March 5,

2012 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS Vol.

XLVII No. 2

The House met at 2:00 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Wiseman): Order, please!

Please be seated.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: Mr. Speaker, the Justices of the Supreme Court have

arrived.

MR. SPEAKER: Admit the Justices of the Supreme Court.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: Mr. Speaker, His Honour the Lieutenant Governor has

arrived.

MR. SPEAKER: Admit His Honour the Lieutenant Governor.

[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 present be seated.

PREMIER DUNDERDALE: May it please Your Honour, the House of Assembly,

agreeable to Your Honour's command, have proceeded to the choice of a Speaker

and have elected Ross Wiseman, Esquire, Member for the District of Trinity

North, to that office, and by their direction I present him for Your Honour's

approval.

HIS HONOUR THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR (John C. Crosbie, PC, OC, ONL, QC): On

behalf of Her Majesty, I assure you of my sense of your efficiency and I do most

fully approve and confirm you as Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Your Honour having approved the choice of this House in

constituting me as their Speaker, it now becomes my duty in the name of the

representatives of Her Majesty's loyal subjects, the people of the Province,

respectfully to claim of Your Honour their accustomed rights and privileges,

especially that they shall have freedom of speech in their debates, that they

may be free from arrest during their attendance in Parliament, and that I, as

Speaker, may have full access to Your Honour's presence at all reasonable times

and that they have confirmed to them all their ancient rights and privileges

which have been confirmed to them by Your Honour's predecessors.

HIS HONOUR THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: Mr. Speaker, I do confirm this House,

on behalf of Her Majesty, in the enjoyment of all its ancient and undoubted

rights and privileges.

I made a mistake of starting to read the Speech from the Throne standing the

first time I gave it, and I am going to sit, if it is all right with hon.

members, while I read this marvellous document.

Celebrating Our Heritage

Diamond Jubilee

Mr. Speaker and Members of the House of Assembly:

It was on a Wednesday, the 6 th of February, 1952 just a week

after my 21 st birthday that King George VI passed away. These two

events were not, of course, associated together; it just so happened. His eldest

daughter, only 25 at the time, inherited a burden of responsibility the weight

of which none of us can truly comprehend. Canada was the very first Commonwealth

realm to proclaim Her Majesty's accession to the throne, with a prayer that God

would bless our new Queen, "with long and happy years to reign over us."

Long and happy years they have indeed been, and throughout 2012, Newfoundlanders

and Labradorians will join others around the world in celebrating the very rare

Diamond Jubilee. Once as Princess and three times as Queen, Her Majesty has

honoured Newfoundlanders and Labradorians with a visit. As we embark on a year

of commemorations, we convey to Her Majesty not only our joy, gratitude and

profound respect, but also our hopes and prayers for the years to come. As the

prayer in the third verse of the Royal Anthem states: "Thy choicest gifts in

store, / On Her be pleased to pour; / Long may She reign: / May She defend our

laws, / And ever give us cause / To sing with heart and voice / God save The

Queen."

The Colonial Building

Of our many Sovereigns, only one other marked the Diamond Jubilee: Queen

Victoria, who reigned for 63 years and seven months. It was in the tenth year of

Victoria's reign, 1847, that construction began on the Colonial Building, the

site where Responsible government was given to Newfoundland in 1855. In the

coming year, My Government will advance the restoration of this historic site,

which also served as our province's first official legislature. Once restored,

the Colonial Building will be a flagship Provincial Historic Site, a place where

residents of and visitors to Newfoundland and Labrador can step back through

those ionic columns to learn about our unique and colourful history interpreted

within. Excuse me, I developed a cold this morning so I may have to take a sip

from time to time.

Soldiers, Sacrifices and Security

Ours is a history written with the blood of sacrifice. The freedoms we

cherish were purchased by heroic Newfoundlanders and Labradorians willing to lay

down their lives that others might reap from the crimson soil a harvest of

peace. From Beaumont-Hamel and Monchy-le-Preux to Suvla Bay, the stories are

told of valour unsurpassed. To all who suffered and all who died, we owe our

gratitude and honour. It is atop their proud shoulders that we stand tall. This

year marks the 200 th anniversary of the War of 1812, where the

Newfoundland Regiment as it was then called served gallantly in what is now

Ontario and in the United States in the battles of Crysler's Farm in 1813 and

Lundy's Lane at Niagara Falls in 1814. A century later, our soldiers' heroism

was immortalized at such places as Gallipoli in 1915, Beaumont-Hamel in 1916 and

Masnires in 1917. As the 100 th anniversary of World War I

approaches, My Government is working with others both locally and

internationally to develop initiatives by which we will commemorate, as we must,

the sacrifices of all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who served.

Even today, our sons and daughters are serving to secure peace and save

lives. On the front lines overseas and in training missions here at home,

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are stepping into harm's way to deliver others

from peril. Whether in combat or preparation for combat, as protectors of the

peace or guardians of the vulnerable, they deserve our gratitude and our

admiration for all they do.

Just as Newfoundland and Labrador has played a strategic role in national and

international defence in times past, we can play a strategic role in times to

by investing in defence infrastructure and initiatives at key centres such 5

Wing Goose Bay, 9 Wing Gander and Canadian Forces Station St. John's on our

country's easternmost flank.

Canada has a responsibility, not only to ensure the security of our nation's

coasts, but also to ensure the safety of those who travel them. Whether it is

fishers sailing the seas in boats or rig workers skimming the seas in

provide the resources to enable Coast Guard and Search and Rescue personnel to

respond promptly and effectively to emergencies.

Sadly, there are times when searches end tragically. We as a people have

witnessed far too many terrible endings. While each and every tragedy is

profoundly felt by the loved ones of those it touches, some grip the hearts of

people far and wide. Such has been the impact of the death of fourteen-year-old

Burton Winters in January on the icy coast near Makkovik. Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians will never forget his fierce determination to get back home to the

ones he loved. We are heartbroken by his loss. We mourn for the many like Burton

whose lives have been so tragically cut short. Even in recent days, we have been

reminded how swiftly a tragedy can strike. We also share the burden of those who

brave the elements to search for the missing, putting their own lives in

jeopardy to focus on others. Sometimes, even the most vigorous and valiant

rescue efforts are unsuccessful. As we remember those we miss, let us also

honour those whose extraordinary efforts are dedicated to bringing people home.

Sons, daughters and friends of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians serve bravely in

vital Search and Rescue capacities. As we pause for a moment now to reflect on

those we have lost, let us also remember those who serve and comment them for

their selfless dedication.

I think a moment of silence is in order at this time as we remember them.

[A moment of silence is observed]

HIS HONOUR THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: To carry on now with the Speech from

the Throne:

Energized for the Future

A New Mandate

Mr. Speaker and Members of the House of Assembly:

The responsibility for representing the best interests and legitimate

aspirations of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians rests on the shoulders of the

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Elected with a fresh and decisive

mandate in October of 2011, My Government is fully prepared to bear that

responsibility with new energy and firm resolve. Our Premier is celebrating our

province's strengths and vigorously pursuing new opportunities for growth in

dealings with Canada's other First Ministers, American Governors and leaders of

industry, whom she meets with, both nationally and internationally. The people

of our province share this determination to realize our full potential. How far

we have come already! We have finally embraced our newfound status as one of

Canada's leading economies, buoyed with confidence and optimism that we are

poised to witness successes unprecedented in Newfoundland and Labrador's

history.

Those successes hinge on the choices we make today. Whether we are talking

about 30 years from now, or ten years from now, or two years from now, the

future we reap will be determined by the seeds we sow the choices we make

right here, right now. We will not allow poor choices based on failed

philosophies and narrow agendas to reverse every gain we have worked so hard to

achieve and squander the very opportunities that our approach this past eight

years has made possible.

Three Objectives Moving Forward

To ensure Newfoundland and Labrador takes maximum advantage of the

unprecedented opportunities before us right now, My Government will focus this

year on three principal objectives:

The first is to refocus the Government's approach to the delivery of services

to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The second is to give Newfoundlanders and Labradorians the added support they

may require to seize career opportunities.

The third is to improve the conditions that give businesses and communities

the power to grow.

These three objectives encompass everything our Government does, so this

year's strategy is an ambitious one. What follows are some details of the ways

My Government intends to make progress on all three of these objectives in the

year ahead.

Focused on Priorities

Accountable, Adaptable, Responsive Government

Refocusing the Government's approach to service delivery is vital. The world

is changing. Technology is advancing. Governments must adapt. Public service

delivery in the 21 st century does not have to be complicated. It must

be focused. It must be flexible. It must be responsive to the needs of our

people and receptive to feedback from those it serves. It must be transparent

and accountable.

My Government's commitment to accountability is solid. This is the Government

that proclaimed the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act

and strengthened its provisions. This is the Government that introduced the

Transparency and Accountability Act and the Lobbyist Registration Act .

This is the Government that opened the books of the House of Assembly to the

Auditor General, commissioned the Green Report and led the implementation of its

sweeping recommendations to overhaul House of Assembly operations. This is the

Government that began legislating and publishing performance-based plans and

progress reports from government departments and agencies. This is the

Government that commissioned Justice Margaret Cameron to inquire into failures

of hormone receptor testing and recommend sweeping reforms, and then took action

to implement those recommendations. This is the Government that has repeatedly

earned the praise of the Auditor General for exceeding targets in acting on the

recommendations of the annual reports of this independent office of the House of

Assembly. My Government will build on this solid record by bringing forward

amendments to the Public Tender Act and the Access to Information and

Protection of Privacy Act .

A Clear Focus on Priorities

Just as My Government will strengthen accountability, it will also take

measures to ensure public service delivery is versatile to adapt to people's

changing needs, user-friendly and clearly focused on priorities. Each department

will undertake a structured review of departmental functions to identify

opportunities to do things better. These reviews will be complemented by

cross-departmental studies and ongoing reviews of the province's Regional Health

Authorities. The objective is to ensure all the Government's personnel and

resources are focused first and foremost on delivering high-priority services

and achieving high-priority goals. This process will identify not only the

current best practices for service delivery, but also innovative approaches to

deliver services more effectively.

A Responsible Approach to Fiscal Management

My Government's 2011 policy Blue Book makes a commitment that: "The pace of

growth of public investments must be sustainable. Our commitment to fiscal

sustainability is firm. In implementing the commitments identified in this Blue

Book and in fulfilling our responsibilities as a Government, we will ensure

annual provincial expenditures do not grow beyond the level our economy can

sustain." My Government stands by these words.

When facing the global recession two years ago, My Government opted to take a

long-term, multi-year approach to fiscal management. It opted to bridge the

period of decline in private sector activity by accelerating the pace of growth

in public investments, knowing it would be ratcheting back the rate of growth

once the recession was over. This was the right approach, and it worked. The

two-year period of accelerated growth did precisely what it was intended to do.

