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April 12, 2022

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. L No. 44

The House met at 1:30 p.m.

SPEAKER (Bennett):

Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Good afternoon everyone, first of all, in the Speaker's Gallery today, I would

like to welcome Eve Roberts, Jessica Webb and Noah Foster. They are family of

the late Edward Roberts, former Lieutenant-Governor and Member of the House of

Assembly. They are visiting here today for a Member's statement.

Welcome!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Also in the public gallery,

I'd like to recognize Grade 11 social studies students from Gonzaga High School.

They will be here joined by their teachers Mike Kinsella and Gill Brown.

Welcome!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

Statements by

Members

SPEAKER:

Today, we will hear

statements by the hon. Members for the Districts of Torngat Mountains,

Bonavista, Placentia - St. Mary's, Humber - Bay of Islands, Lake Melville and

St. John's East - Quidi Vidi with leave.

The hon.

the Member for Torngat Mountains.

L. EVANS:

Thank you, Speaker.

Boas

Jarause served as vice-president of Labrador Inuit Association in the early

'80s, the critical early days. He served on the LIA board of directors and as an

advisor to the land claims negotiating team as well.

He lived

in Hebron until 1959, then the entire community was gathered into the church and

told they would be moved south to other communities. They told the community in

church where they felt they couldn't speak up, this solidified his strength to

fight for his people.

Relocated to Makkovik, he continued as a Moravian church chapel servant. His

people and his religion kept him strong, even into old age and deteriorating

health. Widowed too early, he kept his family together. Even in tragedy, he kept

strong. His wife had fallen ill. They were medevaced to St. Anthony, as they

approached the sun was rising, her life was slipping from her. He took her into

his arms and sang: Come on to me you weary and I will give you rest.

The life

of a true advocate, a noble leader and a vital member of the Labrador Inuit. No

person was stronger in his faith and in his people. December 1, 2014, he passed

away, my hero Mr. Boas Jarause.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Bonavista.

C. PARDY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

April

16, 2021, the District of Bonavista lost a great constituency assistant, Ang

Chatman.

Ang

loved her family first and foremost but a close second were the constituents of

the District of Bonavista. She deeply loved her work and assisting those that

came to her for assistance.

When Ang

referred to constituents as friends, she was sincere. They may have come into

the office with one issue to be resolved but Ang would often have assisted them

in more than one after an in-depth conversation.

She was

like a magnet in Bonavista with many visiting the office for assistance, and

many visiting frequently because of how she made them feel and the friendship

she had formed with them.

For

those she felt needed something to eat, she provided a snack and gave them food

to take with them.

Those

who knew Ang knew she loved a good laugh. She had a devilish streak in her that

was mischievous in a most humorous way. The stories I could share.

I ask

the Members of the 50th House of Assembly to join me in paying tribute to a very

dedicated constituency assistant who served the residents of Newfoundland and

Labrador with love and professionalism for many, many years.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Placentia - St. Mary's.

S. GAMBIN-WALSH:

Thank you, Speaker.

January 16 of this year, Wayne Power Sr. of Freshwater, Placentia Bay, not only

celebrated his 68th birthday, but he marked 50 years of dedicated leadership and

community service to the Placentia Volunteer Fire Department.

January of 1972, Wayne joined the Freshwater Volunteer Fire Department. Seven

years later, in 1979, he became the fire chief. He has guided the Placentia

Volunteer Fire Department since the amalgamation of four municipalities in 1994.

His firefighting career also included 21 years of service with the Argentia Fire

Department at the United States naval facility.

Wayne's

hard work, leadership and selfless dedication to his community helps protect the

residents and businesses of Placentia and neighbouring communities. Wayne

provides expert advice and guidance to his fellow firefighters, never seeking

recognition for his countless hours of volunteerism.

Please

join me as I congratulate Wayne Power Sr. on his 50-year milestone of service

and commitment to the safety and protection of families, homes, businesses and

community.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Humber - Bay of Islands.

E. JOYCE:

During a time of tragedy,

people accept their fate, but some want to ensure other families do not have to

endure this fate. This is so true for the Strowbridge and Langer families of

Corner Brook.

When Mr.

Strowbridge was in his final days of life, Mrs. Strowbridge couldn't be with her

husband with whom she'd spent every night for 65 years. Another family

experienced the same grief. So both families decided to ensure that other

couples would not have this fate.

The

families began fundraising from their homes for cuddle beds. They sold tickets,

held bake sales, silent auctions, yard sales and received donations. With the

great support, they raised over $32,000 for two cuddle beds for the palliative

care unit in Corner Brook.

The

Strowbridge and Langer families turned their sadness into a positive venture by

providing people, in their last days of their life, to feel the warmth and

closeness of their loved ones and know they were not alone. What a great gesture

of humanity, in honour of their loves ones, that will help others they will

never meet.

I ask

all Members to join me in thanking the Strowbridge and Langer families on this

beautiful gesture of hope and love. Mrs. Strowbridge is so proud of their

families.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Lake

Melville.

P. TRIMPER:

Thank you, Speaker.

Elmer

Lakata was 17 when he arrived in Labrador with the United States Air Force in

1954. He was stationed at a communications tower, relaying signals from Europe,

when he met his wife Carol at a dance, five miles away at North West River.

Many

years later, back in New York, Elmer started building miniature, mechanized

dioramas representing memories from their time in Labrador. Requiring weeks to

assemble, the scenes were typical of

Them Days

depicting trappers

paddling a canoe, the cable car that travelled across the river, or the locals

stepping 'er down at a dance.

In 2009,

as the automatons started to overtake their home, Elmer contacted Ernie McLean,

president of the Labrador Heritage Society and former MHA, to see if their

museum would display his creations. With an enthusiastic yes, the museum began

accepting donations, often whenever the Lakatas travelled back to Labrador.

September, I witnessed the unveiling of Elmer's latest creations; now bringing

the total to over 100 at this unique showcase in North West River.

I would

ask my colleagues to thank Elmer Lakata for his lifelong ingenuity and

generosity, and invite all of you to the Labrador Heritage Museum to experience

this amazing provincial treasure.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's East - Quidi Vidi, with leave?

AN HON. MEMBER:

Leave.

SPEAKER:

By leave.

The hon.

the Member for St. John's East - Quidi Vidi.

J. ABBOTT:

Thank you, Speaker.

I rise

today to honour a former constituent, Edward Roberts, who recently passed away

at the age of 81.

political leader, lawyer, businessman, historian and lifelong learner, Edward

was born and raised in St. John's. At the age of 26, he was elected to this

House of Assembly and, over four decades, he was re-elected six times before

permanently retiring from politics in 1996 as minister of Justice and Attorney

General.

Among

his many accomplishments in government were the introduction of the provincial

medicare program, construction of the Health Sciences Centre and establishment

of the Faculty of Medicine.

Following his career in politics, Edward was chairman of MUN's Board of Regents

from 1997 to 2002. He was subsequently appointed Lieutenant-Governor in 2002 and

is credited with making Government House more accessible to the public. Edward

oversaw the creation of the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador and served as

honorary chief of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and honorary Colonel of

the Royal Newfoundland Regiment.

Edward

is survived by his wife Eve; daughters Catherine, Caroline, Jessica and Alison;

and countless other family and friends.

Members,

please join me in recognizing Edward Roberts – a steadfast Newfoundlander and

Labradorian, exceptional individual and a man I was fortunate to have as a

colleague and political mentor.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Statements by Ministers.

Statements by

Ministers

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Justice and Public Safety.

J. HOGAN:

Thank you, Speaker.

Speaker,

ground search and rescue teams in Newfoundland and Labrador play a significant

role in public safety. Regardless of the conditions, these volunteers step up

when there is an emergency and people are in need of assistance.

December 2021, we released the final report from the Inquiry Respecting Ground

Search and Rescue for Lost and Missing Persons in Newfoundland and Labrador. The

findings of this public inquiry will have long-lasting impacts for many years to

come. Since the release of the report, our government has committed

approximately $1.8 million to the Newfoundland and Labrador Search and Rescue

Association. This includes the nearly $1 million that was announced last week as

part of Budget 2022 and the $775,000

provided at the end of 2021. The $1.8 million is in addition to the current

$191,000 in annual funding provided to the Newfoundland and Labrador Search and

Rescue Association. The significant investment will be used to implement the

inquiry recommendations, as well as for purchasing equipment and training.

Speaker,

we are committed to working with our partners to strengthen search and rescue in

Newfoundland and Labrador, and we will continue to work on how best to implement

the inquiry recommendations. I want to thank NLSARA for its continued

partnership in this area.

Newfoundland and Labrador has a long history of volunteerism, and the system as

it exists would not function without the efforts of these dedicated and trained

ground search and rescue teams. I would like to take this opportunity to thank

the search and rescue teams around the province for their hard work, dedication

and commitment to our communities.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Harbour Main.

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Thank you, Speaker.

Ground

search and rescue teams in this province provide a critical emergency service.

Volunteers are often called away from their family and loved ones to go in

search for people who are lost, in distress, missing or experiencing another

emergency. On behalf of the Official Opposition, I would like to express our

sincere gratitude to the volunteers and supporters of ground search and rescue

in this province.

Speaker,

we are glad to see that this budget will provide funding to the Newfoundland and

Labrador Search and Rescue Association which will allow volunteers to focus on

providing their services, instead of constantly fundraising. I'd also like to

take this moment to encourage the timely implementation of all the

recommendations of the Inquiry Respecting Ground Search and Rescue for Lost and

Missing Persons in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Torngat Mountains.

L. EVANS:

I thank the minister for the

advance copy of his statement; also, volunteers in ground search and rescue who

provide an invaluable public service; to Commissioner Igloliorte and Counsellor

Geoff Budden for their professionalism and compassion shown during the inquiry.

encourage the government to continue to invest in GSR so that volunteers don't

have to fundraise for critical emergency equipment, and to ensure that

volunteers are given adequate counselling and supports for the work that they do

for us.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Are there any further

statements by ministers?

Oral

Questions.

Oral Questions

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Speaker.

Yesterday my colleague asked the Liberal government to apologize to the people

who have been insulted by their baffling graphic, which tries to justify the

out-of-touch Liberal budget.

The

minister further demonstrated how out of touch the Liberals are when he said:

“We certainly won't apologize for trying to help people ….”

Speaker,

the Liberals are trying, but they keep failing the people.

So will

the Premier do the right thing, apologize for the graphic and direct his

minister to rethink the cost-of-living plan to actually help the people of this

province?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Certainly we are committed, as this government, to address the cost of living. I

believe we did so in a holistic manner by trying to reach every sector of our

province, every person of our province, Mr. Speaker. I won't apologize for

trying to help seniors. I won't apologize for trying to help those most

vulnerable. I won't apologize for helping those on fixed income. I won't

apologize for those who drive a car. I won't apologize for those who pay tax on

their insurance, Mr. Speaker.

believe this is a holistic approach. The graphic missed the mark, no doubt, but

I won't apologize for what this budget represents in addressing the cost of

living, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

There

would have been less to apologize for had he offered a home-heat rebate –

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

D. BRAZIL:

– a break at the pumps, a

plan for affordable food and a tax break to all Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians.

