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June 2,

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLVII No. 36

The House met at 1:30 p.m.

MR.

SPEAKER (Wiseman):

Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Statements by Members

MR.

SPEAKER:

Today we are going to have members' statements from the Member for the District

of Virginia Waters; the Member for the District of St. Barbe; the Member for the

District of Conception Bay East Bell Island; the Member for the District of

Port au Port; the Member for the District of Bonavista South; and the Member for

the District of Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.

The hon. the Member for the District of Virginia

Waters.

C. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this hon. House today to recognize MacMorran

Community Centre, celebrating thirty years of providing outreach to the

surrounding community.

This centre, in its early days known as the Brophy

Place Community Centre, was nurtured by many community builders, such as St.

Pius X Church and Brother Jim McShe f frey.

As a resident of Brophy Place, Brother McShef f rey discovered a small

community within St. John's in which residents were mobilized by his genuine

care and passion for them.

The most recent building was constructed as a result of

partnership between municipal, provincial, and federal governments at the time,

more than thirteen years ago. While

the building replaced the original blue house, it is the volunteers, staff,

board, and families who are the true reflection of the passion for community and

home that MacMorran Community Centre has become known for over the decades.

The centre prides itself on five promises for youth:

caring adults, safe places, effective education, a healthy start, and

opportunities to help.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members to join me in

congratulating the dedicated staff and volunteers of the MacMorran Community

Centre on thirty years, and best wishes for many more.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Conception Bay East Bell Island.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

BRAZIL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I stand to recognize a group of young men

and women in my district who this week will be presented with the First Place

Award in the student class category for the 2014 World Oceans Day Art Contest.

Mrs. Brazil's Grade 3 class no relation of St.

Augustine's Elementary School on Bell Island were selected from the 126 classes

who submitted entries. Along with

the class award, Grade 3 student Eva Cobb received an honourable mention for her

art work out of the 217 entries received for Grade 3 students.

World Oceans Day is a perfect opportunity for the

people of Newfoundland and Labrador to reflect on what the ocean really means to

this Province.

There was a great response from students from

Kindergarten to Grade 6 to the annual World Oceans Day Art Contest.

This year, students were asked to draw a picture that best illustrates

the 2014 theme: What do you love about the ocean?

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate Mrs. Brazil's Grade

3 class students, consisting of: Riley Bickford, Spencer Cimbron, Eva Cobb,

Olivia Durdle, Emma Hawco, Jennae Hussey, Tyler Kent, Kianna McGrath, Brady

McLean, Chenille Mitchell, Megan Parsons, Ashton Power, Malachi Sheppard, Cole

Whalen, Ryan Whelan, and Hope Young.

Please join me in congratulating St. Augustine's Grade

3 class on their award.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for the District of Port au Port.

MR.

C ORNECT :

rise today in this hon. House to recognize and congratulate all of the Level III

students in the District of Port au Port.

Mr. Speaker, during the past three weeks, the

graduating students of Stephenville High, Piccadilly Central High, and cole

Sainte Anne have had the opportunity to celebrate the many years of memories and

experiences that moulded their lives.

This is an important milestone one that will lead them to new and

exciting experiences as they prepare to either enter the workforce or continue

on to post-secondary studies.

Mr. Speaker, these schools have prepared the students

well for a world of opportunities and as it turns out, many of those

opportunities are right here in Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador recognizes the value of

post-secondary education for students, their communities, and the economy of the

Province. Our goal is to have more

students pursue a post-secondary education and encourage them to stay here in

Newfoundland and Labrador, where their talents and skills will play a role in

the Province's future success.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members to join with me in

congratulating these leaders of tomorrow and wish them good fortune with their

future endeavours.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bonavista North.

MR.

CROSS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am proud to stand in my place today and thank the

classes of 2014 at Riverwood Academy in Wing's Point, and Pearson Academy in

New-Wes-Valley for their gracious invitations to share in their ceremonies.

Both gymnasiums were exceptionally and thematically

transformed to: A Moment Frozen in Time and An Evening in Paris, respectively.

Both ceremonies were precluded by an inspirational ecumenical service in

churches filled to the maximum capacity as their communities expressed

collective support.

Student tributes were filled with thanks for the

supporting roles of educators, parents and the community as a whole, which lends

credence to the African proverb: It takes a village to raise a child.

The ceremonies were exuberant with thanksgiving and confident of future

success.

In his valedictory address, Pearson Academy's Douglas

Gibbons quoted Dr. Seuss You have brains in your head.

You have feet in your shoes.

You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.

His thesis recognizes the cumulative efforts of student, parent, teacher

and staff members to prepare our graduates for the challenge of life.

Let me express our united wish for the graduates of

Riverwood and Pearson Academies and, of course, all Newfoundland and Labrador

graduates this year from Cape Chidley to Cape Race and Cape Ray, that success

follows them regardless of the direction they choose.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for the District of St. Barbe.

MR.

J. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to pay tribute to Shirley Montague, one of

our finest musicians, and the driving force behind the renowned Trails, Tales

and Tunes music festival held every May in Norris Point, Gros Morne National

Park.

Shirley, who describes music as second nature in her

family originated from North West River, Labrador.

Shortly after moving to Norris Point with her husband, Dr. Terry Delaney,

Rural Physician of the Year for 1998, she automatically became actively involved

in the community.

One such contribution, beginning in 2007 and still

going strong, is Trails, Tales and Tunes, a music festival created, in part to

jump start the tourist season and showcase the culture and beauty of Gros Morne.

Serving as artistic director, it was no surprise that Shirley, who

credits her committee members with its success, was one of the key players.

Although she plans to remain involved, Shirley has

asked to be permitted to retire as artistic director, and is thrilled to be

succeeded by musical genius, Daniel Payne.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all members of this hon. House to

rise and join me in paying tribute to Shirley Montague.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.

DEMPSTER:

Mr.

Speaker, I rise in this hon. House today to recognize Olive Penney of

Charlottetown, a woman who had a dream and a passion to help people.

When she was nineteen years old she did a short course in Swedish Massage

Therapy through Public Health. This

sparked her interest in this field.

However, it would not be until more than two decades later that she would

realize her dream.

In 2011, after being out of school for twenty-four

years, she packed up her family of six and relocated to St. John's for

post-secondary schooling. She worked

extremely hard, and received the Most Outstanding Student Award, and is now a

registered massage therapist. In

March, Olive opened the doors of Pathway to Healing.

She is the only registered massage therapist in the

District of Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.

The response is excellent; people are elated to choose this form of

therapy over pills and other medicine where possible.

If you are in the area this summer I encourage you to

get off the Trans-Labrador Highway and get on the pathway to healing, you will

be happy you did.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members to join me in

recognizing Olive Penney of Charlottetown, a shining example that you are never

too late to pursue your goals.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

O'BRIEN:

Mr.

Speaker, I rise today to speak about the Kami Iron Ore Project in Labrador West,

and provide detail on how the project's landmark benefits agreement supports

employment and training of apprentices.

In 2014, we are training and advancing more apprentices

to become journeypersons than ever before.

Since 2007, we have more than doubled the number of journeypersons

certified annually in 2013, 734 journeypersons were certified and we are well

on our way to exceeding that number for this year.

This partnership commits to 15 per cent of the skilled

trades workforce to be apprentices during construction and 25 per cent to be

apprentices during the operations phase.

This will have a significant impact on our advancement of apprentices in

the coming years. Kami project

employment and training opportunities will also assist in ongoing efforts to

support displaced workers impacted by the idling of the Cliffs Natural Resources

mine in Wabush.

Increased opportunities for apprentices from the Kami

project also support the Atlantic harmonization of apprentices' initiative,

which took another step forward with the signing of a Memorandum of

Understanding by the Council of Atlantic Premiers on May 26.

When completed, this project will help harmonize training, certification

and standards throughout the Atlantic Provinces, leading to increased

availability of training, higher apprenticeship completion rates, and increased

labour mobility for apprentices within the region.

Mr. Speaker, the Kami project benefits agreement builds

on our continuing success and support for apprentices as they advance on their

path to becoming journeypersons.

This government has been preparing and investing for several years to meet the

growing demand for skilled labour.

The Skills Task Force Report, All the Skills to Succeed, released in May 2007,

provided guidance in meeting the skill requirements of our current and future

large-scale development projects and in improving apprenticeship programs and

journeyperson opportunities. To

date, the provincial government has committed over $100 million in funding to

support initiatives outlined under the Skills Task Force Action Plan, Mr.

Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.

DEMPSTER:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for an advance copy of his

statement. While we have yet to see

the benefits agreement for the Kami Iron Ore Project, we are encouraged by

Alderon's commitment to having 15 per cent of the skilled trades workforce be

apprentices during construction and 25 per cent during operations.

For years now, our apprentices have been stalled in

their plans of training. One of the

glaring gaps in opportunities has been including a provision for apprentices in

these and other projects. Alderon

has also set employment equity targets and these targets, as well as those

around apprentices, have to be monitored closely, Mr. Speaker, to ensure targets

are being met.

Mr. Speaker, I can speak to what is happening on the

ground in my district. Muskrat Falls

is being touted as a project that will benefit the people of Labrador providing

5,400 person years of direct employment in Labrador during construction, yet

people in my district are with skills but are without work.

I hear from them every single day.

The lack of employment counselling, particularly in

rural and remote regions, is a major barrier to finding work on such

megaprojects. There are many pieces

to this puzzle and employment target monitoring in conjunction with employment

counselling are crucial.

In closing, we look forward to reading the benefits

agreement, as we also look forward to updated labour market projections to

replace government's current outdated information.

Thank you.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I, too, thank the minister for the advance copy of his

statement. As we said the other day

when we had the announcement with regard to the agreement between government and

Kami, that I am delighted to see what is being done to advance more apprentices

to journeypersons. I am very pleased

with where things have gone at the moment, there is no doubt.

We do have a challenge to make sure that we are getting

a wider diversity of young people into school and training so that they can

become apprentices and enter into the program.

It is now time for government, I think, to revisit their short-term

brutal budget cuts in 2013 to the college system, which has done great damage,

and to really evaluate what is going on with regard to our ability to train

younger people in skilled trades.

I would like to see a more formalized plan from

government to know how they are going to move forward with regard to that

training so that these younger people can enter into apprenticeships and then on

to being journeyed. There is plenty

of time, Mr. Speaker, since Alderon does not even have its funding in place yet.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KING:

Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge the provincial

government's continued support for a program which, for thirty-two years, has

provided thousands of young Canadians, including those from Newfoundland and

Labrador, with a unique and exciting opportunity to learn about their country.