No province weathered the downturn more successfully than Newfoundland and

Labrador. Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney said our approach served as a

model for the country. Now that the recession has ended and private sector

activity in this province is rebounding, this is the right time to contain the

pace of public investment growth to ensure we continue to live within our fiscal

means.

Just as a multi-year approach enabled us to bridge a short-term dip in

private sector activity, it can also enable us to bridge the short-term dip in

public sector revenue we are facing in the next two years. My Government has

prepared Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to expect revenues to dip in 2012 and

2013 as federal payments under the Atlantic Accord end, two offshore platforms

are taken offline for refits and the volume of oil production is reduced. To

achieve balanced budgets in those two years, the province would need to reduce

expenditures so precipitously that critical services could be compromised.

Rather than take such a rigid, shortsighted approach, My Government has opted

once again to take a long-term, multi-year approach to fiscal management. It is

determined to achieve efficiencies and to maximize the value of every public

dollar spent; but to ensure vital programs are not compromised when revenues

swing due to circumstances beyond its control, My Government has established a

longer-term debt reduction target. Already, it has reduced the province's burden

of debt by more than a third from a high of $12 billion to an estimated $7.7

billion at March 31, 2012, diverting hundreds of millions from interest payments

to high-priority initiatives and tax relief. Improving Newfoundland and

Labrador's debt position even more in the next ten years to achieve the same

per-capita debt as the Canadian average is a goal the province can reach through

discipline in spending and the allocation of a significant portion of surpluses

to debt reduction, while allowing for periodic deficits. Debt reduction is not

an end in and of itself, but a means of strengthening our economy to leave our

children a legacy of growth. This is the responsible way forward, and

Newfoundland and Labrador will be stronger for taking it.

Health Care Advances

In moving forward with a long-term, multi-year approach, My Government

remains committed to the delivery of health care services, a critical area of

provincial responsibility. In fact, My Government has been improving health care

deliveries to such an extent that Newfoundland and Labrador, once a laggard, is

now a leader in cardiac care. We know that having access to the best tools to

diagnose and treat cardiac disease is crucial in our province, and our

investments reflect our commitment. The redevelopment of two of our cardiac

catheterization laboratories in Eastern Health and the addition of a third cath

lab is enabling us to treat more cardiac patients from throughout the province.

We have also invested in the latest in new technologies when it comes to cardiac

care, which is key to recruiting cardiologists. Health care professionals are

travelling to this province to learn best practices in cardiac surgery. Imagine

that!

My Government is taking the lead to ensure Newfoundland and Labrador becomes

a centre of excellence in other health disciplines as well and raises the bar

nationally in the delivery of health care services. Every health care dollar

must be spent as effectively as possible, particularly in light of changes the

Federal Government is imposing on future health transfers which will constrain

growth in our share. Our Premier, with her colleagues at the Council of the

Federation meeting in January, established a national Health Care Innovation

Working Group to drive collaboration and innovation to provide better care for

seniors, elders and all Canadians. Our Minister of Health and Community Services

just fulfilled two election commitments by announcing strategies to reduce wait

times for emergency departments and hip and knee joint replacement surgeries.

My Government will also be making strategic investments in the Long-Term Care

and Community Supports Services sector to address the significant growth in the

home support program and ensure existing and new clients receive the care

required. As promised in the Blue Book, policy improvements are being developed

that, firstly, will realign patient care funding so it is based on a patient's

assessed need and, secondly, will create options for receiving that care from

family members. My Government will introduce legislation to ensure that clients

of our drug programs pay less for generic drugs. At the same time, we are in

dialogue with the Pharmacy Association to mitigate the impact of reduced

revenues to pharmacies, especially small pharmacies in rural areas. In these and

others ways, My Government will build in the year ahead on the major advances it

has made in health care delivery in the past eight years.

Child Protection

Another critical area of provincial responsibility is child protection, which

My Government has strengthened through the creation three years ago of the new

Department of Child, Youth and Family Services. The Department will complete the

transfer of all staff from the Regional Health Authorities this month and is

moving toward full implementation of improved service delivery. With the new

Children and Youth Care and Protection Act now proclaimed, My Government

will better serve the varied and complex needs of children and youth. A key

component of this plan involves fundamental changes to our foster care system,

providing greater supports for foster parents in recognition of the vital role

they play in caring for children most at risk. In addition, the child protection

program will provide services and supports to families to address children at

risk and help them remain in their own homes. For those who cannot be returned

to their families, My Government will make it easier for these children to be

adopted into permanent homes. These improvements to our child protection system

illustrate the advances we can achieve throughout the public service by focusing

more clearly on priorities. Complementing these initiatives will be ongoing

efforts to combat bullying and child exploitation.

Ready to Work

Career Opportunities and Labour Supply

The second objective My Government will focus on this year is to make it

easier for employers to attract the skilled workers they require while making it

easier for individuals to find the skilled careers they need. Through an

unprecedented series of investments in public post-secondary education, My

Government has already given Newfoundland and Labrador students the best student

aid program and among the lowest tuition fees in the country. Over the course of

the four-year term ahead, My Government will continue to hold the line on

tuition fee increases at Memorial University and the College of the North

Atlantic and shift the balance from student loans to grants.

In the skilled trades, graduates require on-the-job-experience and

professional certification. In this year's Budget, My Government is introducing

and expanding programs to help apprentices progress through to journeyperson

status. We are increasing employer participation and employment opportunities

for apprentices. We are increasing employment opportunities within government;

we are increasing opportunities for seasoned workers to become certified, for

training and advanced training for under-represented groups; and we are

increasing awareness of the benefits of hiring apprentices. We are also

providing additional supports and plans to address barriers for apprentices and

journeypersons.

We are continuing to improve the participation rates of women in

non-traditional skilled trades. Having established the Office of Women

Apprenticeship, My Government will work to finalize Gender Equity Plans for the

Hebron project, Hibernia South, the St. Lawrence fluorspar mine reactivation

project and the proposed Alderon project, among others. We will also continue

review and compliance monitoring for approved Gender Equity Plans including Vale

Inco's Long Harbour operation, the Rambler Mines project, and the Labrador Iron

Mines and Tata Steel Minerals Canada operations in Labrador. All future resource

development projects in the province will require such provisions.

There are tremendous opportunities in our province for women, not only in the

skilled trades, but also in business. To help support women entrepreneurs and

encourage young women to pursue future careers in business, My Government will

build on its partnership with the Newfoundland and Labrador Organization of

Women Entrepreneurs (NLOWE) to advance the Business Connections program.

Together, they will link women-led businesses with specific opportunities on the

local, national and international stage. Some of these opportunities will relate

to the major industrial projects on our horizon.

Some industrial employers will face challenges finding local workers. My

Government will move forward this year to create a Workforce Development

Secretariat to link industrial development and employment opportunities with

people who are ready to do the work. While we will work vigorously to ensure

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians benefit first and fully from these employment

opportunities, other workers will also be required. As people move here from

outside the province to meet labour market needs, we will welcome them with open

arms, encouraging them to sink down deep roots and make Newfoundland and

Labrador home. We have finally started to turn the corner toward population

growth, and we look forward to building on those gains.

Recognizing that the foundations for personal achievement are established in

childhood, My Government will build on the unprecedented investments of the past

eight years to further advance the quality and breadth of our province's K-12

education system.

Two additional incentives will help people to capitalize on new opportunities

in our province. My Government will be moving forward with a Provincial Strategy

for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Newfoundland and Labrador. It

will also be releasing a new poverty reduction action plan. Both strategies will

include measures to assist people who wish to make the transition to employment.

Power to Grow

Strength Through Diversification

The third objective My Government will focus on this year is to fuel

sustainable economic growth. Newfoundlanders and Labradorians understand the

importance of diversification for growth. Ours was once an economy grounded

exclusively on the export of fish. As recently as the nineteen nineties, we

learned how devastating a sharp decline in that one sector could be for hundreds

of our communities and tens of thousands of our people. Today, because of

diversification, some regions are buffered against the consequences of sharp

downward spikes in the demand or supply of specific export commodities. With a

broad base plus provincial support, both Stephenville and Grand Falls-Windsor

were able to weather the loss of their pulp and paper industries. When

communities experience losses of employment in major industries, My Government

remains determined to work with the people of these communities to minimize the

impacts. This Government has a record of standing steadfastly beside towns

facing struggles, rolling up its sleeves and finding solutions. But My

Government's principal strategy is to be proactive, fortifying our regions

against such downturns by broadening and diversifying the economic foundations

to enhance our regions' long-term stability. There are several approaches we can

take. Innovation is one of the most powerful.

The "Blue" Economy

BMO Capital Markets, in its Blue Book for February 2012, reported, "The mood

among our customers in Newfoundland & Labrador is definitely more optimistic

than it was just six months ago". The report went on to give one of the reasons

for this optimism, stating that: "The province is also becoming a key centre for

innovation. As the host for the Ocean Sciences Centre at Memorial University and

a growing expertise on oil & gas, deep water drilling and deep water

exploration, Newfoundland & Labrador now boasts some of the best ocean science

expertise in the world."

My Government is implementing a five-year, $28 million ocean technology

strategy to collaborate with our local cluster in support of its goal to

increase the value of our "blue" economy to a billion dollars by 2015. Ocean

technology products, services and expertise are being marketed, not just

nationally, but around the world, and Newfoundland and Labrador is establishing

itself as an epicentre of ocean technology. Through sustained partnerships with

educational and research institutions and industry, the province will support

innovators from the idea phase through initial business start-up to

commercialization. A partnership with Memorial University's Genesis Centre has

already helped with the development of five new ocean technology companies. Our

significant investment in C-CORE will enhance our capacity to engage in northern

resource development projects, leveraging our unique location and established

strength in developing solutions for harsh environments. We look forward to

continued collaboration with Memorial University, its Marine Institute and

OceansAdvance to further enhance the research and industrial capacity of our

vibrant sector.

Innovation Enhancement

In other leading-edge sectors, such as life sciences and green technologies,

knowledge-driven advances are turning heads towards Newfoundland and Labrador.

Investments in Memorial University's Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science

and the Fisheries and Marine Institute will position Newfoundland and Labrador

for innovation and growth. The province's Research & Development Corporation

will continue to foster partnerships with industry and academia and drive for

success in priority areas such as ocean technology, energy and mining. My

Government is also encouraging the private sector to invest in innovation to

enhance the competitiveness of local enterprises, large and small. Expanded

incentives under My Government's Innovation Strategy are driving growth, not

only in larger centres but in rural communities as well.

The Fisheries

The province's billion-dollar fishing industry remains among Newfoundland and

Labrador's most important. While there are significant challenges, as we all

know in some areas of the fisheries, My Government has been working vigorously

to build partnerships and find solutions to these challenges. The fishing

industry has been studied for decades. We have a good understanding of the

structural deficiencies that serve as impediments to progress. To effect change,

we need the collective will to come together for a common purpose, to set aside

old agendas and work together to address the core problems. My Government is

there. It is imperative that all partners come to the table with a firm resolve

to move forward.

