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November 27, 2013 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLVII No. 36

The House met at 2:00 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Wiseman): Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Today before we start our proceedings, I want to welcome some special guests

to our galleries. We have today joining us the new Mayor for the Town of Wabush,

Colin Vardy.

Welcome, Sir.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Congratulations on your election.

We also are joined by Mayor Rex Matthews and Councillor Stan Burt from the

Town of Grand Bank.

Welcome, gentlemen, to our galleries.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Congratulations to both of you on your recent election.

Statements by Members

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

District of Terra Nova; the Member for the District of Port au Port; the Member

for the District of Bonavista North; the Member for the District of Cartwright

L'Anse au Clair; the Member for the District of Kilbride; and the Member for the

District of Torngat Mountains.

The hon. the Member for the District of Terra Nova.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. S. COLLINS: Thank you.

I rise today to pay tribute to two wonderful people, Mr. Speaker. Pastors

Benjamin and Rita Elliott, along with daughter Elizabeth, left the comfort of

their home in Botwood in 1948 to establish the first Pentecostal church in

Glovertown.

With only $20 and a strong conviction they did just that. The first structure

was an old woodshed that Pastor Elliott converted into a makeshift church. After

their six-year term, the Elliotts had built a new church as well as a new

pastor's residence.

The Elliotts then moved from Glovertown to Bonavista, where they again

started from nothing, and built yet another church. They stayed in Bonavista for

ten years amassing a large congregation. Pastor Elliott would also travel around

the Province on the boat Gospel Pioneer , where he and other fellow

pastors started new churches all along the Coast of Newfoundland and Labrador.

In 2003, Pastor Benjamin Elliott passed away but is survived by his wife,

Pastor Rita, who is now ninety-five years old. Just three weeks ago Pastor Mrs.

Elliott was a guest speaker at a service held in Glovertown.

I ask all members to join me in thanking this couple for the contributions

that they have made to so many Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Port au Port.

MR. CORNECT: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Town of Cape

St. George and its residents on being awarded two environmental awards this

year.

Mr. Speaker, on June 7 of this year, the Town of Cape St. George received an

award for environmental excellence from the Department of Environment and

Conservation for the community's commitment to protect rare plants growing in

the area and it was recognized for its waste management and recycling

initiatives.

Mr. Speaker, the Town of Cape St. George received the Torngat Award for

Environmental Sustainability from Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador at

their recently held convention in St. John's on November 7 to November 10.

The 2013 Torngat Award recognizes the Town of Cape St. George for their many

programs implemented to divert the amount of waste being shipped to the regional

landfill site. This is certainly recognition of the municipality's continued

efforts in protecting the environment.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members to join with me in applauding the Town of

Cape St. George on receiving these two environmental awards.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Bonavista North.

MR. CROSS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

They came from near, they came from far, they came by plane, they came by

car. It sounds like a Dr. Seuss book, Mr. Speaker, but I am proud to say it

refers to the Town of Centreville-Wareham-Trinity Come Home Year held from

August 9 to August 18, 2013.

Most of the Newfoundland and Labrador population has very proud connections

to our rural roots. It is a very significant occasion when we are offered to

spend quality time in the communities of our childhood, our formative years or

the towns where we first found employment. Many were given this privilege in

August, Mr. Speaker, as CWT welcomed them home or welcomed them back.

A celebration, as complex as a Come Home Year, requires many volunteers and

community leaders. Centreville-Wareham-Trinity and the islands in the bay

expanded its population immensely in August. From the kitchen to the parlour to

the shed to the wharf you could catch a story. Tall tale or truth, you would

have to be the judge.

I request that we unanimously salute the collective efforts of Mayor Rogers

and the CHY planning community and the townsfolk of CWT, because this summer it

could aptly be termed the happiness capital of our Province.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Cartwright L'Anse

au Clair.

MS DEMPSTER: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

"Leadership is not about titles, positions, or flow charts. It is about one

life influencing another."

I rise today to recognize Regan Burden, a Grade 12 student from Port Hope

Simpson who is doing just that. At age seventeen, Regan has already represented

youth at the regional, provincial, and national levels by being involved with

projects like Students on Ice, when she travelled to the Arctic in 2011.

Regan joined Junior Canadian Rangers at the age of twelve, and is now a

master corporal. At fifteen, she participated in Shave for the Brave. In 2013,

Regan travelled to Norway, where one-third of the world's cod stocks reproduce,

to protest oil drilling in the Lofoten Islands.

This fall, Regan participated in Miss Teen Achievement NL pageant and

finished second runner-up. Her speech on climate change and her Norway

experience was very inspiring.

Having the attributes of a natural leader and a great public speaker, Regan

is called on many times in her community to be a master of ceremonies and serve

on many school and community committees.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members to join me in wishing Regan Burden every

success in her future.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Kilbride.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DINN: Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise in this hon.

House today to recognize three constituents of the Kilbride District, Sarah

Winsor of Bishops College High School in St. John's, William Newhook of Booth

Memorial High School, and Connor Whalen of O'Donel High School, who have been

awarded the provincial government Electoral District Scholarships, valued at

$1,000 each.

These scholarships are awarded to the three high school graduates in the

district who have achieved the highest Department of Education scholarship

scores. It is wonderful to see these students developing their potential, and I

wish them every success in all their future endeavours as they continue to

pursue their post-secondary education.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members of this House to join me in

congratulating these students on their hard work and accomplishments.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. EDMUNDS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this hon. House today to recognize Ms Caitlyn Baikie of Nain.

Since the age of fourteen, Caitlyn has been actively involved in research and

promotion of climate change issues affecting residents of Nunatsiavut. She has

conducted research in the Torngat Mountains National Park, and given keynote

presentations at conferences, including a national climate change conference in

Winnipeg.

Caitlyn has also be recognized for work her work by many organizations,

including the International Institute for Sustainability, where she represented

Canada and Labrador at the International Polar Year, From Knowledge to Action,

as a Circumpolar youth leader.

Mr. Speaker, many of you will remember Caitlyn last year as the first female

page in this House of Assembly from Nunatsiavut. She is also very active in

promoting Inuit culture at Memorial University.

Just this past weekend, Caitlyn was invited to be a panelist on the climate

change panel that included Dr. David Suzuki.

This Christmas, Caitlyn will represent Memorial University and Canada on an

expedition to Antarctica with Students on Ice quite an accomplishment for a

twenty-one-year old.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members to join me in recognizing Ms Caitlyn

Baikie from Nain.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Transportation and Works.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MCGRATH: Mr. Speaker, our government remains committed to ensuring

that residents on the Labrador Coast have continued access to nutritious,

perishable foods at a reasonable cost.

Our Air Foodlift Subsidy, while available year-round, certainly becomes

increasingly more important as marine service to coastal Labrador comes to a

close for the year. Under this program, a subsidy is paid to eligible retailers

to offset the high cost of flying perishable foods into remote communities and

retailers are then required to pass these savings on to their customers.

Our continued investment in the Air Foodlift Subsidy helps ensure

Labradorians in isolated communities have continued access to nutritious,

perishable foods such as milk, eggs, juice, yogurt, cheese, fruits and

vegetables, meat, poultry, fish, bread and grain products, as well as infant

formula.

Mr. Speaker, we are very proud to be the only Province in Canada to continue

to provide a food subsidy, over and above the federal government's Nutrition

North Canada program.

Eligible retailers in Labrador are encouraged to register for both the

federal and provincial subsidy programs. Retailers can receive an air freight

subsidy of 100 per cent for milk and 80 per cent for all other food items, after

the Nutrition North Canada subsidy is applied.

Retailers registered in the communities of Black Tickle, Rigolet, Postville,

Makkovik, Hopedale, Nain, and Natuashish can avail of subsidies year-round and

retailers on the South Coast and on the Labrador Straits can avail of the

program if and when marine service is interrupted for more than five consecutive

days.

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to supporting healthy lifestyles

among all residents of the Province. We are very pleased to continue to offer

the Air Foodlift Subsidy program to ensure that healthy foods are accessible and

affordable, supporting people in their efforts to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. EDMUNDS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement. Mr. Speaker, the

air subsidy program is a good concept. I think it would be a tremendous program

if the residents were actually getting benefits from the program.

Retailers in Northern Labrador, Mr. Speaker, are not passing the subsidy on

to the consumer who still pays the highest prices for perishable food in the

Province. In fact, one retailer in Nain did not take

part in the food air

subsidy program and his prices were still the best in town and better quality.

Mr. Speaker, the minister noted in his statement that retailers are receiving

100 per cent air freight subsidy on milk products, but you just try to buy a

litre of milk in Northern Labrador for the same price you would in Happy

Valley-Goose Bay. Not a chance, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, there has to be more done in monitoring the program to ensure

that residents of Northern Labrador are receiving benefits from the air food

subsidy.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

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

I too thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement. I am also

glad the Air Foodlift Subsidy remains in place, though we also hear from

Labradorians that the subsidy to retailers is not benefiting the consumers. That

is who should really be benefiting.

I am sure the minister is aware of the progress report of the Expert Panel on

the State of Knowledge of Food Security in Northern Canada which is looking at

factors affecting food security in the North and the health implications for

Aboriginal people. The panel is examining factors such as environmental

contaminants, climate change, and industrial development which affect food

security in the North, including Labrador.

The final report is due in early 2014. I look forward to the minister taking

time to review the report and give us a ministerial report on that.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: Leave.

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

MR. MITCHELMORE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I too thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement. Food prices

can be extremely high in northerly communities and we must have a food security

plan to ensure that we have better access to nutritional foods. I personally

would like to see the reinstatement of the Northern tax deduction for all

communities north of 50-30.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. CRUMMELL: Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to provide an update on the

implementation of the Accountability Framework for Regulatory Reform established

by this government in October, 2012. The first of its kind in Canada, the

framework requires departments to provide regular plans and reports to ensure

regulations are necessary, easy to understand, and accessible by the average

citizen.

The Accountability Framework builds on our commitment as a government to

continue to achieve zero net growth in the number of regulatory requirements.

Since 2006, approximately 80,000 regulatory requirements have been eliminated

and this commitment remains a pillar of the Regulatory Reform Initiative. Our

services to businesses and the general public.

Mr. Speaker, departments submitted their first three-year Regulatory

Improvement Plans last spring which, collectively, contain many activities to

simplify the regulatory processes for businesses and individuals of this

services, simplify legislation and further reduce the regulatory burden placed

on the public so that their time can be better spent on carrying out business

and contributing to our economy.

