Newfoundland and Labrador Hansard — Orders of the Day; Members' Statements — 15 March 2016 (48th General Assembly, 1st Session, Vol. XLVIII No. 5)
2016-03-15
Newfoundland and Labrador — Debates (Hansard)
PDF Version
March 15, 2016
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS
Vol. XLVIII No. 5
The
House met at 1:30 p.m.
MR. SPEAKER (Osborne):
Order, please!
Admit strangers.
Prior to moving to the Orders of the Day and Members' Statements, I'd like
to welcome representatives from the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of
Social Workers in the gallery today marking World Social Work Day and
National Social Work Week. In our galleries we have Lisa Crockwell,
executive director and registrar; Glenda Webber, president-elect; Niki
Legge, board of directors; and Annette Johns, associate director of policy
and practice.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
Statements by
Members
MR. SPEAKER:
Today we have Members'
Statements for the District of Torngat Mountains; the District of Ferryland;
Mount Pearl North; Bonavista; Mount Pearl Southlands; and St. John's East
Quidi Vidi.
recognize the hon. the Member for Torngat Mountains.
MR. EDMUNDS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
rise in this hon. House today to congratulate Team 22, Maine Racing on
winning Cain's Quest 2016.
Mr.
Speaker, I would also like to recognize this event that took place last week
in all districts in the Labrador portion of our great province. Cain's Quest
is a pan-Labrador snowmobile race that runs 3,500 kilometres over ungroomed
trails and some of the most unforgiving terrain in the Land God gave to
Cain. In a land as rugged as Labrador, Mother Nature took its toll on
machinery, as well as mind, body and soul.
The
racers endured the most extreme conditions and battled fatigue and frostbite
as they competed for top place.
Many
people across the province and around the world, including myself, followed
the racers online as they travelled endlessly at all hours across the Big
Land. The race began in Labrador City, and the course ran east towards
Rigolet, then North to Nain, and ended up on the South Coast and back to Lab
West.
It's
important that we recognize the organizers as well as the countless
volunteers that put so much time and effort into Cain's Quest 2016.
ask all hon. Members to join me in recognizing the 74 riders who pushed
themselves and their snowmobiles to the limit.
Thank you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Ferryland.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, I stand to recognize a group of female youth from Mobile Central
High School and their coaches from my district who represented Newfoundland
and Labrador and Canada in the World School Cheerleading competition in
Orlando, Florida, the week of February 5 to 7.
They
were awarded a full paid bid in October by the International Cheerleading
Union. This is the first time that this bid has ever been awarded in
Newfoundland and Labrador.
Mobile Cheerleading was chosen based on their performance over the past few
years, placing second place in Nationals in 2014 and first in 2015. The team
won grand champions at the Nationals level with the highest score of all
high school teams, with over 90 teams competing. The team also won two
provincials two years in a row, competing at the highest level in the
province for the high school last year.
At the competition in Florida, the Mobile High School
Cheerleaders placed fourth in their division and took home the Canadian Cup
for receiving the highest score for all Canadian teams in attendance.
Mr. Speaker, I ask all Members of this House to join me
in congratulating Mobile High Cheerleading team for their outstanding
accomplishments.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl North.
MR. KENT:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I rise in this hon. House today to congratulate the
volunteers and organiz er s of the 34th Annual Mount Pearl Frosty Festival. With
over 60 events throughout 11 days, and over 10,000 people in attendance, the
Frosty Festival is one of the largest winter festivals in Eastern Canada.
The Frosty Festival brings residents and friends in
Mount Pearl together for a number of events such as the Jiggs' dinner and
variety show, community breakfasts and this year's opening night show,
Circus Glorious, featuring Wonderbolt Circus. The festival also includes a
dinner theatre, Battle of the Brains trivia contest, visits to seniors'
homes and even a birthday party for Frosty.
Mr. Speaker, organizing a festival of this magnitude
takes many hours and much dedication. I would like to extend congratulations
to all of those who made the 34th Annual Mount Pearl Frosty Festival
possible: the festival's board of directors, the 24 community group
partners, the festival's 35 sponsors, the over 500 volunteers and the many
supporting organizations and businesses.
I ask all hon. Members to join with me in thanking and
congratulating the 34th Annual Mount Pearl Frosty Festival on the tremendous
success of this year's winter carnival.
Thank you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for Bonavista.
MR. KING:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge the Run the
Rock team of HMCS St. John's. Run the Rock is an annual charity relay run in
support of the NL
chapter of the Children's Wish Foundation, which is
comprised of 10 to 15 sailors from the
St. John's , our namesake frigate.
Since 19 9 6, teams have run from Port aux Basques to St.
John's raising funds and awareness for this worthy cause. In recent years,
the team has expanded their outreach to include offshoots from the TCH,
including adding a day in the District of Bonavista. To date, Run the Rock
has raised over $700,000, with last year's 20th anniversary team raising a
record $107,000. With each wish costing approximately $10,000, that is 70
wishes granted to children with serious illnesses.
In recent years, two of my constituents have been
granted a wish. Nicholas Pike of Portland, a proud animal lover, received a
wheelchair accessible Little Red Barn. As well as Joshua Abbott of Princeton
who received a trip to Disney, Sea World and Universal Studios.
This
year's run will take place from June 15 to June 30. I ask all hon. Members
to join with me in congratulating the team and wishing them continued
success.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Mount Pearl Southlands.
MR. LANE:
Mr. Speaker, it's my
privilege to rise in this hon. House to offer congratulations to a group of
individuals who have made a significant contribution to sport in my
community. Once again, this year's Mount Pearl Athletic Awards was a
tremendous success which highlighted the achievements and emphasized the
important role that sport has played and continues to play in the
development of youth and adults alike within our great city.
There were a number of very worthy nominees again this year, nominated in
four categories. Congratulations to this year's winners: the Peter Halliday
Executive of the Year award winner, Ms. Christine Young of Mount Pearl
Synchro; Coach of the Year, Mr. Mark Miller of Pearlgate Track & Field Club;
Female Athlete of the Year, Samantha Marsh, for her accomplishments in the
sport of target shooting; and Male Athlete of the Year, swimming sensation
Sam Leawood.
Mr.
Speaker, I would ask all Members of this hon. House to join me in
congratulating these individuals on this significant accomplishment and wish
them all the best in their future sporting endeavours.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
rise today to salute a long-time community activist and constituent, a
tireless advocate for the environment, an award-wining photographer and
filmmaker, an art educator and a mother of three. Last January, Sheilagh
O'Leary became Chair of the local
Chapter of Equal Voice in St. John's,
Newfoundland.
Equal Voice is a national, bilingual, multi-partisan organization dedicated
to electing more women to all levels of political office in Canada. Nine
chapters across the country promote the equal representation of women in
Canada's legislatures and on municipal and band councils.
Sheilagh assumed the lead role locally in a year that saw both a federal and
a provincial election here, and was extremely active in promoting women's
involvement in the political process.
few weeks ago, she practised what she preached and was elected for the
second time to city council here in St. John's, becoming the only woman on
what was previously an all-male council.
Today, a week after International Women's Day, I congratulate Sheilagh
O'Leary for all her hard work and wish her a successful term on council.
ask all hon. Members to join me in commending her and the work of Equal
Voice.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
The Commemoration
of the First World War and the Battle of Beaumont-Hamel
MR. SPEAKER:
Today for Honour 100 we
have the Member for the District of Baie Verte Green Bay, followed by a
moment of silence.
MR. WARR:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
will now read into the record the following 40 names of those who lost their
lives in the First World War in the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, the Royal
Newfoundland Naval Reserve or the Newfoundland Mercantile Marine. This will
be followed by a moment of silence.
Lest we forget: Edward Bryan, John Bryan, Aaron Bryant,
Charles Bryant, James Buckley, Morgan Buffett, Thomas Buffett, Fred Bugden,
John Stanley Bugden, Leighton Bugden, Augustus Bulgin, William Burbridge,
Allen Burge, Rufus Burgess, Frank M. Burke, Garrett Burke, Leo Michael
Burke, John Burrage, Sidney George Burry, Benjamin Bursey, George Bursey,
Goliath Bursey, Uriah George Bursey, Charles Burt, Eric Burt, Andrew Burton,
Charles Burton, George Lewis Burton, John A. Burton, Willis G. Burton, Jacob
Bussey, David Butler, Edward William Butler, George A. Butler, Harry Butler,
Harvey Ronald Butler, Ignatius Joseph Butler, James J. Butler, John Butler,
Llewelyn Butler.
(Moment of silence.)
MR. SPEAKER:
Please be seated.
Statements by Ministers.
Statements by Ministers
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.
MR. CROCKER:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I rise to highlight the provincial government's
participation at Seafood Expo North America, which took place in Boston from
March 6 to 8.
Along with the Premier, I had the honour of
participating in the largest seafood trade event in North America attracting
over 20,000 buyers and suppliers from over 100 countries. This is the first
time a Newfoundland and Labrador Premier has attended this expo.
The expo provides a one-stop opportunity to meet a
significant number of major industry players over a short period. The
Premier and I had the opportunity to engage with fisheries and aquaculture
counterparts from other provinces and various industry leaders on matters of
mutual interest and importance. We also had the opportunity to meet with
federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Hunter Tootoo, on a range of
priority issues, including our opposition to the federal last in, first out
policy relating to Northern shrimp and its devastating impacts on
Newfoundland and Labrador communities.
Mr.
Speaker, in 2015 our seafood industry was valued at over $1.2 billion. The
United States remains the province's largest export market representing 40
per cent of our total exports, further highlighting the importance of
participation in this premiere seafood trade event.
Through the creation of the fisheries advisory council, our government will
work to increase the overall viability and competitiveness of the
Newfoundland and Labrador seafood sector, particularly as we prepare for
opportunities arising from the return of groundfish.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Cape St. Francis.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. K. PARSONS:
Mr. Speaker, I thank
the minister for an advance copy of his statement. The Boston seafood show
it's very important that we be there and it's very important that our
Premier be there, also.
Right now, in the economic turmoil that we are experiencing in this
province, the fishery is the one industry that we need to make sure we
maintain control of. It's the one industry that's been here from day one
that's kept us going.
It's
important that we do show our interest in the fishery and show that there
are a lot of harvesters and processors that attend the show. It's important
that we show them that we support them in this show also.
Over
the years we've had some pretty good representation at the Boston seafood
show. Ministers like John Efford, Gerry Reid, Trevor Taylor, Tom Rideout,
Tom Osborne and Clyde Jackman have been there. I know the Premier met with
Minister Tootoo at the time, but it's important that they, with the
fisheries fund okay, thank you.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
too, thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement. This was his
first time as minister at the show in Boston. I trust he learned from his
participation in the expo how important a provincial seafood marketing plan
is for the provincial industry.