Speaker,

yesterday, the Premier gave $600,000 to NASCAR Pinty's Series to come to

Newfoundland and Labrador.

I ask

the Premier: How many nurses could be hired a year for $600,000?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation.

S. CROCKER:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

I would

have hoped that the Member opposite would appreciate the value of our tourism

and hospitality industry in this province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

S. CROCKER:

I had the opportunity this

morning to sit in Estimates for almost three hours with the Member from

Bonavista. Mr. Speaker, maybe him and his leader should have a conversation,

because he gets it. He understands that this is an investment. This investment

for $600,000 over three years will buy us a marketing opportunity, first and

foremost, Mr. Speaker. It will bring in over $5 million estimated by Destination

St. John's who are very much in favour of this, Mr. Speaker.

Does the

Member opposite realize that if we have $1 billion in tourism and hospitality in

this province, that equates to HST alone of $150 million, Mr. Speaker?

Get on

the same page over there, I say, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Nobody

other than this side of the House have realized the value of the tourism

industry. But I ask the minister: Does he realize the 100,000 Newfoundlanders

and Labradorians don't have a doctor?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

D. BRAZIL:

The backlog in surgeries that

can't be done.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

D. BRAZIL:

The nurses and doctors and

paramedics who are overworked in this province, Mr. Speaker. That's what I ask

the minister to realize is happening here.

Speaker,

plenty of people enjoy a good auto race, but 100,000 people in our province are

without a family doctor.

I ask

the Premier: How many doctors could be hired in rural Newfoundland and Labrador

for $600,000?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would

remind the Member opposite how many doctors and nurses and hospitals could we

build and employed for $500 million dollars a year, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER A. FUREY:

So I'll tell you, an

investment of $600,000 over three years to pay dividends of $5.4 million and

support our hard-working people in the tourism and hospitality industry is a

wise investment. I wish I could say the same about the other investment

annually.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

But the

Premier forgets he's the one who touted Muskrat Falls will be the cornerstone

for economic development for Newfoundland and Labrador with the Atlantic Loop.

He went to Halifax, he had a chat with the Atlantic premiers and they all agreed

this would be the stepping stone for economic growth, particularly around

hydroelectric green energy in Newfoundland and Labrador, and for the country.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon.

the Leader of the Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Speaker.

Again

and again we see how out of touch with reality this government is. Five doctors

are leaving Central Newfoundland and Labrador by June, yet the Premier is

worried about opening an office for his political friends in the region. People

can't afford to heat their homes or buy food for their families, yet let's give

$5 million to the Rothschild.

I ask

the Premier: When will you face the reality facing the citizens of this province

and look at health care and cost of living needs of the people of Newfoundland

and Labrador?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and

it's a privilege to answer this question.

We have

been addressing that since day one. We started with a $2.1 billion deficit.

We're able to address health care concerns while bringing that deficit down to a

projected $353 million, Mr. Speaker. We're doing our best. We're on tight fiscal

timelines but we are addressing this and we're doing it by collecting evidence

first. That was the approach from the Health Accord NL, we involved all

stakeholders across the province.

I have

said many times in this House now is the time, as we emerge from this pandemic,

to reinvest and reimagine our health care system, to use what we have discovered

in this time of disruption to better the delivery of services around the

province.

The old

paradigms aren't going to work. It is easy politics. It is easy for them to say,

but we need a new system and we're committed to developing that. It is not going

to happen overnight, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It's

good to make promises but reality is in what you do at the end of the day.

People are still without proper health care. People are leaving Newfoundland and

Labrador and people are losing hope. We're asking this government, we want to

work collaboratively here. We want to help solve the health care crisis in

Newfoundland and Labrador. We want young people to be able to stay in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

D. BRAZIL:

Let's work collaboratively

here. Let's be open to the needs of the people. Let's not spend money where it

shouldn't be spent.

Thank

you, Speaker.

This

morning one senior called into the public airways and said that the cost of

living is getting so high that seniors will only be able to afford – and I quote

– to sit in the chair and don't move. Those are her words.

Speaker,

this budget does not improve the quality of life for the people in this

province. The budget does not improve health care outcomes. It does not allow

people to afford to live their lives. The Premier said that the cost of living

was a start.

I ask

the Premier: When will he fix this mess and lower the cost of living for the

people of this province?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Education.

T. OSBORNE:

Thank you, Speaker.

I will

remind the Member that we have increased the seniors' supplement in this year's

budget by 10 per cent. We have increased the Income Supplement by 10 per cent.

Mr.

Speaker, the benefits that we have put in place in this year's budget are

considerable. It's a considerable amount of money that we have invested to put

money directly back into the pockets, including the tax on home insurance, which

most seniors who own their own homes would be able to avail of and registration

on vehicles, Mr. Speaker. So we've been listening.

We have

a budget that we have to operate within. We have been operating within that

budget and providing benefits back to the people of the province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

Speaker, we have heard lots

about what they had done and how that works out to about $11 a month. That is

small comfort to a senior who is paying more than $400 a month extra to heat

their homes.

Speaker,

the minister said in her budget last week that there would be no new taxes.

I ask

the minister: Does that mean the sugar tax is scrapped?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Education.

T. OSBORNE:

Mr. Speaker, I believe that

tax was announced in last year's budget. Furthermore, we all know that this

province has the highest rates of diabetes of our population across the country.

It's not only beneficial to our health care budget, but the health outcomes for

the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

Speaker, unfortunately, I

don't think the evidence supports what the minister had just said about the

sugar tax.

I will

talk briefly choices. Let's talk about priorities. Let's talk about the fact

that people in my district spend $35 a visit to visit a nurse practitioner. So

if you want to talk about what $600,000 will get you, let me tell you what it

will get you: 17,000 visits to a nurse practitioner.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

T. WAKEHAM:

I ask the minister: Do you

think NASCAR is more important than the people who have to pay for health care

in this province?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation.

S. CROCKER:

Mr. Speaker, I can't let the

opportunity go by again. They keep referencing the $600,000 over three years

that we've invested into our agreement with NASCAR. That's going to buy

marketing. That's from our marketing budget in Tourism, that's a part of our

program. That $600,000 is estimated to bring in $5.6 million. They're not my

numbers, they're the numbers of Destination St. John's.

The

Member opposite should've taken some time yesterday to listen to the remarks

from Destination St. John's about the economic activity this is going to create.

The Member for Harbour Main is going to have 10,000 people over that weekend

visit her district.

Mr.

Speaker, that is economic activity. In any business, you have to buy a product

to sell a product.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

Speaker, as my colleague

said, let's hope that none of them have to visit any of our hospitals, because

we certainly won't have any room to get in.

Let me

talk about that. The minister talks about their investment. It's great to talk

about that investment. But what about investing in health care and the people

who are paying for their health care services.

I simply

ask: When are you going to deal with the fact that people are paying to get a

nurse practitioner in this province?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

I would

point to the $400 million in the budget this year, which is the increase in

health care expenditure – $3.2 billion to $3.6 billion. I would point to last

year's announcements of $30 million to recruit and retain health care providers

specifically targeted at family physicians, $100,000 each in return for staying

five years and a minimum income guarantee. For the $14 million in this year's

budget for primary care alone, we have just negotiated a $36-million pay raise

for our 13,000 physicians. That's investments.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Conception Bay South.

B. PETTEN:

Thank you, Speaker.

The

minister is out of touch. Seven years later and we're still a mess. Health care

has never been so bad.

Speaker,

residents of Baie Verte and La Scie are driving over some of the worst roads in

Atlantic Canada as documented by the annual CAA's Worst Roads in Canada report.

After years of neglect by this government, the minister has suddenly provided

verbal commitments to the community leaders to pave millions of dollars worth of

roads in the next few years. This was all announced not in a government press

release but in a Facebook post by a private individual.

I ask

the minister: Where is the five-year roads plan that outlines these

expenditures?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Transportation and Infrastructure.

E. LOVELESS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I make

no apologies for communicating with people in the local area which is

represented by one of the greatest MHAs around and, yes, he faces challenges in

terms of roadwork like many districts in the province. I'm working within a

fiscal envelope within the roads plan and the roads plan will be coming out

shortly, Mr. Speaker, that will include investment in this hon. Member's

district and other districts in this province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Conception Bay South.

B. PETTEN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

And the

minister needs to be reminded. Yesterday, I talked about $150 million just going

out the door. Now it's extra money in roads. We're getting $10 million, I

believe, increase in the budget, but he's going out on the side of the road and

agreeing and patting people on the back, winking at them, you're getting your

road done. This is the roads program. This is the new politics-out-of-paving

plan they came out with – now, really?

Speaker,

we are happy for the residents of Baie Verte Peninsula – we all are – who hope

after seven years of neglect by the minister is finally going to deliver.

However, residents in Roddickton, Terra Nova, Witless Bay, Colinet, Harbour Main

and Route 60 are also waiting for the minister to provide a verbal commitment.

Has the

lapsed five-year Roads Plan has been replaced by wink, smiles and calls from the

minister?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Transportation and Infrastructure.

E. LOVELESS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I don't

make any apologies for doing due diligence on a roads plan, Mr. Speaker, because

there are many challenges. But, you know what, I'm more worried about satisfying

the Construction Association, and they're satisfied with what we're doing. We're

out with some new tenders, early tenders that they asked for.

I'm not

so concerned about what he's satisfied with. I'm more concerned about what the

industry is and we're doing a good job. It'll be a good season this year.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Conception Bay South.

B. PETTEN:

That's troubling, Mr. Speaker. The minister is more concerned about satisfying

companies instead of the people of this province who are driving over roads that

are not fit.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

B. PETTEN:

People are crying out to meet

with the minister and he won't answer their calls and he's more worried about

the construction company than the people of this province. It speaks volumes,

Mr. Speaker – speaks volumes.

AN HON. MEMBER:

His words.

B. PETTEN:

And it's his words, that's

right.

Speaker,

yesterday, the minister boasted about due diligence with a blank cheque for a

new penitentiary.

Can the

minister stand and table his due diligence on road paving including analysis,

evaluation, ranking of roads by his department, or does the plan flow from

whoever he talked to last?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Transportation and Infrastructure.

E. LOVELESS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Sometimes the comments from the Member are unbelievable. In terms of the roads

plan, there are challenges in developing a roads plan because there are a lot of

challenges in the province. I don't govern the roads plan by a CAA survey, I'll

let the Member know. I do it by the professionals that are in the department –

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

Again, I

don't want Members talking across the floor.

The hon.

the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure.

E. LOVELESS:

Thank you for the protection.

The

Member is eager to ask the question, but he doesn't listen to it. So that's a

big problem as well.

The

roads plan is coming and I'll be glad to roll it out, and the companies in this

province will be doing work, employing Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, to

create a good road system for this province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Topsail - Paradise.

P. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

request for proposals closed last week, commissioned by the Minister of Health,

to research issues with staffing in our health care system.