This spring, upon one full year of the implementation of our Accountability

Framework, we will report to the public on our progress on regulatory reform. I

am proud of our success to date, which recently included the implementation of

online ordering for birth, marriage and death certificates, and the expansion of

BizPaL, an online business permit and licence service which now reaches 72 per

cent of the population. I am equally pleased about the impact our new Regularity

Improvement Plans will have, and I believe it is important we communicate our

efforts and progress to the public.

Mr. Speaker, this initiative is a permanent function of the provincial

government and clearly demonstrates our continued dedication to reducing red

tape. With the implementation of the Accountability Framework,

we are seeing a cultural shift

that supports the development of sound regulations and policies and enhances the

customer service experience with government.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

MR. EDMUNDS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Mr. Speaker, reducing red tape is a good initiative, and we encourage

government to keep reducing red tape wherever possible. Mr. Speaker, in this

statement there is nothing new. As a matter of fact, Mr. Speaker, it is pretty

much a carbon copy of the release they had last October when they announced the

same initiative; 80,000 regulatory requirements. That is what the minister says

has been eliminated. This has not changed in over a year.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the minister's announcement next spring when,

hopefully, he will have something new to say.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS ROGERS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement. It makes sense to

reduce red tape when it makes sense to reduce red tape. We must be careful that

it does not become a means to an end, cutting for the sake of cutting, and

removing safeguards. Many regulations, in fact, serve us well.

When the minister says the goal is zero net growth, it sounds great, but

really what does that mean? Government's role is to regulate, to protect

citizens, and facilitate safe and responsible economic development and the

operation of society.

One last note, the release says government wants to enhance the customer

experience. I would like to reiterate, Mr. Speaker, people are not customers.

They are citizens, and government's role is to serve them.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

AN HON. MEMBER: Leave.

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

MR. KIRBY: Thanks to the minister for an advance copy of his statement.

If the government is really interested in reducing red tape, one thing you

can do is consider paperless electronic paystubs for all government employees.

Increasingly, across the country in the public service, people are able to

electronically record their attendance and vacation, and there are a variety of

other options for electronic applications, everything from the Home Heating

Rebate to the seniors' recreation grants and so on, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH: Mr. Speaker, Newfoundland and Labrador boasts a colourful

history and culture that has helped shape our identity, and the Provincial

Historic Commemorations Program is an important means of acknowledging the

people, places, and practices that are worthy of official recognition. Since the

program was established in 2010, it has recognized more than twenty nominations

in every category and from every corner of our Province.

This year, five new designates of the Provincial Historic Commemorations

Programs were recently announced during a ceremony held in Black Duck Brook. In

the Events of Provincial Significance category, the designates were the

establishment of formal schooling in Newfoundland and Labrador in Bonavista in

1727; the introduction of moose to the Island of Newfoundland; and the

resettlement of Bar Haven. Root cellar construction was recognized as a

Distinctive Cultural Tradition and Practice, while Emile Benoit was recognized

as a Person of Provincial Significance.

The Provincial Historic Commemorations Program is a citizen-driven program

administered by a six-member board, and I commend the work of the board and all

those who submitted nominations in recognition of our truly unique Province and

people. Mr. Speaker, the program offers everyone in our Province a chance to

contribute to a list of what they deem to be our cultural and historical

treasures, and we continue to welcome nominations in all of the categories.

One of the overarching goals of our government's cultural strategy, Creative

Newfoundland and Labrador, is to protect and commemorate our important cultural

heritage resources. Mr. Speaker, our commemorations program achieves this goal.

It not only recognizes persons, places, and events of provincial historical

significance, but also our intangible cultural heritage our customs, our

cultural practices, our traditional skills, and our knowledge all of which

help define our Province and its people.

Mr. Speaker, the vibrant and diverse culture we share in Newfoundland and

Labrador is known worldwide, and there are so many significant contributions

throughout our history that have influenced this culture. The commemorations

program is an opportunity to continue to recognize the many contributors, and I

encourage everyone to submit nominations to highlight the aspects of our history

and traditional cultural practices that we should proudly celebrate.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR. JOYCE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for the advance copy. We, too, on this side would like

to recognize the culture of Newfoundland and Labrador and the experiences. We

see here Emile Benoit was recognized as a Person of Provincial Significance.

Anyone who ever met him and heard him would remember him and realize how much of

a role he played in our culture and our heritage over the years and in the rest

of the events.

I would also like to thank the board for their selection and their work for

recognizing our heritage, and sometimes I am sure it is a difficult decision for

the board.

Mr. Speaker, as you go down through here, one of the overarching goals of the

government's strategy is to protect our cultural heritage sites, yet we see the

cuts in the last Budget. Then you see all these big press releases and

Ministerial Statements during polling period then we look at we are going to

be seen all around the world. I know $4 million is going to cut out a lot of

those places where Newfoundland and Labrador is going to be seen, Mr. Speaker.

We do celebrate our culture, we do celebrate our history and we must

recognize it; but we also must recognize that in order to keep our sites, we

need the staff to do it, we need to ensure that they are funded properly to

ensure that when people come to Newfoundland and Labrador, they come here and

see a top-rated site.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS ROGERS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement. Congratulations

to the Provincial Historic Commemorations Program for encouraging people to

celebrate our cultural and historic treasures, both tangible and intangible.

Kudos are important.

Speaking of tangible, Mr. Speaker, it is also vital that government provide

more actual tangible support to our cultural heritage. In the past year we have

seen cuts to grants to community museums. At The Rooms we have seen three

archivists cut and we are now the only provincial museum without a conservator

on staff, thanks to cuts from this government. Their roles are crucial in

preserving and commemorating. Government cannot proudly celebrate these cuts.

As Emile Benoit would say: Vive la Rose .

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

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

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

said we have a strategy in place to replace all of the ferries in the Province

right now. Then he went on to say that we have a strategy in place for

replacement of some of the marine vessels in our system.

I ask the minister: What is it? Are you planning to replace all or some of

our ferries?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Transportation and Works.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MCGRATH: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I guess the difference in all and some is that we have already replaced some,

so it is not in our strategy to replace the new ones.

Mr. Speaker, we have a strategy for a full replacement to the marine ferry

fleet. I would just like to point out, Mr. Speaker, that we spent, since 2004,

over $650 million on our marine fleet here in the Province of Newfoundland and

Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MCGRATH: So I think our strategy is working, and we will continue to

work along that strategy.

As I announced a little while ago, we just announced an eighty metre ferry

for Fogo Island. We announced that we are in negotiations for a second eighty

metre ferry for the Bell Island run. That is nearing completion now. We made a

$10 million announcement for the

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I was repeating the minister's comments from yesterday. He was the one who

used the words all and some.

The minister's statements are obviously conflicting. Yesterday, right after

claiming to have a ferry strategy in place, he stood and said we are in the

process right now of hoping to replace or having a strategy put together to

replace the ferry system in Newfoundland and Labrador.

I ask the minister: How can you have a strategy in place while at the same

time hoping to put one together?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Transportation and Works.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MCGRATH: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would just like to pick up where I left off on the last question because I

did not get to finish that.

We made the $10 million announcement on the infrastructure repairs in Bell

Island and Portugal Cove. We do have a strategy in place for the rest of our

ferry system. Before Christmas, as I committed to, we will have the RFP out for

the Labrador ferries. That will be out before Christmas. In the new year, we

will announce the RFPs for the rest of our strategy.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. BALL: Well, it is finally getting clear, Mr. Speaker. It was starting

to sound like the government's $5 billion infrastructure strategy. If you

remember, that is the one the Auditor General said that did not exist, or the

Poverty Reduction Strategy where the minister claimed yesterday we do not need a

plan.

I ask the Premier: Why are your ministers so inconsistent in their comments?

Do you really have written strategies or not?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER DUNDERDALE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, one thing that this government has been since 2003 is strategic.

It was necessary for us to be strategic because we took over a bankrupt

Province.

Mr. Speaker, people will recall that we on a monthly basis were having

schools close because of mould, air quality. You could not take vehicles up the

Great Northern Peninsula because they might never get down.

We have ferry problems, we have wait time problems, and we still have

significant problems in health care, Mr. Speaker. People had to leave regions of

the Province to come to St. John's or Corner Brook for medical treatment. That

is no longer true, Mr. Speaker, and that is because of strategy.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. BALL: I would like to remind the Premier that yes, today people are

having lots of problems with ferries, and they are having lots of problems in

the emergency rooms. If you read the paper this week actually it is getting a

bit worse.

Mr. Speaker, on the eve of the 2011 election, the Premier presided over a

ribbon cutting and a grand announcement of the reopening of the fluorspar mine

in St. Lawrence. A $17 million repayable loan was made by the provincial

government at the time to the owners of the fluorspar mine.

I ask the Premier: It has been two years since the announcement, will you

tell the people of the Province how much of the $17 million has been spent to

date, and why is the mine still not open?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HUTCHINGS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we were certainly very delighted to engage with the private

sector in terms of the fluorspar mine and what it would mean to the Burin

Peninsula. There was some along the way in terms of cost. There was a

re-evaluation done of the cost because of escalating in terms of the

infrastructure that is put in to date, I will get the exact number. My

understanding there is about $300,000 related to engineering and design. There

have been further discussions with IBRD and with the owner operators of the

facility.

We are looking forward to this year, all intentions getting started on the

project. We are looking forward to what it is going to mean to the Burin

Peninsula. I am quite happy to be a partner in the project, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister was right, this year they went through re-scoping the project

because of the cost overruns. The construction phase was scheduled to start this

past summer with employment of over 370 workers at the site of the mine in St.

Lawrence.

I ask the Premier: Has the government received an update on the new plans of

the mine? When can residents of the Burin Peninsula expect to see jobs from this

project?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I want to thank the member for raising that subject here today. That is one

of the investments that this government has made in rural Newfoundland and

Labrador that we have been criticized for across the way on a number of

occasions.

I say to the member opposite, we have received regular updates from the

company. I met with the company as late as five or six days ago and they are on

track. They are moving forward. They did have some delays, as my colleague, the

Minister of Fisheries, just mentioned.

With respect to the $17 million loan commitment, it is my understanding that

no money from that $17 million has been drawn down. There has been some funding

from other sources that has been used in that project, but the $17 million, I

think, was directed specifically to the wharf project.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. BALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, we have heard one minister talk about $300,000; we have heard a second

minister say nothing.

