May 28, 2007 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY

PROCEEDINGS Vol. XLV No. 19

The House met at 1:30 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Statements by Members

MR. SPEAKER: This afternoon we have members' statements as follows: The

hon. the Member for the District of Grand Bank; the hon. the Member for the

District of Topsail; the hon. the Member for the District of Port de Grave; the

hon. the Member for the District of Bonavista South; the hon. the Member for the

District of Grand Falls-Buchans, and the hon. the Member for the District of

Kilbride.

The Chair recognizes the Member for the District of Grand Bank.

MS FOOTE: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to extend congratulations to Juliette

Dupre. Juliette, a Level II student at St. Lawrence Academy, has won the Lester

B. Pearson Canadian Student Scholarship. She is the only Newfoundlander ever to

receive this award.

This scholarship will allow Juliette to attend Canada's only national

pre-university college, which has Grades 12 and 13, and is located in Victoria,

B.C. Each year, the college offers approximately twenty-five full two-year

scholarships to students across Canada. These scholarships are solely based on

merit. As the college is a living memorial to Lester B. Pearson, who earned the

Nobel Peace Prize and established Canada as a world leader in peacekeeping, they

are looking for students who represent Canada's highest potential for civic

leadership on a global scale.

The Canadian students, who come to this college, join students from nearly

ninety different countries around the world. They live together in residence and

experience the purest form of international education. They go to the top

universities in North America and Europe and commonly earn merit scholarships to

these universities. This two-year scholarship has a monetary value of

approximately $66,000.

Juliette, the daughter of Rosalie and Guy Dupre, has received numerous awards

and achievements through Allied Youth, Sea Cadets, education, leadership

conferences, public speaking, along with a number of prestigious awards such as

the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award, the first titleholder of Miss Teen

Newfoundland and Labrador, appointed to the Newfoundland and Labrador Youth Miss

Teen Achievement Newfoundland and Labrador, appointed to the Newfoundland and

Labrador Youth Advisory Committee along with her most recent - awarded the

Lester B. Pearson School of the Pacific Scholarship.

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

Juliette Dupre.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS E. MARSHALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, on May 21 the Conception Bay South Girl Guides held their annual

dinner and presentation of awards. During the evening a number of Guiders

received awards to recognize their contribution to the Girl Guide movement in

the Conception Bay South and surrounding areas.

Lisa Hepditch and Andrea Martin each received a Gold Thanks pin in

recognition of good service. Elizabeth Bishop received the Chief Commissioners

Gold Award and Kay Penney received a Gold Merit Award for exceptional service.

Mr. Speaker, as we all know, in order for an organization to achieve success,

it requires commitment and dedication on the part of many individuals. This

organization is no exception. The highlight of the evening was the recognition

of seven women, who combined has devoted 255 years to the Girl Guide movement in

the Conception Bay South area. These women are: Alice Batten for ten years of

service, Florence Petten for twenty years of service, Emily Greenslade for

thirty years, Shirley Batten for forty years, Lillian Taylor for forty-five

years and, Mr. Speaker, Ella Greenslade and Vera Baird have each contributed

fifty-five years of service to the Girl Guide movement in the Conception Bay

South area.

Also, during the evening, Mr. Speaker, Sandra Murphy completed her five year

term as Conception Bay South Area Commissioner, and Kay Penney, Deputy Area

Commissioner assumed her new position as the CBS Area Commissioner.

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

these women for their leadership and dedication to the Girl Guide movement.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. BUTLER: Mr. Speaker, I rise in this House today to extend

congratulations to Ascension Collegiate student, Peggy Wakeham who has been

awarded the 2006-2007 Newfoundland and Labrador's Female Student Athlete of

the Year Award.

Peggy's participation at Ascension Collegiate during the past three years

has consistently displayed numerous exceptional traits both in the classroom and

on the playing field. Peggy has been an A student for the past three years and

is currently maintaining a ninety average.

Mr. Speaker, as a Level I student at Ascension Collegiate, Peggy's

involvement were most impressive. She was a member of the school's ice hockey

team, ball hockey team, soccer team, badminton team, volleyball junior team, and

a member of the track and field team.

As a Level II student, Peggy's involvement became even more prominent. The

school's basketball team, of which Peggy was a member, won the silver medal in

the provincials. At the badminton provincials, she won a bronze medal and the

Sportsmanship Award. As co-captain of the ball hockey team, she helped win a

gold medal at the high school provincials. Peggy was captain of the girl's ice

hockey team which won the gold medal at the provincial competition.

This year, as a Level III student, Peggy was named captain of the

Newfoundland and Labrador female ice hockey team which represented our Province

at the Canada Winter Games. As captain, and leading scorer, Peggy helped lead

her team to a fifth place finish - the best we have seen in this Province to

date. At the Atlantic Challenge Cup in Moncton, Peggy captained her team to a

silver medal and was awarded the Hard Hat Award for her team.

Mr. Speaker, this year, Peggy will be attending the University of Vermont

where she has been awarded a four-year hockey scholarship and a four-year

president's award academic scholarship. This is a most prestigious

accomplishment. I hear the value is approximately $140,000.

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

congratulations to Peggy Wakeham of Ascension Collegiate who has captured the

2006-2007 Newfoundland and Labrador Female Student Athlete of the Year Award.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Bonavista South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FITZGERALD: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to compliment the members of

the Trinity North Seniors and 50 Plus Club - a relatively new and refreshing

group in the District of Bonavista South.

Mr. Speaker, formed by a small number of people in December 2005, this club

has had rapid success and membership has ballooned to sixty-one in just a

year-and-a-half.

According to Ray Little, the club's president, the group prides itself on

providing something for everyone and offers a wide-range of activities including

square dancing, computer training, crafts, educational programs, socials and

even a choir. The main goal of the club is to keep members active and to have

fun.

To say that the club has been successful in achieving its goal is an

understatement, Mr. Speaker. Originally started to benefit residents in

Catalina, Port Union and Melrose, the club has now expanded to include people

from Little Catalina and Bonavista. The response and support from the community

has also been tremendous.