I ask

the minister: How much money will be spent on this study?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

From

memory, I think that RFP was valued at no more than $50,000. I don't know what

the successful proponent is. The closing date, again from memory, was either the

8th or the 9th of April. Staff in the department will be evaluating that and

awarding that in short order.

This is

important work to determine changes in style and preference of workforce, not

just of physicians, but of RNs and other health care providers, too. It will

help our new ADM of recruitment determine the best course of action as we get on

the national stage, seeking employees for our health care system.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Topsail - Paradise.

P. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

The

Minister of Health has had seven years to understand these issues.

AN HON. MEMBER:

He was only a young man.

P. DINN:

He was very young when he

came in.

Maybe if

he considered listening to front-line health care workers, maybe if he tried to

understand their needs, maybe we wouldn't need this study.

I ask

the minister: Why are you spending time on studies when you should be taking

immediate action to help our front-line health care workers?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

I would

like to point out that in July and September of last year, the new increase in

seats for PCA students produced two graduates. Those were put in place 2½ years

ago. We have a new excess graduating class of LPNs, all of which in the Central

Region were hired by Central Health to work in Central Health facilities to

provide care where they grew up and trained.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

J. HAGGIE:

Those decisions were not made

today, they were not made yesterday; they were made years ago. In 2017 we

graduated the first increased class of Memorial Medical School graduates, a 30

per cent increase on the number of doctors. We have plans next year to increase

nursing graduates by 25 per cent.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Topsail - Paradise.

P. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

It seems

to be a bit of a contradiction here because the Premier just moments ago said

that they like collecting evidence first before making decisions, yet we're

getting the opposite over here.

Speaker,

the government commissioned the Health Accord. They spent $5 million on

Rothschild, they hired an American company to come in and recommend ways to cut

spending in our health care system and now we need another study. And people out

there are telling us that there's nothing happening now that addresses the

immediate needs of our health care workers and our health care patients.

So I ask

the minister: How much research do you need to understand our health care system

needs more front-line health care workers?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

Going

back to my previous reply, those measures were put in place a long time ago. A

2017 graduating class takes some years to get to graduate. That was not

yesterday. Similarly, with the increase in LPNs and PCAs.

We have

introduced an advanced care paramedic course in this province for the first time

ever. We've graduated one class and the next intake will double that size. We

are set to increase, year over year, the number of primary care paramedics by 25

per year to meet expected demand. These did not happen overnight. This research

is to make a good plan even better, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Grand

Falls-Windsor - Buchans.

C. TIBBS:

Thank you, Speaker.

The

Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association is sounding the alarm about five

physicians due to retire throughout Central Newfoundland and Labrador at the end

of June. Glad to see the new Premier's office is getting her done, but anyway.

This means a huge swath of our province from Fogo to Harbour Breton to Buchans

are being left behind thanks to the inaction of this government on health care

recruitment.

I ask

the minister: Will the health care clinics these physicians are leaving just

close their doors by June?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

What the

Member opposite failed to point out is that Central Health has actually

recruited 36 new physicians over the last two years. That is not to say there

isn't a gap and more have moved than have been recruited. Of interest to the

rest of the House is that the majority of those have actually moved elsewhere in

the province. So they are not a net loss to the province.

From our

point of view, the CEO of Central Health will be meeting with the community

leaders in those areas tomorrow. There are mitigation measures in place,

including virtual ER hubs based in Gander and Grand Falls-Windsor. We've

announced in the budget a further $3 million to expand virtual ER services as a

short-term measure.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Grand

Falls-Windsor - Buchans.

C. TIBBS:

If we have had more doctors

in the past two years, explain that to the people that don't have a doctor

because there's more people that don't have doctors in Central Newfoundland and

Labrador than did two years ago. So those numbers just don't add up for some

reason or another.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

C. TIBBS:

Speaker, the minister loves

to talk about virtual emergency rooms. A virtual emergency room does not replace

a family doctor. Period.

I ask

the minister: What are you going to do to help the people from Fogo Island to

Buchans to Bishop's Falls to Harbour Breton who are worried about access to

health care?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

Going

back to the time when I first arrived in Newfoundland and Labrador, rural

physicians, by and large, 75 per cent of them will stay in a rural community for

two years and move. That has always been that pattern; it is still the same

today. It presents considerable challenges, despite paying premiums for rural,

remote and isolated areas.

For the

Member's benefit opposite, we currently, according to the College of Physicians

and Surgeons – not my numbers – the college has 680 primary care physicians in

this province. That is almost the entire membership number of the NLMA 20 years

ago.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Harbour Main.

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Speaker, a health care

crisis is unfolding in Central Newfoundland, but it's not contained there. The

people of South River in the District of Harbour Main are also set to lose their

physician in June. It's not just South River, but hundreds of families

throughout the area will have nowhere to turn for their health care needs.

I ask

the minister: When can the people of South River and surrounding communities

expect a new physician?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

The

Health Accord has recommended, indeed confirmed, our approach of using

collaborative team clinics. My understanding in actual fact from Eastern Health

is that the Member opposite's district, in actual fact the community of

Holyrood, might actually be a hub for such of these.

Discussions are underway between VPs rural and the communities to see if that's

what they need and that's what they would like. As soon as those discussions are

concluded, our new ADM of Recruitment and Retention will be looking at how best

to staff those

Given

the response to the collaborative team clinics in St. John's where, for the

first time in 20 years, we actually had competitive interviews, I am really

optimistic.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Harbour Main.

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Speaker, I am hearing

from constituents who do not have a physician as of the end of June in South

River and the surrounding area. So this just addresses the issue that government

is truly out of touch with reality. Even the president of the Medical

Association said yesterday the whole health care system is in crisis and does

not understand why this minister isn't yelling about this to the rest of

government.

Speaker,

this is more evidence of the lack of attention to the health care crisis in our

province. After seven years, this minister still doesn't have solutions for the

people of our province.

I ask

the minister: Why are you continuing to allow family medicine to decline in

Newfoundland and Labrador on your watch?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

Unfortunately, family medicine, as a discipline, across this country is nowhere

near as popular as it once was. Alberta, according to CBC today, has a crisis.

Quebec is actually considering legally mandating physicians to work in rural

areas.

continue to deal with the challenge. We adopted – to use another word – a

holistic approach to this last fall with innovative ideas about recruitment and

retention. Our packages will be ready to go in the very near future. We have a

new ADM coming. We have significant bonuses that rival any other jurisdiction in

Canada. We have just negotiated a $36 million pay raise for the physicians,

including family physicians, in this province.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Torngat Mountains.

L. EVANS:

Speaker, yesterday the

minister informed us that they are cherry-picking Health Accord recommendations

without an implementation plan to do the cuts recommended by Moya Greene. He

said they know these changes need to be done. Yes, I read the Health Accord and

it emphasises a coordinated approach and a need for greater access to income and

healthy foods to meet the social determinates of health.

So I ask

the minister: Will you be transparent with the people in this province, or is

the implementation plan another report commissioned by the people that contains

commercially sensitive information?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much Speaker.

From my

point of view, I can only speak with any knowledge about the Health Accord

process. This was about reimagining and delivering health care differently. We,

in common with governments on both sides of this House, have in the past simply

thrown more money at the problem. Over those 20 or 25 years, we have not seen

any benefit in terms of measurable improvements in health outcomes from

Newfoundlanders or Labradorians.

This

time we're going to do it differently. Dr. Parfrey and Sister Elizabeth are

about investing in health, investing in the social determinants of health, so

that in the next 10 years we will have a healthier population. That's what we're

going to do.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Third Party.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

Yesterday, the Minister of Children, Seniors and Social Development assured me

his department inspects rental units and emergency shelters to ensure they meet

standards. A CBC news

article reports clients of emergency shelters speaking of

broken windows and doors and the lack of food and sanitation forcing them to

chose between homelessness and life-threatening danger.

I ask

the minister: Are these the standard to which he referred?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Children, Seniors and Social Development.

J. ABBOTT:

Speaker, thank you for the

opportunity to respond.

Yesterday, in the question, I indicated to the Member that we have a series of

standards that are in place and we are improving on those to make sure that

residents and clients of anything that's sponsored by the Newfoundland and

Labrador Housing Corporation meet a certain standard. We are working to improve

on those and we'll continue to do so.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Third Party.

J. DINN:

I ask the minister: What

exactly are these standards? Would he able to describe them, please?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Children, Seniors and Social Development.

J. ABBOTT:

So in terms of the standards

that we're working on, ones that are in place, there's a checklist that is

available that our staff will use when they are going into any of the housing

units or shelters that we manage and/or fund. We are working with End

Homelessness St. John's in building a more comprehensive set of standards for

both our non-profit and for-profit shelters here in the province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Lake

Melville.

P. TRIMPER:

Thank you, Speaker.

Last

week, the United Nations Secretary-General referred to countries that are

increasing the production of fossil fuels as dangerous radicals and that

investing in new fossil fuels infrastructure is moral and economic madness.

Based on a minimum of 300 million barrels of crude oil, the Bay du Nord Project

would create 146 million tons of greenhouse gases, costing $24 billion in

pollution penalties.

To avoid

this environmental and fiscal legacy, will the Premier negotiate with Ottawa to

secure a just transition support and a better future for our children?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Industry, Energy and Technology.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Happy to

speak to this project and, I guess, our industry in general, as well as climate

change. One of the many positives, I guess you could say, that comes from this

project is that it's the first one ever that will be net zero by 2050.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

A. PARSONS:

As I've said in many

interviews recently, we talk about the creation of CO2 per barrel and

then the mitigating factors that will be taken. This project itself will be net

zero by 2050. This province will be net zero.

So what

we've done here is we've invested in perhaps a world-leading project that's

going to contribute billions to our province and to the Treasury, to health

care, to education and, at the same time, we're going to put ourselves in the

market rather than other countries with less regulatory and ethical standards.

SPEAKER:

The Member's time has

expired.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Lake

Melville.

P. TRIMPER:

Thank you, Speaker.

By 2050,

it'll be 7.3 degrees warmer in Nain.

another topic in this province, would government consider removing oh so much

confusion to address when we interact with each other by at least creating a

single time zone for Labrador or, better, create a single time zone for the

entire province? And move to eliminate daylight savings time consistent with

other jurisdictions?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Municipal and Provincial Affairs.

K. HOWELL:

Thank you, Speaker, and thank

you for the opportunity to respond to the question.

That's a

conversation that has occurred in our department and it's something that comes

up every year. I think that the Premier was part of a conversation about how we

can approach that as a country, how we move forward with decision-making

processes. But it's certainly something that's open for discussion.

We can

see the benefits to both sides of that equation. As we move forward, we'll use

informed decision-making to come to a conclusion that's suitable for the people

of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Lake

Melville – no

preamble, please.

P. TRIMPER:

On the heels of the December press release when three Labrador MHAs asked for

changes to the air ambulance program, can the minister explain where the

additional $3.3 million announced in

Budget 2022 will be spent?

