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April

21, 2015

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLVII No. 71

The

House met at 11:00 a.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Verge):

Order, please!

Admit

strangers.

Please

be seated.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS:

Mr. Speaker, His Honour the Lieutenant Governor has arrived.

MR. SPEAKER:

Admit His Honour the

Lieutenant Governor.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS:

All rise.

[Mr.

Speaker leaves the Chair]

[His

Honour the Lieutenant Governor takes the Chair]

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS:

It is the wish of His

Honour the Lieutenant Governor that all parties be seated.

HIS HONOUR THE LIEUTENANT

GOVERNOR (Frank F. Fagan, CM, ONL, MBA):

Mr. Speaker and Members of

the Honourable House of Assembly :

The

Third Session of the Forty-Seventh General Assembly of the honourable House of

Assembly is about to be prorogued, but before releasing you from your duties, I

wish to express gratitude for the careful and sympathetic attention that you

have given to important matters brought to you by our Ministers.

Openness and Accountability

During

this session, members passed forty-one pieces of legislation.

A prominent theme of our Government's legislative agenda was openness and

accountability.

Bill 1

gave our Province its first Public

Interest Disclosure And Whistleblower Protection Act .

The Act provides a mechanism for the disclosure and investigation of

wrongdoings in or relating to the public service that an employee believes may

be unlawful, dangerous to the public or injurious to the public interest.

It also protects persons who make disclosures under the Act from

reprisals.

Bill 6

amended the City of Corner Brook Act ,

the City of Mount Pearl Act , the

City of St. John's Act and the

Municipalities Act, 1999 to allow a

council to appoint one or more youth representatives.

Bill 8

introduced the Publication of

Adjudication Tribunal Decisions Amendment Act , which requires the

publication of decisions of adjudication tribunals in all cases, although an

individual can apply to the court to seek that certain information be withheld

from publication.

Bill 22

amended the Labour Relations Act to

provide workers with a mandatory secret ballot to vote on a union certification

application, and to amend the conciliation process.

Bill 24

amended the Labour Relations Act and

the Public Service Collective Bargaining

Act to repeal provisions respecting vote on offer.

Public Safety

Other

legislative amendments brought forward by our Government advance public safety.

Bill 4

amended the Mental Health Care and

Treatment Act to clarify to whom a rights advisor may offer advice and

assistance; to add a requirement for a rights advisor to contact a person who is

an involuntary patient or who is under a community treatment order and his or

her representative within ten days of the first meeting between the rights

advisor and the person; and to remove the requirement for a community treatment

order to contain an undertaking by the person who is the subject of the order.

Bill 14

introduced the Emergency 911 Act ,

which established 911 as the primary emergency telephone number for use in the

Province; and required the establishment and implementation of a Province-wide

emergency 911 telephone service for the reporting of emergencies.

Bill 29

amended the Highway Traffic Act to

clarify the rules and improve the safety of roundabouts, rotary traffic islands

and traffic circles.

Bill 32

amended the Registered Nurses Act, 2008 ,

to add regulation-making authority respecting quality assurance; to add quality

assurance provisions to enhance public protection and accountability; and to

allow the complaints authorization committee to refer an allegation to the

quality assurance committee, allowing concerns to be addressed before they

become more serious and require engagement in the disciplinary process.

Bill 36

introduced a new Missing Persons Act

to allow members of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and the Royal Canadian

Mounted Police to access records about a missing person that may assist them in

locating the missing person; and to enter a dwelling or other premises to search

for a missing minor or vulnerable person.

This legislation represents a significant advance in public safety.

Bill 37

amended the Highway Traffic Act to

require all persons riding a bicycle to wear a helmet.

Bill 38

amended the Social Workers Act to add

quality assurance provisions to enhance public protection and accountability.

These quality assurance measures provide further checks and balances

within the profession to ensure that social workers are delivering the best

services and care to the people who rely and depend on their expertise.

Fiscal Responsibility

Other

legislative amendments represent our Government's determination to be fiscally

responsible in managing the Province's affairs.

Bill 39

amended the Pensions Funding Act and

Public Service Pensions Act, 1991 , to reflect the Public Service Pension

Plan Reform Agreement executed on September 2, 2014.

Bill 40

covered other provisions of pension reform with a new Act the

Other Post-Employment Benefits

Eligibility Modification Act .

Bill 42

amended the Electoral Boundaries Act

to require the electoral boundaries commission to report upon the delimitation

of the Province into districts in 2015; reduce the number of one-member

districts in the Province; and make consequential amendments for the purpose of

a commission report in 2015.

Governance and

Administration

Still

other legislative amendments improve governance and administration in the

Province.

Bill 15

amended the Mineral Act to allow a

mineral licence to be extended for an additional ten-year period beyond the

twenty-year extension period and prescribe requirements for licence holders who

retain licences during that additional period; and amended the requirements for

renewing a mining lease.

Bill 19

amended the Dispensing Opticians Act,

2005 to remove the restriction that a dispensing optician may only supply

contact lenses where a prescription specifically indicates that they may be

supplied; and to clarify that a dispensing optician who is authorized by the

board to fit contact lenses may convert a prescription in order to fit, dispense

or supply contact lenses, consistent with the laws of other provinces.

Bill 20

amended the Income Tax Act, 2000 to

provide for a tax credit in respect of a qualifying investment in a qualifying

venture capital fund.

Bill 26

amended the Revenue Administration Act

to establish a procedure for the issuance of electronic clearance certificates.

Bill 27

introduced a brand new Chartered

Professional Accountants and Public Accountants Act to merge the professions

of Chartered Accountant, Certified Management Accountant, and Certified General

Accountant into the profession of Chartered Professional Accountant.

Bill 30

introduced a new Child Care Act to

modernize and strengthen the legislation, reflecting current knowledge in the

child care field, streamlining policies and processes, increasing transparency

and providing flexibility for licensees.

Bill 41

amended the Municipalities Act, 1999 ,

to provide greater flexibility to municipalities to sell, lease, or dispose of

real and personal property that has an estimated fair market value of $500 or

more.

Among

the other legislative measures enacted during this session was an additional

bill to amend the Revenue Administration

Act , plus a bill to amend the Revenue

Administration Act and the Tax Agreement Act, 2010 ; a second bill to amend

the Income Tax Act, 2000 ; two Interim

Supply bills; and bills to amend the

Health Professions Act , the Student

Financial Assistance Act , the Fish

Processing Licensing Board Act , the

Loan Act , the Loan and Guarantee Act,

1957 , the Elections Act, 1991 ,

the Provincial Offences Act , the

Vital Statistics Act, 2009 , and the

Provincial Court Act, 1991 .

The House enacted a new Atlantic

Provinces Harness Racing Commission Act and repealed the

Printing Services Act .

Summary

summary, our Government's legislative initiatives in 2014-15 enhanced openness

and accountability, advanced public safety, reflected sound fiscal management,

and improved governance and administration in the Province.

I thank

you for the large measure of Supply you have granted.

I assure you the appropriations you have granted have been and will be

expended by our Ministers with care and efficiency.

It is

my pleasure that the Third Session of the Forty-Seventh General Assembly now be

prorogued and is prorogued accordingly.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS:

All rise.

[His

Honour the Lieutenant Governor leaves the Chamber].

[Mr.

Speaker returns to the Chair].

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

Pursuant to the Speech from His Honour, this House now stands prorogued.