PDF Version

October 6, 2020

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLIX No. 50

The House met at 1:30 p.m.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Admit strangers.

Order, please!

Statements by Members

MR.

SPEAKER:

Today, we will hear statements by the hon. Members for the Districts of Mount

Pearl - Southlands, Terra Nova, St. Barbe - L'Anse aux Meadows, Ferryland and

Bonavista.

The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl - Southlands.

MR.

LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It's my absolute pleasure to sit in this hon. House

today to recognize an amazing athlete from my district, Michael Mercer of

Southlands.

This past November, Michael participated in the 26th

Annual 2019 Canadian Boccia championships in Victoria, BC. This event brings

together the best boccia athletes from across the country, all vying for a spot

on the Canadian National Team and the opportunity to represent Canada at

international competitions.

Michael did our province very proud as he captured the

gold medal in the BC2 classification going undefeated for the tournament.

Following the championship tournament, he was named to the national team for the

fifth consecutive year. He is currently ranked number two in Canada and has

represented our country in several international competitions since first

joining the national squad in 2015. Mike's ultimate goal is to represent Canada

at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, France.

I ask all hon. Members to please join me in

congratulating this amazing young man on his many accomplishments and wish him

all the very best in his quest to represent our country at the 2024 Paralympic

Games.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Terra Nova.

MR.

PARROTT:

Mr.

Speaker, today I rise to speak about a 16-member community group that planned

and successfully delivered an important event in my District of Terra Nova.

When the COVID pandemic hit, the AppleFest! 16

committee members became very creative to plan the second annual

community-involved event with an array of activities for all ages.

They felt it was extremely important at a time like

this for this event to continue. The event in Port Blandford from September

25-27 provided four culinary events, an outdoor market with 25 vendors attending

from St. John's to Fogo, as well as activities throughout the community like

golfing, sea kayaking, a drive-in movie, a picture scavenger hunt, all following

public health guidelines on self-distancing.

This was planned as an economic development project,

helping increase tourism activity and to continue with the spirit in this viable

community-oriented town.

It is estimated that over $25,000 worth of sales took

place at the outdoor market, and an overall $50,000 worth of economic activity

was generated for tourism and the craft industry in Port Blandford.

I'd like to thank everyone and congratulate the Town of

Port Blandford for such a lucrative and successful event in such trying times.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. Barbe - L'Anse aux Meadows.

MR.

MITCHELMORE:

Mr.

Speaker, today I recognize a dynamic father and son who share a love for

motorcycling and their community. Chris and Charlie Humby of St. Lunaire-Griquet

started a motorcycle ride in 2018 called Just the Tip Great Northern Peninsula

Motorcycle Rally, which gets its name from the route taken to circumnavigate the

tip of the Peninsula.

Their focus was to bring together riders from the Great

Northern Peninsula and raise funds to support Kids Eat Smart breakfast programs

at our local schools. In the first year they attracted 10 riders and raised

$1,851.

The ride grew in 2019 and continued to thrive in 2020,

attracting support from Tim Hortons, St. Barbe Consumers Co-Op and Green Island

Cove Lions Club. A total of $6,210 was raised by 19 participants for White Hills

Academy, Truman Eddison Memorial, Canon Richards Memorial Academy and French

Shore Academy.

Chris and Charlie are proud of their ride that has a

three-year total of $12,021, matched by Kids Eat Smart Foundation, which means

more than 24,000 meals for our school-age children.

I ask all hon. Members to congratulate Chris and

Charlie Humby for organizing this motorcycle ride and the impact it's had on

school breakfast programs on the Great Northern Peninsula.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Ferryland.

MR.

O'DRISCOLL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Today I recognize the recent passing of a constituent

from my district. Kevin Dalton passed away on March 29, 2020, at the age of 58,

and was laid to rest on September 11.

Kevin was a resident of Cape Broyle, a very well-known

successful businessman with a very infectious smile and a big heart. Kevin was a

hard-working man who owned and operated a couple of very prosperous businesses

in his hometown.

Kevin began his career with the Canadian Coast Guard.

While employed with the Canadian Coast Guard he purchased his first business.

Over the years, Kevin purchased and built other businesses that he owned and

operated, such as a gas bar, convenience store, a grocery store and a Home

Hardware Building Centre. Kevin also owned and operated Newfoundland and

Labrador's only casket manufacturing company, which he started in 1991 and is

still operating in Cape Broyle today.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all my colleagues of this House to

join me in honouring the life of Kevin Dalton and the contribution he made to

our province.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bonavista.

MR.

PARDY:

Mr.

Speaker, Calvin Pond of Musgravetown is a paraplegic who serves as an

inspiration to any person who has the privilege of knowing him.

Calvin was working in the gold mine in Yellowknife back

in 1986, when he was involved in a biking accident leading to his injury. If I

used the term disability here to explain this incident, Calvin may take

exception. In 1999, Calvin and his wife moved home to Musgravetown.

Since his accident, Calvin has challenged himself to do

everything he did previously. He participates in the recreational fishery and

hunts his moose every year when he has his licence to do so. Calvin has been an

active member of the local Lions Club since returning home and recently served

as their president for four years, where he has captured much respect from his

colleagues and the community alike. Until recently, he received his truckload of

wood every year, which he promptly cuts into junks and stored for the winter.

Calvin serves as an inspiration for us all.

I ask the Members of 49th House of Assembly to join me

in congratulating and celebrating the tenacity, energy, perseverance and

resiliency of Mr. Calvin Pond of Musgravetown.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation.

MR.

DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I want to acknowledge in this hon. House the winners of

the 2020 Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards.

Sharon Bala was chosen in the fiction category for her

novel The Boat People . Inspired by

events surrounding the 2010 arrival of a cargo ship in Vancouver carrying Tamil

refugees, the author has masterfully and compassionately crafted insight into

the experiences of refugees, immigrants and the people who determine their

fates. Sharon Bala's The Boat People

has won numerous literary awards, and is available in multiple languages

worldwide.

The winner of the Children's/Young Adult Literature

award was Charis Cotter for her novel The

Ghost Road . As cousins Ruby and Ruth work together to unravel the mysterious

family secret, they are both helped and hindered by their irritable witch, a

mischievous storyteller and a swath of ghostly characters. This unique tale,

which combines our province's folklore and natural history, was inspired by Ms.

Cotter's upbringing. The Ghost Road is

her third novel, which she considers to be a love letter to her home province.

Mr. Speaker, our government proudly supports the

province's artists. To further support the arts community, we invested an

additional $1 million for ArtsNL in Budget

2020 , bringing the annual provincial investment to ArtsNL to nearly $4

million.

I ask all hon. Members to join me in congratulating

Sharon Bala and Charis Cotter and the recipients of the 2020 Newfoundland and

Labrador Book Awards, as well as the other nominees in both categories for their

immense contributions to Newfoundland and Labrador literary arts.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Grand Falls-Windsor - Buchans.

MR.

TIBBS:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I'd like to thank the minister for the advance copy of

his statement. On behalf of the Official Opposition, I would like to

congratulate Sharon Bala and Charis Cotter on their tremendous accomplishments.

Winning a Newfoundland and Labrador Book Award is not an easy task. Sharon Bala

and Charis Cotter are now following in the footsteps of the prestigious authors

who have won this award before them. They join the ranks of talented authors

such as Bernie Stapleton, Mary Pratt and Andy Jones.

I'd also like to thank the Writers' Alliance of

Newfoundland and Labrador for supporting these awards and for the encouragement

they give to all our province's writers both experienced and novice.

Mr. Speaker, the people of our province are talented

with rich imaginations, experiences and stories to tell. I encourage writers,

especially Sharon Bala and Charis Cotter, to continue writing and sharing their

talents with all of us.

I look forward to reading these novels and look forward

to more published works from both of these authors in the future.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Labrador West.

MR.

BROWN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to thank the minister for the advance copy

of his statement. I would also like to congratulate Sharon Bala and Charis

Cotter on their achievements. It is important to have stories that broaden our

perspective on society, our culture and our heritage. I am pleased that we can

recognize these works through ArtsNL programs. Our winners and all the nominees

should be proud of their efforts.

Let us all pick up a local book and learn more about

our beautiful province.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Further statements by ministers?

The hon. the Minister of Justice and Public Safety.

MR.

CROCKER:

Mr.

Speaker, October 4 to the 10 is Fire Prevention Week 2020. This year's theme is

“Serve Up Fire Safety in the Kitchen” which encourages people to learn more

about the simple but important actions they can take to keep themselves, and

those around them, safe in the kitchen.

Cooking is the leading cause of home fires and home

fire injuries in Canada. The majority of reported home fires start in the

kitchen, most of which are ignited from food or other cooking materials.

Mr. Speaker, we all have a role to play in fire safety.

During Fire Prevention Week, I encourage all residents of Newfoundland and

Labrador to take steps to protect themselves and their families. Never leave

cooking food unattended, check your food regularly, always have a fire

extinguisher nearby and create a kid-free zone around the cooking area. Don't be

careless in the kitchen. Check your kitchen for fire hazards and use safe

cooking practices.

Fires caused by cooking and heating can be devastating,

but taking these measures I have mentioned, as well as ensuring smoke alarms are

working and home fire escape plans are in place, could mean the difference

between life and death.

Mr. Speaker, I would also like to take this opportunity

to thank firefighters throughout our province for keeping us safe every day.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Harbour Main.

MS.

CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

I thank the minister for an advance copy of his

statement.

On behalf of the Official Opposition I join with the

minister in recognizing Fire Prevention Week and offer my gratitude to all the

firefighters and fire prevention officers in this province.

The minister outlined the theme of this year's Fire

Prevention Week and gave some tips for fire prevention in the kitchen. I would

like to take a moment to speak about some ways we can prevent fires throughout

the rest of the home as well.

We can make sure heat sources have the necessary

clearances from fabrics and furniture; we can avoid overloading electrical

plug-ins and circuits; we should replace electronics, which have aged or damaged

wiring; and we should always follow the manufacturer's instructions on

appliances, light fixtures and other electronics.

Mr. Speaker, we should always ensure that every member

of the family knows what to do in the unfortunate event of a fire: how to escape

and where to meet outside.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MS.

COFFIN:

Thanks to you, Mr. Speaker, and the minister for an advance copy of his

statement.

Mr. Speaker, we all enjoy a good steak Diane, crème

brûlée or cherry jubilee, but we must remember that flambés are a fire hazard.

Be smart in the kitchen; make sure your fire

extinguishers are at hand and up to date; turn your pot handles in; don't wear

clothing with loose sleeves while cooking; and don't fry bacon naked.

Many thanks to the first responders that keep us safe,

and happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Further statements by ministers?

Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Placentia West - Bellevue.

MR.

DWYER:

Will the government agree to hold an emergency debate on the prospect of a

permanent closure at the Come By Chance oil refinery?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you for the question from the Member.

The answer would be yes.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

June 11, the previous minister said she had assurances that Irving was “very

committed to full operations of the North Atlantic Refinery.”

I would ask the current minister: What's changed, and

when did he find out?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Certainly, the previous minister did speak in this

House in June in response to a question from the Member opposite about this

pending sale between two private entities. The reality is now that we've been

notified by these parties that this deal is not moving forward as it stood; we

were given official notification yesterday. I know that the entity also reached

out to the union. That is something that we are still processing and dealing

with today.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

thank the minister for that.

Last evening, the Premier posted on Facebook: “The

refinery is an asset to this province, and one our government will maximize.”

I'd ask the minister: How exactly will you maximize the

asset, and is maximizing different from saving jobs?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Deputy Premier.

MS.

COADY:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

This is a very difficult and uncertain time for the

families and for the workers at the refinery. I can say that they've worked very

hard to make this refinery; improve it; to grow it; to make it efficient,

reliable and safe. I can tell you that the global pandemic has had a major

impact on the oil industry, as well as others. This government is committed to

ensuring growth and jobs and reliability of business supports. You see that

throughout our budget.

I will say as well, Mr. Speaker, I think I mentioned

back in June that there has been another interested party and I'm sure that they

will be in contact. We will be in contact with them to see how we can, again,

continue to have this great asset and great jobs in the province.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

I'm

still unclear on what's involved in maximizing an asset, Mr. Speaker.

Last night in Estimates, the minister said he cannot

provide details on how government will help Come By Chance refinery get up and

running; yet, the Premier made a public pledge to do so.

Does the Premier have a plan, and does it involve

financial assistance?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Certainly, there's a difference between saying that you

will do what you can to help and also disclosing what those details are. The one

reality that we must keep top of mind here is that this is a commercial

transaction between two private entities. The government itself is not an actual

party to this, so it's very difficult to speak about details that may place this

whole issue in further jeopardy. I don't want to do anything that will make what

is already a tough situation even worse.

What I can say is that we will do what we can. We

realize the impact that this will have, not just on the area but on the province

as a whole. The situation is fluid. It is evolving. It's evolving very rapidly,

there's no doubt about that. We'll continue to work with Silverpeak, to work

with the partners moving forward.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

I thank the minister for that. We can all assume that the government is keeping

a very tight watching brief on the situation and has been.

As well, last night the minister said he had little

information because the province is not privy as a partner; yet, the Premier

said his government would maximize the asset.

How can government maximize the asset without being a

partner, and does the Premier intend that his government should become a

partner?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I know that the Member opposite and I had a good

conversation on this last night and, again, I don't believe I said I wasn't

privy to the details. I think what I may have said or certainly what I implied

or would hope to put across – and, again, obviously when you're in a three-hour

Estimates and this thing is breaking during that, one could forgive if you

misspeak.

What I would say is that we have been in contact with

the different parties. We realize the situation as we find it. It continues to

evolve and unfold. We've been watching this closely. We'll continue to watch

closely. We all have the same goal in mind, which is to see some way for these

people to continue working and this refinery to stay open.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

Thank you.

As the Deputy Premier alluded to, Origin International

has publicly expressed their interest in purchasing the Come By Chance refinery.

Has the minister spoken with Origin in the last 24

hours?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Origin has in fact, they had done so previously, and

they've expressed it again today that they do have an interest in the refinery.

It's nice to see a glimmer of hope in a very difficult situation. While our

department has reached out, at the time that I entered this House for Question

Period I had not had contact with Origin; but, as you can imagine, it's been a

busy time for them as well. They've released their statement.

Again, as I would say, we are not a party to this, but

we're certainly going to do what we can to help facilitate some form of deal.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

Much appreciated, Mr. Speaker.

I spoke to Origin representatives myself last night, so

if the minister wants the phone number I can pass it over to him.

The previous minister of Natural Resources spoke with

officials from Origin in June.

Did Origin give any indication of how long it would

take them to complete the purchase of the refinery and get people back to work?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Deputy Premier.

MS.

COADY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I did, indeed, have correspondence from Origin

International in June. I think it was public at the time, and officials did have

a conversation with Origin. They were very interested at the time. They did know

that the process with Irving was ongoing, and they said should that not advance

they would be very interested in considering the assets of the refinery. That

is, I'm sure, what they are exactly doing, as the minister suggested.

This is ongoing and very much something that's in

process. I will say again how concerned we all are for the families and for the

workers of the refinery. That is critical at this point.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

Does either minister have knowledge as to whether North Atlantic refinery has

been approached by Origin in the last day or two?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It's hard for me to say what North Atlantic itself has

been – who they've been contacted by or who they've been in touch with. I know

the Member opposite has been speaking to his nephew, Tim Powers, who is a

representative for Origin.

What I would say is if you want to make sure – again,

because we all have the same issue here is that we want to see this succeed. So

we can play politics with it or we can all put our minds to fixing this issue.

The Member is asking questions for which he's hoping to get a gotcha moment, but

let's put that to the side and remember there are a lot of people out there

right now facing a lot of uncertainty.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

I'm

good, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Harbour Main.

MS.

CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Mr. Speaker, yesterday hard-working Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians received more devastating news. The sale of the Come By Chance

refinery to Irving Oil is expected to fall through and North Atlantic refinery

has indicated the refinery could close permanently.

I ask the minister: What does he say to the 500

families who are now worried about how they will pay their bills?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I certainly understand the frustration I'm sure the

Member is feeling, but I would remind everybody in this House that this was not

a government decision to do something here. So I don't feel that I have to

explain anything that I have done or we have done. The reality is, as with the

question that you asked previously along this same vein, we are dealing with a

global pandemic combined with a price war here that has seen the hugest impact

to the oil industry we have seen in the last century. That is the reality of

what we are dealing with.

The other reality is that we have a lot of people in

your district and my district that I'm worried about, that you're worried about.

What we're going to try to do here as a government, and I know as an Opposition,

is try to figure out how do we get our way through this in hopes of getting the

bright side on the other side.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Harbour Main.

MS.

CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Mr. Speaker, last night I heard from many workers in my

district that are worried that they will be out of a job if this refinery

closes. Come By Chance is more than a refinery; it is a source of livelihood for

more than 500 workers.

Again, I ask the minister: What discussions have you

had about why the sale may fall through, impacting so many workers and their

families?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Again, I certainly understand the uncertainty that

people face now. It's something that we've been dealing with before today. We've

had some serious upheaval when it comes to the industries that drive this

province.

I can say that this morning I spoke to the mayor of

Come By Chance; I spoke to the mayor of Clarenville. We've spoken to the union,

and everybody has the same concern. We realize that people's lives are affected

here.

The reality is that we have a private entity and

another private entity that we're trying to reach an agreement and that

agreement is no longer there. So what we can do as a government is work with the

vendor to try to help facilitate the continued operation of this facility, and

that is what we will continue to do.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Harbour Main.

MS.

CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Mr. Speaker, the people have a right to know. When the

minister references that he's facilitating this deal, the people have a right to

know exactly how this is being done. These workers deserve to know what their

government is doing to protect their livelihoods.

Minister, you said again last night the province is not

privy to discussions but, with so many jobs at stake, how can the minister take

such a hands-off detached approach?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Again, as I stated earlier, and maybe the Member can

recalibrate the question to acknowledge the answers that I've given, I did not

say that, but, again, will continue on here.

I know the Member opposite is a lawyer, and I know the

Member opposite realizes how commercial deals work. As I explained to the member

of the union today, the fact is that you'd love to be able to stand up and say

everything you want, but the reality is that doing so may place us in a tougher

situation.

What I would say to the Member opposite is don't

confuse detached with understanding how this works and not trying to break

certain laws and agreements.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Terra Nova.

MR.

PARROTT:

Mr.

Speaker, Come By Chance is more than an oil refinery. It's an economic driver

for surrounding communities and the province as a whole. When the refinery is at

full employment, convenience stores, take outs and many businesses all do well.

I ask the minister not what does he say to the

companies, but what does the minister say to the residents of my district who

are about to lose their futures?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Again, I've spoken to the Member opposite about this

and we've had conversations about the impact of this. This is something that,

again, sadly, with this refinery we have a history of going through tumultuous

times, basically, since its inception. The fact is that this was created in a

cloud of controversy decades and decades ago. It's gone through that.

What I would say is that we are not a party to this,

but we have a duty – and this is the same exact thing that I said to the mayor

of Clarenville today, with whom I've had a very strong and positive

conversation, and we've agreed that the line is open and we will talk as much as

they would like to talk or as much as we can give information.

What I would say is we want to ensure that we continue

on in the best interests of all these citizens. We'll do what we can, as a

government, but, right now, this is a private transaction between two companies.

It's not a commercial transaction that we are actually a party to, but I know

that doesn't fix the uncertainty and unrest that your constituents feel.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Terra Nova.

MR.

PARROTT:

Mr.

Speaker, many of the people who work at the Come By Chance refinery are my

constituents. The decision to close the refinery, it certainly impacts those who

I work every day to support. I sit here today to voice their opinions and their

questions and their concerns.

I ask the minister again: What is the minister going to

do, specifically, for these workers if the refinery shuts its doors for good?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

What I would say to the Member is that, again – and this sort of continues on

from an answer that I gave to the Member for Labrador West yesterday when we

talked about taking workers and putting them up in a different area and doing

retraining. What I would come back to is we are not giving up on the refinery.

That's the first thing I would say.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

A. PARSONS:

That being said, Mr. Speaker, this is an evolving situation. The problem with

situations like these is people want answers now and in some cases you're unable

to give the answers that they want at this time. We know that people want that

information right now.

We will continue to make contact, to give information

as we can and to work towards facilitating or finalizing some kind of deal.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Terra Nova.

MR.

PARROTT:

Mr. Speaker, I remind the minister that there's $320 million in the bank waiting

for some decisions to be made and time is not on these people's side; mortgages

are falling through and people are losing their vehicles. If the refinery does

not start up again, many residents of my district will be left without work.

Businesses will suffer.

What supports will be made for the businesses and the

residents affected by the shutdown?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Two

things that I would say to that question. We will work to deal with the

situation, but saying that we have the support package in place right now, we're

just not there at this stage of time, that would be premature. I understand the

concern the Member is expressing.

The second thing I would say when it comes to the $320

million for the feds. It was only less than two weeks ago that your leader said

put it into Husky. The fact is that we can only spend that once and we have a

duty to spend that in the best way that we can. That work continues on. We

realize that time is of the essence, though.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

MR.