Thank

you.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

Each

year, for the last several, the air ambulance program has come in consistently

over budget. The delta, the change between what we propose in this year's budget

and what was spent is simply a recognition of increased utilization. We are and

have undertaken a review of both air and ground ambulance aligned really with

the Health Accord NL and we look forward to that blueprint recommendations in

the near future.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The time for Question Period

has expired.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling

of Documents.

Notices

of Motion.

Answers

to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

Thank you, Speaker.

The

Local Service District of West Bay and the Town of Lourdes have an agreement in

place for the extension of the water services to West Bay. They applied for

funding through the Canada Community-Building Fund but when the water service

was tested, it didn't meet the federal standard, resulting in the rejection of

the application. The water service does meet the provincial standard and the

communities still agree in principle on extending the water supply into West

Bay, pending funding.

Therefore, we petition the hon. House of Assembly as follows: to urge the

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to secure funding through the Department

of Transportation and Infrastructure to ensure safe drinking water for the

residents of West Bay.

Speaker,

this is an opportunity for government to put their money where their mouth is in

terms of regionalization. The system in Lourdes was built to be a regional water

system. We have two communities who now want to come together. West Bay wants to

join on the Lourdes water system. West Bay has no water. They have no system. So

if we're looking at the Health Accord and what that means in the social

determinants of health, when we talk about regionalization projects and an

opportunity for districts to come together, this is a real opportunity for the

government to step up and find a way to help West Bay and the Town of Lourdes

get the water system they deserve.

The

water system is already there; all we need is an extension. So we look forward

to a positive response. We will continue to work with the minister. We will

continue to work with Municipal Affairs, and Environment if necessary, but we

need to get this done. We need to find a way to make this happen. So on behalf

of the residents of West Bay and Lourdes, I am glad to be able to present this

petition.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Terra

Nova.

L. PARROTT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr.

Speaker, the reason for this petition is as follows:

The

residents of Random Island are troubled with the unsafe condition of the roads

and the lack of maintenance to the roads that are maintained by Transportation

and Infrastructure.

Therefore, we petition the hon. House of Assembly as follows: We, the

undersigned, call upon the House of Assembly to urge the Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador to repair and maintain to a standard that is safe for

travel by all residents of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr.

Speaker, yesterday I mentioned Southwest Arm. Random Island is an entirely

different entity. If you are travelling along the roads in Random Island, I'm

telling you right now, it is a pothole from the end of the causeway to the end

of the island and it is very, very much in disrepair. We have had complaints

come in to us from emergency services, ambulance drivers, we've had complaints

come in from the local fire departments and certainly by the individuals that

live there. I can tell you, maybe not on a daily basis, but on an every other

day basis we get one, two, maybe three phone calls from people who have had lost

tires and damaged rims due to the conditions of these roads.

Now, we

reach out to Transportation and Infrastructure and the response that we have

gotten is to tell people to drive to the conditions of the road. Well, I can

tell you if the people on Random Island drove to the conditions of the road,

they'd be using a helicopter because the roads aren't fit to drive on. A lot of

this boils down to yearly annual maintenance. The potholes aren't addressed in

the summer on a regular basis, and they should be. If they were, it would

protect the Transportation department's equipment. They wouldn't be going

through blades and breaking up hydraulic lines and the things that they do on a

regular basis. Because of the standard of the roads, the equipment is down on a

regular basis.

Mr.

Speaker, the people of Random Island certainly deserve better. The reality of it

is that the fish plant there has had to turn away trucks, and this is the second

day in a row I've talked about places in my district where fish trucks are

getting turned away because of the conditions of the roads. Quite frankly, it's

not acceptable. That's business. If this government wants to talk about

investing in business, then they have to be real about it and they need to

understand that our fishery is a very important part of our business and we need

roads to drive on in order to make that fishery happen.

Mr.

Speaker, the people of Random Island deserve better. The roads are deplorable.

These roads need to be looked at. If the minister wants to meet with me on the

side of the road and have that conversation about fixing them, I'm more than

willing to meet him there any day of the week. I'll drive him down there if he

needs it.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Bonavista.

C. PARDY:

The portion of 8,000

residents of the Bonavista area who meet the new criteria for a PCR test

currently have to drive to Clarenville. Many of these patients are seniors with

mobility issues and social service recipients who find the travel physically and

financially taxing.

Therefore, we petition the hon. House of assembly as follows: We, the

undersigned, call upon the House of Assembly to urge the Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador to offer COVID testing in Bonavista, which would

negate the requirement of three hours of travel to and from Clarenville in the

advance of a procedure.

Since

the onset of COVID, the residents in Bonavista would have to travel to

Clarenville to get a COVID test – nothing different than what it is currently.

I've made this request before to have testing done in Bonavista to alleviate a

lot of the stress that would be on the residents in the area of Bonavista.

We are

currently at a stage now where we have the highest incidents of COVID in the

community than what we ever did in the last two years. Many don't have access to

a rapid test. Many that don't have access to a rapid test can't access it

because financially they're unable to do it, or because they just don't know how

to test themselves.

We've

got a hospital in Bonavista, of which there's a courier service going between

Bonavista and Clarenville daily. The lab work in Bonavista sends their lab

specimens to Clarenville. So we have the network of taxi that would be

transferring or transporting the specimens to Clarenville from Bonavista. If we

had somebody take the COVID test in Bonavista, they could go on that taxi with

the other lab specimens and go to Clarenville for analysis.

We talk

about the cost of living for the residents in rural Newfoundland. These people

have had to do that for two years. The irony now is that we have people in the

Bonavista area that don't know whether they have COVID or not. They don't have

access to the rapid test; therefore, they continue to circulate, thinking that

they may not, when really in all eventuality it's quite possible they may.

I would

think this ought to be something I'm missing, but it ought to be an easy fix for

a staff member in the local area to do the COVID testing. It could be an

appointment basis, but send the specimen to Clarenville to alleviate the cost

and the astronomical costs during this time when the fuel costs are so high.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Torngat Mountains.

L. EVANS:

Thank you, Speaker.

This

petition is regarding the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing vacancies.

We, the

undersigned, are concerned citizens of Newfoundland and Labrador who call upon

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

ensure that vacant Newfoundland and Labrador Housing units in Nunatsiavut are

repaired and made available to those in need in a consistent timely fashion.

Nunatsiavut Government is dealing with a housing crisis and facing huge

financial barriers to building new houses; a single-serviced building lot now

costs $250,000 without the house.

Inadequate housing negatively affects our Inuit populations in a variety of

ways, including child welfare, families, health and justice. These areas were

highlighted in the Canadian Government's Calls to Action in the Truth and

Reconciliation final report. Further, in 2016, the federal and provincial

governments committed to follow the United Nation's Declaration on the Rights of

Indigenous Peoples.

One of

these declarations states that Indigenous peoples have the right to adequate

housing. The systemic housing insecurity in Nunatsiavut clearly demonstrates

that there is significant work that must be done before Inuit in Northern

Labrador can access this right. For example, seven vacant Newfoundland and

Labrador Housing units were identified in Nain, some of these houses have been

vacant for up to 10 years despite the desperate need for safe and affordable

housing in this community.

Nunatsiavut's housing crisis poses detrimental risk to the health and safety of

community members. For instance, inadequate housing is tightly intertwined with

contracting life-threatening communicable diseases such as tuberculosis. Lack of

housing for low-income families also places barriers to parents, undermining

their ability to provide for their children in a safe and secure environment.

Lack of housing also poses problems for family members who have a criminal

record.

Every

housing unit is important to provide relief to the housing crisis so a process

needs to be implemented to ensure vacant housing is put back into service and

made available to needy families in a timely fashion.

Now, Mr.

Speaker, this petition is quite long, so I'll be brief in summing up my

comments. I drove around Nain, the largest Inuit community in my district, with

the executive director of the Nain Safe House. She drove around and identified

the vacant houses that belong to Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation.

One of the things she said is that some of these houses have been vacant for up

to 10 years.

SPEAKER:

Order!

The

Member's time is expired.

L. EVANS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Children, Seniors and Social Development for a response.

J. ABBOTT:

Speaker, thank you for the

opportunity to respond.

Just a

couple of points. Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation works closely

with the Nunatsiavut Government in terms of housing needs on the North Coast of

Labrador. We currently operate over 67 units, some of which the Member referred

to.

I just

wanted to point out that over the last two years we repaired – to the amount of

$1.2 million – housing units across five Nunatsiavut communities and we have

plans to upgrade a further 10 units for repairs and to spend over $400,000.

We're also working on other housing and transition housing and supportive

housing for Nunatsiavut and with the Nunatsiavut Government. Also known is that

there's a significant amount of money in the federal budget to go towards

Indigenous housing in Labrador.

SPEAKER:

Orders of the Day.

Orders of the Day

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Government House

Leader.

S. CROCKER:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

I call

from the Order Paper, Motion 1.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Third Party.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

Speaker,

this government just doesn't get it. A budget is about setting priorities, it's

about serving the needs of the people of the province and not a select few of

those of privilege. A budget must be about compassion and knowing that people's

lives will be affected.

It's

once again clear that this budget was prepared by individuals unaware of the

struggles of everyday people of Newfoundland and Labrador. Of course, no one

knows this better than Bill and Sally. You see, Bill and Sally and their three

children had the unfortunate luck of becoming the poster family for the Liberal

Budget 2022 . Immediately following the

Budget Speech an onslaught of posts extolling the wondrous benefits of the

responsible for developing the media campaign made more doing so, than Bill and

Sally made in several decades on their low-income earnings.

The

first I heard of Bill and Sally, Speaker, was from my neighbour who sent me the

graphic with the comment: Have you seen this? Totally unrealistic. Based on the

people who call my office seeking help, I'd have to agree. Certainly none of

them has $1,000 to spend on physical activities and wait patiently for an $87

tax return in the spring while they're paying to heat their homes during the

winter months.

In fact,

I haven't quite decided which is insulting or more tone deaf, the fiction that a

low-income family is getting the $13,000 in benefits that government promised,

or the assumption that they have been living with dignity on an annual income of

$16,000 in the first place.

Now,

fortunately, for Bill and Sally, they are fictional and will never have to live

that reality. Such is not the case, Speaker, for the people who contacted me the

day following the budget and I'd like to introduce you and this Chamber to some

of them and explain how this government missed opportunities to make real

differences in the lives of people.

Wayne

and Alice are on income support due to health reasons and receive $11,640 a

year. While their rent is subsidized, Speaker, they still have to pay $315 for

their portion of the rent, another $50 a month for heat and light. That leaves

them with a little under $7,300 annually to cover their phone bill, groceries

and other expenses. With no doctors in the area taking new patients and no

Metrobus, they have to spend well over $100 on a taxi trip to see their doctor,

which they can't afford.

Wayne

wrote: We look at the price of food in the grocery store and have to walk away.

It's not possible to eat healthy anymore.

Another

person, Speaker, Jane, asked me: Does the government realize how much people are

struggling? She's a single person earning $40,000 annually who is now

researching food banks for the first time in her life. She does not live above

her means, and owns her own car and house. She writes: I woke up this morning

feeling very lost, broken, afraid and hopeless and it scares me. In my 30 years

working in the workforce, this is the first time I've ever suffered this much

financially. I'm afraid of the outcome in regards to keeping my life going. I've

worked so hard as a single woman to purchase my own home, car and to finally

stand on my own two feet as an independent woman.

