Manitoba Hansard — Sitting 6 (38th Legislature, 5th Session)

38-5-6

Manitoba — Debates (Hansard)

Fifth Session - Thirty-Eighth Legislature of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba DEBATES and PROCEEDINGS Official Report (Hansard) Published under the authority of The Honourable George Hickes Speaker Vol. LVIII No. 6 – 1:30 p.m., Wednesday, November 22, 2006

MANITOBA LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY Thirty-Eighth Legislature Member Constituency Political Affiliation AGLUGUB, Cris The Maples N.D.P. ALLAN, Nancy, Hon. St. Vital N.D.P. ALTEMEYER, Rob Wolseley N.D.P. ASHTON, Steve, Hon. Thom pson N.D.P. BJORNSON, Peter, Hon. Gimli N.D.P. BRICK, Marilyn St. Norbert N.D.P. CALDWELL, Drew Brandon East N.D.P. CHOMIAK, Dave, Hon. Kildonan N.D.P. CULLEN, Cliff Turtle Mountain P.C. CUMMINGS, Glen Ste. Rose P.C. DERKACH, Leonard Russell P.C. DEWAR, Gregory Selkirk N.D.P. DOER, Gary, Hon. Concordia N.D.P. DRIEDGER, Myrna Charleswood P.C. DYCK, Peter Pembina P.C. EICHLER, Ralph Lakeside P.C.

FAURSCHOU, David Portage la Prairie P.C. GERRARD, Jon, Hon. River Heights Lib. GOERTZEN, Kelvin Steinbach P.C. HAWRANIK, Gerald Lac du Bonnet P.C. HICKES, George, Hon. Point Douglas N.D.P. IRVIN-ROSS, Kerri, Hon. Fort Garry N.D.P. JENNISSEN, Gerard Flin Flon N.D.P. JHA, Bidhu Radisson N.D.P. KORZENIOWSKI, Bonnie St. James N.D.P. LAMOUREUX, Kevin Inkster Lib. LATHLIN, Oscar, Hon. The Pas N.D.P. LEMIEUX, Ron, Hon. La Verendrye N.D.P. MACKINTOSH, Gord, Hon. St. Johns N.D.P. MAGUIRE, Larry Arthur-Virden P.C. MALOWAY, Jim Elmwood N.D.P. MARTINDALE, Doug Burrows N.D.P. McFADYEN, Hugh Fort Whyte P.C.

McGIFFORD, Diane, Hon. Lord Roberts N.D.P. MELNICK, Christine, Hon. Riel N.D.P. MITCHELSON, Bonnie River East P.C. NEVAKSHONOFF, Tom Interlake N.D.P. OSWALD, Theresa, Hon. Seine River N.D.P. PENNER, Jack Emerson P.C. REID, Daryl Transcona N.D.P. REIMER, Jack Southdale P.C. ROBINSON, Eric, Hon. Rupertsland N.D.P. ROCAN, Denis Carman P.C. RONDEAU, Jim, Hon. Assiniboia N.D.P. ROWAT, Leanne Minnedosa P.C. SALE, Tim Fort Rouge N.D.P. SANTOS, Conrad Wellington N.D.P. SCHELLENBERG, Harry Rossmere N.D.P. SCHULER, Ron Springfield P.C. SELINGER, Greg, Hon. St. Boniface N.D.P. SMITH, Scott, Hon. Brandon West N.D.P.

STEFANSON, Heather Tuxedo P.C. STRUTHERS, Stan, Hon. Dauphin-Roblin N.D.P. SWAN, Andrew Minto N.D.P. TAILLIEU, Mavis Morris P.C. WOWCHUK, Rosann, Hon. Swan River N.D.P. VACANT Kirkf ield Park

171 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA Wednesday, November 22, 2006 The House met at 1:30 p.m. PRAYER ROUTINE PROCEEDINGS INTRODUCTION OF BILLS Bill 5–The Personal Investigations Amendment Act (Identity Protection) Hon. Greg Selinger (Minister of Finance): Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the Minister of Justice (Mr.Chomiak), that Bill 5, The Personal Investi- gations Amendment Act (Identity Protection); Loi modifiant la

Loi sur les enquêtes relatives aux particuliers (protection de l'identité), be now read a first time. Motion presented. Mr. Selinger: Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce this bill today. The bill gives people who are concerned that their id entity is being used by someone else the ability to place a security alert on their credit report. The security alert notifies the credit granters that they must take steps to verify the credit applicant's identity before extending credit. Mr. Speaker: Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion? [Agreed] PETITIONS Headingley Foods Mrs.

Mavis Taillieu (Morris): I wish to present the following petition to the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. These are the reasons for this petition: The owners of Headingley Foods, a small business based in Headingley, would like to sell alcohol at their store. The distance from their location to the nearest Li quor Mart, via the Trans- Canada Highway, is 9.3 kilometres. The distance to the same Liquor Mart via Roblin Boulevard is 10.8 kilometres. Their application has been rejected because their store needs to be 10 kilometres away from the Liquor Mart.

It is 700 metres short of this requirement using one route but 10.8 kilometres using the other. The majority of Headingley's population lives off Roblin Boulevard and uses Roblin Boulevard to get to and from Winnipeg rather than the Trans- Canada Highway. Additionally, the highway route is often closed or too dangerous to travel in severe weather conditions. The ma jority of Headingley residents therefore travel to the Liquor Mart via Roblin Boulevard, a distance of 10.8 kilometres. Small businesses outside Winnipeg's perimeter are vital to the prosperity of Manitoba's communities and should be supported.

It is difficult for small businesses like Headingley Foods to compete with larger stores in Winnipeg, and they require added services to remain viable. Residents should be able to purchase alcohol locally rather then drive to the next municipality. We petition the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba as follows: To urge the Minister charged with the administration of The Liquor Control Act (Mr. Smith), to consider allowing the owners of Headingley Foods to sell alcohol at their store, thereby supporting small business and the prosperity of rural communities in Manitoba. This is signed by Sheryl King, W.

Armstrong, Mary Armstrong and many, many others. Mr. Speaker: In accordance with our rule 132(6), when petitions are read they are deemed to be received by the House. Introduction of Guests Mr. Speaker: Prior to Oral Questions, I'd like to draw the attention of honourable members to the public gallery where we have with us from Arthur E. Wright School 47 grade 4 students under the direction of Sylvia Shore. This school is located in the constituency of the honourable Member for The Maples (Mr. Aglugub). On behalf of all honourable members, I welcome you here today.

172 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 ORAL QUESTIONS Privacy Commissioner Establishment of Position Mr. Hugh McFadyen (Leader of the Official Opposition): As all members know, across Canada today, governments of all political stripes and parties of all political stripes are embarking on initiatives to reform the democratic processes to make governments more accountable and more transparent to their citizens. Today, Mr.

Speaker, we see in our own Progressive Conservative Party, democracy thriving; 1,200 people, 1,200 Manitobans in a hall last night in Altona; 1,200 members of our party paying tribute to the Member for Emerson (Mr. Penner). They gathered to pay tribute to the Member for Emerson and to select our party's next candidate for the great constituency of Emerson. Now we've got 1,600 members gathering tonight in the constituency of Ste. Rose to pay tribute to the Member for Ste. Rose (Mr. Cummings), and to select our PC candidate in that constituency for the coming election.

Notwithstanding the Premier's newfound and highly selective interest in democracy as it pertains to federal issues, democracy under this dome is not doing as well as it is in other places. Critical to a strong democracy is tr ansparency and access to information as well as protection of personal privacy. In the 1999 election campaign we all remember the broken promise on hallway medicine, but there was another promise that was broken in 1999, Mr.

Speaker, when the Premie r promised in 1999, completing a survey where he said that he would provide the Ombudsman of Manitoba with the power to order the release of information, and he also promised that his party would establish a privacy commissioner, as is the case in other jurisdictions. A privacy commissioner could deal effectively with both matters of access and matters of private, personal information. Manitoba is one of the last jurisdictions in Canada to not have an independent officer charged with the responsibility of dealing with issues of access to information and privacy.

So can the Premier please explain, seven years later, why he hasn't kept his promise to make government more accountable? Why hasn't he granted the necessary powers to the Ombudsman? Why hasn't he established a privacy commissioner for the people of Manitoba? Hon. Gary Doer (Premier): We have legislation that we are preparing for the freedom of information, and we will be including a privacy commissioner in that legislation. Mr. McFadyen: Mr.

Speaker, we see with the growing litany of scandals, seven scandals in seven years under this NDP government: from the Crocus scandal to the Burntwoo d health care authority scandal; money being spent on tobacco and trips rather than health care; the floodway fiasco, their mismanagement of this important project; mis- management in health care, the second-highest spending in the country with the worst results; and the tragic results of their mismanagement in Child and Family Services, the n eed for transparency, the need for accountability in Ma nitoba is greater than ever before.

So, in light of these many serious breakdowns, in light of the culture of secrecy that he has created, why will he not, and why has he not established an independent office to deal with important matters of access and privacy? Mr. Doer: Mr. Speaker, we will, as I say, be proposing that in the legislation, the amendments to the legislation. The issue of public hearings took place on the freedom of information act, and it also took place on the confidentiality and privacy act. The Minister of Family Services (Mr.

Mackintosh), in co- ordination with our minister responsible, has discussed that in forums and we are certainly proceeding with that. I would point out, Mr. Speaker, before the member opposite gets holier-than-thou, that public opinion polls paid for by the provincial government when the member opposite was chief of staff for the former premier, all the public opinion polls, including questions on satisfaction with the former premier, went from the Department of Health directly to the chief of st aff and were never released to the public.

Now we're not perfect, but we know the member opposite is saying one thing and acted a different way when he was in his office. * (13:40) Public Accounts Committee Reform Mr. Hugh McFadyen (Leader of the Official Opposition): Mr. Speaker, it is time for the Premier to check the facts. That information was released to the public. The Premier is running around fighting old wars. I know he's stuck in the past, and he is

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 173 running around and nobody's told him that the war ended seven years ago as he runs around firing shots left, right and centre. Let's bring it forward to 2006. He's had seven years to deal with these issues, seven years of stonewalling, seve n years of secrecy. It's time for this Premier to get serious about democracy and accountability in Manitoba. Further on the same question relating to Manitoba's dysfunctional democratic track record, I would like to ask the Premier about his commitment to reforming our Public Accounts Committee.

Manitoba admittedly, and I think all members of this House would agree that we have the weakest Public Accounts Committee in Canada, and is therefore one of the least accountable governments in the country. Mr. Speaker, I know the studio audience is chattering from their seats because they don't want to hear the question.

The question is this: Given that we have what is widely acknowledged, and I think agreed by all members, to be the weakest Public Accounts Committee in the country, and as an indication of how weak this committee is it has met only twice this year compared to so me provinces where they'll meet many, many more times, some of which meet as many times as twice a month, and our Public Accounts Committee, Mr. Speaker, lacks the powers of many other committees to call witnesses, conduct research and issue reports. Now, we know, because members from all parties– Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. Mr.

McFadyen: Mr. Speaker, I know the Member for Kildonan (Mr. Chomiak) is sensitive about his years of mismanagement of our health care system. I know he doesn't want Public Accounts to be able to look into the fact that, under his lack of leadership in the Health Department, we are now the last-place province in Canada when it comes to health care even though we spend the second most, so I can understand why the minister doesn't want to hear these questions. But, if I may, Mr.

