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"Delighted with today's announcement that the government will NOT create a program to subsidize professional sports arenas." Federal Immigration Minister Jason Kenney

Gotta love that guy.

Well, there's the end to that little bit of suspense. And well done indeed. The only possible question is why did it take so long? What was it that had to be considered at length and depth? To set aside taxpayer funding for a professional sport arena in any city of the land represents an ethical error. Professional sport is quite capable of looking after itself.

That any city has an ambition to persuade a professional sport body to consider its spanking new state-of-the-art venue as the very place to assign a sport team to, when it should be looking toward its ageing infrastructure, roads, sewers, bridges, that urgently require replacement, is beyond reason.

That, despite tight economic times a city values a professional sport stadium beyond and above the need to provide safety of water purification and sewage treatment systems, and security of its citizens on the roads and highways of its jurisdiction speaks of badly misplaced priorities.

That this just happens to be Quebec City brings things into focus. Not that other cities within the country wouldn't be happy to jump into the fray of sport arena handouts. But like other levels of government in the province, Quebec is not accustomed to having its funding requests summarily dismissed. Not without dire warning of repercussions.

And the mayor of Quebec City, Regis Labeaume, does not disappoint in his angrily bemused reaction to the final word on the matter. He calls it a "suicidal" decision on the part of the federal government. He reminds the Conservative-led government that it holds a mere 11 seats in the province, six of which are located in Quebec City.

Those seats are now certain to evaporate in the face of a funding refusal for a professional sport arena. A promise of funding did come from Quebecor, promising between $110 and $200 million but only if the city is successful in landing that NHL franchise. Which those in the know in the sports world consider highly unlikely.

Leaving the city and the province holding the $400-million price tag divided between them. They did, after all, declare that they are prepared to fund the enterprise on their own. Bravado comes home to haunt them. And, unfortunately, the country is on the hook for some of that funding in any event, through lop-sided transfer payments.