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April 17,

2013 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS Vol.

XLVII No. 6

The House met at 2:00 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Wiseman): Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Statements by Members

MR. SPEAKER: Today we have members' statements from the Member for the

District of Bonavista North, the Member for the District of St. John's West, the

Member for the District of Grand Falls-Windsor Green Bay South, the Member for

the District of Torngat Mountains, the Member for the District of Exploits, and

the Member for the District of Humber West.

The hon. the Member for the District of Bonavista North.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. CROSS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It gives me great pleasure to stand here today to speak about a native son of

Bonavista North a young man who has a very bright future ahead of him and has

many achievements under his belt already.

Alexander James Maxwell Howse, son of Joan Barbour Howse and the late Maxwell

Howse of Wesleyville, was recognized to have a natural proclivity for

mathematics when he was recognized for obtaining the highest score in all of

Newfoundland and Labrador on the Pythagoras math competition as a fifth grade

student.

When he graduated high school, he was awarded the Governor General's medal

for highest academic standing in his school, and he spoke with great clarity as

his class's valedictorian.

Alex is currently completing his master's degree at Memorial University and

has received the Governor General's silver academic award for obtaining the

highest academic standing 2011 when he was conferred his baccalaureate degree in

science with honours.

Alex is not finished yet. He is planning a doctorate-level program of studies

at Waterloo, Ontario.

Please join me in wishing Alex every possible wish for good fortune as he

continues his education. Our hope would be that he returns to share his talents

with others in our Province. Wesleyville's son Newfoundland and Labrador's

pride.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John's West.

MR. CRUMMELL: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate St. Matthew's

Elementary School for a fantastic effort on its African Well Project.

Mr. Speaker, St. Matthew's began raising money two years ago to build a well

and sanitation system in Africa so that other children could have clean drinking

water. The school later formalized a partnership whereby Rotary St. John's would

match the funds raised and National Rotary committed to double that amount.

St. Matthew's was paired with Chisamba Junior Primary School in Malawi and,

Mr. Speaker, this project not only raised money for a very worthy cause, it also

raised awareness among the children of the importance of clean drinking water.

Last month I had the pleasure of attending an assembly at St. Matthew's where

they officially presented their contribution of $5,300 to Rotary. It was an

exciting event with students and staff wearing blue to show their commitment to

clean water for all.

Mr. Speaker, St. Matthew's efforts, when matched by the local and National

Rotary Clubs, resulted in over $20,000 being donated for their African Well

Project. I ask all members to join me in congratulating St. Matthew's Elementary

and Rotary on a job well done.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Grand Falls-Windsor Green Bay South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HUNTER: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, hon. colleagues, I rise before this House today to congratulate

the Exploits Cataracts Peewee A and Bantam A teams for bringing home the gold

medals from the Robert French Invitational Tournament in Kelligrews in March.

It is always great to congratulate the youth of the district when they work

and play hard and take such pride in all that they do. There is no doubt,

volunteering plays a large

part in keeping the excitement in the recreational

sports experience. Parents and coaches, job well done!

Mr. Speaker, the team and supporters will get together today at Joe Byrne

Stadium in Grand Falls- Windsor and they will be hosting a special hockey game

to raise money for Luke Fifield, one of their players, who became sick while

playing in this tournament.

Luke is still at the Janeway receiving treatment for his illness. I have the

privilege of being a buddy and a next-door neighbour to twelve-year-old Luke.

Honourable members, please join with me to congratulate the Exploits

Cataracts Bantam A and Peewee A teams for bringing home the gold and keeping

Luke in our thoughts and prayers.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Torngat Mountains.

MR. EDMUNDS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this hon. House today to congratulate Mr. Richard Rich, a

Councillor in the Inuit community of Rigolet, on winning the Wayne Earle

Community Service Award at the Combined Councils of Labrador Annual General

Meeting.

The Wayne Earle Award is given annually to mayor and councillors, past or

present, who have demonstrated a long-term commitment to municipal council and

to their community.

Richard Rich joined the Rigolet Council in 1973 and has dedicated forty years

to his community as Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Councillor, as well as serving on

many organizations and boards in Labrador. He was also very active as a member

of the Labrador Inuit Association while achieving their Land Claims Agreement.

Mr. Rich's keen interest in the fishery led to involvement in the Torngat

Fisheries Co-operative, serving as their President for several terms. He has

also served on the Labrador School Board, the OKalaKatiget Society, and the

Heritage Foundation.

Mr. Speaker, Richard has represented his community and region with

determination, devotion and conviction, and is most deserving of this

prestigious award.

I ask all hon. members to join me in congratulating Richard Rich of Rigolet

on receiving the Wayne Earle Community Service Award.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Exploits.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FORSEY: Mr. Speaker, January 18, the community of Bishop's Falls, our

Province, and country lost a community leader, devote family man, and war hero.

Frank "Jiggs" Borland was born in Pennsylvania in 1925, moved early to

Toronto, he lied about his age to join the Canadian Army, and at age sixteen

went overseas to fight in the war where he served as a main gunner, radio

operator, and secondary driver. Jiggs was involved in the liberation of many

concentration camps as well as the Liberation of Dieppe.

Mr. Speaker, in the early 1950s Jiggs moved to Bishop's Falls where he

settled down and operated a farm just outside the town. He was a member of the

Rural Development Association, the Agriculture Board, a long-time Lions member

and Deputy Governor, and was instrumental in the construction of the Lion Max

Simms Memorial Camp.

In 2005, Jiggs received a letter from French President Jacques Chirac stating

that he had been chosen to receive France's highest medal, the Legion of Honor.

Mr. Speaker, I know that Jiggs would not mind the members of this House

applauding his accomplishments and his life. Remember, if you love your freedom,

thank a veteran.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Humber West.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. GRANTER: Mr. Speaker, I stand in this hon. House to congratulate yet

again a wonderful celebration of winter life in Corner Brook.

The event I speak of is the Corner Brook Winter Carnival which, for ten days

this past February, celebrated its forty-second anniversary with over 100

individual, group and community events and is the largest carnival east of

Montreal.

I extend congratulations to Ms Dawn King, this year's Chairperson, and her

committees for the hard work and dedication in making this year's carnival a

success. Winter Carnival has been and continues to be a time for families and

friends to get out and share in the carnival and community spirit.

This fun filled community event brought people of all ages and walks of life

together to celebrate winter fellowship with one another in our community. For

many years, the people of Corner Brook and surrounding areas have been donning

their warmest winter gear and coming out to enjoy the many fun filled events and

food tasting activities.

I would ask all hon. members of this House to congratulate the Corner Brook

Winter Carnival Committee and wish the Corner Brook Winter Carnival organizers

many, many more years of success.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Ministerial Statements.

Statements by Ministers

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MARSHALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am very pleased to be able to stand and inform this hon. House that the

provincial government plans to assist Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Limited with a

$90 million loan this year.

Corner Brook Pulp and Paper is a key employer and a strong contributor to the

economy of this Province. The mill is important not only to the West Coast of

Newfoundland and Labrador, but the entire Province. Government has clearly

stated that we will provide support to this company when negotiations for a new

contract are concluded for all eight unions at the mill.

Budget 2013 sets aside $90 million in the form of a loan to provide support

to Corner Brook Pulp and Paper to help the company address challenges that are

facing the industry.

Mr. Speaker, this financial assistance to the paper mill in Corner Brook, a

major employer in the region, is in the best interests of the people of Corner

Brook, and indeed, the entire area. The loan will enable the company to become a

low-cost producer. Our investment will strengthen the company, which has been a

long-standing, good corporate citizen in Newfoundland and Labrador. It will also

help ensure the long-term security of our integrated sawmill operations which

are the backbone of the sawmilling sector.

The provincial government, Mr. Speaker, has invested $58 million in Corner

Brook Pulp and Paper from 2004 to 2012 in various projects. This amount does not

include the Power Purchase Agreement sales of $65 million which provides a

source of revenue for the paper mill.

Mr. Speaker, Corner Brook Pulp and Paper employs an estimated 610 full-time

and casual workers in the mill, forestry operations, and at the power plant in

Deer Lake. It is the only paper producer in Newfoundland and Labrador, and one

of the largest private employers in Western Newfoundland.

Mr. Speaker, this is a responsible decision for continuing to build a vibrant

economy in Newfoundland and Labrador. This is in the best interest of the people

of this Province, and the Province itself.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I want to thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement.

We are pleased today to find out the announcement for the $90 million, and it

is indeed going to, or will be part of a program for Corner Brook Pulp and

Paper. We are encouraged, as I said, that this is going to support a struggling

forestry industry across the Province. As we know, Corner Brook Pulp and Paper

is the anchor of that forestry industry. As the minister said, 610 direct jobs,

part-time and temporary, but there are many more jobs and many other economic

benefits that come from a viable pulp and paper mill in Corner Brook.

We will have some questions and cautions about how the loan will be designed,

in terms of security and the remedy about repayments and those options. We

already know that employees and retirees have made significant concessions over

the last year. We certainly hope, like all members of this House, I believe,

that this will lead to a long-term viable, sustainable forestry industry for all

people in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for well, it was last minute, but we did get the

announcement ahead of time, so I thank him for that.

Obviously, this is news, important news for the Province. I was very glad

this morning when we did get the answer finally to what the $90 million was for,

but I really wonder why we had to go through this arduous, secretive process.

Why did we have to go through Estimates this morning? When this was so

important, why did government build up the wall of secrecy that had everybody

going around questioning?

They have done it today, and it is good that we finally have the information,

but why did they not do it right up front in the beginning so that we would not

have had all the questions we had and everybody wondering? I am glad with this

information. We obviously will have questions as it moves forward and we

obviously want our pulp and paper industry to stay alive in this Province.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Does the hon. the Member for St. John's South have leave?

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in this hon. House to recognize April 20 to April

27 as National Immunization Awareness Week in Newfoundland and Labrador.

National Immunization Awareness Week is an initiative of Immunize Canada.

This organization works to control and eradicate vaccine-preventable diseases by

increasing awareness of the benefits and risks of immunization for all ages. One

hundred years ago, infectious diseases were the leading cause of death

worldwide. In Canada, they now cause less than 5 per cent of all deaths thanks

to successful immunization programs across the country.

Mr. Speaker, immunization has long been recognized as the most cost-effective

public health measure that has saved lives. Many diseases are safely and

effectively controlled by immunization, thereby reducing the burden of illness

in our communities. Immunization is an important public health measure for all

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. In this Province, the majority of

immunizations are provided through the public health clinics by our dedicated

public health nurses and on behalf of the provincial government, I commend them

for their efforts.

The first smallpox vaccine in North America was administered in Trinity in

the 1700s. Immunization has been part of the public health programs in

Newfoundland and Labrador since the early 1900s. In 2009, our Province reported

the highest uptake in Canada for the pandemic influenza vaccine, and the numbers

of reported cases were significantly reduced within weeks of the vaccine being

introduced.