Speaker, my question to the Premier is: Given that all members of the House recognize the weakness of the committee which shows up in terms of our difficulty in scheduling meetings because nobody, and the Member for Inkster (Mr. Lamoureux) made the point in the media, nobody takes this committee seriously, today will the Premier commit his caucus as we are prepared to commit ours to a process of reforming the Public Accounts Committee so that we can have a committee that has the power to call witnesses, has regular meetings and has the ability to hold this incompetent, wasteful, neglectful government to account?

Hon. Gary Doer (Premier): Mr. Speaker, I have been very frustrated with the frequency of Public Accounts meetings. We have gone from 1.4 Public Accounts meetings on aver age a year in the '95-99 period to about four a year. That's not good enough. I've asked our House Leader (Mr. Chomiak) to bring in legislation immediately to have fixed and definite Public Accounts meetings scheduled in law because right now– Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. Mr. Doer: Mr. Speaker, in all fairness, on one occasion it's somebody's party's inability to attend.

Then it's somebody else is on holidays for a month in Hawaii, and somebody else is going to be changed as chair. I believe this is a problem for all of us. I have asked our House Leader to bring in legislation immediately. If it's the first Tuesday in every month, o r w h a t e v e r i t i s , w h e n w e s h o u l d h a v e i n l a w s i x meetings scheduled, so we don't have to say that three parties have to agree or disagree on a meeting date, which has proven to be ineffective in my view. We are going to have six guaranteed dates a year, and we are going to have it in legislation. Mr.

Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, on a new question. Mr. McFadyen: We know that the issue of setting dates is a challenge, but it is much broader than this, Mr. Speaker. The reason me mbers of this Assembly don't take Public Accounts seriously is because it doesn't have the power to call witnesses, to compel evidence. It doesn't have the power to get answers from ministers, from deputy ministers and others who have important information about scandals such as Crocus: Who is the higher authority that was in the know when Crocus was melting down who didn't do their job in government?

Who are the people who are responsible for the loss of millions of dollars on the part of 34,000 Manitobans? The reason we don't have answers to those questions, part of the reason is that we don't have an ef fective Public Accounts Committee. So, Mr. Speaker, on a new question: Given the record of scandal and mismanagement under this

174 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 government, and there seems to be a sudden interest in accountability and democracy coming from the Premier, in light of this new interest can we seize the moment? Can we ask the Premier to stop being a speed bump on the road to the future, and will he commit today to a reform process that goes beyond the setting of dates, that goes to giving real power to Public Accounts to call witnesses, to bring forward evidence, to ask questions of people who have information and to provide it with the resources it needs to do its job to hold this government to account?

Mr. Doer: I seem to recall last year, Mr. Speaker, that the Auditor General was at Public Accounts. The deputy ministers that the members opposite wanted to ask questions to were at Public Accounts for the first time ever. The members opposite will recall that we had one meeting a year under their regime. We also could not call deputy ministers. The meeting was called. So they asked the question about the e-mail. The answer they got, they didn't like. They asked the question about the implementation team and its recommendations in December. They didn't like the answers.

They go to the meeting in March, and they huff and they puff and they walk out of the meeting room. They have deputy ministers in front of them– Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. We need a little decorum here. Mr. Doer: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The bottom line is deputy ministers can be called. They were called and people walked out. So we are all accountable. We have gone from about 1.4 meetings a year, when the member opposite was chief of staff, to four. That is not good enough.

That is why we are passing legislation because this idea of getting three parties to agree on a date and disagree on a date; and we are all responsible for it, I will admit we are all accountable for it, that is unacceptable. We are going to change the law. Fixed Election Dates Provincial Elections Mr. Hugh McFadyen (Leader of the Official Opposition): I think that any member of this House who is being honest knows that the reason this committee doesn't function is because it is viewed as a complete and absolute, to use the word of the Member for Inkster (Mr. Lamoureux), a complete farce, Mr. Speaker.

That is why we have situations where we have deputy ministers responding, with ministers looking over their shoulders to make sure that they don't say anything that the minister doesn't want them to say. That is why we have a committee that I think is widely regarded by members of this House as being ineffective, in particular, compared to committees in other jurisdictions. Mr. Speaker, again, a supplemental question on the issue of accountability and democracy here in Manitoba. We know today that there are jurisdictions across the country moving to establish set election dates.

The federal government introduced a bill this spring to implement set federal election dates. British Columbia, Ontario and Newfoundland have already implemented set election dates. The Member for Ste. Rose (Mr. Cummings) tabled private members' legislation in 2005 calling on the government to set our province's election dates to afford Manitobans with a level of predictability around the timing of provincial elections. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, under this Premier– I know they don't like hearing the questions which is why they chirp from their seats incessantly.

But if I could put the question: unfortunately when the Member for Ste. Rose tabled that legislation, the Premier didn't permit debate on the legislation, let alone bring it to a vote. So, Mr. Speaker, now that the Premier seems to have a newfound sense of appreciation for democracy, will he commit today to setting election dates in Manitoba? * (13:50) Hon. Gary Doer (Premier): Mr. Speaker, let's deal with the inconsistency of the member opposite from when he was chief of staff to now in the House.

Number one, when we had Public Accounts committees in the past, the only person, the only individual that was allowed to speak at the committee from the government side was the Minister of Finance. Every other minister, and even previous ministers which we've allowed to speak at Public Accounts Committee, was censored from doing so. We allow ministers to speak at that meeting, MLAs. The deputy ministers now have been called. I don't know whether the member opposite walked out of the committee, I'll check Hansard. But I know all the members over there, they walked out of the committee.

They weren't interested in asking questions, in-depth questions, of deputy ministers,

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 175 because they wanted to walk out and put out a press release. That's all they were interested in. Mr. Speaker, I would also point out that the ability of the Auditor General to follow up on companies that got money from the government, for example, companies that lost money on MIOP loans, we have a situation when we came into office where up to $40 million was lost. Isobord, Westsun, Winnport didn't get a lot of coverage in the media; $40 million of taxpayers' money was lost by members opposite. The Auditor General could not follow the money.

Why would they not want the Auditor General to follow the money? Were they protecting their friends in those investments? We changed the law to allow the Auditor General to follow the money. Mr. Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition–oh, I'm sorry. Mr. Doer: Dealing with elections, if I recall correctly– Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. It's my error. I thought the member was going to sit, but he didn't. He still has the floor. So the honourable First Minister, to continue. Mr.

Doer: I seem to recall the last election the members opposite called was over four and a half years. I think the term before that when they got a majority was over four a half years. I think I have been accountable in a much earlier period of time, Mr. Speaker. Mr. McFadyen: Again, it's clear, Mr. Speaker, that the Premier is obsessed with the past. We all acknowledge, and he was critical in the 1990s of elections not going ahead so why doesn't he put his money where his mouth is today? He's in a position to do something about it now.

He's in a position to put his money where his mouth is, to stop the hypocrisy and to move Manitoba forward. Our party is standing ready to move Manitoba forward, looking to the future. So let's talk about 2006 and the future. Let's get out of the 1990s. Let's move to 2006. Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition has the floor. Mr. McFadyen: Thank you, Mr . Speaker. The Premier now is in a position to do something about all of those things that he was unhappy about when he was the Opposition Leader.

So why not, as a legacy, why not take the opportunity to think about his legacy to future generations of Manitobans, move us forward as a province? Why not commit today to do the right thing? We know, Mr. Speaker, that set election dates can help remove seasonal obstacles to voting. We know that they can reduce voter cynicism. We know that we can allow candidates or potential candidates to better plan well in advance of election dates. We know set election dates work well at the municipal level. We know that initiatives can be taken to increase voter turnout if we know in advance the date of elections.

The Premier has an opportunity today to show leadership. He has an opportunity to look to the future, get out of the past, to show leadership. Will he today commit to set election dates and move Manitoba into the future, leave a positive legacy for young Manitobans? Mr. Doer: Mr. Speaker, I always understood why the former premier did not fix election dates. [interjection] Well, you know, the member opposite is taking a shot at Ralph Klein.

I just want to say, when the BSE crisis was taking place, all western Canadian premiers no matter what their political party, Ralph Klein and everyone else worked together to get that border open. I am shocked that the member opposite, who couldn't carry his briefcase, would take a shot at that premier in Alberta. Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. Point of Order Mr. Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, are you rising on a point of order? Mr. McFadyen: A point of order, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker. On a point of order. Mr.

McFadyen: I wonder if the Premier, in his defence of Premier Klein, also endorses the Premier's joke about Belinda Stronach, Mr. Speaker. Since he views himself, he is almost the dean of Manitoba premiers, I wonder if he views himself as being in the same mould as Premier Klein. Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: On the point of order raised by the honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, it is

176 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 not a point of order. It is clearly a dispute over the facts. * * * Mr. Speaker: The honourable First Minister, to continue. Mr. Doer: I will tell the member opposite where obviously we disagree and that is on the Canadian Wheat Board. I would think, given the kind of absolute surrogate status of the Leader of the Conservative Party in Manitoba to the federal Chuck Strahl strategy in Ottawa, the surrogate nature of the Conservative Party, Mr. Speaker, they have no ability to stand up for Manitoba.

I would point out that in western Canada; Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, we are faced with later harvests sometimes, earlier planting other times. I think there should be a range of time when the democratic accountability can take place. I would point out the former members went close to four and a half years both times, Mr. Speaker. I have gone closer to the four-year period of time, but obviously, if the planting was slower in the spring of '03, that would affect our timing. I think it affects Saskatchewan and it affects Alberta as well.

Now that is part of the reality of running a province in western Canada, a prairie province where agriculture is so important. That is why we have to be very careful. Privacy Commissioner Establishment of Position Mrs. Mavis Taillieu (Morris): Mr. Speaker, this government has an appalling record when it comes to access to information. There is a lack of trans- parency, a lack of accountability and many roadblocks thrown in the way of Manitobans who want access to information to access what the government is hiding. Less than half of information requests are fully granted.

Will the Premier direct his government to stop denying access to government records today? Will he commit to elevating the importance of access to information and protection of privacy by establishing a privacy commissioner today? Hon. Gary Doer (Premier): A privacy commissioner will be in legislation that we will introduce. I said that six questions ago, Mr. Speaker. When the journalists in Canada did a review of access to information, we were rated just below Alberta. It does not mean to say that we can't do better.

I would point out that every adjudication made by the Ombudsman, we have supported and acknowledged. There hasn't been an occasion to have to go to court. I think there were four or five occasions to go to court in the past. One was to get the VLT revenues by community, which were denied. One was to get the Jets' operating loss agreement which was announced at $4 million and ended up being at $43 million. There was another set of announcements that I recall, polls being released. The former chief of staff got the polls from the Department of Health and wouldn't release them to the public.

I think we have had a practice of releasing stuff. We are not perfect, but I would suggest that 99 percent of the questions members opposite ask based on FIPPA, coming out of all the information we provided health care were not available. In fact, I still got a FIPPA request signed by the Conservatives that said the information on waiting lists here, there and everywhere else is not maintained, not kept and not released. Again, we're not perfect, but we have made massive improvements in freedom of information. * (14:00) Mrs. Taillieu: Mr.

Speaker, this government has had seven years to address this information privacy commissioner and they haven't done it. It always takes pressure from the opposition until they react. At the same time that this government is denying access to information on what it is doing, it's also allowing personal information of some Manitobans to be at risk. The Winnipeg Free Press asked Manitobans if they trust the government to protect their privacy and 90 percent of respondents answered, no.