The
world needs to be able to easily recognize seafood of the highest quality,
the products that come from our shores. When will government create a
fisheries marketing strategy and work with industry to ensure we get the
best dollar for our product?
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
MR. SPEAKER:
Further statements by
ministers?
The
hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.
MR. BYRNE:
Mr. Speaker, I rise today
to inform the House that the week of March 20 to 26 is Multiculturalism Week
in Newfoundland and Labrador.
This
week has special significance, as March 21 is designated by the United
Nations as the International Day for the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination. This year, we have the warmth and benefit of welcoming
Syrian refugees to our province; individuals and families that have been
displaced by war. Celebrating multiculturalism is an appropriate opportunity
to welcome these new residents to our province, and to demonstrate our
openness to them as they begin new lives amongst us and with us.
recognition of Multiculturalism Week, it has been suggested and we should
encourage people displaying multicoloured lights outside their homes and
businesses. Cultural diversity is strength, and by displaying these lights
we demonstrate how diversity makes our communities more dynamic places to
live.
encourage all my hon. colleagues and everyone throughout Newfoundland and
Labrador to take
part in our week-long celebration of cultural diversity,
and to seek out any number of events within their communities to do so.
Mr.
Speaker, I would like to conclude by congratulating our many partners and
volunteers who have organized events and activities to celebrate
multiculturalism. Promoting respect and value for all cultures will help
build a stronger Newfoundland and Labrador.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Conception Bay East Bell Island.
MR. BRAZIL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'd
like to thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement. We, too,
from our caucus would like to acknowledge Multiculturalism Week this week.
Mr. Speaker, we also want to welcome all new citizens to our great province.
want to also acknowledge the great work being done by the volunteer
organizations and the many agencies and individuals who promote diversity
and multiculturalism in our society. I had the privilege a number of years
ago of working for Advanced Education and Skills and working with a lot of
these agencies. I saw the great work that's being done to promote diversity
in our community and engage our own citizens here to be multicultural and be
understanding of the different diverse cultures we have here.
remember one conference I went to, Mr. Speaker, and the slogan was: Our
differences are what make us similar. I think that speaks volumes here.
behalf of our caucus, we, too, would like to encourage people to use
multicoloured lights to encourage people here to understand multiculturalism
and diversity.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
too, thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement. I'm happy to
welcome our new Syrian families.
Diversity does make our communities, our province and our country stronger.
Multiculturalism celebrates the richness and wealth of all cultures which
make up our society.
will need new families and new workers because of our aging population and
low birth rate. Immigration will be the key to our future economic
prosperity.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
MR. SPEAKER:
Further statements by
ministers?
The
hon. the Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services.
MS. GAMBIN-WALSH:
Mr. Speaker, March is
National Social Work Month, and I rise today in this hon. House to pay
tribute to our province's social workers. This year's theme is Social Work:
A Profession of Choice, and highlights the diversity of the social work
profession and the valuable role social workers play in our society.
Newfoundland and Labrador, we have over 1,500 registered social workers who
are committed to improving the health, safety and social well-being of
individuals, couples, families, groups and communities through direct
service delivery, health promotion and social programs.
Today also marks World Social Work Day. It presents another opportunity for
the social work profession to express international solidarity and echo the
importance of their work in governments, organizations and communities
around the world. The theme this year is Promoting the Dignity and Worth of
Peoples, with a focus on how societies thrive when the dignity and rights of
all peoples are respected.
Mr.
Speaker, I ask all hon. Members to join me in recognizing social workers
throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, the rest of Canada and indeed the
world for their ongoing dedication and support in the delivery of
professional social work services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'd
like to thank the minister for an advance copy of her statement. I, along
with the Official Opposition, would like to join with government in
recognizing National Social Work Month. As the minister stated, we have over
1,500 registered social workers, professionals, committed and caring
individuals who make positive impacts to so many of our province's
residents.
They
work in a variety of settings: Child, Youth and Family Services, general and
psychiatric hospitals, school boards, correctional institutions, a number of
federal and provincial departments as well as many who work in private
practice. No matter where they work, they play a vital role in so many
environments and circumstances.
March of each year, social workers throughout Newfoundland and Labrador and
the entire country celebrate and recognize the contributions of social
workers to society.
The
Official Opposition joins with the province's social workers in celebrating
our social ideals and values. We wish to thank them for the invaluable
service they provide to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of St. John's Centre.
MS. ROGERS:
Mr. Speaker, I thank the
minister for an advance copy of her statement. As a social worker, I am
proud of my colleagues' work. Social workers do case work but also act as
advocates and policy-makers pushing for systemic change so all people have
equality and resources to live in dignity. They work on the front lines.
They see the negative effects of government's cutbacks and austerity
measures. As legislators we must listen to their expertise.
all our social workers, thank you for your passion and compassion. Bravo!
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
Oral Questions.
Oral Questions
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of
the Opposition.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
When
asked what savings had been achieved from discretionary spending and travel
since December, the Minister of Finance indicated that they have achieved
approximately $100 million in savings since December. Last Thursday, as
promised, the minister tabled a document to the House. However, the document
lacks details.
promised by this minister who represents an open and transparent government,
I ask the minister: How can she identify savings while not providing the
details to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, the exact details that
she promised to table?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, I am
happy to stand in this House and answer questions about saving money for the
people of the province. This is a very difficult fiscal situation that our
government has been left to deal with. I think it is very important for us
to understand the context of why we are in this situation. The former
administration opted to ignore the revenue line and let the peak oil
production of 2007 go by without making adjustment to their spending.
look forward to continuing to provide answers in this House of Assembly to
the Member opposite on the specifics. I would say that discretionary
spending certainly would include more than travel and furniture. Quite
frankly, I suspect that is the reason people in the province chose this
government.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of
the Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The
question that I asked about was how much has been saved since December in
discretionary spending and travel. When the minister was asked she provided
three numbers to the House of Assembly, even though she had indicated here
in the House that she would provide the exact details.
Maybe we can break it down and do it this way. I ask the minister: Will she
provide an itemized account of the $118 million, one of the three numbers
listed in her document will she provide a detailed account of the $118
million identified in the heading savings identified in fiscal update?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
As I
said in the House last week, the savings that were included in the numbers
that I presented to this House included savings ascertained by things like
no reallocation of savings in department, the reduction of parliamentary
secretaries, the reduction of political staff in ministerial offices, the
reduction in salaries through the delaying of hiring of certain positions,
placing restrictions on hiring, placing restrictions on consultants and the
elimination of discretionary travel.
will look forward to, as I said last Thursday, presenting a budget in this
House that details that information and our plan for budget '16-'17 and into
the future that will get our province back on a fiscal course that's
sustainable.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of
the Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
It's
clear that the member is reading from the list. So she has the list. Does
she have the amounts that go with the list?
She
promised that she would provide the exact details. Now she's reading from a
list today, but I also remind the minister that it's not the budget that I'm
asking about. I'm asking about the savings the $100 million in
discretionary spending and travel, because that was what the question was
and her answer was $100 million from December to March, the last three
months, can she itemize the $100 million in savings through discretionary
spending and travel in the last three months? Will she provide those
itemized details?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, I am
happy to continue to stand on my feet in this House and answer all the
questions that the Member opposite wants to ask about the $100 million.
believe the people of the province, though, want to hear questions about the
important situation that we're in. Quite frankly, I would remind the Member
opposite that when they made decisions to increase the debt that the people
of this province are carrying to the tune of 69 per cent since 2003 I
would argue that those are the questions that people at home and people in
our districts throughout our province are asking.
look forward to answering every question the Member opposite has in this
House of Assembly.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of
the Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
thank the minister for agreeing to answer all the questions that we have in
relation to this. It's not about the budget. It's not about the future. She
stood here in her place in the House and indicated to the House of Assembly
they've saved in the vicinity of $100 million when asked what the savings
have been in discretionary spending with travel since December. So in the
no-information release that she put out on behalf of the open and
transparent government, there's a line item here $97,562,800 under
additional spending savings identified.
she's willing to answer all questions in the House which we decide what
questions we ask I'll ask her: Can you itemize the $97 million as outlined
in your very brief report that you tabled in the House?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
I've already said, and I will continue to say, the savings that I presented
in this House last week that valued about $97 million, as I presented to the
House, came from a variety of activities our government has undertaken since
we were sworn in on the 14th of December.
Mr.
Speaker, they include and I would remind the Member opposite things like
reduction in political staff, reduction in salaries for jobs we're not going
to fill currently, the reduction in the use of consultants, the reduction in
discretionary travel. He'll be happy to see all the details of all of those
numbers when he gets to see the budget with the people of the province later
on in this session.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of
the Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
It's
clear we're not going to get those numbers today. She said I can ask all the
questions I want, and I will do that because that's our role, but she's not
going to provide the details, so the people of the province are going to
have to wait. This open and transparent government are not going to provide
that.
want to ask the Minister of Health, Mr. Speaker we all know Eastern Health
has been challenged in sterilization issues for the past number of weeks,
and we know staff have been working hard in Eastern Health to try and
rectify this. Last week the CEO of Eastern Health said the issues have not
gone away and will likely need another plan. Today we're hearing
thankfully hearing reports of surgeries are getting back to normal.
ask the minister if he can confirm what actually caused the staining for
medical instruments, and can you also give the assurance to the people of
the province today and we'd just like to clarify this that the
sterilization issue has been resolved, or is it still ongoing?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Certainly, this is a concern for all of us here on this side of the House,
and I'm sure all Members. It's impacted families around Newfoundland and
Labrador, and especially those who use the services at Eastern Health.
The
sterilization issue, the staining that was caused, is something that is as a
result of many different things that occurred. So right now the staff have
been working diligently to put a resolution in place. We are pleased today
to say the elective surgeries and orthopaedic surgeries later on this week;
they will be occurring again. But to pinpoint one specific issue as it
occurs and what led to this sterilization issue, it's not as easy to say
that. It is a very complicated approach, but we are very happy to be able to
say things are coming back to normal.
This
has happened in other jurisdictions and the staff at Eastern Health has done
a great job in actually responding to this. There has been great
communication with the minister and the staff. So we hope, like all
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians do, that this is behind us. But this is
something that occurs from time to time.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of
the Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
As I
said in my question, I agree the staff at Eastern Health have been working
very, very hard. I'm not sure if the communication has been great because we
know the minister stood in the House here last week and stated that
handwashing is a time-tested technique and has been working.