Speaker,

Anne is a working senior in her 70s. She raised her two children on her own,

after her husband died. She worked two jobs, rather than go on income support.

Last year, she applied for CERB benefits after consulting with her MP, Speaker,

to make sure that she was eligible and would not be penalized for doing so.

Despite those assurances, she lost her federal GIS, her provincial Seniors'

Benefit and her provincial drug card.

Now

after much pressure, Speaker, from Jack Harris and the federal NDP, the federal

Liberals reinstated GIS payments for seniors. No such gesture by the provincial

Liberals. Anne had $1,600 clawed back from her Seniors' Benefit leaving her with

four quarterly payments of $155. There are many other seniors in Anne's

situation. Anne told me she will have to fill her oil tank soon, and fill-up

will cost her $1,500 – money she doesn't have.

Speaker,

a budget is about setting priorities and making choices about what action to

take and not take. This provincial government could have chosen not to claw back

Seniors' Benefits, or to reinstate it like its federal cousin. It chose not to.

Where is

the Liberal promise of a poverty reduction strategy? It was only last year in

this House, in this Chamber, that we echoed the request of provincial

anti-poverty groups for government not to claw back CERB payments from income

support recipients. The request fell on deaf ears and intensified the suffering

of many people. Reduction of poverty, Mr. Speaker, it seems, is not a priority

for this government.

Budget 2022

is promoted as status quo.

There are no new tax increases, and no major cuts. So let's not kid ourselves;

any budget that does not take into account, Mr. Speaker, the inflation we have

seen this past year, is a cut. As a result, organizations depending on

government funding are required to cut or downgrade their services, or to pass

on the cost to people who depend on those services.

In our

prebudget submission to the Minister of Finance, we proposed increasing core

funding to community centres across the province. Community centres provide an

invaluable service in addressing social issues that would otherwise become

problematic and more costly to government. However, they are woefully

underfunded.

The

MacMorran Community Centre is a case in point. If you saw the CBC

Here & Now news article, you would

know they operate a small food bank and serve hot meals several times a week to

seniors and to people in the community. Their programs are stretched as a result

of inflation and they are busier than ever, and the demand is rising.

Prepandemic, an average of 35 to 37 people visited their food bank monthly. The

number is now 87. According to the reporter, the price of food in this province

has risen by 9 per cent over the past 12 months, higher than any province and

higher than the Canadian average, Mr. Speaker. It further increases the demands

on the MacMorran Community Centre that is already stretched to the limit, and

the same is true for other community centres throughout the province. A status

quo budget hurts our most vulnerable citizens and targets the organizations that

are designed to help them.

We also

ask for investment in public transit, especially with regional transit systems,

as a way for the province to fight climate change. We ask for increased funding

to municipalities so that public transport, especially Metrobus and GoBus in St.

John's metro area, can provide more routes with increased frequency of service

so people like Wayne and Alice have affordable transportation options.

For that

reason we ask that the province extend the road tax rebate offered to the city

fleet so that it applies to Metrobus and GoBus. That did not happen. Instead,

the budget announced an extension of bus passes to include seniors in receipt of

the Guaranteed Income Supplement, youth in care and those receiving Youth

Services programming.

Now, on

the surface, Speaker, this seems positive, except they failed to inform the

other partner in this – the City of St. John's – and seem intent on adding to

the program while cutting costs. In effect, the citizens of the capital city

will be expected to pick up the tab.

Housing

or, rather, the lack of affordable housing units is reaching crisis proportions

in St. John's, in my district especially, and in other areas of this province.

The number of calls coming into our office, Speaker, from people looking for a

stable, affordable roof over their heads has increased. Prior to Christmas our

office, for the first time, was taking calls from people who were living in

tents and looking for a place to get in out of the weather.

The

number of evictions has increased as landlords look to upgrade and charge more

for their properties. Emergency shelters are at capacity. The provincial

government can either continue to house people in hotel rooms and other

emergency shelters, or can invest in new, low-income housing stock, which

benefit not only those on income support but people like Bill and Sally and

their three children.

A status

quo budget, however, means no significant construction, Speaker, of housing

units. Budget 2022 makes it difficult

to maintain and renovate current stock and only exacerbates the housing shortage

and the reliance on emergency shelters. It amounts to another cut.

The

prices of basic goods like food, gas, electricity and building supplies all

continue to increase. Despite our inclination to lay blame solely at the feet of

taxes and fuel prices, Canada's Food Price Report released in December 2021

predicted increased food prices in the order of 5 to 7 per cent – the highest

predicted increase in 12 years, Speaker.

variety of factors are responsible: the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain

disruptions, shortage of labour, high fuel prices and, yes, climate change. As

noted above, Newfoundland and Labrador is leading the way when it comes to

retail rising food prices. Food insecurity and let's call it really what it is –

hunger is on the rise.

One in

seven Newfoundland and Labrador families goes hungry and do not have access to

enough food, Speaker. According to Statistics Canada, nearly 15 per cent of

households across the province cannot afford reliable access to food. Instead,

the study found that the governments' policies are the ones that directly affect

food security levels to the greatest extent.

Now,

Speaker, instead of using revenue raised from the sugar-sweetened beverage tax

to help fund the Physical Activity Tax Credit, maybe, just maybe, it could have

been better spent to find ways to make nutritious food more available. Or, since

most of our food is shipped in, maybe we should be exploring ways to offset the

shipping and supply costs. If government had a better understanding of the needs

of our most vulnerable, they would not have introduced a tax in the first place.

It is another example of how they just don't get it.

While

food prices and other necessities have skyrocketed, Speaker, wages have

stagnated. A lack of income is the underlying cause of poverty. The time is now

to legislate a living wage and pay equity to address the widening gender pay

gap. How about paid sick days? To help small businesses absorb the cost of an

increased wages for employees, reduce or eliminate the small business tax they

have to pay.

The time

has also come to explore the concept of a basic, livable income. PEI is already

planning to move ahead with a pilot project. It is time to strike the Committee

to explore a basic income pilot project here in this province, which was called

for in our resolution which was unanimously adopted by this House, Speaker.

As I

stated in the beginning, a budget is about priorities, about people and about

hope; it is about doing things differently, about putting people first. Until

government prioritizes all people in this province and recognizes that we all

have value, not just the people who had the ear of the government of the day,

we, as the Third Party, will be here to ensure that people's voices are heard

and their livelihood prioritized.

People

make this province and they will be the solution to the future. We have a real

opportunity to build a just and equitable society in the pandemic world if we

have the political will. The war in Ukraine has highlighted the importance of

reliable, affordable and sustainable energy systems. More than ever that is what

the world needs. What Canada needs is an energy system that can accommodate

sudden changes in climate and world politics, all while continuing to play a key

role in the economic recovery from the pandemic.

Building

up our renewable energy resources and transitioning our economy into clean

energy is the best way for the people of our province to reach these goals. Only

by taking on the challenge of a clean energy transformation can Newfoundland and

Labrador realize a future that is safe and prosperous for all and only by acting

decisively today can Newfoundland and Labrador take advantage of the

opportunities to create thousands of good jobs and advance our economic future.

More

than four out of five people in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador want

to see transition to renewable energy and energy efficiency. In addition, more

than four out of five want our governments to provide training and income

support for workers to make the transition. Workers must not bear the brunt of

this transition alone and any transition needs to be just and equitable and

include supports.

The

evidence of a looming climate catastrophe are present everywhere and already

affecting our environment, economy and our wallets. A March

article in

The Telegram highlighted the fact that

St. John's is getting windier. From 1992 to 2011, Speaker, the average number of

days with wind gusts higher than 60 kilometres per hour was 80.65 days. For 2012

to 2021, it was 144.5 days, that's a 79 per cent increase.

Now, if

that doesn't cause you concern, maybe this will. Amanda Dean, the Atlantic

region vice-president for the Insurance Bureau of Canada noted an increase in

property damage claims due to extreme weather. From 1983 to 2008, Speaker,

Canadian insurers paid out an average of $422 million annually. From 2012 to

2021, the average annual payout jumped to $2.1 billion. In 2021 alone, the

losses were $2.4 billion, a four-fold increase, Speaker. Whether you've made a

claim or not, don't be surprised if you see your premiums increase.

The

recent mass die-off of turrs, the largest in the history of the province, is

expected to be climate related, similar to the mass die-off of murres in Alaska

in 2015-2016. There it was determined that a warming ocean resulted in a drop in

capelin numbers, the bird's main food source, causing them to starve. There's

strong evidence to suggest that the collapse of the commercial cod fishery was

climate related. At the same time cod stocks collapsed, salmon and capelin

populations collapsed as well. Something was happening at sea.

In the

past year, we've witnessed heat dooms, atmospheric rivers that have washed out

the Trans-Canada Highway and disrupt the supply routes, raging fires that

ravished forests in British Columbia, severe drought in our Western provinces

and the Midwest United States, which all but decimated grain crops. Tackling

climate change can no longer be an afterthought or an add-on to an oil project

announcement.

Both the

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the United Nations are clear on

the gravity of the challenge ahead of us. In a recent speech on March 21, the

Secretary-General of the UN noted: Addiction to fossil fuels is mutually assured

destruction and the world is sleepwalking into climate catastrophe. Instead of

hitting the brakes on the decarbonization of the global economy, now is the time

to race towards a renewable energy future.

If we

were to take his warning seriously, it's past time for government to act.

Clearly, there are enormous challenges to make a clean energy transition happen,

nevertheless there are also huge opportunities for our province to create

thousands of good new jobs and advance our economic future.

We can

no longer believe the oil industry doublespeak, rather we must do what science

dictates and start decarbonizing our economy at the speed and scale required;

nor can we simply rename and rebrand our oil and gas industry organizations and

expect a different outcome. Make no mistake, the oil industry as an economic

driver will end in our lifetime, and the time is to act now.

Governments have a primary role in transitioning their economies to sustainable

and renewable energy and it cannot be a haphazard patchwork approach.

Governments need to chart a clear course towards rapid, just and equitable

transitions to a clean energy economy. Weaning the economy off oil and gas must

be a comprehensive effort to ensure a planned transition. It cannot be done by

Newfoundland and Labrador alone but must be in partnership with the federal

government.

We will

need to end all government subsidies, tax breaks and financial support for the

oil and gas industry. It's encouraging that the Minister of Industry, Energy and

Technology and the federal Natural Resources minister have committed to expedite

the elimination of subsidies for oil companies. Considering the fact that all

major oil companies posted record profits for 2021, this shouldn't be a problem.

deliver the major job creation for a new low-carbon sector this government, in

partnership with Ottawa, must invest in the renewable energy and infrastructure

and develop employment opportunities that ensure high-quality jobs. We will need

just transition legislation at both the provincial and federal levels, guided by

feedback from provinces, workers, unions and communities that lay out targets

for training, retraining, diversification, retirement and pension support, with

a commitment to uphold, Speaker, union jobs and training through project labour

agreements and targeted hire mandates.