The club is open almost every day of the week and the activities allow

members to exercise their minds as well as their bodies, and all while enjoying

the company and fellowship of peers.

Mr. Speaker, the Trinity North Seniors and 50 Plus Club deserves to be

commended for what it has achieved thus far, and I ask all hon. members in join

with me in wishing this group continued success in the future.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Grand Falls-Buchans.

MS THISTLE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in this House today to extend congratulations to Sandra

Carey from Grand Falls-Windsor, who has been elected as the new President of The

National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities during a special board

meeting held recently in Ottawa.

This national voluntary association, established in 1995, is made up of

provincial and territorial pharmacy regulatory bodies, as well as the Canadian

Forces Pharmacy Services, with a mandate to protect the public. The association

members regulate the practice of pharmacy and the operation of pharmacies across

Canada.

Mr. Speaker, Sandra Carey is a graduate of Memorial University School of

Pharmacy. She is a member of the Newfoundland and Labrador Pharmacy Board and of

the Pharmacist Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. She has lectured all

over the country on drug abuse issues, and currently practices in Grand

Falls-Windsor. Prior to this recent election, Sandra served as a member of the

Regulatory Authorities Executive Committee, and as Vice-President in 2006-2007.

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

extending congratulations to Sandra Carey, the newly elected President of the

National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DINN: Mr. Speaker, it is not very often that tribute is paid to a

group that no longer exists or functions, but this is the case today as I stand

in this hon. House.

Approximately two years ago, the Kilbride Lions Club ceased to operate. This

group had been reduced to a small number of long serving members who had done

their share of volunteering. Nobody noticed they were gone. There were no

farewell parties, no letters of thanks. This group merely faded into the sunset

without any recognition of the many contributions and accomplishments the

Kilbride Lions Club had made to the community of Kilbride.

No one thanked them for the many thousands of dollars they had raised over

the years for various charities. No one thanked them for the many donations they

made to the schools and Kilbride recreation programs. No one thanked them for

the many times they offered their premises - the Kilbride Lions Club Centre -

for children's parties, dances, card games, seniors' gatherings, Christmas

parties and public meetings.

When Kilbride was being rampaged by robberies and break-ins back three or

four years ago, the Kilbride Lions Club never hesitated to offer its building,

free of charge, for a series of public meetings and seminars.

Kilbride Lions Club will be missed. The monies its members raised for

charities and schools will be missed. Their Christmas parties for the disabled

and seniors will be missed.

Today, the City of St. John's has taken over the Kilbride Lions Club Centre.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all Members of the House of Assembly to join me in paying

tribute and thanking the Kilbride Lions Club for the many years of dedicated

service to the community of Kilbride.

We wish all the former members the very best in the future.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Innovation, Trade and Rural

Development.

MR. TAYLOR: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, from May 28 to June 1, St. John's will host the Annual

Congress of the Canadian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society. The Society

addresses a broad range of national and international meteorological and

oceanographic concerns including weather and weather extremes, global warming,

ozone depletion and surface air quality, and their effects on all aspects of

life including forestry, agriculture and fisheries.

The 2007 Congress is unique in that members of the American Meteorological

Society and the Canadian Geophysical Union will also attend the Congress. This

is the first time that all three organizations have come together, and it offers

each participant an exceptional opportunity to network, exchange ideas and to

interact with the national and international scientific communities. The

organizing committee estimates that approximately 1,000 people will attend this

event.

Mr. Speaker, it is fitting that this event is taking place in Newfoundland

and Labrador. Work being done in the areas of weather forecasting, ocean

observing and forecasting, and climate change is vital to our Province.

The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador is involved in a number of

initiatives that supports work in these fields. In our recent Budget, we

announced the development of a Research and Development Strategy and the

establishment of a Premier's Advisory Committee on Science and Research. This

year we also announced funding to establish a new School of Ocean Technology at

the Marine Institute which will draw together experts in ocean technology. These

experts will share research, incubate new technologies, and provide a training

ground for students. Newfoundland and Labrador is carrying our cutting edge work

in the ocean technology sector, and is at the forefront of developing ocean

observing capabilities.

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development was

pleased to provide $30,000 to support this Congress, and we welcome all

participants to our Province and wish them success in their work.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Grand Bank.

MS FOOTE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the minister for an advance

copy of his statement today.

It is interesting to see that this group is meeting here in Newfoundland and

Labrador where, of course, if you don't like the weather, you wait ten minutes

and you can be sure that it will change. The other saying, of course, is that

you can experience four seasons here in one day.

One of the things that I find really interesting about this is that, of

course, some of their concerns have to do with weather and weather extremes and

how it affects the way of life. One of the issues here, I think, a real

challenge and a real test for this group, will be to look at the ice conditions

that are confronting our fishermen now up on the Northern Peninsula and

Labrador. Of course, the issue here is that these people are having to go

without a livelihood because they are faced now with conditions that are so

extreme and there does not seem to be any help coming to help them through this,

and, obviously, we have a federal government here who is not paying much

attention to this, other than lip service. We have people living in very

difficult circumstances. It might be a challenge for the Minister of Innovation,

Trade and Rural Development to bring this situation to the attention of the more

than 1,000 people -

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. member's time has expired.

MS FOOTE: Time to clue up, Mr. Speaker.

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MR. SPEAKER: Leave have been granted.

MS FOOTE: He might want to bring it to the attention of the people who

are here for this particular organization and for this particular time and give

it to them as a challenge so that they might want to try and solve for us.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

I am very glad to see money going into such an effort. I think the work that

this organization is doing and the members are doing is extremely important. I

note that the minister notices that one of the things they are dealing with is

climate change, and I refer back to the announcement on March 30 from the

government with regard to the $23 million in funding from the federal government

to work on climate change and other issues.

I just remind the minister and his colleagues -

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. member's time has expired.

MS MICHAEL: By leave, please?