Mr. Speaker, Newfoundland and Labrador now boasts immunization coverage rates

that are meeting or greater than the national targets of over 90 per cent for

all childhood and school-based programs. I am also pleased to note that 90 per

cent of our Grade 6 girls in the Province have received the HPV vaccine to

prevent cervical cancer. This is the highest immunization coverage rate for this

vaccine in Canada.

Parents, health care professionals, and anyone at increased risk are

encouraged to contact their local public health office or their health provider

to ensure they have received all the vaccines for which they are eligible. There

are many myths related to vaccines, for accurate information the public are

encouraged to seek information on the Department of Health and Community

Services' Web site.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for an advance copy of her statement.

It is a tremendous feat of science, that vaccinations have helped eradicate

what were once deadly epidemics like smallpox. While epidemics like smallpox

have been eradicated, we have seen modern ones like H1N1, SARS and the bird flu

devastate populations. Indeed, today we have China battling a new strain of bird

flu. Scientists are continuously going to be challenged by new and mutated

epidemics.

It is important that we educate and advocate the use of vaccines, though

there are philosophical questions around mandating use. We saw Central Health

last year attempt to mandate the flu shot amongst staff. Of course they withdrew

the policy and rightly so, as mandating vaccines raise questions around free

will.

Education and advocacy is the key. With National Immunization Awareness Week

next week, it is an important opportunity to learn more about the benefits and

risks of immunization.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John's Centre.

MS ROGERS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I, too, thank the minister for an advance copy of her statement.

I am happy to acknowledge this week commemorating agencies and groups to

control and eradicate vaccine preventable disease. I applaud all those who are

involved in these programs across the country for their hard work. We know how

important it is to have these immunization programs available to people.

As we anticipate the further reduction in cases of HPV, because of the

vaccine, we must not forget the sexually transmitted diseases that cannot be

prevented by a vaccine, at least not yet. For these diseases, Planned Parenthood

plays an important role in prevention, particularly in the case of chlamydia.

Planned Parenthood Newfoundland and Labrador treats over 50 per cent of the

chlamydia cases in our Province and the disease is a growing problem; yet, this

government would not even help them provide condoms, which is an effective way

of preventing STDs.

I applaud the staff, the dedicated public health nurses and the staff of the

public health nurses. I also applaud the work of Costa Kasimos and his fantastic

team at Planned Parenthood who work so hard to provide these vital services to

the people of Newfoundland and Labrador with little or next to no support from

this government. Bravo to them for their important work.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Government has seriously cut public education in this recent Budget. While

government denies front line services to students will be impacted, a leaked

memo from the school board administrators warns students will receive serious

substandard services come September because of 160 fewer teachers.

I ask the Premier: How can you justify saving money by compromising the

education of our children?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, I can assure the member opposite and the people

of this Province, we have not compromised. We have invested, Mr. Speaker, in

education in this Province like no other government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, I have not read the letter, but I have to tell

you, I was really bothered by the memo that came out this morning.

We have administrators in all of our schools, and when we get a statement

saying they have also warned that school security is at risk. Mr. Speaker, if we

have an administrator in our school, with the allocations that we have provided,

there is no principal, no school with less than we have two-and-a-half units

in particular schools, and two admin units, Mr. Speaker. If they cannot provide

security for their children, I suggest they (inaudible).

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I say to the minister, he should not have had to read about that in a memo or

a leaked document. What should have happened is before this Budget ever was

released there should have been consultations. It did not happen. I believe the

minister knows that.

Mr. Speaker, it is clear that the plan to amalgamate the school boards was

not well conceived. There are many who have been strongly opposed, especially

since there have been no consultations. As a matter of fact, seven out of nine

MHAs who have been contacted by members of this group did not even know that

these school board amalgamations were coming. Trustees from Nova Central School

are now adding their names to the list expressing serious concerns about this

rash decision.

I ask the Premier: Will you just end this madness, end this story, and

in the best interest of students extend the term of the current school boards

until we can get a solution and a plan to move forward?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, in terms of the allocations, before we released

the Budget I met with Ms Cole and I asked her: If we were going to find our

savings, where did she expect that we would find them? She said that she thought

we were going to cut classroom sizes, Mr. Speaker. She thought we were going to

attack the cap. We have keep caps in place, the best student-teacher ratio in

this country, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: To the second question, I would ask the member, with a 17

per cent reduction in students, with a 12 per cent reduction in the number of

schools, with a 33 per cent increase in cost and expenditures to the school

board, would he suggest that we invest in that again and we cut class caps? Is

that what he is suggesting? Have him stand up and say it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, what I would suggest the minister do is speak to the people who are in

the system and speak to the people who would have solutions to the various

challenges you just addressed, Mr. Speaker.

I would ask you: Seven out of the nine MHAs with this government did not know

this was happening, Mr. Speaker; will the Premier do the hon. thing, I say, and

direct the Education Minister to set up a committee similar to the justice

review committee and revisit this misguided Budget cut and lessen the negative

impact on our children and this education system?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, within the next day or two we are going to

announce a transition team. He referenced a letter from Central Nova. We are so

pleased to have Central Nova and the rest of the school districts represented to

serve on that transition team. We look forward to the boards that remain in

place until we transition onto the new one that we receive their input. Our

dedication is to the students of this Province, has been, and will always remain

so.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, I think the school board is actually Nova Central in this particular

case, but what they were looking for was input into this, I say, Mr. Speaker.

According to the Schools Act, this government can abolish school districts

through either legislative changes or an Order-in-Council. Now, our suggestion

is to set up a review committee so we can actually put a legitimate plan in

place.

I ask the Premier: If these boards are indeed going to be abolished, will she

commit at least to bring this to the Legislature so people can have input into

the changes you are bringing forward?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, again I go back to the statistics: 17 per cent

reduction in students, 12 per cent reduction in schools, and 33 per cent

increase in budgets as required by the school boards. We are going to put in

place a transition team that will be made up of representatives from the

existing school boards. That is how I would suggest all trustees provide their

input to the transition team so that we end up with a quality education system

that we have and we will continue.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, I ask the Premier: This is a very serious problem facing students and

families in Newfoundland and Labrador; can we not at least have a full debate in

this Legislature on the changes coming to the school boards?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, if there is something we have valued over the

years it is the input from the trustees. Many of them serve for one sole

purpose: the improvement and the betterment of the students in our Province.

I do not want to repeat the numbers again, but our investment has been in the

front-line services to teachers and students, Mr. Speaker. When we transition to

this new board, with the input from those trustees that will make up this

transition team, our education system will remain quality in this Province, Mr.

Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Justice.

Yesterday the minister rose to condemn a member of this House for being added to

a Facebook site. While no one in this House agrees with the disgusting comments

against the Premier that appeared on the site, it is shocking that the minister

made a claim of guilt by association.

I ask the minister: As our Justice Minister, how can you advocate for a

policy of guilt by association which is fundamentally against the principles of

natural law and justice?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Thank you, Mr. Speaker

The member opposite would be well aware, I assume by now, as the Opposition

House Leader, that the rules of the House are dictated from the federal

government parliamentary procedure manual and our own manuals. My role, as the

House Leader, is to represent government in this House. If I feel, on behalf of

government, that there is a break in the rules or someone not following the

rules or a question of privilege, I make the case in this House, Mr. Speaker,

and the case is made to you and you have the ultimate decision as to whether the

case was made effectively or if, in fact, it was not a case of privilege, as the

case was made yesterday.

Members opposite all have an opportunity to have input in that. Members

opposite have an opportunity to raise the same kinds of issues, as they have

done many times in the past. It is part of parliamentary procedure, Mr. Speaker.

I did not in any way step outside of the natural rule of law. I followed the

rule

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, during his speech in the House yesterday,

the Minister of Justice referred to his role as the head of the Justice

department on two occasions. It is appalling that the minister would portray a

policy of guilt by association and call for punishment of anybody without

evidence of wrongdoing.

I ask the minister: As the head of our justice system, how could you use such

poor judgement and condemn anyone without evidence of wrongdoing?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is very unfortunate that the member has chosen this kind of attack on

Parliament here to try to suggest that the rules of Parliament ought not to be

followed. I will say very clearly for this House that if I misrepresented myself

in my capacity as Government House Leader yesterday and if Hansard shows that I

indicated here that I was acting as the Minister of Justice, I will gladly

withdraw those remarks and apologize because I in no way intended to suggest to

this House that I was speaking as the Minister of Justice. I was speaking in my

capacity as a leader of the government in this House.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, yesterday there was yet another delay in

court proceedings; that is two days in a row. Although the minister shirked his

responsibilities on Monday by suggesting he did not

schedule sheriff's officers,

it is obvious that this is a continuing issue. When these operational issues

affect the administration of justice, the minister is responsible.

So I ask the minister: Will you please stand in your place and address this

problem, instead of blaming the High Sheriff?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would be pleased to stand in my place, as I am every day when I am asked a

question and respond to what is put forth.

I did respond several days ago to indicate that it is the High Sheriff who is

responsible for the scheduling, and I stand by that remark. I will say, however,

to the member, I appreciate his concern and we have had officials from my

department engaged with the Office of the High Sheriff to look at the

scheduling. Unfortunately, there were a couple of scheduling glitches, and the

resources that we committed back into the system, including the on-call list and

the filling of five vacant positions, had not transpired before those delays in

the court process had occurred.

I can say to the member that the green light has been given and those actions

have been taken care of. I am advised today that everything is on schedule, and

I am advised by the High Sheriff that he does not anticipate any further

problems.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, in 2008 this government's Minister of

Justice said: Delayed court proceedings lead to stress upon the victims of crime

in the justice system. In the same release, the minister stated: Justice delayed

is justice denied is that government's words.

So I ask the minister: When is that government going to stop adding stress

and denying justice to the victims of crime?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Mr. Speaker, it is through the leadership of this Premier and

this government that we have added millions, and millions, and millions of

dollars to the justice system in Newfoundland and Labrador, because we recognize

some of the challenges with the system when this government took office in 2003,

and in subsequent years up to present day.

We recognized the challenges that existed. We have invested in more than 145

front-line police officer positions in the last provincial Budget and a million

dollars to focus on a high provincial priority, which is organized crime, and

youth in the Province, Mr. Speaker organized crime in small communities

throughout the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

We have invested in the sheriff's office, we have invested in Legal Aid, we

have invested in all aspects of the justice system, Mr. Speaker, and I have

every confidence that those who are working within the system both appreciate

the investments we have made and are doing a fine job on behalf of the people of

the Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT: Mr. Speaker, this year's crab fishery is at a standstill

because of another dispute over price. Earlier this week it was reported that

protestors destroyed 30,000 pounds of crab.