Sometimes, with so much focus on the challenges, people lose sight of the

opportunities available in global seafood markets and the successes we are

achieving in building a stronger fishing industry. Under the province's

Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program, we will continue to fund

industry-led development projects in the fishing industry, leveraging additional

dollars to drive research and development. Newfoundland and Labrador is rapidly

becoming the growth centre in Canada for aquaculture, an important contributor

to our economy in rural and coastal communities. Continuing investments in

aquaculture will enhance biosecurity to safeguard our reputation for product

excellence in this growing industry. The new Coastal and Ocean Management

Strategy and Policy Framework will advance growth in ocean industries by

balancing interests and safeguarding ecosystems. The province is working with

fish processing companies on the establishment of seafood sales consortia.

Better market intelligence, export development and targeted promotion will

enable this province to increase the value, and enhance the economic benefits,

of this billion-dollar industry for the people of the province.

Industries, Regions and Communities

In other sectors as well, Newfoundland and Labrador is growing. The gross

value of mineral shipments is forecast to exceed $5.6 billion in 2012, while

corporate investments in mineral exploration, which hit a record high of $172

million in 2011, are projected to reach $234 million in 2012. Like shipments and

exploration, mining-related employment is also expected to reach a record high

this year.

Across all sectors, the level of private sector investment in Newfoundland

and Labrador this year is projected to exceed $8 billion, and public capital

spending this year will continue to be significant. Economic activity in our

province this year will be white hot.

Over the past eight years, My Government has invested billions of dollars in

infrastructure to improve the quality of life in our communities and lay a solid

foundation for new investment. The Trans-Labrador Highway is among the most

exciting initiatives to happen in our province's history, and its completion

remains among My Government's highest priorities. As part of continuing to

invest in the growth of communities and regions, My Government is developing a

new formula for municipal support which recognizes the contemporary nature of

municipal governance and is equitable and transparent. My Government is also

encouraging communities to work in partnership with their neighbours to share

service delivery wherever possible so that we can take advantage of economies of

scale, enhance capacity and promote growth. Through collaboration and

innovation, communities will be better able to deliver high-priority services to

the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Volunteers and non-profit organizations also have a vital role to play in

delivering services within communities, strengthening community infrastructure

and drawing people together just as such organizations have been doing so

effectively for centuries. My Government will work collectively with the

community organizations to develop innovative approaches to the increasingly

complex challenges our people and communities face; it will introduce

accountability provisions that measure performance outcomes and help community

organizations improve their overall impact; and it will investigate new

initiatives that reward results. It will nurture partnerships between and among

community, academic, private sector and government bodies because it believes

that effective collaboration has the power to make real change and enhance the

overall quality of life in our province.

From the smallest partnership to the largest project, Newfoundland and

Labrador is growing. Hebron is expected to make up some of that new growth as

the proponents take the last regulatory step before project sanction. The

ramp-up of Hebron construction at Bull Arm and other locations will further

drive growth and confidence. Together with Vale Inco's Long Harbour project,

Hebron fabrication demonstrates our capacity to add value to commodity

industries and enjoy the benefits of skills transfers. Having negotiated equity

partnerships in three offshore projects, My Government has established an

international reputation for strength and proficiency in the energy sector.

The Shift to Renewable Energy

We are about to take our energy sector leadership to new heights by advancing

another project in our energy warehouse. Among the most important things

Newfoundland and Labrador can do to fortify and grow our economy is to shift

from nonrenewable sources of fuel purchased on the world market to renewable

sources of fuel generated here at home. Wide swings in the price of oil mean

instability for jurisdictions that rely on oil to meet power needs. Muskrat

Falls gives us an alternative to fossil fuel an alternative that is not only

more stable but also less expensive than any other option.

The development of Muskrat Falls is needed to meet the electricity needs of

individuals, families and businesses in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the

least-cost means of meeting those electricity needs. The project will have the

added benefit of transitioning our province from reliance on greenhouse

gas-producing fuels to clean, green, renewable energy.

The Muskrat Falls development proposal has received more advance scrutiny

than any other project in Newfoundland and Labrador's history. It has been on

the drawing board for decades. Later this year, My Government will make its

sanction decision. A number of significant factors will inform the Government's

decision, including these:

In June 2011, the Government asked the province's Public Utilities Board to

review and report on whether the Muskrat Falls project represents the least-cost

option for the supply of power to Island Interconnected customers compared to

the Isolated Island development option. The deadline for the final PUB report is

March 31, in a few weeks time, 2012.

In August 2011, the Environmental Assessment Joint Review Panel released its

report on the Muskrat Falls generation project. The Government is completing its

review of the panel report, including its recommendations, and will communicate

its decision in the coming months. The Labrador-Island Link and the Maritime

Link are also registered for joint Federal/Provincial Environmental Assessment.

In August 2011, the Governments of Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador, and

Nova Scotia signed a Memorandum of Agreement to provide a loan guarantee for the

Muskrat Falls project.

In September 2011, Nalcor released an independent review of the Muskrat Falls

project undertaken by Navigant Consulting. The review validated the proposed

development of Muskrat Falls and the Labrador-Island Link as the long-term,

least-cost supply option for electricity consumers on the island of

Newfoundland.

In November 2011, the official signing of the Innu Land Claims

Agreement-in-Principle, the Lower Churchill Impacts and Benefits Agreement, and

the Upper Churchill Redress Agreement occurred, a major step.

In February 2012, as part of the PUB review, Manitoba Hydro released its

report that analyzed two generation expansion alternatives: Muskrat Falls, and

an Isolated Island system. Manitoba Hydro concluded that Muskrat Falls is the

least-cost option to supply power to customers on the Island to meet anticipated

load growth.

Last week, the Consumer Advocate affirmed the conclusion of Manitoba Hydro

that Muskrat Falls is the least-cost option for supplying energy to the

province.

If the Government decides to sanction the project, it will then take the

required actions, such as bringing forward the requisite legislation during

2012-13 so the project can move forward.

Partisan campaigns must not colour the Government's decision. Neither

unreasonable attacks nor fear to act should deny people the power they need at

the lowest cost. Failure to take the right course of action today would be no

different than taking the wrong course of action as happened a generation ago.

Muskrat Falls will be a decisive step toward energy self-reliance,

positioning the province not only for Gull Island development later on, but also

for the return of control of the Upper Churchill to Newfoundland and Labrador in

2041. In the decades to come, there will be sufficient renewable energy in

Labrador to fuel unprecedented growth throughout our province. Not only will we

have the natural resource commodities, the skilled workforce, the culture of

innovation and the solid backbone of reliable infrastructure that developers

require, but we will also have inexpensive power in bountiful supply. What we do

not use, we can sell to buyers hungry for power, generating revenue to grow our

province and benefit our people.

The Best is Yet to Come

Newfoundland and Labrador is ideally positioned to achieve growth the like of

which the province has never seen and few in this province ever imagined. This

growth is neither fortuitous nor inevitable. It will be achieved only if we

continue to make sound decisions and resist the calls to sell ourselves short

for lesser gains. It will be achieved only if people park their divisive agendas

and come together to partner for growth. This is true in all sectors, including

the fisheries. Surely it is time to put Newfoundland and Labrador's best

interests first, to forego the negativity and to focus on people so no one is

left behind. My Government has been given a decisive mandate to steer the course

and to build on the solid foundation it has established. By creating a healthy

climate for business growth and innovation, by supporting individuals as they

reach out to grasp the opportunities before them and by sharpening the focus of

the public service to concentrate on addressing high priorities, My Government

can ensure the peak in economic performance we are enjoying today becomes the

new high plateau on which we build a more prosperous society for our children

and grandchildren. Considering how far we have come already, we are right to be

optimistic, right to be confident and right to believe that the best is indeed

yet to come for Newfoundland and Labrador.

I am coming to the end of the formal address here, and I just want to make a

personal comment of my own, if the members will give me that leeway. It will not

take too long. I just want to make a personal comment at the end of this speech

in connection with the passing away last week, at eighty-four years of age, of

Megan Nutbeem (nee Moores) of Harbour Grace, another of the women of our

Province who has been of such importance to our families in communities

throughout our history.

The daughter of Dorothy Duff Moores and Silas Moores, a legendary fishing

entrepreneur in the development of the fresh and foreign fishing of the 1930s,

1940s and 1950s, and sister of our second Premier, Frank Moores, Megan had an

amazing zest for life. She was an acclaimed judge in purebred dog shows and one

of the important saviours of our famous Newfoundland dog breed, a very important

contribution she made to Newfoundland. Her daughter Devon is continuing her

impressive support of that noble breed.

I attended Harbour Grace yesterday to pay tribute to her and the

Moores-Nutbeem clan, and I do so again this afternoon with your forbearance.

Mr. Speaker and Members of the House of Assembly:

HIS HONOUR THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: Estimates of expenditure will be laid

before you in due course and you will be asked to grant supply to Her Majesty.

I invoke God's blessing upon you as you commence this new Session.

May Divine Providence guide you in your deliberation.

Thank you.

[His Honour the Lieutenant Governor, the Vice-Regal Entourage and the

Justices of the Supreme Court leave the Assembly Chamber.]

MR. SPEAKER (Wiseman): Please be seated.

Order, please!

The hon. the Acting Government House Leader.

MR. KING: Mr. Speaker, I ask leave to introduce a bill entitled,

An Act

Respecting Procurement By Public Bodies, Bill 1.

MR. SPEAKER: Does the hon. minister have leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes.

MR. SPEAKER: Leave granted.

The hon. the Acting Government House Leader.

MR. KING: Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the Minister of Service

Newfoundland and Labrador, that

An Act Respecting Procurement By Public Bodies,

Bill 1, be now read a first time.

MR. SPEAKER: Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, nay'.

Motion carried.

CLERK:

An Act Respecting Procurement By Public Bodies. (Bill 1)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time.

When shall the bill be read a second time?

MR. KING: Tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: Tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 1 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: His Honour the Lieutenant Governor has been pleased to make

a Speech to the members in this General Assembly. We shall now take a few

moments as the Pages distribute copies of that Speech.

[The Pages distribute the Speech to all members]

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Let me begin by saying I would like to thank the Lieutenant Governor for

gracing us with his presence today. I am sure, like most of you here, we can

remember the many prolific and colourful speeches he took

part in, in this

House, as an MHA and a minister. We are truly fortunate to have such a

distinguished gentleman, with his rich and esteemed history, contributing to our

Province as our Lieutenant Governor.

As this is my first time back in the House of Assembly since I last served in

2007, I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to the residents of

Humber Valley for putting their trust in me and allowing me to represent them in

this House again. It is quite an honour that they have bestowed upon me, and

once again I am humbled.

Mr. Speaker, it is also my first opportunity since becoming Leader of the

Official Opposition to congratulate the Premier on her election win and becoming

the first female in the history of our Province to lead her party in election

victory.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BALL: I am sure that her election will be an inspiration to many

women who subscribe to the challenges of public office and who aspire to

becoming Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador. I look forward to a constructive

relationship with the Premier as we debate the issues that matter to the people

of our Province.