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MR. SPEAKER: Leave has been granted.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would remind the minister to maybe speak to his colleague, the Minister of

Environment, and remind him that one of the things the $23 million is going to

be spent on is climate change innovations funding to support energy efficiency

and the reduction of greenhouse gas production, but we are still waiting for

details on what that program is going to be. On this side of the House, I am

looking forward to seeing what the government has in mind.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Further statements by ministers?

The hon. the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HEDDERSON: Mr. Speaker, as Minister Responsible for Culture, it was

my great pleasure this past Saturday evening to attend the annual celebration of

the creative excellence of Newfoundland and Labrador artists. Celebrated author,

Kevin Major, Chairperson of the Arts and Letters Committee, joined with me in

presenting the 2007 Arts and Letters Awards. The presentation ceremony was at

The Rooms. It dispersed with readings, a visual presentation and performances by

some of this year's winners.

For fifty-five years, Mr. Speaker, the Provincial Arts and Letters Awards

have helped to set the foundation for the creative community of Newfoundland and

Labrador, honouring many of this Province's talented artists. Thousands of

this Province's professional and amateur artists have expressed themselves

creatively through participation in this program. The continued success of the

Arts and Letters Awards is a clear indication that the arts community in

Newfoundland and Labrador is a vibrant, cultural force.

Mr. Speaker, this government recognizes the vital contribution of our

artists, and for that reason, in Budget 2007 we continue to invest significantly

in culture as part of our cultural plan Creative Newfoundland and Labrador: The

Blueprint for Development and Investment in Culture.

I am pleased to note that we have doubled the prize money in the Arts and

Letters Awards this year to $46,000. This has translated into increased awards

and an increase in cash prizes. In total, seventy awards were handed out at

Saturday evening's ceremony. Cash prizes in the senior division have increased

to $1,000 from $750, and in the junior division they have increased from $200 to

$250. The evening's top cash prize, the Percy Janes First Novel Award, was

increased to $1,500 from $1,000. This prestigious award, Mr. Speaker, was

presented to Degan Davis for his manuscript The Forgetting Room.

Mr. Speaker, along with extending congratulations to all the recipients of

this year's awards, I also wish to extend my sincere thanks to the Arts and

Letters Committee who volunteer their time and effort in making this program a

success: Kevin Major was our committee chairperson. Members: Anita Best, Marlene

Creates, Don Lane, Bernice Morgan, Calvin Patey, Kjellrun Hesteken and Di

Dabinett were members of that committee.

Mr. Speaker, the Arts and Letters Awards have helped to foster and develop

the creative talent of artists throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, and this

government has clearly demonstrated that it is committed to their continued

success. Having said that, it is equally clear that the people of this Province

are themselves dedicated to these awards. I am pleased to inform the House, that

this year nearly 1,000 entries were submitted from communities throughout

Newfoundland and Labrador. A full list of this year's recipients can be viewed

on-line at www.gov.nl.ca/artsandletters .

As well, an exhibition of selected entries will be featured prominently on the

fourth floor of The Rooms until June 17.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. ANDERSEN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for an advance of his statement.

Minister, indeed you must have felt proud to be in the presence of so many

artists from across the Province. When it comes down to events like this, then,

as I have said before, Newfoundland and Labrador takes a back step from no one.

We have some of the greatest artists of all sorts.

Minister, we too want to thank the volunteers for organizing such an event.

An event like this would never happen unless we have good volunteers. Again, our

Province is blessed with the best.

I notice that there were over 1,000 entries. Looking at the winners, I notice

there was one winner from Labrador. I would encourage the people from Labrador

to become more involved.

Minister, we not only congratulate the winners, but all the participants who

took part, and wish them well and hope that next year will be just as successful

as ever.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

I, too, congratulate all the artists who received awards on Saturday night.

We know that we have a tremendous group of talented people in this Province and

everything that we can do to help them live as they create would be very, very

good.

It is good to see that the prizes have gone up somewhat. I would continue to

encourage the minister, as I use every opportunity to do, to look at also giving

more money to the arts council for ongoing grants, not just the people who can

win the prizes but to all the artists who are trying to do their work out there.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Further statements by ministers?

Before the Speaker moves to Oral Questions, we would like to welcome some

visitors to the Speaker's gallery. From the Combined Council of Labrador we

have Waylon Williams, Stan Oliver, Jim Farrell and Alton Rumbolt.

Welcome to the House of Assembly.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

Oral Questions

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

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, government is prepared now to sign off on a deal that will see

the sale of all of FPI's assets. This sale will also see shareholders like

John Risley and the Icelanders make millions of dollars in profits while those

for whom FPI was originally established make, or get, a measly $3 million in a

wage subsidy for one year.

I ask the Premier, as a business person: Does this sound like a good deal to

you, especially in light of the fact that you voted against FPI's Income Trust

because there were so many loopholes in it?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, we, as a government, are very, very proud

of this transaction, to be quite frank with you. We put a lot of work into this,

as we put a lot of work into the Income Trust before to try and get that to be

the very best transaction that we could put together for the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador, which includes the workers of Newfoundland and

Labrador.

In this particular transaction, with has actually cost the government no

money, we have shored up the communities. Regions like the Burin Peninsula, for

example, I am sure the members will agree, have been shored up. We have given

security to Marystown, security to Burin, a whole new approach and a whole new

outlook now for Fortune, increased product in St. Lawrence as well; but, as

well, all of the other communities that have been affected by the OCI company

and the FPI company have been given a guarantee now. We have five-year

commitments for it, so we are very, very pleased with it.

From a transaction perspective, I am also proud of the fact that myself and

the minister were involved, on the instruction of Cabinet, to get some money for

the workers. In fact, there have been scenarios over the years in previous FPI

transactions where there had been significant golden handshakes given to senior

executives in that company and the workers received nothing. So, we were in

contact with the FFAW, with Mr. McCurdy, and spoke about us getting some money

in order to get the workers back to work, to get a collective agreement in place

with FPI and OCI. So, we are very pleased with it and we consider it to be a

very good transaction for (inaudible).

