March 13,

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLVII No. 2

The House met at 1:30 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Wiseman):

Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Before we start today, I

would like to welcome back three of our Pages from the last session: Michael;

and we have Fatima, who is back with us as well; and we have Morgan, who is also

back with us. I want to introduce

our new Page for this session, Ms Andrea Tapper.

Welcome, Andrea.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

You would have noticed yesterday in

the Chamber, and again today, we have our new Sergeant-at-Arms with us as of

yesterday, and a little later today there will be a motion introduced in the

House to formalize the appointment: Mr. Wayne Harnum.

Welcome, Sir.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

Statements by Members

MR. SPEAKER:

Today we will have members'

statements from the Member for the District of St. John's East; the Member for

the District of St. John's South; the Member for the District of Burgeo La

Poile; the Member for the District of Lake Melville; the Member for the District

of Bellevue; and the Member for the District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.

You would have probably

noticed a visitor in our Speaker's gallery today, the recently appointed Chief

of the RNC, who will be more formally introduced in a few moments.

The Member for the

District of St. John's East.

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this House

today to honour a woman who, with dignity and humour, became an unlikely leader

in the field of HIV/AIDS education and gay rights.

For her leadership in the

face of personal tragedy, Sara Rita Sexton was selected for induction into the

Order of Newfoundland and Labrador this year.

Her many admirers - and I include myself in that number, Mr. Speaker -

could not have been more pleased.

Sara was the mother of

one of the most popular entertainers this Province has ever produced, Tommy

Sexton, whose life was cut tragically short at age thirty-six by AIDS in

December of 1993.

Since then, Sara and the

rest of the Sexton family have worked tirelessly to educate the public about HIV

and AIDS, and to help those who are affected, including spearheading the

construction of the Tommy Sexton Centre.

The support continues for Sara's ninetieth birthday last year, she

requested no gifts for herself, but donations for the centre, raising $4,000 on

that occasion.

Sara Sexton's compassion

and common sense continue to inspire us all.

I ask all hon. members to join me in congratulating her on her induction

in the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

South.

MR. OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, last month

there was a fire at Maplewood Apartments on Shaw Street, in St. John's South.

There were five residents

sent to hospital but later released.

All other residents got out safely.

There were no fatalities, thank God.

I am very thankful that the fire was late afternoon and not in the middle of the

night or things may have been very different.

I would like to recognize

the people who helped make sure everything went as well as it did that night:

the St. John's Regional Fire Department, the paramedics who responded,

the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the Mayor and City of St. John's, the Royal

Newfoundland Constabulary, the staff from Advanced Education and Skills, and the

staff of the building, as well as others.

Everyone worked well

together, and they have to be commended for how smoothly everything went.

As the Premier will recall, I contacted him early that evening to ensure

that people had somewhere to stay that night.

He and the minister responsible responded and I thank them for that.

I would like to recognize

and thank everyone who was involved.

Thank you, from myself

and from all of the residents at Maplewood Manor.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La

Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to pay

tribute to the late Dr. Richard Ernest Taor.

Dr. Taor stated his

medical career in London, and emigrated to Port aux Basques in 1977.

In London, Dr. Taor

worked primarily as a surgeon but when he came to Port aux Basques he did

whatever was required of him, from delivering babies and emergency C-sections to

general checkups.

He had an extremely busy

practice and once said he had delivered between 1,000 and 1,500 babies.

He was always quick to praise the nurses and staff he worked with.

He served his patients of the Southwest Coast with compassion and

devotion until his retirement in 2011.

After retirement, Dr.

Taor had no desire to leave Port aux Basques, where he was welcomed from his

first day on the job. He said: We

go places and visit, but this is home.

Dr. Taor will be deeply

missed by his wife, Magda, their two children, Fiona and Christopher, their

partners, his siblings, William, Lesley, and Helen, his extended family, as well

as a wide circle of friends, associates, and physicians.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all

members of this House to join with me in paying tribute to the late Richard

Taor, a true credit to his family and community, and to extend condolences to

his family on their loss.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Lake

Melville.

MR. RUSSELL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to recognize

the life and spirit of Ms. Loretta Saunders.

I would like to recognize

the determination of this young woman.

Growing up as a woman of Inuit heritage she saw first-hand the struggles

of her people. While most feel the

need to ignore and just live their lives, Loretta wanted to help.

She pursued a degree that

would give her the ability to help others, which led her to begin writing a

thesis on missing and murdered Aboriginal women.

When she was finished this degree, she had plans to become a lawyer and

do what we could only imagine now to help the people of her community, if not

the people of the country.

She, like most

Labradorians, looked to help others in their community so they too could be

become stronger. Loretta was someone

who dreamed big, worked hard, and was a person everyone adored.

These things she learned from being raised in a close-knit family of

eight siblings.

If any solace can be

taken from her tragic passing, it is the fact that she was able to put a

national spotlight on the issues she worked passionately to address.

I ask all hon. members of

this House to join me in remembering the life and spirit of Loretta Saunders.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District

of Bellevue.

MR. PEACH:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this hon. House

today to recognize a student of Crescent Collegiate in Blaketown, on winning a

scholarship for academics.

Brandon Thorne of New

Harbour is the son of Christine and Brian Throne and has two siblings.

He is now attending Memorial University and is the only recipient of the

Ronald K. Kennedy Scholarship. This

scholarship recognizes the excellence in post-secondary studies and is given to

the student who completes two years of a degree or diploma program with

scholastic achievement, displays potential, and possesses exceptional qualities

of character and economic need. The

scholarship was for $1,200.

I ask all members to join

me in congratulating Brandon on his accomplishment and wish him all the best in

his future.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District

of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.

MS PERRY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this hon. House

today to deliver accolades to some special volunteers from the Town of Harbour

Breton. The Citizen of the Year was

held recently at the Lions Club and I had the honour of attending.

The nominees for 2013 were George Strickland, Margaret Day, Hilda

Strickland, Sean Johnston, Elizabeth Taylor, Lorne Bond Jr., and Sheila Mercer

all very deserving candidates. This

high community honour was awarded to Mrs. Sheila Mercer.

This exceptional lady's

official role is Treasurer-Secretary of the Connaigre Peninsula Cancer Support

Group, but all can attest that she goes far beyond this title and lends her

talents to many causes. Nominated by

the Local Cancer Group for her dedication as an ACW member for thirty-four

years, and St. Bartholomew's Church member for forty-four years, Sheila has

delighted audiences in various ACW concerts and fundraisers with her acting

skills and infectious sense of humour.

Sheila is well known for her care and compassion and, on behalf of

residents, I thank her for the many donations of cakes and cookies for the sick

or bereaved.

I ask all members of this

hon. House to join me in thanking all of the nominees and Mrs. Mercer for their

outstanding community service and volunteerism.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN:

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to

recognize the outstanding performance of figure skater and Marystown native,

Kaetlyn Osmond, who served as an inspiration for thousands of students

throughout Newfoundland and Labrador during the Winter Olympics in Sochi,

Russia.

During the games, the

Department of Education, in partnership with the Department of Tourism, Culture

and Recreation, established a Web page, Follow Kaetlyn's Journey, where all

residents were able to learn more about Kaetlyn and her path to the Olympics.

The Web page included photos, recent events, as well as various teaching

resources to help schools capitalize on the learning opportunities made possible

through the Olympic Games.

Our schools did take

advantage of those learning opportunities, Mr. Speaker.

students were participating in the Olympic experience.

One school held their own Olympic opening ceremonies, wore the

traditional dress of various countries, and learned about their cultures.

Others participated in Olympic-themed arts, crafts, and sporting events.

I had the pleasure of

visiting St. Thomas Aquinas in Port au Port in mid-February, and saw first-hand

how that school had used an Olympic-themed banner, running through the main

hallway, to update Kaetlyn's progress and the progress of other Canadian

athletes. They also integrated the

Olympic theme into their mathematics and language arts classes in ways that

clearly engaged students in a new and exciting way.

Meanwhile, students and

staff throughout the Province were encouraged to use interactive whiteboards,

and other advanced technologies, to watch Kaetlyn's performance during the final

ladies free skate program on February 20.

Mr. Speaker, with more than 4,000 interactive whiteboards placed in K-12

schools in recent years, along with other technological advancements, students

could witness local sports history taking place, in real time, right from their

classrooms.

Mr. Speaker, I invite my

colleagues in this House to congratulate teachers throughout the Province for

the many innovative ways in which they integrated the 2014 Winter Olympics into

the curriculum and, of course, to congratulate Kaetlyn Osmond, Canada's national

figure skating women's champion and Olympic silver medalist in the team

competition in Sochi. She is a

remarkable talent; a remarkable young women, a true class act in every sense,

and we wish her every success in the future.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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.

Like many Newfoundlanders

and Labradorians, my family watched on with excited anticipation as Kaetlyn

Osmond competed in Sochi. Since she

has burst onto the international figure skating scene, Kaetlyn has made the

people of Marystown, and indeed all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, proud. Her

example of excellence is one that all Canadians, young and old alike, can look

for example from. She has displayed

exemplary grace, poise, and professionalism throughout her career so far in that

sport.

Whether it is in sports,

the arts, business, or other areas, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians continue to

stand out on the international stage and it is our teachers who we rely on to

educate, prepare, and nurture excellence in the coming generations of Olympians

and world-class leaders.

So we congratulate

Kaetlyn Osmond on her amazing accomplishments and her achievements, and we also

thank our teachers who play such an important role in our lives and inspire our

children to reach excellence, just like Kaetlyn does.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Third

Party.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I am delighted to join

with the minister and my colleague in congratulating Kaetlyn Osmond in her

achievements. I have been very

lucky, actually, to have seen her skating live three times now, and was there

when she first got the bronze medal in the national championships and then her

gold. So I have a real personal

thing with Kaetlyn. I have to say,

from the first minute I saw her I knew this was an exceptional person.

I do applaud everything that has happened for her and especially in the

Olympics.

It was wonderful at the

Newfoundland and Labrador Winter Games opening, and the Speaker was there, of

course, and the Premier, as well, to see the video of Kaetlyn speaking to all of

the young athletes in Clarenville that night and to see the smiles on their

faces as her face lit up the whole of the arena.

It was wonderful to see her being used as a role model for the other

young people.