PETTEN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

As the minister knows, the cold season is approaching.

It's much harder to start up the refinery in the cold and serious damage could

occur.

Minister, will you commit to doing what's required to

get these workers back to work before the winter?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Member is certainly right that the cold season is

approaching and that presents complications to what is already a complicated

situation. What I can say is that I cannot commit to doing something for which I

legally have no power to do.

What I can say is that we have the same goal in mind,

which is to see these people back to work, but we need to work with the vendor.

Right now, we know that commercial transaction has been terminated. We know that

there have been expressions of interest. We will do what we can in the ways that

we can to help.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

MR.

PETTEN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This issue is urgent, Minister, as we all know. This

asset cannot sit idle through the winter.

Will you provide assistance to North Atlantic to get

the refinery back up and running?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would love to be able to sit here and say we're going

to do that, but the fact is that right now where we are in this moment, and

again we're moving in real time here, it's too early to say whether that's the

necessity. The fact is that there's just been a commercial transaction with this

entity that has been terminated by the other party. We know that there's been an

expression of interest. We'll do what we can to help facilitate that, but,

again, we're monitoring this hour by hour since this came up and we'll continue

to do so.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

MR.

PETTEN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Not only does Come By Chance provide jobs for the

region but also provides out-of-province and essential supply of fuel.

Minister, are you aware how much fuel Come By Chance

produces for this province?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

don't have the number here but I thought it was somewhere in the 40 per cent

range, I think is the number that I have but if I'm wrong I can certainly

provide that.

The reality is whether I have the number here or not,

there's no understating or overstating, I should say, the importance of that

refinery. It's the only refinery that we have in this province so we appreciate

the importance.

We've gone through this, in fact, in this House of

Assembly in my time here when I sat on the other side and we went through the

last sale of this. I realize the implications. I'm very familiar with the

importance and the details so that part will continue on.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

MR.

PETTEN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister, 100 per cent of the jet fuel is produced at

Come By Chance which is used in this province.

With the closure of Come By Chance, will the province

experience a shortage in supply?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

That is not a concern that's been expressed to me at

this point, that anybody should have any supply chain concerns as it relates to

the supply of that fuel or any other fuel, but, again, we realize what the

refinery contributes to the different lines of hydrocarbons and the different

lines of fuel, so that's something that we're obviously cognizant of.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

MR.

PETTEN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister, I know hindsight is 20/20 but don't you think

an asset such as Come By Chance the government should have played a larger role

in the negotiation of this sale and even on a brokerage level, even though it's

private industry, it's a big enough concern.

I question: Why didn't government play a bigger role

instead of a hands-off approach?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Two

things, Mr. Speaker, and again, I'm sure we'd all love to operate in hindsight.

There are a lot of decisions in the history of this province that may be

different, but what I would say is that this deal up to this point had been

progressing. All indications that things were moving forward, so we can't sit

here in the House today and say you should have done this and that when there

was no reason to believe that that was the issue. I'm certainly not going to

take any blame for that one.

The reality is that we have a situation that's been

presented to us and it's incumbent on us now to do what we can and pull the

levers we have, as a province and as a government, to find a solution to the

problem.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Stephenville - Port au Port.

MR.

WAKEHAM:

Mr.

Speaker, first of all, I want to say that all of our thoughts today are with the

workers and their families for this sudden announcement.

The Come By Chance oil refinery accounts for over 5 per

cent of the province's GDP, and thus the economy, each year. We've already seen

in this week's budget that our GDP is expected to drop by 7 per cent this year.

Obviously, if this refinery closes, it could drop by as much as 12 per cent.

I ask the minister: This refinery cannot be allowed to

close – it's that simple – so what would be the plans for the next days or the

next week on how you plan on dealing with that?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I like the sentiment that the Member puts forward: this

cannot be allowed to close. That's the same sentiment we saw in 2014 when the

Wabush mines closed. I will say that when this crowd came into government, we

took a plan and made that become active again.

What I will say to you is that it's easy to say that,

but the hard part here is that as a government we are not a party to the

transaction. We will continue to work, fully realizing the impact on GDP, fully

realizing the impact on employment, fully realizing all the financial impacts.

That is not something that is lost on us, but it's not as simple as flicking a

switch and saying the deal is done. There are complexities that we have to work

around and it's especially difficult given that we are not a party to the

transaction.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Stephenville - Port au Port.

MR.

WAKEHAM:

Minister, I can't speak about 2014 because I certainly wasn't here at that time,

but I can speak about today. Today we face a potential for another 1,000 jobs

being lost in this province.

Again, I ask the minister: Is the province now

anticipating that almost 15,000 jobs will be wiped out from our province this

year?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Deputy Premier.

MS.

COADY:

Thank you very much.

Allow me to address this issue, Mr. Speaker. The Member

opposite talks about: What about the budget forecast? I can tell you the Come By

Chance refinery would have been closed for most of this year. So it will have

minimal impacts on our current budget economic forecast, I will let him know

that.

We are very concerned about the workers. There are 500

employees, and I know how hard and dedicated they've been. I've been to visit

the refinery on a number of occasions. They've been able to make that refinery

more efficient. They've been able to enhance its operations and make it

reliable, and I'm very proud of their efforts.

We are in the middle of a global pandemic, Mr. Speaker,

so this has been unexpected. We had seen two companies coming forward and we

thought the sale would go through.

I will say this: We'll do whatever we can to assist to

ensure that this refinery is operational.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Harbour Main.

MS.

CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Can the minister give an update on what initiatives

have been taken in the last 12 months to combat gender-based violence,

intimate-partner violence and family violence?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Justice and Public Safety.

MR.

CROCKER:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

One of the challenges of sitting, I guess, it gets

confusing sometimes.

Mr. Speaker, as the Member opposite would have seen,

and many of the questions I did answer for her just last week in Estimates,

these are important pieces of work that are done between the Department of

Justice and, importantly, with the Minister Responsible for the Status of Women.

We'll continue with our committees that we have to make sure that we're reaching

out to the appropriate groups.

One of the things I've done since becoming Justice

Minister is start the process of actually sitting down with the people involved

in these many groups, because the government's role in this, albeit important,

but it's the people on the front lines that we have to keep open communications

with.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Labrador West.

MR.

BROWN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Communities in the surrounding Come By Chance area are

reeling today. Hundreds of livelihoods are set to vanish overnight.

While I recognize the oil and gas economy has years

before it will be fully transitioned from oil, I ask the Minister of Industry,

Energy and Technology: What are the plans to transition our workforce and

identify a more stable, long-term employment for the employees of this province?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I appreciate the question from the Member opposite. The

reality is that oil and gas has been the backbone of this economy and will still

be the backbone of this economy for some time to come, but there's no disputing

the fact that we must diversity. One of those areas that we can is the latest

addition or component to the Department of IET, and that being the T in

Technology.

As I discussed last night in Estimates, the reality is

that we have huge opportunities there. In fact, we have job creation that could

happen, but we need to create the pipeline of that talent.

My belief is that there are different ways we can do

that. One thing is we have to go back into the primary schools and we have to go

into post-secondary as well. The talent is here, we have the educational

institutions that can do it, but we have to churn more people into these and out

and there will be job creation that comes from it.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MS.

COFFIN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, a report released this morning by the

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives underlies that there are veils of

secrecy around the P3 process. P3s are an effort to get debt off government's

books. They result in higher interest changes and convoluted repayment schemes.

I ask the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure

to please explain to the House how a P3 is different than a buy now, pay later

furniture scheme?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure.

MR.

BRAGG:

Mr.

Speaker, I thank the Member opposite for the question.

On the P3, we are replacing aging infrastructure in

this province that is much needed to be replaced. We're bringing things in on

budget, on time. We have mock-up centres. Recently, I toured the P3 in Corner

Brook in which the contractor took me through and we went to – every room is

mocked-up to resemble what the hospital facility will look like.

While the building is being built, those rooms get

modified to meet the needs of the people that will use them, as either the

health care professional or the patient. This has been proven for us. It worked

good in Gander. We're just about done with the long-term care facility. It's

about ready to go in, and the success there and the response from the people in

Central Newfoundland has been overwhelming.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MS.

COFFIN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I see that, no, the minister could not explain the

difference between the two.

Mr. Speaker, I became an MHA because I was frustrated

by the poor planning and execution of the Muskrat Falls project. I was angered

and I am sick and tired of listening to the blame game being played by the

Liberals and the Conservatives. Now we hear that the development of Gull Island

is being considered.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: Was it the brightest

and the best who put Gull Island in the terms of reference for the task force on

rate mitigation?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I'll remind the Member that her predecessor sat in that

chair and was here for all those Muskrat debates, too. There's no doubt about

that.

The fact is that Gull Island is a Hydro asset. You only

have to talk to people to realize that we have tremendous assets here, but I

agree with the Member. There has been an issue with the planning and execution,

but I think there's absolutely no problem considering how we develop all of our

assets. The issue comes when you try to force the development of those assets

and it's not in the best interest of the province or the Treasury or the people

that live here.

We will consider everything we can to make sure that

our assets are fully maximized but we will not do so at the expense of the

people.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

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

MR.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, on Thursday the Minister of Education was

amused when I outlined that a team of staff were unable to clean this Chamber

but one custodian is expected to effectively sanitize an entire building. I find

it amusing that the minister obviously has no conception of the excessive

demands his fluid plan has placed on these essential workers.

I ask the minister: Will he immediately review staffing

levels with NAPE, CUPE and the school districts with the intention of increasing

the number of custodians, especially for schools with large student populations?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Education.

MR.

OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am in contact on a relatively regular basis with our

union leaders. I will say, Mr. Speaker, in the event that the Member missed it,

we did increase the number of our custodial workers. We also hired additional

custodial workers. At this point, other than people calling in sick and having

School District.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. John's Centre, time for a quick question and a quick

answer.

MR.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I ask the Minister of Education: What is the plan to

help these custodians during the winter months when they will also be

responsible for clearing snow from walkways and exits in addition to cleaning

and sanitizing schools during the day?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Education.

MR.

OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

That's certainly a topic that I can take up with the

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

time for Question Period has expired.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling of Documents.

Notices of Motion.

Notices of Motion

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

CROCKER:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Pursuant to Standing Order 11(1) I hereby give notice

that this House do not adjourn at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 8.

Further, I give notice pursuant to Standing Order 11(1)

that this House do not adjourn at 10:30 p.m. on Thursday, the 8th of October.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Further notices of motion?

Answers to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Ferryland.

MR.