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, this is coming from a Premier who advised FPI

workers last fall to take a $2 an hour cut in pay.

He talked about the Income Trust. I say, Mr. Speaker, the Premier himself

talked about all of the work they put in the Income Trust. He voted against it

himself because he said there were too many loopholes.

Mr. Speaker, this is a Premier who talks a lot about loopholes and driving

Mack trucks through deals. Well, let's talk about the deal that this

government is about to do with this group of companies that is going to see the

end of FPI as we know it.

The Minister of Fisheries has stated on numerous occasions that no sale of

FPI assets would take place unless this government had unfettered ownership of

FPI's quotas. Well, it is obvious from today's announcement that this deal

provides no ownership, let alone unfettered ownership, of these quotas.

I ask the Premier: Why the change in position?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, to use the Leader of the Opposition's

own words, I guess he is still just as much in the dark today as he was

yesterday, because he obviously does not understand the transaction.

The federal Minister of Fisheries has even indicated that, in fact, this is a

stronger transaction than if we had outright ownership of the quotas. What we

have achieved now is a nine year term for the quotas, which is unheard of, which

is, in fact, nine times longer than the term was before. We have achieved a very

unique condition and concession, which is the actual landing and the processing

of the product tied to the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. We also have

an ownership of the quotas, which is a 49 per cent ownership, which will convert

to 100 per cent ownership if there is any default. So, in fact, we have even

improved on the previous situation - the Member for Bellevue, I am sure, would

understand - in Arnold's Cove, whereby we had the quotas secured there and we

purchased the quotas; however, that was only for a one year period.

So we have, in fact, negotiated a much stronger transaction, a much cleaner

transaction, a much more binding transaction, a much more secure transaction,

which protects the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. As I have said, we are

very proud of it, but obviously the hon. member opposite just does not

understand it. He should read the details.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, I say to the Premier, I understand it quite well.

The problem is, you do not understand it because you do not have unfettered

ownership of FPI's quotas. You do not even come close to it.

Now, Mr. Speaker, we see a lot of commitments to keep FPI plants open on

historic levels of employment, and there are penalties if these commitments are

not made or if they are broken.

I ask the Premier: Isn't it true that the penalty associated with closing

Bonavista, for example, is less than the cost of constructing a new facility,

something we all know is going to be required within a year or so?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, this particular deal provides a unique and new

opportunity for Bonavista. What OCI is committed to here is ensuring that more

raw product, in the form of crab, gets processed. A million pounds more, I

believe, is dedicated now to Bonavista than any other dedication in the past.

That is what Bonavista is interested in. That is what the workers in Bonavista

are arrested in. Mr. Speaker, that is the kind of security that we are working

on, and have been working on now for months, to deliver to the people of

Bonavista, and we are extremely proud of that commitment, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

OCI will own three crab plants in the Province. Maybe the Minister of

Fisheries will get up and explain to us where they are getting an additional

million pounds of crab to put into Bonavista this year.

Mr. Speaker, OCI is committed to maintaining historical employment levels at

all of these FPI plants. I ask the Premier: What penalties are in place should

OCI not employ the historical number of employees committed to in this

agreement?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I think it was made abundantly clear where OCI

intends to get the additional crab to process in Bonavista and St. Lawrence.

The plant that they process historically about 2 million pounds of crab in

Carbonear is to be turned into a year-round seal processing facility and create

permanent year-round jobs for a number of people in the Carbonear area. As a

result of that, Mr. Speaker, the crab that company purchased and was

historically processed in Carbonear will now be - a million pounds of it -

processed in Bonavista, which will create additional security of employment in

Bonavista, and an additional million pounds will be processed in St. Lawrence,

which will be welcomed news, I am sure, by the people of Bonavista and St.

Lawrence.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, according to a briefing that was given to us this

morning by an official in the Department of Fisheries provincially, employment

levels at all of these plants depend upon two things: quotas and price

fluctuations. The previous Minister of Fisheries, the minister of industry, is

on record as saying that there is no money in groundfish and that is the reason

he allowed them to close Harbour Breton.

I ask the Premier: If the price of groundfish drops in the marketplace, can

OCI drop employment levels?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I suppose I could be flippant and say, if you

cannot process fish, they will have to try processing turnip or chicken or

something or other; but the fact of the matter is, any fish plant is dependent

on raw material to keep it running. If, God forbid - I am sure the Leader of the

Opposition is not wishing this, but if, God forbid - the ocean should dry up and

there is no fish, well, then, you know, that is the situation and the reality

that we will have to change, but we are not anticipating that. We are people who

are optimistic. We are optimists on this side of the House, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: We believe that there is a future in the fishery. OCI and

Ches Penney and the Sullivans believe that there is a future in the fishery, and

they believe, as do the communities where they are planning to operate the

facilities that they have had previously, and the FPI facilities now, they

believe that there is a future, and we believe, Mr. Speaker, that there will be

fish in the ocean hopefully for decades and generations yet to come.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I say to the minister, he was optimistic when he told the people in

Stephenville that their plant would not close. He was optimistic when they told

them they were going to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people in Harbour

Breton, and we saw what happened there.

Mr. Speaker, there are currently -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. REID: Maybe he will feel the same way about the employees on O'Leary

Avenue, I say to the minister.

Mr. Speaker, there are currently roughly 120 employees at FPI's office on O'Leary

Avenue. Now, it is obvious that High Liner, with their offices in Nova Scotia,

will not need that facility nor its employees. It is also clear that OCI has

their own administrative staff.