I also congratulate the Leader of the Third Party for her electoral success,

and I look forward to working together with her and her caucus for the

betterment of our Province.

A word of final congratulations to each of the newly-elected MHAs of all

political stripes: You are embarking upon a new and exciting career where you

will encounter trials and tribulations along the way, but we know that our

greatest reward is when we help our fellow citizens and shape a better

Newfoundland and Labrador. Like myself, I know that I can count on your support

as we join together, committed to building a sustainable and viable future for

the next generation of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

Mr. Speaker, the Speech from the Throne has outlined government's vision for

the upcoming session of the House of Assembly. As Leader of the Official

Opposition, it is my duty to the people of the Province and to the House of

Assembly that I offer my thoughts as we collectively work together to secure a

brighter future.

One of the basic principles in which our government is based is the idea of

balance. It is balance between government and the House, balance between

government and our people, balance between all levels of government, which

includes municipal, provincial, and federal. We believe that no matter where you

live there is an expectation that there are services and benefits that we all

should access and enjoy. Even though one party receives more seats than another

leading them to form government, their decision making goes so far as

administering the daily operations of government. This does not mean that under

the cloak of Cabinet secrecy that this government can deny the people of the

Province and their representatives of the House the opportunity to tightly

scrutinize the decisions they make.

Ultimately, government is accountable to the House of Assembly.

Accountability can be achieved in many different ways. An obvious way is through

Question Period and the debates in the House; however, our analysis of

jurisdictions across the country tells us that we are near the bottom of the

list in the number of days we sit in the House of Assembly and the length of our

Question Period.

Mr. Speaker, the people of our Province expect better of their elected

representatives. Now that our hiatus is over, I look forward to working with the

Premier and her government to secure a more fixed and long-term

schedule for

House sittings.

As history shows, accountability has not always been paramount in our

Province. In his thorough report, Justice Green cited the Public Accounts

Committee as one of the greatest safeguards this House could exercise. As a

committee of the House responsible for ensuring government expenditures are

effective, above-board, and to make sure the people of our Province get value

for their money, the PAC can be the crucial mechanism for ensuring transparency

and accountability in government financial operations.

In his report, Justice Green said the Public Accounts Committee was one of

the most important means of oversight. He stated, "Public accountability is a

fundamental obligation in a democratic system." What distinguishes the Public

Accounts Committee is the fact that a Member of the Official Opposition sits his

chair, thus providing a tremendous level of scrutiny and analysis of government

spending decisions. As Leader of the Official Opposition, I can assure this

House that the people of the Province, under our watch, the Public Accounts

Committee will be active and therefore critical in the democratic process of our

Province.

We are not reaching the benchmark of accountability that the people of this

Province have set if government merely claims to be open, accountable, and

transparent. The government must act and that way we are clearly open,

transparent, and accountable. I look forward to working with the members of this

House as we work to reform its operations.

We have a weak legislative committee system here. The Province has suffered

for it and the government has suffered, too. One example is the accidental

expropriation of the AbitibiBowater mill in Grand Falls-Windsor. Government's

plan was to take back forestry rights and power generation stations. I support

standing up for the rights of our resources, as I did then and I do now, but

haste makes waste and purely by accident this government also expropriated a

defunct mill with hundreds of millions of dollars of environmental liabilities.

If the bill had been allowed to go to a legislative committee, things would be

different today.

In light of the hasty multi-million dollar mistake, another decision that

would benefit from close scrutiny by a House committee would be Muskrat Falls.

Despite the government stating that this is not going to happen, it is not too

late to offer a thorough review of all options. So, on behalf of the ratepayers

of Newfoundland and Labrador, we must continue to advocate for this position.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BALL: We support a debate in the House of Assembly that would allow

all members to vote on the development of Muskrat Falls. I am sure all members

have committed to be a strong voice to their constituents and would be more than

willing to stand in their place representing their respective districts.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BALL: Muskrat Falls is the largest provincially-funded project of any

kind in our history. It is shameful that this House will not have a dedicated

opportunity to debate and examine a project of this magnitude a project that

will have such long-lasting impact on the future of our Province.

Mr. Speaker, this is a perfect example of an issue that government is in a

hurry to get done. In a hurry, you already cut corners. One of the corners they

have cut is in proper, dedicated, expert, unencumbered oversight. The Public

Utilities Board hearing did not allow for this detailed oversight. Instead,

government restricted the Public Utilities Board of regulating the pricing and

provision of electricity in this Province. They did that by imposing a mandate

designed to ensure that government gets the answer they were looking for. So, to

simply choose between one of two options the isolated island option or the

Muskrat Falls option is not what Newfoundlanders and Labradorians define as a

thorough and rigorous review.

The Public Utilities Board is one of the most important regulatory bodies in

our Province. Their first and primary mandate is to regulate the prices of

utilities, such as electricity, according to the Electrical Power Control Act.

The act states, "production, transmission and distribution of power in the

province should be managed and operated in a manner (iii) that would result in

power being delivered to consumers in the province at the lowest possible cost

consistent with reliable service". Yet, the board was asked by government to

conduct hearings to specifically exclude the impact on ratepayers. That means

there will be no independent review of the impact of Muskrat Falls on

electricity rates.

To make matters worse, government did not even allow the PUB the time it

required to conduct hearings in Labrador, the home of Muskrat Falls. Mr.

Speaker, this is nothing short of an injustice to the people of Labrador. The

government's plan to ship power from Labrador to the Island and on to Nova

Scotia deserves public input from Labrador where industrial power needs are

growing. It is fine for the government to say that they can pull the power back

to meet Labrador needs, but there is nothing in the plan that says they will.

There are no transmission provisions, no vision. I just came back from Labrador

recently and judging by the sentiments and feelings of the project, it appears

that the people of Labrador are being treated as an afterthought by this

government.

On the day that Muskrat Falls was announced we were able to see that there

was no comprehensive plan to meet the power demands in Labrador, and there was

no mention of Labrador or the power needs for the mining industry. I say to

government, you can strike a deal with one group and ignore all others.

Mr. Speaker, to get back to the PUB review, they have been prevented from

carrying out an independent review of the impacts of the alternative sources of

power. There will be no examination of the alternatives such as natural gas. No

talk of it whatsoever is permitted in front of the PUB. During a time when

natural gas is radically changing the energy industry in the United States and

around the world, our government has prevented us from even looking at it.

The government's own energy plan in 2007 stated that we have a potential of

60 trillion cubic feet of natural gas sitting off our shores, enough gas to

supply our energy needs for generations, but this government has closed their

eyes and has left it stranded.

The PUB is also forbidden to look at the role of energy conservation, the

role that could play in our future energy. All around the world we see new,

smart technologies that help us use less power, but this government will hear

nothing of it. They proclaim we will continue to consume more and more energy

but that is simply just not the case. Energy conservation and demand management

are real alternatives that are implemented all over the world, saving people and

governments vast amounts of money, but again, government has closed its eyes to

this option.

Under the PUB process that government has set up, we will not know until it

is too late if we are getting the lowest possible rates for the people and

businesses of the Province through Muskrat Falls. Even the PUB chair has

publicly commented that they have not been given the time, resources or mandate

to do a proper evaluation. Nonetheless, we will still be extending a request to

government to allow Muskrat Falls debate in this House. We want one, the people

need one, and we know the people of the Province deserve one.

When this government sat on this side of the House, the Grimes' government

negotiated a deal with Voisey's Bay. As Opposition members, you constantly

called for a special debate in the House on the Voisey's Bay deal asking: what

did government have to hide? Well, the fact was nothing, so that is exactly what

happened. The Premier of the day, Roger Grimes, made arrangements for this House

to sit in a special dedicated session debating the Voisey's Bay deal. Every

speech and every question was on that single topic.

So why is the government different today? Muskrat Falls is bigger than

Voisey's Bay and the stakes are higher. The Voisey's Bay deal provided the

opportunity to add substantial revenue to the Province's economy and is a key

economic driver today, but Voisey's Bay, as important as it is, did not put the

people's money at risk. Muskrat Falls exposes the finances of our Province and

our provincial economy through the provincial investment and commitment to the

project.

This government wants to put billions of dollars of people's money into

Muskrat Falls, but insists that the House need not debate it. This government is

willing to enter into a long-term agreement with Emera, they are willing to

accept risks of construction overruns, and are proceeding without a detailed

plan for electricity demands in Labrador. Labrador industrial development should

be included, and to simply say we can recall the power is unacceptable.

They are willing to limit the PUB review in order to have a report delivered

to the House, but they are not willing to allow the House the time or the

resources to address a report and the project in the way it needs to be

addressed. Of concern to me is a driving need to get Muskrat Falls done at any

cost and the way that it has influenced the priorities of this government. The

way this government has sacrificed provincial interests, seemingly for the sake

of a federal loan guarantee, is unfortunate.

When the federal government had announced they were closing down the search

and rescue station in St. John's, this government sat quiet. The federal

government just introduced legislation to allow police and other agencies to

look into private data of people of this Province without a warrant and this

government provided silent support. The federal government decided to spend $55

billion on improving the Port of Sept-les to accommodate extra iron ore

products mined in Labrador without consideration for a Labrador report and not a

word of protest. The federal government cutbacks on Marine Atlantic's funding

and jobs in the Province allowed them to increase fares, and not a word.

Now we are given the impression that the Harper government will bring down an

austerity budget. There is every indication that this Province will be one of

the provinces that is hardest hit, if only because we are so dependent on

federal services and spending.

Recently announced cuts by Service Canada have left many Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians waiting weeks and weeks to access federal benefits due to

processing delays. These cutbacks affect the day-to-day lives of many of our

people and we should not be standing idly by. In each and every case, this

government was the last to speak up for the people of the Province.

I remember during the federal election when Prime Minister Harper and the

Premier stood side by side on a stage at a St. John's Conservative rally. Many

people felt that the Premier was trying to build a relationship with Mr. Harper

in hopes there would be some future benefit for our Province. It has been a long

time since a Premier of this Province gave unqualified support to a future Prime

Minister. What have we received in return? A promise of a loan guarantee, with

restrictions, and it does not support the cost overruns for the Muskrat Falls

Project.

When I spoke earlier about the principles of balancing government, this is

what I was talking about, Mr. Speaker. The provincial government defends the

people and jurisdictions against encroachments by our federal government, and,

in turn, the federal government defends its jurisdictions and its programs. What

we have in this Province is an imbalance, both inside and outside the Province.

Inside the Province, government has closed down, minimized, restricted, and

limited every possible means of accountability. They closed down the House, shut

down House committees, made personal attacks upon government critics, limited

the Public Utilities Board and the Public Accounts Committee, launched court

actions against Freedom of Information requests, and they still claim to be

open, transparent, and accountable.

On the federal-provincial level, affairs have been thrown out of balance.