This is a resounding statement on the lack of respect and attention the government has put into the protection of privacy of Manitobans. Mr. Speaker, will this Premier commit today to increasing the privacy protection of all Manitobans and become open and accountable for information about government which it continues to hide from the public? Mr. Doer: I would point out that we agree with the change on the privacy commissioner idea, but I would point out the Ombudsman has the role of the privacy commissioner. It's the same role now maintained by the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 177 has not been overruled by us. In other words, when the Ombudsman makes a recommendation we follow it. There has been no occasion that I am aware of where people have had to go over the Ombudsman– for us in government, denying what the Ombudsman has decided and therefore people having to go court to get an adjudication that the Ombudsman recommends. Having said that, the authority that rests with the Ombudsman now can, in fact, be delegated in law to the commissioner as indicated by the member opposite.

If the commissioner ruled in such a way that people didn't agree with, there's still the appeal of the Court of Queen's Bench. I can recall four occasions, including times that we asked for, and communities were asking for, the VLT revenues. It was sitting in a computer in Morris, Manitoba. All the information was available. We couldn't get it and it was denied. You could get it in a five-second nanoflick of a computer to get that information. The operating losses of the Jets, the operating loss agreement of the Jets, it was portrayed at $4 million, it was $43 million. We couldn't get that number.

In fact, the Auditor General had to go out and dig it out and then stated in the report that this information was available and it should be released. The authority of the Ombudsman won't be changed with the commissioner. It will just make it easier, but the authority of the Ombudsman, we have never overridden that. I would point out the FIPPA request we had in June of 1999, when the member opposite was chief of staff of the former premier, Mr. Filmon, the request for wait lists was denied in June of 1999.

Access to specific information concerning the number of people on surgical waiting lists cannot be granted as this information does not exist. Bridge Inspection Reports Request for Information Mr. Larry Maguire (Arthur-Virden): Well, Mr. Speaker, talking about the five-second flick, this fall we found a freedom of information request to the Department of Infrastructure and Transportation for copies of the annual insp ection reports for Highway No. 1, the CNR overpass on Highway 1 at Portage la Prairie.

The request was refused, citing disclosure of this information could reasonably be expected to harm or threaten the security of government property, namely this bridge structure. Mr. Speaker, does the Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation agree that providing Manitobans with access to these bridge inspection reports will threaten the security of this bridge? Hon. Ron Lemieux (Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation): We have provided infor- mation to many individuals on when a bridge was last inspected, the condition at the time and the work that's been done on those particular structures.

What I would like to comment further on, Mr. Speaker, is the amount of work that's taking place in Manitoba with regard to those structures. We talked about the Letellier Bridge, the Bield bridge, the bridge over the south perimeter. We have a budget now of $400 million per year in infrastructure. The members opposite, why do they not want to talk about the 1990s? They ran down our medical system; the hospitals were falling apart; schools were falling apart; universities were falling apart. I often wonder what did they do in the 1990s. Mr. Maguire: Well, Mr.

Speaker, I don't know whether Roadblock Ronnie really believes that that was an appropriate issue or not, but we were refused this information in a letter that we received yesterday. Part of the minister's proposed construction projects for '07, which he announced just last week, part of that was that would be the demolition of the existing bridge, the Portage la Prairie bypass, the CNR overpass.

Given that this minister has slated that this over- 40-year-old bridge will be up for immediate demolition, does the minister still believe releasing the inspection reports will jeopardize the future condition of the structure? Mr. Lemieux: You know, Mr. Speaker, the discussion we're having currently, and I can't wait to see how they vote, quite frankly, on the Speech from the Throne on the announcement on $4 billion over 10 years. Consistently, they have been not in tune with Manitobans.

They had the opportunity in the 1990s where they raised ga s tax by a cent and a half, I believe, in 1991; another cent in 1993. They raised $200 million. What did they do with that money? They wasted it. They had an opportunity to put it into infrastructure and they did zero, zilch, nada, not a single thing in the 1990s. They stand up here trying to make a case with regard to bridges that we are addressing and fixing. Repeatedly, we're fixing up their mess that they created in 1990.

178 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 Assiniboine River Water Quality Study Request for Information Mr. Cliff Cullen (Turtle Mountain): Clearly, this government has a history of cover-ups and deceit, and the Water Stewardship Department is no exception to this. On August 8, 2006, Neil Christoffersen filed an application for access for freedom of information. It was in regard to a study on the Assiniboine River regarding water quality and water quantity. I'd like to table this application for access for the House and for the minister.

Despite numerous calls to the department, this particular individual has received absolutely no response to his request. I am asking the minister: Why is the government holding back this study? Hon. Christine Melnic k (Minister of Water Stewardship): Mr. Speaker, I believe a response would have been sent. I will look into this and get back to the House. Mr. Cullen (Turtle Mountain): We've heard a lot from this minister about process over the years in her previous department and, obviously, the process isn't working in Water Stewardship, Mr. Speaker.

The government is proposing to take more water out of the Assiniboine River. There is currently a process going forward. There is a municipal hearing coming up in early December . The residents of the area want to hear the result s of this particular study because it is very important in making the decisions going forward. I ask the minister to release the information in this study immediately. Ms. Melnick (Minister of Water Stewardship): Well, Mr. Speaker, I believe that this request says that the report is, in fact, on the Water Stewardship Web site, but, again, I will check this out and confirm it.

Public Accounts Committee Reform Mr. Leonard Derkach (Russell): Today the Premier stood in his place and, with a lot of huff and puff, indicated that he wanted more accountability from Public Accounts.

I hope that his House leaders, former and present, were listening carefully because I want to ask the House Leader whether he's prepared to call the Rules Committee on PAC to allow the Chair and the Vice-Chair of the PAC committee to take responsibility for determining when meetings are convened, including meetings agenda as recommended by the provincial auditor, something that side of the House disagreed with in the last Rules Committee meeting. * (14:10) Hon. Dave Chomiak (Government House Leader): Mr. Speaker, I don't know why the Member for Russell is asking the question, because he's not Chair of PAC.

I believe the member for Niakwa is the Chair of PAC– [interjection]–of Southdale is the Chairperson at PAC. Having said that, Mr. Speaker, I can indicate to the– Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. Mr. Chomiak: Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. It's unfortunate. We have tried to

schedule a number of meetings. Three meetings have been set up. One our party had difficulty attend ing. One, tomorrow, I believe, another party of which the member might be familiar had difficulty attending. The third, another individual had difficulty attending. That's why we're going to bring in legislation to fix dates, to fix PAC meetings so we can fix that problem and get on with doing the business. I am happy to talk about it to the member and the Chairperson of the PAC committee, who is a member of the opposition, the Member for Southdale (Mr. Reimer). Mr. Derkach: Mr.

Speaker– Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh. Mr. Speaker: Order. Mr. Derkach: Mr. Speaker, the Rules Committee on PAC has not been called for at least six months, and it was at that last meeting that the government members refused to give the Chair and the Vice- Chair any authority to call meetings or agendas. Mr. Speaker, the government must allow the PAC committee to do what it was created to do, and to hold government accountable for the stewardship responsibilities. Those are the words of the Auditor General. The Auditor General has also recommended that the Minister of Finance (Mr.

Selinger) cease to be a member of PAC in order to allow for a more independent and transparent process. I'm going to ask the minister, who is responsible for PAC, whether he will allow the Rules Committee

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 179 to be called so that the committee can change the rules to take the Finance Minister off the committee, as has been recommended by the provincial auditor. Mr. Chomiak: Mr. Speaker, I've already indicated we're prepared to fix the dates for timing. I will talk to the Chair of the PAC committee who represents– talk to the Chair of PAC. The Member for Southdale and I will meet with my Vice-Chair to talk about the rules, which I think is appropriate.

If the Member for Russe ll wants to attend a meeting or make a suggestion that's fine, but I will meet with the Chair to talk about that, which is what we normally do in negotiations and not on the floor of the House and not in the media when we try to plan events. But because th is difficulty has occurred, we'll make sure we legislate the meetings as they occur, and there are fixed dates for fixed meetings. NDP Nomination (The Maples) Premier's Involvement Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Inkster): Mr.

Speaker, I rise today to raise serious concerns with regard to the inappropriate behaviour fro m the Premier's Office, which includes bullying, intimidation and possible bribery with respect to at least one candidate that was seeking the nomination in The Maples. My question to the Premier is: Will the Premier explain to this Chamber if he or any member of his staff has been involved directly or indirectly in influencing the outcome of the NDP nomination in The Maples? Hon. Gary Doer (Premier): Mr.

Speaker, any innuendo or any issue of allegations that deals with any breach of The Elections Act, I refer immediately to Elections Manitoba. Mr. Lamoureux: Mr. Speaker, I understand there has been some sort of a referral to Elections Manitoba. My question: I believe that the Premier was fully aware of the discussions that his chief of staff was having on behalf of the Premier's Office, and I believe that the Premier needs to make a clear statement as to his involvement and tell this House why Michael Balagus is still working for this Premier. Mr. Doer: Mr.

Speaker, any allegations made by any individual dealing with any matter of Elections Manitoba I refer immediately to Elections Manitoba. There is a process in place that deals, separates innuendo from fact. The bottom line is I have seen other nomination races where it gets animated. Well, you probably have some yourselves this evening. There is one we have tonight in a riding that I've read about. Certain people are supported by other people which is not entirely, in fact, not true at all, and nomination races take place under the law, and in our party they take place under the constitution of the party. Mr.

Speaker, the issues will be dealt with. There have been people before who have been found in our party to be contrary to the constitution. So I would caution the member opposite very carefully because there have been, and I am not talking about this instance, where people have had dual memberships in different parties, and we have acted accordingly. Mr. Lamoureux: I believe that this Premier is fully aware of a situation which reflects very poorly on his office and on his chief of staff. The Premier, I believe, is aware of this because, Mr.

Speaker, there is a letter I believe that is circulating out there, and the Premier's Office, from wh at I understand, has, in fact, advanced it to Elections Manitoba. My question to the Premier is to come clean with this Legislature and confirm that, in fact, there has been serious allegations and that the Premier has advanced the letter that's out there to Elections Manitoba. Yes or no? Have you advanced that letter to Elections Manitoba, Mr. Premier? Mr.

Doer: I can't confirm any of it except to say that any time I come in possession, including in Liberal nomination intentions, any matter dealing with The Elections Act, and I have had material dealing with people intending on running for the Liberal Party, I treat all of them the same way. I immediately send them to Elections Manitoba. That way the facts can allow due process and not innuendo. I always refer anything, any suggestion, anything in writing that comes to me goes that day to Elections Manitoba. That's the way I've always acted, and that's the way I will always act in the future, Mr. Speaker. Mr.

Speaker: Time for Oral Questions has expired. MEMBERS' STATEMENTS Candidate Nomination (Emerson) Mr. Jack Penner (Emerson): Mr. Speaker, my colleagues and I were privileged to be part of a great democratic event in the constituency of Emerson last night. I want to thank the president of the riding, Rick Martel, all the PC executives, the volunteer staff from 23 Kennedy and the local volunteers who

180 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 organized and conducted a nomination for a new candidate in the riding of Emerson. More than 1,300 people jammed the Pioneer Centre in Altona to hear candidates, Tammy Smook, Larry Tetrault, Ronn Smith, John Stephen and Cliff Graydon. The contest needed four ballots and finally wrapped up around 12:30 a.m. In the end, Cliff Graydon of Green Ridge, Manitoba, was selected as the next candidate for the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in the constituency of Emerson.