Almost at the same time, the CEO of Eastern Health was saying that
handwashing was not achieving the desired result. We've also heard that the
expenditure right now is approximately $3.3 million. Mr. Speaker, we're
hearing that the cost is actually much higher than that.
ask the minister if he could provide a detailed breakdown of the amount of
the expenditure that's existed so far, how that estimate has been achieved.
It's probably more detail than the Minister of Finance is prepared to table.
Also, can he provide details around the plan for the future? Are we still
making progress in moving forward?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
As I
said, the sterilization of equipment at Eastern Health, when it comes to
surgeries, is a very complicated process. I would encourage Members opposite
to actually go visit and take a look at the processes it goes through to
make sure that we have patient safety.
The
$3.3 million as we said to Eastern Health in the past, we were not going
to compromise patient safety; therefore, it really wasn't about the $3
million in this particular case. What we want is to get things back to
normal as quickly as possible so there would be no disruptions at all in
patient care at Eastern Health.
The
staff, as I said, have worked very hard. This is not a one, single issue;
this wasn't caused by anything specific. There's been new equipment put in
place. They outsourced sterilization. They've used some at St. Clare's, some
at the Health Sciences Centre, so it is a very complicated process as I say.
There will be a review of what led to this once we get the place back and
running and in normal circumstances.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Ferryland.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, last week in Question Period in a question about equalization the
Premier stated that the previous administration had not started to access
the $34.9 million Small Communities Fund, which is part of the Building
Canada Fund, and we did not sign an agreement. However, a briefing note
supplied by your government notes that there's a list of proposed projects
that were received by Infrastructure Canada from our previous government. We
asked for a copy of the list of the projects. It was redacted with the
release of information.
ask the Minister of Municipal Affairs: Can he explain the contradiction?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
thank the Member for the question. Access to information was a policy put in
place by your government. Who decides is the head of the department, which
is the deputy minister. Because they feel there are negotiations with the
federal and provincial governments, it would not be beneficial to release
the dates.
For
the Member to know why are you still writing me and asking me about the
Bay Bulls access road? You had a copy of the information, so why are you
standing up in this House asking for it? You have spoken to me several times
on it. You wrote me on it. You had a copy of it. If the former government
doesn't feel the process they put in place for access to information are
you admitting fault now, when the minister has nothing to do with it, when
the head of the department states, no, we shouldn't release this
information.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Ferryland.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, back to the comments made by the Premier. He said the previous
administration had access to a $34.9 million Small Communities Fund. In
actual fact, there was a list of projects that were afforded. We were
looking at leveraging about $12 million of the overall fund over a ten-year
period. Infrastructure Canada, in your own briefing notes, acknowledged that
did exist. You said there was no agreement signed.
So I
ask you again: Outside of freedom of information, how do you clarify the
contradiction?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
As the Member would know,
there were two funds. The $34.9 million they could have leveraged from the
federal government was not signed. It was signed, Mr. Speaker, probably
about three weeks or a month ago. This government had $34.9 million that
they did not access, did not even take the time to sign.
Mr.
Speaker, just for the record, he was the minister who wouldn't even sign it.
He is over there now saying about the fund, about the copy of lists that
he's writing me about projects that were supposedly on the list. They didn't
sign the $34.9 million. Now he's trying to say, where is the money? Where is
the fund?
When
we get the projects in place, when there is a commitment made, when there is
an agreement with the federal government, we'll table the list of projects,
Mr. Speaker. We'll table it so people will know. Please know the agreement
is signed by this government.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Ferryland.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, the hon. Member said he'd table a list of projects. So we are
looking forward to a list of projects when he tables them.
will ask the minister as well, the list of projects put forward to
Infrastructure Canada, could you table that list and any changes in the
current list, and what's moved forward to Infrastructure Canada since you've
come to power and what those changes have been?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
Mr. Speaker, I just find
this kind of ironic. Look at the Member for Mount Pearl North who set up
access to information, the rules around it and the process. The process is
that it goes to the head of the department. The head of the department is
the deputy minister. Now he's asking me as minister to step in and say, oh,
we should get involved with access to information. We should get involved
with it all, Mr. Speaker. We should get involved with it. The minute I get
involved, why am I now skirting the access to information that they put in
place, Mr. Speaker?
Now,
I'm glad that the minister finally admitted, which we said for a number of
years, that Bill 29 failed and now the access to information that they put
in place is a complete failure.
ask him one question: Why are you still writing me about projects that are
supposed to be on that list if you don't know what's on the list?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Ferryland.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, the minister says he has a list; all we're asking is to table the
list and any subsequent changes he made since coming to power.
Infrastructure Canada identified that the list exists, which was contrary to
what the Premier indicated.
the briefing note received we also asked for information of the projects
submitted to Infrastructure Canada. Most of those projects were redacted,
blacked out. The reason given is that it would affect federal-provincial
relations.
ask the Minister of Municipal Affairs: How would a list released negatively
impact federal-provincial relations?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Well, three times during Question Period today the Member opposite has used
the words: it's a contradiction to what the Premier said. I just want to
clarify this for the people that are watching and listening and those that
are in the gallery today, there is absolutely no contradiction.
One
of the first meetings that I had with the minister responsible for
infrastructure he said: Why is it that Newfoundland and Labrador is one
province that has not signed a Small Communities Fund? We pulled it out. It
wasn't signed by the previous administration. So we became very proactive on
this, got it down here; we are now going to leverage this fund of $34.9
million.
They
sent up requests for funding without signing the agreement. Mr. Speaker, it
just reminds me so much of the fisheries fund around CETA: had their party
here in St. John's, Newfoundland, without having their federal colleagues on
the line.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Cape St. Francis.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. K. PARSONS:
Mr. Speaker, last
Thursday the Minister of Fisheries stood in this House and said that the
department was continuing to do its due diligence between Quin-Sea and Royal
Greenland sale. Less than 24 hours later, he signed off on it and the sale
was announced.
Mr.
Speaker, fish harvesters are currently buying themselves out of trust
agreements. The federal government put a program in place to buy out trust
agreements to avoid fleet separation problems.
ask the minister: In your due diligence, did you ensure with Minister Tootoo
that there are no trust agreements in place with Quin-Sea that are
transferred to Royal Greenland? If so, will you table that?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'm
very confident that Members opposite were aware of the sale of Quin-Sea and
Royal Greenland before they left office because it was a discussion that has
been ongoing for quite some time. When we came in office and there was a
request for a change of operator licence, it was made publicly known. There
was a process that needed to be adhered to.
was a process that started in December. It went through the Fish Processing
Licensing Board just a few weeks ago. They made their recommendation. This
is a board that was appointed by the previous administration. We weren't
satisfied there, because our preference, of course, would be to support
Newfoundland and Labrador companies. There is no provision in legislation
within Newfoundland and Labrador that prohibits that sale they know that.
what happened, we did our due diligence, our officials went through this, we
took the legal look at it and there was no connection at all to agreements
that would be prohibitive for this sale to go through. That's the reason why
the minister made the recommendation for this to proceed.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Cape St. Francis.
MR. K. PARSONS:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
It's
not the sale we're worried about; it's the processing licences that are
controlled.
Mr.
Speaker, the minister knows there is at least one other company interested
in purchasing Quin-Sea, yet he refused to give them the opportunity to be
heard.
ask the minister: What opportunity did he give other companies to present in
regard to this sale?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The
role of government was to actually review the change of operator licence; it
wasn't to be going out and see who was available to purchase Quin-Sea.
Previous administrations and I can tell you now that we will be promoting
Newfoundland and Labrador, too. We've seen over the years on many occasions
when we see in governments and administrations and, indeed, Newfoundlanders
and Labradorians promote our province as a great place to invest. We do
that.
the Member opposite suggesting when people from the outside want to come in,
invest in Newfoundland and Labrador, we should put restrictions in place and
turn them away?
What
we have made sure of, though, is that there is no connection to the
processing and the harvesting side here. That's the fleet separation we're
concerned about, and that is secure I say to the Member opposite.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
Order, please!
The
Member for the District of Cape St. Francis.
MR. K. PARSONS:
I just want to go
back to my first question. My first question was: Do you have any evidence
to show there are no trust agreements in place?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Evidence to show there are no trust agreements in place? What we've done is
we've done a review of the legal documents on the purchase of sale agreement
that was put in place between Quin-Sea and Royal Greenland, and there was no
evidence at all of any trust agreements and they are in compliance with
legislation and policy around fleet separation.
So I
say to the member opposite, if he is aware of such agreements being in
place, well, the onus is on that Member or any other Member in this Chamber
today to bring that evidence forward, then we will deal with that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Cape St. Francis.
MR. K. PARSONS:
Mr. Speaker, it's the
federal government that regulates trust agreements.
just asked the minister: Have you checked with Minister Tootoo to see if
there are any of these trust agreements in place, and what happens then,
Sir?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Not only would the
federal government be checking there, what they will also be doing is random
audits on those processors to make sure that there are no agreements in
place, like they will for processing in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The
fishery in our province is extremely important to people on this side of the
House. I can tell you right now, we will make sure that we will do our role
and our
part in protecting the harvesting sector and the processing sector
in Newfoundland and Labrador.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
The drop in commodity
prices has had a negative effect all over the world. Mr. Speaker, having
said that, the welfare of vulnerable children cannot come with a price tag.
ask the Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services: Will she stand today
in this House and state unequivocally that she will not allow her government
to reduce programs and services for the Department of Child, Youth and
Family Services?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Minister of Child,
Youth and Family Services.
MS. GAMBIN-WALSH:
Mr. Speaker, the
mandate of the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services is the
protection of children. We will protect children.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Member for the
District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Mr. Speaker, we asked if
there would be any cuts.
ask the Minister of Finance: Will you do the right thing and commit today to
having the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services taken off the
table and made exempt from the sweeping 30 per cent cuts that you have
mandated your departments to make?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, I
appreciate the opportunity to stand again and answer questions for the
Members opposite. The situation that we're dealing with in our province is
unprecedented.
saw a former administration have peak oil in 2007, peak oil price in 2008.
They increased the debt of this province in their Conservative run at
government by 69 per cent.
can assure the Member opposite that our government is going to make
decisions that are in the best interests of the people of the province. I
look forward to showing that in a budget coming up shortly.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Mr. Speaker, during the
fall election we saw the Liberals unveil a trove of promises that they have
now gone back on. They stated in the fall that they would undertake a review
of the Youth Services Program to ensure that it is responsive to the unique
needs of our vulnerable youth.
ask the Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services: Has she instructed her
department to act on that promise made to the people of Newfoundland and
Labrador?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Child, Youth and Family Services.
MS. GAMBIN-WALSH:
I thank the Member
across for her question and, yes, we have. There will be a review completed
by June of 2016 it will be started in June of 2016.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune, for a very quick question.