Can we just get some clarification on if it is $300,000 or no money at all

that has been advanced from the $17 million?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Again, it is a pleasure to rise and talk about the mine in St. Lawrence

because it is something this government is very proud to support. As we do with

other projects, we stand in rural Newfoundland and Labrador and we invest

because we believe in the people and the future of rural Newfoundland and

Labrador.

I would also say if you check Hansard I think I was very clear. I said zero

of the $17 million has been drawn down because it is targeted toward the wharf

project. There are other sources of funding from Natural Resources and other

departments where the company has availed of to move the project forward. The

$17 million was targeted specifically to that particular project.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. A. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, Eastern Health is missing the national

wait-time targets for ER patients at the Health Sciences and St. Clare's 75 per

cent of the time.

I ask the minister: Almost two years since launching a strategy on ER wait

times, how do you explain this poor performance?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I am really happy to get a question with regard to wait times

because we as a government are always concerned about ensuring the people of the

Province get quality care, the best care, and the most efficient care we provide

in our 171 facilities through our 20,000 employees. We have made significant

progress. We now know we are leading the country in five wait-time areas, and

that is because we have identified those pressures and we put time, money, and

energy into it.

In terms of our ERs, Mr. Speaker, we have recognized pressures in our ERs and

we have started a process there through our emergency department strategy to

ensure that we are going to make the same kind of differences there that we made

in making us leaders in the country in radiation treatment, cancer treatment,

cardiac care, cataract care, hip and knee

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. A. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, the stats do not lie: 75 per cent of the

time.

I ask the minister: If you are trying to make improvements, why last year did

you eliminate the director of wait time positions in the Budget?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, he is exactly right, stats do not lie, so let me give him some

of the stats we are talking about. The number of visits to our ER departments

have increased by 16 per cent at St. Clare's and at the Health Sciences;

however, the time to initial physician assessment has decreased by 17 per cent.

The total length of stay has decreased by 11 per cent, and the number of

patients who have left without being seen by a physician has decreased by 35 per

cent.

Mr. Speaker, we continue to put in place initiatives to address the pressures

that we are being presented with. Because we have a growing population in this

Province, there are more and more people presenting to ER departments

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. A. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Medical Association Journal

found that not wearing a helmet while biking is strongly associated with death

from a head injury. The number of children in our Province hospitalized after a

biking injury is nearly double the national rate. Speaking of ER wait times, a

new study by the University of Alberta found that bicycle helmet legislation

reduces the rate of ER visits by children by 30 per cent.

So I ask the minister: Will your government commit to introducing bicycle

helmet legislation?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. CRUMMELL: Mr. Speaker, the safety of all Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians is utmost on our minds every single day, every waking hour, and

especially our children. Many municipalities have brought in legislation and

bylaws to incorporate safe practices when it comes to bicycle helmets.

That is right now where it lays, Mr. Speaker. There is no plan to move

forward on that, but we are certainly looking at opportunities for the future.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. A. PARSONS: I am glad to see that the minister acknowledges the

importance of this topic, because our own government's research indicates we

have the highest rate of bicycle-related hospitalizations of children in Canada,

yet we are the only Province in Atlantic Canada that does not have it, and one

of only three in the country.

So I ask the minister: When will stop pawning it off on the towns and bring

forward the necessary legislation?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. CRUMMELL: Mr. Speaker, our government works very closely with

municipalities right across this Province. They are doing a good job with regard

to bicycle safety, Mr. Speaker, and we will continue to work with municipalities

on this issue.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. A. PARSONS: We are doing so good, Mr. Speaker, that we have the

highest rate of bicycle-related hospitalizations of children in the Province,

yet the minister wants to put it all off on the municipalities that do not have

the means to police it.

We are one of only three provinces in Canada. When will the minister look out

to the children and make sure that this legislation is brought forward? Why is

this not important to this government?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. CRUMMELL: Mr. Speaker, we have enforcement officers right throughout

this Province RCMP, RNC, municipal officers. They are doing a very good job in

enforcing the statutes of municipalities, as well as provincial statutes, Mr.

Speaker.

At this point in time we are not looking at that, but we certainly are

looking at opportunities again in the future. Mr. Speaker, it is a municipality

that takes the lead on that. We work with municipalities on a regular basis and

we will continue to do so, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. OSBORNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Last week when I asked about the rental allowance rate provided by Income

Support, the minister responded by saying that government was aware of the issue

regarding affordable housing.

I ask the minister responsible for poverty reduction: If you are aware of the

issue, why have you not addressed the fact that Income Support only provides a

maximum family rental allowance of $522 per month when you know it clearly is

not enough to pay rent of $800 to $1,000 a month?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, we have increased the rental supplement out of

Newfoundland and Labrador Housing. As a matter of fact, we have doubled it from

$4 million to $8 million; as a matter of fact, the first government in

twenty-five years to do so.

We understand we have created an economy that has given us certain challenges

in regard to affordable housing. We work with all the groups, including

Newfoundland and Labrador Housing, to address that issue and we will continue to

do so.

As a matter of fact, we have a lot of programs within the Poverty Reduction

Strategy as well, the Action Plan of Newfoundland and Labrador, which was

announced in 2006. We will continue to implement that plan. It has been hailed

right across the country in regard to being one of the best plans that was ever

tabled, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. OSBORNE: There is no new money in this year's budget for rental

supplements, Mr. Speaker. Families are sending their children to school hungry

because the rent allowance is only half of what is required to pay rent. There

are more people turning to soup kitchens. The food bank usage in this Province

is the highest in the country.

I ask the minister responsible for poverty reduction: Is this a part of your

Poverty Reduction Strategy?

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

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, we have invested $149 million annually to

combat poverty reduction in this Province. It has been hailed by the BC poverty

coalition as an approach that their province should be taking as well. The

Citizens for Public Justice have ranked Newfoundland and Labrador as first in

its 2013 national poverty trend scoreboard, Mr. Speaker, and in 2013 a report by

the University of Toronto rated Newfoundland and Labrador as the first to access

affordable and safe nutritious food.

We will continue to invest in the vulnerable people of this Province, Mr.

Speaker, and we have done so since 2003.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. OSBORNE: I can tell the minister that the people who are taking money

from their food budget to pay their rent are not very excited about his

statistics.

Mr. Speaker, today's private member's motion is on seniors, the tax benefit

being distributed to 42,000 low income seniors in this Province. There are a

total of 90,000 seniors in the Province.

I ask the minister responsible for poverty reduction: What does this say

about your Poverty Reduction Strategy when almost half of our seniors in this

Province are living in poverty?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, no government in the history of Newfoundland

and Labrador has invested in seniors like this government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: We have put more money into the pockets of seniors than any

other government in our past history. We have eliminated things like the tax on

auto insurance that puts money directly into their pockets. We have had the heat

supplement, and we have had various other programs. We have increased the

Seniors' Benefits program. We have increased the number of prescription drugs

that is covered under the Newfoundland and Labrador Prescription Drug Program,

Mr. Speaker.

Seniors are dear to everyone's heart in this House of Assembly and we will

continue to invest in our seniors, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. OSBORNE: None of what the minister just said, Mr. Speaker, helps

people pay their rent when they are only getting half the amount required to pay

their rent on Income Support. None of what the minister just said, Mr. Speaker,

helps seniors put food in their fridge when most of them are walking the malls

in the winter to stay warm. Mr. Speaker, the Low Income Seniors' Benefit is

indexed each year based on the Consumer Price Index.

I ask the minister responsible for poverty reduction: Why are you indexing

Seniors' Benefits within the cost of living but not Income Support rates?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, I nearly asked the hon. member to take this

plan of reducing poverty, an excellent plan for Newfoundland and Labrador, which

was tabled and developed in 2006, and have a read. Because this is a plan, an

action plan that we have committed to and will continue to implement, Mr.

Speaker.

I will table it and ask the hon. member to have a read. Because when I

mentioned the BC poverty coalition and all the groups across Canada as hailing

this as one of the best plans every developed, it is true, Mr. Speaker. We will

continue to invest in our seniors. We will continue to invest in our vulnerable

people like no other government this Province has ever known.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. OSBORNE: Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: Does he really think he is

putting a smile on the faces of the families who cannot afford to pay their rent

because Income Support is only giving them half of what they require to pay

their rent?

When are you going to increase the rental rates for people on Income Support,

when it is only $522 and their rent is $1,000?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the hon. member that he

voted for the Budget. That is a fact.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. O'BRIEN: You cannot come into this House and talk out of two sides of

your mouth, Mr. Speaker.

He recognized the value of the last Budget. He recognized the challenges of

the last Budget. He recognized before that we were investing in our seniors. He

recognized that we were investing in our most vulnerable, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. O'BRIEN: Tell the hon. member to stop talking out of two sides of his

mouth.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.

MS DEMPSTER: Mr. Speaker, John Noseworthy said the Department of Advanced

Education and Skills is not doing a good job transitioning Income Support

clients to the labour market. He recommended a case management model for working

with Income Support clients.

I ask the minister: Is your department implementing a case management model

for Income Support clients; and, if so, what is the status of the model

implementation?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you for the protection, Mr. Speaker. The hon. member has not been long

in this House, but some of the other members were there, I can guarantee you

that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. O'BRIEN: As a matter of fact, they criticized us in regard to that

report and now they are asking us when we are going to implement it, Mr.

Speaker.

I can inform this House that we take that report very, very seriously and we

have implemented certain things over in my department up to this date and will

continue to take that strategy, or that plan, or that report seriously, and

certainly we will be taking a lot of advice from it, Mr. Speaker.

You cannot talk out of two sides of your mouth.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.

MS DEMPSTER: Mr. Speaker, Mr. Noseworthy indicated that 70 per cent of

Income Support clients are not being referred to employment assessment and

counselling.

I ask the minister: What percentage of Income Support clients are not being

referred to the employment and assessment counselling today?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the hon. member for her question. I would like to quote and I can

actually table this as well, when they are in the mood for tabling documents

the number of attendees in regard to sector skills: in Prince Philip Drive, we

had sixteen; in Carbonear, we had twenty; in Gander, we had fifteen; in Grand

Falls-Windsor, we had twenty-two; in Corner Brook, we had twelve; and on and on,

Mr. Speaker.

The success rate in regard to the number of work placements after that you

take Gander, eleven had jobs, Mr. Speaker. It is working.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. BENNETT: Mr. Speaker, on December 21, 2012 government entered into a

deal with OCI that allowed them to ship out 75 per cent of the yellowtail quota;

the remaining 25 per cent will be processed in Fortune. That was supposed to

create 110 jobs. To date, Fortune is still closed.