O'DRISCOLL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The background to the petition is as follows: Route 10

on the southern Avalon forms a large

section of the Irish Loop. It is a

significant piece of infrastructure and is the main highway through the Irish

Loop. This highway plays a major role in the commercial and residential growth

of our region.

Therefore, we petition the hon. House of Assembly as

follows: We, the undersigned, call upon the House of Assembly to urge the

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador that immediate brush cutting is required

on Route 10 of the Southern Shore Highway for the safety of the commuters and

prevention of moose-vehicle accidents. Reason is due to the volume of vehicles

travelling the highway daily.

Mr. Speaker, I had an opportunity in the spring of the

year to go visit and drive along Route 10, and done it many times. I guess

looking back on it, going in the spring of the year is not as good as going in

the fall of the year. Right now, with the fall of the year, travelling in the

area you can really see where the brush and all the trees on the side of the

road has become a hazard, certainly with moose in the area.

I'm sure it's in every district as well, that you see

alders and trees growing out over the guardrails. You can't see the signs when

you're driving. I think it's something we should have a look at and the

government take it in their hands. It's not only that highway, there are many

others, but I certainly bring it on the government to look at Route 10 and get

that job done.

Thank you very much.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure.

MR.

BRAGG:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the Member opposite for the petition. Brush

cutting is a very active part of the department which I represent. The Member

will be happy to know that tenders are being called as we speak for brush

cutting throughout the province. If he wants a breakdown of brush cutting in his

area, I welcome him to – we have a sidebar after the meeting today or after the

House sits. I guess we'll adjourn today, and we'll talk about brush cutting in

your area because it is vital. Moose is the main reason for brush cutting and we

want to avoid that at all costs, all moose accidents.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Further petitions?

The hon. the Opposition House Leader.

MR.

BRAZIL:

Mr.

Speaker, I take this opportunity under special leave, under Standing Order 36,

to adjourn the discussion matter. I wish to make the following motion:

That because of the impact of the closure of the Come

By Chance oil refinery and the devastating economic impact it will have on our

province's economy, the issues of supply on the Island portion of the province

and the expected closure of many spinoff businesses, I move that the business of

the House be adjourned to hold an emergency debate on the closure of the oil

refinery, seconded by the hon. Member for Windsor Lake.

Mr. Speaker, as we've had a discussion here in Question

Period, everybody agrees in this House that this is devastating news to the

people of not only that region but Newfoundland and Labrador, and to the

country. That was, and still is, the cornerstone of our oil industry which is an

economic driver for this whole country. To have that not being active and

employing people and providing services that are necessary – but, particularly,

ensuring we have a supply of fuels that are necessary to drive our economy.

This particular refinery provides 100 per cent of the

jet fuel, which puts us at a disadvantage of how do we manage to supply the

industries that are responsible for bringing people and goods to Newfoundland

and Labrador? What impact would this have in the immediate future? We're talking

the immediate future, in the next day or so, what impact that would have.

We also look at the propane supplies that are provided

by this – 100 per cent of that to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. Let's

just look at the impact that has, not only on home heating, but on all the other

amenity industries we have. All the restaurants, all the other buildings that

provide service who rely on propane for their heating source and their source of

operations.

Mr. Speaker, also add into that the gas supply that

comes from that and the potential that one sole supplier could control what goes

on with other industries in communities that have one stand-alone gas station. I

could see the other provider only wanting to supply their own if there's a

particular shortage – a snowstorm where they can only get so much supply here.

There's some other kind of issue that challenges that. We need to ensure that

that refinery continues to do what it's been doing for the last number of

decades, and that's provide fuel for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador

while driving our economy.

Mr. Speaker, we're proposing this and we're asking that

we would have a debate today to ensure that the people of Newfoundland and

Labrador know that we are not sitting down or sitting back and letting this go

without a fight and finding a proper way to maintain that asset to the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador, and continue to ensure that our oil industry in

Newfoundland and Labrador has all the assets and amenities it needs to be

competitive on our world and global markets.

So, Mr. Speaker, I present this to the House for review

and tabling.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Before I take a brief recess to review the matter presented by the Member, I

gave him a little bit of time to elaborate on the motion. I'm going to offer the

same opportunity to people from the Government side, the Third Party and one of

the independents as well.

The hon. the Deputy Premier.

MS.

COADY:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I support the emergency debate. We do know that there

are a lot of families impacted here, about 500 employees of the North Atlantic

refinery. I can say that they have been working very diligently. Since

Silverpeak reopened the refinery in 2014, Mr. Speaker, they've been able to make

it more reliable, grow – I think it's 135,000 barrels a day they now produce –

made it more efficient, made if very safe. So it has been a good news story up

until, of course, the global pandemic at the end of March.

In my former role as minister of Natural Resources, I

had been working very closely with the refinery and I know some of their plans

to actually grow the refinery, and it was quite buoyant and looking forward to

that growth in the region.

Mr. Speaker, this is a refinery; the workers contribute

greatly to our province. I know some say that the refinery contributes up to 5

per cent of our GDP, but as important is the amount of investment and

involvement of the people who work at the refinery and, of course, their

personal income taxes and their investments in the province as well.

I will say the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador

is supportive of having a debate on this very important issue. We're very

concerned about the refinery. We had hopes that the sale would have progressed,

Mr. Speaker. This is a business-to-business transaction, so now that it hasn't

progressed, we're hopeful that there will be others that will enter into the

marketplace and continue that refinery.

I look forward to a good, robust debate this afternoon,

and setting out a clear statement to the people of the province, to the workers

of how much support they have, not only in this Legislature, but in all of

Newfoundland and Labrador.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

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

MR.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We, too, as the Third Party, will support this

resolution for an emergency debate.

While we may have a different approach towards the

future green economy, we realize that, really, this has a significant impact on

workers who are basically devastated. I'm sure they are. For as long as I've

been driving the highway, I can remember that refinery there. It's very much

part of the infrastructure. It's changed hands. I understand from the news that

they were looking to upgrade to improve the operations, so there was a real

opportunity to see this oil refinery to continue to employ people, to continue

to produce fuels that are required by many parts of the economy. Certainly, jet

fuel and propane are a few that have been mentioned.

From our point of view, yes, this deserves very much

our immediate attention and an immediate debate on it this afternoon, hopefully

with the intention of finding out how do we move forward with it and find some

constructive way to deal with it.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Humber - Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I'm speaking on behalf of my colleague, the Member for

Mount Pearl - Southlands. We support this motion also.

It's a devastating day any time when someone says

you're going to lose your job and lose your livelihood, but it's more

devastating when you have 500 people in the same boat, plus all the spinoffs.

It's a very rough day for Newfoundland and Labrador. I have confidence in the

minister that the minister will work as hard as he can to help with the

situation, but we need to come up with concrete solutions.

I will give a good example, Mr. Speaker. I was in

Opposition at the time when the Corner Brook Pulp and Paper mill was going to go

under. I remember the minister at the time, it was Mr. Jerome Kennedy, and he

came over and he said we all got to work together to find a way to get this

moving. We made a decision then, we shook hands that we all work together.

Because everybody worked together, there was absolutely no politics brought into

it, whatsoever, we found a solution. The government at the time, the PC

Government, found a solution to keep the mill operating.

I'm going back at the history off that, Mr. Speaker,

and I say it can be done, but what we need to all do, all Members of the House –

I've been through it several times with situations that we're facing now – let's

park our colours outside the door, let's all move in for the Members that are

here. I know the Member for Terra Nova must know so many people there that are

devastated who are after calling you already. I say let's park our colours,

let's jump into this as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, let's offer solutions,

let's listen to solutions, let's work with the towns, let's work with the

unions, let's work with the companies. I can assure you, together, we can find a

solution around this. If and when all parties are working together it's going to

be much better.

Myself and the Member for Mount Pearl - Southlands will

definitely support this resolution to have an emergency debate on this to help

all people in Newfoundland and Labrador, and especially the workers and the

spinoff jobs that are created by this devastating loss.

Thank you.

MR.

SPEAKER:

I'm

going to take a short recess now to examine the material that's been presented

by the Opposition House Leader, and we'll be back in a few minutes.

Recess

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

While the motion did not fit the technical requirements

of Standing Order 36, I'm going to be guided in this case by the ruling made by

Speaker Ottenheimer in May 29, 1978, in the spruce budworm debate. I don't know

how many people remember that debate, but it's the last time we ever had – the

Minister of Education says he does. That was the last time we had a debate on a

matter of urgent public importance in this House.

So in making that ruling, Speaker Ottenheimer also

based his decision on what Members seemed to consider urgent. In his evaluation,

Members did consider the matter urgent and so ruled that the urgent debate could

proceed.

In this context, I also looked at Bosc and Gagnon and

noted that the Speaker has considerable discretion in this matter. Bosc and

Gagnon says: “Finally, the Speaker may take into account the general wish of the

House to have an emergency debate and grant a request for an emergency debate.”

In the context of this motion, given that in Question

Period and in other comments that were made, there seemed to be general support

for the debate.

I will rule that the matter is in order and I ask: Does

the Member have leave to proceed?

HON. MEMBER:

Leave.

MR.

SPEAKER:

Leave.

The hon. the Member for Conception Bay East - Bell

Island.

MR.

BRAZIL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the House for leave to talk about this

important issue. Just a dialogue previous to this, as we were waiting in the

recess to get a ruling, it seemed to indicate that everybody here supports

exactly what the intent here is. The intent is that this House of Assembly, the

Members who were elected, see the value of that refinery. See the impact that it

has on families, the impact it has on business, the impact that it has on our

oil industry, but, particularly, the impact that it has on our morale in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

That's what this is about; this is also about our

assets. The whole world is facing COVID, and we understand that. It's not an

excuse, but it's a reality. What we have to prepare ourselves for is that when

COVID is over, that we're still equipped to be the beacon of light that we

wanted to be for our citizens and for the rest of this country. We were on a

threshold with the potential we have here with our natural resources, with the

intelligence that we have, the skilled workforce we have, the commitment and

dedication to the people of this country by Newfoundlanders and Labradorians,

our culture itself, we were second to none.

We, unfortunately, got a black eye because we took a

hit with COVID. We've been fortunate enough to be isolated that we could protect

our citizens while at the same time that has an impact on our industries because

our industries are still fairly fragile, particularly if you rely so much on the

mineral industry and the oil and gas. But we need to position ourselves to

ensure that when COVID is over, we become what we were setting our traits to be,

the best positioned natural resource economy in North America, maybe in the

world because of our resources and our ability to deliver on that.