When the Province fears losing their loan guarantee, they neglect to stand up

for the provincial interest in other spheres, tilting the balance in favour of

Stephen Harper and his federal Conservatives.

It is also important that I address the political environment of the day,

where the critics of the government are publicly scolded for speaking out

against government policy. Truly troubling is the fact that residents of our

Province are beginning to fear government when they speak out. Mr. Speaker,

Benjamin Franklin once said, "In free governments, the rulers are servants and

the people their superiors and sovereigns." It appears that since last October

we have been constantly stepping back and seeing rights denied. We must not seek

to suppress opposition; instead, we should embrace it.

I am really disturbed by the personal attacks made by government on private

citizens who have raised questions about the direction of government. We must

not forget, Mr. Speaker, that just a few months ago this government said they

encourage questions and comments on projects like Muskrat Falls, agreeing that

the more questions asked would mean a better project.

Now, the minister and the Premier have tried to claim that the people who are

raising concerns are either all Liberals or partisan. These people do not have

partisan axes to grind; they are simply worried about the future of our

Province. Independent voices, independent thinkers, they are truly concerned and

want the best for our Province. We should encourage such active participation.

We should use their experience to analyze the details of this proposal. Simply

dismissing the arguments as partisan is simply not good enough.

The same cavalier approach was taken by this government just last week when

the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture abruptly cut funding to research

programs to FFAW. Now, first of all, the value of the work done by these

investments is what was put at stake. The relevance of the research programs is

what is important, not the report card on the relationship between the two

groups. In haste, the minister sliced funding to programs that had positive

impacts on our fishery and our Province.

Mr. Speaker, I want the people of our Province to know that the Official

Opposition will speak up for them, we will speak on their behalf, and continue

to demand answers from the government and demand accountability.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BALL: The role of the Official Opposition parties is to keep

government accountable for its actions. Keeping this government accountable is

our first priority. Even though the House has not sat since the last spring

session, Opposition MHAs have been very busy serving our constituents and

fulfilling our duties as the Official Opposition; however, we have all been out

of this House too long and it is time to get the House of Assembly back to work.

At a winter carnival function in my district a few days ago, I saw a group of

individuals performing and they sang this song in reference to the House of

Assembly. It said that this old House cannot fix a fishery and this old House

cannot debate Muskrat Falls, repeating the fact that it has been closed too

long.

The House is steeped in a long and rich history, but this is not to say that

it does not need a major overhaul. Mr. Speaker, it needs to become a place where

our residents and our people we represent can be proud of the actions of our

members. This is our place to work, but the lights have been off for far too

long. You cannot run government on open-line shows, just as you cannot run

government on e-mail, or Twitter, or Facebook. It is called accountability and

there is a lack of it on the government's side of this House.

My colleague, the Member for Burgeo La Poile, will be tabling a private

member's motion to require the House of Assembly to sit a minimum number of

sitting days. It is important that we send a bipartisan signal to the people of

the Province that their employees us are willing, ready, and eager to work

regularly for them. So, I look forward to a healthy debate on this issue.

While on this topic I have already mentioned it is important that we look

at the structure and usefulness of committees, and I hope that will be part of

the debate during this session - there seems to be a misconception that this

House does not have standing committees, but we do. The problem is they are

currently inactive and ineffective. Historically, this government has shown

their distaste for the House; they claimed its committees were dysfunctional.

Today, these same committees lie dormant. It is sad to see that this trend is

continuing.

When these internal committees are functioning properly, and when they are

active and engaged, they allow the Opposition to keep government accountable.

They allow the people of our Province to have access to the processes that

government uses to make decisions, and we get better value for the money we

invest so we get better outcomes. This government has become accustomed to

thinking they have all the answers, to thinking that they know best. The

mentality is unfortunate, as there are so many bright minds in our Province with

no formal input process by which they can bring their views forth.

This government's chronic reliance on internal decision making removes

creativity from the democratic process. So, let us open up government, challenge

our young, energetic, and knowledgeable people. Engage them, and I am confident

we will get better outcomes. I hope to see cooperation from both government and

the Third Party on giving our committees new life. I would even go so far as to

say, let's inject new energy.

Mr. Speaker, the people of the Province expect us to be accountable. They

expect us to look after their best interests. They expect us to work together,

and that is what I intend to do.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to turn our attention now to the current state of

Search and Rescue in our Province. This Province has been too passive and far

too silent on this vital issue, which is coming at the expense of people who

require this life-saving resource. There are serious issues that affect the

lives of all of our citizens but we see failure on this government to advocate

for the life-saving Marine Search and Rescue Sub-Centre in St. John's, which

Prime Minister Harper plans to close in the coming months. We demand better than

that. Our seafarers, as well as all of our citizens of Newfoundland and

Labrador, must be able to rely on a timely, efficient Search and Rescue service.

This is a matter of life and death. Timing is crucial. Intimate knowledge of

local geography and dialects really matter when every second counts.

The Marine Search and Rescue Sub-Centre is more

than just a call centre, as the federal Conservatives have claimed it. It is the

hub of our planning, co-ordination, conduct, and control of Search and

Rescue services. In fact, according to Coast Guard's own

information, the Newfoundland and Labrador region has the highest proportion of

distress incidents in Canada. The St. John's rescue centre responds to an

average of 500 incidents per year involving 2,900 people; 28 per cent of those

incidents are classified as distress calls. When we are being stripped of

life-saving services in our Province the primary advocate should be the Premier

and the government, yet there has been silence. We need to maintain this

sub-centre in order to keep it open for the sake of our people and for the

safety of our people. Recently, we have all become more aware of the desperate

need for a greater Search and Rescue presence, and

especially in Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, it is important that all members of this House work together to

achieve the best for Newfoundland and Labrador. The Official Opposition will

provide notice later today of her first private member's motion on Wednesday,

urging government to ensure a full investigation is conducted into the tragic

events surrounding the death of Burton Winters in Makkovik. Burton Winters was

young, he was bright, he was determined, and as all members of this House know,

Burton got stuck on his snowmobile and walked through 19 kilometres of ice floes

trying to find home before he was stopped. He walked through sleet and through

snow; he walked through frigid temperatures on the North Coast of Labrador in a

harsh Canadian winter, waiting desperately for help. He anxiously hoped for help

to come, but, Mr. Speaker, it did not. It did not arrive until forty-eight hours

after it was called for. It took forty-eight hours for a military Search

and Rescue chopper equipped with skilled personnel to arrive

off the Coast of Labrador. As we know, it was too late. The system failed Burton

Winters.

I ask the Premier and her government, this is not what we call efficient

service, so why aren't we taking a leading role in advocating for a better

Search and Rescue ? Mr. Speaker, Burton Winters started

the walk and it is up to us to finish it.

Just last week, I had the opportunity to visit Makkovik and meet with the

family and friends of this young man. There was one phrase that really struck

home to me, and it said: We do not need a Southern solution to a Northern issue.

I am calling on this government, and the Premier, to lobby their federal

counterparts to complete a full investigation and commit to establishing a

search and rescue centre at 5 Wing Goose Bay, which is a Northern solution.

Tied to issues surrounding search and rescue is our oldest industry, the

fishery. Mr. Speaker, without a doubt the fishery has been the defining

narrative of our Province for the past 500 years, and our challenge today is to

make sure that this resource remains very much a part of our provincial

storyline for the next 500 years.

We all hear the cries for a more efficient and rationalized industry, and

there is no doubt that structurally we do need changes; however, Mr. Speaker,

these changes must be part of a long-term, focused vision for the future of this

industry. These discussions must take place. A plan must be forged before action

is taken. There is no doubt that changes must reflect a balance of the interest

of all those who have a stake in this important industry.

This year will be the twentieth anniversary of the cod moratorium, an event

like nothing else in our history. Since then, we have seen 80,000 people and

25,000 jobs leave our Province. Twenty years later, the moratorium is still in

place. For nearly nine years, almost a decade now in fact, this government has

had the opportunity to set a course for the fishery, to demand more from the

federal government and make some significant headway on major fishery issues, to

forge alliances and partnerships, to form a consensus, but we have not seen the

leadership where it is needed. I admit the fishery is complex; it is a complex

industry with many challenges, but you just cannot moor it off for a decade and

expect it to thrive, as this government has done.

We have witnessed growing turmoil in the troubled industry. The recent plant

closures of Marystown and Port Union, as well as the incident with the

Newfoundland Lynx point to recent examples. It is imperative that we work

for a brighter future for our industry and our workers. We must strive to ensure

that this does not become a forgotten fishery, so I call upon the provincial

government to strike a new accord with the federal government on the fishery. It

is time for a new way forward and a renewed partnership. This fishery is not an

Ottawa narrative; it is Newfoundland and Labrador's. We need to work together to

make the fishery a better storyline for our Province and our people. As our

Province moves forward, Mr. Speaker, we must ensure that we are not leaving

anyone behind.

One thing that is clear is that affordable housing is a key issue facing our

Province. Too many of our residents have to worry about having a roof over their

heads, especially lower income people, students and seniors. As the cost of

living is continuing to rise in our Province, particularly in St. John's and

Labrador West areas, an increasing number of our residents of the Province are

finding it difficult to afford housing. Not only that, the availability of

housing is another issue causing tremendous strain on our people.

While St. John's and Labrador are certainly feeling the housing crunch, it is

not only these regions experiencing the growing lack of affordable housing.

Communities throughout Newfoundland and Labrador are bearing the brunt of the

government's lack of planning when it comes to housing needs across the Province

and this is negatively impacting them. We need a housing plan that ensures every

citizen of Newfoundland and Labrador has adequate housing, but government has

not implemented one thus far, to the detriment of the Province.

Mr. Speaker, I would be remiss if I did not mention government's refusal to

allow the Auditor General to access required documentation for his audit of the

$5 billion government infrastructure spending. As a government who touts its

openness and transparency, shutting out the Auditor General in relation to this

is unacceptable. We have the right to know where the money is spent and where it

has been spent, and where it is being spent today.

The other key concern here is about the nature of government's often-touted

infrastructure strategy. The Auditor General discovered that there was no

defined strategy for infrastructure, yet $5 billion was spent. The people of our

Province were led to believe that there was a detailed, comprehensive and

sophisticated strategic plan. We felt this plan was leading government's

infrastructure spending. We were led to believe that the plan was supposed to

prioritize and evaluate our infrastructure investment and lead the way to

economic growth. Without the Auditor General being able to access all the

required documentation, we did not get the answers and therefore the people did

not either.

The Auditor General himself referred to government's refusal to allow him

access to the information as precedent setting. To shut the Auditor General out

in this way when it concerns $5 billion of public money is just not appropriate.

For the sake of the credibility of all MHAs, let's open up government processes.

Let's be willing to be open and transparent. We must do this.