Encounters with Canada, is our country's largest

national youth forum. This bilingual

program gives youth aged fourteen to seventeen, from different backgrounds and

regions, the opportunity to travel to the Terry Fox Canadian Youth Centre in

Ottawa, where they get to know one another, discover their country, and gain a

better understanding of Canada's institutions.

Mr. Speaker, from September to May of each year, about

3,000 students from across the country participate in this program.

They spend a week in the nation's capital, experiencing a number of

activities that promote youth leadership, citizenship, and engagement.

They participate in hands-on workshops and presentations, get the

opportunity to meet famous and accomplished Canadians, and explore future career

options.

This year, the Department of Education is providing

$21,200 to enable 212 high school students from Newfoundland and Labrador to

participate in Encounters with Canada.

We are proud to continue to support a program that not only enhances the

curriculum in our schools, but it opens minds, inspires leadership, and presents

new opportunities to young Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, over the past thirty-two years, 96,000

young Canadians have participated in this exceptional learning experience, and I

have no doubt the students from this Province who participate in Encounters with

Canada during this coming school year will come home describing it as an

unforgettable and rewarding experience.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR.

KIRBY:

Thanks to the minister for an advance copy of his statement.

I am happy to stand in response to the minister's

statement, and not just because I am his official critic.

It is also because I am one of the 96,000 Canadians who have participated

in the Encounters with Canada program.

So I have some first-hand knowledge about how unforgettable and rewarding

this program is for its participants.

The week I attended, back in 1987, the theme was science and technology,

and over that week we were introduced to some of Canada's foremost scientists in

the areas of chemistry, physics, and other areas.

One of the days, we had front-row seat to an

introduction to how Canadian achievements in robotics and technology had

propelled the Canadarm into space as part of the US Space Shuttle program.

We visited Parliament Hill, our Supreme Court, the Canadian Museum of

Civilization, and learned a lot about our shared history, culture, and language

in Canada. During our stay at the

Terry Fox Youth Centre in Ottawa, I gained a new-found appreciation for how a

young man with critical illness could raise us all up above our petty

differences so that we might see our common good.

There is a lot more I could say about the Encounters

with Canada program, and it is all good, Mr. Speaker.

I applaud government's continuing investment in the young Newfoundlanders

and Labradorians who have the good fortune to take

part in it.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I, too, thank the minister for an advance copy of his

statement. It is wonderful for these

212 students to be involved in this national program, and I commend the many

retired teachers who have donated their time and skills to accompany the

students to Ottawa over the years.

It certainly is a worthwhile investment for this government to be making, and I

would hope that we would continue doing it.

It is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity for

students to visit Parliament and museums, tour the national capital, and the ten

cultural events. They also received

educational modules on topics such as official languages, youth engagement,

peace in Canadian history, as well as a career exploration program.

The Encounters with Canada organization encourages schools to provide

opportunities for returning students to share their experiences through

assemblies, class presentations, and so on.

No doubt, some schools do that, and I hope they all do, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The levels of ice blocking fishers from harvesting the

resource this spring is unprecedented and many families are now struggling with

limited income. We have been asking

this government to take action on this issue for months, but we have yet to see

any results. The federal Minister of

Fisheries has failed to get involved.

Now that the Premier is seeking a meeting with the

Prime Minister, I ask the Premier: Will you get the Prime Minister involved in

this issue?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Mr.

Speaker, I am certainly prepared to ask the Prime Minister to get involved in

this issue. I cannot get him to get

involved. The federal government has

their jurisdiction under the Constitution of Canada.

It is easy to get up and say that they should be doing their job better,

but we have to concentrate more on what is under our jurisdiction and do the

things that we can do.

I have asked to speak to the Prime Minister on the

shrimp quota issue. I will certainly

be happy to raise that with him. I

also want to talk to him about marine safety, and I want to talk to him about a

commission looking into Aboriginal women and girls.

They are the topics I want to raise with the Prime Minister.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, this is a growing concern in many of our rural

and coastal communities right now.

Time is extremely important right now.

I ask the Premier: Will you at least get your own

provincial department involved so we can get some aid to those many families who

are in dire conditions right now?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

HUTCHINGS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we continue to monitor this very important

issue in regard to those families who are affected by this.

It is certainly unprecedented; it has been over twenty years, I think,

since we had ice conditions similar to what we are seeing this year.

Again, we want the federal government to engage here,

to get involved in regard to helping out as they did in 1999 and 2007.

There is an obligation on them to do that.

As the Premier has indicated, he is following up with the Prime Minister

to certainly see that we get this and other issues that are so important to us

in relation to the fishery resolved, and resolved very quickly, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, I will say to the minister that monitoring this

issue is really not paying the bills of the families who are facing such

financial crisis right now.

Mr. Speaker, one of the government's main arguments

about the Muskrat Falls Project was the closure of the Holyrood Generating

Station in 2020; however, last month the Premier would only say that it would be

closed in a reasonable time. We know

that Nalcor is doing a life extension study on the plant.

I ask the Premier: If you plan to close the plant by

2020, why is Nalcor currently doing a life extension study?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, it has always been a part of the plan as we develop Muskrat Falls a

very important project for the future of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians and

particularly around the supply of energy, but built into that obviously a

transition period as well.

Mr. Speaker, part of that transition period will be the

evaluation of current assets. Built

into that will be current asset management as well so that as we move from an

isolated system to an interconnected system, we want it to be seamless; but at

the same time to ensure that the new system is fully functional, operational,

and meeting the requirements as expected.

Through that whole process, it will be imperative that

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro and Nalcor ensure that the people of the

Province still have power and that part of that power will be supplied by

Holyrood. It is important that we

make sure that will be available for the transition.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Despite the fact that government says that it will

close the Holyrood plant in six years, Nalcor has now hired a consultant to

review the plant's fuel system and equipment design.

The report is due at the end of this year and comes after Nalcor is

already on the record as saying that they received poor quality fuel in January

and February of 2013. This dirty

fuel has caused at least $1 million in damage.

I ask the Premier: Since the dirty fuel was discovered

in early 2013, will you now have a plan to put in place by the end of this year?

Why is it taking almost two years to get this plan in place?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, it has been acknowledged by Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro and it has

been submitted to the Public Utilities Board, the issue around the fuel

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro became aware of it some time ago on the initial

shipment of fuel. They have been in

consultation with the company and working out the issues around the specs of the

fuel.

Broader than that, Mr. Speaker, we have had much

discussion in the House about what is happening today with our power system as

we move from isolated to interconnected.

There is a transition period.

We also have the next two or three years in which there is a tremendous

responsibility on Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro.

They take that seriously. I

think we are seeing a number of initiatives very important initiatives to

ensure that we can avoid what took place in January.

That is all a part of the process.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

No matter what you are, if you are going to buy or

purchase anything, part of your plan should always be that you get quality in

what you do. Nalcor is already on

record as saying they have accepted poor quality fuel.

To ensure that we do not experience another DarkNL this

winter, Nalcor is in the process of installing a 123 megawatt generator at

Holyrood at a cost of $119 million.

However, they decided to go to the grey market to secure this aftermarket unit.

I ask the Premier: Why are you buying an aftermarket

generator for the project, and where is it actually coming from?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, it has always been a part of the plan as we develop the new system with

Muskrat Falls, that there will be times, particularly during peak times,

critical times like we have seen this past January, peak times where demand will

be high and how best to address that.

It is always built into the plan that we would look at a combustion

turbine.

Certainly, during the events of January there was a

strong commitment by Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro, in consultation with,

obviously, the PUB, Mr. Speaker, and the other utilities, that we want to do all

we can. They are totally committed

to do all we can, that we do not go back to the situation we had in January.

Part of that is to advance the installation of a new combustion turbine,

Mr. Speaker. There was a real

opportunity on the market and they are taking advantage of it for the best

interest of the ratepayers of the Province.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister talks a lot about planning; the planning

did not include a 123 megawatt generator.

It was actually one that was much smaller than that when you look at the

forecast.

What I ask the minister is: This is actually an

aftermarket, or a grey market unit, where is the unit coming from?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Just to clarify, Mr. Speaker, the original plan for the size of the generator

has shifted somewhat because in terms of looking at measures again, a part of

the whole process and the consultations that have been done with outside experts

and so on, Mr. Speaker, and looking at load forecasting, the number changed a

little bit but the reality is the opportunity that was on the market for a new

generator that has not been used came forward, so that we could have an

opportunity for near the same price, or the exact same price, remains to be

seen, but from a sixty watt to 100 watt.

As a result, a good deal for the people of the

Province. It will enhance the

system, Mr. Speaker, provide more power in peak times, and that is an obligation

and responsibility of Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro.

Exactly where it is coming from, Mr. Speaker, I would have to check and

report back to the member.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

BALL:

Usually, when you have a good deal and it is worth about $119 million, you know

where your purchase is coming from.

Mr. Speaker, the impact and benefits agreement that

government signed with Alderon Iron Ore last week is still not publicly

available. This could be added to a

growing list of documents that this government has yet to publicly release;

therefore, keeping those secrets from the people.

That includes the power purchase agreement that we have asked for with

Muskrat Falls, signed last November, the contract with SNC-Lavalin, letters and

documents related to Humber Valley Paving, and now the Alderon benefits

agreement.

I ask the Premier: Since you still claim to be open,

why are you keeping all of those documents secret?

When will you release the impact benefits agreement?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, I answered the question here in the House on Thursday, the same

question. We are very open, Mr.

Speaker. We want to get that

benefits agreement out. We believe

it is a tremendous agreement for the people of Labrador and the people of the

Province. A firm commitment, Mr.

Speaker, a principle that we have been guided by is that we develop our

resources to the maximum benefit for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador,

and this agreement will show that.

We are looking forward to making it public, but as I

indicated Thursday, and as was indicated to the member in the briefing this

morning, there are a couple of issues there that directly impact the company.

We are working with the company to resolve those so that we can make it

public. There is some negotiation

going on with the company, not with us, but outside, and they want to protect

that interest and we support them in that.

Once that is resolved, Mr. Speaker, we will absolutely make it public.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

When you negotiate through a final agreement, usually

those sensitive negotiations are already completed.

That is the reason why they call them final.

Mr. Speaker, the original Hatch Mott MacDonald report

showed a 7,000 square foot child care centre as part of the new design at the

Western Memorial Regional Hospital.