I ask the minister: When is he going to make OCI live up to their commitment

and hire those 110 people?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HUTCHINGS: Mr. Speaker, we were certainly for building the industry

on the Burin Peninsula. That is why we moved forward with this partnership. The

requirements of the OCI are moving forward. We expect very soon for the

operation in Fortune to begin production. There is significant investment to be

made, as it was one of the requirements of the agreement.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. HUTCHINGS: In addition, there was a requirement for a vessel to be

purchased. The indication was that there would be best efforts for

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to be on that vessel. Right now I understand 90

per cent of folks on that vessel are Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

It was a good partnership. We are looking forward to the plant reopening in

Fortune. We believe in the Burin Peninsula, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

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

Our so-called golden age of economic growth is not trickling down to the

25,000 households on Income Support. People in poverty need a basic decent

income to be able to afford housing, food, and other necessities before they can

even take advantage of worker training opportunities.

I ask the Minister of Finance: Why did the Poverty Reduction Strategy drop

the annual indexing of Income Support to the Consumer Price Index?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER DUNDERDALE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, when we came to government in 2003, this Province had the

highest rate of poverty in the country. In the ensuing years since, and because

of the investments this government has made in the people of Newfoundland and

Labrador all of the people in Newfoundland and Labrador not only in the $149

million that we talk about annually in the Poverty Reduction Strategy, but also

in things like the gender and diversity agreements that go with every

development we do in this Province, opening up opportunity for all

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians so they are not shut out from the economic

engines that run this place, we have moved now to one of the third lowest rates

of poverty in the country. There is more to be done, Mr. Speaker, and we are

going to do it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

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

Yes, and the more to be done to bring back the indexing to the Consumer Price

Index, that is what should be done. It should not have been taken away.

When the Poverty Reduction Strategy was first announced in 2006, Goal 5

promised greater access to ABE, but this year government cut ABE from the public

college campuses across the Province and now hundreds can no longer enrol.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS MICHAEL: Mr. Speaker, I ask the Minister of Advanced Education and

Skills: Why has this goal disappeared from the Poverty Reduction Strategy?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, I would invite the hon. member to have a good

read of our Reducing Poverty: An Action Plan for Newfoundland and Labrador ,

2006, because she probably has not read it. As a matter of fact, she is wrong in

regard to the ABE program. Each and every student requiring ABE in this Province

has access to that. As a matter of fact, I commend the private sector, the

institutions that are out there providing that program. They are out there in

every place that was offered before and they continue to do so.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

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

Goal 5 of the Poverty Reduction Strategy, which I have read and I am glad the

minister finally read it himself last night, also promised greater access to

literacy, but the promised adult literacy strategy has never surfaced

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS MICHAEL: and there are people who cannot get access to literacy

upgrading to train for a trade.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: Why does the Poverty Reduction Strategy

still not include an adult literacy strategy?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, as I said in this House over the last couple of

weeks, we have less people on Income Support and more people working in

Newfoundland and Labrador than ever in our history.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Under the Sector Skills program, Mr. Speaker, as I just read

out the numbers, we are moving people from Income Support into meaningful jobs,

something they can latch onto, something they can believe in, and something they

can be proud of. That is what this government is doing, that is what we will

continue to do.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS ROGERS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Today, government is going to praise itself for increasing the Seniors'

Benefit this year by $25 a year. That works out roughly to six cents a day, the

same amount the dole was in the Dominion of Newfoundland in the 1930s. We have

the highest percentage of seniors needing the GIS in the country, and food banks

say this year more seniors are coming for help.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: Is six cents a day the best he can do for

the 40,000 seniors living in poverty in Newfoundland and Labrador?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, let me talk about some of the investments. We

have made investments right across government departments in regard to our

seniors, in regard to people of low income, and in regard to people who are most

vulnerable in our Province. We have taken that on since 2003.

We invest $149 million annually. We are always seeking ways within the budget

confines to reinvest and invest again in our seniors, Mr. Speaker. We have

increased the Income Support health benefits. We are providing funding for the

Earned Income Supplement project for single parents on Income Support. We have

increased the Mother Baby Nutrition Supplement. We have increased the subsidy

rate for children. That is not the seniors but that is to the most vulnerable

people of this Province

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. O'BRIEN: - but we will continue to invest, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS ROGERS: Mr. Speaker, this government wants us to spend this afternoon

praising it for increasing the benefit by six cents a day. Mr. Speaker, because

the rent supplement is not portable, it does not allow seniors to choose what

area to live in so they are close to family and services.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: Is he prepared to change the Rent Supplement

Program to make it portable to fix this problem?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I would just like to outline for the member opposite some of the

initiatives this government has undertaken in an effort to ensure that the lives

of seniors in our Province, those who we hold closest to us, absolutely are

respected in this Province. Mr. Speaker, the Low Income Seniors' Benefit at

$38.5 million is one such example.

Mr. Speaker, in terms of the Newfoundland and Labrador Prescription Drug

Program, we invested $29 million in the seniors program alone so that no senior

in this Province, under the NLPDP program, pays more than $6 per prescription. I

hear from seniors' everyday on how that makes an incredible difference in their

lives, and that is something we are proud of, Mr. Speaker. I have a number of

other initiatives as well but I think my time is up.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS ROGERS: Mr. Speaker, the majority of people on the wait-list for

Newfoundland and Labrador Housing need one or two bedroom apartments.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: How many of those on that wait-list are

seniors?

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

quick response.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, we have invested heavily through Newfoundland

and Labrador Housing in our most vulnerable people, which include our seniors.

We have created 244 new affordable housing units throughout the Province. We

have invested, and actually we have a total of 1,117 new units provincial-wide

now in our housing stock.

We have invested through the Social Housing Renovations Program. We have

invested $10 million to renovate approximately 640 social housing units

throughout the Province. We have the Provincial Home Repair Program, which we

have about $10.4 million into it. We have the Rental Supplement Program, which

is an addition of $1 million; along with we doubled that

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The time for Question Period has expired.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. OSBORNE: Mr. Speaker, a point of order.

During Question Period, the minister responsible for poverty reduction said

that I voted in favour of the Budget. That is a misleading statement. Mr.

Speaker, I did not vote in favour of this year's Budget. I voted against this

year's Budget, and I would like for him to clarify it.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Speaker will check the records of Hansard to verify the facts and report

back at a later date.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

The hon. the Opposition House Leader.

MR. A. PARSONS: Yes, again, going back to Question Period. If the

Minister of Health and the Minister of Advanced Education would be kind enough

to table the documents

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask members of the gallery, we are very pleased you are able to join us but

as you leave, could you leave quietly, please.

MR. A. PARSONS: If the Minister of Health and the Minister of Advanced

Education would be kind enough to table the documents they quoted from during

today's Question Period, it would be much appreciated.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling of Documents.

Tabling of Documents

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

MR. HUTCHINGS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Member for St. Barbe, during Question Period,

indicated he had wrote the former Minister of Fisheries on January 29, 2013

specifically on how the industry figures in the CETA negotiations, and he

indicated at that point that the minister did not respond. I would like to table

in the House, January 29, 2013

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. HUTCHINGS: the letter to the then Minister of Fisheries and

Aquaculture. I will also table February 27, 2013, the response to that letter

from the then Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture. So indeed, the letter was

received, it certainly was responded to. The statement was incorrect, Mr.

Speaker.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I would like to table the Citizens' Representative Annual Digest for the

period of April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2013.

Notices of Motion.

Notices of Motion

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services.

MR. DAVIS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that I will ask leave to introduce a bill

entitled,

An Act Respecting Adoptions. (Bill 27)

MR. SPEAKER: Answers to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

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

MR. KIRBY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents of Newfoundland

and Labrador humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS play-based, full-day kindergarten has been proven to give children a

stronger start in school and in life; and

WHEREAS a full day of learning early in life can help improve children's

reading, writing, and math skills and provide them with a strong foundation for

future learning; and

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. KIRBY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

WHEREAS full-day kindergarten provides opportunities for children to

socialize with others and develop academic and social skills necessary for

future success; and

WHEREAS children in full-day kindergarten programs are able to remain in

familiar surroundings with staff and friends all day rather than moving between

different locations; and

WHEREAS full-day kindergarten makes the transition to Grade 1 easier for both

parents and children; and

WHEREAS provinces that invest in full-day kindergarten are seeing a return on

investment in terms of better school achievement and fewer students at risk of

falling through the cracks;

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

introduce a full-day kindergarten program for children and families in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

As in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, this is not a new issue for us to have presented or to discuss

here in the Legislature. In recent times a number of individuals have said to

me: Well, how is it that we are going to be able to afford this? We do not have

enough space, we do not have money, and we do not have enough teachers.

No one is talking about doing this or at least I am not talking about doing

this all at once. This is a program that can be phased in over the course of

three or four years starting next September. There are a variety of scenarios.

We do not need any back-of-the-napkin financing or funding scenarios for this.

We know what the numbers are. The Minister of Education had his staff last year

do a detailed analysis of how this can be done.

We can have pilot projects starting next September in Labrador, in rural

Newfoundland and Labrador, and on the Northeast Avalon. If the Minister of

Education wants a school or schools to have pilot projects for full-day

kindergarten for next September, there are two in St. John's North I can

recommend to him pretty quickly that can accommodate pilot projects.

This is something that will benefit not just our kids, Mr. Speaker, but the

Province. It will benefit us economically, it will benefit our society greatly,

and it is a good investment. Investments in early learning and care pay off to

the tune of $2.54 for every $1 invested. If we could find an RRSP that had that

rate of return, there would be lineup around the block.

Orders of the Day

Private Members' Day

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

This being now 3:00 o'clock, Private Members' Day, I will call on the Member

for Exploits to introduce the motion in his name.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FORSEY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the Member for Cape St. Francis, the

following private member's motion.

BE IT RESOLVED that this hon. House supports the government's decision to

provide the Newfoundland and Labrador Seniors' Benefit, a refundable tax credit

for low-income seniors which, this year, is providing some 42,000 seniors in our

Province with payments of up to $971, the highest amount ever.

Mr. Speaker, I am sure that all members in this hon. House will be pleased to

hear that 42,000 seniors in our Province have recently received a payment of up

to $971 as a result of the Newfoundland and Labrador Seniors' Benefit, a

refundable tax credit for low-income seniors. Our government is proud to have

significantly increased the benefits under this program three times in recent

years.