We fell back a little bit, no fault of anybody in this

room, but we do have an opportunity now to ensure that one of the key assets,

the cornerstone, and I see it as a cornerstone because I remember as a young boy

a number of Bell Islanders leaving to go there to work when they first started

to build the wharf. That was the first part of what would be the oil refinery. I

know the ridicule over the 20 years after whether or not it was a white elephant

and all the things around that, but let's look at what happened.

In the '80s, Cumberland Farms moved in and bought it

out. Then there was again a downturn in the economy and what happened there, but

then recently we had new companies come in and now we had an interest, we knew

there were some challenges there. We had an interest by Irving, one of the

bigger players and Canadian players. Unfortunately, that hasn't played out at

this point. We'd all like to know why and suspect we'll get to know why in the

near future. But we, collectively in this House, have a responsibility to work

together to come up with solutions and whatever it means. If it means an influx

of support, if it means lobbying, if it means using our counterpart contacts we

have in Ottawa, if it means, as it was noted, that we're fortunate enough that

some people here have contacts with other companies that may be interested.

Let's leave no stone unturned to ensure that asset and the people who rely on

that for their income and the Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who benefit from

the taxes that are paid by those people and by that company, but, particularly,

for what it supplies to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador: it gives us

independence.

When you're talking about having your own fuel being

refined here, that gives you independence. Other jurisdictions would kill to

have that asset, so we need to ensure it goes nowhere. We've come too far not to

collectively get together and do it and keep the petty politics aside. Let's

work together to make sure that we make this the asset that it should be.

I'm not going to take all of my time, Mr. Speaker,

because I think there are a number of people here who would like to speak. I've

asked the people on my side if they would take 10 or 12 minutes so that more

people could get to speak, because this has an impact on all of us,

particularly.

I do welcome the support from the House, the

independents, the Third Party and the government itself that we move forward and

try to come up with some constructive solutions and approaches going forward to

ensure that asset still stays as an asset that's valuable to the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Normally, when I begin talking about any issue in this

House I say I'm happy to speak, but sadly this is not one of those times when

you're happy to speak. To echo some of what my colleague has said, this is a

time when we must talk about the issue at hand. I would hold him to what he

said, because I agree 100 per cent, when we talk about the petty politics of

these situations.

It's very easy to sit here and talk about we should've

done this, we should've done that; historically, what this crowd has done and

what that crowd has done. The only historical fact that I'd like to talk about

is the historical value of the refinery. We could sit here all day and talk

about the importance. I have some of the statistics here that I would put out.

Again, I'll try my best to keep my commentary in some

kind of organized pattern. It's funny, after numerous questions in the House

today and a scrum outside, one of the comments that I said is that the situation

is evolving. In fact, just reading CBC on this, it's almost like they took the

words out of my mouth. They said the situation is evolving on what seems to be

an hourly basis. That's what's going on here; that's what we must keep in mind.

The other factor that I would say here that's extremely

difficult, and it's something that I said when I spoke to the union rep just

before lunch, we talked about the fact that he's doing his job. He's looking out

for his members, looking out for the jobs, looking out for the industry and they

want information. And who wouldn't? I told him that. I told Mr. Nolan: You are

looking out for your people and I appreciate that, but the situation we are in,

two things we must keep in mind for those that are not, well say, up to speed

with the situation. The refinery itself is owned – we call it NARL, North

Atlantic Refining Limited – by Silverpeak and another group. There are partners.

They purchased it back in 2014, I believe. It's owned by a private group and

they were involved in a proposed sale to another private group which is Irving.

Like any commercial deal of that nature, there are

agreements signed that forbid the disclosing of information. As government

you're privy to certain information, but to put that out there, to satisfy the

need for people wanting to know – and I will say, not being a partner – again, a

question I had earlier: What has North Atlantic done in a certain regard? I

wouldn't be able to say because I'm not North Atlantic. We are in constant

communication with them. We have spoken to Irving. We have spoken to everybody

we can, but the situation is extremely fluid and continues to move.

When we talk about the motion that was made under

Standing Order 36, is we're talking about the impact of the closure of the Come

By Chance oil refinery and the devastating economic impact it will have on our

province's economy, so on. What I would say, though, I still live in hope that

it's not closure. I still live in hope that the word will not be, will, it's

could. I think we're all talking about the same thing. It's this House coming

together to recognize the fact that there are, I think, in – I want to talk

about some of that economic impact, 400 jobs.

There are 400 person-years of employment. That's the

latest figures we have. Now, that is direct employment. I would point out that

they are good, solid, well-paying jobs in a rural area of this province, which I

think carries a significant amount of weight. The latest numbers we also have

said that it's 1,471 indirect or induced jobs. That in and of itself is a huge

number in this province.

Sadly, this is very reminiscent and similar to the

debate we've been having in this House and have had in this House up to

yesterday, in fact, and it will continue on, which is the issues faced by our

offshore industry. We talk about not just the jobs that are involved in the

industry; it's the indirect and induced employment that comes with it. It's the

spinoff that comes with it, and you only have to look at this city to see what

the impact is when we have a downturn in the market. We've gone through it

before and we're certainly going through that right now.

Labour income is about $65 million direct, about $105

million indirect or induced. NARL itself owns 60 retail locations; three

cardlock stations. They have home heating and propane delivery. If there's a

positive, I would point out that this is owned by a separate entity. So this

will not be affected, and they have indicated this will continue on. This has

been a tough issue since March when it went into basically a shutdown mode

caused by COVID.

I just spoke to the media here, and one thing I tried

to get through here because – and, again, this is me just speaking about it.

It's one thing when as a government you make a decision or a policy change or a

legislative change, you have your reasons for doing it, and then if it is not

received well or taken well or positive, you defend it, you deal with it, but

you bear some responsibility.

The difficult part here is that the situation we face

is the same one that's being faced, especially, in Alberta; it's being faced all

around the States. In fact, I was reading an

article just a minute ago about how

Phillips down in the States is shutting down a refinery as we speak. There are

going to be significant refinery closures on this continent and worldwide. We

are all facing the same common affliction here, which is COVID. That's one of

the big, huge factors that have driven this, combined with an oil market that

has collapsed. Those two things together make for a significant impact.

Another

article I read this morning, when we talk about

the impact, right now I think oil went up to $41.91 this morning in Brent, which

is up about a dollar. It's almost like you live and die every morning on those

emails you get about where it's going.

The latest I saw is that the Saudis in their budget

documents have estimated $50 oil for the next three years, but $50 oil won't

even cover what their budget needs are. They need about $66 to break even. So

when we have a country over there that has been historically wealthy and they're

talking about what they're facing when they're going through this, it just tells

you that we all face this common issue.

I'll go back to the main point I was making, is it's

difficult because this is not something that was caused by a government

decision. This was caused by something that's bigger than all of us in here

about a decision that's been made for various reasons, whether it was budgetary

or otherwise. That makes it even more frustrating than a problem that may have

been of your making; that you have an ability to sit down and just do something

that will actually cause that change; wherein, this case we have a problem. We

know that we have to and want to be able to fix it, but the issues that are

causing it are outside the control of everybody. There's nobody that can control

this. Well, the second issue, I guess, you could say some of the larger

oil-producing nations could have a say in that, but that's far beyond our

control here right now.

Back to the case at hand. This is something that has

evolved very quickly. I know the union was notified yesterday, that Irving put

out their notice today. Some of the questions today are about the impacts. I can

tell you, I certainly understand the impacts, I think perhaps as well as anybody

in the room. You only have to speak to these communities and these people and

read your emails, just receiving them. I'm sure when I pick up my phone after

this I will have had an email by somebody that's affected. You read each one of

them, you respond to them and you listen to them. You carry it with you.

Two things that I live in hope of, one is there is a

glimmer of hope that's been expressed by – a possibility that there may be

another purchaser. That interest has been expressed. It's been expressed before

by the company, Origin. It's something that we know, that now they too have been

made aware of this, they will be doing their due diligence.

Our job as the provincial government is to see what

there is that we have the ability to do. It's not always simple, but there

certainly has been no issue with the chain of communication that has been there.

The more that we are allowed to say, the more detail that we are allowed to

give, we'll certainly give it.

In fact, I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, I would love –

the same as with the offshore industries, the same as with many decisions and

the issues you face, you would love to be able to fully disclose them so that

people could realize the environment in which they're working. I would love to

do that, but my desire to do that is outweighed by my need to ensure that we

don't do anything to harm this – I can't say pending transaction, but this

current issue.

The other hope I live in is that there are times when

this House comes together in, I guess, a common goal, a common need and we all

feel that need. Some of us feel it a little bit more, because when they go back

to their district on the weekend they're going to be talking to these

constituents that are directly affected. I empathize. I've been through that in

other industries. It is not a good feeling. So I look to my colleagues and I

say, I understand what you're dealing with there. That's a tough thing. Nobody

wants to go through that.

What I can say is – the same as I've said to the mayor

of Clarenville and the mayor of Come By Chance – if there's anything I can do,

it's a matter of calling. Because we want the same thing. What is good for one

of us is good for all of us here. This is one where nobody does not benefit from

the resolution of this issue. Everybody benefits. The people involved directly

working, benefit. Hopefully, the owner benefits, the community benefits, the

province benefits and the Treasury benefits. This is good for everybody. That's

why we're having this debate, because this is not an issue that, I think, is

isolated to that particular area. The impacts are felt province-wide.

There are issues that will come out of this, but I'm

not prepared to have that debate today. Whether it's the supports for workers,

that's a question that, of course, has to be asked, has to be looked at. In

answering that or coming up with specifics, one could say then that, well,

you've assumed the issue is already done and there's nothing you can fix. That's

not where my head is. The other thing I would say here is when it comes to

supply issues, that's not an issue that's been expressed to me at this point,

but supply issues, price issues, these are all things that we have to look at

that are the repercussions of this deal not being done. These are all things we

will face.

There are a few Members in this House that have sat

through similar debates. We went through this in 2014, where there was the

previous sale. Just some history, if you want to know the history: '71 to '76,

it was Newfoundland Refining Company, Shaheen resources; then it was idle four

years;'80 to '86, Petro Can; then it was '86 to '94 by Newfoundland Energy

Limited; '94 to 2006 was Vitol SA; 2006 to '14 was Harvest; '14 to '20 is

SilverRange, Silverpeak; and then, up until now, we had anticipated that there

would be another proponent that would take this over.

We have gone through this. Some of the transactions

have been smoother. I'm sure some of them faced far less environmental issues.

When I say environmental, I mean the issues that we're dealing with. Commercial

transactions are difficult even in the best of times and the best of markets.

Right now, we are dealing with unprecedented times in markets and the world, in

and of itself; makes it even more complicated and more difficult.