I do encourage the

government, in recognizing that and recognizing how important it is for our

students to have healthy lifestyles, our young people to be active, that we put

more resources into sports and physical activities, both in the schools and the

wider community. We have the proof of

what it can do for us. To see the

stadium at the Winter Games, in particular, filled with all these healthy

looking students, these healthy looking young people, and then having Kaetlyn as

their role model, it really does behoove us to look at putting more resources

into these activities.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Tourism,

Culture and Recreation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH:

Mr. Speaker, for thirty-eight years,

the Newfoundland and Labrador Games Program has encouraged participation in

sport and the pursuit of excellence.

As the largest multisport event for youth in the Province, it brings together

athletes eleven to eighteen years of age to compete for the Premier's Cup.

The event is made possible through a collaborative effort of the

provincial government, SportNL, a host committee, and provincial sport

organizations.

The 2014 Winter Games

were held in Clarenville from March 1 to March 9 and drew 1,400 athletes,

coaches, and staff from eight regions of the Province and St. Pierre and

Miquelon. The participants competed

in eleven sports such as alpine skiing, basketball, cross-country skiing, figure

skating, gymnastics, and hockey. Our

government invested more than $500,000 in the 2014 games to offset operating

costs and assist with travel expenses.

The games ended with

Labrador leading the medal count at twenty-two, while the Western Region had the

highest number of gold medals at thirteen.

The Premier's Cup, awarded to the region accumulating the highest number

of points, was presented to the Western team.

Both the SportNL Trophy for the team showing the most improvement from

one games to the next, and the Lieutenant Governor's Award celebrating

sportsmanship and spirit, were presented to the host team of Clarenville, which

was done by His Honour, the Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, these games

promote the achievements of some of our Province's top young athletes, and play

a significant role in our efforts to achieve an active and healthy population.

They also contribute to the development of sport and create opportunities

for our aspiring athletes. These

objectives would not be realized without the many coaches, managers, volunteers,

and parents committed to ensure the Newfoundland and Labrador Games are always a

success for everyone involved. Their

time, knowledge, and skills are an essential part of these young athletes'

achievements.

I would like to

congratulate the Town of Clarenville and the host committee who truly

demonstrated their ability to host large-scale sporting events.

Some of their most notable accomplishments were the provision of

nutritionist-approved food options for the athletes, and the creation of a

world-class giant slalom course that could rival Olympic venues.

Mr. Speaker, participants

in the Newfoundland and Labrador Games attain a level of excellence because of

their passion for sport, tireless hours of hard work, and a determination to be

the best at their respective sport.

I encourage all athletes to take their perseverance a step further, as they

prepare for the next Summer Games which will be held in Conception Bay South in

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District

of Bay of Islands.

MR. JOYCE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for

an advance copy of the statement. I

want to congratulate all members, the Premier, the minister, yourself, Mr.

Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition, the Member for Mount Pearl South who was

out there, and I am sure other members here also who support the athletes out in

Clarenville.

Mr. Speaker, if I could

just sidetrack for a second, they said it was on for thirty-eight years.

One of the first events I went to as a boxer was the Canada-Newfoundland

Winter Games out in Gander, back a number of years.

Mr. Speaker, that was an experience that I had for many years later.

Congratulations to the

government for supporting these games, for supporting the athletes; Labrador,

for getting their awards; Clarenville, for the most spirit award, Mr. Speaker.

Also, I have to congratulate the athletes from the West Coast for getting

their award.

To them, the awards are

just something different meeting friends, meeting families, and making new

friends is what it is all about.

People who have been in the sports, they know what it is like to win but they

know what it is like to strive. They

have to work hard, they have to work together, they have to have a healthy

lifestyle, and this is what the Winter Games is all about.

A lot of these athletes

will never move on like Kaetlyn Osmond, but a lot of these athletes here will

make new friends, will learn how to achieve things at life because of hard work

and dedication. To everybody who

supported the Town of Clarenville, Mr. Speaker, I understand you were there a

lot helping out in the beginning, so congratulations to everybody who

participated in this to make this a success.

They are definitely our future.

As the Premier mentioned yesterday in the Throne Speech, the future is

bright with these athletes that went to Clarenville in the Newfoundland and

Labrador Winter Games.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

Centre.

MS ROGERS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for

an advance copy of his statement.

Congratulations to the participants and organizers for a very successful

Newfoundland and Labrador Winter Games in Clarenville.

The Member for Signal

Hill Quidi Vidi had the pleasure of attending the opening ceremonies and she

said the extent of the expertise and professionalism of the local people was so

evident in the incredible, fantastic opening.

The games play a very

important role in achieving an active and healthy youth population, and these

activities carry on into their adult lives.

Government's investment is important, crucial, and vital.

We need greater investment in physical education in schools, more

physical education classes, beginning in their early grades and on up through

high school. It is both a way to

increase our numbers of excellent athletes and healthy lifestyles.

Early experience with team sports also helps youth to become team players

as adults and more involved in their communities.

Bravo and congratulations

to Clarenville; bravo to volunteers and the athletes.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in

the House today to recognize the outstanding achievements of retired Royal

Newfoundland Constabulary Chief of Police, Robert P. Johnston, and to also

welcome our new Chief, William Janes, to the job.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KING:

Mr. Speaker, as most of us would

know, there is no higher rank that one can achieve at the Royal Newfoundland

Constabulary than the Chief of Police, and Chief Johnston served admirably in

this capacity after taking on the role in May, 2010.

Upon his retirement, he

was a thirty-four year veteran of the RNC with the majority of his career being

spent in the Criminal Investigation Division, Criminal Intelligence, Major

Crime, and Sexual Offence Units.

Chief Johnston is a recipient of the thirty-year Police Exemplary Service Medal

and the Queen's Golden and Diamond Jubilee Medals.

In 2012 he was appointed to the Order of Merit in the Officers' Category.

Shortly after the official opening of the RNC headquarters at Fort

Townshend last month, Chief Johnston announced his well-earned retirement from

the police service.

Chief Robert Johnston has

been an exemplary police officer and an outstanding role model for all those who

worked with him. Under his guidance,

we saw many positive developments in the structure of the RNC including new

specialized units in the Criminal Investigation Division, the prioritizing of

training for officers, and a focus on best practices in terms of scientific and

investigative techniques. We also

saw, Mr. Speaker, more women encouraged and supported in becoming police

officers at the RNC.

On behalf of the

residents of Newfoundland and Labrador, I would like to thank Chief Johnston for

his valuable contribution to policing in the Province.

He has made the RNC a better police service and has made our communities

safer places in which to live.

Mr. Speaker, I would also

like to take the opportunity to acknowledge the twenty-first RNC chief of police

who was officially appointed by the Premier on February 28.

I would like to take this opportunity to officially introduce Chief Bill

Janes to this hon. House. Bill joins

us here in the gallery today.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KING:

Chief Janes, Mr. Speaker, has been a

member of the RNC for almost thirty years and most recently served as the deputy

chief in charge of criminal operations.

He has played a significant leadership role in helping the RNC become one

of Canada's leading law enforcement agencies, and as we have already seen in the

last week or so since his inauguration, he will persist in the pursuit of

policing excellence. The provincial

government is committed to ensuring safe and secure communities in which to

raise our families, and looks forward to collaborating with Chief Janes on

future policing initiatives.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District

of St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for

an advance copy of his statement. I,

too, join with him in congratulating Chief Johnston on an outstanding career and

welcoming Chief Janes on the continuation of what is very obviously an

outstanding career. We have many

fine officers in the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary.

We have extended the reach and the scope of the RNC over the last

generation so it is pretty much Province-wide.

Mr. Speaker, however, the

RNC needs more than platitudes and more than words.

The police can arrest offenders but they have no ability to incarcerate

or to try and convict and to punish.

This government has fallen down on the job.

The biggest backtracks

that this government did is to do away with the domestic violence court.

This domestic violence court increased the number of people requiring it

by 300 per cent in four years and then they did away with it.

Mr. Speaker, I would hope that since the domestic violence court was the

brainchild of the current Premier when he was the Minister of Finance, I hope he

would add to the litany of backtracks in the Throne Speech, add this one,

reverse the position, and give us back the domestic violence court so people do

not have to protest at the Confederation Building for their right to justice.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

Centre.

MS ROGERS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for

an advance copy of his statement. I,

too, would like to thank Chief Johnston for his many years of service to the

people of the Province. He oversaw

many positive and crucial changes to the RNC during his time as chief,

especially an increase in the recruitment of women.

He fostered a better understanding of the dynamics and complexities of

family violence. He saw the

importance of and encouraged officers to refer cases to the Family Violence

Intervention Court to keep women and children safer.

He worked closely with women's groups in the community, respecting and

really listening to their expertise and experience.

The people of Newfoundland and Labrador are grateful for his dedicated

service.

Bravo, Robert Johnston.

Enjoy civilian life. You have

earned it.

Welcome, new Chief Bill

Janes. I look forward to working

with you. You have already been a

crucial part of the wonderful changes to the RNC.

We hope you enjoy your service.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The people of Virginia

Waters have been without representation in this House since the former Premier

resigned. The by-election can be

called at the wish of the Premier, but he has not done so yet.

I ask the Premier: Why

have you delayed calling this by-election?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Obviously, there are a

lot of things that go on the desk of the new Premier and it takes time to get

through them all, but I can assure the hon. member and the people of Virginia

Waters that they will have a by-election to elect a member to sit in this House

very soon.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We have heard very soon

many times from this government.

This government has had

an awakening of sorts and now they say they will review Bill 29.

This is the same bill they claimed was the proper balance and preserves

the right to know while protecting privacy and personal information.

This government previously defended Bill 29 and now they are committing

to a review.

I ask the Premier: Are we

to believe that the Cabinet was powerless to take a stand on Bill 29 while the

former Premier held office?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Mr. Speaker, this government proclaimed the Access to Information and Protection

of Privacy legislation, which had been legislated by our friends opposite, but

they did not proclaim it and did not have to live under it.

We did. We brought the

Auditor General back into this House of Assembly.

We passed the Transparency and Accountability legislation as well.

With Bill 29, obviously

the leading commentators in the country, the Centre for Law and Democracy, have

commented on the fact that they consider we have the third-best legislation in

the country, but the people of the Province have expressed some concerns, some

real concerns, so let us find out.

It is not about Bill 29.

It is about our Freedom of Information legislation, our Access to

Information legislation, and privacy legislation, not just the amendments but

all of the legislation. That all

needs to be looked at. An

independent, impartial committee will look at it and tell us whether our law is

good enough or not.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, none of the

comments we heard from the groups that were mentioned by the Premier that was

nothing new. These comments were all

in place and they were discussed publicly when the former Premier was here.