I ask the minister: What have you put in place for the 120 employees who work

for FPI on O'Leary Avenue?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, let me say again that this government has, in

fact, stood shoulder to shoulder with the people of Harbour Breton. We have

invested in the aquaculture industry so that the people of Harbour Breton and

the South Coast can have a future, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: We have done things in the aquaculture industry to bring

jobs and employment and stability to the Harbour Breton and Connaigre Peninsula

of this Province that no other government ever dreamed of doing, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: In terms of the people on O'Leary Avenue, Mr. Speaker, let

me say this, the people on O'Leary Avenue are very employable people. Many of

them will end up working with OCI on the fish side of things and in the market

side of things, some with High Liner. There are some, obviously, in the IT and

administrative fields, who probably will not have a job as a result of this, but

they will have access, Mr. Speaker, to very, very good severance benefits and

they are very employable people. I believe, as do many of them, that they have a

future, Mr. Speaker, in this Province, working in Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, what a joke when he says he is committed to

Harbour Breton. When this government took power there were 350 people employed

in the plant in Harbour Breton pretty well year-round. Today, there are some

forty-five people who are getting less than thirty hours of work a week.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. REID: If you call that commitment, I do not want your commitment.

Mr. Speaker, government has stated that they have a long-term commitment to

the communities in which FPI plants operate. In actual fact, there are no

concrete guarantees that employment levels at these plants will remain the same

and there aren't even guarantees that these plants will remain open.

I ask the Premier: Isn't it true that there are no guarantees or

commitments regarding these plants or employees after the fifth year of this

contract?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, if you want to talk about commitments, here are

commitments. Who was the Minister of Fisheries in 2001 when FPI was starting to

close out operations in Newfoundland? Who was the Minister of Fisheries?

Anyway, Mr. Speaker, that Minister of Fisheries wrote the then Minister of

Fisheries asking that quota be transferred to the Province. Here is the answer

that he got from then Minister Dhaliwal, quote, "...while he agrees that

FPI's quotas should be harvested and processed for the benefit of the

residents of Newfoundland and Labrador, who harvests the company quotas and

where they are landed is a business decision that Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)

does not influence." End of quote, and end of efforts by that hon. crowd,

Mr. Speaker, to get the quotas landed in Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: So much for commitment, I say, Mr. Speaker. We stand on our

commitments and we stand on our achievements, and we are proud of them.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, the minister can rant and tear all he likes. The

fact of the matter is, FPI never closed a fish plant under my watch and FPI did

not lay off any of its employees under my watch. You cannot say the same!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. REID: In fact, you have been a dismissal failure when it came to this

file; you and your predecessor, and the Premier.

Mr. Speaker, my final question is for the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. REID: There are thousands of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians today

who find themselves without an income on the Northeast Coast and Labrador

because of severe ice conditions. Mr. Speaker, we all know that the Minister of

Fisheries was in Ottawa and met face-to-face with his federal counterpart two

weeks ago and never raised the issue.

Premier, you were in Ottawa last week, did you talk to the Federal Fisheries

Minister or the Minister Responsible for E.I., or the Prime Minister, or anybody

else about this most serious issue that is facing the people of the Northeast

Coast and Labrador?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I am not and never will be a peekaboo minister.

I will not stick my head up when there is something positive to talk about and

hide under the carpet when there is nothing positive to talk about. We face the

issues in this Province in the fishery head on. Our record and my record will

stand with the hon. members any day, and let me say this, this is not a

government of one person who does everything. The Minister of Employment and

Labour Relations has been on top of this file with his federal counterparts. My

parliamentary secretary has been on top of this file in terms of the Northeast

Coast and employment opportunities and employment extension benefits with his

counterparts. We are all a team over here, Mr. Speaker. We work as a team!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. RIDEOUT: We work as a team and we achieve great things for

Newfoundland and Labrador and we will continue to achieve great things for

Newfoundland and Labrador as a team, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair recognizes the hon. Member for Grand Bank.

MS FOOTE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This is a serious issue. A lot of people who are involved in the fishery in

Newfoundland and Labrador today really do not know where to turn and they are

looking for answers.

I am going the ask the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture - in the

briefing that we were given this morning it says that the plant in Fortune would

be transferred to Cooke Aquaculture, so I am asking you: Is it a transfer or a

sale? If it is a sale, have the details been worked out so that the people in

Fortune can rest assure that this is a done deal?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Yes, Mr. Speaker. I thank the hon. member for her question.

The people in Fortune can be assured that this is a done deal. As a matter of

fact - I know it was not last week, it was probably the week before - I met with

some representatives of the union down there and assured them the same thing.

The fact of the matter is, it is a sale. A sale price has been agreed between

OCI and Cooke Aquaculture. The amount - I do not think I will make public at the

moment - is a reasonable amount and some equipment that Cooke do not want will

be utilized elsewhere by OCI. FPI, as a condition of our approving all the rest

of the matters that we are talking about here in terms of the OCI, High Liner

agreement, have agreed to expedite the sale of Fortune to OCI and we are not

anticipating any difficulty with that. As a matter of fact, the agreements

between OCI and Cooke Aquaculture have been agreed to.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Grand Bank.

MS FOOTE: According to the briefing we were given this morning, as well,

the secondary processing plant in Burin, High Liner has committed to spend $3

million in capital and research and development in the Province. What is missing

there, and what is troubling, is that there is no given date when that $3

million has to be spent. The penalty, should High Liner decide to close the

plant, is $2.5 million.

I ask the Minister: Since there is no date given for when High Liner has to

spend this $3 million, what is to keep High Liner from closing the plant, taking

the $2 million penalty, which is a penalty that they would incur for closing a

facility, and walk away from this $3 million investment for a savings of

$500,000?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Well, Mr. Speaker, I suppose all of that assumes that High

Liner is not acting in good faith. It assumes that they are meanspirited. It

assumes that they are just out to hoodwink all of us.

Let me say this in terms of Burin, there are commitments in this deal for

Burin that are far and above an enhancement on what they are facing now. For

example, FPI planned to produce less than 11 million pounds of product in Burin

this year. There would be a significant reduction in the workforce in Burin if

it were to stay with FPI. OCI has committed to 17.5 million pounds of production

in every year, starting this year, in the first twelve months.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, also, besides the -

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. RIDEOUT: High Liner, I mean, yes. Look, everybody knows what I mean.

I am as stunned as you know what, but that is all I can do about it, Mr.

Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the hon. minister now to complete his answer.