The Stantec report did not mention a child care centre.

So seeing that the child care centre was such a big deal in the Alderon

benefits agreement, why have you dropped the child care centre from the Corner

Brook hospital?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Mr.

Speaker, the final functional plan is distributed to the stakeholders at Western

Memorial Regional Hospital for consultation and discussion.

It has not yet been brought to government for final approval.

I can also tell you that the plan did not include a

plan for radiation units in that hospital, and it will now.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

Mr.

Speaker, there are currently six ultrasound units in the health care facility in

Corner Brook. The new facility will

have three. The wait time for

ultrasounds today is 147 days. With

the new facility, the wait time will be over 300 days.

I ask the minister: How can you say that you are

improving health care on the West Coast when you are doubling the wait time for

ultrasound services?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Mr.

Speaker, as the hon. member knows, for some time they have been working on what

is called a functional program. In

the functional program there was a draft, a draft that was really a discussion

paper, and now there is a final functional plan that has been distributed, I

understand, amongst the stakeholders at Western Memorial.

When that is agreed upon, it will then come to government for a decision.

That has not taken place as yet.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

can assure the Premier that the people in Corner Brook have been told it is cut

from six to three, I say, Mr. Speaker.

So, you should check that out.

Mr. Speaker, there are currently over 200 long-term

care beds in the Corner Brook area.

The new hospital will contain an additional 100 long-term care beds.

Doctors say that those beds will be filled the minute the facility opens,

like the last long-term care facility.

I ask the minister: What rationale and numbers did you

use to limit the number of long-term care beds to 100, and will you table those

documents?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Mr.

Speaker, we obviously have to rely on the experts to tell us what services are

needed, what services ought to be put in place for the people of Newfoundland

and Labrador, and the people of Western Newfoundland and Labrador.

In terms of the number of beds, I do now know who is

telling the people this, but I understand that actually there will be more

long-term care beds than that.

Again, the functional program, as I said, the final draft has been shared with

the stakeholders, they are having discussions; and when they come with the

recommendations, it will come back to government to make a decision.

That has not happened yet.

Also, with respect to the ultrasounds, you are talking

about rooms, not machines there is a difference.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

Mr.

Speaker, I say to the Premier, it is the same people who told me the numbers do

facilitate a radiation unit, which you finally agree after two years, Mr.

Premier.

MR.

SPEAKER:

ask the member to direct his comments to the Chair.

MR.

JOYCE:

ask the Premier: Will you commit to having a public consultation with the people

in Corner Brook when the final design is completed for the new regional facility

in Corner Brook?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Mr.

Speaker, the final design for the hospital in Corner Brook naturally will be

shared with the people of Corner Brook and the people of all Western

Newfoundland, and indeed the people of all Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, we have to rely on experts; we have to

rely on professionals people who know what they are doing to tell us what is

needed. That information will come

to us. Government considers the

information, government may seek additional information, and then government

will make a decision. Again, it has

to be brought to government.

You are hearing rumour.

You are hearing innuendo. I

do not know where you are getting it from.

I can tell you that when the functional program there are two

functional programs. There is the

main one, and there is also a new one being done.

A contract has been awarded for a new functional program to put the

radiation units in. They will match

up, the two will match up, but it will come to government for a decision.

That is when the decision will be made, and not until then.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR.

KIRBY:

Mr.

Speaker, it has been fourteen months since this government created the new

Now, the minister at the time said the appointed board of trustees would

serve only until a promised election in 2014.

Eight months ago, that minister said an exact date would be determined in

consultation with the board Chair and the School Boards Association.

I ask the Minister of Education: When will you see fit

and return open, democratic, local school governance to this Province?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KING:

Mr.

Speaker, to be clear, all of the members who currently serve on the new

They were democratically elected in their own zones when they were on the

previous boards. They are only

appointed now on an interim basis, but they were appointed by the fact that they

were first elected. There is nothing

undemocratic about the members who currently serve.

Secondly, Mr. Speaker, I will endeavour to set a date

in the near future. I do not have a

date set at this point in time. One

of the reasons for that is that by law the school board is required to have

their constitution developed and zones established that will be part of the new

representation and the number of trustees required for an election.

I cannot set an election until that piece of work is completed.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR.

KIRBY:

Hopefully, Mr. Speaker, the minister's appointed trustees will get through that

work in a relatively short period of time.

its Web site that the role of the Newfoundland and Labrador School Boards

Association is under review. Given

that there are only two school boards now, we have cause to question the role

and of course the costs of operating such an association.

I ask the minister: Has a decision been made on the

future of the association? If not,

why is it taking so long to make these sorts of basic decisions at the new

school board?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I think the member is right, my elected trustees are

volunteer trustees and they are working very hard.

I am sure that when they get time in their volunteer duties to complete

that piece of work, they will. I

remind the member opposite that while we sometimes tend to slander the members

who sit on the school board, they are volunteers who were elected by their

constituents in their local zones.

We ought to be very proud that they are providing good public service to the

people of the Province, Mr. Speaker.

The second point on the whole issue of the School

Boards Association, Mr. Speaker, I encourage the member to direct his question

to the two school boards. Government

does not have the mandate or the authority to establish the School Boards

Association or engage in any way, shape, or form.

It is not a decision for us to make as to whether that organization will

continue to exist or cease to exist.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Mount Pearl South.

MR.

LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, summer is almost upon us and children will

soon be out riding their bicycles in full force.

Unfortunately, Newfoundland and Labrador is one of the three provinces

without bicycle helmet legislation.

The minister has said responsibility of regulations lies with our

municipalities; who, by the way, are tired of having services downloaded upon

them.

I ask the minister: Why are you choosing to pass the

buck and ignore bicycle helmet legislation and injury prevention?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Service NL

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

CRUMMELL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, first of all, we encourage everyone to use

bike helmets when they are cycling, no matter where they are and no matter what

municipality they are in, in rural and urban Newfoundland and Labrador.

Right now, we have at least 50 per cent of the municipalities in

Newfoundland and Labrador that have bylaws which are enacted that allow for

prosecution for not wearing helmets, Mr. Speaker.

We think municipalities are doing a good job around this.

Saying that, Mr. Speaker, it was brought to my

attention; it was one of the first questions actually in the House here last

fall. I have asked my officials to

look into what is going on in other jurisdictions.

We have done some work on that.

We are looking at it very seriously.

We looked at what is going on in municipalities here in Newfoundland and

Labrador. There are different bylaws

and regulations in place, and we hope at some point

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. John's South.

MR.

OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Newfoundland and Labrador Housing units in this

Province are boarded up and vacant waiting repairs.

There are tenants who are living in unacceptable living conditions and

they are still not getting the necessary repairs completed.

I ask the minister: Since government themselves are

responsible for the Landlord and Tenant Relations Agency, why is there a double

standard? Why are you forcing

tenants of government housing units to live in such conditions?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

O'BRIEN:

Mr.

Speaker, when we took government in 2003, we found the units that we had across

this Province in the stock of Newfoundland and Labrador Housing to be in

deplorable condition. The member

across the House certainly knows that.

He also knows that we have invested millions and millions of dollars in

regard to retrofitting and renovating those particular units.

Here in the City of St. John's we have about 3,000.

There are probably 300 to 500 that are retrofitted in the exterior every

single year, and about 70 per cent to 85 per cent of them are actually totally

retrofitted and of a good standard at this particular time.

In the meantime, Mr. Speaker, we do have some units out

there that we are endeavouring to do work on.

It has to be mutually agreed by the tenant and also Newfoundland and

Labrador Housing in regard to setting the time to get that done.

Sometimes that is a challenge for us, but we will continue to work with

the tenants in regard to addressing the issues and retrofitting all of our

stock, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. John's South.

MR.

OSBORNE:

Mr.

Speaker, there are housing units in need of significant repairs, and the

minister's comments are cold comfort.

For example, there is wood around windows that is completely rotted,

water leaking inside the walls, causing even more damage and more cost to

government. There are units that

were scheduled for repair this summer, and only two months into this year's

Budget, Mr. Speaker, people are being told the repairs will be delayed until

next year.

I ask the minister: Why is the budget allocated for

housing repairs not adequate to properly maintain those units?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

O'BRIEN:

Mr.

Speaker, we try to endeavour to do a lot of work in regard to our stock across

this Province. As a matter of fact,

sometimes there are challenges in regard to construction companies and companies

that want that kind of business to actually respond to a tender.

As a matter of fact, we had a tender out only a couple of weeks or so ago

on the West Coast and we had nobody respond to that particular tender.

We have created a vibrant economy.

Certainly, it is sometimes hard to get the work done, but my staff at

Newfoundland and Labrador Housing will continue to endeavour to get that work

done. I do recognize, yes, we have

some units in the City of St. John's that need repair and hopefully we will get

them done over the next few months or so.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Virginia Waters.

C. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This government has taken a passive approach to

recruiting and retaining immigrants despite the role they play in our much

needed population growth.

Immigration is about people, their family and their lives.

Rather than bolstering support services for organizations, government cut

the office of Immigration and Multiculturalism by 45 per cent over two years.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

C. BENNETT:

ask the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills: How do you expect to recruit

and retain immigrants and their families when you have cut the very people and

organizations that are central to their settlement here?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

O'BRIEN:

Mr.

Speaker, it is interesting that the hon. member believes the answer to

everything is just throwing money at it.

As a matter of fact, in regard to that particular division, we have seen

results unprecedented in this Province in regard to attracting and retaining

immigrants.

As a matter of fact, we have now it is probably going

to hit a total of over 1,000, which was down about 300 or 400 in years previous,

Mr. Speaker. The staff are actually

working very well in regard to the PNP process, and also with our federal

counterparts in making sure that immigrants have every opportunity to make this

their home.

I will continue to work, as the Minister Responsible

for Immigration, with my counterpart, federal ministers as well, to make sure

that happens, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

The Public Utilities Board have noted their concerns

about Hydro as being able to effect repairs before winter closes in again.

Friday we learned more details of a major problem with the Holyrood

Thermal Generating Station, poor quality fuel causing equipment failures.

I ask the Premier: Can he give this House a detailed

update of what Nalcor is doing to ensure people will not be in the dark and cold

again next winter?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, it is interesting they found out Friday there was a fuel issue because

it has been talked about in this House months ago.

It has been recognized right from the initial shipment from the supplier.

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro has acknowledged that and is providing

information to the Public Utilities Board on that issue, and working to correct

any issues around the supply of fuel and the quality of fuel.