My question: Why did the Cabinet not respond then?

Mr. Speaker, the new

Premier announced the review of Bill 29.

When he did this he said government would establish an independent review

committee in the coming days, and more details on the consultation process would

be available in the coming weeks.

Now, that was six weeks ago.

So I ask the Premier:

When will you make the details of this review public?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Municipal

Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This review of our Access

to Information and Protection of Privacy legislation is very important to this

government and it is very important to the people of the Province.

We want to ensure in appointing the independent committee to lead this

process that the people of Newfoundland and Labrador have full confidence in

those we appoint.

We need people with, for

instance, a journalism background, with a legal background, and with expertise

or experience working with our ATIPP legislation.

We are making sure we get the right mix of people.

We are going to give them all the time and resources they need to do the

work, and I will be making an announcement regarding that committee in the days

ahead.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

We will have a by-election very

soon; we will have a review in the days ahead.

Mr. Speaker, it is not

just me who wants Bill 29 repealed.

In a recent poll conducted by CRA, 70 per cent of the population of Newfoundland

and Labrador believe that Bill 29 should be repealed.

So I ask the Premier: Why

are you not listening to the people of our Province and repealing Bill 29?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Municipal

Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Mr. Speaker, from the day he was

sworn in to yesterday's Throne Speech, each and every day, this Premier

demonstrates that we are listening to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

We have heard from countless people

that it is not as simple as repealing Bill 29.

Our own Information and Privacy Commissioner has said that would be an

unnecessary step. I have seen blog

posts that have suggested similarly.

It is our view that it is not just about looking at the amendments that were

made in 2012; it is about looking at the whole legislation.

We are so committed to

getting it right that we are advancing this review.

We are doing it a year earlier than what is required under legislation,

and we are going to look at the whole thing, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Mr. Speaker, teachers in our

Province have been without a contract for almost two years, and we have been

told that this government is not taking this new contract seriously.

Almost two years at the table and this government has not allowed a

conversation about monetary issues to enter into the negotiations.

Now, that is called bad faith negotiations.

So I ask the Premier:

When you finally get back to the table with our teachers, will you commit to

serious negotiations so teachers can focus on their primary responsibility:

educating our students?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Finance and

President of Treasury Board.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Government is certainly

committed to the bargaining process.

Tentative dates were set for the week of March 31.

I did have a meeting with Mr. Dinn in the last few days.

I was pleased to see that they too are committed to continuing

negotiations, Mr. Speaker.

We certainly value our

teachers. We are optimistic that we

will reach an agreement, as we have reached an agreement with 23,000 other union

members. We have reached agreements

with NAPE, CUPE, AAHP, and, in the last few days only, we reached agreements

with the correctional officers and the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation

Commission. So, we are committed to

collective agreements.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Mr. Speaker, the commitment has been

two years. So, letting our teachers

go almost two years without a contract is really insulting to the professionals,

and they were working tirelessly every day to educate our children.

Government's negotiating team has not been given the mandate to make

these decisions.

I ask the Premier: If you

are truly listening to people, why did our teachers have to resort to a public

relations campaign to get the negotiations back on track?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Finance and

President of Treasury Board.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, as I said,

tentative dates were set for the week of March 31.

I did meet with Mr. Dinn and I was pleased to hear that he is committed

to continuing with those dates.

Dates were never off for us; there is a clear mandate to negotiate, we do value

our teachers, and we hope that everybody gets back to the bargaining table so we

can have a deal with teachers because we certainly value what they do for our

children.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

On the eve of the 2007

election this government promised whistle-blower legislation, but they never

acted. Last year during Estimates,

the Minister of Justice stated that no government resources or funding had been

allocated to whistle-blower legislation during this fiscal year.

I ask the Premier: If it

is true that no resources were allocated, how are you able to make this

commitment now? Wouldn't you need to

allocate resources to prepare this legislation?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, this

government made a commitment to the people of the Province that it would bring

in whistle-blower legislation, so we are now going to do exactly what we said we

were going to do. We made a

commitment to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

We are going to honour that commitment by bringing it forward into this

House and hopefully, with the co-operation of members opposite, pass

whistle-blower legislation to protect employees in the public service in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, we send birthday

cards to celebrate events; we will give that piece of legislation a seventh

birthday card.

Government announced

whistle-blower legislation, Bill 1, and yesterday would not provide the text on

the proposed bill. We have seen this

from the government before. They

introduced procurement of the public bodies as Bill 1 in 2012, but they never

provided the text and they let it die on the Order Paper.

I ask the Premier: When

we will get the text of the whistle-blower legislation?

By the way, whatever happened to that old Bill 1?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KING:

Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, from a

procedural perspective there is nothing unusual about giving notice of motion on

a particular piece of legislation in this House; we do it all the time.

The members opposite would know, of course, that we provide text to the

House and we provide text to members opposite when we do first reading.

We provide briefings and there is a whole procedure that we follow for

every single bill we bring before this House.

I remind the member that they would know because they participate in that

process.

I can confirm for the

member that bill will be coming forward in the very near future in this session

of the House. We will lay it before

the people and we will hear what the members opposite have to say and whether or

not they support a real good piece of legislation that this Premier is going to

bring forward for the people of the Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official

Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Let's go back to Bill 1

in 2012, the procurement by public bodies.

Whatever happened to that piece of legislation that we never did see the

text for?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Service

Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CRUMMELL:

Mr. Speaker, we are getting very

close now to bringing it to the floor of the House.

We just went through a special strategic procurement project.

We had some great learning in that project.

We invested $4 million; it resulted in $20 million in savings.

We used RFPs in that process to maximize savings for the people of the

Province.

Mr. Speaker, what we will

be doing in the next little while, we will be incorporating some of these

learnings into the new legislation.

That will take a little bit more time, but I will be happy to bring it to the

floor of the House when it is ready.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La

Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Mr. Speaker, yesterday in the Speech

from the Throne there was a commitment to an open government initiative which

was supposed to share information and data freely.

If government is so

interested in being open and accountable then I ask the minister: Will you now

reveal how much was spent on marketing and advertising in the last two years,

instead of charging $1,600 and taking almost four weeks to get the answers?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Municipal

Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In recent media reports,

I was quite clear that this is a request that we looked at in some detail.

It was not as simple as pulling a number and providing it to the members

opposite. There was considerable

work involved in considering the thirteen requests that were made.

It is important to note,

Mr. Speaker, that in most cases over the last year when there has been an access

request filed, fees have not been warranted and fees have not been collected.

It is in rare cases where there is extensive work required that fees are

required to be paid. That is the

case in this particular instance, and we have provided a full explanation to the

member opposite.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La

Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Mr. Speaker, I guess the open

government initiative is something else that will be coming soon because it is

certainly not here yet.

A truly open and

transparent government will be proactive in disclosing the information; instead,

government is charging hundreds and thousands of dollars for basic budgetary

line items. The marketing and

advertising is not the only outrageous request.

We have asked through ATIPPA for copies of aquaculture monitoring reports

and we were told it would cost over $19,000.

I ask the minister: Is

this an indication of open and transparent?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of

Municipal Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Mr. Speaker, we take all access

requests very seriously and many of them do come from the members opposite.

We recognize that access to information is important to members opposite

in order to be able to do the important work that they do.

In the fiscal year

2012-2013, of the 285 general requests we received for information, twenty-three

involved fee estimates, and there were only in ten instances, I believe, where

fees were actually charged. It is

very rare that fees are required; but when the requests are extensive and when

they are exceptional, there is a process in place for that.

Mr. Speaker, we try to

provide whatever information we can, in whatever form we can, and our open

government initiative which we will also launch in the days ahead, I say to the

Leader of the Opposition, it will mean that even more information than ever

before is available to the public.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

South.

MR. OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Both the Auditor General

and a bridge inspection report, obtained through ATIPP, which is already two

years old, confirms that 93 per cent more bridges are considered to be in poor

condition today than there were a decade ago.

I ask the Minister of

Transportation and Works: Why has your government comprised the safety of our

travelling public by allowing bridges to fall in such disrepair?

A government navigating such troubled waters should not be ignoring

bridges, I say.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Transportation and Works.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. MCGRATH:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, first and

foremost, I would like to tell the member opposite that this government

certainly does not ignore the bridges in the Province.

What he

is failing to state is that although there are 152 bridges that are still in

that repair or disrepair right now, there have also been bridges added to the

inventory. This government, over the

past ten years, has put millions of dollars into the restructure and new

development of bridges. We will

continue to do that, as we see, as part of our road and bridge program.

We do them in moderation.

What I think is

very important, Mr. Speaker, when a bridge is rated as in poor condition, it is

still very useful. When it says that

it cannot be used, then we will close the bridge.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

South.

MR. OSBORNE:

Mr. Speaker, here is one bridge that

was ignored by government: Southwest Bridge, near Port Blandford.

In fact, this particular bridge was listed as in fair condition two years

ago, but today it requires major repairs.

How many more

of our bridges that were considered to be in fair condition, two years ago, have

fallen in to that type of disrepair today?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Transportation and Works.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. MCGRATH:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker,

the bridge that the member opposite just mentioned, Southwest Bridge, has

certainly not been ignored. The day

of the accident on the Southwest Bridge, I happened to be on the Trans-Canada

Highway and I drove that particular bridge near Port Blandford.

I drove over the bridge and I actually stopped to make sure that the

proper signage was up.

This has been

an incredibly cold, harsh winter, as many have referred to it as an

old-fashioned winter. Not long ago

in the media, I did a story on potholes.

What you have on the surface of the Southwest branch bridge is that a lot

of the top surface, the asphalt on the top, has lifted and caused a lot of

potholes on the bridge. We are

monitoring it very closely, and we will repair it when weather permits.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

South.

MR. OSBORNE:

Mr. Speaker, the Mayor of Port

Blandford has stated publicly that the bridge is in the worst condition he has

ever seen. It is a narrow bridge to

begin with. With the lack of snow

clearing on that bridge, it is even more narrow.

With the potholes on that bridge, there has been a number of near

accidents on that particular bridge, Mr. Speaker.

There is

signage put up by the Department of Transportation warning people to slow down.

The bridge has been ignored.

I ask the minister why.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Transportation and Works.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. MCGRATH:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker,

once again I will tell the member opposite that the bridge has not been ignored;

we are very aware of the condition of the bridge.

It is a narrow bridge. As I

stated, this has been a very different winter that we have had this year.

I counted the

signs on each side of that bridge.

There are seven signs on each side as you approach the bridge.