I want to thank publicly all the people who took the time out of their busy lives to participate in the selection process. I also want to thank my colleagues for coming to Altona to show support and congratulate the candidates. Above all, I want to thank our leader, Hugh McFadyen, for delivering a strong message to the gathering and telling the people of the constituency of Emerson that we will be the next– Mr. Speaker: Order. Could we have some co- operation, please. I've had to shout "Order" to get members to pay–I'm rising because there's a breach of a rule.

I need to be able to hear if there is a breach of a rule so I can draw attention to the individual to make sure it's not repeated again. I am asking the co- operation of all honourable members, please. The honourable Member for Emerson, when referring to another member in the House, it is by the portfolio of a minister or the constituency of members, not by individual names of that member. So I ask the co-operation of the honourable member and all members in the future. Mr. Penner: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I apologize to the House for that mistake.

I was referring to the honourable Member for Fort Whyte (Mr. McFadyen). So, Mr. Speaker, I just want to thank all the people of the riding of Emerson, and I want to indicate to this House that they are ready to enter the next election with a strong candidate to change the party that will govern the province of Manitoba and make a true Tory government responsible to the people in the next government of Manitoba. * (14:20) Bruce Park Cenotaph Ms. Bonnie Korzeniowski (St. James): Mr. Speaker, this past Remembrance Day I was reminded, once again, by St.

James constituents how caring and civic minded Manitoba's young people can be. Over the course of the last three years, students from St. James Collegiate have devoted time and energy to completely and authentically repairing the cenotaph at Bruce Park in the heart of St. James. This was the site of a recent Remembrance Day service. The cenotaph is more than a commemoration of those who have served and sacrificed. Now restored, it reflects young people working together to reclaim not only a community monument, but also our shared history.

They did this out of respect for their elders and, indeed, their peers who serve today. Programs such as the Veterans Affairs Canada's "Share the Story" illustrate the benefits of building relationships between generations. When youth is inspired and trusted, as in this case, our faith is rewarded. Mr. Speaker, on November 24, 2005, the St. James Legion Branch No. 4 honoured the students with a plaque commemorating their work. Today, I invite my colleagues to join me in recognizing the civic pride and public spiritedness of St.

James Collegiate students: Bobbie Side, Nona Flaherty, Michelle Penner, Mandy Figueiredo, Justin Harrison, Chad Kipling, Jona Pangilinan, Shannon Fraser, Kyle Beel, Kevin Lane-Praest, Jimmy Chau, Megan Burland, Thomas Tipple, Joe Antonio, Cesar Najera, Carlos Salermon, Laura Thiessen, Hilary Fardoe and Lynn Mantik. Thank you. Malachi Alexander Goertzen Mr. Kelvin Goertzen (Steinbach): I rise to advise the House of a very significant occasion that happened on September 30, 2006, when my wife gave birth to our first child, Malachi Alexander.

Despite difficulties in both the pregnancy and the birth, I am happy to report that Malachi was a healthy eight pounds and 11 ounces, and both mother and baby are doing very well. I want to thank all the members of this House in my party and also members opposite for their congratulations and their well wishes. They have been passed along, and they have been appreciated by all members of my family. We are thankful for the efforts of the staff of the high-risk labour ward of the Women's Clinic at the Health Sciences Centre for all the efforts that they made to make sure the birth was a success.

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 181 I also want to advise members, because I know they will be interested, my leader talked about the growth in party membership and, in fact, Malachi received his membership card to the PC Party of Manitoba making him now, officially, the youngest member of the PC Party of Manitoba. Thank you. Seine River Book Swap Hon. Theresa Oswald (Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, I am all aflutter after that last speech, actually. I am pleased to report today that the Seine River Book Swap took place on the afternoon of October 14 at the Dakota Community Centre.

The event was designed to promote the joy of reading broadly and family literacy, in particular. The community of Seine River was decidedly generous with book donations this year, and as a result many families were sent home with new books to enjoy together. It was a pleasure to also have in attendance the Literacy Partners of Manitoba proudly represented by the lively and engaging Word Monster. Low literacy levels form a significant barrier to economic and social well-being and limit people's ability to participate fully in the workplace and in a broader society.

Forty-two percent of adults in Canada have literacy levels below the level considered the minimum to fully participate in a knowledge-based economy such as ours. Given cuts made by the federal government to literacy programs, it is exceedingly important that literacy be promoted as a family value, and that people be encouraged to enjoy the pleasures of reading. I would like to thank everyone who participated in this year's Book Swap. The support of our sponsors and partners, as well as our volunteers, was instrumental in the success of the event.

I would also like to particularly mention the student volunteers from Collège Jeanne-Sauvé who demonstrated leadership and, indeed, all throughout the afternoon. We hope the Book Swap event will continue to grow, and that more and more people will be able to enjoy the gift of literacy with their families. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Dr. Meir Kryger and Dr. Maria Melanson Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the life and work of Dr. Meir Kryger and Dr. Maria Melanson, and to express my deep sadness at their upcoming departure from Manitoba. There can be no doubt that Dr.

Kryger is an internationally renowned authority on sleep disorders. He's been a leader in this field in Manitoba, in Canada and around the world. Indeed, it's been wonderful for Manitoba to have a specialist of his stature practising here in our province. Dr. Maria Melanson, the team leader for the multiple sclerosis effort in Manitoba, has helped many Manitoba patients with multiple sclerosis, about 1,500 Manitobans, as I understand it. It is sad, indeed tragic for Manitoba that both Dr. Kryger and Dr. Melanson are leaving Manitoba to go to the United States.

We wish them both well in their future careers, but, at the same time, they will leave major holes in health care and in the forward- thinking approaches to health care delivery in our province. It did not have to be this way. The sad and sorry truth is that in seven years the present NDP government has completely and totally failed to establish the fra mework for health care delivery that will allow and facilitate the building of effective teams co-ordinating care in areas like sleep disorders and multiple sclerosis. The Tories were no better when they were in power in the 1990s.

It is one aspect of the Manitoba system which needs to change fundamentally. Indeed, that's one of the reasons I entered politics, because I realized as a physician that if I wanted to build a long-run, sustainable team that was an international league-leading team, I would probably have virtually no option but to leave Manitoba. Instead, I chose to enter politics and fight to change the way the system works. I'm still here fighting for change, and I will continue to fight because the system in Manitoba needs to change.

Indeed, it's time to remove the present inept government, which can't get the job done, and to elect a Liberal government in Manitoba that can do a proper job of looking after health care in our province. House Business Hon. Dave Chomiak (Government House Leader): Mr. Speaker, on House business, prior to dealing with the Throne Speech, I just want to indicate that it's fairly obvious that the Standing Committee on Public Accounts that was scheduled to meet on Thursday, Nove mber 23, and Thursday, November 30, will no longer meet. It's cancelled.

What we hope to do is to be able to reach some accommodation so that we can have the requisite

182 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 number of meetings this year. We are also bringing in legislation to set set dates for meetings of the Public Accounts Committee, Mr. Speaker, so that the difficulties we're experiencing with organizing these meetings will no longer occur. There'll be some assurances for all parties as to fixed dates for the meetings of the Public Accounts Committee. So thank you. Mr. Speaker: So the meetings for November 23 and November 30 for Public Accounts, they've been cancelled, for the information of all honourable members.

ORDERS OF THE DAY GOVERNMENT BUSINESS ADJOURNED DEBATE (Fourth Day of Debate) Mr. Speaker: Resume debate on the proposed motion of the honourable Member for St. Norbert (Ms. Brick), THAT the following address be presented to His Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: We, the Members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, thank Your Honour for the gracious speech addressed to us at this Fifth Session of the Thirty-Eighth Legislature of Manitoba, and the proposed motion of the honourable Leader of the Official Opposition (Mr.

McFadyen) in amendment thereto, standing in the name of the honourable Member for Charleswood (Mrs. Driedger), who has seven minutes remaining. [interjection] No? Okay. We'll go to the next. Hon. Theresa Oswald (Minister of Health): It's a privilege, as always, to stand in this House to put some words on the record in my support of the Speech from the Throne. I, of course, would like to begin by paying tribute to the constituents of Seine River, a lively and vibrant community of which I am so proud to be a part.

They have instilled their faith in me, and I continue to work on their behalf for issues that matter to them most. I want to take a moment to say thank you to my staff in the Seine River constituency office, to Ross and to Sarah, who work tirelessly every day for the people of Seine River. They are excellent repre- sentatives, excellent workers, and I am so proud to be part of that team. I also would like to acknowledge the very serious and profound responsibility that I've been given in the portfolio of Health. It is, indeed, an incredible honour to be given this responsibility.

It's one that I take seriously and one that I'll speak more about later. I would like to take this time, though, to say that in my initial days in the Ministry of Health, the staff, the deputy minister, the assistant deputy ministers, administrative staff and political staff with whom we work so closely every day have been working tirelessly for the people of Manitoba. They are, indeed, inspiring, Mr. Speaker, and I consider myself privileged to be working with such individuals. * (14:30) I would also, in my response to the Speech from the Throne, prior to that, like to pay tribute to my family, Mr. Speaker.

As we all know, none of us could sit a day in this House without the support of our loved ones: my husband, Sam; my son, Jack, on whom the sun rises and sets; my Mom; my brothers; my sisters-in-law. I truly do feel grateful to have their support and, of course, the support of my close friends who remind me when I'm not doing my best and encourage me when I am doing my best. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to speak on this Speech from the Throne because I really do think it does embody the kinds of things that the constituents of Seine River truly do value and care about.

I begin, first, by saying, of course, our continued investment in education, in post-secondary education in particular, we saw with this Speech from the Throne that, for the first time in Manitoba's history, we'll see that all post-secondary students who stay and work in the province of Manitoba, a great place to be as we know, will receive a 60 percent tax rebate on their tuition fees. We're delighted to be putting forward such a notion in the Speech from the Throne, and I know that the people of Seine River will be very pleased to see such a movement going forward.

In addition, we're very pleased that, at the University of Manitoba, with a $50-million contri- bution by the part of government, it has triggered a total of $237 million in fundraising to improve that campus. It continues to show our commitments to investing in infrastructure, to higher learning and to ensuring that Manitoba is even better going into the future.

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 183 I also know, Mr. Speaker, that the investments in infrastructure that we're making are very important to my constituents. Our infrastructure commitment of $4 billion over the next 10 years is going to continue to build a strong Manitoba. Three hundred million for highways capital and main tenance over the next two years, building on the 50 percent increase in highways funding since '99.

When I go door to door and talk to my constituents, they tell us that they care about their ability to travel smoothly and safely throughout Manitoba, and we know that these kinds of investments are going to help us going into the future. Another thing that I often hear at the doorstep from my constituents, Mr. Speaker, is their absolute value for going forward on renewable energy here in Manitoba. My constituents, no doubt, will be delighted that the announcement of the Conawapa Dam to proceed will be so important for the future of Manitoba, for the investment in Manitoba.

We're committed continually to ensuring that Manitoba Hydro and its assets will remain owned by Manitobans for the benefit of Manitobans. It is a value that my constituents hold dear. It is one that I will protect fiercely for them. It is also encouraging and exciting to speak at the doorstep with my constituents on the full development of Manitoba's wind energy, which is expected to generate $2 billion in investment, $100 million in wind rights payments to landowners, and $150 million in property taxes to local government. The good constituents of Seine River, like all Manitobans, Mr.