Beyond that, it is fully recognized, Mr. Speaker, that

we had a difficult time in January.

There is a strong commitment from our utilities, particularly Newfoundland and

Labrador Hydro, in working with the Public Utilities Board to put a plan in

place, to implement that plan to do all we can around asset management, around

resources, and around ensuring that we do not get in a situation like we did in

January. There were numerous

consultations, and we are certainly effecting that plan, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I point out to the minister I used a very important

word, it was more details. The

details we got on the report that came out on the weekend was the fact that the

contract with the supplier did not even specify any details around the quality

of the fuel.

I am asking the Premier: Why was due diligence not done

on checking the quality of fuel from the new supplier?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, I do know that Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro has been very clear

publicly about the issues around the fuel, particularly around aluminium and

silicone content, as well as acknowledging that there have been no set specs

within industry. They continue to

work with the supplier to rectify that and to identify specs.

They have clearly acknowledged that with the Public Utilities Board.

For the member opposite, we may be able to get some

more details from Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro, but the reality is they have

acknowledged there is some issue, Mr. Speaker.

They are working on it and working on it very publicly, which is

important for the people of the Province.

Again, I reiterate the fact that there have been

numerous reports commissioned and numerous recommendations coming forward to

improve our system. Nalcor and

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro are firmly committed to that, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Muskrat Falls power is several years away.

In the meantime, people have to rely on Hydro to keep the lights and the

heat on while we are being told that there could be a shortage of appropriate

fuel required by Holyrood worldwide.

I ask the Premier: Will he fully inform the people of

the Province regarding Hydro's ability to provide power next winter so they can

have some time to prepare for being without heat and light?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, this past year there were some generation issues.

There were a number of issues and factors unique.

It has been fully disclosed, discussed, and outlined by Liberty, by other

reports, and there is a list of recommendations of priority actions that need to

take place between now and next year.

One of them is to provide more generation during peak

time, which is why they are actively right now seeking the combustion turbine;

and there are a number of other issues in which they are firmly committed to

work with the utilities, they are firmly committed to work with the Public

Utilities Board, to ensure that we do all we can around power supply and

generation, particularly as we move from today's world of utilities in from an

isolated system to an interconnected system.

They are following those priority actions, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MICHAEL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I ask the minister: How can people have confidence in

what he is saying that Nalcor and Hydro are going to do when they cannot even

secure an appropriate fuel deal for a facility they have been running for half a

century?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DALLEY:

Mr.

Speaker, the people at Nalcor and the people at Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro

are Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

They have been running the system for years, Mr. Speaker and, no

question, everybody acknowledges there were challenges in January, but I am not

prepared to stand on the floor of the House and criticize the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro, and criticize the people of Nalcor, and

criticize the people of the PUB who make approvals for requests that come from

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro.

There is a firm commitment from these companies to take

the priority actions, to commit to provide the power to the people of the

Province. Mr. Speaker, I believe in

the people of Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro and Nalcor, and they will work

with the PUB and we will have power.

I say to the opposite member, maybe you should join in the parade about Muskrat

Falls because that is going to make the difference for the people of the

Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Member for St. John's East.

MR.

MURPHY:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

The problem of uninsured drivers in this Province

reared an ugly head in the media again last week

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MR.

MURPHY:

when a house on Blackmarsh Road was struck and severely damaged by an uninsured

driver. The problem is easily

solved, Mr. Speaker. Insurance

companies could report to DMV any driver that is in default, but why does

government not make it mandatory for insurance companies to report those in

default?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

CRUMMELL:

Mr.

Speaker, we are aware of the issue the other week, and it is a concern.

Certainly, uninsured drivers in this Province nobody likes to see that.

Unfortunately, there is an element out there that is not following the

rules of the road. We are doing our

very best through enforcement to make sure that we take these drivers off the

road.

Just commenting on what the member opposite is

suggesting, it is a bit more complicated than what he suggests.

We have talked to the insurance companies about doing similar types of

things. Right now they are not set

up to communicate with each other or communicate with MRD, or with the RNC or

with other police forces. It is a

very difficult process.

So, Mr. Speaker, if it was that simple it would have

been done; but right now our focus is on getting these uninsured drivers off the

road where possible.

Thank you.

MR.

SPEAKER:

ask the member to pose a very quick question, without

preamble.

MR.

MURPHY:

Mr.

Speaker, what changes are government looking at to take the problem of uninsured

drivers off the road?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Justice, for a quick response.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

FRENCH:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, obviously this government is very

concerned about people who break the law in this Province.

That is why we have invested 50 million new dollars since 2004 into

policing in this Province. That is

why we have 145 new officers on the streets today since 2004.

Plus, Mr. Speaker, we will have twenty new recruits by 2015-2016.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The time for Question Period has expired.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling of Documents.

Tabling of Documents

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Finance.

JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to

section 26.(5)(

a) of the

Financial Administration Act, I am tabling one Order in Council relating to

funding pre-commitments for the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 fiscal years.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

Pursuant to

section s

8 and 10 of the Public Tender Act, I

hereby table the reports of the Public Tender Act exceptions for the month of

March 2014, as presented by the Chief Operating Officer of the Government

Purchasing Agency.

Presenting further reports?

Notices of Motion.

Notices of Motion

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for the District of Lewisporte.

MR.

VERGE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I give notice that I will move, seconded by the Member

for Conception Bay East Bell Island, the following private member's

resolution:

WHEREAS our Province is unique in Canada in having its

principal population base connected to its neighbours, not by land links but by

marine services; and

WHEREAS the federal government is constitutionally

obligated under the Terms of Union to maintain the Gulf ferry service; and

WHEREAS following our Province's entry in Confederation

in 1949, the federal government enacted the Trans-Canada Highway Act to

spearhead the completion of the TCH to give all members of the federation the

benefit of a truly national highway to facilitate the flow of people and goods,

freely and fairly, throughout the federation; and

WHEREAS it is unacceptable to view the Gulf ferry

service as anything less than an essential and integral component of the

Trans-Canada Highway and the national highway system; and

WHEREAS the cost recovery and scheduling policies of

the federal Crown corporation, Marine Atlantic, have served to impede the flow

of people and to undermine the free trade of goods to and from our Province; and

WHEREAS the federal government should be sensitive to

the impacts of higher Marine Atlantic prices and fewer crossings on our

Province's tourism industry, and also on the cost of living and doing business

in our Province relative to the costs in other provinces;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that this hon. House calls on

the federal government to direct and enable Marine Atlantic to reduce user

prices and restore transit frequency on the Gulf ferry service.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Service Newfoundland and Labrador.

MR.

CRUMMELL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the MHA for Labrador

West, that Bill 22,

An Act To Amend The Labour Relations Act, be read a second

time.

HON. MEMBER:

You

have to wait for that one.

MR.

CRUMMELL:

I have to wait for that?

MR.

SPEAKER:

Sorry, we are not at that motion

MR.

CRUMMELL:

Read a first time. I am sorry, Mr.

Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

You

are at the wrong spot in the Order Paper.

MR.

CRUMMELL:

Okay.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

First of all I give notice that the private member's

motion just presented by the Member for Lewisporte will be the one the House

will debate this coming Wednesday.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Further notices of motion?

MR.

KING:

Yes, Mr. Speaker.

I also give notice under Standing Order 11, that the

House will not adjourn at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 3, 2014.

Further, I give notice under Standing Order 11, the

House will not adjourn at 10:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 3, 2014.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Answers to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

MR.

SPEAKER:

have not said it.

Petitions.

Petitions

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for the District of Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

Sorry, Mr. Speaker, I am just anxious because I heard some of the comments that

the Premier made today.

I have a petition made concerning the new hospital in

Corner Brook:

WHEREAS we wish to raise concerns regarding the recent

delays of construction of the new hospital in Corner Brook;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly

pray and call upon the House of Assembly to urge Newfoundland and Labrador to

commit to the planning and construction of a new hospital in Corner Brook as

previously committed to in a timely manner as originally announced without

further delays or changes.

Mr. Speaker, the petition here today is again from

people all around Corner Brook today; one in Curling, Bell's Road, Humber Road,

and Park Street. Mr. Speaker, I just

want to speak on the questions I asked today, and the petitions.

I was shocked, Mr. Speaker, absolutely shocked when the

Premier of this Province would say they are cutting a number of rooms.

I stood in this House for two years on the radiation unit.

The information I am getting are from people from the hospital who are

too scared to speak out. I can

assure the Premier Premier, I was proven correct.

You moved the Minister of Health out of it because you had to do what was

correct. You knew the numbers were

correct, Mr. Premier.

Mr. Speaker, what is happening trust me on this,

trust me. There are six ultrasound

units in Corner Brook. They are

cutting it down to three. It was

down to two, they have it up to three.

I heard the Premier say they are cutting just the rooms.

Can you imagine? I am being

honest on this because this is when I said the same thing to the Premier, this

is what I was told by the radiologists in Corner Brook.

Can you imagine, a person over here getting an ultrasound who is pregnant

and then in the next bed is a man.

It just does not work.

Mr. Premier, they are not cutting the rooms.

Mr. Speaker, they are not cutting the rooms.

They are cutting the machines, trust me on it.

Once again I am going to be proven right.

Unless this government makes changes as of today the wait times will go

up, which are 147 days now to 300. I

can assure you, if we do not get changes that is what is going to happen.

Now, to solve this, Mr. Speaker, the Premier should

stand sometime today and say there will be six units at the hospital in Corner

Brook, end of discussion. I would

say thank you, Mr. Premier. Thank

you very much; but, Mr. Speaker, not one person in this government, the former

Minister of Health, the current Minister of Health or the Premier stood and said

there will be no reduction in machines.

Not one person in government said that, because as we speak there will be

a decrease in machines.

We did it before in this House, Mr. Speaker.

Here is a chance for the Premier; we will give him leave on this side of

the House. I am sure we will, Mr.

Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The member's time has expired.

MR.

JOYCE:

Thank you.

I will be back again.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for the District of Signal Hill- Quidi Vidi.

MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

To 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 strikes and lockouts are rare, and on average

97 per cent of collective agreements are negotiated without disruption; and

WHEREAS anti-temporary replacement workers laws have

existed in Quebec since 1978, in British Columbia since 1993, and successive

governments in those provinces have never repealed these laws; and

WHEREAS anti-temporary replacement workers legislation

has reduced the length and divisiveness of labour disputes; and

WHEREAS the use of temporary replacement workers during

a strike or lockout is damaging to the social fabric of a community, the local

economy, and the well-being of its residents, as evident by the use of temporary

replacement workers currently or in the past by Labatt's and in past years by

both Ocean Choice International and Vale in Voisey's Bay;

WHEREUPON we, the undersigned, petition the House of

Assembly to urge government to enact legislation banning the use of temporary

replacement workers during a strike or lockout.