So, sufficient signage is more than up.

We have decreased the speed limit approaching the bridge to fifty

kilometres an hour. We have the

proper signage up and, as soon as weather permits, we will be out to do repairs

on it. I am not sure unless the

member opposite has a magic way of putting down asphalt in the middle of the

winter, then I would appreciate it if he would let me know it and perhaps I

could do it now.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for The Straits

White Bay North.

MR. MITCHELMORE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Minister of

Health has failed to establish midwifery as a self-regulated profession as

required by the Health Professions Act of 2010.

Three nurses with midwifery qualifications had continued to deliver

babies independently at St. Anthony hospital but now will require a physician

present.

I ask the

minister: Why are you adding to the ballooning health care budget by diminishing

the role of nurse midwives in a publicly funded system?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Health and

Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we

certainly value and appreciate the work done by midwives.

In fact, that is why we started out to do the study and hired two

professionals to report to us. I am

happy to say that report came to us in December.

We are moving forward with the regulations and will implement in a

schedule that actually was provided to us by them.

In actual fact, we hope to be able to move that

schedule a little faster.

With regard to

the St. Anthony area, Mr. Speaker, that issue came about as a result of an

insurer who came forward and said that the company itself was not willing to

insure because this particular service is not regulated at this point in time.

As a result, we had to be concerned for the safety of our patients.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for The Straits

White Bay North.

MR. MITCHELMORE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It goes back to

show government's failure to implement regulations is causing this problem.

The minister in her midwifery announcement has focused on privatization

in health care. This government's

approach will only serve those who can afford midwives in a private setting

giving access within a year.

I ask the

minister: Why are you working to remove nurse midwives from a public system with

hopes to bring them back in five to seven years?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Health and

Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker,

government is working to ensure that midwives, in fact, can practice within

Newfoundland and Labrador. That has

been our intention from the very beginning.

When insurance companies come forward and say that they can no longer

cover the particular people who are operating in that particular business then

we have no choice, for the safety of the clients and the safety of the

employees.

Mr. Speaker,

the time frame that the member opposite has put out is not quite right.

We are saying that within one year we hope that the regulations will be

in place and that our private midwives will be able to continue to practice.

We are moving forward to ensure that others can practice as quickly as

possible as well.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District

of St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT:

Mr. Speaker, five years ago the

former Minister of Justice, now Premier, committed to establishing a Family

Violence Intervention Court. An

evaluation after twelve months noted positive outcomes and recommended expanding

the court's mandate to include all-risk levels.

I ask the

Minister of Justice: Why would he eliminate a program deemed by his own

consultant as positive and needing expansion?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We take the

whole issue of violence in the Province very seriously.

That is why if you take some time to look back at our investments in

justice over the last number of years, the budget has increased dramatically.

I say to the

member opposite, we recognize the issue of the family violence court and we

recognize the words that we are hearing from the public; but I will remind the

member opposite, when it was brought in, it was brought in as a pilot

initiative. By the very definition

of pilot, it is something that you bring in to try.

At some point in time, you make a determination whether you leave it in

the budget on a permanent, ongoing basis or whether you remove it from the

budget and simply move on to something else.

The fact that

we have chosen not to renew the pilot of the Family Violence Intervention Court

does not lessen our support for family violence and our willingness to do other

things to make sure that we combat that issue.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT:

Mr. Speaker, the one-year pilot

clearly worked because the government kept it going for four more years and had

a 300 per cent increase in the number of people agreeing to participate.

Having

abandoned the family violence court, yesterday's Throne Speech mentioned Phase 2

of the Violence Prevention Initiative.

I guess if you quit Phase 1, you can go on to Phase 2.

Domestic

violence is cyclical; most abusers recall their first violent memory as

intervening to protect their mother from her abusive partner.

I ask the

minister: Aside from the moral imperative, can't he recognize that mandating

offender programs to prevent children from witnessing more violence will save

the system millions of dollars down the road?

Doesn't he understand the impacts on these children are lifelong?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KING:

Mr. Speaker, any time a government

brings in initiatives, there are often times where you bring a whole host of

activities and events that you put into the budget on a pilot basis or a

one-time basis. The Violence Prevention Initiative is no different than that.

It is an initiative that we brought in, a number of things have run their

course, and they have achieved their objectives.

We will move forward into Phase 2.

Some things we will renew; some things we will do differently.

Mr. Speaker, I

say to the member opposite, this government recognizes very clearly the

seriousness of the issues facing children in this Province.

That is why this government brought in the Department of Child, Youth and

Family Services, I say to the member opposite.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Third

Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In January,

thousands of people were left in the dark and the recent threat of more

blackouts has shown that we have a serious electricity supply program.

Residential energy conservation programs would help cut electricity

demands.

So I ask the

Premier: Is his government prepared to commit to establishing such programs

instead of forcing the people of the Province to endure rolling blackouts in a

crisis?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

I thank the Leader of the Third

Party for her question, and you are right.

The whole issue of supply is the reason why we have to ensure that we

complete the Muskrat Falls Project, to ensure certainty of supply for the people

of the Province in the future.

We know coming

out of the blackout that the PUB has announced it was going to do a short-term

reliability review, and then they subsequently announced they are going to

extend that review to look at the Muskrat Falls interconnection and beyond.

We support that. That is a

very good thing. Nalcor and the

government would certainly support the PUB and provide any assistance it can.

Given the fact

that we are going to interconnect to the North American continent for the first

time in history, that is a major game changer.

So our government will also be conducting a review.

We are going to look at the management, the operation, and the regulation

of the whole industry that will inform future regulation and legislation as we

go forward after total interconnection.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I ask the

Premier: We are living in the present, not in the future, so why won't

government demand that Nalcor focus on energy conservation and put real programs

in place?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural

Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

A full part of

our extensive utility review, looking forward to the future and what Muskrat

Falls will bring to this Province, Mr. Speaker, built within that, obviously,

and a lot of discussions around the Province, is around conservation as well.

We always echo the message, the importance of conservation, particularly

around the events of January 2 to January 8, and recent calls again for

conservation. I think it highlights

the importance of conservation with the people of the Province.

There are a

number of programs, Mr. Speaker, that we continue to talk about and work on

within government, but as well from the federal government, as well as my

department, the Climate Change Office, issues around investments in

efficiencies, home repair programs, and so on all support opportunities for

conservation. We will continue to

support that effort throughout government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Third

Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I point out to

the minister that they cut their Residential Energy Efficiency Program in half

from 1,000 to 500 homes.

I ask the

Premier, in his Throne Speech yesterday, vague references were made to

implementing long overdue corporate oversight on the Muskrat Falls Project.

So I ask the

Premier: Doesn't the report of the independent engineer already perform this

function?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER MARSHALL:

Mr. Speaker, the report of the

independent engineer, which was asked for originally by the federal government

and their lenders, will also be made available to Nalcor and to the provincial

government to help us in the oversight process.

It will be certainly an added benefit.

In addition,

Nalcor has their own audit committee, they have their internal auditors, and

they have their external auditors who provide independent audit and independent

financial statements. They have

annual reports and an annual general meeting.

They filed an annual transparency and accountability report.

The CEO updates the Cabinet.

They have their internal lawyers and their external lawyers.

They have their financial advisors.

The Auditor General can go in there any time he wants.

It is a big project, it is owned by the people, (inaudible)

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

Centre.

MS ROGERS:

Mr. Speaker, the Family Violence

Intervention Court was working at full capacity treating forty-four families.

The Department of Health promotes prevention programs but when someone is

sick they still get treatment. The

Minister of Justice said he is focusing on prevention of family violence yet he

has cut one of the most effective treatment programs that protect victims of

family violence.

I ask the

minister: How does this make sense?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KING:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

As I have

acknowledged any number of occasions in this House today, and previous days, the

family violence court was a pilot initiative brought in by our government.

From time to time government has had to make decisions about whether you

continue with pilot initiatives or whether in fact you move on and you focus on

other priorities.

The fact of the

matter is I have never, ever said that I did not see or acknowledge the merit

expressed by people who have gone through that family violence court.

The fact is that twenty-one people only availed of that court service the

last year it fully operated, and only in St. John's.

It was not available to people in the Labrador part of the Province; it

was not available to Central or the West Coast people, Mr. Speaker.

We continue to

offer services through Adult Corrections and through Victims Services, and we

continue to invest in positions like the family violence coordinator with the

RNC and positions (inaudible)

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

Centre.

MS ROGERS:

Mr. Speaker, neither the former nor

the current Minister Responsible for the Status of Women said a peep in defence

of the Family Violence Intervention Court, even though women's groups and

anti-violence groups have begged government to reinstate the court.

Mr. Speaker, I

ask the Minister of Finance: Will she stand up for the women and children,

victims of family violence, and ask the Minister of Justice to reinstate this

court? Put it back in this Budget.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Environment

and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS SHEA:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker,

one initiative that this government has had as a hallmark for many years is our

Violence Prevention Initiative. We

are committed to our Violence Prevention Initiative and we understand that we

need to work with our community stakeholders in order to truly prevent violence

in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, we

provide funding to our eight regional coordinating committees.

They work with the people in their local communities and they look at

initiatives to help reduce violence in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker,

this government understands that no one initiative will do what it takes to

reduce violence to the levels that it should be at in this Province.

One thing this government has done is it has recognized that we need to

partner with our communities to ensure that all people in this Province live in

a respectful environment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The time for Question Period has

expired.

The hon. the

Opposition House Leader.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Mr. Speaker, during Question Period

in response to my second question the Minister of Municipal Affairs clearly

referred to a document in answering that question, so I would ask that he table

those documents, please.

MR. SPEAKER:

I would like to address the issue of

tabling of documents for a moment. I

think your operative word was refer.

The minister is obligated to table a document that he reads from, but a minister

is not obligated to table a document that is just referenced and he may have

made some notes of. As I was

witnessing the minister as he was speaking, he did have a piece of paper with

him but he was actually using the notes as a point of reference.

He was not actually referring to the document.

Presenting

Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling of

Documents.

Notices of

Motion.

Notices of Motion

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Justice.

MR. KING:

Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, on

behalf of the Striking Committee of the House of Assembly and in accordance with

Standing Order 65 (1), I give notice that I will move that this hon. House

approve changes to the membership of the Public Accounts Committee as follows:

that the Member for Conception Bay East be replaced by the Member for

Fortune Bay Cape La Hune; and that the Member for The Straits White Bay

North be replaced by the Member for St. John's East.

