Tired of what he calls years of negative coverage, Saint John Mayor Ivan Court has challenged the publisher of New Brunswick's provincial newspaper to a debate on the issues facing the city.

In Monday night's council meeting, Court remarked that the Telegraph-Journal has been increasingly negative in its coverage of him and city hall staff over the last couple of years, so he wants to fight back.

The mayor told councillors the next Telegraph-Journal employee he'll speak to will be publisher Jamie Irving, and he'll do it in a broadcast debate at a media outlet not owned by the powerful Irving family.

Until then, he's refusing all interview requests from the paper — and banning it from his office.

"As of today, I've asked my staff to cancel the Telegraph-Journal. It's my first budget cut," he said. "It will save the citizens of Saint John, from my office, $190."

The Telegraph-Journal is owned by Brunswick News Inc., which is owned by the Irvings. The paper is distributed provincewide, but its city section is specifically focused on Saint John and the counties of southern New Brunswick.

'The problem is not with the newspaper,' says editor

Shawna Richer, the editor of the Telegraph-Journal, defended the newspaper, pointing the finger back at the politicians. Richer also dismissed the idea of a debate between the newspaper's publisher and the mayor.

"The problem is not with the newspaper. The problem is with the culture of inefficiency and sometimes questionable leadership at city hall. And that's something that our newspaper, newspapers everywhere, cover," Richer told the CBC on Tuesday.

Richer said the criticism of Court and other city decisions has nothing to do with the fact the newspaper endorsed one of the mayor's rivals during the 2008 municipal election. She said the only thing the newspaper is opposed to is the existing management at the city, high taxes and the sub par services offered in Saint John.

"This isn't personal," she said.

"This is, you know, our job is to advocate for the people … for the taxpayers and their residents. And any good newspaper would take exactly the same position," she said.