I ask the Minister of Fisheries: What is his position on this dispute?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY: Mr. Speaker, there is a formal panel in place to address

collective bargaining issues associated with setting prices for crab and other

species in this Province. The panel has met. The price has been delivered.

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, at this point, the union and their leadership are

not satisfied with the price. As a result of that, a process continues to try to

find a resolution.

I will say, Mr. Speaker, on behalf of our government, we certainly do not

condone it. As minister, I would encourage the leadership of the FFAW that

telling lies on TV, or issues such as flip-flopping on important issues in the

fishery midstream here, Mr. Speaker, without providing some details and

condoning acts of throwing away crab, these are not the routes to find a

resolution. I certainly encourage them (inaudible)

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT: Mr. Speaker, each year the fishing industry faces some sort

of a dispute despite both parties going through the price-fixing process.

Since this current mechanism clearly is not working, will the minister commit

to find a workable solution so we do not have to face these disputes every year?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY: Mr. Speaker, the price-setting panel, not the price fixing.

The price-setting panel is agreed to by both parties. The FFAW, on behalf of its

members, engage in a collective bargaining act to find a price. I am not sure if

the member is suggesting that we do away with collective bargaining.

I will concur with the member that there is a high amount of frustration. A

lot of fishermen, their pots are on their boats, Mr. Speaker, they are ready to

go to work and they are eager to get out there. I can only encourage them to

find a resolution to this impasse.

The last eight or ten years, it has become an annual norm in the fishery. I

am sure the public and I am quite sure the stakeholders in the fishery, Mr.

Speaker, are tired of it. If we can find a better solution, I am willing to

support it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT: Mr. Speaker, the minister says he does not condone these

actions of taking and destroying 30,000 pounds of crab, yet I have been advised

that the minister met with these protesters just the very next day and agreed to

their demands.

I ask the minister: Is it true that he caved in to these protesters and

rewarded their unlawful actions?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY: Mr. Speaker, I would have to say, I do not know where the

member got his information. I do not recall meeting with any protesters.

The only two meetings I have had, Mr. Speaker, as the minister responsible

for fisheries in the Province, I have met with the leadership of the FFAW and I

have met with the representative from the ASP. We discussed, Mr. Speaker, how we

can find a resolution to this so I could hear both sides and hear what is

happening.

I can assure the member opposite I fully spoke to the leader of the FFAW and

indicated that the action down in Hickman's Harbour was just not acceptable. It

is not good for the industry and it certainly does not send a good message

anywhere in this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Torngat Mountains.

MR. EDMUNDS: Mr. Speaker, once again gas sniffing in Natuashish has made

headlines. This is an ongoing problem that this government has failed to

address. Resource people are overwhelmed and overworked. They do not have

adequate resources to help solve the problem. Government recently signed MOUs on

child care with the Innu Nation, but it is evident this is not good enough.

I ask the Premier: What actions are you taking to stop gas sniffing in

Natuashish, and have budget cuts impacted these resources available to social

workers?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SHEA: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, this is an issue as the minister you would like to stand up and

be able to outline a solution that we know will work, but this is a very

complicated issue that has been ongoing in Natuashish. The Department of Child,

Youth and Family Services is more than willing and has been working with the

Department of Health and Community Services, with the regional health authority,

with Health Canada, and with the local band.

We have had additional resources in the area, including a zone manager, a

member of our executive of the department meeting with the band council. We have

actively recruited a new social worker for the area, and we have other social

workers assigned to the area until the new worker gets there. Mr. Speaker, the

hiring freeze implemented by government does not apply to the positions we are

actively recruiting for Natuashish.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Torngat Mountains for a quick

question, please.

MR. EDMUNDS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, this gas sniffing is now affecting five and six-year-olds.

I ask the Premier: Are you now prepared to tackle this issue head on and

provide the necessary resources, whatever is needed, to help end gas sniffing in

Natuashish?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills, for

a quick answer, please.

MS SHEA: Mr. Speaker, the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services

takes every referral of potential child abuse or children in need of protection

very seriously. Mr. Speaker, we have the resources on the ground. We are either

working with the families to help support them keep their children safe, or in

circumstances where the children cannot be kept safe by the parents, we are in a

position to remove the children.

Mr. Speaker, it is our priority to ensure the safety of these children and to

work with the families that are experiencing these difficulties.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

After weeks of secrecy, we discovered in Estimates this morning that the

secret $90 million was actually allocated for a loan to the Kruger pulp and

paper mill in Corner Brook, which has of course been confirmed by the Minister

of Natural Resources in his statement today.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the Premier: What are the terms of this loan?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER DUNDERDALE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I am certainly happy to receive this question from the Leader of

the NDP.

We have been involved in trying to shore up the forestry industry in this

Province, and particularly the pulp and paper industry, since we came to

government in 2003, in spite of a worldwide crisis, Mr. Speaker. Corner Pulp and

Paper is currently engaged in negotiations with two of its unions before it can

move on with a go-forward plan, a sustainability plan, Mr. Speaker.

If I were to come out today with the full detail of what we have been able to

negotiate with Corner Brook Pulp and Paper, I suspect the Leader of the NDP will

be stood in her place accusing me of putting undue pressure on unions to

conform. The company needs to conclude its work. When it does, we will make

available to the public the details of these arrangements.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I will be looking forward to learning what type of loan is going to be

offered and what the details of the type of loan it is that they will be

offering, Mr. Speaker.

The provincial government has invested, since 2004

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS MICHAEL: - $123 million in Corner Brook Pulp and Paper and they are

now committing to a $90 million loan. I am not objecting to that, Mr. Speaker.

What I would like to know from the Premier is: What is the collateral that

Corner Brook Pulp and Paper is offering for that financial support?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER DUNDERDALE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, she says she is committed. The Leader of the NDP says she is

committed to Corner Brook. She says she is committed to Corner Brook Pulp and

Paper. She says she is committed to the forestry industry in Newfoundland and

Labrador, of which Corner Brook Pulp and Paper, by the way, is a critical piece.

The integrated sawmilling industry will collapse. For all intents and purposes,

what is left of the forestry industry in Newfoundland and Labrador will collapse

without the presence of Corner Brook Pulp and Paper.

Mr. Speaker, at the same time the unions and the company have a right to come

to a negotiated agreement, what the terms of their engagement is going to be and

what price labour is going to be provided to the government. We cannot put undue

pressure on either party, nor will we, Mr. Speaker, until the details that need

to be released (inaudible).

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I guess we will have to keep digging on that one too, to find out what the

collateral is that they will be offering.

Mr. Speaker, I have seen an internal memo from Corner Brook Pulp and Paper

congratulating staff for beating their previous production record in March of

this year by 18.5 tons a day, reaching a brand new record of 459.5 tons in one

day. The company's general manager called it a great achievement, and I agree;

we have the best workers in the world here in this Province.

So I ask the Premier: With this excellent workforce achieving these results,

will she explain what exactly the $90 million is being offered to Kruger for?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER DUNDERDALE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the NDP was offered a caution this morning in

agreement.

One of the critical pieces that we have talked about, publicly, in this House

and elsewhere, is that Corner Brook Pulp and Paper and their unions need to

successfully conclude their arrangements before government will reveal the terms

that we have offered to Corner Brook Pulp and Paper. We do that not to put

unfair pressure on either party, Mr. Speaker.

When those arrangements are concluded, we will have a news conference, we

will have briefings for the Opposition parties, Mr. Speaker, and we will

celebrate the terms of this agreement, if successful, that will sustain the

forestry (inaudible).

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

We are told that ABE is so expensive it has to be privatized. In 2006 the

current Minister of Advanced Skills and Education announced the expansion of ABE

at College of the North Atlantic sites saying that the move was a significant

contribution and reflects government's commitment to adult education. She also

said that the programs were absolutely essential to ensure all communities are

vibrant and productive and an important part of our social and economic agenda.

I ask the Minister of Advanced Skills and Education: Why has she suddenly put

a price tag on lifting people out of poverty in this Province?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SHEA: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

First of all, I would like to let the Leader of the Third Party know that the

department is called Advanced Education and Skills. She said is wrong a few

times; I think she should call it by the appropriate name.

Mr. Speaker, Adult Basic Education is an important program in this Province

and will continue to be an important program. There are approximately 2,000

people in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador who are doing Adult Basic

Education; 1,200 happen to be doing it outside the College of the North

Atlantic. It is also important to note, Mr. Speaker, that it is offered in

communities other than communities that have College of the North Atlantic

campus.

We will continue this program into the future, Mr. Speaker. The students and

the adult learners of this Province who need access to Adult Basic Education

will absolutely have access to that program.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for St. John's Centre.

MS ROGERS: Mr. Speaker, the Family Violence Intervention Court was a

vital program supported by judges, prosecutors, defence attorneys, social

workers, Child, Youth and Family Services, victims and offenders. It was

fulfilling its core mandate, yet government shut it down without warning,

leaving families vulnerable and panicked about what to do next.

This year, a thorough internal evaluation of the court was completed. Mr.

Speaker, I ask the minister: Will he table the results of that evaluation?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The government never, ever said anything different than that there was value

in the Family Violence Intervention Court. We have never, ever disputed that for

one minute. What I have said in this House is that was a pilot project

considered as part of the overall budget of the Department of Justice, as part

of the core activities that we do. It was determined that particular court would

not be brought forward into the next budget year. It is as simple as that.

There would have been all kinds of assessment activities carried out as part

of that review process, as we did with many other items, Mr. Speaker. We

recognize the value of the Family Violence Intervention Court. We recognize the

value of paying attention to all kinds of types of bullying and those kinds of

activities, but we certainly will not take any advice from the member opposite

(inaudible)

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The Member for St. John's Centre.

MS ROGERS: Mr. Speaker, I am hoping that we will be able to see the

results of that evaluation.

Mr. Speaker, the 2009 Auditor General's report noted delays of up to nineteen

months for complaint resolutions before the Newfoundland and Labrador's Human

Rights Commission. Yet, in the past two years, this government cut the

Commission's budget by 50 per cent. The Commission plays a vital role protecting

our fundamental and basic human rights and the rights of the most vulnerable

people in our society.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: Will he table the core mandate review of the

Human Rights Commission?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Mr. Speaker, for the record, in my last answer, I never

confirmed that there was an evaluation conducted in my department on Family

Violence Intervention, as the member read into the record. I said there would

have been an assessment of any number of activities completed, as we did with

all of our budget activity exercises.