MR. SPEAKER:

Further notices of motion?

The hon. the

Minister of Justice.

MR. KING:

Thank you, once again.

Mr. Speaker, I

give notice that I will ask leave to introduce the following resolution to the

House:

BE IT RESOLVED

by the House of Assembly as follows:

WHEREAS

section

7 of the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act

provides that the Sergeant-At-Arms of the House of Assembly is to be appointed

by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council on a nomination of the House of Assembly;

NOW THEREFORE

BE IT RESOLVED that Mr. Wayne L. Harnum be nominated for appointment as the

Sergeant-At-Arms of the House of Assembly.

MR. SPEAKER:

Answers to Questions for which

Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's

North.

MR. KIRBY:

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

provincial funding and support for an arm's-length advocacy group is needed in

order to promote, protect, and ensure full citizenship rights for

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians with disabilities; and

WHEREAS the

Coalition of Persons with Disabilities has advocated for persons with

disabilities in Newfoundland and Labrador for nearly thirty-five years; and

WHEREAS people

with disabilities across the Province rely on COD-NL to navigate and access

support services, educate the public, and provide outreach; and

WHEREAS

long-term sustainable funding for COD-NL should be a key building block in the

Province's strategy for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities; and

WHEREAS federal

and provincial funding cuts continue to threaten COD-NL's capacity to provide

important advocacy, public education, and outreach activities;

WHEREUPON the

undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House of Assembly

to urge government to reinstate the funding cut from the Coalition of Persons

with Disabilities-Newfoundland and Labrador in 2013 and provide a long-term

sustainable funding arrangement for COD-NL.

As in duty

bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker,

these petitions have been signed by people across the Province.

I remember shortly after I was elected in 2011, I attended an annual

general meeting of the Coalition of Persons with Disabilities.

I still have the program for that meeting which contained a full-page

greeting from the then Premier at the time.

There was a full-page greeting from the Minister Responsible for the

Status of Persons with Disabilities at the time.

There was a full-page advertisement and greetings from the Member of the

House of Assembly for the District of St. John's West basically lauding COD-NL,

recognizing their important contribution to the Province and the important role

that they play in Newfoundland and Labrador.

A short time

later it was decided by this government to cut funding for COD-NL which more or

less threw them into a crisis situation.

A number of Members of the House of Assembly and community leaders in the

city and from outside the City of St. John's attended a meeting that was held to

try to figure out how they would move forward.

Thankfully, due to the hard work of individuals such as the Deputy Mayor

of St. John's Mr. Ron Ellsworth and others, they managed to find alternate

space. They were effectively kicked

out of their space. They could not

afford to continue to be in that space.

We make

mistakes and governments make mistakes, Mr. Speaker.

In the Throne Speech yesterday there were a lot of admissions of mistakes

made so this was a mistake.

MR. SPEAKER (Verge):

Order, please!

I remind the

member his time for speaking has expired.

MR. KIRBY:

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Signal Hill

Quidi Vidi.

MS 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 humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS

following the 2009 inquiry into helicopter safety, Commissioner Robert Wells

recommended no night flights take place in the Province's offshore; and

WHEREAS flying

at night increases the risk offshore workers are exposed to; and

WHEREAS the

Tory government has refused to take a strong stance on the issue of night

flights; and

WHEREAS

workers' safety should be a higher priority than corporate profits;

WHEREUPON the

undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House of Assembly

to urge government to formally notify the C-NLOPB of its position regarding a

ban on night flights, urging them to reject requests from offshore operators for

a return to night flights in the Province's offshore, while encouraging them to

develop a safer alternative for workers.

As in duty

bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

I am pleased to

be able to stand and speak to this petition today, Mr. Speaker yesterday, of

course, being the fifth anniversary of the tragic loss of lives on the Cougar

helicopter in our offshore. Expert

testimony at the 2010 Offshore Helicopter Safety Inquiry stated that the

survival rate for a nighttime helicopter crash offshore is 30 per cent, as

opposed to 70 per cent in daylight.

We know that the crash that happened five years ago did happen in daylight.

The concern of

workers is what would have happened if that crash had happened at night.

Obviously, Commissioner Wells listened to that testimony very carefully.

We know from the testimony that the chances of anyone having survived

we were lucky enough that we had one survivor.

The chances of even having that one survivor would have been wiped out

most likely if the flight had been at night.

Commissioner

Wells listened to this testimony. He

also investigated. He just did not

listen to one piece of testimony. A

lot of investigation was done into the whole issue of night flights.

He recommended that night flights end.

We know that

right now they are not happening. We

do know that some people within the industry are still looking at it as a

possibility. We also know that some

major unions such as Unifor are saying that they do not support night flights.

Especially as we go further into the deep with regard to exploration, we

have to be more and more concerned about the lives of our workers.

As petitions of

this nature come to me, I will continue to stand in this House and raise the

concern of workers, of their families, people like the families of the dead

workers from the Cougar helicopter five years ago

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

I remind the

member her speaking time has expired.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La

Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I have a

petition to the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and

Labrador in Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned humbly

sheweth:

WHEREAS

residents of the Southwest Coast must travel the Trans-Canada Highway between

Channel-Port aux Basques and Corner Brook for work, medical, educational, and

social reasons; and

WHEREAS Marine

Atlantic ferries dock in Channel-Port aux Basques at various hours on a daily

basis resulting in extremely high volumes of commercial and residential

travellers using this

section of the TCH; and

WHEREAS the

world-renowned Wreckhouse area is situate along this

section of the TCH; and

WHEREAS the

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador initiated a twenty-four hour snow

clearing pilot project in 2008 that excluded the

section of the TCH from

Channel-Port aux Basques to Stephenville;

WHEREUPON the

undersigned, you petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House of Assembly to

urge the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to include the

section of the

TCH from Channel-Port aux Basques to Stephenville in the twenty-four hour snow

clearing project.

As in duty

bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker,

this is obviously not the first time I have entered this petition.

I have entered it, and entered it, and entered it again.

Unfortunately the Department of Transportation and Works does not seem to

agree with what I am saying. That is

fair ball; they have a position they want to put forward.

The problem I

have is that I have put forward questions, questioning the methodology used by

the department in coming up with this decision, and I am not getting the answers

back that I need. That is the

problem I hear: The methodology, the ways that they are making these decisions,

are flawed.

I have people

from La Poile to Rose Blanche, right on up to Stephenville, who are signing

these petitions and they want to hear government come out and give them a

reasonable answer on this, but they are not.

Again, to quote the minister, this was an old-fashioned winter.

It was one of the worst winters we have had.

More than ever we had the need for twenty-four hour snow clearing that we

should have had.

Again, I am

asking for information. We know this

open government thing is going to take a little while.

Now the latest information I have is that I will get the facts on March

31 again, towards the end of the winter; a good way to push this off in to the

next session. It is a good way to

delay giving us the service that we need and we should have.

Like most things, this government waits until something happens before

they react; reaction rather than proactive.

I will keep

entering these I have a suitcase full here that I will bring in every day.

I will keep putting them forward until the government comes to their

senses.

Thank you, Mr.

Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the

Member for St. John's Centre.

MS ROGERS:

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 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, I

have hundreds and hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of signatures here today.

I still have hundreds of signatures up in my office.

There are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of postcards that people

across the Province have sent to both the Premier and the Minister of Justice

asking for the same thing.

Mr. Speaker, we

have not heard one credible reason for cutting the court.

The irony that we hear is that the Minister of Justice has stood up and

talked about how effective the court was, that it was a good program.

He said it fulfilled its mandate, but now he is saying we are going to

take it away from St. John's because nobody else in the Province has it.

Mr. Speaker,

that makes no sense whatsoever. As a

matter of fact, what people in the anti-violence community are saying is expand

it to the Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MS ROGERS:

Expand it and serve all of the

people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

This was a

concrete program. This government

spent a lot of money and did a lot of research to make sure this court was the

best it could possibly be. As matter

of fact, Nova Scotia modelled their court on this court.

So perhaps we can ask the government to go to Nova Scotia and model their

court, to model a new court here in the Province on the one that Nova Scotia

has, because Nova Scotia modelled it on our court.

There is no reason for this explanation at all.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

I remind the

member her time for speaking has expired.

MS ROGERS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Cartwright

L'Anse at Clair.

MS DEMPSTER:

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 humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS seniors

have to travel outside of Cartwright L'Anse au Clair to attend appointments

with specialists; and

WHEREAS seniors

are waiting long periods of time to get reimbursed for their expenses through

the medical transportation program; and

WHEREAS the

medical transportation program does not cover all incurred expenses, for

example, ground transportation less than 2,500 kilometres per year;

WHEREUPON the

undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House of Assembly

to urge the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to improve the medical

transportation program so that all expenses are covered and reimbursed in a more

timely manner.

As in duty

bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, I

stood a number of times last fall to talk about the importance of changes with

the medical transportation program, and what makes no sense to me and many

people, especially in the District of Cartwright L'Anse au Clair that I

represent, is we are asking the minister to look at a program not to give us

more money, but to start spending it smarter.

They will

prepay 50 per cent of an air ticket, yet will not give you anything for driving

for the first 2,500 kilometres. So

what this program is actually doing is asking people to incur more expense by

flying. The other thing is, if you

stay in a registered accommodation you will be reimbursed, but if you stay in

private you get nothing. People who

come in here for treatments of various forms that need the support of being with

family are choosing not to because they cannot get anything to give that family

member.

The Minister of

Transportation said this was an old-fashioned year, and I can tell you, Mr.

Speaker, that our people who are travelling for medical reasons are certainly

incurring an unprecedented amount of money this year.

We have the Bond , as I stand here, once again forty-eight kilometres outside of

Corner Brook, and in case you do not know she is stuck in the ice again and has

lost the support. We have people

going out for medical appointments who are spending eight, ten, and twelve days

waiting on the ferry, along with a host of other problems.

So I ask the minister to sit down and look at this program.

Also, every

time I am in the district people are telling me: I am submitting claims in

January and I am not getting reimbursed until June.

Many of the people using the program cannot afford to wait six months,

especially if they are travelling monthly.

All of the people in rural communities, as you know, are travelling

outside the region for those specialized programs.

I say if we

have the program here, let us make it effective.

It is not good enough just to say we have a medical transportation

program that was brought in by a Liberal government in 1998; we have to make the

enhancements, and many of the improvements can be made without incurring extra

costs. So I would love to see you

sit down and take a look, and I would be happy to have discussion.

