Provincial Nominee Program aiming to
attract certain skills and trades - if you meet the qualifying
criteria it can make a difference for your application
processing time. Not only is the Province trying to attract new
Immigrants but also providing Settlement Support Services to
give people every chance of making a successful start to their
new lives.
Other responsibilities of the Provincial Government are the
Healthcare System administration which is partially funded by
extra cash from the Federal Government. The Provincial Education
System is also benefiting from the injection of Federal funds.
Both of these issues were election pledges for the Hamm
Government, so it will be interesting to see if Mr MacDonald
lives up to them!
As with all the Provinces, the laws for Driving are administered
by the Provincial Government.
Each Province also has to set its own levels of Taxation in
addition to the Federal rates. These taxes are needed to pay for
all the Provincial responsibilities and will include the
Harmonised Sales Tax (HST) which is 15%. This figure includes
the Federal GST at 7% though.
For more, detailed information please go to
http://www.onestopimmigration-canada.com/nova_scotia.html