With respect to the particular question on the board right now, Mr. Speaker,

I think if you go back and you look at the Estimates, you will find that it is

government who picked up the pieces from previous Administrations and invested

heavily in the Human Rights Commission, because we value the work they do and we

recognize the importance of having supports there for individuals who feel that

their rights have been violated. We will continue to provide that high-quality

service with strong, top-notch individuals working at the commission.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John's North.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KIRBY: Mr. Speaker, public libraries are vital to literacy and

life-long learning in our communities, yet government has decided to slash

funding for public libraries in Newfoundland and Labrador by over $1 million. We

understand from the Library Association that there are now only nine librarians

left to manage almost 100 libraries in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Will the Minister of Education tell us who he consulted before he decided to

cut public funding for libraries in this Province to the bone?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, beware of the man who gives misleading

information. I am hoping one of these days he will ask me a question on the

services for special education, which he clearly misinterpreted.

Mr. Speaker, we, as a government, went and had discussions with the Libraries

Board. Mr. Speaker, we made a conscious effort that we were going to keep all

Mr. Speaker, I emphasize, all of our public libraries open. That means staff in

those libraries are there; plus, Mr. Speaker, nine professional librarians to

serve ninety-six libraries, a ratio of nearly one to nine.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR. KIRBY: Mr. Speaker, last week the Minister of Education and the

Minister of Justice met with a delegation from College of the North Atlantic in

Burin and assured them that they would ask Cabinet to review the program cuts

down there.

When will the Cabinet ministers from the Burin Peninsula be fulfilling their

promise to ask Cabinet to overturn the cuts to the College of the North Atlantic

in Burin?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SHEA: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we are at a point in time in Newfoundland and Labrador where

over the next ten years we expect 70,000 job openings. Mr. Speaker, as we move

forward and we look at the labour gaps we have to make sure that the College of

the North Atlantic is positioned to offer the programs that will meet the labour

market gaps of Newfoundland and Labrador and assist the people.

Mr. Speaker, there are

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I am sorry; the time for Question Period has expired.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Notices of Motion.

Answers to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

Tabling of Documents.

Tabling of Documents

MR. SPEAKER: Pursuant to

section 8 and

section 10 of the Public Tender

Act, I hereby table the report of the Public Tender Act exceptions for November

and December of 2012; January, February, March of 2013. These are as presented

by the Chief Operating Officer of the Government Purchasing Agency.

Petitions.

Petitions

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT: Mr. Speaker, a petition to the hon. House of Assembly of the

Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in Parliament assembled, the petition of

the undersigned humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS with declining enrollment, distance education by Internet is now an

accepted way to deliver educational services to students living in small

communities; and

WHEREAS students have little to no say in where they or their families

reside; and

WHEREAS many families do not have the ability to relocate so that their

children can access educational opportunities in larger centres; and

WHEREAS many small businesses rely on the Internet to conduct business; and

WHEREAS high-speed Internet permits a business to be more competitive than

the slower dial-up service; and

WHEREAS no high-speed Internet service exists in the community of Bird Cove;

and

WHEREAS there are no plans to offer high-speed Internet service to the

residents of this community;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the

House of Assembly to urge the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to partner

with the private sector and offer high-speed Internet service to this community.

Mr. Speaker, recently government made, what I would consider and did

consider, a progressive step in allowing smaller operators, smaller companies to

provide Internet service. This went over so well that the small operator was

totally overloaded with work. They have a backlog of work. They are unable to

get to this part of the Province any time soon. In fact, they perform well

enough that their services are required in many other areas.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the residents of Bird Cove who have been left

behind Bird Cove is a small incorporated municipality. They are paying their

own share; they are carrying their own weight. They are looking after themselves

as all small communities are struggling to do, yet they have no high-speed

Internet service for their small businesses, for their children, for their

residents. Mr. Speaker, this petition is on behalf of the residents of Bird

Cove.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I have a petition. To the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of

Newfoundland and Labrador in Parliament assembled, the petition of the

undersigned residents humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS Newfoundland and Labrador currently has the highest unemployment rate

in Canada; and

WHEREAS the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador anticipate a labour

shortage of 70,000 people by 2020; and

WHEREAS eliminating the career practitioner knowledge base is contrary to

attaching people to the labour market; and

WHEREAS EAS agencies are grassroots hubs in communities providing services

like skills development, resume development, interview skills, facilitating

attachment to the labour market and the community; and

WHEREAS EAS agencies have been serving thousands of people for years,

building expertise and rapport; and

WHEREAS loading the workload of 226 employees onto 139 Advanced Education

employees will be an overwhelming expectation; and

WHEREAS EAS funding comes from the EI fund, built by workers to help them

when and where they need it most;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the

House of Assembly to urge the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to reverse

the decision to cut funding to EAS agencies in the Province.

As in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to enter this petition again today, and I do it in

the time frame of compelling arguments we have been talking about a lot here.

The problem is this group has not been allowed to make a compelling argument

because every time they have asked the door has been shut. They asked the

minister for a meeting. They invited her to sit down. That has not happened yet.

How can you make a compelling argument in this Province when the people you

are trying to speak to do not listen? I know the other member over there. I know

he is aware of this. I know he wants to deal with this, but the minister needs

to open the door and listen to these people make the compelling argument.

We have 226 people who were put out of work, and I do not believe that is

counted in the Budget cuts that came down. This is something outside of that. We

talk about a labour shortage. These people want to contribute to getting that

labour shortage dealt with, but they are being put onto the labour market

themselves.

Again, what I would say, I go back to the primary element of this, is

communication is key. We saw it happen in the justice system. It can happen.

People will listen. Change can happen. It is time for the other ministers to do

the same thing and listen to these people. We all know it is out there. The

protests have been made. The protests have been going on and it is going to

continue.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John's Centre.

MS ROGERS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

To the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in

Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents of Newfoundland

and Labrador humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS as a result of a recommendation in the Green report about wrongdoing

in the House of Assembly, there is now legislation that protects anyone who

speaks up with evidence of financial abuse or other impropriety in the

legislative branch; and

WHEREAS it is unfair for one group of civil servants to be protected by

whistle-blower legislation when another group is not; and

WHEREAS Justice Green stated that the financial wrongdoing in the House of

Assembly might have been discovered sooner if whistle-blower legislation had

been in place; and

WHEREAS the Cameron Inquiry into ER-PR testing found that problems with tests

would have come to light sooner, therefore lessening the impacts on patients, if

whistle-blower legislation had been in place; and

WHEREAS the Task Force on Adverse Events recommended an amendment to the

Regional Health Authorities Act to provide legal protection for employees

reporting occurrences or adverse events; and

WHEREAS whistle-blower legislation is in place elsewhere in Canada and the

provincial government promised similar legislation in the 2007 election but has

not kept that promise;

We the undersigned, petition the House of Assembly to urge government to

enact whistle-blower legislation to protect public sector employees in

provincial departments and agencies, including public corporations, regional

health authorities and the school boards.

And as in duty bound your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, I have been proud to rise in this House, a number of times over

the past year, to present this petition time and time and time again urging the

government to listen to the people of the Province, to enact whistle-blower

legislation. We know that last year the former Minister of Justice said they in

fact were reviewing legislation in different jurisdictions and they have been

doing that for years. It is now time, particularly now in the shadow of Bill 29.

Public service workers have come to us and said they have been threatened

with their jobs if they even so much as press like on a Facebook posting that

says anything negative about the Budget or the government. They have been

threatened with their jobs. A number of workers have come to us saying this.

There is an extenuating climate of chill and of fear all across the public

service. If ever we needed whistle-blower protection in our public service it is

now, now more than ever; particularly in the shadow of the passage of the

regressive legislation of Bill 29.

I believe the people of the Province deserve to have this promise fulfilled;

this promise that was so clearly articulated by this government in 2007. We are

now in 2013. We are six years out. They have watched and looked at other

jurisdictions enough. The time is now.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for The Straits White Bay North.

MR. MITCHELMORE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

To the hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in

Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS Newfoundland and Labrador currently has the highest unemployment rate

in Canada; and

WHEREAS the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador anticipate a labour

shortage of 70,000 people by 2020; and

WHEREAS eliminating the career practitioner knowledge base is contrary to

attaching people to the labour market; and

WHEREAS Employment Assistance Services agencies are grassroots hubs in

communities providing services like skills development, resume development,

interview skills, facilitating attachment to the labour market and community;

and

WHEREAS EAS agencies help individuals with complex needs find and maintain

employment in communities throughout the Province; and

WHEREAS EAS agencies have been serving thousands of people for years,

building expertise and rapport; and

WHEREAS loading the workload of 226 employees onto 139 Advanced Education and

Skills employees would be an overwhelming expectation, increasing staff

turnover, and thus decreasing rapport with clients; and

WHEREAS EAS funding comes from the EI Fund, built by workers to help them

when and where they need it most; and

WHEREAS moving services away from people who lack the means to travel long

distances is not in line with the Labour Market Development Agreement's

principle of citizen-centred service.

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the

House of Assembly to urge the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to reverse

the decision to cut funding to EAS agencies in the Province.

As in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, this petition is signed by constituents of mine in Roddickton,

and Englee, and Bide Arm. They are greatly concerned for the fact of looking at

the vast geography of Newfoundland and Labrador and looking at where in the

Department of Advanced Education and Skills Career Work Centres across

Newfoundland and Labrador are currently situated.

There is only one on the Great Northern Peninsula, and that would be in St.

Anthony, covering vast kilometers. People in my district would have to travel an

hour-and-a-half to two hours to get to a centre in St. Anthony. If we look at

Labrador, there is only one centre in Happy Valley-Goose Bay to service that

whole geographic area of the Big Land. On the South Coast of the Province, it is

greatly exposed.

Compared to looking at where the CERC centres were, across Newfoundland and

Labrador, they were geographically positioned to help people so that they could

get services close to home and that they could then provide that level of

expertise to the Department of Advanced Education and Skills, streamlining the

process and making it easier.

I worked, in my previous role, with the CERC centres we called them there

were five on the Great Northern Peninsula, and it was a means to really help

people and bridge them out and get back into the workforce.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Private Members' Day

MR. SPEAKER: This being Wednesday, Private Members' Day, now I call on

the Member for Port de Grave to introduce the motion in his name on the Order

Paper.

MR. LITTLEJOHN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The motion reads:

BE IT RESOLVED that this hon. House commends the government for returning

half a billion dollars a year to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians by reducing

personal income taxes and supports the government in its decision not to

increase personal income tax rates to address the Province's fiscal challenge.

MR. SPEAKER: That has been moved and seconded by?

MR. LITTLEJOHN: Moved by the hon. Member for Port de Grave, seconded by

the hon. Member for Cape St. Francis.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am very pleased today to stand here and debate this private member's

resolution. I want to thank my hon. colleague from Cape St. Francis being the

seconder of this motion.

I guess, Mr. Speaker, it is kind of appropriate that it is myself and the

hon. Member for Cape St. Francis. We both, Mr. Speaker, come from municipal

backgrounds. Municipal backgrounds where taxes to the individuals in our

communities was very important.

We both prided ourselves on the fact that we wanted to make sure, Mr.