I guess what I would close off saying – because I know

there are other Members that want to speak – is that I have to respond to one of

the questions here: Don't let anyone mistake a measured tone as being reflective

of not being emotionally attached or mentally attached to this deal. I am a

believer, and I've seen it and sat in this House. The fact is that rushing to do

something or getting angry or frustrated or losing your cool does not often

result in the best deal.

We've seen governments before – and I'll say

governments on both sides. I'm not talking about anybody in particular, lest

people thing I'm going that route. We have seen governments make decisions

thinking it was in the best interest, trying to get it done, realizing that the

clock was running; the clock was ticking; we had these concerns. It's only later

on that you realize what did you actually get, what did you sign up for and what

did you cause? Again, it's not about best intentions, it's about doing this

right.

I would say that, look, this is something that our

entire department is consumed by. As if we're not already facing the similar

issue with our offshore industry, this is something new. But I will say, to use

this phrase, that a house divided will not stand, but a house united I think can

get a lot of good done.

On that note, I look forward to the comments from my

colleagues across the way. I look forward to continuing to figure this issue out

for the betterment of the province.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

When I had occasion to comment on the Budget Speech and

the budget documents, so recently delivered, I said that the most important

number in all those budget documents was 13,000. That number was the number of

jobs expected to be lost in coming months.

If we take 500 as the number of jobs in direct

employment with the Come By Chance oil refinery, owned by NARL, if we take the

usual multiplier of three, that suggests a number of a further 2,000 jobs

imminently being lost, should this oil refinery close down on a permanent basis.

If we look at The

Economy booklet, which I happen to have here, my souvenir copy, if we go to

page 12, there's a table and it sets out Provincial Economic Indicators. These

things can be rather abstract, but what we can get out of it is that the

government expects folks in the Department of Finance, who do these

calculations, expect 13,000 job losses in coming months. If we add the recent

distressing news to that, then it looks like that may be 15,000 losses in coming

months. That's on page 12, by the way, the table on page 12.

Also another distressing figure is Real GDP growth by

Province Newfoundland and Labrador is projected by the government to suffer a

minus 7.7 through 2020 loss or shrinkage, negative growth as the expression goes

of 7.7.

Mr. Speaker, I don't know if this is how an economist

would do it. Perhaps some economist or the Minister of Finance eventually will

explain it. But if NARL, if the Come By Chance oil refinery is thought to be 5

to 8 per cent of the economy, I suppose depending on the year or the test here.

That's a major chunk of our economy, of our GDP as a province. If that's the

case, then I guess it suggests that something in the neighbourhood of 13 to 15

per cent of our economy is going to go missing over the next few months into

2020 – negative growth of around 15 per cent if this sad event continues.

While looking through the wonderful tables in

The Economy document, the only

reference I could find to North Atlantic Refining is on page 69, there might be

some other reference but this is all I could find. It's a table that sets out

Capital Expenditures for – they're divided up in various sectors – inventory of

major capital projects. What it has here is capital expenditures of $50 million

to $60 million in 2020 and it's described as being: “NARL Refining, LP -

maintenance capital as well as capital for the crude flexibility project, tanks

and other projects.”

So here the budget documents are already counting

expenditures anticipated to be made by various entities, including NARL, in the

coming months and now may very well be that those expenditures are not going to

be made.

More to the point, the budget documents themselves give

no hint or suggestion that there might be a failure to follow-through or a

failure to execute the agreement to purchase, and a failure to close the deal by

Irving Oil with respect to the NARL facility. There's no suggestion in any of

these budget documents delivered only days ago, so one might infer from that,

that this comes as a surprise to the government.

I spoke to a worker in the Tim Horton's in Clarenville

only days ago on my way back from a road trip across the province. We had an

interesting chat and this person told me that he's on much reduced hours; he's

not full-time now. He's on reduced hours as many other workers have been for

recent months and he was very much looking forward to getting back to full-time

work because his income, of course, had been reduced correspondingly. So that's

just a taste of the human dimension of these statistics.

I received an email; it just happens I received this

today. I won't identify who sent it. This person is a worker mainly related to

the offshore industry. I'm picking this, it's the only one I have in my inbox

right now, Mr. Speaker, so that's why I'm reading it.

He says: talking to a lot of my co-workers. We all feel

the same, as we cannot wait to vote PC in the election, which we hope will be

in Burin for the past 11 years and recently moved to St. John's. I was hoping to

get back to Argentia working soon and the point of moving to St. John's was so I

could be home with my family every night, rather than have an apartment out

there like I did before. But without government investment, I'm doubtful of

that. I've been in the trades for over 20 years; I'm an electrician. I did the

fly-in, fly-out in Alberta for eight years and was hoping not to do it again.

I'm sure we've all received emails of that nature and

the insights we're all familiar with and grateful to those who correspond with

us and call us for the insights into their own lives and the impact of abstract

figures like 15,000 job losses on their lives and the lives of their families.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

might've expected the Government House Leader to lead by example in terms of

decorum.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MR.

CROSBIE:

Thank you.

So –

MR.

CROCKER:

Point of order, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

CROCKER:

(Inaudible)

section 49, Mr. Speaker, of the Standing Orders, the Member

opposite, we start off a debate this afternoon and the Member for Conception Bay

East - Bell Island makes a really good point. I think our minister responsible

for that department makes a good point as well. Then one day we're hearing the

Leader of the Opposition bringing motions that they don't want an election, and

then he starts off his conversation this afternoon talking about the urgency for

an election.

So, Mr. Speaker, he can only have it one way.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR.

SPEAKER:

There is no point of order, but I caution Members to use temperate language in

the House.

Order, please!

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR.

CROSBIE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I might have expected the hon. Government House Leader

to have a firmer grip on what a point of order is.

The Minister of Industry, Energy and Technology, to my

mind, is overemphasizing the COVID effect in the present industrial crisis

involving NARL, or at least I have to question whether that's the case.

This agreement of purchase and sale was entered by

Irving in May, so we understand. One has to believe that Irving did this in full

knowledge of COVID and its worldwide effects, and likely worldwide effects given

that the world started to shut down back in March.

You have to assume that Irving went into this deal with

their eyes wide open about the COVID effect. In fact, the reasons why Irving has

decided that they don't want to complete this agreement of purchase and sale are

not at all clear. In fact, they're very obscure. They have not seen fit to share

those with the public, and perhaps for understandable reasons. Government

ministers have not seen fit to do that either. They feel they're obliged by

confidentiality perhaps not to disclose that, and I can understand; but, the

fact remains that the reasons why Irving is pulling out are not clear.

Luckily for the workers and their families who are

impacted and whose lives are dangling over a precipice as a result of this

terrible news, luckily there is an alternate buyer or bidder, so far as we

understand. Who is that alternate buyer or bidder? Well, that's a matter of

public record. For example, I'm looking at the story from the CBC

website, its dateline July 20, 2020, and it tells us something about this

company, Origin, which was the disappointed bidder at the time Irving was

awarded by NARL the bid and the deal which has now come a cropper.

I read from that story. It says: “If given the chance,

a company called Origin International is pledging to resume the processing of

various fuels at the Come By Chance refinery, hire the same or more personnel

than worked at the facility before the pandemic, and expand the operation into

‘a more environmental sustainable model.'

“It's all spelled out in a June 8 letter, obtained by

CBC News, to provincial Natural Resources Minister Siobhán Coady.” As she then

was.

“In the event the Irving transaction stakeholders deem

appropriate an assessment of alternatives to acquire NARC, Origin stands –”

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Government House Leader.

MR.

CROCKER:

Point of order, Mr. Speaker.

The Member opposite named a Member of this House by

name.

MR.

SPEAKER:

did not hear that, but I'll caution Members not to use the names of Members in

the House.

MR.

CROSBIE:

Thank you.

It says: “… Origin stands willing and able to re-engage

in its bid for NARC ….” In other words, if the thing falls apart, which it now

has. That's very encouraging. It quotes the CEO of this Origin company, a Mr.

Myerson.

Myerson goes on to say: “We just wanted to make

decision-makers aware of our interest in the province and a key asset in the

event circumstances changed.”

The story goes on: “Origin does not have operations in

Canada, and Myerson says it would sail through the regulatory approval process

much swifter.”

I guess we can infer that the Irving deal has not

sailed through because March, June, July, August, September, we're now into

October and there's no decision from the competition authorities about this. The

point that the Origin CEO is making here is that because it doesn't have

operations in Canada, it wouldn't have the kind of regulatory approval issues

that Irving might and apparently does.

Myerson is quoted: “This being the case, approximately

45 days of due diligence could be the main bottleneck to closing a transaction

and bringing jobs back to the facility.” Forty-five days. Here we are several

months now and, of course, no word on the acceptance or rejection of the Irving

takeover and perhaps it's all moot now anyway.

The point out of this being that at least the advice of

the chief executive officer of this Origin group is he would expect that for the

reasons explained, there would be a very comparatively short period of time

before regulatory authorities, competition authorities would be able to give

their seal of approval to the deal, so not a long turnaround time. That will be

or would be good news to workers and their families.

It describes itself, this is Origin: “… as one of the

largest privately owned collectors and recyclers of residual oil and waste water

in the U.S. and Europe.

“The company operates three locations across the U.S.

and Belgium, and is constructing a waste oil recycling plant in Baltimore,

Maryland.”

The CEO is quoted: “We believe that every barrel of oil

we recycle means one less barrel going to landfill or being improperly

combusted.”

“Myerson said his company is focused on environmental,

social and governance excellence.”

Well, these are the news reports. Ultimately, who

knows, but on the face of it this sounds like a desirable corporate citizen. A

corporate citizen who believes it has the financial capacity and the

characteristics to, if brought into play as a backstop to the deal that's

currently falling apart in front of our eyes, could quickly pick up the pieces

and keep this oil refinery to get it up and running and operating through the

winter. That's what I derived from the news reports; very encouraging.

This is very encouraging, and one wonders why the

government was not in a position after following and keeping close communication

with Origin, without breaching any confidentialities they might have had with

Irving itself, why the government was not in a position to give rapid and

immediate reassurance to workers and their families that there was another party

waiting in the wings who is ready to come in and pick up the pieces and that

their jobs were secure.

Thank you.

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Deputy Premier.

MS.

COADY:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I'm happy to have an opportunity to speak to this

today; though, I'm feeling rather sad about the fact that we are here today, Mr.

Speaker. I'm also equally sad that people would play politics about a very

sensitive issue. I won't go back tort for tort on the last speaker's comments

but I will say a couple of points today that I think will help add to the

debate.