Our government is proud to continue our commitment to assisting seniors once

again by providing the Seniors' Benefit. As a result of the benefit being

indexed on an annual basis, this year's maximum payment to seniors is the

highest ever at $971.

Mr. Speaker, the Newfoundland and Labrador Seniors' Benefit is a refundable

tax credit for low-income seniors. A refundable tax credit is an amount paid to

an individual even if they have no tax payable. In order to qualify for this

benefit, the person must be sixty-five years of age by December 31 of the

taxation year. The benefit is paid in October of each year and is included in

the same cheque as the GST-HST credit.

Mr. Speaker, this benefit is paid automatically without need to apply and is

based on family net income from previous years. Mr. Speaker, in 2007, the

Province adjusted the qualifying threshold in respect to senior couples so that

the full benefit was received for incomes up to $25,000, and a partial benefit

was received for incomes up to $31,587.

This change corrected an anomaly in the Seniors' Benefit program whereby

senior couples had not been able to avail of the full value of the benefit

because their income under federal programs, such as Old Age Security and

Guaranteed Income Supplement, moved them towards the upper end of the income

phase-out range.

Mr. Speaker, there was some mention of the Seniors' Benefit today and talking

about the increase. In 1999, it was a $200 and a $400 maximum benefit amount.

The qualifying income threshold was $12,000 and $20,000, with an estimated

number of recipients at 34,000. The total value of the program was $4.4 million.

In 2003, Mr. Speaker, under this government, the maximum benefit was

increased from $350 and $700, with a qualifying income threshold of $14,000 and

$20,000, with 30,300 seniors receiving the benefit, with a total value of $7.5

million, Mr. Speaker. So in the matter of a couple of years, it almost doubled.

Mr. Speaker, in 2008, to recognize the cost of operating a household is not

significantly different for a single senior than a married senior couple, the

benefit amount was changed so that the single senior with net income of up to

$25,275 was eligible to receive the full benefit amount. As a result of this

change, the Seniors' Benefit payment and qualifying income threshold is the same

for a single senior as a senior couple.

What we are saying there is if you own your own home and you are a single

senior or if you are a couple, the cost is basically the same to operate the

house, your lights, your heating, your repairs, just about everything other

than, I guess, some food, Mr. Speaker. So it was agreed that the single senior

or couples would receive the same amount.

As a result of that, Mr. Speaker, in 2008 the maximum benefit at that time

rose to $776. The qualifying threshold for single was $25,275, and for family

$31,930, with a payout of over $27 million in 2008 under this government.

However, it did not stop there, because we knew the need was there for seniors.

This money of course was of great importance to them, especially around this

time of year.

In 2013, Mr. Speaker, the maximum benefit was raised to $971. The threshold

for a single senior was $28,231 and for a family it was $36,559. The estimated

number of recipients is around 42,000, Mr. Speaker. From $4.4 million in 1999 to

this government today, the total value of the program is almost $37 million paid

out to seniors in this tax credit.

AN HON. MEMBER: How much?

MR. FORSEY: Almost $37 million.

Mr. Speaker, the tax benefit is received generally in October. I know in my

district, in the District of Exploits, I have had

AN HON. MEMBER: What a district.

MR. FORSEY: It is a great district, I say to the Member for Mount Pearl

North, and South. Sometimes I think they are a tag team, Mr. Speaker. I think we

can call them twins.

Mr. Speaker, in October is when they receive this benefit. I have had a lot

of seniors in my district say it is certainly a good time of the year to receive

the benefit. When you can receive almost $1,000 in the fall of the year, Mr.

Speaker, if people are burning oil, they have to fill up their oil tank. It is a

great time to invest in your heating program for the winter. They are only two

months away from Christmas, so it gives them an opportunity to catch up on all

of that. I have been told by a number I am sure most members in this House, I

would say, Mr. Speaker, have been told this is a great time of the year to

receive the Seniors' Benefit.

There were several questions today pertaining to seniors, Mr. Speaker, the

benefits, and the initiatives taken by different governments. This government

has made substantial investment in programs for seniors since 2003.

Just to name a couple, of course I just mentioned the Seniors' Benefit, a

refundable tax credit, with close to $37 million program; the NLPDP, which is a

tongue twister, the Newfoundland and Labrador Prescription Drug Program, over

$73 million in 2013-2014; the Home Heating Rebate, a $15 million program. We

have invested in many others, like the Age-Friendly Provincial Grants to support

seniors' organizations, Wellness Grants for healthy aging and support seniors'

community recreation, investments by Newfoundland and Labrador Housing, and the

list goes on.

I must say the investments by Newfoundland and Labrador Housing, Mr. Speaker,

has been one of importance and essential. There was a need and we are filling

that need. In the Affordable Housing Program, Mr. Speaker, just in Exploits

alone, and I am sure throughout the Province because I have seen many of the

announcements, we have had I think close to forty units of affordable housing

built in the District of Exploits, in Bishop's Falls and Botwood.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FORSEY: That is just in the District of Exploits, Mr. Speaker, but

this is happening right across the Province.

For the people who are not sure or do not understand what affordable housing

means, it is a fairly new program. There are new houses or new apartments being

built. The rent actually is lower than the market rental rates that most people

would pay for a monthly rent, which means when seniors move into these

apartments and, by the way, they are done by good proponents, good

contractors. They are well built. They are new. They have all the facilities

they need in them.

They are accessible. So if you have a disability, you can avail of that. By

the way, that is another standard or piece of criteria that is put into the

building of these affordable housing units. When the applications come in and

you apply for affordable housing, it is compulsory that there would be a certain

That is just one of many programs through Newfoundland and Labrador Housing.

I could go on and on, Mr. Speaker, about the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing

investments in their other housing units, in the home repair programs and so on,

but I am sure my colleague from Cape St. Francis is planning on speaking on this

today, and some other members, especially on this side. They can pick up some of

the things I have missed, and I am probably going to miss quite a few because

there is certainly not enough time what I have today to state the

investments that this government is doing across the Province, especially for

seniors, Mr. Speaker.

I mentioned the Home Heating Rebate earlier, Mr. Speaker, and it is available

to residents of the Province who directly incur costs in their home, and whose

adjusted family income for 2012 is $40,000 or less. Regardless of the energy

source used to heat your home, eligible households will receive a maximum rebate

of $250, where adjusted family income for 2012 is $35,000 or less. Five hundred

dollars for residents of Coastal Labrador, Mr. Speaker. A partial rebate is

available for households where adjusted family income for 2012 is more than

$35,000, but $40,000 or less, with a minimum rebate of $100. That is how that

one works, Mr. Speaker.

May I add, again, because I had mentioned the investment in the Seniors'

Benefit rebate in 2001, compared to today and where our government took over in

2003. In 2001-2002 the maximum rebate was $100. There were approximately 15,500

people who received it. The cost at that time was $1.5 million. Well, in

2012-2013, the maximum rebate is $250 and $500. It is $250 on the Island and

$500 in Labrador.

MR. SPEAKER (Verge): Order, please!

I remind the hon. member that his speaking time has expired.

MR. FORSEY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR. JOYCE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I will just stand for a few minutes to have a few words on this motion. The

member read the motion into the record. There is no need for me to read it into

the record. I just find it kind of odd; private members' motions usually discuss

something and we have a debate. This was already approved in the Budget, from my

understanding.

So once again, during a polling period, here we see the government bringing

in a private member's motion which was already approved in the Budget. The

seniors' funds were already approved in the Budget, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JOYCE: Yes, I agree, and I will be voting for this. I have no problem

with that, but once again we see the government coming in, in a polling period,

instead of discussing significant issues, it is something that was already

passed in the Budget. Here they are during a polling period and wants to pat

themselves on the back.

My question is: How do you think seniors feel hearing members up talking

about how seniors are in poverty and we are doing this for them and we are doing

that for them? It is a great initiative, Mr. Speaker.

Once again, we hear members opposite, the minute you mention polling period,

you mention things that are already passed in the Budget, they just want to pat

themselves on the back and say everything is great. I can tell you everything is

not great.

I agree with this initiative for seniors, absolutely. There is no doubt in my

mind. I agree with it. I wish we could do more, and I am sure every member in

this House wishes they could do more. Absolutely, there is no discussion about

that, Mr. Speaker.

The member mentioned housing; housing in not great for seniors in this

Province. I am not sure if it is because you represent a rural district and it

is different from some urban. I can assure you, the rates for seniors trying to

find affordable housing is becoming almost a crisis in this Province.

I do not know if it is just the Bay of Islands that I get the calls and from

around the Corner Brook area, but the number of calls that I get from people who

are trying to look for affordable housing for seniors is on the increase.

We hear about all of the money being spent in Newfoundland and Labrador

Housing. How many seniors' units are there lately, with affordable housing,

where seniors can afford it? As my hon. colleague mentioned before about the

discrepancy in the supplement for certain areas where you just cannot afford it.

On one hand, I agree that we need to help out the most vulnerable. Sometimes

it is seniors; sometimes it is not. On the other hand, we just cannot stand up

here because it is a polling period and someone is given a member a private

member's motion, go read it, and then all of a sudden you have to go up and pat

yourself and the government on the back that everything is rosy. Everything is

not rosy.

I agree with speaking the way it is, good, bad, or indifferent. There have

been great initiatives by the government; I will be the first to admit it. I

voted for a lot of it, I respect a lot of it, and I supported a lot of it. We

just cannot stand up here and say everything is absolutely rosy.

I know this program was brought in 1999. I was a part of it. I can see the

difference from the amounts, Mr. Speaker, that were increased over time. I

agree, as government could afford it, government increased it. You will not get

any rejection, you will not get any contradiction from me as a Member for the

Bay of Islands when you are helping seniors out, absolutely none. The more we

can do for seniors, the more we can do for the most vulnerable people in this

Province, Mr. Speaker, I am all for it. I do acknowledge the increase over time

in this program and that is good.

Mr. Speaker, in Corner Brook and the Bay of Islands area when you talk about

the seniors and you talk about housing; housing is a major factor, absolutely.

If anybody in this House thinks $1,000 a year is going to fix the housing

shortage for the seniors in Corner Brook and the Bay of Islands the calls that

I get they should go out and speak to some of them.

A lot of people are living in their homes now and they are older. Their homes

are much older, the repairs are a lot more, electricity bills are increasing,

and food costs are increasing a lot. In some cases if there is only one person

living in the home, where now they only have one income if someone's spouse

passed away, they only have one income the burden on that person is much

greater than if there were two incomes in the household.