MR. RIDEOUT: Anyway, the other part of the hon. member's question is

this - and that is backupable' I say to the Leader of the Opposition, as it

relates to penalties. In addition to the penalty per worker that would be

imposed if High Liner is hoodwinking us all, for the want of a better word,

there is also a penalty per pound of production because where - it is different

in Burin. The throughput is what will create the jobs in Burin, and they are

committed to put through 17.5 million pounds of product. In other plants - you

can land millions of pounds of mackerel and get no employment out of it, or very

little employment out of it. The key to Burin is the throughput and that is

where the real penalties are for High Liner.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. ANDERSEN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My question is for the Minister of Human Resources, Labour and Employment.

Minister, a strike at Voisey's Bay on the North Coast of Labrador has now

reached a crisis situation, with the safety and morale of workers seriously

compromised. I ask the minister what his government is doing to help bring an

end to the strike so workers can go back to work.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Human Resources, Labour and

Employment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SKINNER: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the hon. member for his question.

The officials in my department have been in touch with all parties concerned.

The companies involved, the employers, the union, have been in touch as recently

as last week, and there will be meetings again this week on the matter. We are

trying to find a common ground in trying to bring both parties to a reasonable

conclusion that both can live with; and, as I said, those meetings are ongoing

and will continue throughout this week.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. ANDERSEN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister, one of the contractors on strike at Voisey's Bay, Torngait

Services, we are told, has sixty-two workers, of which sixty people are from

Labrador. To see such a high percentage of workers from Labrador speaks well for

the IBAs the company has signed with the people in Labrador.

Minister, a large number of these workers are Aboriginals from the North

Coast communities who have waited a lifetime for good paying jobs. I ask the

minister if his government is willing to bring in anti-scab legislation and, if

so, when?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Human Resources, Labour and

Employment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SKINNER: Mr. Speaker, there are, as has been indicated, a number of

Aboriginal people who are employed in the site up there, and that is as a result

of the benefits agreements that have been negotiated. We hope that those

benefits and those kinds of employment numbers will continue into the future.

In terms of the second half of his question, with regard to the replacement

worker legislation, I have indicated that the Labour Relations Agency, through

its Strategic Partnership Initiative, is undertaking a review of all of the

labour legislation in the Province. That will look at whatever the union

representatives on that committee and the employer representatives on that

committee wish to bring to the table for discussion. Once that review is

complete, we will be in a better position at that time to look at the kinds of

things will need to be updated in the legislation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My questions are for the Minister of Natural Resources.

According to the IBAs that were signed with Voisey's Bay Nickel, a

percentage of the employees at the site are to be Aboriginal. We know that 98

per cent of the striking workers with TSI , and a percentage of those with

(inaudible) are Aboriginal and are now being replaced by non-Aboriginal workers.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister and her government: What is being done to

ensure that the Aboriginal content of this contract is being upheld by the

company during this strike?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS DUNDERDALE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Department of Natural Resources is not directly involved in this labour

dispute. There is not an appropriate role for us there. This is being handled

through the Labour Relations Board of HRLE. I will undertake to find out that

information and report back to the House.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Well, Mr. Speaker, maybe I will direct my next question to the

Minister of Labour.

These workers have been on strike for over forty days. There are serious

incidents of conflict at the mining site in recent days. I am sure he is aware

of it. We also know that there are more than twenty security officers who have

been brought in from outside the Province to protect these replacement workers

on site. It is a very serious situation.

I ask the minister: Outside of a conciliator, which has been engaged, I

think, through his department, what else is being done by government to achieve

a resolution to this as soon as possible?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Human Resources, Labour and

Employment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SKINNER: Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member opposite knows, our role as

a government is to be involved in the conciliation and mediation process. We do

have people on staff within the Department of Labour who are fulfilling that

role as conciliators and mediators in this dispute. We have been involved for

some time now during the strike. We will be involved, as I indicated, in

meetings this week. We feel that we are making some progress in that area, and

that we are bringing the sides closer together.

That is our role and we are fulfilling that role, Mr. Speaker, and will

continue to do so.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My next question is also for the Minister of Labour.

I was surprised to learn in his comment today that the only review of

anti-scab legislation being looked at by the government is what is being looked

at in the context of a full review of legislation in his department. It is my

understanding from comments in the media made by the Minister Responsible for

Labrador over the weekend that this is something you are looking at seriously

and could be implementing soon.

My question today to the minister is: Are you prepared to move up the agenda

on anti-scab legislation and have it brought to the House of Assembly so that we

do not have situations like we have at Voisey's Bay in the future?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Human Resources, Labour and

Employment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SKINNER: Mr. Speaker, as I have indicated in my earlier remarks, we

do have a strategic partnership between our Labour Relations Agency, the unions

and the employers representative groups in this Province. We have a process in

place that all parties have agreed to follow, and we will be following that

process to do a thorough review and to make sure that any and all issues that

are important to the people of this Province, be they employers or be they

employees, will be reviewed and will be brought forward for consideration by the

government.

We have undertaken that commitment, we will fulfil that commitment, and once

we know what the results of that are we will decide then what actions can be

taken.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

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

My question is for the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, and it relates

to the sale of FPI.

We now know that the two companies, OCI and High Liner, will face penalties

if they close the plant before or at five years, or there will be penalties if

they do not maintain historical levels of employment, but there seems to be

nothing in place for what happens when those five years are up.

I have two questions, actually, in one: What assurances has government come

up with for the plants in the long term if things end after five years? What

will ensure that the survival of these plants remains a priority after the

five-year period?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question, and

it is a very good question.

Five years in business is a long time, and it is impossible to project out

forever where quotas are going to be, and all that kind of thing. The best you

can do is to put your best efforts into this and put your best foot forward.

We have sought advice from the FFAW in what they think the requirements ought

to be. It is their view, as it is ours, that the company had come forward, I

believe, in the initial stages with a three-year commitment and we are able to

negotiate that out to five.