First of all, to the employees, to the workers of the

Come By Chance Refinery, I've had the opportunity, Mr. Speaker, to visit there

on a number of occasions. I can say that they have a great deal of pride and I,

as a representative of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the

people of Newfoundland and Labrador, share their pride in what they've been able

to do since Silverpeak has taken over the refinery in 2014. They have made this

refinery, as I said earlier in Question Period, more efficient, more reliable

and safer. Mr. Speaker, they've made it one of the top quartile refineries and

certainly the seventh largest in Canada.

So, first and foremost, to everyone who is involved

with the refinery, the 400 families and then there are about 200 contractors

that are impacted today, my heart is there with you. I know government is doing

everything it can to ensure the continuance of its operations because of how

important it is to the families that are involved in working there, but also to

the economy of the province.

I will say this, I remember the phone call very well. I

think it was at the end of March. We had just started the big lockdown and we

were all concerned about the health and safety. I remember receiving a call

saying that the North Atlantic refinery has initiated a suspension of the crude

oil and hydrocarbon processing at the refinery in response to COVID and the

pandemic, and there were a lot of overall concerns about what was happening in

the petroleum industry globally. At that point in time, I know they basically

warm stacked it and tried to keep as many employees as they possible could.

I've been dealing with Silverpeak over the last number

of years, Madam Speaker, and I can tell you they were putting big investments, I

think it was about $400 million into the refinery, to bring the refinery up as

best they could. Making it more, as I said earlier, efficient, bringing the

number of barrels it produced – I think towards the end it was 135,000 barrels a

day which was substantively increased over the time.

I know people were very, very – proud, is a good word

to use, and there were long-term, exciting plans happening. I remember talking

about a coker, talking about a pipeline and talking about a number of exciting

initiatives, Madam Speaker, and then the pandemic. We've seen this around the

globe. We've seen this happen in the United States with the number of refineries

closing.

Allow me first to tell you a little bit about what NARL

Refining actually does. It operates about 135,000 barrels per day at Come By

Chance. It includes process facilities, crude oil, refined products storage

tanks, as well as a deepwater wharf and jetty facilities for tanker loading and

offloading, and of course it has a marine division that manages vessel traffic,

oil spill risk control prevention. The majority of the refining output is

exported, with about 10 to 15 per cent, on average, annually sold in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

It also has a large division called NARL Marketing,

which is a retail and marketing operation. It has about 60-plus gas stations,

Madam Speaker, around the province, and three cardlock storage and distribution

locations, various bulk plant storage facilities, wholesale and commercial

division.

I'm saying all this, Madam Deputy Speaker, because I

think it's important for the people of the province to understand the value of

the refinery to Newfoundland and Labrador and the value of the pride of

workmanship of the people that work there. Labour compensation is about $170

million. That's direct and indirect and induced. It's quite something, if you've

ever had the opportunity to tour there. It's a very valuable asset.

The North Atlantic refinery is a very valuable asset.

It's strategically located, obviously, in North Atlantic crude oil shipping

routes. It gives access to petroleum markets in Europe and the Eastern US

seaboard, which is again very important. The value of the international

petroleum exports from Newfoundland and Labrador totalled $3.1 billion in 2019.

It has a deepwater – as I said earlier – terminal that welcomes oil tankers from

around the globe.

Madam Speaker, I will say that Origin International did

write to me as a former minister of Natural Resources back on June 8, they

expressed interest. As the former Speaker did say, there is an opportunity here

for others who may be interested in this particular asset.

I say to Origin, you're welcome to Newfoundland and

Labrador. The workforce is outstanding. I can say they have a lot of pride in

what they are doing. I've already given a rundown of why this is such an

important asset and why we welcome investment from around the world. I think

it's incumbent on everyone in this House today to make sure that we make that

message heard and make that message load and clear that anyone who wants to step

forward to take over the asset, to reinvigorate and reimagine what North

Atlantic refinery can be, to not only the province but to Canada and globe, so

we welcome them.

I will say, I can recall very vividly the day, I think

I was the end of May, when I learned that Irving had expressed interest in

taking on the asset themselves, it was May 28 actually, that Irving announced

that they had reached an agreement with Silverpeak to acquire NARL. It was,

despite some comments earlier, it was related to COVID. As I said, NARL refinery

was moving forward, Silverpeak was moving forward with investments in the

assets. At the end of May, we learned that Irving Oil was subject to a

regulatory review, of course, and conditions of sale being met.

So now we know, as of, I guess, yesterday, or the day

before, I guess yesterday, that that has fallen through. I guess the conditions

were not meet. I think they were still in the regulatory process and Irving has

removed itself from the discussions, but Silverpeak is still interested in

exiting and making sure that this asset is valuable to someone other than

themselves, at this point in time. Again, it is related to the pandemic and the

impacts of the global oil crisis.

I will also say, Madam Speaker, earlier the previous

speaker had talked about the impact to the province and the impact to the

budgetary statements that were delivered last week and the impact to the

economy. I said earlier, as we know the Come By Chance refinery was closed and

would be closed for most of this year; therefore, there would be minimal impacts

on the budget economic projections.

I will say that again so that people do not start to

extrapolate out huge numbers and fear monger, Madam Speaker, because I think

it's important that we understand the impacts of this, we understand the impacts

to the family and to the economy and to the supply chain, to the Province of

Newfoundland and Labrador, as I said, 10 to 15 per cent of the refining came to

Newfoundland and Labrador. I wouldn't want anyone to misunderstand that

extrapolating huge numbers and making it even worse than it already is.

I will say that NARL – North Atlantic Refining Limited

– I just say that because I think that a lot of people get confused when we say

NARL, North Atlantic Refining represents an estimated 1 per cent of the total

provincial GDP, which includes direct, indirect and induced impact of operating

and capital expenditures, net value added as a result of refining imported and

locally produced crude. I want to make sure that people understand that. I know,

and I think I even said earlier, it's about 5 per cent but when we look at the

total provincial GDP impact, it's about 1 per cent.

There are men and women who work here that have done

exceptional work and we want to support them and encourage them, that's why I

spoke directly earlier to the value and the benefits of this particular asset.

That's why I made sure that people understand that this is very, very important

to the province and that we're going to do, as a province, everything we

possibly can do.

I will say again, and I know my colleague, the Minister

of Industry, Energy and Technology did indicate earlier and continues to

indicate that this is a private ownership and a private sale. But I did have the

opportunity when I was Minister of Natural Resources to speak with Irving and

they appeared sincere. Again, I say that Irving has been in the province for

about 50 years and they did indicate that they would go back to full operations,

had they been able to successfully close on this. It is truly unfortunate to

learn this news.

We still have strong belief in this industry. We know

the value of the people who work there and the value of what they bring to

Newfoundland and Labrador.

I know my colleague and I know this government will do

absolutely everything possible to represent how positive an impact the North

Atlantic refinery has to the province; how positive an impact it has on global

markets; how well and strategically located it is; how well and strategically

the deep-water terminal is, that it does now have 135,000 barrel per day

capacity, thanks the hard work of the organization over the last six years, that

the province stands behind it.

I think all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have pride

in this and I think that we will do absolutely everything that we possibly can

to ensure that it will continue to be a vibrant, active, refinery in the

province, contributing not only to our GDP, not only to the families of the

workers there, but also to our supply chain, also to the spin-off industries

created around it, also to the technology, to the university.

I've met a lot of young people, Madam Speaker, who were

there that were graduates of the Memorial University engineering school, and

were so proud to be able to work in the industry and so proud of what they were

contributing as well.

I say to everyone in this room today, I think we should

all stand together in strong support of the North Atlantic refinery. I think we

should all stand together in attracting investment to this province. We should

all stand together in support of the men and women who work there and the pride

with which they hold the refinery.

I think we all realize throughout this pandemic how

important it is to support one another, how important it is to emphasize job

creation, to support businesses and to support industry in this province. The

budget did just that, Madam Speaker, and I will say that we will continue to do

that for all those who work at North Atlantic refinery, and who work with the

marketing arm as well as with the refinery.

On that note, I know a number of my colleagues wish to

speak, I know Members opposite wish to speak, so I'll conclude my remarks.

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER (P. Parsons):

Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

MR.

PETTEN:

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

It's a sombre kind of day, actually. I might want to

add that I changed critic roles a few weeks ago and went from Transportation and

Works to Industry, Energy and Technology and it's been a blur for the last few

weeks. It's just constant. With the oil and gas industry, there are rallies on

the steps of the Confederation Building; now we have the refinery closing. I was

in the middle of budget and Estimates.

But you learn on the fly, and it's something that's

near and dear to all of the people of the province, our oil and gas industry

alone, especially the Come By Chance refinery. You drive through Sunnyside;

you're on the highway; no one ever misses Come By Chance, the stacks. It's a

landmark more than anything for my lifetime and most people in this Legislature.

It's been there for a long time and it's a huge economic driver. It's a great

employer. It has a long history.

We hope, on this side anyway – and I'm sure all sides

of this House – the history is not done. We hope there's a new life for this

refinery. We can't afford to let the refinery come to a close, which was

announced last night. I believe everyone in this House feels that way.

I do believe residents, workers and families – because

that's all it's affecting. If we look at a refinery, a refinery is the building

and it does a lot of things. You say, what is a refinery? It's more than just

the bricks and mortar and the stacks and the oil tanks. It's families, it's

jobs, it's people's mental health and it's communities. If you lose 500 jobs in

St. John's and the Northeast Avalon, it's a huge blow, and the spinoffs from it,

a huge blow.

If you go out in those areas, that is those

communities, that is most of that area. For some of the smaller communities,

that is the backbone of the community. People in this end of the province

probably would never realize until you went out there. I've been out around

there and I'm sure most have. A lot of residents in the province don't realize

it because sometimes you can't put it into perspective, but it's a huge

employer. Again, where do you go?

If you look at our oil and gas industry, I get oil –

I've said this before and I'm happy to say it. Every evening I go home, every

night I go home and I see the Terra Nova parked out in Conception Bay. It's

beautiful in the nighttime if anyone ever had the opportunity. I say that with

all sincerity. When lit up it's beautiful, but I'd much rather see that out

pumping oil than sitting in Conception Bay.

That's what we're facing right across the board. As we

talk about Come By Chance, we're talking about an industry in crisis. The

minister and everyone on the government side are saying this is a

business-to-business transaction. I get that. I don't think anyone in the

province doesn't get that, but I think you have to ask yourself, we can sit here

for the next hour or two, we can sit here all night, until you start offering

solutions, talking solutions, we can talk all the nice words we want to talk,

until we start talking solutions, take some ownership – there are things, I

would think, could've been done differently.

Five or six years ago the PC Party were on that side.

In 2014, they were part of the sale. Whoever's name is over the door, you have

to take some responsibly. You can't absolve yourself of responsibility. You're

the government; you have to take that responsibility.