As in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to stand on behalf of

the petitioners of this prayer to present this because of the experiences we

have had in this Province with regard to extended lockouts.

Last week, I was able to meet with workers who had been

on the picket line with regard to Voisey's Bay for eighteen months, Mr. Speaker,

and who want more than anything to have legislation that would stop that from

ever happening again. Some of those

people have signed this petition, along with people from different parts of the

Avalon Peninsula, from Labrador, from Holyrood, and from Random Island.

Everybody whom I met with last week were so concerned about what happens

in the workplace because of these extended strikes, what happens to the workers

and what happens to their families.

I know the last time I asked in this House, to the then

Minister of Justice, about anti-scab legislation, his answer was that government

had no intention of ever bringing in this legislation.

They have a new Minister of Justice now and I am hoping that maybe he

will be open to talk about something that will make for fairness and justice in

the workplace, because not having anti-scab legislation makes for a completely

uneven relationship between the workers and the employers.

We know the Commission's report that was done after

that terrible Voisey's Bay strike and that eighteen-month strike; we recommended

that this government study carefully anti-scab legislation.

I am very happy to place this in front of the House,

Mr. Speaker.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for the District of Burgeo La Poile.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I stand today with a petition.

To the hon. House of Assembly, the petition of the undersigned residents

humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS the residents of Burgeo, Ramea, Grey River and

Franois, of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, must use Route 480 on a

regular basis for work, medical, educational and social reasons; and

WHEREAS Route 480 is in deplorable condition, such that

the shoulders of the road continuously wash away and there are huge potholes on

the road; and

WHEREAS the condition of Route 480 poses a safety

hazard to residents and visitors to Burgeo, Ramea, Grey River and Franois; and

WHEREAS the Department of Transportation and Works is

responsible for the maintenance and repairs in the Province of Newfoundland and

Labrador; and

WHEREAS the local division of the Department of

Transportation and Works does make periodic repairs to this route but these are

only temporary patchwork and the road needs to be resurfaced;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly

pray and call upon the House to urge the government to support the users of

Route 480 in their request to have Route 480 resurfaced.

As in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, this is a petition I have entered on

numerous occasions. I bring it up

again today because as we move into the summer season after a very rough winter,

this road is in even worse condition than it usually is.

I have directed all the people who call my office and

send me pictures of their beat up vehicles to send them to the minister's office

so that he can see. Again, I speak

not only on behalf of the residents of my district, but also the adjacent

district as well, whose residents also call me and must use this district.

I think it is Fortune Bay Cape La Hune, I am getting calls from them as

well. They have to use this road and

it is absolutely unfit.

One of the things we have talked about in this House on

a number of occasions is paving. The

problem we have, as reported in The Gulf

News today, is that there are contracts put out for paving but the paving

never happens. That is one of the

problems here. It is put out there

but we never see it.

Last year, to the minister's credit, there was a

washout. The previous minister did

not do a thing to get it fixed. I

guess it was not a priority. At

least that minister got it done, but it took begging and cajoling to actually

get that done. We had another

washout this year. The staff are

doing what they can to fix this, but these are long-term fixes.

It is the same thing, short-term patchwork.

The staff are not allowed to do what needs to be done.

Again, I call on this government to do the right thing

before somebody gets killed on this absolutely unfit, horrible piece of road

that deserves some attention.

Hopefully, they will do the right thing and make sure the paving gets done and

not another case of just the contract put out but never followed.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. Barbe.

MR.

J. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

To 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 oral health is intrinsically linked to overall

health and health care is universally covered in our Province; and

WHEREAS many Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have been

forced to wait for a year or longer for much needed oral surgeries; and

WHEREAS residents with emergency cases and others who

need oral surgery must seek medical attention in other provinces; and

WHEREAS the cost of access to oral surgery outside the

Province is prohibitively expensive for many Newfoundlanders and Labradorians;

and

WHEREAS the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador

covers only 50 per cent of travel costs and requires a $400 deductible; and

WHEREAS this financial burden and lack of adequate oral

surgery services in Newfoundland and Labrador is creating a two-tier system

within the health care system;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, you petitioners, humbly pray

and call upon the House of Assembly to urge the government to ensure that a more

adequate level of access to specialist primary care based oral surgery and oral

surgical procedures is provided in Newfoundland and Labrador.

We further call upon the House of Assembly to urge the

government to review the level of financial assistance currently provided

through the Medical Transportation Assistance Program to residents who must

leave the Province for oral surgeries.

As in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, the very beginning of good health is diet

and people with proper eating habits.

It is well established and well known that all sorts of medical problems

result when people do not have proper dental care and have poor oral health.

It is absolutely critically important that people who require oral

surgery and dental health procedures be treated no differently than people in

the Province who are able to receive this type of benefit.

Mr. Speaker, it is very unfortunate to introduce a

program and say this is the program and we pay for it, but we only pay for half

of the travel and we take a $400 deductible from that travel.

This is a request from residents primarily of Harbour Main, Chapel's

Cove, Long Harbour, and other communities in that area.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. John's Centre.

ROGERS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

To 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 Family Violence Intervention Court provided

a comprehensive approach to domestic violence in a court setting that fully

understood and dealt with the complex issues of domestic violence; and

WHEREAS domestic violence continues to be one of the

most serious issues facing our Province today, and the cost of the impact of

domestic violence is great both economically and in human suffering; and

WHEREAS the Family Violence Intervention Court was

welcomed and endorsed by all aspects of the Justice system including the police,

the courts, prosecutors, defence counsel, Child, Youth and Family Services, as

well as victims, offenders, community agencies and women's groups; and

WHEREAS the recidivism rate for offenders going through

the court was 10 per cent compared to 40 per cent for those who did not; and

WHEREAS the budget for the court was only 0.2 per cent

of the entire budget of the Department of Justice;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly

pray and call upon the House of Assembly to urge government to reinstate the

Family Violence Intervention Court.

As in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, this is not my petition; this is the

petition on behalf of people of Newfoundland and Labrador who want to see this

valuable, this critical, this crucial program reinstated.

So far, we have heard no reliable reason for closing the court.

The Premier last week said that he was concerned because it only served

the people of St. John's. I am

concerned about that, too, because this court can be expanded.

We know previous Ministers of Justice have said the court was doing what

it was supposed to do; it was effective.

Let us expand it.

As the Premier had said in the previous Budget, we are

in a golden age. We can afford this;

$500,000 for this part of the Province, for St. John's.

It can be expanded.

Everything that is needed is in place.

There is a judge in place in every courthouse, there are Crown

prosecutors, there is legal defence, and there are police.

All it takes is political will and some training, and assigning a few

hours once a week to all of these already existing infrastructure to provide

this service.

The people across the Province want it.

The Premier had said he was not hearing from them.

I know for sure, Mr. Speaker, that the Premier is now hearing from

women's groups, anti-violence groups across the Province.

I have 400 signed letters, petitions to the Premier that I am going to be

so happy to give to him where people are asking for him to reinstate the court,

the court that was instigated under his careful leadership.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to presenting the voice of

the people in this House again.

Thank you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

As per Standing Order 32, I move, seconded by the

Member for Baie Verte Springdale, that we move to Orders of the Day.

MR.

SPEAKER:

has been moved and seconded that we now do move to Orders of the Day.

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Aye.

MR.

SPEAKER:

All

those against, nay'.

Motion carried.

Orders of the Day

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

At this time I go to Order 5, moved by myself, seconded

by the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board, to ask leave to

introduce a bill entitled,

An Act To Amend The Mineral Act, Bill 15, and that

said bill be now read the first time.

MR.

SPEAKER:

is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Natural Resources shall have

leave to introduce a bill,

An Act To Amend The Mineral Act, Bill 15, and that

the said bill be now read a first time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the minister shall

have leave to introduce Bill 15?

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Aye.

MR.

SPEAKER:

All

those against, nay'.

Motion carried.

Motion, the hon. the Minister of Natural Resources to

introduce a bill,

An Act To Amend The Mineral Act, carried.

(Bill 15)

CLERK:

bill,

An Act To Amend The Mineral Act.

(Bill 15)

MR.

SPEAKER:

This bill has now been read a first time.

When shall the bill be read a second time?

MR.

KING:

Tomorrow.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 15 read a first time, ordered read a

second time on tomorrow.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move, seconded by the Minister of Service

Newfoundland and Labrador, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled,

An Act To

Amend The Labour Relations Act, Bill 22, and that the said bill be now read the

first time.

MR.

SPEAKER:

is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Service Newfoundland and

Labrador shall have leave to introduce a bill,

An Act To Amend The Labour

Relations Act, Bill 22, and that the said bill be now read a first time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the minister shall

have leave to introduce Bill 22, and that the said bill be now read a first

time?

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Aye.

MR.

SPEAKER:

All

those against, nay'.

Motion carried.

Motion, the hon. the Minister of Service NL to

introduce a bill,

An Act To Amend The Labour Relations Act, carried.

(Bill 22)

CLERK:

bill,

An Act To Amend The Labour Relations Act.

(Bill 22)

MR.

SPEAKER:

This bill is now read a first time.

When shall the bill be read a second time?

MR.

KING:

Tomorrow.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 22 read a first time, ordered read a

second time on tomorrow.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Right now I call from the Order Paper, Order 3, second

reading of a bill,

An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act, 2000 No. 2, Bill 20.

It is moved by myself, seconded by the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board, that the bill be now read the second

time.

MR.

SPEAKER:

is moved and seconded that the said bill be now read a second time.

Motion, second reading of a bill,

An Act To Amend The

Income Tax Act, 2000 No. 2. (Bill

20)

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Finance.

JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to speak to

amendments to the Income Tax Act, 2000, Bill 20.

The purpose of these amendments is to allow for the implementation of a

venture capital tax credit to complement the Venture Newfoundland and Labrador

Fund by encouraging private sector investment.

Tax credits help mitigate the financial risk to investors and thereby

provide an incentive for them to put their money into companies that are in need

of start-up or expansion funds.

As was announced in Budget 2014, our government will

invest in two venture capital funds with $10 million to support Build Ventures

and a commitment to establish a Venture Newfoundland and Labrador Fund.