MS. PERRY:
I ask the minister to
provide the House with a status update, Mr. Speaker, on this review and when
we can expect more details.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Child, Youth and Family Services, for a quick response.
MS. GAMBIN-WALSH:
Mr. Speaker, I just
indicated that the review will start in June of 2016.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
When
asked to detail the $100 million in savings that she claimed her government
had found, the Minister of Finance tabled three numbers on a piece of paper
on Thursday.
She
has had a long weekend, so I ask the Premier: Have they been able yet to
come up with more substantive numbers in detail during that time?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, I thank
the Member opposite for noting the length of my weekend. I can assure you
that our officials in the Department of Finance, those that work in Treasury
Board and myself were working all weekend to make sure that we are ready for
a budget coming in the next couple of weeks.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MS. C. BENNETT:
I can also assure the
Member opposite that our government is working consistently on data and
available information that we have to prepare a budget to correct and
address the serious fiscal situation we have.
are changing the culture of spending in government. We are going to stop the
culture of spend, spend, spend that the other crowd had, which has been in
place for 12 years, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
wish they'd share, share, share the data.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MS. MICHAEL:
Mr. Speaker, the Minister
of Finance has said everything is on the table in dealing with the
province's financial situation, while the Minister of Natural Resources was
quoted as saying the Muskrat Falls Project was too far along for government
to consider shelving.
Given the impact on the province's budget of spending on Muskrat Falls, I
ask the Premier: Will he table the analysis his government used to conclude
that the project is too far along for shelving?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
the Member opposite knows, on December 21 myself and the Minister for
Natural Resources announced a review of the Muskrat Falls Project. It speaks
to the cost
schedule and associated critical risks. That process is
currently ongoing right now. We will expect to have the results of that
report in the upcoming weeks.
will tell you right now that, there's no question about it, the Muskrat
Falls Project does cost this province a lot of money. It takes a lot of the
financial resources from our province right now. So it's important that we
do the analysis of the Muskrat Falls Project. We will make sure that we get
the
schedule secure, get the costs secure, look at all the critical risks
and do the due diligence that's required before we make any final decisions
on what we should do with the project.
will say this. Based on the agreements that are in place, based on the
contracts that are in place with Nova Scotia, with the federal loan
guarantee and so on, I would be more than happy to share this with the
Member opposite: There is a lot of information that would have to be
reviewed before this project could be cancelled.
MR. SPEAKER:
Order, please!
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
St. John's Centre.
MS. ROGERS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Last
week, I asked the Minister of Education to immediately stop the current
school board process regarding possible closure of five schools because he
said of the board, they are Appointed trustees, hand-picked trustees, it
removes accountability. They are accountable to those who appointed them as
opposed to accountable to those people that elected them.
Mr.
Speaker, he did not answer my question. I ask the minister again: Will he
honour his word and stop this process immediately until a board of trustees
is duly elected by the community?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Education and Early Childhood Development.
MR. KIRBY:
Thanks to the Member for
her question again about this. Maybe I wasn't clear last week. The trustees
administration of these schools under their supervision.
January 23 of this year, the board of trustees met. They made a decision to
conduct school reviews that are commonplace, that are done annually, I
understand. That day there was a communication sent to the principals of all
the schools in the five areas that are implicated in this. Later that month
and in early February, there were meetings with school councils.
Communication was sent out to parents. There was opportunity for online
feedback.
understand there will be public meetings next month where parents and
interested community members will have an opportunity to provide additional
feedback. They can provide additional feedback online and so on, Mr.
Speaker. So I hope that answers the question.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
St. John's Centre.
MS. ROGERS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
would like to thank these dedicated, long-serving board of trustees.
ask the minister again: Why would he allow this appointed board to make
these crucial decisions when he so vehemently opposed it himself? How can he
ignore his own words and convictions?
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Education and Early Childhood Development.
MR. KIRBY:
I'm glad the Member asked
that question, Mr. Speaker. When I was asking questions about this for a
couple of years across the way in Opposition, I wrote to the minister of the
day, Minister Jackman, to ask him about the legal opinion he'd indicated
that the department had sought after we spoke about it in Estimates that
year. I was provided with a legal opinion.
After taking the oath and assuming office in the Department of Education and
Early Childhood Development, I was again reminded that it's legal
responsibility of the boards of trustees of the school districts to
administrate and make decisions regarding the allocations that government
provides to them. That's very clearly laid out in the Schools Act.
was aware of that prior to the election and I was made aware of it again
afterwards; they have a legal responsibility to do that job. That's not the
Department of Education's job. That's not my job. That's not our job. That's
the trustees' job.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The time for Question
Period has ended.
Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.
Notices of Motion.
Notices of Motion
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
Mr. Speaker, I give
notice that I will ask leave to introduce a bill entitled,
An Act To Amend
The Vital Statistics Act, 2009, Bill 7.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
Mr. Speaker, I give
notice that I will ask leave to introduce a bill entitled,
An Act To Amend
The Change Of Name Act, 2009, Bill 8.
MR. SPEAKER:
Tabling of Documents.
AN HON. MEMBER:
(Inaudible.)
MR. SPEAKER:
Okay. Sorry, the hon. the
Member for St. George's Humber on notices of motion.
MR. REID:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
give notice that I will move the following private Member's motion, seconded
by the Member for Terra Nova.
WHEREAS other jurisdictions, such as Norway, have been more responsible and
use sovereign wealth funds which create a long-term legacy from
non-renewable resource development; and
WHEREAS the previous government failed to manage resource revenue in a
responsible manner;
IT RESOLVED that this House of Assembly supports the establishment of a
legacy fund in this province which will result in long-term benefits from
non-renewable resources.
Thank you.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Government
House Leader.
MR. A. PARSONS:
Mr. Speaker, pursuant
to Standing Order 63, the private Member's resolution just entered by the
Member for St. George's Humber is the private Member's resolution to be
debated tomorrow.
MR. SPEAKER:
Tabling of Documents.
Tabling of
Documents
MR. SPEAKER:
Pursuant to
section 18(9)
of the House of Assembly
Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act , I am advising the
House that the Members of the House of Assembly Management Commission are as
follows: the Government House Leader, the Opposition House Leader, the hon.
the Minister of Natural Resources and Minister Responsible for the Office of
Public Engagement, the Member for Placentia West Bellevue, the Member for
St. John's East Quidi Vidi, the Member for Topsail Paradise, the Speaker
and the Clerk.
Further, in accordance with
section 19(5)(
a) of the House of Assembly
Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act, I hereby table the minutes
of the House of Assembly Management Commission meetings held on March 31,
May 26 and June 8 of 2015.
Answers to Questions for which Notice has been Given.
Petitions.
Petitions
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
St. John's Centre.
MS. ROGERS:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in
Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents humbly
sheweth:
Junior High School and send students to a distant school; and
WHEREAS the board has arbitrarily and without consultation reduced the Holy
Cross Junior High School catchment area and students will have to be bused
to a far more distant school; and
WHEREAS Holy Cross Junior High School is an important neighbourhood school
with programs, community partnerships and extracurricular activities
designed to meet the particular needs of the intercity students who attend
it; and
longer accountable to the people who elected them;
WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the
House of Assembly to urge government to ensure that Holy Cross Junior High
School remains open and to immediately arrange for a democratically elected
And
as in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.
Mr.
Speaker, we all know how important school boards are. I would like to go on
record to thank the trustees who have been on this particular school board
for an extraordinarily long time in between what should be regulated
elections.
They
have done a good job. It's a hard job they do, and particularly right now
when they are tasked with looking at and exploring the possibility of
closing five schools across the province. That's very difficult work.
Mr.
Speaker, the role of the school board and the trustees is to be responsible
to the people of their community because they are to be elected by the
people of their community. We know it has been a long time since we have had
school board elections. Actually, Mr. Speaker, it's been since 2009. It's
been almost seven years.
This
flies in the face of everything that we hold dear in this province in terms
of democratically elected representatives. Yes, they have the legal mandate;
however, do they have the moral authority?
It's
not about the trustees themselves because these are people who are
dedicated, who are giving of their time and their expertise, and who are
committed to their communities and to the best possible education we can
give to the children of Newfoundland and Labrador. Our precious valuable
resources, our children are.
believe that this government, by tasking this board who have not been
re-elected since 2009 a new election was supposed to be 2013, three years
ago. That hasn't happened. To task them with this responsibility is unfair.
It also is not in the best interests of the communities because we know that
school board trustees are accountable and answerable to the people who elect
them.
Mr.
Speaker, in light of that, I ask the government, I ask the minister to do
what he knows is the right thing, to stop this process and have elections.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Conception Bay South.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. PETTEN:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
present the following petition:
the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in
Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents of
Newfoundland and Labrador humbly sheweth:
WHEREAS policing is vital to the protection and service of our province's
communities;
WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the
House of Assembly to urge government to increase the presence of law
enforcement in the Conception Bay South area.
And
as in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.
Mr.
Speaker, during the previous election and during the last number of years in
Conception Bay South, policing has become a big issue to a lot of the
citizens. Like I said, in the last election I knocked on a lot of doors and
a lot of people have a lot of concerns with the presence of policing in the
community.
met with the town council who have a committee formed to increase policing.
I believe, to my last knowledge, they've increased the policing by one unit.
In saying that, we still don't have a dedicated office for the District of
CBS. A district with a population of 27,000 people, I think it does deserve
that attention.
Whether it be extra policing by one unit, two units, three units, my
argument has been when you have a community so spread out if anyone ever
travels to CBS, it's a large geographical area. The people are asking for
it. I've heard it loud and clear, and I call upon the House to give serious
consideration to doing just that.
Thank you very much.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Cape St. Francis.
MR. K. PARSONS:
Thank you very much,
Mr. Speaker.
the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in
Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents of
Newfoundland and Labrador humbly sheweth:
WHEREAS the federal government promised to provide $280 million for a CETA
Innovation Fund to build our province's fishery into the future;
WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the
House of Assembly to urge the government to be vigilant and vocal in
demanding the federal government live up to their commitment of the $280
million in the Fishery Innovation Fund.
Mr.
Speaker, this is so important. Today, earlier the minister made a
Ministerial Statement where he and the Premier attended the Boston seafood
show, and it is important. We realize in Newfoundland and Labrador I know
in my community there are a lot of fishermen who put a lot back in our
community, and the fishing industry is so important to all of us. This fund
that was promised to us by the way, the prime minister of Canada in his
election promised that this fund would become available and I hope that
you're working hard to make sure the fund does become available because it's
so important.
Mr.
Speaker, we're seeing in the fishery today a cycle, and it's a cycle that
happens in the fishery. The shell fishery, the shrimp, the crab, we're
noticing in the last little while there is a decline in stocks. We're seeing
it as it goes to the fishermen. I spoke to fishermen in my district this
weekend and they tell me that their crab allocations are being decreased.