Now, is that a direct slight that someone over there

did something wrong? No. It's obvious; the government of the day have the keys

to the Treasury. We don't. We ask the questions. We try to offer solutions; we

try to debate solutions. That's what we're doing here now, but ultimately they

have the aye or nay.

The people that are affected by this, right throughout

the province, Eastern Newfoundland especially, and a lot of my colleagues here,

it's in their districts. Actually, my district as well is affected. Some people

work there. They want answers. It's fine to say it's business to business; it's

not government; it's a private sale, we're concerned. We're all concerned.

I asked a question during Question Period today: Could

you not have been at the table? Could you not have had some other influence?

I know several of us got an email – I think the

minister was included on the email. Someone suggested power rates. When Muskrat

Falls comes online, would there not be an opportunity to give a reduced deal on

their electricity to offset some of the costs of the refinery as an incentive?

Even though it's a private business deal, what's wrong with offering an

incentive? We're not saying government should purchase it. Why not offer an

incentive? Were there any incentives on the table like that during this most

recent negotiation that broke off? We don't know – which is another part of the

problem.

We were there last night in Estimates and Friday past.

Actually, the president of the union that the minister referenced when he spoke,

he lives in my district. He reached out to me Friday because he was frustrated

that he had trouble trying to talk to someone in the department. This was

Friday. I committed to him – ironically, I said: Well, I have Estimates Monday

night with the minister and his officials, and I will assure you I'll get

answers to your questions and I will ask the minister to contact you directly.

Lo and behold, 6:15, 6:20 last night during Estimates the breaking news was the

refinery is shutting down. Then I went into questioning the minister on, where

do we go from here?

For those people, that's the frustration. I get the

fact you're not responsible, and that's not all wrong, but the question is – and

we don't know. That's what we're here for today. Hopefully, these details will

come out. What did you offer? Did you offer anything? Was there anything on the

table? Was there any offer? Was there any olive branch to say, listen, we

realize it's a private enterprise, but we're willing to sit down at the table.

Do you want to talk to us?

So we do not know that, and we ask questions. That's

what this is about. It's not about throwing rocks on one side or the other,

because we've got someone already that – I'll leave that one. The stones, I

won't go there. I'm going to be nice. I'm not going to turn any more stones

today, I'll say that.

HON. MEMBER:

They're all turned over.

MR.

PETTEN:

They're all turned over, that's right.

People want answers. There are people in this province

now – there are families that are devastated, absolutely devastated. The workers

are losing their jobs but they're going home to their wife and children or their

husband and children – it depends who's working there – they have bad news. This

is detrimental, and we're in this economy now with COVID.

We're struggling anyway, our oil and gas industry is,

as we already know where that is. There are not a lot of jobs that are going to

pay anywhere near that. We're on a downturn everywhere. All of our big projects

are coming to an end, and now you have this. I understand government are

struggling financially. We get that. They recently got the $320 million, maybe

there's something they could do with that. There are a lot of demands for that

money, but you have to do something.

I know if I was home today and my job was gone or I'm

thinking everything is gone and there's no hope – there's a company there that

shows an interest, but that doesn't mean nothing until it's finalized. I'd be

looking, what are government going to do?

One of my questions, actually, to the minister last

night during Estimates was: Is there something you'd consider for the workers? I

understand it's not going to be a miracle with the financial situation. Is there

something we can do? Because we're not going to solve the world's problems today

but I think there needs to be some sort of assurance other than kind words:

well, we're sorry, we weren't part of this deal. No one is saying that's false

but you have the ability to do something.

If we have a fish plant that closes, we step in. We

have ski hills that were failing; we purchased them. We have airports that

struggle; we subsidize them. I can go on, but the picture I'm painting is we

can't absolve ourselves of something of this magnitude of our refinery in this

industry.

I do understand where the economy is going. I

understand where people's minds are going with the green energy. That's not

where we need to be to, not now. You'll always have to find a balance. Oil and

gas is still important. Oil is still a very important commodity in our market,

and we need it. It's fine to be green but green technology will not fully

transform for 20, 30 years or longer out.

The Member for Lake Melville is much more up on the

carbon and the climate change issue than I am, and I'm sure he can back me up on

that. You're going to need a balance. You can't shut down all. You can't shut

down your oil and gas. Unfortunately, we get that attitude coming from the

federal government which makes me nervous because I understand fiscally where we

are provincially.

Again, we saw it already in the oil and gas. We have

money to do whatever you want with but we never address the problem. I think the

same thing will happen here. We have a government that's struggling financially,

so if you don't give incentives or try to be creative within our own bubble

here, I don't think the federal government is going to step up any time soon

because they're all about green technology. They're all about what's green. Down

the road that may be fine, but right now I fear to think what the future holds

for this province if we don't get some substantive answers and solutions to the

problems that are facing us.

Come up with solutions, incentives. Are there monies we

can do to offset power rates? Is there any subsidy you can give them to get them

over this hump? Is there something you can broker at the table for a sale?

That's what the people want to hear. They don't want to hear we're sorry. They

don't want to hear condolences. They want to hear solid answers or assurances

that something is going to be done and we're with you. That's what the public

want; that's what the workers want.

I guarantee you, the families that are out there today

that are faced with this wondering, with the winter coming on, how they get

through this – because they've been out of work for a while now, this sale has

been ongoing. Some of them have been on the edge for a while, some people have.

This is not a good time and they want action. They want

some answers now. It's fine to say you're not responsible. Okay, you can do

that, but the workers know who's responsible; the people of the province know,

ultimately, who is responsible and who can make a difference. It's the

government of the day. I call upon them to do that.

Thank you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Placentia - St. Mary's.

MS.

GAMBIN-WALSH:

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Yesterday, the media reported that the deal with Irving

Oil had collapsed and that the workers at the North Atlantic oil refinery in

Come By Chance could be without employment permanently.

Madam Speaker, last night, I was sitting in my office

at home and my phone started going buzz, buzz, buzz and I said: What's going on

now? I picked up my phone, I was learning in real time what was happening. The

workers were telling me that they had received notice from North Atlantic and,

Madam Speaker, many residents of my district are gravely impacted by this

important issue. The impact is felt on individuals, families, local businesses

and Newfoundland and Labrador as a whole.

Madam Speaker, when I was the minister of Service NL, I

worked very closely with the latest operators, the staff and union, executive

members and we developed a really good relationship. We worked together for

about a year. We worked to ensure everyone felt safe and worked collaboratively

together and the morale had improved greatly at the site. Madam Speaker, this

refinery is a major asset to the residents of the surrounding districts and to

the people of the Trinity, Placentia, Marystown and Clarenville area, just to

name a few.

This is an evolving situation. As I said, I learned

about this in real time. I have spoken to a number of people directly impacted.

These are individuals who are employed at the refinery and are waiting to go

back to work. As the MHA for Placentia - St. Mary's, I can assure my

constituents that we understand the impact of this news.

We are having a difficult time here in Newfoundland and

Labrador with the collapse of the oil prices and COVID-19, but we're not alone

worldwide. However, it's not lost on me that my constituents may be without

work, permanently. It's frustrating because the work environment has improved

greatly at the site. The refinery appeared to be on the upswing prior to the

pandemic.

I am hearing that North Atlantic will try to cut costs

before shutting the site down. In the past, the refinery had contributed to as

much as 5 per cent of the province's economy. That's a large number, Madam

Speaker.

This issue took up a significant portion of Question

Period today, and we're now debating it here in the House. We can come together

as elected representatives to do our best for the people of this province and

the economy of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Again, Madam Speaker, this refinery is an asset to

Newfoundland and Labrador. We believe that there are options here, but we must

take our time. We must arrive at the best option for the people of our

districts.

Madam Speaker, we have individuals of all ages impacted

here. We have households where multiple individuals are impacted. You'll often

hear people say what a difficult time of the year for this to happen. Any time

is a difficult time when you face potential loss of your employment and your

job.

Madam Speaker, both the Minister of Industry, Energy

and Technology and the Premier have spoken to the president of United

Steelworkers local 9316. I have spoken to him, and to the people of the District

of Placentia - St. Mary's and those impacted by this devastating turn of events.

I say there is hope. There may be another investor.

Just a little over an hour ago CBC reported that a second company says it's

interested in the North Atlantic refinery. Origin International did say that it

is awaiting further clarity. North Atlantic Refining Limited says it's

considering its options. So it's not all doom and gloom, it's a difficult day,

it's a hard day, but we do have options.

To those personally impacted, I can assure you that you

are the priority for this government, for the Members of this House of Assembly;

you are the priority over politics. This is not over. It will take time. We are

in very difficult times. Being hasty is not the option here. Hold fast, there

are solutions.

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The Chair recognizes the Member for Labrador West.

MR.

BROWN:

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

I won't take up all the House's time, but I do want to

speak to this because I lived this at one time. In February of 2014, working as

a contractor, I delivered, I think it was, $11,000 worth of products to Wabush

Mines that morning, and that evening they sent everybody home. I lived it. My

community lived it. It was hard to watch your best friends who you grew up with

walk out of there with their tool boxes in their hand. It's something I never in

my life want to see again. It absolutely devastated lives. People had to uproot.

Things were going great for a while, and then just like that the door closed

behind them.

My biggest worry of all this is the workers. These

people are the backbone of any business, any operation, any organization, any

group: human beings. These people made their livelihood based on the

opportunities of full-time employment at a unionized business with great

benefits and great opportunities for them and their families. These people spend

the majority of their money in our economy, our local economy, their region's

economy. We must do what we can to protect these workers, but also protect some

businesses and infrastructure around as well.

I know every now and then I get accused of: you're

anti-oil. Nowhere have I ever said I was anti-oil. I would like to see a

stronger economy built on embracing the environment and the importance of

protecting our environment, but I know for a fact, and my colleagues here know

for a fact – she's an economist who studied the oil industry – you just can't

turn the taps off tomorrow. You can't shut it all down tomorrow. That's

impractical, but we need to build an economy that is strong no matter what the

industry is. If it's oil, if it's avionics, if it's technology, mining, the

fishery, all these economies need to built on a stable ground that also protects

the people that actually operate them, because day-to-day people are the

backbone of everything in this province.

We need to make sure that everything we do and

everything we discuss and talk about, the number one person protected is the

employee on the floor because those individuals are the ones who will spend the

money in this province. They're the ones who will build our economy. They're the

ones that go out and buy the luxuries of life and support local businesses. A

majority of all the money spent by these large corporations' employees is spent

right here in this province, and that's what actually drives our economy. It's

the actual people that live here.

If there's nothing here that is a strong, stable

economy or a strong, stable business, those peop