As this here is a great initiative, we cannot stand in this House and say

that everything is fine when it is not, Mr. Speaker. Rent subsidies for seniors

that is something we should look at, to increase the rent subsidies for

seniors and the people most vulnerable. That is a big issue in this Province. I

am sure you are getting calls in your own district about seniors trying to find

affordable housing. This is not unique. I hope it is not just unique to Corner

Brook and the Bay of Islands area. I am sure we are all getting these types of

calls.

We need some kind of a strategy around seniors. It is all right to stand up

and beat your chest, pat yourself on the back, look what we are doing; it is

just not working. There have been some significant gains; I will be the first to

admit it. I will be the first to admit yes, there are improvements, but we need

to look at the strategy itself to see how we can improve it.

I always said this, Mr. Speaker. There is no one in this House of Assembly

who would not wish seniors affordable housing in this Province, absolutely no

one. I do not think anybody would want it on any senior and I would never, ever

think that. I know the difference, but what we need to do is come up with a

strategy where we as a group, we, as parliamentarians, come up with some

strategy together, every year make it a bit better, find different ways it is

all right to just pour money at it, but I can assure you affordable housing

takes up most of the income for seniors in this Province now on low income. That

is something that we need to look at, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I just want to speak on one little thing when you are talking

about $900. You take a PET scanner in Corner Brook, or the radiation unit in

Corner Brook, just think of a senior, one trip across this Province there is

your $900 one trip. By the time they pay for gas, by the time they pay for one

or two hotel nights here, and if you are in here for five or six weeks and you

are not lucky enough to get into the Daffodil House, there is your $900 gone the

first three or four days.

That is the kind of things that we can do just for people all across this

Province, Mr. Speaker. We always hear this government and this is something

that irritates me when you hear the government stand up and say we are leading

the country. We are doing the best in the country. Well, let's do it in

radiation units. Let's do it in PET scanners. If we could do it in all of the

other areas, why can't we do that for Corner Brook and Western Newfoundland? Why

can't we make it easy on the seniors?

Why do seniors sixty-five and seventy years old have to drive across the

Province, Mr. Speaker? We are getting $900 and it gone in the first three of

four days because oh, we cannot do it, yet we can lead the country in every

other way. There has not been a debate on this here, with the information put on

the table, with people being listened to, people being taken seriously in some

of their major concerns, yet we just dismiss it.

I look at it, Mr. Speaker, that when you look at this $900, I look at some of

the seniors who call me. No doubt, there is a travel subsidy. I admit there is a

travel subsidy, but when you have to drive across the Province, when you have to

find a place here in St. John's to live up to two weeks, three weeks, sometimes

six weeks for radiation, or if you have to come in here after 2015, if it is

built by then, for a PET scanner when you could have it in Corner Brook, Mr.

Speaker, the $900 is gone.

Mr. Speaker, when I hear this government stand up and say they are leading

the country and all these great initiatives, we are leaders, we are great

pioneers; yet, because of the cost, because of the cutbacks of the new hospital

in Corner Brook, we cannot be leaders. We have to take a back step because we

have to find some other excuse why it cannot be done.

We have to see seniors driving across this Province, Mr. Speaker, on a

regular basis for radiation treatment, and in 2015 for PET scanners when there

has not been an open, honest discussion or debate on why it cannot be done in

Corner Brook. So excuse me if I do not jump with joy for $900 when I get a call,

just yesterday at my office, looking to travel to St. John's for this type of

treatment. Excuse me if I do not get it because I am still getting calls at my

office, Mr. Speaker, on this.

It is a very important issue to me. It is a very important issue to a lot of

people in Western Newfoundland. It is a very important issue to the seniors in

Western Newfoundland. That is why at every opportunity I get, I will raise that

issue.

Mr. Speaker, look at Muskrat Falls, let's look at Muskrat Falls. If the

government is correct in their own information, which I do not think they are

because I think it is going to be much higher. You take in 2017, the increase in

their electricity rates. A lot of the seniors cannot cut firewood. They cannot

cut firewood. A lot of them are through electricity years ago. Electricity rates

are going to go up, what double, 50 per cent, 75 per cent? Where is this $900

going to go when Muskrat Falls comes in?

These are the things where it is easy to stand up and I think it is great

that we give seniors this rebate. I honestly do, but we have to look at the

bigger picture, Mr. Speaker. We just cannot stand up here during a polling

period and put in a private member's motion and pat everybody on the back on how

good government is and expect I know for me, in my case, to stand up and say

yes, everything is great when it is not.

Let me tell you, Mr. Speaker, if you want to know the number of calls I get

from seniors who are looking for affordable housing, I do not know what other

members and I am sure other members probably will not say or cannot say how

many calls they get from seniors looking for affordable housing. I do not know

why they will not. I do not know if they are allowed to, but I can tell you at

my office I get a lot of calls from seniors on affordable housing. That is one

thing in this Province, Mr. Speaker, that I feel we have to work on more is

affordable housing for seniors.

I heard the minister talk about Newfoundland and Labrador Housing. There are

great private initiatives and partnerships with Newfoundland and Labrador

Housing. Mr. Speaker, I can assure you a lot of the apartments that are being

built in Corner Brook are out of range for a lot of seniors, especially if there

is only one. If a spouse happened to pass on you have one income.

I can assure you a lot of the apartments that I am getting calls on, they

cannot afford it. When you put on the increase in the electricity rates, you put

on the increase in food, and medication again, I applaud the government. They

did bring in a lot of new funds for medication and drugs for the seniors. I

applaud that, I think it is great. Still, there is a certain level that the

seniors still have to put in and it is climbing, and it is climbing, and it is

climbing.

Even though I will vote for this today, I have no problem whatsoever,

anything we can do for our seniors. I will vote for it, absolutely. I think it

is a great initiative. I applaud the government for building on this initiative

that started in 1999. I applaud the government, but there are major issues for

seniors in this Province.

I can assure you of one thing, Mr. Speaker, when I brought it up about the

hospital in Corner Brook, we heard the minister saying no one has called me on

it. I will just let people in Corner Brook realize, and they will be told, the

reason why this is not a big issue is because no one has called the minister on

it. Let me tell you, by the time I send the information out to the people who

I was saying I am going to work with government; I am going to be working with

government to try to see if I can bring them around to reasoning of why it

should be done in Corner Brook. Obviously, that is not working.

I will say to the people who I have been dealing with, Mr. Speaker, who just

went through this treatment, who had to come in here for six, eight weeks, I

will be saying what you need to do is contact the minister. Let the minister

know your concerns. Minister, trust me, you will be getting calls from people

who will be directly affected. You will know directly from their concerns.

Mr. Speaker, even if you speak to people like Israel Hann, a senior and

advocate, the same one who was barred from the meeting by the municipal police

in Corner Brook. You ask Israel Hann if he is going to let this drop. You go ask

Gerald Parsons is he going to let this drop; the same person, Mr. Speaker. You

go ask those few if they are going to let this drop.

These are the types of things we can look at in a rational way, Mr. Speaker.

Let's have an informed discussion. Let's have an informed debate. Just do not

say no, we cannot do it; no, we cannot. Turn around, and we are going to lead

the country in all these other ways. If we can do it in one area, we can do it

in a PET scanner and radiation unit.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I am going to try to get this back on track. I am not going to

stand up and talk just about my district because that is not what this private

member's motion is about. It is about seniors right throughout this Province,

Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. JOYCE: A point of order, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Bay of Islands on a point of order.

MR. JOYCE: Just to inform the minister, the Western Regional Hospital is

for all the Western region and Labrador, not just the Bay of Islands. I know she

wants to try to make it personal, but it is not personal to me.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

There is no point of order.

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Of course, Mr. Speaker, anyone who was listening would know that I did not

say that nor did I imply that.

Mr. Speaker, I want to get back to the motion of the day. I am really pleased

to speak to this particular motion, the private member's motion, regarding the

approximately 4,500 older adults in this Province who will receive the Seniors'

Benefit. Recognizing the contributions of seniors in this Province is something

that is important to all of us. There is no doubt.

Mr. Speaker, I know in my area of the Province, whenever I have opportunity

to be in my district and meet with our seniors' group it is some of the best

days that I have. Some of the best opportunities I have and some of the best

learning I have happen is when I am with seniors in my district. There are so

many programs that are operating out there because of our seniors, the

incredible work they are doing, and the contributions they are making.

I look at the breakfast program out my way. I look at many of the community

groups who are functioning. I look at all of the volunteer boards we have, Mr.

Speaker, particularly this time of year through church groups and school groups.

The contributions of seniors to this Province are absolutely amazing, and we

need to acknowledge those.

Mr. Speaker, I want to try to parcel out my time as best I can here. There

was some fear mongering done by the speaker just before me and I want to have a

minute to look at that because we are really concerned about seniors who have

the horrible diagnosis of cancer, what happens to them, and the treatments they

are receiving. We acknowledge how difficult those treatments are; without

question, we acknowledge that.

We work our hardest. The people we have in our health care system are working

as hard as they possibly can to ensure that our seniors, particularly, but

everybody who is undergoing a cancer treatment, a radiation treatment, in this

Province is getting the best care we can. That is why we have an A+ rating in

terms of radiation treatment in this Province, Mr. Speaker. We have worked long

and hard and we need to acknowledge that we have an A+ rating.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN: We have the best rating in Canada, Mr. Speaker.

Now, I know that the member opposite does not like to hear me talk about

that. He talks about the fact that seniors in particular have to travel for that

treatment. I acknowledge that, Mr. Speaker. We are a Province of 500,000, Mr.

Speaker, but we are so large geographically, and that travel I understand is

difficult and I wish it could be different.

Best practice teaches us that radiation therapy has to happen where the

cancer programs are being delivered, Mr. Speaker. That is how we have been able

to ensure that we are giving the best treatment, because we are offering the

radiation program in a co-located site with the cancer program. That happens to

be in our tertiary care centre, the same as it would be indicated for any area

in the country.

Mr. Speaker, we have to make sure that we have radiation oncologists in

place, we have to make sure that we have radiation therapists in place, and a

whole host of other people who are required to deliver that program. Without a

volume of patients to treat, then they cannot really function, because they are

losing their skills.

On the West Coast of the Province we have, in last year's stats, 171, Mr.