Thank you for

the opportunity.

MR. SPEAKER:

Orders of the Day.

Orders of the Day

MR. KING:

This time I call from the Order

Paper, Motion 1, for the hon. Minister of Finance and President of Treasury

Board to move that the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on

Supply to consider certain resolutions for the granting of Interim Supply to Her

Majesty. (Bill 2)

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Finance.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am pleased to

rise today to begin debate in Interim Supply.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MS JOHNSON:

The message first?

Sorry, Mr.

Speaker.

I wish to

inform the House that I have received a message from His Honour the Lieutenant

Governor.

MR. SPEAKER:

All rise.

The letter

states:

Administrator of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, I transmit a request

to appropriate sums required for the Public Service of the Province for the year

ending 31 March 2015, by way of Interim Supply, and in accordance with the

provisions of

section 54 and 90 of the Constitution Act, 1867, I recommend this

request to the House of Assembly.

Sgd.:

________________________________

Administrator

Justice J. Derek Green

The hon. the

Minister of Finance.

MS JOHNSON:

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the

Minister of Justice, that the message together with a bill be referred to the

Committee of Supply.

MR. SPEAKER:

The motion is that the message

together with a bill be referred to the Committee of Supply and that I do now

leave the Chair.

Is it the

pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

All those in

favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Aye.

MR. SPEAKER:

All those against, nay'.

Carried.

On motion, that

the House resolve itself into a Committee of Supply, Mr. Speaker left the Chair.

Committee of the Whole

CHAIR (Littlejohn):

Order, please!

We are

considering Bill 2,

an act for granting to Her Majesty Interim Supply.

Resolution

That it is

expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to Her Majesty for

defraying certain expenses of the public service for the financial year ending

March 31, 2015, the sum of $2,829,892,500.

CHAIR:

Shall the resolution carry?

The hon. the

Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.

MS JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Chair, I am

pleased now to rise in this House today to begin debate in Interim Supply.

I will begin by providing a few introductory comments about Interim

Supply and then I would like to go into just giving a highlight to our listeners

about the economy, about how our taxpayers' dollars are spent, and where the

revenues come from.

Mr. Chair, as

we all know the Interim Supply bill is required to be passed by the House of

Assembly during the spring sitting in order to allow for ongoing and routine

operations during the period while Budget 2014 is being introduced, being

debated, and then eventually approved by the Legislature.

When we bring in the Budget we will be seeking approval for funding to

spend for the entire fiscal year, but it takes time to allow for debate and

approval of the Budget.

During the

interim period it is necessary to provide funding to the government to pay its

bills which is the purpose of Interim Supply.

Mr. Chair, we are seeking approval in Interim Supply for a sum of

approximately $2.8 billion. This

will provide departments and public bodies with sufficient cash flow dollars to

manage expenditures from the period of April 1, 2014 to June 30, 2014, which is

the first quarter of the fiscal year.

Interim Supply

is basically intended to provide for the continuation of ongoing government

programs and projects. Included in

the 2014 Interim Supply bill are ongoing housekeeping expenditures including

funding for seven pay periods, and ongoing project and funding requirements

applicable to the 2014-2015 fiscal year.

The legislation

will need to be passed and receive Royal Assent by March 25, 2014 in order to

allow for sufficient time to meet payroll expenses like Income Support, spending

on roads, those types of things, and other expenditures effective April 1, 2014.

That is a

little bit about what Interim Supply is and why we need it by that particular

date, March 25. I would now like to

talk a little bit about our economy and how well the economy is doing and I

would like to begin by talking about pre-Budget consultations, Mr. Chair.

Today, I would like to talk about the priorities our government has set

and how these priorities are what we believe are priorities for the people of

our Province of course, priorities such as health care, education, new

infrastructure, supporting the things that people feel are important.

I would like to

start by talking about the pre-Budget consultations themselves.

As most of you are aware, the Department of Finance engages in pre-Budget

consultations throughout the Province.

This year we had twelve sessions in eleven locations across the Province

and there was an excellent turnout, I have to say.

We made it a little different this year and made it a little more

interactive in that we utilized our polling technology and asked people around

the Province what they thought, how they would do a Budget, and the feedback was

very helpful and feedback that we will use when we are making our Budget 2014

deliberations.

In addition to

the sessions that I attended personally, some of my colleagues also had the

opportunity to hear first-hand from people in their communities about the

priorities that are important to them.

As I said it was really good to hear first-hand about the good work that

organizations are doing.

To participate

in a process like pre-Budget consultations is very important because as our

Premier said on the day that he was sworn in, we want to hear from people.

We want them to tell us when are doing something good and also when we

are not, and we want to hear their ideas on how we can improve things.

Because no matter how good you do something, it can always be done

better.

I would like to

say a thank you to everyone who took the time to participate in pre-Budget

consultations this year, including some of my colleagues on the other side of

the House. We appreciate the input

and we have considered it in putting together the Budget for this year and we

are finalizing that process now.

Some of the

messages I delivered at the pre-Budget consultations I would also like to

deliver here today, because I think it is important to provide these facts as we

get closer to Budget 2014. As we

outlined in last year's Budget and again in the fall financial update, our

Province is facing a deficit for 2014.

This means that difficult decisions will have to be made in order to

effectively manage our spending while maintaining the programs and services that

are most important to people.

As you may

recall last year during Budget 2013, we outlined Year 1 of our 10-Year

Sustainability Plan. The plan sets out specific goals to ensure continued sound

fiscal management over the long-term, including the elimination of deficits and

a return to a surplus budget in three years.

These are the goals that we are working hard to achieve and include a

return to surplus in the 2015-2016 fiscal year.

There are

twelve key focus areas of our 10-Year Sustainability Plan and I would just like

to go down through them to show where government is focusing its efforts.

First, is to

eliminate deficits and return to a surplus budget in 2015-2016 and to maintain a

strong fiscal position as we go forward.

We have committed to a health care operational review; a post-secondary

education review; pension and post-retirement liabilities reform; debt

reduction; public service salaries and benefits; spend analysis-procurement

reform which, of course, is ongoing; priority setting-strategic infrastructure

practices; equity investments, economic diversification and innovation; a

competitive tax environment; sustainable expenditures; and we committed to

consult with municipalities and local government.

Mr. Chair, one

of the most important issues facing our government and facing the people of the

Province is pension and post-retirement liabilities reform, which I will discuss

a little later, either in my seven minutes that remain or later on in the next

couple of days as we debate Interim Supply.

I now would

like to provide an update on our fiscal position and the economy.

Our story of economic growth over the last decade, as was said in the

Throne Speech, is one of which only others can dream.

The growth in our economy has helped the Province build a strong

financial foundation which has contributed to surpluses in the six of the past

ten years and has resulted in our government not having to borrow money for

operational or capital purposes since 2004.

Since 2005-2006, we have generated surpluses of approximately $5.6

billion, Mr. Chair.

Our goal is to

ensure the long-term sustainability of our programs and services.

In order to achieve this we have built new schools, we are investing in

new health care and acute care centres, we are improving the Province's roads,

we have lowered tax rates, we have repaid debt, and we continue to invest to

encourage job creation.

Our priority is

to grow the economy further, to continue to invest in areas that matter most to

the people of the Province, and to make prudent financial decisions to protect

the gains that we have made.

During the fall

financial update we advised the public that the 2013-2014 deficit is expected to

be $113 million less than forecast on Budget Day 2013 and was expected to be

$450.6 million. This is due to

lower-than-anticipated expenses from Budget Day to what was projected at

mid-year. We had a $207 million

decline in spending and that was offset by a projected $94.4 million decline in

revenue, giving us the $113 million difference.

The decline in

total revenue between what was forecasted on Budget Day and up to mid-year is

primarily due to three areas, one being lower offshore royalties.

As you know, Terra Nova was shut down this past year and we projected

this shutdown to be for about twenty-four days.

However, the actual shutdown ended up being seventy-five days, which had

an impact on our royalties.

Corporate income tax was down as a result of decreased oil royalties and there

were decreases in mining tax.

Offsetting

these declines are increases in Canada Social Transfer and Canada Health

Transfer as a result of federal government re-estimates of our population.

As well, higher personal income for prior years is reflected in higher

personal income tax revenue. Of

course, these numbers will be updated as part of Budget 2014.

That was the

revenue side of where the money comes from.

Now I would like to briefly speak about expenses and how we wisely spend

that money.

Spending in the

social sector accounts for approximately 55 per cent of total expenses, with

almost 36 per cent allocated to Health and Community Services and 10 per cent to

Education. Here is some really

interesting information, Mr. Chair, and it really outlines our approach to how

we value education, health care, and other sectors in the social side.

In 2003-2004,

in K-12 education alone the provincial government spent $7,183 per student in

the Province. That amount increased

each year and as of last year, 2013-2014, that spending went from $7,183 to

$12,571 per student in the K-12 system.

Mr. Chair, in

2003-2004, approximately $150 million was invested in infrastructure.

We hear the members opposite today asking about infrastructure and where

we have been putting our money.

Well, let me tell them how we have been spending that money.

The investment of $154 million has increased to $687 million in

2012-2013. That is an increase

very important of 346 per cent in infrastructure since we have come into

power. The Auditor General noted

that government has made significant progress in replacing the Province's aging

infrastructure by investing approximately $3.6 billion since coming in to power

in 2003-2004.

Mr. Chair, in

terms of where our revenues come from, over 28 per cent of revenues comes from

offshore royalties. As we all know

that is very volatile and it is also a non-renewable resource.

In addition, a significant portion of corporate income and personal

income tax revenue can also be attributed to the activity in the offshore.

When we were preparing Budget 2013, we estimated the impact on revenues

for a change in the price of oil and the exchange rate.

While the average price of oil for 2013-2014 is estimated to be about

$108 US per barrel, where we should end up for the average for the year, that is

higher than the average budgeted price of $105 US per barrel, but this has been

offset by lower oil production as mentioned earlier.

Just to give

you some information around the sensitivity of the price of oil and the exchange

rate, every $1 change in the price of a barrel of oil has a $26 million impact

on revenue. Similarly a one-cent

change in the exchange rate impacts revenue by $27 million. You can see how

volatile this is.

The Leader of

the Opposition yesterday in his response to the Speech from the Throne suggested

that because these numbers are volatile we should take them out of the equation

when doing budgeting. Well, Mr.

Chair, I went back and had a look last night and if that is their approach to

budgeting then we are in for some serious areas of concern.