The Newfoundland and Labrador fund will focus on

developing and providing assistance to Newfoundland and Labrador-based

early-stage technology companies, as well as start-up enterprises in emerging

and growth sectors.

Mr. Speaker, while the details of the venture capital

tax credit has not yet been determined, this legislation will provide the

legislative authority to provide the tax credit and to make regulations

governing the tax credit. The

regulations will set out all required details for the tax credit, including the

credit rate and program parameters.

I know that is one of the questions that came up out of

the briefing that the Member for Virginia Waters attended.

This is to provide the legislative authority currently, and those

details, in terms of the tax credit, will be worked out in very short order.

I expect an announcement coming from the Minister of Innovation, Business

and Rural Development on this very unique, made in Newfoundland and Labrador

fund, very soon.

The Newfoundland and Labrador fund is expected to focus

on strategic sectors, improve access to larger venture capital pools, and

leverage private sector investment.

The Venture Newfoundland and Labrador Fund will be in partnership with

GrowthWorks Atlantic Ltd., the Newfoundland and Labrador Angel Network, and

other investors. The Province has a

growing technology industry that is on par with our Atlantic counterparts and

are used to competing nationally and internationally for market share.

The main issue, though, is that many are undercapitalized.

In my short time in IBRD, Mr. Speaker, I did attend a

conference in Ottawa. One of the

things I frequently heard is, first of all, when are you going to be a part of

the Atlantic Canada fund? Secondly,

what are we doing here to help our early venture capitalists and our early

technology companies get up and running and assist them in those early stages?

We are very proud of this fund.

On Budget Day when we did our briefings with the various sectors, the

business community was very excited about this piece, as I am sure my colleagues

in the House share that excitement tonight.

I know it is something the Member for The Straits White Bay North has

talked about for some time.

By investing in these two funds, we will be putting

Newfoundland and Labrador on level playing fields with other provinces in Canada

and advancing our promising technological and emerging sectors.

We only have to look closely at the ocean sector and the Arctic sector.

Mr. Speaker, we are certainly leading the country and the world when it

comes to that, having hosted ATC here and Oceans'14 coming up in September.

So, the world is certainly setting their sights on Newfoundland and

Labrador in all the things that we are doing around these emerging technology

industries.

Venture capital brings with it leveraged investment, as

well as strong mentorship, all to support success.

We are currently in discussions with the proponents of the fund, along

with other investors. As I said, we

will be rolling out the fund in the very near future.

My colleague, the Minister of Innovation, Business and Rural Development

will do that.

It is very simple.

We are looking for the legislative authority to do this piece of work so

that we can rollout the fund in the upcoming weeks or month ahead.

The details are yet to be worked out.

We did share that, as I said, with the Opposition members, but we would

certainly appreciate the support of all members of the House today to approve

this legislative amendment so that we can move on with this very exciting

venture capital Newfoundland and Labrador fund, and to move on with the tax

credit that comes along with that.

That is all I have to say.

If there are any questions in Committee I would certainly be happy to

answer those.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Virginia Waters.

C. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am happy to rise in this House today to speak to Bill

20,

An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act.

I am pleased to inform the minister that the Official

Opposition, certainly in principle, supports the changes that really are about

legislation being enabled to implement these funds.

I guess it is a long time coming.

The minister mentioned that this will now put

Newfoundland and Labrador on a level playing field.

There have been many stakeholders who have been lobbying hard for a level

playing field for a number of years, particularly as we compete for investment

money throughout Atlantic Canada. We

see the progress the other three Atlantic Provinces have made, particularly

around venture capital, as well as other streams of capital for start-ups and

new entrants to the market.

She spoke as well about the need to continue to support

and grow our technology industry. I

would certainly agree with her comments there.

I had a great meeting and briefing with NATI, an organization I have had

a relationship with for many years.

Certainly, they, as champions for the technology industry in Newfoundland and

Labrador, recognize the importance of having investment at the right time in the

right place with the right mentorship so that companies can grow; and we can

sell, not only what we have in our resources, but we can sell, really, the

skills and talents of those people who work in the technology industry.

As we look to continue to diversify that, I would

certainly challenge the current government to look at ways of including

technology as part of their benefits agreements.

That might also inspire some additional investment in the technology

industry.

Besides technology, other sectors will be interested

and look for taking advantage of these venture capital funds, both the Atlantic

Canadian fund, as well as the Newfoundland fund.

I would suggest the Newfoundland fund is certainly something that other

provinces have done. It is nice to

see we are finally, after many, many years of hard lobbying by a number of

individuals and organizations who see capital as being an issue and restriction

on growing some of our small businesses, it is nice to see that this is the

beginning of that change.

When we think about the growth of small business in

Newfoundland and Labrador, and we have seen a decline in the portion of GDP that

small business actually garners to somewhere around the lowest in Canada,

initiatives like this are going to help that and I am going to look forward to

seeing the impact.

One of the questions and the minister referenced this

already was the details around the tax credit.

It is my understanding, as she said discussions are ongoing with key

stakeholders. The learnings from

some of the more experienced funds in Atlantic Canada, and some of the more

experienced investors, I would certainly encourage her to continue to listen and

weigh the pros and cons of the ways to set up the details around the tax credit

as we go forward.

Ultimately, having tax credits related to venture

capital is really about keeping money here in our Province and making sure that

companies, and small businesses in particular, that want to grow and are short

on capital have access to the capital when they need it.

It is going to be extremely important that those announcements the

minister referenced come soon. July

is the middle of a tax year and those businesses that are currently waiting for

clarity on where these investments may benefit them are anxious to grow their

market share, grow their business, and would certainly look forward to those

announcements sooner than later.

From this side of the House, we will be very interested

to see the details of the tax credit when the minister is able to provide that

information I assume once the House closes.

With that said, we look forward to discussing the bill and having more

discussions and asking some more questions as we go through the afternoon.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Innovation, Business and Rural Development.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SULLIVAN:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I am really happy to be able to get up and

talk about Bill 20,

An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act, 2000.

Certainly, we all recognize that Newfoundland and

Labrador is amongst the fastest growing economies in Canada.

As a direct result of the strength of the economy as a Province, we have

experienced extraordinary growth in employment, personal and disposable income,

retail sales, capital investment, mineral shipments, and so on.

In fact, this morning, Mr. Speaker, I had the privilege

of being with the regional airport authority and with the Vice-President of Air

Canada. Many of them talked

precisely about that, about the growing economy here in Newfoundland and

Labrador. This morning we were

thrilled to hear that as they see our economy growing and diversifying, they are

now offering three full-service flights per week, year-round to London, to

Heathrow. That is another sign of

how this economy is growing.

We are really poised, I believe, to leverage even more

successes. We are certainly

committed to diversifying our economy as a result of being able to see the

successes and knowing how it is that we need to invest to ensure even further

investment in this Province.

It should come as no surprise here, Mr. Speaker, to

anyone that the Conference Board of Canada recently gave Newfoundland and

Labrador an A+ rating for real GDP

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

I remind the minister the issues around the economy are

not the subject of the bill. This is

a very specific amending bill. I

would ask the minister to confine her comments to the amendments to the bill.

SULLIVAN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I just get so excited about all that is happening here

that it is hard not to bring it up.

I will be happy to go right into the piece around venture capital, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SULLIVAN:

Mr.

Speaker, venture capital is an area that we are really happy now that we are

moving into this Province. I know

that many people from Newfoundland and Labrador have spoken to me and have said

we hear some talk about venture capital, but specifically what is that about?

Mr. Speaker, I think it is only helpful for those who

are viewing at home and those who are listening that we talk a little bit about

what it is. It is basically a

start-up or an early or mid-stage investment of a business growth.

It is usually provided to help businesses expand and compete in a global

economy. We all know the global

competitiveness that exists out there today, so venture capital funds really do

help our start-up companies, particularly, and our earlier mid-stage companies

to succeed in those markets.

Start-up or seed financing is really that initial

funding that is used to start their businesses.

It often comes from founders, from angel investors, and from venture

capital funds or government programs.

It is generally less than $1 million in total, Mr. Speaker.

Our early stage capital for companies that have some sales but are likely

not profitable at that point typically come from venture capital funds that

range from about $1 million to $3 million.

Our mid-stage capital for companies that have some proven success and

where demand is expanding can come from venture capital or private equity funds

of course. That ranges anywhere from

$3 million to $15 million.

The funds are managed, Mr. Speaker, by professional

fund managers who take a really active role in advising and mentoring the

company. They assisted in raising

the capital in the first place. They

provide access to the networks of customers and strategic partners.

They help address operational and management issues and so on.

Mr. Speaker, one of the things that we often hear

about, particularly with new companies, those that are not gone to

commercialization stage yet, is that they also could avail of mentorship.

Through venture capital, particularly when we use such investors as the

Newfoundland and Labrador Angel Network, for example, those people are also very

giving and very willing to help out in terms of mentorship with those initial

companies and start-ups.

I know that one of our members opposite has been in the

past very involved. That is a very

good thing and has proven to be a very, very good thing for people here in

Newfoundland and Labrador. It is a

very tangible example of how success can happen.

We have seen that with many of our companies here.

I could speak to Verafin, for example, and the success that they saw as a

result of venture capital and using the Newfoundland and Labrador venture fund.

Our fund will focus on strategic sectors such as

information, ocean technology, green technology, among others, to improve access

to larger venture capital pools and encourage more private sector investment.

It will be a partnership, and the partnership will include the Government

of Newfoundland and Labrador, again the Newfoundland and Labrador Angel Network

that I mentioned, and other institutional and private investors.

It will be managed, of course, by GrowthWorks Atlantic.

Again, we believe that we will see leveraged investment

as a result of the strong mentorship and the strong support that will be found

as a result of the engagement of venture capital.

We are currently in discussions with proponents of the funds along with

other investors and we will be rolling out that fund very soon, Mr. Speaker.

If I were to just sum up briefly and talk about the

benefits of venture capital funding, we are talking about addressing gaps that

are identified when it comes to the financing and the development of start-up

companies and early-stage technology companies, in this case; be able to improve

the success of young entrepreneurs with mentorship, as I said, and I believe

that is so important; and also supporting innovation and the member opposite

spoke about that in technology, in particular in our post-secondary

institutions, which really support the creativity of our young entrepreneurs.

They inspire that innovation in their graduates and they will also see

some real benefit from these funds.