Speaker. You would need a caseload, just to operate the linac machine for

radiation, of 500 to 600 patients. That is what is required. Mr. Speaker,

fortunately, we do not have that population of people who need radiation

treatment on the West Coast, so we bring them here. We have in place here, as

well, a Medical Transportation Assistance Program to help with that travel, to

help with those accommodations, to help also with the meals and the per diems

and so on.

Is it ideal? Would I like to be able to put radiation treatment in every

facility that we have in this Province? Of course, we would, Mr. Speaker, but we

cannot do that because it is not possible to do it.

We talk about the PET scanner and he has raised concerns about the PET

scanner and again done some fear mongering among not just the seniors, but

everybody in this Province around the PET scanner. Mr. Speaker, I raise it

simply in response to what I have heard over there across the way this afternoon

in this very bill.

Mr. Speaker, again, if we could put a PET scanner in every single hospital,

we would do that too. It is $40 million to do that. We are finally getting one

here in this Province, and we are proud of that. It is a $40 million investment

that is going to serve everybody in Newfoundland and Labrador. The reason that

we cannot put a PET scanner in other places is not simply the cost; it has to do

with the cyclotron and it has to do with the isotopes.

Now, I have some stats here that I think the people of the West Coast and all

of our seniors would find very, very interesting. All isotopes that are used for

PET scanners have a very short lifespan. In fact, they can lose their

effectiveness in minutes in absolute minutes. The most common isotope that is

used for PET scanners will lose 50 per cent of its usefulness in less than two

hours in 109 minutes actually.

Mr. Speaker, the opportunity to transport from here to Corner Brook, an

isotope, really means that what we have to do is produce five times as much as

we need in order to be able to have that amount, to be able to deliver the

treatment. Again, realizing that we need all of the specialists to be able to do

that, too.

Mr. Speaker, we have done a great job on recruitment of specialists in

Newfoundland and Labrador and we have a complement that we are going to be able

to use here in St. John's. Mr. Speaker, for 171 patients a year, I seriously

doubt, and all of the statistics would tell us that it is almost virtually

impossible to attract people who have studied for sixteen years or more to come

to an area and practice where the workload is 170 patients.

Now again, I point out to the people of the West Coast or Central

Newfoundland, or Labrador or the northern part of this Province, this is not a

decision we have made lightly. This is a decision that we have made based on the

best evidence, the best scientific evidence we can find.

The World Health Organization has written extensively on this, Mr. Speaker. I

invite the Member for the Bay of Islands to look to that information and to try

to understand that what he is asking for, while we would love to be able to

provide that in every part of this Province, is something that is just not

realistic, something that we just cannot do.

We do have initiatives in place that will help the people of the West Coast

and of Central Newfoundland and of Labrador who have to come to St. John's for

those treatments. They can be comforted by the fact that they are getting the

best treatment possible and we are able to prove that by having an A+ rating in

terms of our wait times for radiation. No one waits more than one day, Mr.

Speaker. That is an incredible statistic.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS SULLIVAN: Mr. Speaker, I want to go back to this particular topic that

we are discussing today in terms of seniors and the work that is being done, and

I will address it from the Department of Health and Community Services

perspective of course. Fifty-nine million dollars we spent annually on

seniors-related programs within the department, Mr. Speaker. As I said, we value

our seniors so much that these investments are investments that we are happy to

make.

That number increases to $700 million when you look at our long-term care and

our community support services that are offered. As well, Mr. Speaker, when we

talk about the drug program that we have in place for seniors, I made reference

to that this afternoon during Question Period, I was asked a question.

Through our NLPDP, Mr. Speaker, there is one particular program for seniors,

it is called the 65Plus program. For seniors who qualify, they can have the

assurance that they are never going to pay more than $6 per prescription. That

is what we have committed to, and we have invested $29 million in making that

assurance to the seniors of the Province that their drug bill is going to be $6

for medication covered under NLPDP.

We look at other affordable initiatives including the Home Heating Rebate.

Mr. Speaker, when I am home I have opportunity oftentimes to talk to people who

actually work in that office because it is located in Grand Falls-Windsor, the

Home Heating Rebate office, and they tell me about the stories of people who

call them and thank them for that particular rebate, who tell them what a

difference it makes in their lives. I heard some really heart-wrenching and

heart-touching stories from people who have been very happy to receive this.

The Provincial Home Repair Program is another one and, of course, the

significant tax deductions that happen for seniors in our Province that directly

affect their quality of life.

Since last year, Mr. Speaker, when we launched our ten-year long-term care

strategy, we have been really focusing on helping people who require long-term

care and community supports, and we placed a special interest on various

programs that can make a difference.

Just a little while ago, Mr. Speaker, we launched a new pilot program that

was called Enhanced Care in Personal Care Homes. That particular program is

aimed at helping people who perhaps do not really qualify for long-term care, in

that they are a Level 3 or a Level 4 patient, but who can receive additional

care within a personal care home setting.

We are piloting that program right now in three of our personal care homes in

the Province, and I am hearing some very good results from that. I am hoping

that the pilot program is going to prove to be exactly what we think it is,

which will be a project that we are going to be able to move forward into a

full-time initiative for our seniors in the Province. It will certainly allow

individuals to stay in a more home-like setting for long periods of time.

Our Age-Friendly Newfoundland and Labrador Transportation Pilot Project is

another of our long-term care initiatives, Mr. Speaker, that I believe is making

a difference in the lives of people in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is

increasing access for older adults, as well as any individuals with mobility

issues or challenges. They are able to find more affordable and reliable

transportation, which allows them to lead fuller lives and means again that they

can stay in their own homes. So we are operating now in Clarenville and in St.

John's and the surrounding area, in Springdale, in Bay St. George, and this

pilot will possibly expand to include other areas based on the success of the

pilot. Again, it is another pilot that I think will bear great fruit and we are

going to see opportunities to expand out even further.

Some of the comments that I have had and I had a couple of e-mails actually

from some of the clients who are availing of this particular service, the

transportation program, and they are telling me that it has made a huge

difference in their lives, when they can get out to do simple tasks that

ordinarily would be difficult for them, when they can get out and go get

groceries or go to a doctor's appointment without having to call on family. They

can use this new pilot project. They can make the call and they can get out to

do these kinds of things. Mr. Speaker, again, it is an innovative idea that we

have been trying and we are seeing some good results.

The Community Rapid Response pilot project that we are hoping to have off the

ground in the very near future is another example of things that we are doing.

We had some conversation here in the House today around wait time strategy,

particularly around emergency rooms and wait times in there. The Rapid Response

program is going to make a huge difference particularly for seniors, Mr.

Speaker. What this will do, this particular one, we will have four teams and I

can tell you where they are going to be located. They will be in Grand

Falls-Windsor, the Health Sciences, at St. Clare's, and at Western Memorial.

These teams will help keep seniors in their homes as opposed to being

admitted to hospital, Mr. Speaker. Quite often a senior will present at an

emergency department, the condition may not be particularly serious but if there

is no one to go home with them, to help them convalesce over the two- or

three-week period, then they may have some issues. Therefore, oftentimes,

admission to hospital happens.

With the Community Rapid Response, we will be able to send a team home with

them to ensure that they get the care that they need, that they can convalesce

in the comfort of their own homes, Mr. Speaker. I truly believe that this will

be another pilot project from which we will see great success. Recruitment is

ongoing as we speak around this, and we hope to have the training started within

the next couple of weeks around the Rapid Response. Then, very early in the new

year, we hope to be able to set up those particular teams, Mr. Speaker. Again, I

have no doubt that seniors are going to benefit from those new initiatives.

Mr. Speaker, we could talk about age-friendly communities. I know that Grand

Falls-Windsor is one of those because I have been working with the group out

there. It has been spearheaded by the council in Grand Falls-Windsor around an

age-friendly community that is making a difference. We have over thirty of them

now. Many seniors' organizations throughout the Province are implementing some

of the strategies that have been identified there.

Mr. Speaker, I see that my time is running out. I just want to make quick

reference to our Provincial Advisory Council on Aging and Seniors who are doing

tremendous work in advising us in the department of the needs of seniors in this

Province. They were here in the House of Assembly yesterday for Question Period.

I am delighted to have them working with our teams in the Department of Health,

providing their insight and their experience to us. They really make a

difference.

I see that my time is done. I will take my seat for now, but hopefully there

will be more time in this session to talk about seniors in this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

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

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

I was quite shocked actually when I saw this private member's motion come to

the House. We are asked today to stand and to debate a motion that is simply an

announcement of an already existing program. This is already budgeted for. This

has been on the books for a number of years, and to ask to stand and debate this

because there is an increase of six cents a day.

The increase in this motion is celebrating the fact that this government

wants us to stand for a few hours in this House to pat it on the back for

increasing income to the seniors of a maximum of six cents a day over a period

of a year. Mr. Speaker, this is nothing short of pathetic absolutely pathetic

particularly when we see how many seniors are in our Province.

The other thing, for the government member to stand up and say how wonderful

it is that 42,000 seniors will be receiving this benefit, the reason that these

42,000 seniors have to receive this benefit is because they are living in

poverty. What is the wonderful event about this? That because 42,000 seniors are

either living in poverty or on the brink of poverty this government is going to

give them six cents a day extra. If I was a senior in this Province, Mr.

Speaker, I would be insulted; I would be absolutely outraged.

We are in a time of the most prosperity ever in the history of our Province.

We have so many seniors who are living either in poverty or on the verge of

poverty. This prosperity has been built on the backs, on the hard labour of the

seniors who today should be celebrating because this government said they are

going to give them six cents a day extra.

Mr. Speaker, it is nothing short of shameful. This is bizarre; I cannot

believe it. I cannot believe that this government did not choose to stand to

talk about programs that would truly help seniors, programs like helping seniors

around the issue of housing.

We know that so many of our seniors, and I would hazard to guess, Mr.

Speaker, that the majority of our seniors in the Province of Newfoundland and

Labrador, are precariously housed, meaning that they are living in fear of not

having adequate housing. Some of are inadequately housed now, but many are

living in fear of the future because there is not adequate affordable and

accessible housing available to them, and they know that. There have been some

gains made by this government, but nothing compared to the need that is out

there.

Instead of talking about issues that will substantially address the very real

issues of the seniors in our lives, they have us up talking about six cents a

day. Mr. Speaker, this is shameful it is absolutely shameful. I cannot believe

it. I am astounded. I am shocked. In this House today we should be debating

innovative programs that will actually make a difference in the lives of

seniors.