Speaker, that we kept the tax rates low for our residents and we had a concern

for them. For those years that we spent on municipal council and being the

taxman, we became very cognizant.

Over the last number of weeks and even number of months, Mr. Speaker, we have

talked in this House and there has been a lot of discussion about the Budget

and the bad news. I wanted to talk about some of the good things that we have

done as a government over the last number of years, and things that we kept in

this Budget, Mr. Speaker, to make it easier on individuals and families in this

place.

Mr. Speaker, as always, we wanted to keep in mind when, in my particular

community, keeping taxes low was important. We believed that keeping taxes would

number one, attract new people, new residents; two, Mr. Speaker, we believed

that it would also attract new business. Also, Mr. Speaker, in my former

community, I had 40 per cent of residents who were on fixed incomes. Keeping

taxes low and being reasonable, Mr. Speaker, was very important to the people of

my community.

Mr. Speaker, I can go further than that. Not only was it important to the

people in my community, it was important to the people in my district. I would

suggest to you, Mr. Speaker, it is important to every resident of Newfoundland

and Labrador that in their municipalities they keep their taxes low and

reasonable. They all want to do the same thing, Mr. Speaker; they want to

attract new people and they want to attract new business.

Mr. Speaker, we are an aging population; we are growing older. We have more

residents on fixed incomes. Mr. Speaker, that is probably where I want to start

today. I have a personal story and it is odd. Most people who you run across say

do not raise my taxes, do not give higher taxes, all this stuff, Mr. Speaker. I

have a father-in-law and my father-in-law is one of these people who are very

proud to pay taxes. He believes in taxes.

I am sure if we raised the taxes in his hometown, he would pay no matter what

it was because he believes it is a need because of the basic services that it

provides. Also, Mr. Speaker, he is a retiree; he is a veteran. Mr. Speaker, he

is on a fixed income, so they have limited resources. These people want to make

sure that their resources go as far as possible.

Mr. Speaker, when I started looking into this, I said: What are we doing for

people who are on fixed incomes? Most of the people who are on fixed incomes, I

would suggest to you, are probably seniors in this Province. What are we

providing these people? What has this government done in the last eight to ten

years to provide some of these people some relief?

Well, Mr. Speaker, this government has returned to the people of this

Province millions of dollars. Millions of dollars they have returned to the

people of this Province, and the dollars they have returned go into their basic

needs. It goes into their heat bill, their light bill, being able to put food on

the table, and in some cases providing shelter for them. That is important.

In some cases, Mr. Speaker, those few dollars they save by the savings we

have provided them in government through tax reductions go into help with

education funds for their grandchildren or their other family members. Maybe in

some cases that I am aware of it goes for larger purchases: a washer and dryer

or maybe a new vehicle. Whatever it is, it goes towards creating a better life

for our individual citizens of this Province.

Mr. Speaker, as members and MHAs, we all talk to people every day. Every day

we stand in this House and we talk to people day in, day out, week in, week out,

and month in, month out. Many of these conversations are with older individuals

because the older individuals hang out at the Tim Hortons and they hang out the

McDonald's.

If you go in for a coffee, you either know them because you have been a

lifelong resident of your community or because you have been associated. They

have been a former teacher, they have been a former person on the minor hockey

association, or whatever it may be. So you go in and you talk to them. Many of

them, Mr. Speaker, say: Boy, what are you doing for us?

Well, Mr. Speaker, I just want to go through some of the things that we do

for seniors and some of our older individuals. The one I have to go back to

because it is my own personal story is my father-in-law, once again, and it was

the fee reductions for a driver's licence. He was amazed. He was amazed that if

he went out and he came to see Glenn, and Glenn went in on the computer, that he

would save $65. So fee reductions, not only in driver's licences but in hunting

licenses; we have many of our elderly people who love to hunt and fish in this

Province, and we give fee reductions in those areas. Wood another gentleman

came in last week and he was so proud he got his wood permit and he got it for a

reduced price.

Mr. Speaker, I want to talk a little bit about different programs. One of the

programs I want to talk about today is a program that was introduced in 1999,

Mr. Speaker. It was introduced in 1999 and it is known as the Low Income

Seniors' Benefit. This is a refundable tax credit for low-income seniors

sixty-five years of age by December 31.

What does this do, Mr. Speaker? Well, it was introduced in 1999, but in 2005

this government indexed it. This increases the benefit to our seniors in the

Province. This increased the benefit to our seniors. These cheques come out

every October. Whether they are single or whether they are a couple with a net

income up to $28,231, Mr. Speaker, they can receive a maximum tax benefit of

$971.

We have all seen the recent commercials from Anthony Insurance, where the

Anthony Insurance people get in and they talk about retirees, Mr. Speaker. I

recall a gentleman in general, who said $1,200 goes a long, long way. Well, in

this one Low Income Seniors' Benefit, if a net income is less than or up to

$28,231 they can get a maximum benefit of $971. The amount, of course, gets

phased out a little as your net income increases from $28,231 to $36,559. Mr.

Speaker, a low-income family up to $36,559 can receive this benefit.

In 2003, Mr. Speaker, that was a savings of $7.5 million. This year it is

estimated to be $38.5 million. This, in part, is due to the enhancements and the

tax indexation of this program. This year alone over 45,000 seniors can benefit

from this one program. Mr. Speaker, that is something we do every year for

seniors.

Another program, Mr. Speaker, we talk about the age amount and non-renewable

tax credit. This age amount tax credit is a non-refundable tax credit. It

reduces their tax payable.

In 2010, Mr. Speaker, the previous Minister of Finance announced for

individuals sixty-five years and up, he increased the tax payable credit from

$3,681 to $5,000. With this increase, and increased threshold, Mr. Speaker, we

also increased the eligibility from $51,940 to $60,733. This does two things,

Mr. Speaker, it creases the tax credit for the resident or the individual, or

the couple, and it also increases the number of people eligible to receive this

benefit.

This year alone, Mr. Speaker, we expect over 73,000 seniors sixty-five and

above could benefit from the age amount, non-refundable tax credit. Again, we

are doing something proactive to assist our low-income seniors and people on low

incomes.

Mr. Speaker, this one goes unnoticed. It goes unnoticed sometimes by all of

us because I have had people come up to me and say: Where did that residential

energy rebate go? Where did that go? I never, ever got that. Where do you apply

for that, or what do you do with that? Well, Mr. Speaker, what most people do

not know, it is right on your bill. It goes right on your bill. It is an 8 per

cent rebate right off your provincial portion of the HST.

Mr. Speaker, I will use my example. I heat my home with oil, and my average

bill in a month in the wintertime is about $600. The average bill is $600 when I

refill my tank. Mr. Speaker, because of that 8 per cent rebate, that is a $48

savings on a tank of oil. That $600 turns into $552.

Mr. Speaker, I remember going to my grandmother's house. They did not have

the big tank; they used to have the little tank. I am sure when you go into the

outports you will still see them today. You will see the little tanks on the

side of the house. I want to take it down to some of those people as well. Mr.

Speaker, if it costs $300 to fill up that 100 gallon tank, for example, that is

a $24 savings. In other words, you pay $276.

Mr. Speaker, this Residential Energy Rebate Program puts hundreds of dollars

each winter into people's bank account. Not only seniors but every resident who

burns oil, electricity or wood, it puts it back in their bank account. I think

that is significant as well, Mr. Speaker.

This program, Mr. Speaker, cost us $42.3 million this year. The home heating

rebate helps seniors and helps low-income people. This home heating rebate is

very popular. In our riding, Mr. Speaker, just about everyday I am sure in

just about everybody's riding, in their constituency offices everywhere, just

about everyday someone comes in and says: Do you have that home oil heating

rebate? This is adjusted; it is adjusted family income for people with less than

$40,000.

Mr. Speaker, in the taxation year 2011, we gave a $250 rebate for people in

the Province and other parts of Labrador. On Coastal Labrador, that is a $500

rebate. Significant, I would suggest, Mr. Speaker, putting money back going

back to the Anthony Insurance piece, putting money back into people's pockets.

Mr. Speaker, we have many families out there, hardworking families making it

but they are still on low income. We have a low-income tax deduction that was

introduced in 2005. This is a provincial personal income tax reduction for

low-income individuals and families.

This year, in 2013, Mr. Speaker, this program eliminates provincial income

tax for individuals with a net income of up to $17,288, or families who have a

net income of up to $28,228. They do not pay tax at all. They do not pay any

income tax. They are exempt. They are done. I think that is significant. There

are also partial reductions in that program, Mr. Speaker, for individuals up to

$21,057 and to families up to $34,591.

Mr. Speaker, I see my time is quickly abating, but I will get to some of this

after. Again, in 2011, Mr. Speaker, in this taxation year alone, we believe this

program will reach 33,500 residents of Newfoundland and Labrador; 33,500

residents.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LITTLEJOHN: An individual with $16,000, Mr. Speaker, will save $510,

and a family with a net income of $26,000 will save $696.

Mr. Speaker, as we go along I will get another chance to speak to this at the

end and talk about some other programs for families et cetera, some of the

things we do for our business community. Mr. Speaker, every dollar counts, and

this government has been very proactive in making sure through income tax

reductions that we put money back in the pockets of all the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador. Nobody wants tax increases, Mr. Speaker, and I

believe this has been a responsible investment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER (Verge): I recognize the hon. the Member for St. Barbe.

MR. BENNETT: Mr. Speaker, any time I am given an opportunity such as this

to respond to a private member's resolution or any sort of government bill

obviously, we discuss it beforehand in caucus and line up our speakers and so

on. I like to do a little research because sometimes I can find a meaningful

quote that might work.

After looking at this PMR, I thought I would look for a quote. Well, I looked

in a number of places. I looked to a Cicero address. I looked at the Gettysburg

address. I looked at JFK: What can your family do for you? I looked at

Churchill. After reading and considering all kinds of other quotes, I came up

with one from Alice in Wonderland. Alice came to a fork in the road and

said: Which road shall I take? Where do you want to go, responded the Cheshire

cat? I do not know, Alice said. Then the cat says: It does not matter which road

you take.

Mr. Speaker, that is exactly what this government is doing. It does not

matter which road they take because they do not know where they want to go. This

private member's resolution is absolutely absurd. It is completely nonsensical;

it makes no sense whatsoever. It would only make sense to be giving back money

if we actually had money to give back. Clearly, we do not have money to give

back because we are looking at a major deficit.

On the one hand, government members are getting bent out of shape almost like

pretzels patting themselves on the back for giving back people their own money,

when, in fact, they are spending more of their own money than they are taking

in. That is the absurdity, the insanity, of living in a time of plenty and

running a deficit.

This government is running a deficit. As a matter of fact, we may know

eventually the size of the deficit, but we will not know any time soon. It is

sort of like the shell game that government played over the last few months with

what the deficit would be with the Minister of Finance saying well, we are

looking at $1.6 billion and another $1.6 billion next year, and we are going to

have $4 billion. He is throwing around billions like we would throw around $20

bills only a few years ago.