Speaker, care about being green going into the future and taking care of our province and, indeed, our planet. I know, also, on the subject of literacy my constituents will be very pleased to know that, announced in our Throne Speech, there will be a new program for literacy introduced to provide every child born, even the tiniest and youngest of Progressive Conservatives, every child born in Manitoba with an early start on reading.

The public library system will be extended with added funding for municipalities, and we'll be providing enhanced programs for families on literacy, on nutrition and on positive parenting. The introduction of an Adult Literacy Act will help prevent adult Manitobans from being left behind due to a lack of reading skills, Mr. Speaker. Our government, of course, has made an additional commitment of $42 million to child protection services. The people of Seine River care deeply about their families, Mr. Speaker.

They'll be very pleased to know that, going forward, this kind of investment will continue to assist those families that need some help in times of difficulty and struggle. I am also very pleased to know that new initiatives for Healthy Living, a continued passion of mine, Mr. Speaker, will target community exercise options, will help people participate in physical activities and will address healthy food choices in our schools. I know, Mr. Speaker, that the constituents of Seine River care very deeply about living in even safer communities.

We know that the focus in the Throne Speech on prevention, on a presence and on consequences for offenders is going to go a long way to assure the constituents of Seine River that indeed they are in hands that will be looking forward and taking care of issues concerning their well-being and their safety. It's also important to acknowledge that the constituents of Seine River care very deeply about living in an affordable environment.

We know that Manitoba's small business tax will be lowered again on January 1 to 3 percent, taking it from the second highest level in Canada to the second lowest rate in Canada, something that we can be very proud of as a government. Also on January 1, the middle-income tax rate will be lowered again to 13 percent, a 22 percent cut since '99. These are conversations that my consti- tuents want to have and we'll be having them indeed. It's also important to note, Mr. Speaker, for the seniors in Manitoba and in my constituency, that our government will bring in further measures to ease the tax burden for seniors.

Starting in 2007, seniors will be allowed to split eligible pension income when calculating their provincial income tax. This tax break matches the federal tax changes just announced and it will save pensioners an estimated $11 million annually. I think it's very important, as well, to take note of the fact that our government continues its commitment to health care and continues its priority to health care. I think that it's fair to note that in a speech yesterday when the Member for Charleswood (Mrs. Driedger), the official Health critic was speaking, she made some mention of my performance thus far.

I think she might have used the

184 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 word "arrogant." I think she might have said some other unflattering things and that's her job. That's the job of the member opposite, to hold the government's feet to the fire and to challenge them on issues, and I can respect that, Mr. Speaker. I can respect that that's her job. Although I don't necessarily agree with her characterization, I can respect that that is what she has to do, but I will acknowledge that I believe that the member opposite has a point about how we comport ourselves in Question Period.

I think that I can say that we all get swept up into the blood sport of Question Period and I would consider myself to be no different. But I can take advice from the member opposite, and humbly I do. She has had some years of experience here at the Manitoba Legislature. Regardless of our political stripes, I think it's appropriate to take lessons from those who are more experienced, to respect those who are more experienced, and I'm going to heed her words and endeavour to focus on the purpose of Question Period and not necessarily the blood sport of it. I would say, Mr.

Speaker, that there are ideas and issues on which the members opposite and our government do passionately disagree. Of course, that would be our job, to stand firm on what our ideas are, on what we truly hold as a priority for government and to make sure that we continue working to ensure that what we know Manitobans want from their health care system is delivered, and on this we do passionately disagree. Mr. Speaker, I have to say I was disheartened if not shocked when I read on November 1 in the Winnipeg Free Press that the Leader of the Opposition (Mr.

McFadyen) had, in fact, on behalf of his party, abandoned health care as a priority. I found this to be particularly disappointing when, in fact, he appeared to be throwing up his hands, saying that there had been too much money spent and it was time to turn his attention to other things. * (14:40) Indeed, it was shocking, and I wanted to make sure that the people of Manitoba understood that on this side of the House we make health care a priority.

We make it a very important vision going into the future and I think that Manitobans would be very disheartened to know–I think actually Manitobans would be disheartened to know that when the members opposite did make health care a priority, let's say, for example, back in the 2003 election campaign, they committed a paltry 1 percent increase to health care. Now, this is shocking indeed, Mr. Speaker.

I suppose if we do some casual arithmetic in looking at what that might have meant, heaven forbid, should the Tories have taken power in 2003, what that 1 percent increase might have meant, I believe, the basic arithmetic is about $260 million down for health care, and that is when they were making it a priority.

I think when we do basic arithmetic on $260 million, that's the equivalent of closing the Grace Hospital al together, most, if not, all rural hospitals altogether, or if they don't like that, maybe $260 million is about the equivalent of cancelling home care entirely , and this was when it was a priority. But, by the Leader of the Official Opposition's (Mr. McFadyen) own admission, it's not a priority anymore, as he says in the Winnipeg Free Press on November 1. But I want to talk about what happens when you do make health care a priority. Mr.

Speaker, when a government makes health care a priority, you can see, like on this side of the House, more than a billion dollars being invested to build and modernize health facilities since 1999, over 65 health care facilities around the prov ince receiving upgrades, renovations needed so that Manitobans can get that care sooner and closer to home. We also know that in our Throne Speech we've seen a commitment to emergency room upgrades. We've seen a commit- ment to expanding training for emergency medicine physicians and for the recruitment of such specialists like oncologists.

I think this is critically important that we continue to make health care a priority. I think within that context, it must be said, Mr. Speaker, that since 1999, the number of graduates from nursing education programs under our watch has more than quadrupled. The University of Manitoba's medical school has, indeed, expanded by 40 percent. I had the privilege of attending the white coat ceremony of first-year students entering medical school, a class of over a hundred individuals, the largest class since 1976. I regret that back in the time when the opposition was in power, they actually cut those spaces.

They stand up every day they can to complain about shortages of doctors and yet, they cannot acknowledge that we are reaping what they have sown, but we are changing that because we're looking forward. We're looking forward to adding those medical training spaces, quadrupling the number of nurses and ensuring that we're having training in areas where we need it the most.

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 185 Mr. Speaker, when the member opposite was speaking the other day about health care, she made reference, of course, to a very serious issue and that is the issue of times that people may have to wait for service. One reference she made, in particular, was to a wait time that existed for a medical oncologist most recently. I must say to the member opposite that we share her concern. All of us regrettably in one way or another have been touched by cancer; our mothers, our fathers, our partners, our friends.

It is a terrifying and difficult time in any of our lives, and so any wait that someone has to go through to receive the kind of service that they need is very, very challenging, very disheartening and just plain scary. That's why when we saw a blip in the numbers this summer for people waiting to see a medical oncologist, we worked swiftly with CancerCare Manitoba. The incredible work of oncologists that's been done since that time has reduced an uncharacteristic waiting list for medical oncologists by 70 percent since August, and they're not finished yet in working on this.

We continue to work on recruitment, but I say to the member opposite, we concur with any family who is going through that kind of a difficulty that they need swift service. I'm also proud to acknowledge, Mr. Speaker, that recently in The Globe and Mail, as recently as yesterday, in fact, Manitoba was cited as being apart from the pack when it comes to access to radiation therapy. While people are struggling across Canada to have timely access to radiation therapy, Manitoba has consistently been under the benchmark since making adaptations to the program. In fact, we're lowest in the country.

We're proud of that, but we're not finished that work yet. I would acknowledge that we continue with successes in the area of health care. There are things we're very proud of, Mr. Speaker. I cite not only The Globe and Mail calling us a provincial star in its bid to reduce health-care queues. I refer not only to doubling our target for increased orthopedic surgeries, which is something. You know, we're not finished yet, but we've made incredible progress going form a wait time of some 44 weeks to 24 weeks in just one year.

We also know that we're going to be performing additional surgeries with the unbelievable efforts that are being shown by our orthopedic surgeons, by the nurses that support them and by the clinical assists that are really making the model here at Concordia Hospital, the two-OR model, one that is causing people from across Canada to come and take a very close look at so that they can duplicate that model. We're very proud of that, but we acknowledge that we continue to have work to do. We have work to do in the areas of sleep; we have work to do in the areas of pain.

We're committed to ensure that we go forward in reducing those wait times, Mr. Speaker, and ensuring that those people that are awaiting service are going to get it. It’s a plan that we've had in place since taking government, first starting with the life-and-death treatments like cancer and cardiac, moving into quality of life like hip and knee replacements where we continue to work, and ot her quality-of-life issues, including pain and including sleep. Again, Mr. Speaker, I would say with enthusiasm that I'm very proud of the Speech from the Throne.

I'm very proud of the forward-looking, forward-moving, forward-thinking plan of this government. I would acknowledge that we all have a great responsibility as we stand in the Manitoba Legislature and represent the desires, the needs and, indeed, the dreams of our constituents. I take that responsibility very seriously.

Whether it is a responsibility to promote the health and well-being of all Manitobans, whether it is a responsibility to take on the care for those people in Manitoba that are not feeling as well as they wish they could, and whether it is a responsibility of representing individual families, it is something I do, indeed, take very seriously. It's not one, really, on which I would take a calculated risk. The Leader of the Opposition (Mr. McFadyen) calls abandoning health care as a priority a calculated risk. It's not a risk that this government is prepared to take. I read from that

article that the member opposite decides to take that calculated risk because he thinks that young people just don't care about health care. He says that they care about other things. Well, I don't know which people the member opposite is talking to or talking about. I know, Mr. Speaker, that when I go door to door and I speak to young people, and I have a conversation with them about their grandpa, for example, who needs to have a hip replacement in a timely manner, this is something that they care very deeply about.

I know that when I speak to young people at the doorstep and they have a mother living with cancer who needs timely access to care, and needs access to pharmaceuticals and needs access to experts, these are things that those young people care very deeply about. I know when I talk to these young

186 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 people and they have a sister, a sister who has a young child who's in need of some specialized care, that they care very deeply about the kind of service and the kind of health care that they are going to receive. I don't know which young people the Leader of the Opposition is talking to, young people that purportedly don't care about health care in Manitoba. They're not the young people that I talk to. They're not the young people that I know. They're not the young people that I believe are going to be leading our province into a very prosperous future.

The young people I talk to care deeply about their family members, about their own health. So, when we look forward to building an even greater Manitoba, a Manitoba with young people with hearts as well as minds, we care profoundly about health care being a priority here on this side of the House. Woe will be the day when there's a party in power that doesn't give health care a priority. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. * (14:50) Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Mr. Speaker, I rise to talk for a few minutes about the government's Throne Speech that was presented last week.

What we saw in the Throne Sp eech was the Premier (Mr. Doer) standing on the back of his campaign truck, shovelling money in programs out of the back end, unfocussed, poorly thought out. Quite frankly, let's look at the record. For seven years, this NDP government has said that they were going to fix health care, but they haven't. It's still a mess. For seven years, they said they would fix the roads and highways in this province, but it's been more of a mess this year than before.

For seven years, they've said th ey would clean up Lake Winnipeg, but we have more algal blooms and more problems this year than ever. For seven years, they said they would create an environment to keep young people and attract young people, but when we look at the interprovincial statistics, a movement of young people, we see that the movement out of Manitoba to other provinces is as bad as ever. Mr. Conrad Santos, Deputy Speaker, in the Chair Let me begin by talking about health care. As I said, for seven years this NDP government has promised to fix health care but, indeed, has failed miserably.