Mr. Speaker, one piece of infrastructure that is

desperately needed is Internet and cellular service throughout the Province. We

are twelve years into the twenty-first century now and to think we have places

in our Province without basic twenty-first century communications is, quite

frankly, unacceptable. Modern communications connect communities to each other,

and, moreover, to the outside world. It is through these connections that we can

build our knowledgeable economy and rural business initiatives. Unfortunately,

many of our communities are left behind. So when it comes to emergencies, these

communities are in great danger as well.

The provincial government has a Rural Broadband Initiative that was

introduced last June; however, many communities in this Province are still not

connected. Mr. Speaker, it is time for all communities in Newfoundland and

Labrador to have modern communication infrastructure. It is long overdue. As

Opposition, we will continue to press this government to seeing that this

happens.

Mr. Speaker, time and time again, if you ask the people of the Province what

concerns them the most, health care comes out on top. Health care spending

reached an all-time high of $2.9 billion in 2010-2011. That is $4,472 per

minute. We spend over $5,000 on every man, woman, and child in our Province, the

most per capita of health care of all provinces in Canada; however, we have some

of the poorest health outcomes. Mr. Speaker, we have some of the highest rates

of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and smoking in

the country. So, no matter how much government claims to have invested into

health care, our health outcomes are not changing significantly.

It is essential to get value for the money through smarter spending in health

care. Mr. Speaker, there lacks true accountability from this government and too

much waste, limiting our ability to provide necessary services. Many health care

professionals feel that the system is becoming increasingly bureaucratic and

inefficient. The work environment in health care must be focused on patients and

their families. If we are going to have a high-quality health care system, we

need specifically-trained professionals working together. The health care system

too often bumps along from crisis to crisis without tackling the underlying

problem, and there is no way to run an efficient and effective health care

system this way.

Our commitment around mental health is another critical area. Good mental

health is a resource for living and a foundation for individuals' well-being and

effective functioning in communities. Mr. Speaker, over 100,000 Newfoundlanders

and Labradorians will experience a mental illness during their lifetime. With so

many people affected and having only a patchwork of programs in place, we are

seeing very long wait-lists for mental health care. It is time for government to

refocus their efforts on mental health and for the well-being of the people of

our Province.

Mr. Speaker, people cannot consistently access mental health services. We

know of areas that are restricted in our system: where you live and what your

age is. We have to do a better job for some of the most vulnerable people in our

society. Mr. Speaker, we need a strategy, we need to focus on promoting mental

health and wellness, reducing the impact on individuals and their families.

Another area of concern is the fact that rural and remote populations are

finding themselves at a distinct disadvantage in terms of easy access to

life-sustaining treatments, especially in the demand for dialysis services; the

cost of transportation frequently proving a taxing load, given the physical and

emotional demands of such treatments. We are seeing an ever-increasing number of

applications for short-term financial assistance.

Provincial health officials have said that the need for dialysis in

Newfoundland and Labrador grew by 12 per cent last year. We have to focus our

efforts to not only prevent kidney disease but to provide services to the

patients who need it as close as possible to their homes, surrounded by the

support of their family and friends.

Let's not lose sight that in 2025, one in every four people in this Province

will be seniors some of us. The government promised a long-term care plan back

in 2008; but, to date, they have failed to deliver. Mr. Speaker, we have to plan

for that seniors' wave that will hit us in the near future, but this government

is not preparing for it. We need to invest in rehab and community care. We need

to look at financial security and housing options for our aging and our seniors.

We must develop a plan to give them the best and the most appropriate care in

our acute care system. We need to focus our commitment to community-based care,

access to care in the community, keeping people out of our most expensive acute

care institutions.

Health promotion, education, and preventative medicine investments will

provide future dividends and save our health care millions of dollars down the

road. Addressing the challenges at hand is critical, and the answers are not

easy. It will require innovation, commitment, organization and management. This

is essential to the sustainability of our health care system, as well as the

protection and security of our people.

Mr. Speaker, last week, the Hebron Review Commissioner stated that he had

serious concerns about the impending labour shortage in our Province. This is

indeed an issue that our Province is not prepared to take full advantage of the

benefits of the major construction projects. I know the Premier recently

established a Department of Advanced Education and Skills to specifically deal

with the issue, and I hope that this is a step in the right direction, but

fundamentally, we have to do a better job matching our skilled labour workforce

with the opportunities that are available.

What I mean when I say that is, we are seeing many young apprentices being

forced to leave the Province to obtain their journeyperson certificate. This is

called an education bubble by skilled trades. Government has ushered hundreds of

apprentices through the system, recently boasting the doubling of seats at the

College of the North Atlantic. These apprentices are now unable to secure work

experience, the victims of this education bubble. This illustrates that

government missed the mark in addressing the skilled labour shortage.

Apprentices are not lacking; apprentices are stalled in a vicious circle. They

need work experience to log hours toward their plan of training in order to

qualify for their journeyperson certification, but they cannot find a job

because they are not experienced enough.

Surely, with megaprojects like Long Harbour and Hebron on the horizon, we can

make room for our apprentices to learn. Surely our government should be expected

to negotiate with multinationals like Vale and like ExxonMobil to ensure a

baseline of apprentices are hired each year to facilitate their movement to

journeyperson status. Surely our government should be expected to get creative

with employers to take on apprentices. Government has been investing $2 million

annually over the last couple of years toward hiring apprentices. This helps

twenty apprentices log their hours, but with 6,000 apprentices out there, and

with megaprojects in the billions of dollars, surely this is a relative drop in

the bucket.

Mr. Speaker, the last thing we want to do is educate our people only to see

them move out of the Province because they are stalled in their apprenticeship.

The latest census revealed our population has grown for the first time since the

1980s. We need to maintain this upward trend, and we need to be creative and

mindful of rural Newfoundland and Labrador to ensure population growth is

something we see throughout the Province.

Our K-12 system's average final marks for public exam courses are slightly

below admission requirements for Memorial University, which means we have some

work to do to reduce the numbers of high school graduates having to complete

bridging programs. Education is the means by which we will fulfill our greatest

dreams and aspirations. A house is not built by starting with the walls; it

requires a solid foundation. Similar to that, children need a strong and early

education to garner skills required to succeed in today's economy. Research by

experts has shown that as a child, a child is most adaptable to learning from

ages zero to three. This research supports the establishment of an early

childhood education strategy, which includes investigation into full-day

kindergarten as studies consistently show the positive long-term benefits and

savings on learning for a full-day program.

As children move up the levels of our K-12 system, we must ensure we are

preparing them for a world we are releasing them into. Maintaining the tuition

freeze is a measure to help students earn a post-secondary education. As a

powerful determinant of health and well-being, higher education is a critical

investment. Education is not a privilege; it is a right.

The student aid program in the Province could do with a review, particularly

in the needs and contributions assessment, as working students see drastic

clawbacks to their wages. In a Province where food and housing costs are

exceeding inflation, we need to try and mitigate impacts on students to avoid

graduating with huge debt loads.

Infrastructure is not to be forgotten in envisioning education for the people

of our Province. We must take care that our students are learning in sound

structures built and maintained to respond to their evolving needs.

Adult Basic Education has a potential to improve the lives of many

individuals who have not reached their full potential, Mr. Speaker, like the

young mother who needed a high school diploma, who is now an energetic community

health nurse, or the mother who for years could not afford to celebrate

Christmas with her kids and is now a kitchen manager. Adult Basic Education

leaves not only educational success but also personal confidence. ABE needs to

be more accessible and offered in more rural communities. Further investment in

ABE will return dividends for financial and individual personal development.

Mr. Speaker, I will speak about municipalities in our Province. All

throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, our communities need help. They need help

in providing good, reliable services to the residents they represent. To provide

those services they need more revenue. The revenue from property taxes just does

not cut it anymore. Communities in Newfoundland and Labrador have been very

active trying to identify new sources of revenue for their membership. They have

commissioned a report by Dr. Wade Locke to analyze different options that may be

available to them; of course, they would need the co-operation of the provincial

government to make it happen.

Mr. Speaker, municipal revenue must be predictable and it must be

sustainable. The provincial government must work with MNL to establish a

strategic plan for the municipal sector, providing clear goals and objectives

for a sustainable and effective system of municipal governance including new

sources of revenue. It is time that we work with our communities to ensure they

have the resources required to provide services to the people of our Province.

In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to represent the

Opposition's response to the Speech from the Throne. I also thank you for the

opportunity to present to you, to the Members of the House, and indeed, to the

people of Newfoundland and Labrador, some of our goals as the Official

Opposition for the session ahead. As you can see, there are many issues and

challenges facing the people of our Province, but you can be assured that the

Official Opposition will demand answers and accountability from this government

on behalf of all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to stand here today amongst my

colleagues in the House of Assembly and speak to the Speech from the Throne on

behalf of the people of the District of Mount Pearl South. Before I do, I would

first like to thank His Honour the Lieutenant-Governor for delivering the Throne

Speech to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

On October 11, the people of the great District of Mount Pearl South elected

me as their representative in the House of Assembly. I want to express my

appreciation to the constituents for supporting and entrusting me with this

responsibility. I am truly honoured, and I am committed to work hard on their

behalf to ensure their concerns are well represented in this hon. House.

Throughout my campaign, I was moved by the enthusiasm of the people who I met

at the doors. They were filled with excitement and optimism over the surge of

new energy in this Province. This energy is grounded in the tireless work of our

government to foster growth and development in Newfoundland and Labrador. Today,

there are exciting opportunities and possibilities right here on our doorsteps,

giving our people more choices and opportunity.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to securing a bright

future for our families, our communities, and our Province by maintaining fiscal

stability. With this government and this Premier, we can indeed look forward to

continued responsible growth and development. As a result of this government's

prudent, fiscal approach and investments to stimulate economic activity, our

economy has grown at a record-breaking pace and we now lead the country in

employment growth.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: This economic growth has resulted in an increase in our

population. According to the latest census report, Newfoundland and Labrador has

seen its first notable population increase in nearly thirty years.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: The greatest growth is actually Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians moving home, and I have no doubt that this will continue. This

government's initiatives in economic and business developments have resulted in

new business, investment and growth like never before. It is anticipated that by

2020 a total of 7,700 new jobs will be created in our Province.

To build on government's actions to ensure our workforce is ready to meet the

demands of these emerging opportunities, the Department of Advanced Education

and Skills was created to focus on supplying highly-educated graduates and

skilled workers for our fast growing economy. What an exciting reversal of

circumstances, where we move from having too few jobs to an abundance of

opportunities and a government working to ensure our people are equipped to

seize them.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Mr. Speaker, Budget 2011 allocated almost $1.4 billion for

educational initiatives designed to equip Newfoundlanders and Labradorians with

the knowledge and skills they will require to work and prosper in this

Province's growing economy. In many trades, a graduate must complete

apprenticeship training to qualify for employment; therefore, we are committed

to increasing our supply of skilled workers by advancing apprenticeship

opportunities. In addition, this government now offers a wide range of supports

for apprentices in Newfoundland and Labrador, including an investment in the

expansion of the required training programs to facilitate apprenticeship and

journeyperson certification. As well, incentives are now being provided for

employers to hire apprentices, particularly those from traditionally

underrepresented groups, such as women, Aboriginals, and persons with

disabilities.