Certainly the bottom line is, I believe, we are going

to create a more competitive environment for our businesses, our start-up

businesses, our early and mid-stage businesses as a result of this

business-friendly fund that we will set up.

We will allow companies to mature so that they are more competitive.

In the global world in which we live today, that competitiveness is so

important, Mr. Speaker.

In conclusion, the amendments to the Income Tax Act

will allow for the implementation of a venture capital tax credit to complement

our Venture Newfoundland and Labrador Fund, and I believe that will certainly

encourage private sector investment.

I would encourage all members in this House to support this amendment because by

supporting the amendment, what you are doing is you are supporting innovation,

you are supporting creativity, you are supporting that entrepreneurial spirit,

and you will certainly help encourage all those eager university students that I

have been meeting over the last couple of weeks, like the owners of Verafin, to

create and establish companies in Newfoundland and Labrador that will, I

believe, one day be real, serious players on the world stage.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER (Verge) :

The hon. Leader of the Third Party.

MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I am glad to stand today and be able to speak to Bill

20,

An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act.

I know my colleagues have given some details, but since I am standing

myself I will put out what I understand the bill to be.

Of course, the major piece is that it is dealing with

venture capital through two funds; one of the funds being an Atlantic fund

called Build Ventures Fund, and the second one is a provincial venture capital

fund. The bill deals, obviously,

with the Province being involved in both of these funds.

It also deals with tax credits for people who invest in these funds and

giving power to the minister to prescribe the tax credit.

Then it also deals with the regulations, providing for the Lieutenant

Governor in Council to make regulations and to set the guidelines and the

details with regard to the fund.

While the various subsections of the bill, 46.2,

outline what regulations might cover, we do not know what the regulations are

because, of course, regulations do not get approved in the House of Assembly.

So, consequently, there is a lot of detail that we do not know.

It is just the basic framework for our putting money into the Build

Ventures Fund, the Atlantic Canadian fund, and then also putting money into the

provincial venture capital fund.

I find it interesting that the government is talking

about this as if this is something they are doing for the first time.

It is in terms of putting the money into these funds; but in terms of

looking for people, looking for business to come into the Province and to bring

their ideas to the Province and to set up in the Province, this something that

the government was trying to do for a long time.

For a numbers of years at Estimates, I would ask questions about the $15

million in the investment attraction fund that government had, which did not

attract investment.

So, I find it very interesting that government now

wants us to get excited about this Build Ventures Fund and the provincial

ventures fund and that this is going to mean great support of entrepreneurship

and we are going to have all of these wonderful new businesses and ideas coming

to the Province, when they did not do it before and could not do it before.

I am not sure that we have any real reason to think they are going to be

successful in doing it now.

When we look at the Build Ventures Fund, for example,

it is an Atlantic Canadian fund, and it is a fund that, it is true, it is at

arm's length and it is independent and it will make independent decisions

without any politics involved, but the problem is, too, it means that we are out

there with the other Atlantic Provinces and whether or not we will ever get

chosen as a place where an investor wants to come, will depend on the

competition. When we could not do it

before by ourselves as a Province, why are we so sure that we are going to be

able to attract investors now when we are in competition with the other Atlantic

Provinces?

So we have $10 million going into that fund with the

hope that it is going to result in getting some new businesses here, and we have

$10 million going in the provincial venture capital fund, which is the fund that

we know nothing about. It is going

to be handed over to a privately-managed venture capital initiative who will run

the fund, but we have precious little detail at this moment.

The government plans on the privately-managed venture capital initiative

providing financing, as well as access to necessary mentoring and business

expertise to ensure companies have the resources to succeed in national and

international markets.

They do not talk about who is going to do this I put

this question out, and the minister can probably speak to it: Are the hands in

which the fund is going to be put, are they going to be the ones who are going

to provide the mentoring? Are they

the ones who are going to provide the business expertise to companies who want

to succeed? Who is going to do that?

Is government going to have any involvement in that?

We know that we do have technologies going on here in Newfoundland and

Labrador in areas of research that should be of interest, and that could improve

global competitiveness of companies operating in those areas here in the

Province, but it has not happened up to now.

So, that is my concern.

We are giving $10 million into one fund that is going to be highly

competitive for us, and then $10 million into another fund that we have very few

details about. Government is saying

that there will be no political interference which is fine, and I am glad

about that, but even when the government had money there in the investment

attraction fund we still could not get anybody.

Am I excited by this?

No, I am not excited. They

are hoping that perhaps they are going to attract new business, and we know that

we need new business; we know that we need to start businesses so that we are

not just dependent on the resource development sector.

Yet, the businesses that would be getting money through these funds,

would they be businesses that would be large enough to really help our economy?

I guess my answer is a lot of small businesses can do a lot of good for

an economy, but I do not have any detail from government that makes me think

that they are going to be, or we are going to be any more successful in

attracting the investment.

No, I am not excited.

They did not prove to me before that they knew how to do it and we

certainly did not gain all kinds of people because of money that government

gave. We have examples of where

government gave money to industries in this Province where we got nothing back

for the money, companies that did nothing with the money.

I am not excited about it.

I hope it is not wasted money and I suppose I can look at the Atlantic

Canada one and say: Well, we put $10 million in and PEI benefits from it, or a

business in PEI benefits from it, we should be happy.

I would be happier if the businesses are going to be helping us benefit

from it here in Newfoundland and Labrador.

I guess whether it is $10 million in each of the funds

or $20 million into the provincial fund, it really would not matter because we

had $15 million in the investment attraction fund before and, as I said, never

did anything with it.

I sort of see this bill as much to do about nothing.

It cannot be harmful, but I would be delighted if I saw something come

from it.

I think that is all I need to say to it, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much.

MR.

SPEAKER:

the hon. the Minister of Finance speaks now, she will close the debate.

The hon. the Minister of Finance.

JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, we do share the excitement of our colleagues, at

least from the Opposition, Mr. Speaker, and the Leader of the Third Party spoke

for herself and her party that they are not excited.

I certainly invite her, on behalf of the Minister of Innovation, Business

and Rural Development, to the press conference when they do launch this new fund

because she then will see the excitement that has circulated around this

particular fund, Mr. Speaker.

I know the Member for Virginia Waters and the Member

for The Straits White Bay North have spoken about this in the past.

I can tell you the excitement that I saw in the faces of many businesses

on Budget day when we had our lockdowns with the various stakeholders, Mr.

Speaker.

She talks about we are now doing this with Atlantic

Canada. We are very proud of the

fact that we are sharing with our Atlantic counterparts and working with them to

draw people to the Atlantic region.

It is very competitive out there. I

can certainly assure her that many businesses are knocking on our door and are

so excited to see that we are part of the Build Ventures Fund and that we are

having our own fund because they are looking for a way to invest in the

innovative, creative talent that we have here in this Province, Mr. Speaker.

I went around the Province and talked to some of the

businesses and in Clarenville SubC, two young men from rural Newfoundland, I

do not even think they were twenty-five years old, Mr. Speaker.

It is companies like that which are working in innovative, very unique

niches in technology. Those are the

types of companies that we want to help get started up.

I want to share our excitement about it and I see that

from the Opposition. Time will have

to tell for the Leader of the NDP.

We invite her to that launch because there is going to be a lot of excitement

when this unfolds.

I thank the Opposition for their support for this to

have the legislative authority to do this piece of work so that we can announce

the details of this in the very near future.

On that note, if there are any specific questions in Committee I would be

happy to assist.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

it the pleasure of the House that the said bill be now read a second time?

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Aye.

MR.

SPEAKER:

All

those against, nay'.

Carried.

CLERK:

bill,

An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act, 2000 No. 2.

(Bill 20)

MR.

SPEAKER:

This bill has now been a read a second time.

When shall the bill be referred to a Committee of the

Whole House?

MR.

KING:

Today.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Today.

On motion, a bill,

An Act

To Amend The Income Tax Act, 2000 No. 2, read a second time, ordered

referred to a Committee of the Whole House presently, by leave.

(Bill 20)

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

At this time, I call from the Order Paper, Order 2,

second reading of a bill,

An Act To Amend The Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005,

Bill 19.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move, seconded by the Minister of Municipal and

Intergovernmental Affairs, that Bill 19,

An Act To Amend The Dispensing

Opticians Act, 2005, now be read the second time.

MR.

SPEAKER:

has been moved and seconded that Bill 19 entitled,

An Act To Amend The

Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005, be now read a second time.

Motion, second reading of a bill,

An Act To Amend The

Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005.

(Bill 19)

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise before this House today to introduce in second

reading a bill entitled,

An Act To Amend The Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005.

Mr. Speaker, the Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005

regulates the practice of dispensing opticians which involves the dispensing of

optical appliances such as eyeglasses and contact lenses which are required to

correct an individual's vision.

There are 115 dispensing opticians registered with the Dispensing Opticians

Board of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, the dispensing of contact lenses is an

area that receives special attention.

Not all dispensing opticians are qualified to fit a person with contact

lenses. Unlike eyeglasses, contact

lenses are designed to sit directly on the cornea of the eye; therefore, in

order to fit contact lenses, dispensing opticians require specialized training.

A dispensing optician who has completed the required

extra education and training may be certified by the Dispensing Opticians Board

as a contact lens fitter. Of the 115

dispensing opticians registered by the board, forty-four are also certified as

contact lens fitters.

Mr. Speaker, in accordance with

section 32 of the act,

dispensing opticians must only dispense optical appliances in accordance with

the prescription of an optometrist or an ophthalmologist.

Section 33 of the act further states: contact lens must only be dispensed

by a dispensing optician who holds a certificate from a Dispensing Opticians

Board authorizing him or her to fit contact lenses; where it is done under the

direction of a licensed medical practitioner or registered optometrist and where

the prescription of the optometrist or ophthalmologist specifically prescribes

contact lenses.

This bill amends the Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005 to

remove the requirements that contact lenses must only be dispensed under the

direction of a licensed medical practitioner or a registered optometrist and

that all prescriptions from a licensed medical practitioner or registered

optometrist must specifically prescribe contact lenses before contact lenses may

be dispensed.

Mr. Speaker, currently when a contact lens fitter

receives a contact lens specific prescription from an optometrist or an

ophthalmologist, he or she is required to conduct a thorough assessment of the

individual's eyes before dispensing the contact lenses to ensure the individual

is suited to wearing contact lenses even though the optometrist or

ophthalmologist would have already conducted an examination.

The contact lens fitter also provides information regarding the handling

and care of contact lenses to prevent injury to an individual's eyes from

wearing contact lenses.