We will

need to establish national and provincial climate secretariats to oversee the

transition and establish a clean jobs training centre. We will need annual

reports on emissions reductions and must pass a provincial climate act that sets

legally binding greenhouse gas emission reductions.

Mr.

Speaker, a clear climate and jobs plan will move our province forward and ensure

that no one is left behind. Today, we must do everything we can for the common

good and to make renewable energy and an equitable and resilient future a

reality. Using these principles together we can design and manage a transition

in a way that both grows Newfoundland and Labrador and offers a better future

for all of its people.

Yes,

Speaker, the people of Newfoundland and Labrador are resilient and have had to

adapt to enormous changes throughout our history. That resilience is born of

tenacity, the courage to face challenges ahead of us and our commitment to look

after those in need.

provincial budget must ensure, Speaker, that no one is left behind. Bill, Sally,

Wayne and Alice, Jane and Anne and many others must believe that government is

looking after them and not just the bottom line. Compared to this standard,

Budget 2022 fails and many people out

there need to see evidence that the province has their backs.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Bonavista.

C. PARDY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It's a

pleasure to speak on behalf of the residents, constituents in the District of

Bonavista. Before I get started on the budget, I'd like to reflect back and

hearken back to when we were discussing helmets in quads. At that point it time,

it was Humber-Bay of Islands who mentioned about turrs. And I know the

sensitivity with turrs now, to mention, but the Member had spoken about hunting

freshwater turrs from quads.

When I

got back home in the District of Bonavista, was I ever inundated with emails

from residents in the District of Bonavista saying there are no such thing as

freshwater turrs and he's hunting them from – so we had a little bit of humour

on that. But the final thing I'd say is this quote, it was a gentleman from

Cannings Cove, a gentleman by the name of Wade Chapman. He said: When you get a

chance, you tell Mr. Joyce that those people that are hunting freshwater turrs

over in his riding would love to come to our district and hunt the saltwater

rabbits.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

C. PARDY:

I thought I'd share that even

though I have extreme sensitivity for the turr situation on the Northeast Coast.

I notice

we have chairs that are different here in the House of Assembly, which are, I

think, good for one's health. But one thing I do miss on the other ones – I know

that they were made out of sealskin. I thought that the fact that they were made

of sealskin was a topic that, hopefully if I get another chance to speak, maybe

I can speak to the seal population within the fishery.

listening to the Members within and the people that have communicated with me in

the District of Bonavista, I haven't heard one person say that they were in

favour of the budget, but everyone would be in agreement that times are tough.

We know about our debt, we know about our deficit, we know about inflation that

we have. But when they elect government, they elect government to make sure that

they look after the people that they serve, to do the best-case situation of

looking after and caring for the residents that would be served.

Friday night at 8, I had an email from a lady in Southern Bay, whose initials

are L. H. The lady wrote and brought to my attention the graphic that my

colleague from the St. John's Centre had mentioned and my colleague from

Stephenville - Port au Port had spoke on yesterday – Bill and Sally. And this

mom took great exception on the graphic as being a government that was out of

touch as to what the situation that she and others would find themselves in in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

It might

seem a trivial thing, but if you have people that are making decisions based on

you, that send out a graphic and a narrative that is so far off track then I can

understand why, in Newfoundland and Labrador, our residents would say it's an

issue.

Here is

some of what L. H. had stated. She stated adequately that any member of a family

of five only earning $16,000 a year, chances are they would have daycare

subsidized. So they wouldn't be into that frame to start with. If they're only

working 25 hours a week, they certainly wouldn't need daycare.

And, of

course, transit and the subsidization of transit is a good thing for those who

can avail of it. But I would say in Port Rexton, in Catalina, in New Bonaventure

and in Bonavista, we cannot access public transit and to get a discount. That

doesn't mean it doesn't have a place. It does, but just that the residents in my

district can't avail of that.

And then

she mentions about the Physical Activity Tax benefit. To think that somebody, a

couple on $16,000 can pay $1,000 – and I know this was stated and I don't need

to dwell on that, but that is really way out there in la-la land that you would

pay $1,000 to have your kids involved in a program.

I would

like to read what she ends with. She challenged all those decision-makers who

created the graphic to live on $16,000 a year – try it. And I would say most of

us here that are listening today, we can only hear stories because most have not

experienced what the graphic of Bill and Sally is passing on to Newfoundland and

Labrador.

And she

concludes in her email, at 8 on a Friday night: This graphic is completely

disrespectful to the people of the province. It shows total ignorance about the

struggles of low-income individuals and what things actually cost. More and more

people are becoming categorized as the working poor; it's time for

decision-makers to educate themselves. This isn't good enough.

And the

story came in The

Telegram then on Saturday, which

echoed the same thing about a real-life experience of a mother with two

children, about the experience and taking exception to the

article as well.

Mr.

Speaker, when I picked up the budget and I opened the first page on the Budget

Speech, and when the minister was reading it out, she had started with, as was

stated before, “… we have weathered the storm. We may have been lashed by it but

the day has arisen with brighter skies and calmer seas. The fog is lifting.”

Well, my

mom always thought I was a very naïve young boy when I was growing up – very

gullible, very naïve. But I immediately thought, I can't wait to read about the

fishery. Because this looks like something coming in to Catalina harbour, or

coming around the point in Bonavista – I said, there's something more in the

fishery here than what it was last year.

And I'm

not talking about the fishery today, but I just want to say a $1-billion

industry, a renewable industry in Newfoundland and Labrador that we give no

attention to, nobody gives any credence to and how important it is for rural

Newfoundland and Labrador, but we take no actions to grow our stocks as what

we've got in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Because there was

nothing in here in this budget any more than what it was in past budgets.

I would

say to you, we've got $1 billion in the fishery this year thanks solely to the

shell industry, to the lobster and the crab. What about the rest of the species

we have in the water? We know where the seals are, but we're not harvesting the

seals. Turbot from last year, from 2020 to 2021, down 11.3 per cent; cod, down

4.7 per cent; redfish, 3.6 per cent; capelin, 6.9 per cent; herring, 18.9 per

cent; mackerel, 85 per cent.

If we

want to build an industry and make sure that we want what the minister has

stated before, that we want to create the revenues to be able to offer social

programs and effect the cost of living, we ought to be doing more with the

fishery than we currently are, no doubt about that. We ought to be doing more.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

C. PARDY:

I remember we had the

Minister of TI on VOCM on Friday. The Minister of TI had stated that the

Opposition, all they want to do is spend, spend, spend, but I would take

exception to that. Even though I respect difference of opinion, but I would say

to you, we know what our limitations are. The only thing being is that where we

divert our money and where we make it a priority. I think my hon. colleague next

door, from Stephenville - Port au Port, spoke so eloquently yesterday stating

that we ought to have given more focus on those that would be suffering as a

result of the high cost of living that we have in our population.

I would

say to you, we all know about inflation and we know the inflationary pressures.

The first thing you would say is that, well, inflation is everywhere. It is and

it's multifaceted and it's complex. But if I look in the back of the Budget

Speech, and I would look at in the year '22-'23, this budget year, the gasoline

tax that the province will take in will be $141,648,000. That is a significant

amount to take in in the gasoline tax.

Added to

that, in '22-'23, is the carbon tax. The carbon tax will be another

$117,013,000. You combine the two together, then you're a little over $260

million in one year that comes out either in gasoline tax or it comes out in

carbon tax. And I know we don't have full control of the carbon tax. All I'm

saying is that government is pulling that out of the people of Newfoundland and

Labrador in our province and we wonder about the cost of living.

All I

would say is $260 million in those two taxes alone affects a phenomenal amount

of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. So I would say when we look at some other

statistics – and the Minister of Children, Seniors and Social Development would

know, and I am quite familiar as far as looking at the school system in my past

experiences – the study says that we have got 21 per cent of our children who

live in poverty in Newfoundland and Labrador. I know we're making efforts to

address that; I realize that, but that statistic is brutally alarming.

The

study also says the rate goes to 25 per cent when you look at children under six

years of age. Imagine one-quarter of our population would be in the poverty

range in Newfoundland and Labrador. I know that we need to adjust it and I know

that we take measures but the only thing, the statistics are the statistics. So

when my colleague from St. John's Centre states that the budget did not meet

many of the needs in Newfoundland and Labrador, it didn't. That I would say. I

know that it is complex, but it is what it is.

I sat in

on the Estimates this morning and I know that my hon. friend, the Government

House Leader, it was a great session in Estimates in Tourism. But when he had

discussed about the NASCAR and if it was accurate as far as you invest $600,000

and you get a return of $5.6 million, then I immediately thought that seemed to

be a fair investment.

But I

did ask for a cost-benefit analysis. I said: Did you do a cost-benefit analysis

on the investment? We ought to do a better communication with the people in

Newfoundland and Labrador to say, we're just not spending $600,000. With a

cost-benefit analysis done, we can better educate the people to say this is good

bang for our buck: it is an investment. But I don't know yet; I am just going on

basically what the hon. Member had stated. So a part to qualify that would have

been the cost-benefit analysis.

In my

short time that is left, I look at it and say I just went over and talked about

the residents in the District of Bonavista and they're no different than the

residents in the districts of every Member that would be in the House.

I almost

resent the fact where you say in a budget document, no provincial taxes this

year. Well, I would say we know the sugar tax is coming. Even though it's coming

this year, but that's not stated anywhere in the budget, in the revenue side,

because that was passed last year.

So I

would look at when someone looked in the District of Bonavista and stated no

provincial new taxes, they would say, well, where's the sugar tax? And that was

the question today: Have we cancelled the sugar tax? The second thing, of which

if I get a chance to speak in the future, would be on regionalization.

Well,

I've got a lot of LSDs and unincorporated areas in my district. And I spoke

before on us transforming George's Brook-Milton from an LSD to a municipality

and what the benefits were. So back in 2018, my whole working life I was in an

LSD. So we've got the Lethbridge, say, an area, LSD, which is twice the size of

George's Brook-Milton, 1,500 to 1,600 people. The sugar tax is coming, but on

regionalization, what I read on the last budget – last year's budget – was that

those people in the LSDs and the unincorporated areas ought to pay their fair

share of tax.

Now,

whether we've changed that direction, whether we're going to qualify it a little

more, massage it, but that was in last year's budget with the sugar tax. So I

would say in the District of Bonavista, $260 million in the province coming out

in carbon and gas tax. We have a lot of other taxes which I could read out, but

I think it would be disconcerting to a lot of people that would be listening.

They can also expect regionalization. There may be a cost with regionalization

for a service that they're going to be given or afforded, but that's going to be

another amount that comes out of the pockets of Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians, and especially those in the District of Bonavista.

So I

know that when it comes down to the sugar tax, I wouldn't mind speaking on that

a little more because I just want to say what the Minister of Education had

referenced a little earlier and would like to discuss that a little further. But

I want to mention one thing; we're going to be the healthiest province in Canada

in 2030.