Inherent to our secured prosperity has been the need to upgrade and expand

our infrastructure: our roads, our water and sewer services, and our

recreational facilities. In response to those needs, this government has

invested millions of dollars into public infrastructure, resulting in thousands

of jobs across our Province. As the Member of the House of Assembly for the

District of Mount Pearl South, I can certainly attest to the fact that the

residents of Mount Pearl are experiencing the benefits of this investment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Mr. Speaker, in 2011 the City of Mount Pearl received $4.7

million from the Municipal Capital Works Program to complete municipal

infrastructure projects. Other significant investments made over the past couple

of years to my district include such projects as the Glacier Arena expansion,

the Pearlgate Recreation Multiplex, and the Team Gushue Sports Complex, just to

name a few. Mount Pearl is indeed a growing city, and the various projects made

possible through this investment will benefit all residents of the community for

many years to come.

Another area where government continues to demonstrate a strong commitment is

in the advancement of the health and well-being of the residents of our

Province. Our health care budget accounts for nearly $3 billion of our annual

budget. As part of this government's ongoing investment in health care, $3.6

million was just announced to reduce wait times in emergency departments in the

Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to this long-term plan

and will ensure that actions are implemented as quickly and efficiently as

possible. We have also invested in reducing wait times for hip and knee

replacement surgery, and have made significant investments in infrastructure and

human resources.

Over the past eight years, we have also enhanced our investments in other

programs and services, particularly in education and the protection of children.

At the same time that we have made these investments in essential programs and

services, we have also fostered economic growth through significant tax

reductions. Tax reductions totalling approximately $1.6 billion in cumulative

savings for taxpayers have been introduced by this government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Mr. Speaker, compared to 2007, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians

are now spending approximately $500 million less each year in taxes. As a

government we are also cognizant of the need to manage our debts. This

government's wise approach to debt reduction and strategic investments has

earned us the highest credit rating we have ever had in our history.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: As a result, Mr. Speaker, economists now refer to Newfoundland

and Labrador's approach to fiscal management as the model for the country.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Prudent fiscal management of our oil revenues has enabled us to

achieve sustainable growth and responsible development; however, in order to

maintain self-reliance and environmental sustainability, it is our duty to

protect and plan for our future and to manage our resources responsibly. This

government is therefore committed to building a sustainable economy built around

renewable resource projects which will provide long-term benefits for

generations to come.

Based on our solid track record, the people of this Province have endorsed

this government's efforts and given us a resounding show of approval. With a

fresh mandate and a renewed sense of optimism, hope and pride, we will go

forward under the strong leadership of our hon. Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. LANE: Mr. Speaker, I now move that a Select Committee be appointed to

draft an Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Lake Melville.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: Mr. Speaker, it truly is a privilege to rise in this House

representing the people from the great District of Lake Melville, and to second

the motion that a Select Committee be appointed to draft an Address in Reply to

the Speech from the Throne.

I want to thank the people from my district for giving me the honour to

become their Member of the House, for Lake Melville, and to serve on their

behalf in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly.

During the campaign I spoke to many people in the district and I listened to

their concerns. One theme came up over and over again, and it was the feeling of

optimism that I heard from all walks of life, from all ages.

The people from my district are pleased with the direction our government has

taken, and are optimistic about their future prospects. All around us our

Province is prospering in so many areas. I have heard from the people; they tell

me they are happy to finally see and receive some benefits that come from good

planning and sound, fiscal management.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: Our government's investments in infrastructure, such as

schools, hospitals, roads and ferries are having a positive impact on people all

over this Province. The new energy that has spread throughout this Province is

exciting and it just feels right. There are more jobs, and people are returning

to the Province because they see a bright future here. Young people are

graduating and staying here to establish their career, to build their homes, to

raise their families. Personal incomes have increased, and the unemployment rate

has declined. Our credit rating is the highest it has ever been in our history

and we paid down our debt by approximately $4 billion.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: While we see growth in all sectors, our debt reduction

remains on track. This government has achieved a balance between fiscal

sustainability and development. Our Premier and this team have a plan that is

based on more jobs, better health care, stronger partnerships and resource

development that is right for the people of our Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: It was recently noted by BMO, in their financial

summary for

the country: Newfoundland and Labrador led the country with 3.8 per cent real

GDP growth in 2011, optimism among the Province's companies remains high. It was

also noted in the same report that the Province is becoming a key centre for

innovation. The report says, "As the host for the Ocean Sciences Centre at

Memorial University and a growing expertise on oil & gas, deep water drilling

and deep water exploration, Newfoundland & Labrador now boasts some of the best

ocean science expertise in the world."

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: That is not the only area where we lead the rest of this

country, as we are forecast to have the highest 2011-2012 surplus in the

country. Clearly, we are in good fiscal shape, but as Premier Dunderdale told

the St. John's Board of Trade recently, "her government must balance fiscal

discipline with debt reduction and prudent program spending." That will be our

focus in the future, for with prosperity comes a great responsibility to the

people of this Province to create a sustainable society based on our current

strengths. We have worked hard to develop social programs and policies in areas

such as mental health promotion, environmental health, child and youth

development, health protection, and healthy aging.

Since we came to government, we have been addressing the deficiencies in our

health care system, and have made substantial investments in our health care

system that will enhance the health and well-being of people all over this

Province. We continue to develop a plan that seeks to improve the quality and

sustainability of the health care system. Of course, we must achieve a balance

between the delivery of the vital public services and the deceleration of public

spending to ensure that we remain fiscally responsible. Our wealth is based

primarily on revenues stemming from non-renewable energy. The question we have

to keep in mind is how do we achieve the careful balancing act that is required

between economic growth, a high quality of life, and affordable public finances?

Our government has chosen to take a longer-term debt reduction target and

manage the budget over time to arrive at this goal. We have examined how we do

business, and as a result, restructured government to make it more efficient and

productive by introducing a leaner Cabinet. Our Premier has stated that this is

a priority, to ensure government works as efficiently as possible.

Another approach to fiscal sustainability is to examine other opportunities

for revenue. While oil has served our Province well, it is time for us to look

to renewable sources of revenue that will sustain us well into the future. Our

government feels that the key to a sustainable future for our Province over the

long term lies in developing the hydro power resources of the Lower Churchill.

Muskrat Falls is a project based on lower energy costs, new export revenues, and

new opportunities for economic development right here at home.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: This project will finally allow us to develop and harness

the power and the wealth that comes from clean, green energy. We have conducted

a thorough review and we will debate the project in the upcoming session and

determine whether developing Muskrat Falls is the best option, but we should not

let fear hold us back from entering into a project that has been sanctioned by

independent groups such as Navigant.

The economic benefits associated with this project are simply astounding.

During the six-year construction phase, it will generate some 18,400

person-years of total direct, indirect, and induced employment in the Province,

with peak direct employment of about 2,700, in the year 2013. The total income

boost for labour and businesses in the Province during the construction phase

will be over $1.4 billion, or on average $220 million a year for the next six

years.

Muskrat Falls will continue to provide after our oil returns have declined.

It will permit our Province to establish an economy grounded in renewable

energy. It will provide a future for the younger generations; a legacy we can

all be proud of.

This is a part of our long-term vision, and our government is working today

to help prepare our communities for growth. In Labrador, we are improving and

developing new infrastructure, such as the Trans-Labrador Highway, building a

new regional hospital in Labrador West, and a new facility for the College of

the North Atlantic.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: Our Province is rich in resources and we must be ready to

make the most of the opportunities available to us. Our mining sector is a

significant contributor to the provincial economy and provides much employment

to many men and women in districts such as Lake Melville and, indeed, the rest

of the Province.

Our government supports long-term development of the industry. With projects

such as Muskrat Falls, it is ensuring that the mining industry will be permitted

to grow and expand. In 2011, the dollar value for mineral shipments was $4.7

billion the highest on record for Newfoundland and Labrador.

Increased spending on large-scale mining developments contributes to the

current level of investment growth in this Province. Our government is mindful

of the needs this growing industry will require. Along with ensuring power

resources will be there, when needed, we are also in preparation and getting

ready to meet the needs for skilled labour that developments such as Hebron,

Muskrat Falls, and the mining industry demand.

We developed a new Department of Advanced Education and Skills to oversee and

focus on meeting these demands. We have expanded training programs and

apprenticeship programs. We have made tuition the lowest in Canada, and

introduced progressive student aid programs so people can make the choice to

learn and embrace the new opportunities to benefit themselves and their

families.

It is no wonder that the people of this Province are optimistic about the

future. Our Premier and our government have a vision for this Province that is

built on sustainable growth and prosperity. We have come so far, but we must

stay focused and establish a plan for this Province that continues to benefit

everyone well into the future. This government has such a plan.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RUSSELL: I am reminded of what Robert Kennedy said: Some men look at

things the way they are and ask why; I dream of the things that are not and ask

why not. It is with this attitude that our government has chosen to move forward

with a vision for this Province that will enable everyone to participate in the

prosperity and opportunities that abound in our wonderful Province of

Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

I am very pleased to stand here this afternoon in the beginning of the

forty-seventh session of this House a third session that I am very honoured to

be a part of. I want to use the opportunity, first of all, to say to those who

have sat here with me before, welcome back and it is good to see all of you, and

congratulations to the new members here. Obviously, I am extremely pleased that

I am not sitting by myself in the House this time. I welcome the members of my

caucus in a special way.

It seems an awful long time ago since we had the election, Mr. Speaker, I

have to say. During the election campaign, though, my party made commitments to

the people which we promise to stand by. What we said to them was that it did

not matter what position we would have here in this House when we came back, the

issues we put forward as our pledges would be pledges that we would continue to

speak to, commitments that we would continue to fight for, for the people of

this Province. We presented the people of the Province with a fiscally

responsible platform that was proof that we can look after each other better

than we are doing. We costed the commitments that we made. We had pledges that

we costed, showed what they would cost, and showed how we would get the money to

pay for them.

Mr. Speaker, it will be with confidence that we continue to put forward those

commitments and those pledges here in this House. We will continue to speak for

the people of the Province who said yes, we want those promises; we want those

pledges. Twenty-five per cent of the people in this Province told us, through

their vote, that they believed in us and in what we were saying. We know that

they want these issues continued to be put forward, and we know that we can

afford to do them. I stand here today continuing to promise to the people of the

Province that the pledges that were in our platform will be the pledges that we

will continue to speak for and fight for, for them.

What we are asking for, Mr. Speaker, is very, very basic. We want people's

lives in this Province to be healthy and affordable. We want to take care of our

seniors. We want to take care of our children. We want to make sure that our

working people get a fair deal, as we continue to benefit from untold revenues

from oil and mineral exploration. Mr. Speaker, what we want is just a good life

for everybody in the Province. Is that too much to hope for? Is that too much to

look for? I do not think so. The things that we have outlined and the things I

have looked for today in the Speech from the Throne are very concrete and are

needed if we are going to have people who have healthy lives, individuals and

families.