These requirements are part of the professional

standards of practice of dispensing opticians who hold a special designation of

contact lens fitter. In some cases,

even though an individual may have a contact lens specific prescription from an

optometrist or ophthalmologist, a contact lens fitter may determine not to

dispense contact lenses to the individual.

This can happen, for example, where the individual suffers an eye injury

in the intervening time between when he or she receives the contact lens

specific prescription, and when they see the contact lens fitter to be fitted

for the contact lenses.

Mr. Speaker, we have received information from the

Dispensing Opticians Board that contact lens fitters are often faced with

situations where an individual who wants contact lenses only has the basic

eyeglass prescription and attends an optical business to obtain contact lenses.

In these circumstances, under current legislation, the individual may not

be aware that the specific prescription for contact lenses is required.

He or she may have forgotten to ask an optometrist or ophthalmologist to

include contact lenses on the prescription, or the individual may have decided

at a later date that he or she now would like the option of contact lenses.

Mr. Speaker, currently in these cases the contact lens

fitter must inform the individual that he or she must return to the optometrist

or ophthalmologist to obtain a contact lens specific prescription.

This results in extra time, extra effort, and quite often extra expense

expended by the individual client, the optometrist or ophthalmologist, and the

contact lens fitter before the individual may receive contact lenses.

Mr. Speaker, Newfoundland and Labrador is the only

jurisdiction in Canada which limits the scope of practice of contact lens

fitters by imposing these requirements.

In other jurisdictions, there is no such thing as a contact lens specific

prescription. This bill makes our

legislation consistent with legislation across the country with respect to the

scope of practice of dispensing opticians who have the contact lens fitter

designation.

The amendment to this act will enable an individual who

has a basic glass prescription from his or her optometrist or ophthalmologist to

go to a contacts fitter to be fitted for contact lenses.

An eyeglass prescription includes the values of the various parameters

that are necessary in order to dispense these corrective lenses to an

individual. Using these values, a

contact lens fitter is qualified to do the necessary calculations to convert the

values from an individual's eyeglass prescription to determine the values and

strength of the contact lenses for that particular individual.

When an individual with a basic eyeglass prescription

visits a contact lens fitter, the contact lens fitter will conduct an assessment

of the individual's eyes and ask him or her various questions related to his or

her eye health. Using this

assessment, the contact lens fitter will determine whether or not the person is

suited to wearing contact lenses.

While contact lens fitters are not authorized to

diagnose any disease or condition of the eye that falls within the exclusive

scope of practice of optometrists and ophthalmologists their education and

training enables them to recognize when such diseases or conditions may be

present. They are also aware of the

contradictions to wearing contact lenses and are qualified to identify those

upon assessing in individuals.

Mr. Speaker, if a contact lens fitter determines that

an individual should not wear contact lenses, he or she will not dispense the

lenses and in appropriate cases will refer the individual back to his or her

optometrist or ophthalmologist for appropriate follow up.

Contact lens fitters also provide individuals with valuable information

and instruction regarding the use and care of contact lenses in order to prevent

any infection or injury which may be caused by wearing contact lenses.

First-time contact wearers must also attend follow-up

visits with the contact lens fitter in order to ensure the contact lenses

continue to fit properly and there are no negative side effects with the use of

contact lenses. In jurisdictions

elsewhere in Canada, the decision to fit and dispense contact lenses is made by

the contact lens fitter everyday as part of their scope of practice.

Mr. Speaker, it is within the scope of practice of contact lens fitters

in this Province to dispense contact lenses based on the value set out in the

eyeglass prescription.

The proposed amendment to the act will ensure that

contact lens fitters are able to work to their full scope of practice.

The amendment will remove the requirements that contact lenses may only

be fitted under the direction of a licensed medical practitioner or a registered

optometrist and that the prescription states specifically that it is for contact

lenses. Contact lens fitters will

still require direction from an optometrist or an ophthalmologist in the form of

a prescription, but this prescription will now be for basic eyeglass

prescription. Contact lens fitters

will then use the information in the eyeglass prescription to fit contact lenses

in cases where it is appropriate to do so.

Mr. Speaker, this bill will not only allow contact lens

fitters in the Province to work to their full scope of practice, it will also

make it easier for individuals to obtain contact lenses from their chosen

service provider without having to go to their optometrist or their

ophthalmologist to get a specific contact lens prescription.

Mr. Speaker, this bill is a relatively small amendment.

I believe it will be important to people in Newfoundland and Labrador who

choose contact lenses. It will bring

our legislation in-line to be consistent with other jurisdictions in Canada.

I look forward to the debate this afternoon and comments from members of

the House of Assembly.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

am happy to stand and speak to Bill 19,

An Act To Amend The Dispensing Opticians

Act, 2005.

is certainly not riveting stuff. It

is very much a requested housekeeping piece of legislation.

Contrary to what the minister said, I do not think there will be much

debate on this today because it is something that I think is needed.

Importantly to me during my briefing with the department was the fact

that this was requested by the industry.

Again, speaking first, I would like to first thank the

members of the minister's department who took the time to meet with us and brief

us on this piece of legislation. I

know it takes them some time to do that, and I appreciate them doing that.

The second part, it is a very small amendment here in

the sense that

section 33 of the Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005 is repealed and

the following

section 33 is being substituted in.

There are just two sub-clauses to it.

One is contact lenses shall only be fitted by a dispensing optician who

holds a certificate from the board authorizing him or her to do so.

Number two, notwithstanding 32.(1), a dispensing optician who holds a

certificate from the board authorizing him or her to fit contact lenses may

convert a prescription for the purposes of fitting, dispensing or supplying

contact lenses.

It seems very straightforward, and I did not actually

have many questions during the briefing.

One of them was: why is this done?

There are so many pieces of legislation.

The individual doing the briefing said this is not something we would

have thought of. This was something

the industry requested. I am happy

to see government respond to professionals when they come forward with

legislation that is necessary. We

all know that is not always the case, but in this case the department was

contacted and they took the necessary steps.

I do not think there is a need to go into all of the

details. I think the minister did a

good job of explaining certain parts.

Things I did not know prior to this, the fact that there are 115

dispensing opticians in the Province and of those, forty-four have undergone the

additional training to be able to fit contact lenses for people.

The purpose of this today is we are removing the

restriction that a dispensing optician may only supply contact lenses where a

prescription specifically indicates that it may be supplied.

It sounds like a small thing but it really was a hindrance getting in the

way, so that is being taken care of.

It also clarified the dispensing optician who is authorized by the board may

convert this prescription.

What we are actually doing here, and I agree with this,

is we are simplifying the procedure.

I would assume there are savings that will be realized by this in a sense that

you do not have to go back and forth to these professionals.

We are making people's lives easier.

There is a Dispensing Opticians Board in this Province,

and it is legislatively required to have five people who are elected from and by

dispensing opticians in accordance with the bylaws; two people appointed by the

minister who are the laypersons, who are there to represent the public

interests, very similar to other regulating boards to take care of their own.

It is a necessary piece, and the reason I say necessary

is on the assurance by the department that this was industry driven.

That is what my comments are based on here today.

I have not had a conversation with a dispensing optician when it comes to

this. I have had other conversations

with optometrists and other eye professionals.

That is something I will bring up on another occasion.

Again, this is being done at the request of the board.

It acknowledges and recognizes the scope of practice for opticians who

have done the additional training.

There is obviously no harm to people's safety.

We are making the practice better and more inclusive.

I am assuming that if the board brings this forward,

then the board is speaking on behalf of their members, and that is necessary.

We have talked in the past about cases where there was consultation that

was supposed to have been done and was never done.

I have been assured this is not the case, and happy to see that.

I do not think there is any need to belabour the

points. The minister provided a good

background to why this is being brought forward.

It is important. I am sure we

are making the lives better for those individuals who are involved in this

practice, and in turn, those individuals who rely on their service.

So if we can make life easier, make things better, not harm anybody and

maybe have some savings, then I am certainly all for that and would be happy to

support it.

In saying that, I will take my seat and maybe have some

questions at the Committee stage.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Humber West.

MR.

GRANTER:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is a privilege this afternoon to stand for a few

moments to talk about Bill 19,

An Act To Amend The Dispensing Opticians Act,

I want to specifically focus for a few moments on the

scope of practice. As my hon.

colleague from across the floor just eloquently referenced, the bill would amend

the Dispensing Opticians Act, 2005 to remove the restriction that a dispensing

optician may only supply contact lenses where a prescription specifically

indicates that they may be supplied.

I just realized, reading directly from the bill, I think it is time for me to go

get my eyes checked again, Mr. Speaker clarify that a dispensing optician who

is authorized by the board to fit contact lenses may convert a prescription in

order to supply contact lenses.

There are just two changes; actually, one change in the

bill, in the act, because

section 33(1) is the same as it is there now.

Contact lenses shall only be fitted by a dispensing optician (

a) who

holds a certificate from the board authorizing him or her to do so.

That is the same in the current bill.

The change under

section 33(2) is: notwithstanding

subsection 32(1), a dispensing optician who holds a certificate from the board

authorizing him or her to fit contact lenses may convert a prescription for the

purposes of fitting, dispensing, or supplying contact lenses.

I just want to take a few moments of everyone's time,

especially the viewers at home, to talk for a few moments about the scope of

practice for the dispensing opticians.

Mr. Speaker, as alluded to, there are 115 dispensing opticians registered

with the Dispensing Opticians Board of Newfoundland and Labrador which is the

regulatory body of the profession, and that is important to remember.

Dispensing opticians engage in the practice of optical

dispensing, whether it be eyeglasses or contact lenses.

Under

section 2(

g) optical dispensing' means (

i) the supplying,

repairing and dispensing of optical appliances, (ii) the

interpretation of

prescriptions of optometrists and medical practitioners, or (iii) the fitting,

adjusting and adapting of optical appliances to the human face and eyes in

accordance with the prescriptions of optometrists and medical practitioners.

Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of the people listening

and watching at home, optical appliances are defined in the act as lenses,

spectacles, eye glasses, contact lenses or parts connected or attached to these

for the relief or correction of a visual or muscular error or defect of the

eyes.

Mr. Speaker, I just want to take a moment or two to

talk a little bit about the work of dispensing opticians here in the Province.

In order to be registered as a dispensing optician in Newfoundland and

Labrador by the Dispensing Opticians Board, an individual must meet specific

education and training requirements.

I want to say upfront that they are very stringent here in the Province, as they