It's important that we have a fund put in place so we're ready for the
groundfish. I really do believe, as a person who was involved in the ground
fishery all my life, the cod is coming back and we have to be ready.
The
biggest thing with the Innovation Fund is for us to have our plants ready
and our people ready to be able to do it because today I can remember in
my younger years you'd go to a fish plant and you would see so many people
who could fillet fish and take care of cod and prepare the cod, but today I
don't know if they're there.
need to make sure the innovation and the funds are available to make our
plants ready and our fish harvesters ready for this fund. So it's important
that we emphasize how important this is to the federal government and this
is given to the province.
Thank you like promised.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in
Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents of
Newfoundland and Labrador humbly sheweth:
WHEREAS our province's seniors deserve quality care and assistance when
residing in long-term care facilities; and
WHEREAS our province is currently experiencing an escalating shortage of
long-term care beds;
WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the
House of Assembly to urge government to explore all options, including
partnerships, to create new long-term care beds in this province.
Mr.
Speaker, the Liberals have committed to a performance-based infrastructure
and in our platform prior to November we had talked about last year building
P3s, which in my view they are one and the same thing. Whatever model it is
we explore, affordable housing is essential. Long-term care beds for seniors
are absolutely essential.
Mr.
Speaker, as a Member from rural Newfoundland, I often talk to seniors. No
one wants to spend the last few years of their lives in an institution. The
longer we can keep them at home, the better. For rural residents in
particular, the longer we can keep them living in their communities with a
view of the water, which most of us do have in our small, rural remote
communities, is absolutely essential.
me, when I, please God, live to be a senior, I don't want to be living in a
cement building where all I can see are the city streets of St. John's or
Grand Falls or Gander. We need affordable housing, Mr. Speaker, we need
long-term care beds, and we need them to be in communities. So I certainly
encourage government to explore every option possible to make sure rural
Newfoundland and Labrador is provided the infrastructure it needs to look
after its seniors.
Thank you very much.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
the District of Mount Pearl North.
MR. KENT:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in
Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents of
Newfoundland and Labrador humbly sheweth:
WHEREAS an extension is urgently needed at St. Peter's Primary school in
Mount Pearl in order to accommodate full-day kindergarten and the growing
school population;
WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the
House of Assembly to urge government to clarify its position and plan so
that St. Peter's Primary and other schools in Newfoundland and Labrador can
properly accommodate students when full-day kindergarten commences in
September of 2016.
And
as in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.
Mr.
Speaker, for months now, but certainly more so in the last number of weeks,
I've been receiving an increasing number of calls and emails from
constituents in my district who are parents of children about to attend St.
Peter's Primary or who are already attending St. Peter's Primary. I know the
Member for Mount Pearl Southlands has been receiving similar inquiries and
has been advocating on behalf of his constituents as well.
The
parents of students who will be attending St. Peter's in the fall are
looking for a clear plan on how full-day kindergarten will be accommodated
and what the impact will be. So there are several questions that haven't
been answered yet that parents are hoping will be answered in the weeks
ahead.
want to acknowledge that the Minister of Education has agreed to have a
conversation with me about these issues. I hope we'll be able to get some
clarity that we haven't been able to get from the school board in recent
weeks, unfortunately, Mr. Speaker.
need to know: How will modular classrooms be utilized? How many of them will
there be? Are they ordered at this point? What's the impact going to be on
class sizes? There are lots of rumors about that at this point. What's going
to be the impact of team teaching? How many classes will be impacted by team
teaching? What grade levels will be impacted? These are the kinds of things
that parents are asking about; but, unfortunately, to date, we haven't been
able to get those answers.
Parents are also concerned about the proposed extension. Funding was
approved for this extension. Parents are wondering is the extension, in
fact, on track for 2017. The contract has not been awarded. The tender has
not been called. It should have been by now. Parents are now wondering if
there is still a commitment on behalf of school board and government to the
extension that is, in fact, desperately needed.
Parents did ask me to bring this matter to the House of Assembly, which I'm
doing through this petition today. I look forward to further discussions
with both the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development and
Thank you.
Orders of the Day
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Government
House Leader.
MR. A. PARSONS:
Mr. Speaker, I call
from the Order Paper, Motion 1, Bill 2, Interim Supply.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
wish to inform the House that I have received a message from His Honour the
Lieutenant Governor.
MR. SPEAKER:
All rise.
message from His Honour the Lieutenant Governor:
Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, I transmit
a request to appropriate sums required for the Public Service of the
province for the year ending 31 March 2017, by way of Interim Supply, and in
accordance with the provisions of sections 54 and 90 of the
Constitution Act, 1867 , I
recommend this request to the House of Assembly.
Sgd.: ___________________________
Frank F. Fagan
Lieutenant Governor
Please be seated.
The
hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, I move,
seconded by the Minister of Environment and Conservation, that the message,
together with a bill, be referred to the Committee of Supply.
MR. SPEAKER:
The motion is that the
message, together with a bill, be referred to a Committee of Supply and that
I do now leave the Chair.
it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?
All
those in favour, 'aye.'
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Aye.
MR. SPEAKER:
All those against, 'nay.'
Carried.
motion, that the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on
Supply, Mr. Speaker left the Chair.
Committee of the
Whole
CHAIR (Dempster):
Order, please!
are considering the related resolution and Bill 2,
An Act For Granting To
Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The
Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2017 And For Other
Purposes Relating To The Public Service.
Resolution
That it is expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to
Her Majesty for defraying certain expenses of the public service for the
financial year ending March 31, 2017, the sum of $2,791,692,300.
CHAIR:
Shall the resolution
carry?
The
hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Madam Chair, it's the
first time I've had the opportunity to stand in this House and use the term,
Madam, and I'm honoured to do it.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MS. C. BENNETT:
Madam Chair, I rise
in this hon. House today to speak to the Interim Supply bill, Bill 2.
Interim Supply is required to be passed by the House of Assembly to allow
for the financial administration in support of ongoing operations of
government departments during the interim period while budget 2016 is being
introduced, debated and ultimately approved in this Legislature.
When
we bring in the budget we will be seeking approval for funding to spend for
the entire fiscal year, but it will take time to allow for debate and
approval of the budget. During the interim period, it is necessary to
provide funding to government departments so that they can continue to pay
their staff, their suppliers of goods and services. In other words, it is
important that the ongoing work of the core public service continue, which
is the purpose of Interim Supply.
Madam Chair, we are seeking approval in Interim Supply for a sum of
approximately $2.8 billion. This represents approximately 36 per cent of the
2015-16 budgeted current and capital account gross expenditures.
While the 36 per cent is comparable to the 2015-16 Interim Supply, 2016-17
Interim Supply represents a 0.2 per cent increase of the approximate $7.6
million from last year's Interim Supply. This increase primarily relates to
the timing of capital project cash and their cash flows over the interim
period.
The
legislation will need to be passed and receive Royal Assent by March 23,
2016, in order to allow sufficient time to ensure payroll and Income Support
payments, particularly for those that have to be mailed to Labrador and
available and due in early April, 2016.
Interim Supply provides departments and public bodies with the necessary
cash flow dollars to manage expenditures for the period of April 1 to June
30 of 2016, which is the first quarter of the fiscal year. This includes
ongoing housekeeping expenditures, including funding for upcoming pay
periods and ongoing project and funding requirements applicable to the
2016-17 fiscal year.
This
Interim Supply bill makes provisions for the transfer of funds from the
Department of Finance to other departments for expenditures for
compensation, benefits and other associated adjustments. Examples would
include step adjustments relating to Job Evaluation System for General
Service unionized employees.
Transfers from the Consolidated Fund Services accounts to other departments
for special retirement and other payments should they be necessary, such as
severance payments, and transfer of funds to and from various heads of
expenditure to facilitate expenditures for financial assistance that may be
approved from time to time by Treasury Board.
Interim Supply is an important bill that is intended to provide the
continuation of ongoing government programs, services and projects. As I
said, this bill needs to be passed to continue routine and ongoing
operations while budget 2016 is going through the Legislature for debate and
approval.
Going into budget 2016, our province is facing a difficult fiscal situation
that continues to change with the price of oil, the volume of production,
the value of the US dollar and other economic pressures. The average oil
price for 2015-16 is now expected to be $47, which is $15 lower than the
Budget 2015 estimate of $62.
During this fiscal year we have seen Brent crude trade from a high of $66 in
May 2015 to a low of $26 in January 2016. Although there has been a general
upward trend since latter January with Brent reaching approximately $40, we
continue to see volatility and uncertainty, such as the price that was
recorded today, which is around $38.
The
previous administration would have you believe the fiscal problems are
beyond our control due to the decline in oil price. Madam Chair, that is not
the full story.
2013-14, with an assumption of $105 oil, the previous administration was
prepared to run a deficit of $564 million. In 2014-15, again, with an
assumption of $105 oil, the previous government budgeted for a $538 million
deficit. The actual recorded deficit for 2014-15 turned out to be much
higher at $986 million, primarily due to lower-than-anticipated revenues
during the year.
As I
said, in 2015-16 with a budgeted base on $62 oil, the government was
prepared to run a deficit of $1.1 billion. So for three years in a row, when
the oil price was much higher than it is today, the previous government
planned to spend a three-year total of $2.2 billion more than it forecasted
to take in.
Madam Chair, furthermore, the rapid drop in oil prices and production levels
this year will likely add another $695 million to the projected deficit for
2015-2016. But clearly, the fact that the previous government planned to
spend more than it forecasted to take in at a time when oil prices were two
to three times where they were today and peak oil which was achieved in
2007 had long past, speaks to the real challenge.
Given the seriousness and scope of the current and forecasted fiscal
situation, a new approach was required that moved beyond past, single-year,
pre-budget consultation efforts. Our Government Renewal Initiative overlays
that process with public engagement feeding into the roll up of actions in
the short, the medium and the long term. It is our responsibility as a
government to consider all the ideas that are put forward in that process,
including those from the public and within government departments to achieve
cost savings and increase revenue. A meaningful engagement process will help
provide the information that government can use to address our fiscal
realities and lay a strong foundation for the future.
Throughout this initiative, as we move towards reshaping our fiscal future,
we have been working with all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians as well as
business, labour and community groups to tackle this together. Reshaping our
fiscal future will require that we embrace engagement, consider our
investments and look at revenue opportunities as well as how we spend and
borrow; but make no mistake, without action, Newfoundland and Labrador will
face mounting debt, increasing interest and borrowing costs, and further
credit rating downgrade that could restrict our ability to support critical
government programs and services, and we cannot have that. Therefore, this
government will take measures rooted in definitive actions beginning with
budget 2016-17.