Then all of a sudden we come to the Budget process and the government found

all kinds of extra money. In looking at where they found the extra money where

did you find the extra money? We found some oil. We found a whole bunch of oil

we did not realize we had.

Mr. Speaker, that is like Jed Clampett taking a shot at a rabbit and hitting

an oil well and coming up with more oil. It is difficult to know if the Minister

of Natural Resources knew he was going to be Minister of Finance so he sat on a

whole bunch of oil so he could look a little bit better later on, or maybe they

just found the oil. We are talking about a lot of oil and a lot of money.

Another area where they found money that they did not know that they had was

in the new HST reconciliation. HST was introduced many years ago and it has only

ever been estimated. They knew or ought to have known there was a reconciliation

coming and the feds would be writing a cheque for a lot more money. There was

more money.

The problem with saying that you do not have money when you do have money is

that later on people do not believe you when you really do not have money, like

somebody crying wolf. That is really what has happened here.

On the one hand, we have the government saying we have no money, massive

deficit. They have said that not just for one year, but they said it last year.

As a matter of fact, the former Auditor General was saying it for quite some

years. In fact, in 2011, the former Auditor General, John Noseworthy, was

lambasting government for unsustainable spending, then he ceased to become the

Auditor General.

I came across a news story from The Huffington Post . I thought it was

a misprint first because it says former Auditor General wants to run for Tories,

and I thought it should be run from the Tories. That is certainly what he needed

to have been doing. He did run for them and obviously the Leader of the Third

Party made sure that he did not get into this House, and congratulations to her.

Then, the former Auditor General was commissioned by government to take a

look at AES. He is known as a straight shooter. His political instincts may be a

bit weak on which party he ought to have been running for, but he did a review

of AES and he came out with such a mess that the minister had to sit on it for

months at a time when we were going into Budget consultations. So, Mr. Speaker,

imagine the absurdity of a minister commissioning a report and paying somebody

$150,000 or so to do a report, having the report showing all kinds of waste,

duplication, bad spending, and then that is not used in the Budget.

This is consistent of what this government has been doing for a number of

years now. The budgeting process is not at all connected to a reality. It is not

connected at all to reality any more than Alice in Wonderland. This is

like an Alice in Wonderland type of budget.

If you look at some of the areas where the government is so badly off track

with their perception of reality just yesterday morning in Estimates, the

Minister of Education took great pride in saying that we are second in dropout

rates. He said since we came into power, this government came into power ten

years ago, we are second in dropout rates.

Well, Mr. Speaker, I took the trouble to go and check with Statistics Canada

immediately afterwards and the Statistics Canada report at the end of 2012 says

that for twenty-year period, leading up to the end of 2012, in fact, we did go

from the worst, not to the best, no, now we are the sixth worst, not the second

best, sixth worst in the country. We are still worse than the Canadian average,

yet the Minister of Education thinks that we are in second place. We are not in

second place unless, of course, he has decided that Statistics Canada is not

right, the federal government agency that checks all of our statistics is not

right.

In fact, the reduction from being tenth to sixth came over a twenty-year

period, which would include up to the end of 2012, nine years of this government

and eleven years of Grimes, Tobin and Wells; the improvement in our dropout rate

has been over a twenty-year period and it is nowhere near as good as the

minister says that it was.

That should not come as any surprise to us because education which forms the

second highest component of this Budget is severely under attack. The Minister

of Education, in the Budget, and the Minister of Finance claims that we need for

education, and clearly we do. Last year, this government budgeted $866 million

for education and used $815 million. This government spent $51 million less on

education last year than they said they were going to spend.

This year, they are going back up from the $815 million actual to $840

million actual, so they are increasing the budgeted amount $25 million over the

actual from last year and they claim that is a 3 per cent reduction. How can it

be a 3 per cent reduction when it goes up? I suppose it is in not, and in

getting the 3 per cent reduction we are going to get rid of all but one of the

of trauma. According to the minister, he believes we will save $12.8 million of

the overall Budget; $12.8 million of the overall Budget is only 25 per cent of

the amount they amount they under spent last year.

Mr. Speaker, the only reason I can see that the government would want to get

rid of the school boards is they did not like the political pressure. They did

not like the noise, as they call it, of people pushing back and having local

input in which schools stay open.

There is no plan for the schools. There is a number; there is no plan. There

still is not any transition team in place. Transition is something you should

plan before you do something; it is not something you plan as you go along and

it certainly is not something that you do at the end of the day when everything

is done. Then it is not a transition, it is what we saw in Justice: it is a

fix-up job. It is a way to fix something you made a mistake in.

To continue with education, the representations that we are being provided by

the Department of Education on how much we are improving are certainly not borne

out by other areas. This is a production of Human Resources and Skills

Development Canada, and it says in the year 2000, and this is a combined reading

score for fifteen-year-old students in this Province, according to the Programme

for International Student Assessment, on a scale of more or less 500, they

scored 517 in 2000. In 2003, when this government took office, they had

increased to 521. From a starting point of 521, they then declined to 514 and

then 506. So our score has declined.

When being challenged on it, the minister said that, while the critic does

not know what he is talking about, this is not statistically significant.

However, if you read, in the table it says, "Statistically significant compared

to PISA 2000." Then, Mr. Speaker, this would not be so aggravating if on the

actual cover of the document, which I am happy to table, it says, "Council of

Ministers of Education, Canada". I would assume, or I would have to believe,

that the minister should be at least somewhat acquainted with a document from

Statistics Canada which is published in conjunction with Human Resources and

Skills Development Canada, and the council of education ministers would know

that our education scores have been declining.

This particular private member's resolution says the government should

congratulate itself because we gave back to people half a billion dollars of

their own money. I suppose some of that money must have been the money they

found in the oil that they did not know they had, probably something in the HST

that over the life of the HST, this is an accumulated amount based on the

estimate of the first HST, which was only paid based on an estimate not actually

accounted for. Now that it is accounted for we are getting the back pay, which

is no credit to this government whatsoever.

Government is priding itself on not raising taxes. I guess that is a very

good thing not to raise taxes; but, on the other hand, if your spending is so

out of control, there is no point of not raising taxes if you are going to run a

deficit. Because if you are going to run a deficit, a deficit says we do not

have the wherewithal, we do have either the intellect, we do not have the

courage or we do not have the foresight to be able to balance our books, but:

Oh, by the way, we are going to run a deficit anyway. We are going to inflict

this on the people who come after us. We are going to inflict this on the

children.

It is absolutely unacceptable that this government has mismanaged the best

opportunity that we have ever had in this Province to get ahead financially. The

absolute mismanagement is abysmal.

If we look across different areas and different aspects of the Auditor

General's report, and if you look at what is happening in the government in

general, it is as if there is nobody minding the shop. Whoever is supposed to be

running the show is asleep at the wheel and we just wandering off. Money is

going all over the place and we are running deficits. At the same time, we have

a private member's resolution whereby we congratulate ourselves on not raising

taxes.

Mr. Speaker, in the period from 2003 to 2009, which was the first six years

of this government, in mathematics we declined from sixth place in Canada to

eighth place in Canada. When this government took over we were in sixth place.

They declined it to eighth place in Canada. The scores declined from 517 to 503.

That is simply unacceptable.

It is completely unacceptable in the face of the fact that this government

claims to have put in place a math strategy. That math strategy has been

severely criticized by the associate professor of mathematics at Memorial

University who says that our mathematics program in this Province is literally a

tragedy. When you go behind it, it is not that we have not conceived of

something which is really good, but it is not being applied.

Young people are showing up at Memorial University who presumably would be

our best high school graduates, and they are so deficient in mathematics, thanks

to this government, that they have to have all sorts of remedial mathematics.

They do not have the repetition

MR. K. PARSONS: We are all stunned.

MR. BENNETT: The Member for Cape St. Francis is saying that we are all

stunned enough actually, we are not all stunned, because some of us over here

can see that government has put on a big charade.

If you look at how well government has managed the economy, if you look to

the announcement today for $90 million for the forestry sector through Corner

Brook Pulp and Paper, I applaud that; however, it cannot be taken in absence of

the fact that when this government took office we had three paper mills. We had

reached a peak with three paper mills that were fully functioning. Now we have

one paper mill. We have one paper mill that we have to subsidize to the extent

of a $90 million loan to keep it going.

It is bad enough that we lost the Stephenville pulp and paper mill when the

former Premier said it would not go on his watch, but even worse than that is

the aggravating manner in which we lost the Grand Falls pulp and paper mill. Not

only did we lose the productive capacity and all of the work, we expropriated an

environmental disaster, likely in the hundreds of millions of dollars that the

people of this Province will have to clean up because of the hasty,

ill-considered actions of this government.

Imagine, going and expropriating a hundred-year-old paper mill and not

checking out the environmental and why would you expropriate it at all? We

expropriated it to get the forestry and to get the energy. Well, the energy was

not going anywhere. The trees were not going anywhere. Mr. Speaker, we already

owned the rights to that, or we had complete access to it. We could have

controlled that. That was just done for show, Mr. Speaker, and the results are

painfully obvious, and they are very bad.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Cape St. Francis.

MR. K. PARSONS: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

It is a privilege to get up here today, and it is always a privilege to get

up and represent the beautiful District of Cape St. Francis.

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to applaud the Member for Port de

Grave for bringing in this private member's motion today. It is an important

motion because it shows the direction in which our government is going. I do

commend our government for what we are doing. We are putting money back in the

pockets of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians by reducing taxes. That has been a

goal of this government since 2003.

Mr. Speaker, our government has made a decision, we made a large decision. We

made a decision not to increase taxes. Not to do what other people would want us

to do, increase taxes. Just increase the taxes and that is where you will find

your money. That is not the way to do it. That is not the way to address what we

have to address with the financial situation we find ourselves in, the

challenges that we find ourselves in.

Sometimes, Mr. Speaker, you look at things and you may say, listen, the

easiest way to do this is this because we will look good at the end of the day.

Listen here, Mr. Speaker, that is not the decisions that this government makes.

We do not care about looking good; it is all about doing the right thing. Our

Premier and our Cabinet and the people in our caucus want to do what is best for

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

Mr. Speaker, budgets are a time when we have to look at what is in the best

interest of all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. Mr. Speaker, sometimes when we

look at it we have to look at society as a whole. We have to look at we are

serving every inch of this Island and every inch of Labrador. We are serving the

people of Newfoundland and Labrador, and we have to look out and make the best

decisions possible for those people. Sometimes decisions are not easy. Sometimes

they are hard decisions, but you have to stand and make the right decisions.