With so much spending in our health care, 55 per cent in our social

sector, I would certainly like to know how the Leader of the Opposition would

budget and what he would ultimately have to cut.

There is no way you can take 28 per cent of our revenues and then budget

on the remaining.

Mr. Chair, net

debt has declined from a high of $11.9 billion in 2004-2005

AN HON. MEMBER:

(Inaudible).

MS JOHNSON:

If you are questioning those words,

I have Hansard here. We can

certainly highlight what he had said in terms of how he would budget.

Net debt has

declined from a high of $11.9 billion in 2004-2005 to $7.8 billion in 2011-2012,

a decline of 35 per cent. Net debt

as of March 31, 2014 is projected to be $9.1 billion and this is $396 million

lower than the 2013 estimates. The

Auditor General has noted that this is a significant issue.

With twenty-two

seconds left, Mr. Chair, I will leave it there, just to say that government is

committed to reducing our net debt per capita to the all-province average within

ten years. Our 10-Year

Sustainability Plan is something that we announced last year.

We are committed to getting back to surpluses.

I will leave it to other members to have their say on Interim Supply.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

CHAIR:

The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Chair, it

is a pleasure to stand here in this hon. House and say a few words.

I can assure everybody that I have a lot to say.

I will take every opportunity I can to speak on behalf of the people of

my district.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. LANE:

First of all, Mr. Chair, I want to

take the opportunity just to welcome everybody back on all sides of the House.

I am sure we are going to have a lot of opportunity as I said to debate

the issues. I certainly look forward

to it.

Mr. Chair,

before I get into some of the comments I did want to make around Interim Supply,

I did want to just raise the issue it was raised yesterday.

Of course, yesterday was the anniversary of the Cougar 491 crash.

There was a memorial service yesterday evening.

There were a number of members from this side of the House, from the

Third Party, and there were a number of government members present as well.

It was a very touching service to say the least.

Mr. Chair, when

you think about what happened there, when you look at the families who were

there still in mourning at that event yesterday evening, I think it says to all

of us that offshore safety is something we all need to strive for.

It certainly needs to transcend any partisan politics.

I believe that as members of this hon. House we all have to work together

to ensure that we can improve the offshore safety for the people of Newfoundland

and Labrador.

We know there

are a number of issues surrounding offshore safety.

We know there were four recommendations made by the Transportation Safety

Board, of which only two were implemented.

We know we have a need. I

think all parties have agreed there is a need for an independent safety

regulator. We all, I think, also

agree that we need to see improvements to search and rescue.

It is incumbent

upon all of us. If there was ever an

issue where all parties should come together in this hon. House to lobby the

federal government, to utilize our MPs, to utilize our Senators, and to utilize

everybody involved in the offshore, it is certainly this issue.

I encourage all members to do that.

Mr. Chair, as

we know, since the last sitting of the House of Assembly some things have

changed and I have moved over into a new role.

My role, which I will be pursuing in this sitting of the House, will be

as the Critic for Service Newfoundland and Labrador.

I certainly plan on conducting myself in a professional manner; that

being said, there will be questions that have to be asked.

There will be petitions presented, there will be commentary made, and I

will be holding the Minister of Service NL's feet to the fire when it comes to

issues as it relates to that particular department.

I certainly look forward to doing just that.

Mr. Chair, the

other point I want to make is that certainly in my role in the Official

Opposition I have a responsibility and a job to do over here, the same as I had

a job to do on the other side and other members do.

They are bringing forward government's position; we have to bring forward

the opposing side. We have to

question things that government is doing.

That being

said, as I have heard my colleague the Member for Burgeo La Poile say on a

number of occasions, and the Member for Bay of Islands, when government does

good things it is also important we acknowledge that.

I certainly intend to acknowledge when government does good things, not

simply criticizing for the sake of criticizing.

Mr. Chair, the

first thing I just want to acknowledge the government for is to say that, at

least as a first step, they are talking about doing a review of Bill 29.

I am glad they are doing that.

It is certainly an issue I raised when I was on the other side.

Unfortunately, there was no action taken at that particular time.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

CHAIR:

Order, please!

MR. LANE:

Anyway, Mr. Chair, that is something

I did and I actually have the e-mails to prove it.

I will table that at another time.

As I said, I am very glad to see that is going to happen and it is

certainly one of the key reasons I am over on this side of the House now, but I

am glad they are doing it.

Now, I think a

lot of people would say, Mr. Chair, that

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MR. LANE:

Yes, we are hearing all the heckling

over here now.

Let me say

this, Mr. Chair, before I go any further.

My intention here, as I said, is to operate in a respectful manner, but I

am also going to say that I am not going to be bullied.

We talk about our children standing up to bullies and I am not going to

be bullied by anybody across this side of the House, not a soul.

It is not going to happen. If

there are going to be attempts to bully me, then I will be calling out the

members who are doing the bullying and I will let the people know.

Anyway, Mr.

Chair, as I said, I think that Bill 29, as has been said on this side, perhaps

should be simply repealed and then start from scratch, but if the route they are

going to take is to do a review it is better than nothing.

I am glad to see they are going to and I applaud them for it.

I applaud them for doing it.

Mr. Chair,

another thing I want to acknowledge is the whistle-blower legislation.

Again, I think this is a good move.

Now, it may have taken a number of years for it to happen, but at least

they are doing it now. I will

certainly support that as well and I am glad to see they are doing that.

Mr. Chair,

in terms of Mount Pearl and I would say to the Member for Cape St. Francis who

is over there now and he is going to start his little rant and his little bit of

bullying, well, he will have an opportunity to speak and I encourage him to do

it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

CHAIR:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

CHAIR:

Order, please!

The hon. the

Member for Mount Pearl South.

MR. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

As I said, Mr.

Chair, when investments are made certainly in my district in Mount Pearl I will

recognize that as well. When I see

investments in roads and infrastructure, when I see investments in recreation,

when our seniors' group receive some grants, and our sports groups, I will

acknowledge that and I think it is all a good thing.

I certainly support that and Mount Pearl certainly deserves its fair

share for sure.

Mr. Chair, that

all being said in terms of acknowledging the good things, I think it is also

important to note that as an Opposition we have issues we have to bring forward.

Everything is not rosy.

Everything is not perfect. That is

certainly true. There will be a

number of issues that I intend on raising in this sitting of the House of

Assembly.

We have issues

around, for example, the school reorganization in the City of Mount Pearl, which

was very necessary. There is no

doubt about it. It is necessary and

it has been a number of years where it was supposed to happen and did not

happen, and it was two or three years of delays for whatever reason.

It is finally happening and that is a good thing.

That being said

there are a lot of parents in the City of Mount Pearl, particularly parents in

St. Peter's Elementary and Newtown Elementary, who have serious concerns about

what is being proposed. There are

certainly parents, teachers, and so on in Mount Pearl Senior High and Mount

Pearl Intermediate who have serious concerns about the position that is being

brought forth by the board. That is

something I am going to be watching.

It is something I am going to be speaking to and participating in.

I have been and I will continue to do so.

Mr. Chair,

supportive employment is another issue.

I was very pleased to see, by the way I have been working on an issue

with Visions Employment in Mount Pearl for the last two or two-and-a-half years.

We have had meetings. We have

brought proposals forward to the minister.

I have talked to the minister about it where they have a number of

people, a number of clients, who want to work.

These are people who have disabilities.

They have employers who are willing to take them, but there was no

government funding.

I am very

pleased, and I am going to acknowledge again that it was interesting.

There was a meeting this week between Visions.

They wanted to meet with the minister and the MHAs for the area, which I

was one, to try to bring this to a head because they have so many people waiting

and no funding. I was very pleased

to find out that in advance of the Budget, they were promised an additional

$150,000. I think it is just a great

example of when you have MHAs such as myself and such as the Member for Mount

Pearl North, credit to him. We

worked together and we got some funding.

I am glad that I was able to be a part of that and that $150,000, for

sure.

That being

said, though, that will cover twelve clients.

They have a waiting list of thirty-five clients.

So that means there are still twenty-three people who want to go to work

who cannot go to work. That is with

Visions. I am not sure what the

story is with Avalon. I know that

Vera Perlin had similar concerns and issues with their supportive employment

program. I hope there is money there

for them as well.

Mr. Chair, as I

said, there is a whole host of issues.

Certainly, the proposed waste transfer site in the Whitbourne area is an

issue, and there are a number of people in the Peak Pond area who never received

the proper consultation, certainly in their view, and were not even notified of

the environmental assessment that was taking place, who are very concerned.

A number of those people are actually constituents of mine in the

District of Mount Pearl South. I

have been working on their behalf and certainly hoping that they are going to

have that public consultation, have their input, so they can get their concerns

brought forward.

Mr. Chair,

there are a number of occupational health and safety issues.

Certainly, as part of my role, Service NL, there are a number of issues

around occupational health and safety.

There are a number of issues which will be coming forth as a result of

the workers' compensation review, and we all know if you ask the recipients of

that program and if you ask the employers and so on, I think there are concerns

on all sides around workers' compensation.

I am going to have a lot of questions around that review and what they

plan on implementing when changes will be made.

Certainly,

another one, Mr. Chair, that I would have concerns about, I would want to raise

issues about would be the lack of enforcement in blue zones.

That was certainly a piece of legislation which was passed two years ago

now, and two years later, as you drive around the city, you will see that there

are all kinds of non-compliance issues.

Not only around the city in terms of commercial establishments, but

around other areas of the Province.

I noted it when I was in Clarenville and I noted it in Whitbourne, in CBS and so

on, and even government-owned facilities are not even in compliance with its own

blue zone legislation. I certainly

will be having a lot of say about that.

I also have

concerns and questions, Mr. Chair, as it relates to the reliability of our

current electrical system. We all

know about DarkNL and I believe I heard in the Throne Speech what was called

disruptions which were particularly significant.

Some people might call it a crisis or not a crisis.

Anyway, Mr. Chair, I think we all have concerns about what went on there,

about the reliability, and we are certainly going to be waiting to see what

comes back when that report is done on that.

We are all looking forward to that one for sure.

I know I had a number of people who I spoke to, people in my district,

friends and family members from around the Province who, for them, it was

definitely a significant event; it was definitely a crisis for a lot of them.

We have issues

around moose-vehicle collisions, Mr. Chair, that we need to talk about here in

this House of Assembly. We have the

need for bicycle helmet legislation; that is another issue that we want to bring

forward.

Another one

that comes to mind, Mr. Chair, we have significant concerns around the

administration of the Public Tender Act.