The wait lists are far too long. The government has taken a policy of rationing care by having long wait lists. It is bad policy. It is costly because people have to have extra doctor visits, extra medications because of pain while they're waiting. We have extra dollars of cost and poor quality of life because of the policy of this government. We've seen the situation in emergency rooms over the summer with the shortage of emergency room physicians, a critical entry point for those who are particularly sick, and very poor management. We have recently two major specialists, Dr. Meir Kryger and Dr.

Maria Melanson, leaders of teams in sleep disorders and in looking after multiple sclerosis, leaving our province. What more can one say? We should have had a situation in the government which would nurture the building of teams but we've got a government which is chasing the leaders away. I talked, for example, to people in multiple sclerosis and in concern with patients with multiple sclerosis on a number of times, particularly recently. What's very clear is that Dr. Melanson had been asking for proper support many times over but never had been supported by this government.

Multiple sclerosis is a condition which has a much higher incidence in Manitoba than almost anywhere else in the world. We should be at our very best in looking after patients with multiple sclerosis in preventing this condition, in having the integrated approach to research, care and prevention that is so badly needed, but we have been very badly let down by this government. Quality controls are not good enough. There are still far too many medical errors occurring. Access to medical information is not quick enough. It should be very quick where a patient is in hospital.

This business of having to wait for 30 days is totally unacceptable. The government has shown a very poor ability to work with the federal government in dealing with First Nations' health care issues. Indeed, what I hear from people is that this is the worst government in all of Canada, the worst provincial government, in how it deals with the federal government relative to First Nations people. We've seen that in Cross Lake with the disaster that's occurred over the last few months there in the provision of health care.

We've seen it in the refusal of this government to even accept the principle of accountability in health care as was so firmly recommended by the Romanow Commission. Bad news; this government is for health care. We need to move on. We need a new government. As far as Lake Winnipeg, we've had a government which said they were going to clean

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 187 Lake Winnipeg up for seven years, but the algal blooms, as I've said, are worse than ever. After seven years, what we have is more consultations and the only positive step was the NDP's buffer strip policy. On the flat landscape of Manitoba, the water runs off a field down a little drainage channel into the ditch. It doesn't run off throu gh the buffer strips. If you want to catch the phosphorus, you don't build up the buffer strips; you do some other things to make sure that the phosphorus doesn't get into the water.

The fact of the matter is that there've been good studies by Jeff Long and Steve Sheppard of Pinawa, and what they've shown is that when you build up the buffer strips, at most, you get a 4 percent reduction in phosphorus. When you combine that with our understanding that the capacity to affect the agricultural phosphorus, it would only influence, at most, about 10 percent of the phosphorus going into Lake Winnipeg. The buffer-strip policy of the NDP government will reduce phosphorus expectedly by 0.4 percent, much less than banning phosphorus in dishwasher detergent.

It's a huge effort and a pain to a lot of people without getting practical results. There may be some more research that could be done to make it work better, but, certainly, the way they're proposing to do it is ineffective. It's poor management. It's poor policy. When it comes to the environment and climate change, we've had a government which has said for seven years that they're go ing to reduce greenhouse gases.

Well, guess what, greenhouse gases production by Manitoba are going up, in spite of the fact that at time and time I've risen in this Chamber to tell the government that they'd better be paying more attention. They haven't and the greenhouse gases under their watch are going up, and up, instead of down, and down. They are totally ineffective in managing the things which are critical to the people of this province. They've got lots of words and lots of rhetoric, but when it comes to real action they are among the worst, the worst government that this province has ever seen.

When it comes to roads–let me talk about roads. My goodness, what a year we've had with the roads and bridges that have had problems, Highway No. 1, the Trans-Canada Highway, the bridge at Portage la Prairie. I was out there with a fellow who's experienced in inspecting bridges, and we had a look at it. That bridge should have been identified months, and months before it was identified as a problem, and the process put in place to replace it without having to have this last minute catastrophe, as if it came out of nowhere, because they weren't paying attention.

Bridges in southeast Manitoba, Dominion City area, a major problem; Letellier Bridge, major problem that this government has not been on top of. You only have to go down Highway No. 2, there are huge signs; there are big craters in the road. There are huge signs to the minister of highways: Why don't you come and drive this road because it's a mess? Everybody call up the minister of highways because this road that he's responsible for has got more craters than the moon. It's a mess. He is unable, totally unable to get a grip on what needs to be done in this province when it comes to roads.

When it's in northern Manitoba, they're no better. I was on the road to Moose Lake, the road to Easterville and a lot of other roads which are in terrible shape. This government pays no better service to the people in the north than the people in the south. They just don't know how to look after roads properly. There are a lot of roads which are RTAC roads, or should be RTAC roads, which are not up to standard. It's forcing people to go miles, or kilometres and kilometres, huge distances out of their way, burn up lots of greenhouse gases just because this government is not looking after the roads properly.

They've done such a terrible job that just about everybody in rural Manitoba is upset with them, and I know that their vote in that part of Manitoba is going to go down because of their ineptness. Young people in Manitoba have been leaving. The only saving grace is some more immigration. But the fact, when you look at interprovincial migration, we have been losing young people. We have had too many of our young people who come up to me and say, look, I don't have any choice; I've got to leave because of this inept government which can't put a sensible policy together and can't implement.

They have no understanding of entre- preneurship and of how to support business in this province. * (15:00) Just look at what they have done to business after business after business in this province which has left, which is putting employees and workers elsewhere rather than putting them in Manitoba. No

188 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 wonder that young people have been leaving. They have done nothing with the payroll tax, to reduce the payroll tax, the tax on people which is driving businesses and people out. They have done nothing to build the careers and opportunities for young people, young people who want challenging jobs, who want jobs where they 're going to do well and have great opportunities. You know, this government just can't cut it. They haven't done it. They need to move on.

When it comes to democracy, it's interesting that, when it's a federal issue like the Canadian Wheat Board, they're front and centre cheering for a better democracy in a vote, but, when it comes down to a provincial issue, oh boy, they don't want anything to do with better democracy. They don't want a vote when it comes to cattle producers. They don't want a public inquiry when it comes to Crocus. They don't want to call the Public Accounts Committee when it should be called 20 times a year let alone six, and we've only had it twice so far. What a terrible record when it comes to democracy.

Why won't they call elections on a set date so that everybody knows what's coming up and be fair, instead of trying to rig the process as they've done time and time and time again in the past? It's time for this government to move on. When it comes to things like fetal alcohol spectrum disorders where you might have expected them to have some understanding, some ability to do something, they have been worse there than just about anywhere else.

We still don't know how many people there are in Manitoba with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders because they haven't even funded the registry; they haven't supported screening. There are still too many people with FASD who are not even being identified, even at a time and a place and a date when we know that, if you can identify somebody early on, you can give them much better opportunities, much better chances.

There are still too many people who are not being identified and not being supported who have FASD, who have ended up in the criminal justice system instead of being looked after properly and supported properly. Mr. Speaker in the Chair There isn't even screening of those who come in contact with our criminal justice system for FASD before they are sentenced, before we know what their medical problem is. This government doesn't know what it's doing. We see it day after day and time after time and day after day. It is deplorable what they are doing in this province.

They are, indeed, by their lack of attention to mental health problems, from FASD, to schizophrenia, to all sorts of other things, that we are resulting in more problems and more extra police work dealing with health problems. We are having more problems with people who are getting into trouble with the law because this government is not even looking after health care properly. Under this government, they are not supporting children properly. The result is that we've got far too many children coming into the Child and Family Services system. Far too many children are being put into hotels.

The answer to hotels is to provide better support to family. I have family after family coming to me, and they are saying that the only option we had because of a lack of support of this government is to have our children taken over by the Child and Family Services system. It's been estimated to me that you might be able to reduce the number of people in care by 30 percent or more if there was proper support for children in this province, but this government won't do it. This government doesn't know how to look after children. This government has got to go because it's not doing what Manitoba needs.

When it comes to the Child and Family Services system, what we saw in the last seven years of their tenure is 31 children murdered who were in care, and huge numbers more of children in the care of the Child and Family Services system. Let us face the facts. Let us face the facts. This government is not good at facing up to the facts. Far too many children in our Child and Family Services system have died. This government will not face up to the facts.

It will not face up to the responsibility that children who are in care should be looked after the best that they could possibly be looked after, instead of what has been happening recently. There are a lot of caring foster parents. There are a lot of parents who are doing and trying to help children in many wonderful ways, but they are certainly not being helped by this government. When it comes to agricultural policy, we saw the lack of democracy when it came to the approach to cattle producers.

When it comes to agricultural policy, this is a government which wants to put a hog plant in the middle of Winnipeg rather than in an agricultural industrial park outside. They are so worried about losing jobs that they want to put a hog plant in the middle of town.

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 189 Well, I've got to tell this government that we don't need a hog town. We want a high-tech modern future, a city that is going to be a leader on the globe rather than a city that is trying to move into the past. We want an agricultural industrial plant outside of Winnipeg, just like the hog plants currently are outside of Brandon and are outside of Neepawa. The present NDP policy toward the Capital Region has been grossly deficient.

There has been so little ability for the province under this government to show any leadership in bringing people together that the situation is as bad or worse than it's ever been, and certainly this government is not paying attention to how you bring people together. They are dividing people and that's obvious. That needs to change in our province. When it comes to the Métis people of Manitoba, this government is refusing to properly consult them about issues on which they should be consulted.

When it comes to the Métis people of Manitoba, this government has refused not only to consult but to work with the Métis to implement the harvester card system and a responsible co-management system for the resources in our province. This government, time and time again, has been irresponsible. They have not been able to work with people like the Métis community in Manitoba and they've shown it. It is sad that, in fact, that is what has happened. When it comes to tourism, the best this government could do was to offload it to a special operating agency. Well, the problem is, Mr.

Speaker, that there is totally inadequate attention being paid to tourism in this province, and we can see it in the statistics which have been going down and down under their watch. We can see that they don't know anything about tourism, that they've not been able to develop an adequate plan, that they're hopeless when it comes to attracting people to this province. There are issues and problems that this government doesn't seem to pay any attention to.

Even though they've got a number of MLAs from northern Manitoba, the last thing that they seem to be able to do is to pay any attention to a plan for tourism to bring people to northern Manitoba.

You know, it is sad, and we see it time and time and time again, the incredible opportunities that there are in this province for tourism, from the Morden museum which has got fossils, incredible numbers of fossils of marine reptiles, to the opportunities in northern Manitoba with lakes and fishing and wonderful opportunities, when you get to, for example, Lynn Lake, which calls itself the fishing capital of North America.

It is a wonderful place to fish, but the problem is that, when tourists and fishermen come there, the first thing they see is a disaster, the mine tailings which are spread all over the place, the problems that are up there. I was there to see exactly what this government was not doing, and this government was not looking after things properly. They were promising to clean up at Leaf Rapids and there was nothing going on this year. I was talking to the councillors in Leaf Rapids, and they were saying, we were told that there was going to be some action this year, but there was no action. There were more promises.

There was more throwing of money around but there was no action. This government certainly isn't able to do the job properly. That is for sure. They are still talking, seven years after they got into power, about the problems of Sherridon and the mine tailings, and although they finally, after I brought it up time and time and time again, went to Sherridon and made an announcement, we still aren't seeing any effective containment of the mine tailings there. What is still happening is the water is still running off the mine tailings. It's still going into Kississing Lake. There needs to be a lot of improvement.