There are also other commitments, of course, particularly in terms of

Marystown and the quota. We have a situation negotiated with the Government of

Canada that will see, if there happens to be defaults by OCI, the quota revert

to a company that will be controlled by the Province. Now, that would not make

much sense if you did not have - what are you going to do with that quota? Where

do you put it?

Well, Mr. Speaker, in the agreement there is also a clause which says that in

that kind of situation, if Marystown were to close, then the Province would have

a right of first refusal of Marystown.

So, we try to marry the two together as best we can, try to anticipate every

possible scenario, realizing that we are human. We can only put our best foot

forward and hope for the best in the long term, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I understand what the government has been dealing with in doing these

negotiations, but in normal agreements when things are negotiated, there is

usually a time frame and then there is something set up to allow for

renegotiations. I am just wondering, in the discussions, was there any

consideration of what happens around the fourth-year mark?

My concern is that we could have things come to a close around the five-year

mark and then have workers hang around waiting while a plant is closed again,

like workers have done in Marystown, and be waiting for a new agreement to be

put in place either with OCI, High Liner, or another company. Was this notion of

renegotiating, getting together around the fourth-year mark to assess things,

was that discussed at all?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: As I indicated, Mr. Speaker, to the hon. member, the opening

position of the companies was that they wanted to enter into three-year

arrangements. We were able to, through the process of negotiation, arrive at

five years. Obviously, this issue will be revisited if there is any indication

that the companies are going to cease operations. Those companies are investing

heavily. They are committed to the long term and we have every reason to believe

that their future - and they see their future here in Newfoundland and Labrador

for the long term, and we believe that to be the case, Mr. Speaker.

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My final question for the Minister of Labour, and that is that we have a

minister today for Labrador Affairs out saying that government is looking at

bringing in anti-scab legislation, I guess, but we also have another minister

telling us that this is all under review. So I will make my question very

straightforward to you, minister: Are you prepared to bring in laws to prevent

the hiring of replacement workers in the cases of strikes like we now see in

Voisey's Bay?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Human Resources, Labour and

Employment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SKINNER: Mr. Speaker, this government has already indicated its

commitment to updating the labour relations legislation in this Province. We

have the partners at the table to help us do that. The labour unions - the

employers in this Province have agreed to assist us with that. We are embarking

upon that process and we are prepared to, once we know what the results of that

review is, bring forward whatever legislation we feel is necessary to make sure

that we have a positive labour relations climate in this Province.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The time allocated for Question Period has expired.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling of Documents.

Notices of Motions.

Notices of Motion

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

MS DUNDERDALE: Mr. Speaker, I give notice that I will ask leave to

introduce a bill entitled,

An Act To Establish An Energy Corporation For The

Province. (Bill 28)

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

entitled,

An Act Respecting the Newfoundland And Labrador Hydro-Electric

Corporation. (Bill 27)

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

MR. T. OSBORNE: That you, Mr. Speaker.

I give notice that I will ask leave to introduce a bill entitled,

An Act To

Amend The Commissioners For Oaths Act. (Bill 26)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. RIDEOUT: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

On behalf of my colleague, the Minister of Environment and Conservation, I

give notice that I will on tomorrow ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An

Act Respecting The Sustainable Development Of Natural Resources In The Province.

(Bill 25)

Also, Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 11, I move that this House

tomorrow, May 29, not adjourn at 5:30 or adjourn at 10:00 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER: Further notices of motions?

The hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move the following Private Member's Motion:

WHEREAS the current government, on June 23, 2006, released its new Poverty

Reduction Strategy entitled "Reducing Poverty: An Action Plan for

Newfoundland and Labrador" following through on the Blueprint commitment to

transform Newfoundland and Labrador over a ten-year period from a Province with

the most poverty to a Province with the least poverty; and

WHEREAS this Poverty Reduction Strategy is an unprecedented action plan

combining the efforts of the Premier and his Cabinet colleagues - I say to the

hon. member opposite.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. FRENCH: - and officials in Human Resources, Labour and Employment;

Labrador and Aboriginal Affairs; Education; the Women's Policy Office;

Finance; Health and Community Services; Innovation, Trade and Rural Development;

and the Rural Secretariat; and

WHEREAS the government began to implement this new strategy with a financial

commitment in the 2006 Budget of over $60 million annually to support expanded

eligibility for the prescription drug program, the elimination of school fees,

increases to income support programs, and enhanced Adult Basic Education

offerings in a focused effort to ensure that poverty reduction occurs and that

the strategy's important objectives are met over the long term; and

WHEREAS in the 2007 Budget, the government significantly enhanced its

commitment to poverty reduction with a total investment this year of $91

million; and

WHEREAS the government also significantly enhanced the Newfoundland and

Labrador Prescription Drug Program to cap annual out-of-pocket drug costs based

on net family income;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that this hon. House express its support for the

Poverty Reduction Strategy initiatives of the 2006 and 2007 budgets and the

Strategy's objective of transforming Newfoundland and Labrador over a ten-year

period from a Province with the most poverty to a Province with the least

poverty.

Mr. Speaker, that has been seconded by my colleague from Topsail, the hon.

Beth Marshall.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

Further notices of motions?

Answers to Questions for Which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's.

MR. COLLINS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to present a petition on behalf of the Member for Harbour Main-Whitbourne

and the Minister of Tourism presented by the residents of Whitbourne, Markland

and St. Mary's Bay North area.

The minister and myself met with municipal officials from those communities

about a month ago and they presented us with a petition. I will not read the

prayer of it, but basically it is to deal with gravel road from Whitbourne to

Colinet. This is a road that is used by residents of St. Mary's Bay North,

Colinet and the Cape Shore to drive to Whitbourne and to access the Trans-Canada

and to avail of medical services, recreation and so on, in Whitbourne. It is a

gravel road. The petition calls that the road be upgraded and paved.

Mr. Speaker, this area will be in the jurisdiction of Placentia & St.

Mary's, and I look forward to representing the people of Whitbourne and

Markland in the next election. Also, Mr. Speaker, I look forward to getting into

the Whitbourne and Markland area in the summer and meeting as many people there

as I can, as well as the areas of Long Harbour and Mount Arlington Heights.