That is

a noble pursuit and I'm all on board with it. The only thing I would say to you,

if this government has proposed that the physical tax rebate, that you pay

$1,000 for your kids to be in the program and that's going to translate with the

sugar tax to make us the healthiest province in Canada, not going to happen.

That alone won't move the needle. There has to be something of a little more

substance than those two items of which to make us the healthiest in.

I stated

before, and maybe if I get a chance to speak again, I'll probably speak to the

increase in the physical activity of our children.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER (Trimper):

Order, please!

One at a

time.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

I'll remind everyone we have

the Member for Bonavista speaking.

Thank

you.

C. PARDY:

Thank you, Speaker.

That

would be a nice debate and probably another time we can discuss that. These are

going to establish programs.

I'd like

to think Roger Ball is probably watching this program now, and Roger Ball had

stated a couple of times, as a senior, that they could not get access to school

facilities in our province. Schools exist in communities in Newfoundland and

Labrador and if not in your community, they're within a regional conglomerate of

communities that are served by a school. His suggestion is that schools should

be accessible for seniors and for others and maximize these facilities that

would be strewn all over Newfoundland and Labrador.

The only

thing I would say, there are a lot of people that are on board with that. For

the sake of Mr. and Mrs. Ball, I would say we've discussed that – there are

heads nodding here. The House Leader acknowledged that this morning that's one

that we ought to be doing. And, remember, everything comes with some challenges

and complexities, but this shouldn't be something that's so daunting that it

should be a deterrent.

Mr.

Speaker, I notice that I have seven seconds left, but I do look forward to my

next speaking time and thank you very much for your patience and diligence.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you very much to the

Member.

The hon.

the Member for the beautiful District of Cape St. Francis.

J. WALL:

Thank you, Speaker, I

appreciate that.

It is

indeed a pleasure to stand here today. It's a hard act to follow my colleague

from Bonavista, no doubt about it. But it's a pleasure to stand and to speak to

the debate on Budget 2022 .

Mr.

Speaker, I do know that, as I've heard from the hon. Minister of Finance and

President of Treasury Board, this budget was put through many different lens. It

was put through a social lens and a gender-neutral lens. But I want to open up

my time here this morning, Mr. Speaker, with the lens of the blue-collar worker.

Many constituents in my district fall under that lens.

I have

to say with the increased cost of living, when we're looking at the price of our

heating fuel, when we're looking at the price of the fuel putting in our gas

tanks to move our vehicles, when we're looking that the food prices that are

drastically increasing – I believe my colleague from Stephenville - Port au Port

said when they look at the price on the shelf, they get sticker shock. That's

the reality that each and every person are dealing with in today's society.

When

you're looking at the blue-collared workers in my district, and I've spoken with

many of them, before and since the budget last week. Many families who are

hard-working individuals, both parents working, sometimes working a second job.

One individual I spoke with is working three jobs, seven days a week, to try to

make ends meet for him and his family.

Speaker,

when you look at the decisions that these families are having to make on a daily

basis, it really causes us to stop and to think. When you're looking at someone

having to work three jobs, just to get through the week, it's hardly believable

but it is believable, Speaker, because I've spoken to the individuals. I've

heard their stories. I've listened to them intently as to what they have to do.

Speaker,

I want to share with you one instance from a family in Torbay where both parents

are working. They have two children; one is a 15-year-old teenager. Now, we all

have our preconceived notions of teenagers and what they do on a daily basis,

but I can tell you one thing, Mr. Speaker, this particular young gentleman saw

the need that his family has to go through life with today's skyrocketing

prices. That young man took on a part-time job, not to pay for his licence that

he wants to get when he turns 16 or to pay for a vehicle, he got a part-time job

to put money into the household, at the age of 15.

Now,

Speaker, I know that there are 40 of us here in this hon. House, and I remember

when I was 15, it was quite some years ago, not as many as others but quite some

years ago. I can tell you putting money into the household budget was not a

priority of mine at the age of 15. But that's what we are hearing today. That is

the reality that families are forced to look at and to make. So when you look at

it through the lens of a blue-collar worker, I want you to remember that.

I know

that the Minister of Finance and President of the Treasury Board and every

Member on the government side put what they could into this budget. I realize

that each Member on the government side cares for their constituents and their

districts. I have no doubt. I'm not here to stand today to speak otherwise, but

I can tell you that I am sure that you are hearing it as well on the government

side, as what I'm hearing in my beautiful District of Cape St. Francis.

It's not

easy, and it's not easy to listen to those people who are affected when they

have to make those choices. So, Speaker, we have to remember the blue-collar

lens when decisions are being made in this hon. House for the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

J. WALL:

Thank you.

Speaker,

the hon. Minister of Education spoke several times about child care and the

$10-a-day child care. No doubt that is a good thing. That is a good move. It

certainly makes a difference to the overall ability of many families in my

district and throughout the province. But, Speaker ,what I'm finding in my

district and I'm hearing it on a regular basis – I heard it again this morning –

a young mother from Torbay reached out to me, who works full-time and cannot get

a space for her 18-month-old daughter to go to child care. She found an

unregulated home in Kilbride, which is the closest that she could get to the

Town of Torbay for child care.

So when

you look at what she's paying in $45 a day and the increase in the amount of gas

and the travel time that she has to take five days a week in order for her

18-month-old daughter to be in child care, it's not worth her time to go to work

and that is the reality.

So the

$10-a-day daycare, I applaud the minister, it is a great move. But, Minister, we

need more spaces available and not just in my district, through all districts.

This is a reality. It's having an impact on families who are trying to work, who

are trying to survive, day to day in their household budget and with their

bills.

So I ask

the minister to keep that in mind when moving forward. Again, I applaud

$10-a-day daycare. No doubt about it, but we need to have the spaces available

in order to do so to make that viable for many families.

Speaker,

I've spoken to hundreds of seniors. Seniors make up the great population of each

one of our districts. But when we have to listen to the seniors and what they're

going through. One couple from Pouch Cove reached out to me. They filled up

their oil tank: $1,660. There was no money left over – there was no money left

over to pay for groceries.

That

family, that couple who I've known all my life, I hold in high regard, have a

great amount of respect for them, they are now forced, for the first time in

their lives, to go to the Northeast Avalon Food Bank.

When you

have a husband and wife who've worked 45 years and they're forced, at this point

in their lives, to go to a food bank, that again is reality. These people are 70

and 72 and not someone who –

AN HON. MEMBER:

Tear your heart out.

J. WALL:

It does. Someone just made a

comment: it tears the heart out. It does tear your heart out, because you know

they've worked all their lives. They've worked hard. They provided for a family.

They have a lovely home around them. But this is the point where they have to go

to a food bank. They're looking at me saying: Joedy, how do I do it? That's the

reality.

When you

have a gentleman at 72 years of age, who has never asked for anything, that's

what we have to look at. That's another lens, Mr. Speaker, that we have to look

at.

I've

said it before in this House, seniors in my district are splitting their

prescribed medications. They are rationing their insulin. These are all things

that they need on a daily basis to keep them well. If not, there's going to be

an added expense to our government, to this province, because they're going to

be in the hospital.

I have

seniors who can no longer afford to live in their homes. They are now

considering selling their homes and moving into an apartment, because they can't

afford to pay their bills with the rising costs of everything that's going on in

today's society.

Mr.

Speaker, for the benefit of everyone here, the beautiful District of Cape St.

Francis does not have public transit, so unless you're in St. John's, Mount

Pearl or Paradise, that doesn't work in all the other districts.

applaud the initiative, not taking that away from the minister, but when I have

seniors who can't afford to go to Foodland to buy their groceries and pay for

the gas, that's a reality.

I spoke

of the food bank a moment ago, and I'd like to give a shout-out to the

volunteers at the Northeast Avalon Foodbank in Torbay. They serve my district, a

portion of Conception Bay East - Bell Island, and they have a job to do, no

doubt, a daunting job. On a regular basis, there are 85 families who take part

and avail of that food bank. During Christmas and Easter, special times in the

year, it goes up to 130 families, and it's crawling up ever so steadily on a

regular basis. As I just explained, families can no longer pay bills and buy

groceries.

again, I give a shout-out to those individuals, those volunteers at the

Northeast Avalon Foodbank who do such a crucial job and are now helping take

care of people who didn't need the assistance before. That is the reality.

Speaker,

my parents are in that age frame, and unlike my colleague from Burin - Grand

Bank who gave his mother's age last week, I'm not man enough to say that here in

this House, I can tell you, because I want to stay in the will. But I will say I

know they're watching at home and I'll get a ribbing when I get home this

evening, I can tell you that. But they're in that same boat. They've worked hard

all their life, thank God they're doing well, and please God, they won't have to

face that. But that is the reality of my parents as well, they're in that

demographic and I thank God that they have what they have and, please God,

they'll hold their health.

Speaker,

when I look at this budget, CHANGE is in

the air , I look at my district, I look at the municipalities in my district

and I look at the fire departments. I have two outstanding fire departments in

my district, Torbay Volunteer and Pouch Cove Volunteer. And when we sat through

Estimates with the hon. Minister of Justice and Public Safety, we looked at the

line item for that particular budget and we did have questions for the hon.

minister. I have to say it was very good Estimates. He brought two people with

him, I think – he had about 15. But I can tell you, and I said it then and I'll

say it now, you're only as good as those around you and he, no doubt, had a good

team around him. He answered the questions very well.

But I

look at what's in that budget for fire departments across the province. And I've

had the honour of travelling across this province, meeting with municipalities,

meeting with fire chiefs and fire departments from Pouch Cove to the Great

Northern Peninsula. And I'll give a shout-out to my municipal colleague, Mayor

Dale Colbourne in St. Lunaire-Griquet.

And I

realize what municipalities have to do in order to keep fire and emergency

services alive and well in their town and to support the volunteers that each

department has. I fully realize, with my boots being on the ground 7½ years as a

former mayor, what it takes and what has to be supported in order to have a

quality department and to keep your members safe.

So to

see the decrease in the budget for fire and emergency equipment, it went from

$2.7 million up to $3 million, down to $1.88 million. We look at that and that

concerns me when we look at the level of infrastructure throughout the province.

We also need to remember that infrastructure keeps our volunteers safe. No doubt

about it, we need to keep that first and foremost in our minds when it come to

that.

My hon.

colleague for Bonavista mentioned regionalization. A very hot topic, no doubt,

in today's world and our province. I have had many discussions with mayors of

municipalities, chairs of Local Service Districts, unincorporated areas. I have

had many conversations with the hon. minister. Regionalization is the plan that

is being rolled out with respect to her department and the level of engagement

that is going to be required. Well, one thing I didn't see in the budget was a

line item for the necessary communications that is needed, going forward, to

engage all these municipalities, Local Service Districts and unincorporated

areas.

Tonight,

Speaker, I have the privilege of sitting in Estimates for Municipal and

Provincial Affairs. I do have some good questions for the hon. minister and

we're looking for those answers. We're hearing from municipalities across the

province. We're hearing from MNL and the level of engagement that is required in

order for regionalization – not just to be rolled out, because there is a

process, no doubt about it. But in order for the minister to do the work that is

required and to have all stakeholders at the table to have their voices heard

and to ensure that they have proper representation. So I was disappointed, to be

honest, that wasn't there in the budget.