Mr. Speaker, before we get onto that, I would like to talk about what has

been taken away this year from seniors, what this government has actually taken

away, services and programs that would have helped seniors. For instance, the

Residential Energy Efficiency Program, through housing, was cut in half this

year. That means only half as many people can apply for it. That program was

closed, oversubscribed, within months of it being announced, so only half as

many people. There has always been a waiting list. It has always been

oversubscribed.

So if the program was successful and oversubscribed, you think what this

government would have done is increased it, but no. What did they do? They cut

it in half. How many seniors are living in older homes, who need this program,

who need programs that will help make their houses more energy efficient? We

know the high cost of heating; we all know the high cost of heating. So six

cents a day this government is proposing today, yet they have taken away half of

the money for the Residential Energy Efficiency Program.

What else did they take away in this Budget, this Budget where they are going

to praise themselves today for giving six cents a day extra? The other thing

they took away is they cut back the Adult Dental Program to $700 per person per

year for dentures and $150 per year for dental work. Mr. Speaker, I have

seniors, and I know that all of us in this House today, we have seniors who are

calling our offices who need dental work done, who are in pain and they cannot

because the Adult Dental Program was cut back so severely in this budget. I do

not think, Mr. Speaker

MS SULLIVAN: A point of order, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services, on a point of order.

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you.

The Adult Dental Program was $6.7 million. It still is $6.7 million, Mr.

Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

There is no point of order.

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

MS ROGERS: Mr. Speaker, the amount that was taken back from the Adult

Dental Program, there is no way that six cents a day is going to be able to

address the shortfall of the promise that was made by this government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services, on a point of order.

MS SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, there was absolutely no money taken out of the Adult Dental

Program; not a penny taken out.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

There is no point of order.

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

MS ROGERS: Mr. Speaker, we know for sure that the cutbacks in the dental

program

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

If members would like to have private conversations I would like for you to

take it outside the Chamber.

For now the Member for St. John's Centre to continue with her speaking time.

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

We know for individuals they are now eligible for $700 for dentures and $150

a year for dental care. An increase of six cents a day is not going to address

the needs that were identified before the increase in the dental program was

taken out.

Mr. Speaker, as well, the Provincial Home Repair Program, which was

predominately used by seniors, particularly seniors in rural areas of the

Province, there has been a new policy change in that program where seniors are

only allowed now to apply for that twice in their lifetime. That is a problem,

Mr. Speaker, particularly when you have seniors who have been living in the same

house for decades and they need repairs done to their home.

We know that 42,000 of our seniors are living near the brink of poverty,

under the poverty line or on the brink of poverty, because that is why they are

going to get that extra six cents a day from this government that they are

announcing here today. That program, they no longer are eligible to apply more

than twice in their lifetime, even though they may be living in that house for a

very, very long time, which brings me to the whole issue of housing, Mr.

Speaker.

We know the research that has been done in Newfoundland and Labrador, seniors

have identified housing as one of their biggest concerns and it is a concern

that is real. So many seniors live in fear around the issue of their housing

needs. Their fear is whether or not they can continue to live in their own home

if their home is more than one story, if their home is not accessible. If that

is the case, where do they go?

We know the cost of rent has increased dramatically in most places. Mr.

Speaker, not just in St. John's, but in Clarenville, in Gander, in different

places and cities in Labrador, whether it is Lab West or whether it is Happy

Valley-Goose Bay. We know rents have increased substantially, yet seniors'

income has not increased substantially. We also know seniors are concerned if

they sell their own house and they want to downsize that basically what is being

built in most parts of the Province are expensive condominiums, that start at

$300,000 for a condominium.

Mr. Speaker, housing is one of the most pressing issues for seniors, and then

the ability to stay in their house, to be able to access home care that permits

them to stay in their house. We do not have a publicly funded, publicly

administered, fully administered as part of our health care system, a home care

system that is similar to ones in Manitoba, where when people need home care

they do not have a means test. They do not have to open up their chequebook;

they do not have to open up their wallets.

Home care is their right, just as is access to any health care service. These

are services that should be a right and expected of seniors because in the long

run it saves us money. It saves us money because it allows seniors to stay in

their homes.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to point out some of the very effective programs

that are happening in other places in the country, particularly in BC. BC has a

number of supportive housing initiatives for seniors. They have a program called

SAFER where they help seniors. Their rental subsidies are portable.

Their rental subsidies do not go to landlords. In fact, they go to seniors so

that seniors can choose where they are going to live, they can choose whether or

not they are going to live close to their services, to their churches, to their

friends, to their families, which makes it a more supportive environment for

them. Here in Newfoundland and Labrador what is happening is that Newfoundland

and Labrador Housing gives the rent subsidy to particular landlords and

therefore that is not portable.

The other thing that is happening, Mr. Speaker, we are all hearing it, all of

us, every MHA in this House is hearing from seniors in their district. Seniors

who are afraid; seniors who have lost a partner and so their income is cut

almost in half and they know they can no longer maintain their home on the

income that they have, or they can no longer maintain the rent, if they are in a

rental unit. Then they say, well where will I go?

We know this government did not increase the number of rent subs this year.

In fact, that is a bit of a cutback because we know rents have increased. We

know the number of seniors is increasing in our Province. We know we are among

the fastest growing proportion of population that are seniors in the whole

country, we know that. Yet, services that seniors' need in order for them to be

able to be housed in a safe and adequate way, the programs that should help them

that is not what is happening.

We are hearing from seniors. We are hearing from seniors who do not know what

they are going to do because the response of this government and the planning

around these issues has not been adequate. We all know that. We all know that,

Mr. Speaker.

There are best practices in other parts of the country. For instance, in BC,

through BC Housing, British Columbia Housing, they have financial assistance for

seniors where the money is given directly to the senior. So that the senior has

some independence, some autonomy and can choose. They can choose where they can

go to live, and the senior will not pay more than 30 per cent of their income on

rent. Therefore, they are given a supplement that they can manage and they can

be a little more creative with. That means it is not dependent. It is not

determined by a landlord and it is not determined by the province where they can

live.

There is also a fully functioning assisted living program where there is

housing that is provided by all three levels of government with supports, where

there are meal supports and where there are housekeeping supports, so that

people can live in their own homes for longer periods of time.

Mr. Speaker, rather than talking about a motion that is talking about an

increase of six cents a day for our seniors who are on the verge of poverty, let

us talk about something specific. Let us talk about something concrete that

actually affects the day-to-day living of the seniors in our Province with

respect and with dignity. This is ridiculous that they want us to spend this

time to pat them on the back for an increase for seniors in our Province of six

cents a day.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Cape St. Francis.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

It is indeed a privilege to get up here today to talk about this motion

because this motion to me means what I am all about, why I am an MHA, and why I

want to represent my district and the people in my district.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: I hate to choose one sector over another, but I can

honestly tell you today that I am here because I want to represent the seniors

in my district because of what they have done for me in my life and getting us

here as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: I feel that the Member for St. John's Centre gets up and

she is like the only one in the world who cares about seniors. I am going to

tell her today that I care about every senior in my district. When a senior

calls me I will do anything I can for that senior.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: This government is not about giving six cents a day. That

is the day years gone by when they were on the dole and that was all that was

given to them. Let me tell you right now, $971 is a lot more than six cents a

day.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the hon. member to direct his comments to the Chair.

The hon. the Member for Cape St. Francis.

MR. K. PARSONS: No problem, Mr. Speaker, but I mean day after day we sit

here and we listen to the hon. member get up and do her thing. I am not an actor

so I do not know how to do all these things, but I can tell you one thing, that

I care as much as she does and so does every member on this side of the House.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, our seniors are the backbone of our society.

Every opportunity that I get to go to a seniors function, it could be a

Christmas party for seniors or whatever, I go. Do you know why? They are the

people I represent in my district and I want to show them I feel that they

deserve us showing them how we feel about them every single day we get a chance.

This motion today is all about what we do for our seniors and what we can do for

our seniors.

Mr. Speaker, I would love to have a magic wand. I would love to be able to be

on the show we used to watch every evening, Bewitched, and be able to

wiggle my nose back and forth. I could do everything I could do for every senior

in this Province. We have come a long way in this Province. I am going to give

you a lot of examples today of where we have come from. That is what this motion

is about; it is what we are doing for our seniors.

She talks about six cents a day. Let me tell you something, Mr. Speaker. In

1999 the average person was getting $200 that is what a single was getting; a

family was getting $400. Today, they are getting $971. That is more than six

cents a day.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, the program back in 1999 was $4.4 million.

Today it is $36 million. That is an increase of 900 per cent, not six cents a

day.

Mr. Speaker, we all here want to represent our area. I know that the hon.

member wants to represent her area just like I do. When it comes to our seniors

I do not think anybody in this House does not want to do what they can for

seniors.

I am going to talk just a little bit today about what we do. Like I said, in

1999 there were 34,000 people; today there are 42,000. I am glad that we are

helping 42,000 people, Mr. Speaker. I am very glad that anyone out there who

needs our help we are helping them. Just as an example, just in the last couple

of years, in 2010 it was $80. Now it is up to $971. We are increasing it year

after year after year.

The other thing that my hon. Member for Exploits mentioned is the timing. Let

me tell you something, Mr. Speaker. A senior who is heating his house on oil and

gets a cheque for $971 in the month of October really appreciates it. Guess what

it can do for him? It can fill that tank of oil so there is heat in their houses

and that is important to him.

It is also the time of year our seniors are the most giving people in this

Province. It is the reason why Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are known for

their kindness and their generosity. It is because what we were taught when we

were growing up. My parents, and I am sure every parent in this House, were

taught to care about other people. That is why Newfoundlanders and Labradorians

are like we are. We care more than anybody else. I do not care where they are

from, all over the country or all over the world, Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians and that is because of the people who reared us, the crowd who

took care of us.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. K. PARSONS: Mr. Speaker, another thing that she talks about, the

different things we are doing, is the Home Heating Rebate. We are putting money

in every household to help them with their energy costs.

Mr. Speaker, I just want to talk a little bit now about the Member for Bay of

Islands. He mentioned about Muskrat Falls and the fear that he put in the people

about Muskrat Falls. I support Muskrat Falls for one reason, mainly. My main

reason is the stability of rates. To a senior it is very important that they

know that their rates are not going to jump up and down all over the place.

What Muskrat Falls is going to do for the people of Newfoundland and

Labrador, seniors, myself, and everybody, is it is going to stabilize our rates,

so our rates will not be up and down and all over the place. That is so

important to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, and it is so important to

the seniors of Newfoundland and Labrador. Mr. Speaker, I am telling you, listen

here, it is so important that