But
before we can move toward the stronger tomorrow, it is vital that each and
every Newfoundlander and Labradorian understand where we are right now.
Today we have a deficit of almost $2 billion, and we expect the 2015-16
deficit to be $870 million higher than the $1.1 billion forecast last April
by the previous government. This is unprecedented and corrective action must
be taken. Simply put, right now we don't have enough money coming into the
province's Treasury to pay for everything we currently fund. That means the
next step is borrowing. Our current reality is that if nothing changes this
government will have to borrow at least a billion dollars for each of the
next five years just for operations, which includes debt servicing expenses
and interest on what was borrowed.
government announced in our '15-'16 fiscal economic update in December, the
total required borrowing including borrowing for interest and debt repayment
will be $15.4 billion to '20-'21. Budget '16 will provide an update for the
'15-'16 results, and the $1.1 billion deficit budgeted should be noticed
that it's the highest ever budgeted by any administration and it is
unprecedented. The previous administration did not plan for this eventuality
and they did not put money aside to address this type of issue.
Our
net debt has increased by over $900 million this year compared to what was
budgeted by the previous administration. In our current situation, if we do
nothing it would be, as we've talked about, like maxing out your credit card
$5,000 every minute of every day for the next six years. We cannot have
that; things must change.
The
current fiscal reality, if left unchecked will worsen. Newfoundland and
Labrador is at a critical juncture and it is important that we all work
together to address our fiscal challenges.
Our
government continues to be encouraged by the level of quality of engagement
thus far with the Government Renewal Initiative. Far surpassing previous
budget engagement activities, over 1,000 people have attended engagement
sessions. In addition to the public sessions, we are encouraging
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to continue to share their ideas and
suggestions through our online Dialogue App, which has almost 1,800 unique
ideas being received. That kind of response illustrates to me that
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians understand the gravity of the situation
that we find ourselves in right now and are fully engaged in helping find
meaningful solutions.
Madam Chair, as I conclude my remarks I have to say it's exciting to say
that, Madam Chair. As I conclude my remarks, I would like to say it has been
an honour to have the opportunity to speak on this important piece of
legislation. I look forward to hearing from my colleagues who will also
speak to this Interim Supply bill.
Thank you, Madam Chair.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
CHAIR:
The hon. the Member for
Cape St. Francis.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. K. PARSONS:
Thank you, Madam
Chair.
It's
really nice to say it also on this side of the House. Madam Chair, we're
debating Interim Supply right now. As most people know in the House, Interim
Supply is an opportunity for us to be able to make sure there are finances
in place so that government can continue. That's basically what we're doing
here today.
It's
important that we pass this bill and I'm sure it will be passed. The things
that it does are to make sure that our payroll is in place so our public
servants are assured their pay will be there from the 1st of April to the
end of June. It's a lot of money and it needs to be allocated so that
government can continue to do its work.
think the minister gave a great example of what Interim Supply is all about,
so I'm not going to go on to say what she said about Interim Supply and the
need for it. Today, it gives me my first opportunity here in the House to
get up and basically talk about well, we can talk about anything when we
want to get up because it's a money bill.
It's
my first opportunity to get up. I look across the House at so many new
faces. I just want to say to everyone and to my colleague here next to me
for CBS, congratulations on winning your election. I'm sure the people in
the province and your districts have put great confidence in you.
always can remember my first time coming into the House of Assembly when I
was a young boy. I watched my father down over the rail and could see him
there. I thought about how proud I am. I'm sure that most of you guys and
girls that are here today, your families are very proud of what you're
doing.
have a big responsibility. It's a responsibility, I'm sure, that both sides
of the House we all feel it's something we have to do. I do believe
everybody is here for the best reasons. The reason we're here is to make
sure our constituencies are taken care of, our communities are taken care
of, but most of all, the people in those communities have a voice and we're
the voice for them. It's important.
have to start off by saying in the election I was so fortunate to have so
many people come forward and volunteer as I'm sure all you did. At this
time I'd really like to say a big thank you to the people who did come out
and help me.
new MHAs, you'll find in the House of Assembly the little things you do for
people are the big things. It may be helping somebody get a roof shingled,
it may be helping somebody with a medical appointment, it may be helping
somebody by just hearing their concerns. It's so important we do that.
That's what we are as MHAs.
heard that time and time again at the door. People said to me, Kevin, b'y,
listen, I called you and you called me back. That's what we are. We're here
for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. To everybody, I just hope you
realize who put us here and who can take us out of here. It is very, very
important.
I'm
looking forward to most of you guys and girls getting up here and doing your
maiden speeches. If you're nervous or anything none of you will be as
nervous as I was on my first one, okay, because I was so nervous on the
first one I never slept the night before or anything at all. Now today I'm
getting up here with hardly any notes in front of me at all. It will all
come.
I'm
sure there are ministers along the front row with vast experience who will
tell you, listen, you'll be okay; you'll get it done after a while. You have
lots of experience there on your front row, so listen to them. I was told
the same thing, that you'll be okay, too.
I'm
looking forward to these maiden speeches. It's an opportunity for us to see
who you are and it's an opportunity to be able to thank people, and it's an
opportunity for your constituents to see what you're going to focus on over
the next four years. It's important we do it, and I really do look forward.
want to congratulate the Premier, and I want to congratulate the ministers
in his Cabinet. You guys and girls got a big job to do. As the Minister of
Finance just spoke that time, the economic turmoil the province is in, not
only our province, when you look at provinces like I could be wrong, but
I'm sure I read somewhere this morning Alberta's deficit this year is going
to be an extra $10.4 billion, Saskatchewan are finding a long of
difficulties. It is a difficult time. It is a difficult time for this
province.
know as an MHA I have a responsibility to do as the Opposition, I have a
responsibility to question ministers and hopefully get the proper answers. I
also have a responsibility to the people in my district, to make sure the
best possible job is done for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. I
will support; when ministers do great things and get up and make good
announcements and we work together, I think it's great for everybody in
Newfoundland and Labrador, and that's what we should be all about.
Mr.
Speaker, as Opposition we have a job to do. I want to ensure the
constituents of Cape St. Francis and Madam Speaker, I made a mistake. The
first time up, I always said the beautiful District of Cape St. Francis when
I first started. So it is a beautiful district. I really want to assure the
people in my district that no matter in Opposition or in government I will
be there to listen to what they have to say and listen to their concerns. I
will bring their concerns to the House of Assembly. It's important.
Over
the last eight years I've had the opportunity to, again, stand in the House
and represent government and do my things in my district. Today, I take
pride that in my district we have a lot of co-operation. I attend a regular
meeting where all the mayors we call it a mayors' meeting. Actually the
Portugal Cove-St. Philip's mayor comes along also and the MHA for Conception
Bay East Bell Island comes along. It's a joint thing.
know that in a lot of parts of the province people are doing it today,
municipalities are working together. So it's important that we show them our
leadership and make sure they do this because it's a way we can save money.
When we do things together, whether it's through municipalities, it could be
through dog collection, it could be through animal control, it could be
through garbage collections, whatever. Working together, it's important that
we do those things.
We'll hear from the other side when they get up. They'll say you squandered
money and you did this, you had a lot of money; but I'm very proud of the
investments that were made in my district over the last eight years.
Actually, I'm very proud of the investments made over a number of years
because the late Jack Byrne before me was a great member and he did a great
job. There were a lot of good investments in my district. Also before Jack,
it was my father. So I'm not going to say anything bad about him, I'll tell
you that right now. He did a good job, too.
Over
the last number of years, my district since the boundaries got changed
is basic communities. It's Logy Bay-Middle Cover-Outer Cove, Torbay,
Flatrock, Pouch Cove and Bauline. Some of the investments that were made
over the last number of years are important to this district. Our area has
grown 20 per cent in the last number of years, which is a lot of growth. On
the Northeast Avalon we saw that growth. We saw it in CBS. We saw it in
Mount Pearl, but down our way there was huge growth. The Town of Flatrock, I
think, grew by almost 30 per cent. That's good for municipalities because it
gives them some money. The only bit of money they have coming in is
residential taxes. So it's great for municipalities because it gives them a
chance to do things.
The
big thing we have to be able to do and to make sure and it's huge I was
the Mayor of Flatrock back in 2005 and the cost ratios were like 50-50. We
changed them to 90-10 and 70-30 in cases of Torbay. This is so important to
communities in rural Newfoundland, too, because it gave them a chance to
invest in fire trucks. It gave them a chance to invest in water and sewer.
It gave them a chance to invest in the roads. That's what we have to
continue to do.
understand the government has fiscal responsibilities, no doubt about it,
and I know you are looking at all departments and seeing where it is to and
whatever, but the investments that were made over the years and not only
in PC districts, in Liberal districts all over this province, there were
great investments.
look at 14 new schools getting built in the province; it is huge. In my own
district I look at Holy Trinity Elementary. I can remember going up to Holy
Trinity Elementary. It was an old school. Every time you walked the floor
you could hear it squeak. The corridors were narrow and everything else. But
now I go down to Holy Trinity Elementary, what a beautiful school and what a
great opportunity for our children to be able to go to a school. With the
top everything, from the whiteboards to technologies like we've seen before.
Technology I know nothing about. You look at everybody today and they are so
technical, especially the younger people. But we give them the opportunity
and we still have to do that.
There is a new school getting built in my district right now. It is on the
way and I know that there are some delays there. I am still hoping that the
contractor, the Department of Education, and the Department of
Transportation will be able to do their due diligence and we get that school
open on time. But I also have been speaking to the school board. They have
contingency plans in place in case it's a little bit delayed. Hopefully it
will open this year and we're really looking forward to it. That's another
great investment that government has made because it's an investment in our
children.
Again, in my district, like I explained a little while ago, it grew so fast
that the infrastructure needs in education was just unbelievable. We started
off in Cape St. Francis in Pouch Cove where there were 125 or 126 children.
Today, there are 309 in the school. So it's huge. The music room is getting
used now by children doing different things. So the new school, what it is
going to do, it will go K-4 and it will take the fives and sixes out of that
school; it is an important investment.
was just looking at different investments all over my district. I look at
the Town of Bauline, the smallest community in my district, but one of the
fastest growing ones a beautiful town, an absolutely beautiful town. They
had an old school that was there and that's what they used for their centre
for any activities for anything at all, their council chambers, everything.
It got condemned because there was mould in the building and they had to
shut the building down. Actually, they knocked it down completely. They
rented an apartment and that's where they had their town council meetings
every week and that's where they went and did things for the town.
they had to have a public meeting they went down and used the United Church,
sat in the church, and did their meetings. But today, we were down just
before the election and we opened a brand new town hall. What it's done for
the community is unbelievable. It's brought the community together. It's
unbelievable.