That is something that falls again under my critic area; it falls under

the Department of Service NL. There

are a number of issues around that Public Tender Act and around all of the

exemptions that are being given to people to avoid following that act.

We have concerns about that.

There are

issues around automobile insurance, and there are issues around the availability

of affordable housing. I see I am

starting to run down here, Mr. Chair.

There are a whole host of issues which need to be brought forward, and I

certainly intend on doing it. Let me

just finish off by saying although I am sitting over here now instead of over

there, it is really not where you sit; it is where you stand.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

CHAIR:

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The member

ended off by talking about it is not where you sit; it is where you stand.

It has been interesting. It

is good to get back into the House of Assembly again.

I have to say it always surprises me when you leave here at the end of a

session, you do not know how things are going to change when you come back into

the House. This time the House, the

structure of the House and where people are sitting has changed drastically.

Mr. Chair, that

is democracy. It is a great thing

that we do have democracy, that people can make their decisions.

When the election rolls around then it is the voter who will speak.

Then we will see if people have made the right decisions or not.

It is an honour

for me to get up and speak here today as Minister of Education.

I was listening to the Minister of Finance who talked to our allocation

that we have given per student and how that has increased over the past number

of years. I was interested yesterday

in hearing the speeches from the Members for Port de Grave and for Port au Port.

In both of their addresses they spoke to students, they spoke about

students and how important the future of the Province is.

Students are the ones who are going to lead the Province.

They are the ones who are going to establish the direction of the

Province in the future. Our

investment in education is very, very important.

I would just

like to take us through where we are.

I am the minister for kindergarten to Grade 12 and also the minister

responsible for the education component from zero up to the time that students

enter kindergarten. A few years back

we launched a program that is called Learning from the Start.

The reason we did this and if people listen to some of my answers to some

of the questions in Question Period last year and through addresses such as

this, they heard me speak about the importance of investing early.

Anybody in the

research field in developmental research, in early brain development research,

will tell you that intervention at these very early years is critical.

Anyone who has been around a young child, all they have to do is take a

look at how much a child advances from the time they are born until they are

about three years old. They pick up

language. Children will learn more

words in their first three to four to five years of life than they will at any

other period in their entire life.

Our investment

and support for young children in that early age is critical. As such, we rolled

out a campaign. We had the Power of

Play campaign that emphasized the importance of play.

I think at earlier years, I am talking twenty years ago, people just saw

play as something that children did.

They just went outdoors, they played around, that was it, and nothing more than

that to it, without the true understanding of the learning that was actually

taking place in those encounters.

It is probably

more important now than ever because now, with the advance of technology, we

have children who are not engaging in play in the way that they used to and the

lessons are not being learned there that would have; therefore, we have to go

and we have to encourage parents to put their children in situations where they

can play.

We had Play and

Learn Week (inaudible) resources and one of the things that we developed, that

we have gotten good responses on, is around the early learning kits.

We developed these kits with suggested activities for parents around

reading and engaging their children and we have put them out there for children

who are of two, four, and six months of age.

As they go into the clinic for their health checks, these kits are passed

out to them.

The twelve- and

eighteen-month-old kits are now being piloted and the kits for months twenty-six

and thirty-six are being developed.

This early learning intervention, at the end of the third year, will amount we

put in I think it is $4.3 million or $4.5 million over the course.

We look to see now if we can continue that.

It is being received rather positively.

Mr. Chair, I am

looking at the clock. I get ten

minutes to speak and I am down to four minutes and thirty-six seconds so I

better skitter. I can stand up here

for an hour and speak to all of the initiatives that we have done and the

investments that we put in education.

I just want to

highlight some of the investments, in particular in infrastructure.

I will challenge anyone to go and look to see what government has

invested more in educational infrastructure in terms of schools and upgrades to

schools than this government has. If

people could go back into Hansard, I was speaking last year about the

forty-some-odd projects that we have underway.

Well, Mr.

Chair, in preparation for this I can now add to that.

We have fifty-six major infrastructure projects happening in our schools.

We have thirteen new schools that have been built.

We have eight more new schools under construction.

We have twenty-six major extensions and renovation projects underway.

We have nine additional extension, renovation, and rebuild projects that

are underway or in planning. There

are fifty-six major school infrastructure pieces happening in the Province.

Mr. Chair, I

have to say this; I have been in this portfolio now for over two years.

One of the things I am committed to doing, and I have done, is to travel

to the schools. Go to the schools

and see the infrastructure that we have in place.

I am willing to bet we can put it up against anywhere in the world.

That infrastructure is housing students and teachers who are committed to

the education of this Province.

I have said

this before; the student of today is far more advanced than the student I

believe I was. The reason is they

are more global, they are more knowledgeable, they understand the world more,

and they understand compassion for their fellow student.

Go and speak to them. I have

gone across this Province from Labrador to the schools in St. John's and across

the Island and I have spoken to many student councils just to get their input

into it.

I think

oftentimes we, as politicians and the adult community, will make decisions and

we sometimes include the students, but not to the extent that they should be.

Go and sit down with these student leaders and listen to their

perspective. I have to tell you it

has been an enlightening experience, but more importantly, as Minister of

Education, it has been a rewarding experience.

As I have said from the outset, the future of our Province is in our

students, and I feel assured that our Province is in good hands.

It takes that

commitment and it does take dollars, there is no doubt about it.

You will hear over the next number of weeks in this sitting members

across the way will get up and challenge us on what investments have been made

and what others should be made in education.

There will be things we will continue to invest in, but I would ask

anybody in this House and I would ask anybody in this Province to take a look at

our track record and our investment in education.

I will say that it is second to none that we have ever had in this

Province. I say that with all

genuineness and I put aside all the politics of it.

Our investment in education has been second to none.

Mr. Chair, I

know my time has ended but I certainly hope that I have the opportunity to get

up and speak on education initiatives again.

Thank you very

much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

CHAIR:

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

MR. KIRBY:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

It is a

privilege for me to be back in my seat again in the House of Assembly to speak

on behalf of my constituents in St. John's North.

It was great to have a break to be able to spend more time with the

families. I know people who are in

from out of town from rural districts and districts from around Newfoundland and

Labrador who make great sacrifices to come and sit in the House of Assembly and

be away from their families for extended periods of time to do your jobs here.

I guess you pays your money and you takes your chances, as the saying

goes.

Yesterday as I

was listening to the Throne Speech, I was reminded of when I was growing up.

My parents were small-business people and they had a convenience store.

They had a number of other enterprises, but they had a convenience store.

There were always a lot of deliveries at the convenience store.

There were always a lot of wholesalers showing up.

I always remember when I was a child, that sound of the trucks backing

up, beep, beep, beep.

Yesterday when

I was listening to the Throne Speech I was taken back to my childhood days

working at my parent's store. As the

Throne Speech was being read all I could hear was beep, beep, beep, the sound of

government backing up, whether backing up on Bill 29, backing up on oversight on

Muskrat Falls, backing up on whistle-blower legislation, or backing up on the

adult literacy strategy, and on and on and on.

Beep, beep, beep, the sound of government backing up.

That was one of the things that I wanted to mention.

In all

seriousness, however, Mr. Chair, yesterday the Throne Speech said, By sharing

more fairly the benefits of our newfound prosperity, we can continue to achieve

a more equitable balance of opportunities for our people, whatever their

particular needs. It also went on

to say, We will continue advancing the Strategy for the Inclusion of Persons

with Disabilities.

As I mentioned

during petitions today, it was not very long ago that this government yanked

funding, cut funding, for the Coalition of Persons with Disabilities in this

Province and basically pushed that organization really to the edge.

We are really lucky that they are still around and able to do the job

they are doing for persons with disabilities in this Province, despite what this

government decided to do last year when it cut a lot of funding including

funding for the Coalition of Persons with Disabilities.

The hon.

Minister of Education just spoke for a while about investments in education.

Again in the Throne Speech yesterday it talked about it was sort of lip

service really, Mr. Chair the government will continue to make investments in

the province's K-12 schools. That

is a relatively meaningless statement.

There is no detail, no meat on the bones there.

Maybe we will hear a little bit more about that.

I know when the

Minister of Finance was up, she was talking about how per capita or per-student

expenditures have increased in education.

Of course, that is not very difficult when enrolment has declined by

something like 17,000 students or so since 2004.

Of course, the amount per student is increasing because that is

increasing, if by nothing else, by attrition.

You cannot just throw infrastructure investments in on top of all of

that.

Now speaking of

infrastructure, the minister is talking about building new schools.

Well, one thing that this government has really capitalized on, has

cornered the market on to in some extent, is building schools too small.

Ask my colleague, the Member for Carbonear Harbour Grace, where they

built a new school and the next day they had to roll in with the modulars, with

the portables, and put them in the parking lot so they would have enough room

for all the students.

Go out to

Torbay, I say to the Member for Cape St. Francis, the same thing there.

Out in Paradise they are wondering when they are going to start building

the new school. Portugal Cove St.

Phillips, the same thing: when is this government going to come to life and get

to work on all of that?

Yes, there have

been investments in education because that is one of the primary roles of

government: to ensure that educational programs and services are provided; to

ensure that our children have the same, if not better opportunities, than we had

when we went to school. I think that

is really important.

The minister is

talking about investments in education.

Well, more or less year after year, to some degree, we have seen teacher

cuts, last year we saw teacher cuts, resource cuts, and kindergarten to Grade 12

system cuts. That is what we have

seen. Government assumes that it can

maintain the status quo and that children will not suffer the consequences of

that. That is not the case.

Government

introduced an inclusion strategy a number of years ago, an unfunded inclusion

strategy, expects teachers and administrators and other school staff to do more

with less and that cannot be done; that is unreasonable.

Also last year,

one and increase the administrative burden on principals, on assistant

principals, on teachers, on administrators, on all staff at our schools; and, of

course, that increases the burden and the pressure on parents and their kids

unacceptable.

It was

interesting to hear yesterday this newfound attachment to openness.

As I was listening to the sound of the government backing up, beep, beep,

beep, and listening to this newfound attachment to openness, I could not help

but think about the way those decisions were made last year to amalgamate those

four schools boards into one or, in other words, to cut three school boards

altogether.

I was reminded

of an

article that I read in The

Gander Beacon last summer, and the

Minister of Education, and his colleague, the Member for Gander district, made a

trip out there and met with a number of groups.

They had a meeting with the local Chamber of commerce, I understand.

This

article called that lip service.

The past President of the Chamber of Comme