Mr. Speaker, since 2003, in the last ten years our government has worked very

hard. We had a road that we wanted to follow. We wanted a road that we could

serve our people of the Province and everyone in our Province the best that we

could. We wanted to reduce our debt. We wanted to reduce the debt that we had

and we wanted to reduce the taxes people are paying in this Province. Over the

last ten years we did so.

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to budget times, there are a lot of decisions to

be made. I applaud the Minister of Finance because it is hard decisions to make.

There are a lot of difficult decisions that have to be made.

Mr. Speaker, there is no one on this side of the House, and I am sure there

is no one on that side of the House, who wants to see anybody lose a job. I know

I do not. I do not want to see one person lose a job but we have to make

decisions. There are decisions that have to be made by government to make sure

we supply services to the people of the Province that are effective and

efficient at the best possible cost that we can give them. That is being

responsible.

Like I said, it is an easy thing to do to just say: Okay, listen, drive up

the taxes. No one gets mad with you or anything at all. Just drive up the taxes,

but it is not the right thing to do. The right thing to do is to look at our

departments and make sure that we are doing things effective and efficiently.

That is the problem we have here in the Province. We are too nice sometimes

as people, that we look at everything and say: look, this is the easy way to do

things, go ahead and do it. Mr. Speaker, the right thing to do is to be

responsible; responsible to us here today and responsible to the children of the

future.

Mr. Speaker, I have neighbours and friends, and people I have known to help

me along my way, who lost their jobs recently. I approach them and I talk to

them. They are good friends of mine. It is not easy. I tell you, it is not easy.

We are all in the boat I do not say there is anybody in this House who has not

been affected by that. Do you know what, Mr. Speaker? I tell them if there is

something I can do for them, I will, like I do with every constituent of mine

who calls me. If I can help them in any way and I am sure my colleagues here

and the colleagues across the way are the same way - we are there to help the

people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

This is not an easy time for people. What it is, Mr. Speaker, it is a time

that we have to do things. I spoke to a young lady yesterday and she told me

that she is going out. She was laid off recently and she told me she has about

five

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. K. PARSONS: different interviews that she has lined up to do now. I

said that is excellent. I was really pleased and I told her I hope and I even

pray that she gets something.

Mr. Speaker, there are a lot of decisions made that are not the most popular

decisions. I look at what is happening with our Premier and some of the things

that are happening with her. I do not like it I really do not like it. Popular

decisions are good decisions to make if you want to stay on top, but they are

not always the right decisions. The right decisions that we are making today is

to keep our taxes low to put a half a billion dollars in the hands of the people

of the Province. The right decisions that we are making today are the decisions

that this Premier and this government are doing.

Mr. Speaker, increasing taxes is not the thing to do. Our government has

worked way too hard to start right now and say listen, we have a couple of hard

years coming in front of us, let us jack up the taxes, let us drive up the

deficit and we will work back at it again. That is not the way it is going to be

with this government, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, when I look back at 2003 and I listened to the man from

Alice in Wonderland , the man from Wonderland over there that time speaking.

Do you know something? He spoke for fifteen minutes and he never gave one thing

that his party would do to help out with this Province, the problems we are

having financially. He talked about everything else, but he never talked about

any solutions. Not one solution did he talk about.

In 2003, Mr. Speaker, we had a problem. Twenty-five cents for every $1 we

were taking in was going to servicing our debt. Since 2003, we have reduced

that. Right now, it is 10.9 cents. That is what we are paying from twenty-five

cents. That is huge. Mr. Speaker, that is not good enough. Do you know why? We

are still paying approximately $800 million a year to service our debt.

Mr. Speaker, every time we save money in this area, this is money we can put

into education, it is money we can put into our health care, it is money we can

put into our social spending. Mr. Speaker, if anybody gets a chance and I

would recommend anybody out there to take our Sustainability Plan that we have

and look at the next ten years, we want to get down a lot lower. We want to be

the average in Canada in the next few years. He is talking about the road over

there. That is the road this government is taking, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, our government and our Premier, like I said, has taken a path.

We have looked at everything; we have gone down the road. We have decided that

the best thing for our future is to keep our debt as low as we can and not

burden our people with taxes.

Mr. Speaker, reducing taxes helps everyone. It helps our seniors; it helps

our families. Today, more and more people are spending their money. Times are

not as doom and gloom as we hear every day in this House, doom and gloom. No,

times are not bad. Sure, I wish I had a wand and I could make it perfect for

everyone, but we cannot. Times are pretty good.

Mr. Speaker, times have changed. People need more money these days to put in

their hands and that is why it is important to reduce taxes. I can remember

growing up we grew potatoes, turnip, cabbage, and carrots. The Member for

Kilbride is still at it. We grew that, and probably three or four times a week

we ate fish. I wish I could still eat fish three or four times a week. It is

hard to get and it is pretty expensive, but do you know what? Today the cost is

higher. The cost to run a family is higher, and our lives have changed; the

rush, rush, rush part of your life. It is important that our families get every

cent that we can give them back to put into their families; it is important that

we do that.

Just look at our economy. The more that people spend in the economy, the

better it is for everybody. It creates jobs. If you look today and I mentioned

a little while ago about that person there are jobs being created in the

public sector all over the place. It is a great thing. Yes, our economy is

booming. It is booming. There is lots of work out there and there are people

going to work every day and there are people finding jobs every day.

People are spending money, Mr. Speaker. People are spending money. I have a

friend of mine who is a sales rep at Avalon Ford. I think he sold a couple of

members here rigs. He tells me that car sales are wicked; they are gone through

the roof. People are spending money on furniture. There are box stores going up

everywhere, and all over the Province there are people spending money.

Our economy in this Province is doing great. It is doing perfect, and it is

doing fantastic. The doom and gloom and the negativity, we are not showing it,

but our people are doing great. Granted, I do agree that there are some people

who are falling through the cracks, and that is what happens when you have an

economy that is booming that some people do fall through the cracks; but we are

here for them, and we will be there for them too, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, since 2003 I listened to the Member for St. Barbe over there

our government has done a lot. We have done a lot. By 2007, like I said, we had

the largest tax reduction ever in the history of Newfoundland and Labrador. That

is when we got the $500 million put back in the pockets (inaudible). We have

reduced our deficit since 2003 from $11.9 billion to $8.6 billion.

Again, like I said, that is twenty-five cents that we were paying out, now we

have 10.9. So we have fifteen cents more put into our spending for our social

programs, for our roads, for our schools and whatnot.

Mr. Speaker, I would ask all the members I listen to them every day over

there saying you are not fiscally responsible. I would ask the Member for St.

Barbe: What roads in his district did he not want paved? I will ask the hon.

Member for Bay of Islands: What roads in his district did he not want paved?

What fire truck did he not want? The hon. member who has gone off into greener

pastures, or she thinks so, had two schools built in her district. I would like

to know, did they not want those schools?

Mr. Speaker, we spent money wisely. We spent money very wisely. Our

government in 2003 had $78 million for construction and replacement of old

facilities, like construction and acquisition of buildings and roads. From 2003

we spent $78 million. This year we are spending $509 million on construction of

new buildings, roads, and equipment for our Province. That is huge.

AN HON. MEMBER: How much?

MR. K. PARSONS: Five hundred and nine million dollars.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: Spending on maintenance and health care facilities for

this government: in 2003 we spent $11 million; this year we are spending $117

million.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, look at what we did for municipalities in

this Province. I am a municipal leader and understand the needs of

municipalities in the Province. In 2003, we spent $37 million on municipal

infrastructure. This year we are going to spend $102 million.

The Member for St. Barbe said: Oh, they did not do anything; they are blowing

their money away. I would say you talk to the towns in this Province that are

getting money to help them out with their infrastructure to see what we are

spending our money on. It is clear.

Mr. Speaker, probably the proudest thing I am of this Province, of this

government, and what I see our government really doing is our investment in

education. I do not deny that years ago the money was not there to spend on

education like it is today and like it is after being the last number of years.

In the last number of years, we built nine new schools nine new schools and

I have one in my district, the beautiful District of Cape St. Francis. It got a

beautiful school there at Holy Trinity Elementary. It is state of the art.

Mr. Speaker, I spoke to a teacher and she was teaching for thirty years. She

said: Kevin, I have never seen anything like it in my thirty years, the

materials and the equipment we have in our schools today for our children free

books, you name it, we are doing it to make them achieve their goals. The

opportunities are there. Opportunities have never been there like they are

today. The opportunities for our young people are unbelievable.

I could not believe it when I listened to the Member for St. Barbe talking

about our university students. I had the opportunity when I was at the hospital

with my mom there a little while ago. We were going around and she was looking

at all the young doctors who are there. I pointed out two; one was from Torbay

and the other one was from Bauline, and how proud I was that they were from my

area of the Province.

Mr. Speaker, we are producing more doctors and we have more doctors in this

health care than ever before ever before. We are being taken care of. Mr.

Speaker, that is because we are doing a good job with our education.

Mr. Speaker, I look at post-secondary education, and again, the investments

that we are making there is unbelievable. When I look at post-secondary

education, I looked at a thing there yesterday and it showed the Canadian

average. Our post-secondary education is half of what the national average is

half. Mr. Speaker, we are the lowest in all of Canada, and that is the

investments we are making.

Mr. Speaker, I want to talk a little bit about some of the initiatives that

this government has done. The Member for Port de Grave mentioned a couple of

them so I am going to go past them, but I did want to mention about the

firefighters and how important it is I have three volunteer fire departments

in my district. The tax credit that we gave to them, I know at the end of the

max it is about $231. Do you know what, Mr. Speaker? Whatever it is, it shows

that this government appreciates what these people do. I appreciate what they do

on a daily basis.

Mr. Speaker, I have a lot more here to say, but I would like to just stop by

saying that I am so proud of this government and I am proud of the road we are

taking. I think we are taking the path that is going to be great for our future.

There is a few bumps along the road, but guess what? We will get over them bumps

and our Province will be a whole lot better place because of the Budget stuff

that we have brought in this year and the decisions we have made. The decisions

we have made not to drive the deficit up, the decisions we have made not to

increase people's taxes.

We could be like New Brunswick or Manitoba that just recently brought in

Budgets with increases in taxes. I think it would be the wrong thing to do and I

think we have done the right thing. I applaud the Minister of Finance, I applaud

the Premier, and I applaud this government for doing the right thing.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I recognize the hon. the Member for the Bay of Islands.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JOYCE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I stand today just to have a few words on this Budget, Mr. Speaker

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. JOYCE: I hear already that they are over heckling because they just

do not want to hear the truth about this Budget.

The Member for Cape St. Francis, for some reason, always wants to point me

out and tries to put me on the spot and say: What roads wouldn't you want paved

in your district? What roads wouldn't you want done out around your area? I tell

you one thing I would not do is re-announce the same roads for three and four

years trying to pretend that every year the money goes up, carry over every year

from Transportation and Works, $40 million and another $40 million next year.