Right now, they're starting a seniors' group. They have I think it's
either yoga or the newest fad or whatever it is with the yoga. I'm not sure
even what it's called, but they have that there. The building is getting
used.
Even right now they're looking at people coming because it's such a
beautiful spot and it's a little bit outside St. John's. They're marketing
and they're getting people, different companies from St. John's, to come
down and do little retreats there for a couple of days. It's huge.
What
it's done, the investment that was made and it was a huge investment.
There are 400 people now I'd say about 500 now, the place is after
growing. The investment that we made as a government to a new town hall,
what a difference it's made for the community, and that's what we're here
for. Those are the reasons we work and do what we can for our constituents.
That's one of the great things that I really feel proud of, the investments
that we've made.
Right now, my district has a lot of issues. The biggest issue in my district
probably is the water supply in Pouch Cove. Right now, government, over two
years ago, did a pilot project where they had three different companies come
in. The Department of Environment were the ones that came up. They said you
have to give us three solutions and then come back with us. They've been
very helpful to the Town of Pouch Cove. I have to say the people at the
Department of Environment have been excellent. They've been there all the
way with the town council.
Right now they've had three different pilot projects go in where they show
the different filtering of the water system. The problem is their water
supply is a shallow pond and it picks up all the sediments off the side. The
colour of the water gets changed every now and then. It's a huge problem.
The water needs to be filtered.
Like
I said, there are three different companies after coming down. Each one does
a presentation. They're there for two weeks. The council comes up and has a
look. They found solutions to this, but we're going to need to get some
funding to get this done. We have to look to the federal government also to
make sure that they play their
part in helping with all this funding that we
do need in our towns.
Over
the last number of years over the last eight years since I've been here in
the House of Assembly I'm proud of the investments we've made in my
district. I can look at some really big ones. I can look at the Jack Byrne
Arena, which right now is one of the nicest arenas. There are some beautiful
arenas around.
For
anyone listening, tonight is the final game of the Avalon East
championships. We're tied with St. John's 3-3. So anybody who wants to come
down, I'll be there at 7:30. I'll see you down there. Come on down. If we
have to play the Cataracts, that could be scary, but listen, we'll go there.
Anyway, it's a great place. We started off, actually, with minor hockey in
the area. Just to give you an example of what an arena does to your
population, our minor hockey system in 2005 had 167 children involved in it.
Today, we have over 800 children involved in minor hockey because there was
an arena put in the area. It's a huge investment, I know, but it's a good
investment. I'm sure everyone will agree with me in the House any time we
can have our children more active and doing sports and whatnot, it's a
healthier child. That's what we all have to be promoting here. These are
great investments, again, like I said, in my district.
Madam Chair, I see my time is up. I know I'm going to get lots of
opportunities, so there'll be a few stories I'll be able to tell you down
the road about other things in my district that I'll gladly pass on to you.
Thank you very much.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
CHAIR:
Order, please!
The
hon. the Member for Mount Pearl Southlands.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. LANE:
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Let
me say, first of all, what a pleasure it is to speak in the House of
Assembly. Of course, this will be my first opportunity since the new session
and since the election, so I do also just want to take the opportunity to
welcome all hon. Members and congratulate them on their success in the last
provincial election.
has been said, I'm sure regardless of what party we represent, what stripe
we represent, the bottom line is that it was the people's will that we're
here. We have a mandate from the people of our districts, and I'm sure that
everybody is here to do what's best for the people of Newfoundland and
Labrador.
Madam Chair, I had planned actually on starting off I wanted to talk a
little about the budget, but there is an issue that has sort of arisen this
afternoon. So I do want to at least make note of that first. Madam Chair, I
refer to the petition which was presented by the Member for Mount Pearl
North on St. Peter's Primary.
just want to say that there have been issues at St. Peter's Primary, as we
know, for quite a number of years in terms of space. I can remember sitting
on the other side of the House of Assembly and presenting petitions at that
time about spatial issues, about the fact that there were kids doing gym
class in the cafeteria and so on. Unfortunately, that's an issue that's been
ongoing for quite some time.
I'm
very pleased to see that there are going to be some modulars added now,
which was actually something which I had advocated for at the time. As
opposed to changing the grade configurations, I had advocated that we should
be looking at some modular spaces so that we could keep what was then St.
Peter's Elementary intact, but the minister of the day, of course, saw fit
not to go down that road.
With
that being said, my colleague, the Member for Mount Pearl North, does make
some valid points. We do have some issues at St. Peter's Primary. Certainly,
as he indicated, I also have been contacted by parents of kids who go to
that school, but also parents of children who will be going to that school
next year in terms of full-day kindergarten. Of course, St. Peter's Primary
would have children from both Mount Pearl North and Mount Pearl Southlands
who will be attending. As a matter of fact, there will probably be more from
Mount Pearl Southlands than there will actually be from Mount Pearl North
a lot more.
just wanted to say that I am glad that the Member is raising this issue.
It's certainly an issue which I've had discussions now with parents some
parents. I've had discussion with the administration of the school. I've had
numerous conversations with the school board, and I've had conversations
with the minister. I'm very pleased the minister is taking this issue very
seriously and he has his officials looking into the matter. We're actually
planning on going to visit the school so we can see first-hand exactly what
the issues are.
When
it comes to issues around education or health care, whatever the case might
be, I would say, Madam Chair, we have to put our political differences
aside. While we may be on one side of the House or the other and I'm sure
the Member for Mount Pearl North will be taking jabs on this side and we'll
be taking jabs back on the other side about what they did or they didn't do
and so on. I just want to say for the record that when it comes to all
issues surrounding the City of Mount Pearl, the schools we have in Mount
Pearl, health care issues for the citizens of Mount Pearl, roads and
infrastructure for Mount Pearl, whether it comes to recreation for Mount
Pearl, funding for seniors in Mount Pearl, then I don't view the Member for
Mount Pearl North as my adversary in that regard. He's my ally and we will
work together for the people of Mount Pearl.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. LANE:
I would certainly
encourage all Members to take that same approach with your neighbouring
districts when it comes to issues around your districts, because it's the
people who put you there to work for you and we have to put petty
partisanship aside when it comes to important issues.
Madam Chair, I did want to make that point, and I think it's an important
one. I also want to make the point that in terms of my district it's
changed, like a lot of districts did change. My district was once called
Mount Pearl South, but since the boundary change, it's now Mount Pearl
Southlands. So I'm going to say about 25 per cent of my district is now made
up of Southlands, South Brook, Ruby Line area, which is in the City of St.
John's.
certainly just want to reiterate my commitment to the people of that area,
that while I may have been a strong proponent for the City of Mount Pearl
and I still am and always will be that part of the district will get the
same attention as Mount Pearl gets, and I will continue to advocate for them
on the issues they have in Southlands.
Certainly, when we look at Southlands there's going to be a lot of common
issues anyway because the kids are all going to school in the City of Mount
Pearl primarily. They're going to be availing of services in Mount Pearl,
recreation, sports teams, all of that stuff, so a lot of it is common
anyway. When you sort of address one issue, you're addressing for all. But
when it comes to specific issues around Southlands and so on, my commitment
is to work for the people in that district, to work with the St. John's City
Council who I have a good relationship with a number of their council
members to ensure that their issues are dealt with and addressed in the same
manner.
Madam Chair, I'm not sure how much time I am going to have to get through
this because, of course, in Interim Supply debate, with the exception of the
first two speakers, we have 10 minutes. Ten minutes is not a lot of time to
get into many issues, unfortunately. But I do just want to say in terms of
the budget and if I get another opportunity to speak on Interim Supply or
whether we get into the actual budget itself I will be, obviously, wanting
to reiterate some of the points which I've made in the last couple of years,
in the last couple of budgets, when I was sitting on that side of the House.
reference back to the 2013-2014 budget. I can remember speaking at that
particular budget. Minister Johnson was the minister of Finance at the time.
I can remember talking about the billion-dollar shopping spree, was the
terminology that I had used at the time: the billion-dollar shopping spree.
That was back two budgets ago, long before the price of oil hit rock bottom
where it's hit now.
Even
at that time, we were running huge deficits and we were continuing to spend.
Not only were we continuing to spend, we were actually increasing spending.
There were pavement and fire trucks going out the door like nothing else.
All of those budgets were increased. I guess one could argue it's because we
were leading up to a provincial election, or at least what would have felt
to have been a provincial election coming up, had we not seen the whole
leadership issue with the governing party, all the constant delays to try to
drag out the election as long as we possibly could. But even at that time,
we were increasing all of this spending and at the same time we were
borrowing
course, in the last budget we saw another situation where we were projecting
huge deficits and we were borrowing billions of dollars again. Even though
it was pointed out by us in the Opposition at the time, everything still
went through and we continued down the road. Now that the price of oil has
really plummeted, we find ourselves in a much worse situation than anybody
had anticipated.
think it's fair to say that nobody on either side of the House would have
anticipated oil prices going where they've gone. No one would have seen them
going that low. It's important to remind people that even when oil prices
were high, we were still projecting huge deficits and we were still
borrowing huge amounts of money. So when we hear the now Opposition say it's
all about the oil, we couldn't control oil, they're absolutely right, but it
wasn't all about the oil prices. It was about unsustainable spending even
before oil prices dropped.
That
will be some of the points, some of the issues I know I'll be raising, I
know some of our colleagues will be raising, is about how we got here. More
importantly, as we get into the budget and so on, it's important that we not
just focus on how we got here but we focus on what we're going to do now
that we're here. There's no doubt, there's going to be some tough decisions
that are going to have to be made. It's going to be coming forward in the
budget. I'm sure there's going to be lots of spirited debate, no doubt, but
at the end of the day I think we all realize where we are and we all realize
we're going to have to take some drastic action. So I look forward to
participating in that debate when it happens.
CHAIR:
Order, please!
MR. LANE:
Thank you, Madam Chair.
CHAIR:
I remind the Member his
time has expired.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
CHAIR:
The hon. the Member for
Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Thank you, Madam Chair.
I'm
going to add my voice to those here today who are quite pleased that we do
have a Madam Chair in the House today and certainly delighted to be working
with you in this capacity.
This
is my first opportunity to rise to my feet in debate since the House has
reconvened for this session. I would like to start out today by thanking my
constituents profusely for their overwhelming support in the recent election
and assure them I will continue to work with the same vigour and the same
relentlessness I have always shown as their Member. I will advocate strongly
on behalf of not only the constituents of my district, but on behalf of the
residents of Newfoundland and Labrador as a whole. I, for one, do believe
I'm going to thoroughly enjoy the role in Opposition. It certainly adds a
new perspective to government and how government functions. I really look
forward to the role and to representing the people of this fine province.