There was much in the Speech from the Throne today, Mr. Speaker, and I will

not have the time to speak to everything that I might want to speak to. I shall

honour the time that is given me, so the government can rest. They are not going

to hear everything from me today; however, we are going to have a long time, I

hope, to speak to the issues that I will not get to speak to this afternoon.

What disturbed me, Mr. Speaker, is what was not in the Speech from the Throne

today. Mr. Speaker, many people in this establishment know how much I have

spoken about long-term care and home care. Here we are, once again without the

long-term care and home care strategy, and we have more promises. I was happy to

see home support mentioned and I was particularly heartened to see assessed

need, but assessed need is not what we want. We want assessed need to mean and

if this is what the government means I will be very happy medical profession

says this person needs home care and they get it. I hope that the assessed need

is not once again still looking at income, because we have to get away from

assessing the income. I am willing to bet that is what they mean, Mr. Speaker. I

am hoping it is not what they mean.

We also, Mr. Speaker, need an enhanced pharmacare program, again not

mentioned in the Speech from the Throne. It is just shameful at this point in

time, with the resources we have that not every single senior can count on

being part of the pharmacare program. There should be no senior in this Province

who has to fight for a pharmacare program. They all should have a drug card, Mr.

Speaker every single senior. There should not be financial assessments around

pharmacare.

Now, Mr. Speaker, something else that really disturbs me, again something

that this government promised going back to 2007: anti-scab legislation. Where

is it, Mr. Speaker? We have workers today, scab labour, who are off on a boat

while the workers from that boat are standing in a picket line in front of OCI

because their job has been taken from them by OCI. This is unacceptable, Mr.

Speaker, and if we had anti-scab legislation then we would not have the scab

labour and we would not have the picket line in front of OCI. This is only one

example of where we need anti-scab legislation. Last year, we were talking about

the whole issue with regard to Voisey's Bay and the workers who were out for

nineteen months. We keep bringing up the anti-scab legislation. The government

pays lip service to it and says it is being discussed; it is not being

discussed, Mr. Speaker. While we want this action, the government has to give

leadership. They do not even mention it today, Mr. Speaker, in the Speech from

the Throne.

The other thing, another piece of legislation that was promised in 2007, Mr.

Speaker again, no mention of it here in the Speech from the Throne is

whistle-blower legislation. The City of St. John's recently has brought in

whistle-blower legislation. They have looked at all angles of it, and they have

seen how what they have put in place can protect the worker. They have also

looked at the whole issue of liability and they have the proof from legal heads

that say you do not have to worry about that, there are ways to take care of

that.

Mr. Speaker, why can't we have it here on a provincial level? We have one of

our municipalities giving us leadership, Mr. Speaker. I am really happy that one

of the cities, especially the city in which I represent a district I am happy

that one of our municipalities is giving the leadership, but, Mr. Speaker, the

leadership should be coming from the Province. I am asking the Premier: why not

the whistle-blower legislation? We have to be able to protect the workers; we

have to be able to allow workers who see something going wrong to be able to

speak out about it, Mr. Speaker. It is for the good of our system that we do

that, it is for the good of our health care, it is for the good of our education

system, it is for the good of how we run government offices. I do not understand

why this government does not understand how it is for the common good to have

whistle-blower legislation.

The other thing, Mr. Speaker, that concerns me, is no mention of increased

income support in this Speech from the Throne. Therefore, I have to assume that

we are not going to see anything significant in the Budget either, because if it

were going to be there, we would see it, Mr. Speaker. I do notice that the

speech sort of mentions a new poverty reduction plan. We really do not know what

it is; there are no details in the Speech from the Throne about what that is.

What I would hope is that this time, if they are putting a new plan in place,

it actually is going to help reduce poverty, not just take care of the effects

of poverty. All the programs that have gone on under the current poverty

reduction plan are all good programs, but they do not reduce poverty. They help

people survive; that is good. I am hoping that they are finally getting the

message and when they come out with a new poverty reduction plan this time, it

is actually going to be geared to reducing poverty by putting more money in the

hands of the people who need it.

Mr. Speaker, we still have children going to school hungry. We still have

children with their parents standing in food lines going to food banks. The food

bank numbers have not gone down, Mr. Speaker, they have gone up. That continues

and it is not just in the large centres, it is in small centres as well. I do

not know if the members on the other side of the House during the election

campaign were going to the same places I was going to, but it did not matter

where I went, Mr. Speaker, and it did not matter if it was rural or urban, or if

it was in Labrador or around the Island; food banks are everywhere. Food banks

are everywhere.

I was in Happy Valley-Goose Bay last week and I saw the wonderful new centre

that the Status of Women has been able to mainly, I think, with federal

government funding and with some Provincial put their new building in place.

The biggest feature, obviously, and thanks to CMHC, is the new housing, the

eight units. That is wonderful. What are two other big features, Mr. Speaker? A

thrift shop, so people can buy clothing at the cheapest possible, and a food

bank. That is everywhere in our Province, Mr. Speaker.

The thing that has really appalled me by the Speech from the Throne today is

that there is no mention of child care. This is something that I am absolutely

appalled by, Mr. Speaker. After all of the work that has been done and the

consultations that have been held, consultations that some of us in this room

have been part of, to still not see a plan for child care is just unacceptable,

Mr. Speaker. If we do not start putting these programs in place now while we

have resources, we will not be putting them in place in twenty years time when

our revenues change, Mr. Speaker. Economists who I have spoken to agree with me:

you put the programs in place when you have the resources. Then you do economic

planning and build your economy around those resources so in twenty years time,

when maybe we do not have oil, we will have other resources so that we can

continue the services that we have.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS MICHAEL: Mr. Speaker, another very big blank in this Speech from the

Throne is the lack of a housing plan. Probably one of the biggest issues in the

Province today is the issue of lack of affordable housing, Mr. Speaker. It does

not matter where you go in the Province; people are not only speaking about, but

showing us the example of the lack of affordable housing.

Members of my caucus took time to go around the Province recently and to hold

meetings to talk to people about housing to find out what the housing situation

was like in their towns. Then last week, when one of my colleagues and I were in

Happy Valley-Goose Bay, the Member for The Straits - White Bay North, we held a

forum there as well and heard the same issues over and over and over. They are

the same issues. They are the issues that seniors have with regard to accessing

affordable housing, they are the issues that young people have with trying to

access affordable housing, and they are the issues of adults with disabilities

who get less than $800 a month to live on along with a drug card. They cannot

afford to live on their own. In one case, I was talking to a gentleman in his

forties who has to live with his mother because he cannot afford because of

his disability to live on his own.

Yet, what do we have in this Speech from the Throne? Not even a nod, Mr.

Speaker, to the issue of the lack of affordable housing. Even at a point when

NLHC because of the crisis in Labrador West, NLHC has to raise the limit for

eligibility for NLHC housing to $65,000 because of what the market is demanding

in Labrador West. So NLHC recognizes that there is an issue around housing, but

the government does not even mention housing in the Speech from the Throne.

Unbelievable, Mr. Speaker, just absolutely unbelievable.

The government says, Mr. Speaker, that they are concerned about

diversification. I have heard them speak about diversification; they use the

word, but here, again, we have a Speech from the Throne that gives nothing

concrete with regard to community economic development. They are happy to talk

about the investments, the large-scale investments that are going on, but what

about investments in co-ops and small businesses and not-for-profit enterprises,

Mr. Speaker? Is this part of their third stated objective: "improve the

conditions that give businesses and communities the power to grow"? If they are

going to have a plan on that, Mr. Speaker, then I am looking forward to seeing

the plan. I am going to want to know how they are going to improve conditions

that give businesses and communities to power to grow. Give me concrete ideas.

Is that going to be in the budget? I am going to be looking for it, because if

it is not there, I will be coming back to them and say: how come you stated this

objective and you have not lived up to it?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS MICHAEL: I will also be interested to see the new formula for

municipal support. They obviously are hearing what municipalities are saying

not just individually, but also through Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador

and we are hearing it, and we are hearing it both from urban and rural

municipalities. So, it is going to be very important to see what it is they are

going to come up with, Mr. Speaker and are they going to do what those in the

know are telling them to do? Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador really

knows the answer. Sit down; it does not have to be reinvented. Let them tell you

what needs to be done, and do it. So, will that be it? I do not know, Mr.

Speaker, but we will find out.

I am also glad to see that there was a mention of the fishery marketing

initiatives that I have been asking for, for several years. It is delightful

that some of them have been outlined in the Speech from the Throne, but I am

hoping there is also going to be a follow-through this time, that we are going

to have real, concrete ideas acted on, Mr. Speaker, and money put into those

ideas. Marketing alone will not be enough. The Speech from the Throne does

recognize it is not using the language I am using that we know we have

problem areas. I think we have crisis areas, Mr. Speaker; that is what I think.

I am hoping that the Budget is going to recognize some of those crisis areas.

The Speech from the Throne names it in a rather vague way. I have already

mentioned the whole issue of scab labour out on a factory freezer trawler,

something that should not be happening. We have plants closing in communities

that have depended upon those plants for decades and generations.

This is really disturbing that we do not seem to have any plan in place.

Somebody might say yes, plants are going to close, but the closing of plants, if

it has to happen, should be part of a plan that all the parties in the industry

sit down and work out together. That is not what is happening. If OCI feels like

closing a plant, it closes it. If it feels like closing two plants, it closes

them. That is not the way it has to be, Mr. Speaker, there has to be planning,

because the communities and the workers are being left high and dry without any

plan. Then, that is one of the hallmarks of this government, coming up with

concrete plans that have timelines, which have objectives, and show how they are

going to get there. They love speaking in generalities, they do not give us

details, and the same way with the Speech from the Throne today.

Mr. Speaker, one more thing I have about three or four minutes left I was

really disturbed to hear the Speech from the Throne talk about partisan

opposition. Whether we are talking about Muskrat Falls, whether we are talking

about home care, whether we are talking about pharmacare, there is more than one

position on every issue, number one, and everybody in this House, every single

individual and each party, has a responsibility to speak out from every

experience

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS MICHAEL: not just one experience or two experiences or three, we

have to bring every experience into this House, and it is our responsibility to

do it. Every single one of us has been elected to bring those here. The two

Opposition parties have been elected to bring it here. Partisan opposition, Mr.

Speaker, I could not believe it was in the Speech from the Throne.

With regard to Muskrat Falls, the government is talking about accountability

and transparency and then, at the same time, they tell every single group

except the Environmental Assessment Panel because they could not do it to them

that studied what Nalcor is coming up with, the only thing you are allowed to

look at is Nalcor's conclusions. You are not allowed to go outside of those

conclusions. Mr. Speaker, going outside of the conclusions is part of a good

analysis. If we do that, please do not call