It goes

without saying with respect to the Bay du Nord Project: Each and every one of us

here on the Official Opposition's side are very thankful that the Bay du Nord

Project is a go. I'll say that unequivocally, with respect to the workers that

are in my district who have reached out to me, who were very concerned, no

doubt, were very concerned that they didn't think that this was going to happen

but are pleased with that project going forward and what it is going to mean for

our province.

Speaker,

I know my time is getting short, but I do have a couple of things that I do want

to discuss. I did mention the Torbay fire department earlier. They just

celebrated their 48th anniversary in the Town of Torbay, serving the residents

of Torbay and Flat Rock. I wanted to give a shout-out to them.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

J. WALL:

To outgoing Chief McGrath

with his 48 years in the department – 48 years in the department. That is to be

commended for his service to fire service in the Town of Torbay and Flat Rock.

To incoming Chief Rodney Gaudet and Deputy Chief Phonse McGrath, you have big

shoes to fill, no doubt, but I'm here to work with you and to ensure that your

department has everything that is required in order to keep your members safe,

and of course, to keep your residents safe in the Town of Torbay and the Town of

Flat Rock.

Speaker,

I will say that we all know where we were to one year ago today; I hope we

remember. One year ago today we were sworn in. So that's one year for me. We

have several new Members in this House. Some are here longer than others, but

it's one year. No doubt, Speaker, it's been a very good year. It's been

challenging. It's been overwhelming at times, but it's certainly a privilege for

me to stand and represent the good people of Cape St. Francis and to speak on

their behalf, and I thank them for putting that trust in me.

Over the

last year, I've worked with hundreds of my constituents on various issues –

family issues, individual issues, municipal concerns – and I thank them for

allowing me to be part of the resolution that looks into their issues and solves

them. It is indeed a privilege.

As I

said before, the 40 of us here in this hon. House, we all have our constituents

first and foremost. We make the best decisions and we offer the most help that

we possibly can for our constituents. When I relate that back to the budget, I

see many good things in the budget and other things that were left out. It is

all, no doubt, a process. It's all, no doubt, challenging. It's challenging for

government; it's challenging for us in the Opposition. We all have a job to do.

As I

said to many ministers and many colleagues on the opposite side, it will be done

with respect and dignity. You don't change just because you come into this hon.

House. I want to just remind everyone of that. It is indeed a pleasure, as I

said, to speak to this budget. I do look forward to the opportunity of speaking

again as we go forward. I thank everyone for your time and your attention.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount

Pearl - Southlands.

P. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Always a

privilege to stand in this hon. House and say a few words, this time about the

budget. This will be my first opportunity, and hopefully we'll see some

amendments and we'll get more opportunities. I certainly hope so.

Mr.

Speaker, the first thing I just want to throw out there, and this is something

when we talk about this year's budget, I'm going to steal something from – I

the House; do you mind? He said: Absolutely, go right ahead.

It was

about the title of the budget. And this individual said: Last year's budget was

entitled CHANGE starts here . This

year's budget is entitled CHANGE is in the

air . He said: Well, I would like the government to know that this year's

budget shouldn't be called CHANGE is in

the air ; this year's budget should be called hey, mister, can you spare some

change? Because that is how a lot of people feel about this budget; that's how

they feel about their financial circumstances.

This is

not something that I came up with; this is something that I've heard, I've heard

other Members here on this side of the House talk about the phone calls, the

emails, and as my colleague from CBS says, and I agree with him wholeheartedly,

that conversation at Tim Hortons or up at the grocery store. That's where you

hear from real people. That's where you hear from the average Joe, the average

Jane, the average person on the street, and that's where you get the sense of

how people truly feel about what is going on.

For

those who don't do it, and as the Member has said from CBS, I recommend you do

it. You get out there at the grocery store and start talking to people and

you'll hear. People will be honest; they'll tell you, good or bad. And I've been

on the bad side of it; there has been times I can remember years ago where

people told me what they thought of me and it wasn't necessarily kind every

time. But they'll tell you. Absolutely, 100 per cent.

So I

want to refer to a term that I heard during Snowmageddon, Mr. Speaker. During

Snowmageddon, we remember here on this end of the Island what had happened. We

had to bring in the Army and everything else to help dig people out. During that

time when everything was shut down, one of the things that we had that was a

must and a priority, was to open up arteries to the grocery stores, open up

arteries to the gas stations, the retail stores and everything. At that time,

the government and others were referring to the people that were working at

these stores as heroes. That's what they were saying; these are the heroes.

And, of

course, when we got into COVID-19 and the pandemic struck, again that was the

priority: Keep the gas stations open, keep the convenience stores open and keep

the grocery stores open. Again, we kept on hearing the term, these are the

heroes. When the rest of us are staying home isolating and so on, these people

are out on the front line working. That's an important point to make: out on the

front line working and providing what was deemed, obviously, and we learned, an

essential service. We might not have appreciated the fact at the time or prior

to that how essential a service it is until it's taken away. But I think we

quickly realized the importance of those people who get up every day and go to

work in retail and so on and the importance that they have to the economy, that

they have to all of us.

I would

say, Mr. Speaker, a lot of those people who were referred to as heroes many

times, a lot of those people, not only are they going to work, but they're

getting up and they're going to work and a lot of them are not receiving fair

remuneration. I'm not dumping on all employers, but I can tell you, there are an

awful lot of employers out there, particularly a lot of the bigger ones, the

national and the international ones, that as far as I'm concerned are abusing

employees. They're paying them lousy wages, in many cases, little to no

benefits, and then they're not even giving them full-time hours in many cases.

They're

giving them split shifts or you come in in the morning, you have to work this

morning, you come in and they're halfway through their shift, it's not too busy

there now, you can go home – without pay, of course. And if they come in in the

evening or if they come in the morning and it gets busy and they had a shift

that was supposed to end at a certain time, oh, you have to stay later. No

consideration for the fact that they might have a life, they might have children

and they might have families and so on; you're on our time now.

So that

kind of thing, that abuse, I call it, happens all the time, and I have heard

from people who have been in that situation, many of them. These are the people

who we refer to as heroes. Well, as other Members on this side of the House have

said, these so-called – quote, unquote – heroes did not benefit. Many of these

people did not benefit one iota from the things that are in this budget – not

one iota.

Now, I'm

not saying nobody benefited. There are some people benefiting from the child

care – some. There are a lot of people that aren't even getting the $25, or the

$10 or $15 daycare, because there are no spaces. They can't get a space. So they

either have no daycare at all, or some are managing to get daycare but they're

not subsidized daycare.

Even

though government has this program, there are a lot of places you still have to

pay the $45. The reason for that is some of the daycare centres are saying that

when you came in with the $25 daycare originally – and now it's going down – but

when you did, instead of saying okay, if they were charging $45 and now it's

going down to $25, the government could say, well, we're going to give you the

extra $20 to make up the shortfall, but they didn't. The government gave them an

extra $13 or whatever it is, so now they're expected, as an operator, to go from

$45 down to $38 in order to accommodate the government program. They're taking a

loss.

Some of

these daycares have folded and there are some who have said I can't operate on

that model, so they're not taking subsidized people. They're not taking it. So

there are some families still having to pay the $45. Like I said, there are a

lot of them who can't get daycare at all. So that did nothing for them.

We talk

about the 10 per cent increase for seniors. I don't know about Members in this

House, but I've had some disappointed seniors. I've had a number of disappointed

seniors because they were under the impression, reading the news release, that

everyone was getting a cheque for $1,400. A lot of them thought, wow, when am I

getting this $1,400 cheque? But when I explained it to them, really what they're

getting is about $25 per quarter, because they were getting $1,300-and-something

anyway. That was always in place. So we're basically upping by an extra $100 a

year, so about $25 a quarter, that's what it is. And good for them; at least

they got something, I suppose.

But the

point is that many seniors and many people are not getting that, because the

seniors that are getting that are the ones who are on the OAS, CPP and

supplements. They're the lowest – on the very lowest end. I'm not saying we

don't help people on the lower end, but the point is that if you're a senior

who's living home, who worked their whole life – again, we're talking about the

working person – and they have a small pension coming in from their former

employer or they have a few RRSPs or whatever the case might be, they don't

qualify for the Seniors' Benefit. Hence, they didn't qualify for the 10 per cent

increase. And the same thing with the other low-income supplement. That's fine

for someone who's on income support and we should do more for people on income

support, I don't know how they survive on what they get. I'm not against that.

But, again, that does not impact the working person.

We go

back to these heroes we talked about, the person who – I've got people in my

district, I'm sure everyone does as well – are working for minimum wage, just

above minimum wage; some people are working two jobs to try to keep the wolf

away from the door, they're working two jobs. There was nothing in it for them.

Not a thing. This Seniors' Benefit, this low-income supplement, the Metrobus

pass, none of that, they didn't benefit from any of that.

A lot of

them don't own a house, they're probably paying rent, so the home insurance –

and you can say, yeah, we're giving tenants' insurance. How many people actually

have tenants' insurance, I wonder? I don't know what the statistic is, but I

would tell you there are an awful lot of people who don't even have it. There

are a lot of people in areas who don't even have insurance on their house. Lots

of people. They can't afford it. Some can't afford it and some might choose to

take a chance or there's no fire department, as the Member says, close enough to

even give them insurance.

So there

was no benefit really to that group of people. I think that's the point that

Members over here are trying to convey. I know you all know this. I know that

Members over there know it. They've got to be getting the phone calls, too. It's

not easy being on the government side, particularly when we're in the mess we

are financially. I understand that, everybody understands that. We all know that

we've been borrowing year over year over year, going deeper and deeper into

debt. Something's got to give. I think everybody realizes that.

But the

point is, while you try to do something for the people at the very, very bottom

– and I'm not knocking it, as I said here before, perhaps people at the higher

middle to high income, we can suck it up. I've had some people contact me who

just said I'm just fed up with all these taxes and whatever and blah, blah,

blah, but they can suck it up. They're annoyed by it. They don't want to be

paying more taxes. They feel like they're never getting a break. They feel like

they're being punished for their success, or being punished for the fact that

they went out and got an education and now they're making good money, or they're

being punished for the fact that they took a risk on a small business and

they're doing okay and making some money. They feel that there is never anything

in it for me. But they can suck it up.

But the

group that really can't suck it up, this is the group that my colleague here for

Cape St. Francis talked about, the blue-collar worker. We're talking about the

same group of people. The heroes. That's the people we're talking about. These

are the people who can't suck it up. They're barely surviving.

They

were barely surviving before all of this and now with all the prices gone up –

and I know, look, we can't control what is happening, the geopolitical events

happening over in Ukraine, we can't control that. We can't control the price of

oil. We can't put that on the government. It would be foolish to. And the price

of diesel, which is also driving the price of groceries and everything coming

across. We all know that.

But I

think there are a lot of people in the province, particularly that blue-collar,

working-class person who, as I said, gets up every morning and puts on their

boots and goes to work and tries to provide for their family. Those are the

peop