I'm
going to speak very briefly here today. We only have 10 minutes, as we said,
in committee, but I want to talk about revenue sources as has been talked
about in this House of Assembly since we reconvened. As many people in this
province know, and some will say probably the deciding factor as to what
happened with the election, was in our budget last year we did recognize
that revenue sources had to be increased. That was why Budget 2015
introduced the return of 15 per cent HST.
Madam Chair, the party opposite and I certainly wish them well. As a
resident of this province, I want nothing more than for Newfoundland and
Labrador to be as strong as it possibly can be and for people to feel like
they can continue living here and continue building this great province,
making this their home for their families and the place they want to raise
children.
There was a campaign against us to squash the HST. Many people didn't want
to see a rise in HST. I think what we are going to clearly hear from the
people of Newfoundland and Labrador in the coming months, they do not want
to see an increase in taxes. Any expert in the financial field, and
certainly Wall Street will tell you as well, if you're going to increase
taxes the one that will have the least impact on people and the least impact
on the economy is HST.
I'm
really hoping we're not in a situation here today in the province where we
were lead to believe a new government would not increase taxes but they
subtly probably had intentions of looking at corporate income tax and
personal income tax. We certainly know today that everything is on the
table, Madam Chair, and I, on behalf of the people of Newfoundland and
Labrador, stand here in this House today and advocate that if there must be
a tax increase we should look at the one with the least implications, which
is HST. I am certain no one in this province wants to see an increase in
corporate income tax, no one in this province wants to see an increase in
personal income tax. We as a party would never have done that, Madam Chair.
When
I think sometimes about politics and I've been very political ever since I
was a young child. I remember when the Charter of Rights and Freedoms was
first developed. I was in high school. I sent away and I got a copy. It's
framed and in my office now. I always had a passion for policy and a
concern, in recent years, that perhaps we don't pay as much attention to
policy as we should. The rhetoric, the drama and the theatre outweighs the
amount of time and attention we pay on policy, which is very disturbing to
me, Madam Chair.
I've
read a lot of books about what the Left is all about and what the Right is
all about. I have predominantly been a Conservative most of my life. I have
voted always. Sometimes I do believe it's the people and not the party, and
sometimes the party may be more in line with my Conservative views, even
though it's a Left-leaning party.
When
it comes to running deficits, in really layman terms, that's generally a
Left-leaning policy, and when it comes to tightening the belt that's
generally a Conservative-leaning or Right-leaning policy. It seems to be all
upside down these days in the province.
will admit that as a government we have delivered some budgets that were
leaning Left in terms of running deficits, but the philosophy that I think
we've seen coming from this government in the last few months is, in my
mind, extreme far Right. Preston Manning must be thoroughly overjoyed with
the direction he sees this government going. To me, it doesn't really feel
like a Left at all because when all cuts are on the table to the tune of 30
per cent, I, as a Right-leaning Conservative, cannot even support that.
will take my seat now, Madam Chair, and implore to the government in your
budget deliberations, please do not raise corporate or personal income tax.
The people of this province have already endured enough cuts.
Thank you so much.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
CHAIR:
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MS. COADY:
Thank you, Madam Chair.
May
I remark, as well as my hon. colleagues, how delighted we are to have you in
the Chair and to recognize you as such.
Madam Chair, I also note today is the 15th of March, known otherwise as the
ides of March. It marks the death of Caesar. My hon. colleagues would know
that when Caesar was dying his last words were: Et tu, Brute?
When
I reflect on the financial situation of this province it certainly is an Et
tu, Brute? because it speaks to a betrayal by a number of people and by
persons. It is certainly concerning, I'm sure, to the people of this
province. That is a strict definition of what Caesar said.
was also reminded on this date of Nero, who was an hon. senator at the time,
who said something along the lines of: He watched while Rome burned.
When
we're speaking about the financial situation in this province, I think we're
all concerned about the financial situation and perhaps that we didn't put
the attention that we needed to, to the financial situation of the province,
when we really had the opportunity with so much in oil revenues and so much
in the commodities market coming into the province. So when you look at
this, it certainly is of importance, I think, to the people of this
province.
It's
my first opportunity to rise and thank the great people of St. John's West
who elected me to represent them. I note, it is an honourable and
long-standing district in our great province, represented by people like
Joseph R. Smallwood, people like John Crosbie who have had the opportunity
to stand in this House before me. If I could be one-tenth the orator and
one-tenth the parliamentarian of both those gentlemen, I will be able to do
the work that the people of this province needs. So I thank the people of
St. John's West.
stand today to talk about the Interim Supply bill, which I think is very
important for people to remember that it is an important part of our
parliamentarian democracy that the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
cannot spend money until such monies are approved and appropriated by the
elected Members of this House. I think it's a very important premise of our
democracy that we all must debate and discuss and decide before money can be
spent by this province.
you know, within days of becoming government we presented the mid-year
economic forecast. It was distressing to learn of the serious and difficult
financial situation the province is facing: almost $2 billion in deficit
this year and growing. We have mounting debt. We have increased borrowing
costs and interest. We have restricted ability to really support the
essential programming that is required by the people of this province.
You
will hear a number of people stand up in the next number of days talking
about their districts and the requirements in their districts and the
requirements of the people of this province. It's difficult when you're
faced with a problem that we don't have enough money to ensure that the
programs and services that the people of this province want can be
delivered.
you look at our total debt in 2003-2004, it was $6.79 billion. In 2015-16,
it rose to $12.36 billion, an increase of $5.57 billion or 82 per cent
difficult, Madam Chair, very, very difficult. If left unchecked, our net
debt is projected to grow to $23 billion by '20-'21, and understanding debt
carried by an organization like the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
is key to gaining insight into its financial health.
The
current financial situation is against a backdrop of reaping in upwards to
$20 billion, plus then, in addition to that, the Atlantic Accord monies in
offshore oil revenues in the past decade. As my hon. colleague earlier spoke
about, when oil prices were over $100 per barrel, we were still having a
very significant deficit very concerning.
The
unprecedented magnitude of the fiscal deficits and the mounting debt facing
the province has led the new Liberal government to begin a Government
Renewal Initiative and a meaningful public engagement process that will help
provide information that government can use to address our fiscal realities
in laying a strong foundation for the future.
don't have enough money coming to the province's Treasury to pay for
everything we currently fund. What's our next step? Well, the next step
would be borrowing. That's an easy concept for most of us to really
understand. It's in our own households. If you're not bringing in enough
money to cover our expenses, we have to borrow. And that is what this
province is faced with.
Our
current reality is if nothing changes, government will have to borrow at
least $1 billion for the next five years just for operations alone. That
includes debt servicing expenses and interest on what is borrowed. A total
required borrowing, including borrowing for interest and debt payments,
would be $15.4 billion to '20-'21.
will continue to worsen if we don't address the situation. It will be like
borrowing $7 billion a day every day for six years. It's like putting $5,000
on your credit card every minute of every day. It's clear; we have to
modernize government and improve service delivery.
Since forming government we have sought people's thoughts, ideas and
direction on how we can reduce expenditures, eliminate waste, generate
revenue and modernize government. We are in unchartered financial waters and
it is indeed all hands on deck. We're being asked to balance our wants
against our needs.
Clearly, to serve Newfoundlanders and Labradorians well and fully understand
the things they want for themselves, their families and their future, we
have an obligation to seek their advice. In that regard, thousands of
Newfoundlander and Labradorian residents have been sharing their thoughts,
ideas and their solutions as part of the Government Renewal Initiative. Over
1,000 people have attended public sessions so far. We've had 16 different
public engagement sessions, a number of public servant sessions where we've
asked the public servants to come in and give us their ideas on how we can
improve, modernize and ensure we have the services that people need in this
province.
We've had multitudes of engagement with different types of stakeholders.
Madam Chair, we've asked them to come in and give ideas and suggestions on
how we can improve things. We've had overwhelming interest in our Dialogue
App as another way for people to reach out and talk to us and make sure that
they have an opportunity to contribute to the ideas and suggestions on how
to improve not just our financial situation, but how to improve services,
how to modernize what we're doing, how to ensure that they have the services
that they need and how to ensure that we're doing it in the best way
possible.
We've received over 1,800 unique ideas and suggestions on the Dialogue App,
which is a wonderful opportunity for people to be able to liaise and to
contribute their concepts and ideas.
It's
important to note that decisive actions informed by these ideas are being
gathered in the Government Renewal Initiative. Some will be implemented in
budget 2016 this spring, followed by some others that will have medium-term
actions that require a bit more due diligence, more research, before we can
implement and then there will be some longer term actions that will take to
the next budget.
the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board has said, this is a
multi-year plan to ensure that we reach the kind of fiscal security that we
all desire in this province. We didn't get in this situation in the short
period of time, so it's going to take us a little bit of time to ensure that
we can make sure we have a plan going forward that really works for
everyone.
conversations with Newfoundlanders and Labradorians continue, we're going to
release the results of our dialogue, release the results of these
conversations. They are going to inform budget 2016 and onwards to 2017 and
beyond. It's important for everyone to understand the seriousness and
complexity of the situation we are facing as a government, as a people and
as a province. We're going to continue to examine ways government can be
more responsive, more modern, more effective, more efficient and I have
tremendous confidence in the resourcefulness of our citizens to provide
innovative solutions.
know on this side of the House we have a team that is dedicated to ensuring
that we have the ideas and suggestions that we need to move forward to
ensure that we have the fiscal certainty and security in this province.
thank you for the opportunity to speak to Interim Supply. I look forward to
the budget in the spring.
Thank you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
CHAIR:
The hon. the Member for
St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much,
Madam Chair.
I am
pleased to stand this afternoon and sort of have the first kick at the can
when it comes to speaking about the financial situation in which we are. The
Interim Supply, as maybe some of our watchers and listeners may not
understand, is simply approving expenditures after March 31 when the fiscal
year ends.
The
budget for a government goes from April 1 of one year to March 31 of the
other and if we don't approve the Interim Supply, then after March 31,
because there will be no budget in place, the government will not be able to
spend money, and we can't have that, obviously. A normal procedure is until
a budget for a new year is approved, that government will approve an Interim
Supply. In other words, approval for spending that happens before the budget
is approved.
I'm
pleased to be able to speak to some of the fiscal issues that are facing us
and some of the concerns I have and our caucus has in the situation we're
in. I've been aware of some of the language government has been using. It
was already used just now by my colleague for St. John's West: We have to
balance our wants against our needs. I find that a very interesting phrase,
Madam Chair, especially in light of the situation of our province right now
with