There has been some sort of a commitment, but there has not been the action that is needed. There has not been the effective change. * (15:10) Seven years, seven years and this government knew all about the problems because the MLA for Flin Flon knew all about the problem before they even came into office–seven years. The MLA for Assiniboia had talked to people up in Sherridon, had visited people up in Sherridon. He even knew about the problems before he came into office in 1999, but for seven years, seven years, there was no action.

Finally, after I raised the issue time and time again, he went to Sherridon to make an announcement. Well, we're pleased that finally they're going to get a better water treatment system and be able to improve in that respect. We are apprised that, finally, the Minister of Industry was there to make an announcement, but an announcement is a long way from getting the job done, and this government has been very, very poor in getting the job done. We need to face up to what has happened and what has not happened. Certainly, th ere is a lot that should have happened that has not happened. I could go on

190 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 and on and on about what needs to be done. I could go on for a long, long time. What I am going to do, Mr. Speaker, is I am now going to move a subamendment. I move, seconded by the MLA for Inkster THAT the amendment be amended by deleting items (a), (b), (

o) and (

r) and by adding at the end of item (

v) the following words: (

w) the government's failure to provide meaningful tax changes such as elimination of the payroll tax that would make Manitoba more economically competitive; (

x) the government's fa ilure to resolve the underlying cause of the unprecedented number of children in care, housed in hotels, namely its failure to provide adequate resources and assistance to help keep struggling families together in the first place; (

y) the government's failure to provide a stable policy environment to promote growth in Manitoba's agricultural sector, one that involves genuine consultation with agricultural producers and representatives from rural municipalities; (

z) the government's failure to commit to the principle of accountability in the delivery of public health care services in Manitoba; (aa) the government's failure to legislate a legal right to timely access to quality health care and to provide the public police framework required to implement this right. (bb) the government's seven years of neglect of the importance of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in Manitoba, their connection to criminal activity and the desperate need to diagnose and treat this condition; (cc) the government's failure to properly address the issue of phosphorus loading into Lake Winnipeg, because of its preference for hollow policy announcements, such as buffer zones; (dd) the government's absurd decision to place a moratorium on all hog plant expansions after blatantly ignoring widespread opposition to locating the OlyWest pork processing plant inside the city limits of Winnipeg; (ee) the government's fa ilure to facilitate the creation of an agri-industrial park outside of the city of Winnipeg to support developments such as the OlyWest plant; (ff) the government's failure to respond to the health care state of emergency declare by Cross Lake as well as its failure to resolve the difficulties in the provision of basic health care services to other First Nations communities in Manitoba; (gg) the government's failure to work co- operatively with the Métis people of Manitoba; (hh) the government's failure to adequately promote and encourage the tourism across all of Manitoba; and (ii) the government's refusal to commit to a process leading to meaningful electoral reform and improved democracy in Manitoba.

Mr. Speaker: It has been moved by the honourable Member for River Heights (Mr. Gerrard), seconded by the honourable Memb er for Inkster (Mr. Lamoureux) THAT the amendment be amended– An Honourable Member: Dispense. Mr. Speaker: Dispense? [Agreed] The subamendment is in order. We will resume debate. Hon. Peter Bjornson (M inister of Education, Citizenship and Youth): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It's a pleasure to rise today to speak on the main motion on the Throne Speech today and our vision for the future of Manitoba.

I'd first of all like to welcome the pages and the table officers, and of course I would also like to acknowledge the new municipal officials and trustees in the fine constituency of Gimli who have now been elected to that position of trustee, councillor and reeve, as I have a tremendous amount of respect for anyone who is prepared to put their name on a ballot and provide public service. It is indeed a pleasure to serve the constituency of Gimli and the communities of Gimli, Winnipeg Beach, Dunnottar, St. Andrews and West St.

Paul, and I would also like to, at this time, acknowledge my family and the unconditional support that they have given me in this wonderful journey over the last three years: my wife, Joanne, my son Kieran, my son Dane, and my daughter Iris and the support that they have shown me in this journey.

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 191 It's a pleasure to rise after the former MP of Portage-Interlake, who was my representative. I hate to disappoint him: when he was my representative for the constituency of Po rtage-Interlake, I did not vote for him, but he did talk about what inspired him to get into politics. Mr.

Speaker, at the time that he was the member of Parliament representing my federal constituency, he was part of a government that was cutting funding to the provinces that was much needed in the health care system, and that's one of the things that inspired me to enter the political field. What I am going to do today in the context of the Throne Speech is tell a little story and put it in the context of my friends, Manny Toban and Winnie Peg.

Manny and Winnie met at university in September of 1999 and, unlike many Manitobans, they chose to stay in Manitoba in 1999 because it was September of 1999 when they enrolled in university and there was some hope on the horizon that there would be a change in government.

Like many Manitobans in 1999, they were thrilled that there was a change in government because, as they proceeded through their careers in university, one of the things that they saw happen very shortly after the election of the new NDP government in 1999 was the fact that tuition fees were rolled back 10 percent, that tuition fees were froze n for the duration of their time in the universities of Manitoba and Winnipeg when they attended those fi ne institutions.

As they proceeded through their university careers they saw a government that was steadily increasing the minimum wage which would cause other service sector areas and industries to increase their wages as well, making Manitoba more competitive with other jurisdictions and making it more attractive for young people. They also had bursaries introduced that had been cut by the previous government. So, for the time that they spent in university, they not only enjoyed the ability to earn more income, they also enjoyed the fact that their tuition fees were frozen.

They also enjoyed the fact that they were eligible for more bursaries. So, what happens to Manny and Winnie? Well, Manny goes on to be a nurse and he gets a job. Unlike the thousand nurses that had been cut in the 1990s, Manny goes on to find employment, and Manny finds himself working in a brand-new hospital under our ambitious capital plan. He is working with the equipment, working with the specialists. He can pick and choose where he would like to work in Manitoba because of the expansion of our health budget and the commitment to Manitobans to provide quality health care.

He chooses to settle in Winnipeg and work at the brand new Health Sciences Centre, an unprecedented capital project. But what about Winnie? Well, Winnie goes on to education with ambitions to become a principal, and she goes through the F aculty of Education.

She ends up graduating and finds herself a job in one of the schools here in Winnipeg, and she could have worked in one of the 10 new schools or one of the 13 replacement schools, but she is in a school that has seen the benefit of our capital plan where we have had over 600 renovations completed in our time in office in our real commitment to the capital program here in Manitoba. So Manny and Winnie are very thrilled with what's been going on the last seven years. * (15:20) Now we find ourselves in rather interesting times because, unlike many Manitobans, they have cousins throughout the province of Manitoba.

One of them happens to be a wheat farmer, and here we have an opposition government now that's advocating on behalf of the federal Agriculture Minister to disband the Wheat Board. So they're somewhat concerned about the future for their cousin, the wheat farmer, who lives in the Interlake area. They have a cousin who had some difficult choices to make in life and, when they made those choices, it had an impact on their education. As a result, they're in need of support for literacy programs. Well, unfortunately, we have a federal government that's cut adult literacy programs.

But there is hope for these cousins because we have a provincial government that's prepared to make a stand on behalf of Manitoba farmers and stand up for the Wheat Board, and there's a provincial government that's introducing legislation for a literacy act. So Manny and Winnie have enjoyed the last seven years.

Manny and Winnie have cousins who, like many other Manitobans, have some questions and some concerns about the next few years under the present direction under the federal government, but they also have some hope and some vision that they share with the government in Manitoba as we bring forward our proposals for the province of Manitoba as a growing province.

192 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 Manny and Winnie are going to enjoy travelling throughout Manitoba on a lot more new roads as a result of our infrastructure program, an unprece- dented $4-billion commitment over the course of 10 years. They're going to enjoy driving on those roads, and, by the way, Mr. Speaker, they 're going to be driving on those roads in cars that are among the cheapest to insure in the entire country. Oh, in fact, like many other Manitobans, they'll be getting a rebate cheque, and they'll see that their auto insurance rates are going to go down.

Where are they going to drive? Well, they might drive to St. Leon and see this incredible wind farm. They might be buying a hybrid to do that travelling as well because they would be eligible for a neat program that would support that initiative to purchase that hybrid. Mr. Speaker, then they'll soon have an oppor- tunity to drive up the east side and enjoy an area of Manitoba that's being designated as a world heritage site through UNESCO. So they've got incredible opportunities ahead of them.

They might have an opportunity to go to Churchill and see that beautiful $12-million addition and renovation to the town complex while they go and see the whales, or perhaps see the polar bears. The future looks very bright, indeed, for Manny and Winnie. An Honourable Member: Tell them to stop in Dauphin. Mr. Bjornson: Yes, indeed, they'll stop in Dauphin, and they'll see things are getting done for the Ranchers Choice program moving forward with the renovations, also to the wastewater treatment plant.

They might go spend some time in Gimli, as many Manitobans do, whether it's Gimli or Winnipeg Beach or any area along the south basin of Lake Winnipeg where they, like many other Manitobans, share a concern for the quality of water and for the current realities of our situation in Lake Winnipeg, Mr. Speaker. They know that there's a government that has introduced legislation to address 30 years of neglect with respect to that particular body of water, and they know that this government's on track to make it right.

It took 30 years to create the problem, and it'll take a commitment of government to fix that problem. They might walk down the dock in Gimli and see the Namao, the research vessel that we've been funding to provide us with the science that's necessary to understand the nature of the problems of Lake Winnipeg. They will certainly understand that this is a government that's committed to fixing the problems that this lake has encountered. So it's not about what we've done in the last seven years, Mr. Speaker.

It's about where we are going in the future, and this is, indeed, a Throne Speech that speaks to the future of this province and the vision of this government in making Manitoba a competitive place for young people, in making Manitoba a safe place, in making Manitoba an attractive place. Like many Manitobans, they subscribe to magazines. Perhaps they look at the BusinessWeek, which has talked about Manitoba being a leader as a regional government, the best regional government in the world with respect to clean energy and with respect to addressing issues of concern as raised by the Kyoto Accord.

They also have some concerns about the federal government now looking at clean air, and the fact that they're satisfied with a 50-year time frame within which to solve a problem. Well, it's a bit of hot air that's dusted off old legislation, and that's going to do nothing for the quality of air in this country. It's a commitment to clean energy. It's a commitment to the Kyoto Accord, and it's going to make this province and make this country a better place to live.

It's our commitment to the clean energy and our commitment to our environment, our commitment to our lake that Manitobans believe in and Manitobans see as the party of the future with respect to the environment. This has been a very interesting week. Rather interesting to see the members of the opposition and some of the things that they've been talking about, Mr. Speaker, and talking about accountability. The members of the opposition don't like to talk about the past, because, you know, as a history teacher, I know that it is the past that makes us accountable.

We're certainly accountable for th e last seven years, and we'll be accountable for the future of this province as Manitobans go to the polls, whenever that might be. I certainly look forward to the outcome of that election as we will see that Manitobans see this Throne Speech as a vision for the future of this province. When we look at our strategy around education, if I may talk about my portfolio briefly, Mr. Speaker, it was with interest that I read the

article that was referenced by my colleague the Minister of Health (Ms. Oswald) where the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. McFadyen) said that it was a calculated risk to look at education as a priority and other priorities in

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 193 government versus health care, that they're satisfied that enough money has been expended in health care and that we have to look at other priorities, in the words of the Opposition Leader. That's rather curious, given the fact that we, as an NDP government, have definitely made health care a priority and we have been recognized in The Globe and Mail for the work that we're doing, and we know that we have more work to do and we're committed to doing that.