That is one thing I would not do is give the perception that there is $100

million worth of work done, but it is the same roads that were announced three

years prior carried over for three years. That is what I would not do, I say to

the Member for Cape St. Francis.

He asked some questions: What would you do different? First of all, Muskrat

Falls. How much money has been transferred over to Nalcor from this government?

How much? That is a question, Mr. Speaker, none of us will ever know. Because of

Bill 29, we cannot get into Nalcor. That is one question we cannot answer. So

when you want to know what we would do different, let us get into Nalcor so we

can see all the books here. We will never get in there Bill 29, we will never

be allowed to get in there, Mr. Speaker.

Look at Hebron, when we first started out to get shares into Hebron, equity

positions. What is it, $65 million? Now we are up to $765 million that we have

to put in for equity, instead of getting it through royalties. That is just a

few ways that we would do it.

I will give you a good example. I am the only member in this House, Mr.

Speaker, and I was proud when we signed the deal for Voisey's Bay, when the

Premier stands up and says it is the best mining deal that was ever signed in

Newfoundland and Labrador, I am proud to say that I voted for it and I am proud

to say that I was a part of it, Mr. Speaker. So when you want to ask me, I have

proof, just look at the Voisey's Bay deal, Mr. Speaker, that is what I say.

This resolution, Mr. Speaker, makes the assumption that the fiscal challenges

were inevitable. They were inevitable; they had to happen. All the problems that

happened, they just had to happen, Mr. Speaker. Let us look at some of the

financial mess that this Province is into. Mr. Speaker, when we look back at

some of the warning signs, the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills, her

good friend John Noseworthy, when he was the Auditor General, here is what he

said, August 16, 2011, "The past eight years I've been criticizing the PC

government, issuing scathing reports and talking about the unsustainability of

expenditures and concerns about the debt".

Now, Mr. Speaker, that is what the Auditor General said in here.

Unsustainable spending for a number of years is what the Auditor General said

here. After ten years, Mr. Speaker, we find now the government is going to turn

around and say, oh, we are going to do a 10-Year Sustainability Plan after going

for ten years, spending like drunken sailors, and now all of a sudden going to

say, oh, we are going to have a Sustainability Plan now. We are a real

responsible government, Mr. Speaker; we are going to do a Sustainability Plan.

Don't you think it is ten years late? Don't you think the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador deserve better? Don't you think that if you are a

responsible government with money coming out of every part, every sector in this

Province, especially with the price of oil and the increase, that you would do a

plan and say okay, we need to make a Sustainability Plan for the future?

That is what a responsible government would do. That is what this government

should have done. Now that they are in the financial mess because of lack of

leadership over the years, now they are saying we have to make a Sustainability

Plan. It should have been done ten years ago, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, back in 2006 and I will not go through them all; I will just

go through some there was a big splash, this government. We are talking about

taxes on people. That is what we are talking about here today, the big splash

and all the fees. Guess what, Mr. Speaker? Since that big splash, guess what,

Mr. Speaker? Just about every item that was decreased then is increased.

MR. S. COLLINS: What about the seniors?

MR. JOYCE: Mr. Speaker, the Member for Terra Nova is talking about the

seniors. Are you talking about the seniors who have no long-term care beds out

there? Are those the ones you are talking about? Is that the ones who are

talking about the Member for Humber East is finally going to try to get the wing

open

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. JOYCE: Are those the seniors you are talking about, the Member for

Terra Nova? If you want to talk about the seniors, you

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the member to direct his comments to the Chair.

The Member for the Bay of Islands.

MR. JOYCE: Mr. Speaker, can you ask the Member for Terra Nova, if he

wants to talk about the seniors, ask him to go out and talk about the people who

are waiting for the long-term care beds that were promised back in 2010 by this

government. Now, with the minister himself, the Minister of Natural Resources,

the Member for Humber East said out in the media publicly you want to talk

about seniors, I say to the Member for Terra Nova, Mr. Speaker.

We made a mistake when we did the long-term care. We made a mistake. I said

it, you said it publicly, I have it here on record, I can show it to you I can

show it. That is what you said. Mr. Speaker, if you want to talk about seniors,

I am ready to talk about seniors.

Look at the hospital rooms gone up. Historic sites, seniors now have to pay

to get into our parks. The seniors have to pay this year. Certificate for

teachers, ferries how many seniors ride the ferries here in this Province now

have to pay a 10 per cent increase? How many seniors from Bell Island who come

across for a doctor's appointment now have to pay an increase to get back and

forth? If you want to talk about seniors, let us talk about it.

When they used to do their online, Mr. Speaker, and get a 10 per cent

discount. Guess what? Seniors now do not get it. If you want to talk about

seniors, I have no problem talking about seniors, Mr. Speaker. I really feel

that seniors, at times, are being neglected. A lot of these hidden fees are

being passed on to the seniors.

Mr. Speaker, I am going to shock the members opposite and I am going to shock

the people. I am going to agree with a statement the Premier made. I am going to

agree with a statement that the Premier of this Province made. Mr. Speaker, here

is what the Premier said in this House, "One thing we are not going to do is

continue to have waste, extravagance, and poor spending in this government."

AN HON. MEMBER: When did she say that?

MR. JOYCE: Ten years later she said, it was either this week or last week

in the House of Assembly, they are not going to go ahead and have "waste,

extravagance, and poor spending in this government." Now, that is what the

Premier of this Province said in the last couple of days in this House of

Assembly.

Let's just go over some of that spending, Mr. Speaker. Guess what? Who was

the Minister of Natural Resources when they wasted $30 million in Parsons Pond?

AN HON. MEMBER: Who?

MR. JOYCE: The Premier of this Province.

Mr. Speaker, how about the $11 million for the pellet plant which has not

created one job and has not sent one pellet overseas? Who was the minister? It

was the Premier at this time. That is $41 million.

Let's talk about the office in Ottawa, the so-called office in Ottawa. For

two-and-a-half to three years they had someone at the next office to go pick up

the newspapers to drop it off. There was not enough room for the newspapers in

the mailbox at the office in Ottawa, for five years. That is part of it.

Let's talk about the expropriation of the Abitibi mill, $200 million. Who was

the minister? It was the current Premier. So when she makes those statements I

have to agree with her, but too bad it took her ten years to realize that, Mr.

Speaker.

Let's talk about the $12 million for the Rural Secretariat gone. What did

they do? Nothing; $12 million.

Let's talk about the big Department of Business, the $30 million wasted and

not one project. I remember the Member for Gander when he was in the Department

of Business. If it was not for taxpayers' money, it would almost be funny. When

the minister at the time got in the media and said: We have some files that are

very, very hot. Thirty million dollars later, Mr. Speaker, not one project out

of the Department of Business. Now it is scrapped. So if you want to keep

talking, that is $283 million just right there.

Let's talk about some of the senior management hired, how much the senior

management has gone up. We just saw a new ADM for Education. There were 1,200 to

1,800 people kicked out and a new ADM of Education, when the Minister of Finance

himself said: There would be no more jobs hired unless I give the okay. So I

guess the minister gave the okay for that because he was hired.

Just to let you know, now I am not attacking this person's qualifications, I

do not know this person's qualifications, but I can tell you one thing. Before

he was hired as ADM, he was laid off at the Eastern School Board as part of the

layoffs with the superstructure with the school boards. Coincidentally, then he

gets hired as ADM of Education. I do not know the person's qualifications. I

would not know the person if I walked over him, but when you see 1,200 to 1,800

people laid off in this Province and then you see another person get a

six-figure salary, you have to ask the question.

Look at Ross Reid

AN HON. MEMBER: Who?

MR. JOYCE: Ross Reid. What is he, growth and something, population

growth?

Look at Don Downer, our good friends out there with the sustainable land

development for the last three or four years. If you ever want to talk about a

great make-work project that this government created, let's look at the

sustainable land development which has no liabilities, that has no legal

obligation for any municipalities. In 2010, I think he claimed $39,000 plus

expenses.

AN HON. MEMBER: What?

MR. JOYCE: Thirty-nine, and he is still going. I asked the other day when

it was going to keep going, we do not know. It is just unbelievable.

If you want to talk about waste, Mr. Speaker, we will not get into John

Noseworthy whatsoever. We will not get into John Noseworthy.

Mr. Speaker, I have to talk a bit quicker because I have a lot to say. Let's

talk about this $1.6 billion deficit, supposedly, we are going to have. Let's

just talk about it for a second. The Premier was out there, I think it was in

Corner Brook at the time, and said: We will not have the $1.6 billion, I can

guarantee you that.

Do you know why they can guarantee that? There was $8 billion of oil that

either the Minister of Finance at the time could not locate, was incompetent to

know it was in the department. You can pick a choice, you knew it was there or

you are incompetent and did not know. When the new Minister of Finance came in

he said he did an audit down at the C-NLOPB and they found oil. Now you can pick

your choice of what it was.

If the Minister of Finance did that and did his due diligence, I congratulate

you. I congratulate you because it saved this Province a lot of money. The

former minister, Mr. Speaker, you can pick your choice. Did you know it was

there or did you not know it was there? You were the minister, and 8 million

barrels of oil, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the Member for Bay of Islands, once again, direct his comments to the

Chair.

The hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR. JOYCE: Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, you can ask him if he knew or he did not know. Obviously, it was

one of the two, either you knew or you did not know. If you did not know about 8

million barrels of oil, you can see why we are in such a financial mess now, Mr.

Speaker. That is all I have to say on that one, Mr. Speaker.

I am going to speak for a few minutes on the school boards, Mr. Speaker. I

know the Member for Humber West. I would love for the Member for Humber West to

stand up now, I will even give up my time, and say to his people at the school

board, the administrators, say to his buddies out in Corner Brook: I support

scrapping the school board in Corner Brook. Stand up and say: I would like to

see the school board scrapped.

MR. GRANTER: (Inaudible).

MR. JOYCE: I say to the Member for Humber West, because I know, Mr.

Speaker, I know the Member for Humber West

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. JOYCE: I know the Member for Humber West did not stand up when it

came to the hospital. I gave him five or six opportunities to stand up. Guess

what? What was said at that private, privileged meeting with the city council,

he privy to at the hospital, came through. The hospital was downgraded. It was

right sized.

Here we are now, Mr. Speaker, with the school boards. It was right sized. Mr.

Speaker, the Member for Humber West has lots of opportunity to go out there in

Corner Brook and talk about it, I can guarantee you that.

Now, Mr. Speaker, we have the letter from Central Nova about how they did not

know about the school boards being cut. Mr. Speaker, in the letter they sent

and each member here will have a chance to stand up on their own to speak about

it. They said they contacted seven of the nine members, Mr. Speaker.

The Member for Baie Verte Springdale, was he one of the nine who said, just

a few days prior: No, there is going to be no consolidation of school boards?

Was it the Member for Bonavista North? Because seven of them told the school