Now, members opposite, if it's a calculated risk, I think the only calculated risk is for Manitobans who value education to support the members opposite in this next election. That is the calculated risk. It was the members opposite over 11 years who put a net investment, a net investment of $7 million into our education system. We've increased funding every year for seven years at the rate of economic growth. We've increased funding. The last announce- ment included $155 million more in the base compared to the previous administration.

Now I haven't got the final figure, but if we do a net increase in the education funding, I believe it will take us well over $650 million net. And what has that meant for Manitoba students, Mr. Speaker? Well, what that has meant for Manitoba students is a 10 percent increase in graduation rates. What that has meant for Manitoba students is they're going into a system where we've rewritten curricula that have been left on the shelves for over 20 years. One of those curricula is technical vocational curricula.

What that means for Manitoba students is the fact that we have been recognized internationally as leaders in education for sustainable development. What it means for Manitoba students is that we've been recogniz ed nationally, where our model for civics education through our citizenship agenda has been held up as a model for students across Canada. What it means for Manitoba students is that we have a world-best system that offers them as many opportunities to succeed as possible, and that includes valuing the arts, valuing physical activity, valuing music in our schools.

So the opportunities for students to succeed have been increasing with our commitment to our students, and our commitment is reflected in the way we choose to fund education as compared to the members opposite and their choices on how they chose to fund education. So, Mr. Speaker, indeed, the issue would be that a calculated risk, as mentio ned by the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. McFadyen), the calculated risk for Manitobans would be to believe that education would be a priority for members opposite because they did not show that over the course of 11 years in office.

Members might remember, at the rally on October 18 where the retired teachers said: We remember, we remember what you did to the education system in the 1990s; we remember and we will hold you accountable, when the members opposite were there masquerading as advocates for teachers. Halloween came early, Halloween came early because they were up there disguised as advocates for teachers, and as a form er teacher who was in the system while they were in office, they were truly my inspiration to get involved in politics.

They were truly my inspiration to stay in politics and be part of the NDP government and advocate for teachers and advocate for students and advocate for parents across this province. So I'm really thrilled to be on this side of the House, with a vision for the future of this province, which includes a strategy to keep youth in this province, which was something that was seriously lacking under the former government.

The fact that we're resourcing our school system, it says to our students we believe in you, we believe in the youth of our province when we're building new schools, when we're providing more opportunities for students to succeed. * (15:30) We are providing safer environments in which our students can learn. You know, I was a teacher saying to the provincial government of the time that we need your support in making our schools safer environments, and they did nothing. We as a government have shown leadership as a government not only through the work in my department, obviously, Mr.

Speaker, but through the Healthy Child Committee of Cabinet with all of the resources that we are putting in to making our schools and communities safer places to be. That includes supporting the RespectEd program through Red Cross; that includes the Triple P Positive Parenting initiative that we've introduced, that has statistically proven to address issues around conduct disorder. We've supported a number of other initiatives, Teen Touch and Teen Talk, that are making our community safer places for children. The Minister of Justice (Mr.

Chomiak) has spearheaded the program for Lighthouses so kids have safe opportunities for recreation, structured or unstructured, outside of

194 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 school time so it gets them off the streets and gives them opportunities. We are supporting community school initiatives to build capacity in our schools, where lower socio-economic classes, lower socio- economic status, I should say, Mr. Speaker, where barriers might exist are given more opportunities to be engaged in the school and to support their children, support student successes through learning.

We are supporting Aboriginal academic achievement outcomes, an area where one of the questions that I got about the budget a couple of years ago was why are you spending more money on Aboriginal education. That was one of the questions they asked. Well, hey. That reminds me that last year, Mr. Speaker, through the Estim ates process, not one single question, not one single question about the budget for the Education Department, the second largest expenditure. I say expenditure, but I always talk about education as being an investment. Not one single question about the budget for the Department of Education.

That is scandalous. That is scandalous, and they talk about education being a priority. I don't understand that. I don't understand how they could possibly say that education is a priority. Let's talk about renewal energy as well. We have a lot of renewable energy on this side of the House, Mr.

Speaker, and we're certainly looking forward to the future of this province and what that means for the province of Manitoba when we build, as Wuskwatim is under way, and as we announced that Conawapa will be built, and the fact that we're committed to more wind farms, the fact that we're committed to a variety of different renewable energy sources, the fact that we've got a memorandum of understanding with Iceland with respect to hydro-cell technology, the fact that we are looking at biofuels and the expansion of that particular industry.

These are all going to go a long way in making us truly a very competitive province. Speaking of competitive, our commitment is very clear with respect to innovation and competitiveness through the establishment of the new Department of Competitiveness, Training and Trade. What we've seen in terms of innovation and competitiveness, Mr. Speaker, is a provincial investment in bio-technology and research and development that has increased by 60 percent since 1999. An Honourable Member: The fastest growth. Mr. Bjornson: It is the fastest growth that we've ever experienced in this pr ovince.

Private investment and manufacturing increased by 1.7 billion dollars since 1999, a 14 percent increase. And, as I said, a new Department of Competitiveness, Training and Trade leading a campaign to reduce red tape into a focus on the creation of a single window for service with respect to government services for businesses that are available. Of course, people are seeing the good work that's been going on because we are the second youngest province in Manitoba, and the province is growing.

Now, I know the members get rather sensitive about comparing records, but the statistics are quite clear that there was a net loss of 9,763 people over the previous six years previous to the year 2000;

whereas, between 2000 and 2006, we recorded a net population gain with 6,683 more people coming to Manitoba than left. So I don't know how the members opposite can possibly say that we're losing population. The statistics are there. We are the second youngest province in the country. We have more people living here. So it's rather interesting that they would stand up and complain about this. Boy, am I glad that we're on this side of the House, because I remember the Member for Charleswood (Mrs. Driedger) standing up and saying: How can I get my own child to stay in the province of Manitoba?

She obviously doesn't have that faith in this province that we have as a government. As a member of the opposition to stand up and say that, I'm glad we're in government, because she obviously doesn't have faith in the ability of this province to move forward and become competitive. So for her to say that I found rather strange. We are working very hard to ensure the future of this province and attract more young people to the province of Manitoba. With our healthy families initiatives, Mr.

Speaker, introducing the legislation which will be introduced to enshrine our Healthy Child strategy, something that many provinces have taken note of and we've been recognized for, the Healthy Child Committee of Cabinet and for our Healthy Child strategy. As I mentioned already, The Adult Literacy Act, and the fact that we know that it is a barrier for many Manitobans who lack the reading skills. We know that that's an important part of who we are as a government, and who we are as a province to support that initiative.

November 22, 2006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 195 An additional $42 million to child protection services, Mr. Speaker. New initiatives to target community exercise options. Of course, we did have the Healthy Kids, Healthy Futures task force, which has meant that we're going to be exploring more ways to engage students in physical activities in our schools and physical activities in our community facilities. Health care. Again, it was really disconcerting, Mr. Speaker, that the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. McFadyen) would say that health care is no longer a priority.

Well, actually, we've seen that signal; we've seen that for 11 years when the Tories were in government. We've seen that when they produced their budget, their phantom budget, which paralleled our budgets during the election campaign when, I think, they talked about a 1 percent increase in health care expenditure. We know that we need to invest more in our health infrastructure and invest more in our health supports, and for them to say that enough is enough now is what they are saying with respect to how we've invested in health care. But that was the attitude that cost us 1,000 nurses in the 1990s.

That was the policy that had over 100 doctors leaving in the 1990s. That was the leadership, if you will, if I can use that term with respect to health care in the 1990s, which saw the creation of incredible wait times. But, as we talk about accountability, that FIPPA request the First Minister referenced earlier today, they didn't keep wait time lists. They didn't care. It wasn't an issue because th is is an opposition party that's advocating for pr ivate health care, Mr. Speaker, and that is not acceptable to Manitobans. We're going to continue to work to improve the public health care system.

So, if you look at the plan of this provincial government, that plan which includes putting more emergency services and more surgeries in rural Manitoba, you know the members opposite talk about being the champions of rural Manitoba, and they keep talking about our government and our record with respect to ru ral Manitoba. Well, I don't know if they notice, but Gimli is rural, Dauphin is rural, La Verendrye is rural. We do have rural representatives. In fact, I believe there are about nine rural representatives in our caucus, if I'm not mistaken, Mr. Speaker.

We do recognize the need to improve health care services in rural areas. That's why we're putting equipment in rural Manitoba; that's why we're putting more services in rural Manitoba. Better care sooner. That's what we're seeing happen with respect to emergency room and surgery provisions in rural Manitoba. So, if you look at what that has meant by virtue of expanding our health care services into rural areas of Manitoba, including CT scans and whatnot, the wait time for CT is 11 weeks, which used to be 14 weeks only 2 years ago, Mr. Speaker. MRIs is 8 weeks and that used to be 15 weeks only a year ago.

Bone density is three times lower than it was a year ago. These are all priorities that we have as a government to make care more accessible, better care sooner. We're seeing that with respect to our initiatives around rural health and providing better care throughout the province of Manitoba. * (15:40) Let's talk about safer communities as well. Manitoba has, as I mentioned, a Lighthouse program which offers opportunities for students after school, students who might be at risk.

Now they have an opportunity to go into an unstructured or a structured environment where they can participate in a number of different recreation options, as opposed to being on the streets and susceptible to behaviours that might find them on the wrong side of the law, Mr. Speaker. We continue to add resources to the police services in Manitoba.

We continue to provide programs such as Turnabout, a recognized program that is the only program of its kind to help address supports for children under the age of 12 and to identify consequences for children under the age of 12, and 90 percent of the youth sent by police to Turnabout have not re-offended. Recidivism is a huge issue in crime, Mr . Speaker. If you can get children to avoid re-offending, avoid being part of the system through recidivism, then you've done a tremendous investment at the front end of this support for young people, as opposed to dealing with them when they end up in the court system.

Now, Mr. Speaker, as someone from rural Manitoba, I am absolutely delighted with what we have been talking about with respect to growing rural Manitoba, and as I said, we are not going to accept the elimination of the Wheat Board for solely ideological reasons. We have been supporting Manitoba farmers through crop insurance supports and significant contributions to the Canada Agriculture Income Support system. We're looking at improved drainage. I mean, in my constituency, my area of the Interlake had been largely ignored by the

196 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA November 22, 2006 previous administration. We've tripled the money for drainage projects to help our farmers in the Interlake area, tripling it from $600,000 a year to $1.8 million a year. Of course, taxes: We've made significant inroads in taxes, Mr. Speaker, with respect to the 60 percent farmland property tax rebates, and we've also kept taxes flat, as the members opposite have difficulty recognizing that we've kept property taxes flat versus the time when they were in office when they went up by 68 percent across the board.

But our vision is not just for rural Manitoba and not just for the youth of our communities, but also for revitalizing the cities here in Manitoba. We continue to do that through the incredible support for community initiatives in Winnipeg and in Brandon, and, of course, the provincial-municipal tax-share agreement that was first introduced by Premier Edward Schreyer is the richest model for tax-sharing agreements between the provinces and municipalities of any jurisdiction in Canada. Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to stand on this side of the House as a representative for the Constituency of Gimli.

I am very proud to be part of the New

Document details

Collection	Manitoba — Debates (Hansard)
Citation	38-5-6
Type	hansard
Volume / chapter	38th 5th hansardpdf 6.pdf
Language	en
Format	pdf
Source	PROVINCIAL
Identifier	2f218099377246dda85954da590707b846cf2a07

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