I present this petition today, Mr. Speaker, on behalf the residents of

Whitbourne, Markland and St. Mary's Bay North.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to present a petition on behalf of residents in my district, in

the Labrador Straits region, who are requesting that the hunting season for

ptarmigan would be changed this year.

I would like to ask the Member for The Straits & White Bay North to just

give me some time, Mr. Speaker, to present this on behalf of the 425 residents

in my district who have raised this as a concern. As soon as I am finished, I

can certainly grant him all the time he wishes to get up and speak.

Now, Mr. Speaker, the residents of the Labrador Straits have raised this as

an important issue. In fact, they have written a letter to Minister Jackman, who

is the Minister of Environment and Conservation, and they have also written

letters to the minister for Labrador and the Minister of Natural Resources as it

relates to this particular issue.

What they are asking is that the season would be delayed opening each year

and that, in fact, the hunting season would start on December 1, because they

feel that, in the interest of conservation, right now the season opens much too

early for ptarmigan hunting and they want to see it delayed opening until

December 1 and they also want it to continue to be open until April 30.

I do not see a huge problem with that, because right now members of the

Labrador Inuit Association and members of the Labrador Metis Nation have the

opportunity to hunt until April 30, and it is only the non-Aboriginal people who

are being asked to cease their hunting prior to that date, so I certainly have

no problem with this petition.

I would encourage the government to look at this seriously and to change the

hunting dates for ptarmigan in the Labrador Straits region. As you can certainly

appreciate, hunting is very much a part of the traditional culture of the people

of this particular area, and many of them not only hunt for sport but certainly

hunt for food as well. They want to see complete protection, from an

environmental perspective, of this particular reserve of ptarmigan in that area,

but at the same time they want the privilege to be able to hunt and be able to

get a meal for the table at a reasonable period of time during that season.

So, to make the request to government at this time to delay the opening of

the season to December 1, and also extend it to April 30, is a reasonable

request. I cannot see the department having any problems with it, but I will

certainly await a response from the minister and from his colleagues.

Mr. Speaker, I want to acknowledge and thank Mr. Eric Bridle of Red Bay, who

was one of the people who spearheaded this petition in the Labrador Straits area

and took it upon himself, on behalf of all of the hunters and the residents of

that area, to go out and have these petitions prepared, to have them signed, and

to submit them to the House of Assembly. Mr. Speaker, I acknowledge his

contribution and I certainly hope that government will listen to the wishes of

these over 400 people in the Labrador Straits area.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Further petitions?

Orders of the Day.

Orders of the Day

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. RIDEOUT: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to move Motion 5, pursuant to Standing Order 11, that this House

not adjourn at 5:30 this afternoon.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The motion is, pursuant to Standing Order 11, that the House not adjourn

today, Monday, May 28, at 5:30 o'clock.

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, nay'.

AN HON. MEMBER: Nay.

MR. SPEAKER: The motion is carried.

Motion carried.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. RIDEOUT: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Motion 6, as well, that this House not adjourn today, May 28, at 10:00 o'clock.

MR. SPEAKER: The motion is, pursuant to Standing Order 11, that the House

not adjourn today, Monday, May 28, at 10:00 p.m.

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, nay'.

The motion is carried.

Motion carried.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I would like to move now to Order 10, which is

seconding reading of a bill,

An Act To Amend The Student Financial Assistance

Act. (Bill 13)

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that Bill 13,

An Act To Amend The

Student Financial Assistance Act, be now read a second time.

Motion, second reading of a bill, "An Act To Amend The Student Financial

Assistance Act." (Bill 13)

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS BURKE: Mr. Speaker, I am quite pleased to be here today to speak on

the amendment to the Student Financial Assistance Act.

Mr. Speaker, the whole issue of student debt, and what can be done in the

Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, has been a question that has been around

for quite some time. The students feel, as they go through their education here

in Newfoundland and Labrador and enter the workforce, that they are at a

disadvantage by all of the money that they owe and they are trying to pay back,

Mr. Speaker, so we decided that we needed to look at this very serious issue

that was affecting our young people in the Province.

On March 7 of this year, Mr. Speaker, I hosted a roundtable on student debt

in Corner Brook. At that roundtable we had representatives from the Canadian

Federation of Students, we had representation from the Council of the Student

Union, both the St. John's campus as well as Grenfell in Corner Brook. We also

had representation, Mr. Speaker, from the Marine Institute and, as well, we had

representation from the College of the North Atlantic, from various campuses,

and we also had representation from students at the private colleges. As well,

Mr. Speaker, we had some officials from the Department of Education and

certainly from the Student Loan Corporation as we dealt with some of the issues

that were addressed by the students.

We had a whole host of suggestions and ideas of what we may or may not be

able to do to address the issue of student debt, and we had shared our ideas

with the students prior to our meeting so that they would come and they would be

well prepared to have an informed discussion about what was happening.

Mr. Speaker, I can say that the students were very well informed, and as we

went through the various options the students clearly indicated support for two

ways that we could address student debt. One was support for up-front grants and

for changes in the interest rates for students in repayment of their student

loans.

I forgot to add, as I talked about who was at the roundtable, we also had

representation of people who had graduated from the university system and were

out and were currently repaying their loan.

It was suggested at that time that we should have up-front needs based

grants. Mr. Speaker, we announced that this year in our Budget, and it is

something that we will move forward with. In addition to that, we also indicated

that we would reduce the interest rates on student loans from prime plus

two-and-a-half to prime. That means that it would go from 6 per cent, with the

2.5 per cent, which was 8.5 per cent, down to 6 per cent.

Mr. Speaker, when we do that - that is what the whole amendment of this

legislation is about, reducing that interest rate - we will actually have the

lowest interest rate on student loans in Canada, right here in Newfoundland and

Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS BURKE: What is equally important, Mr. Speaker, is to recognize that

when we do this amendment, when we do this change, this will not just apply to

current students who are using student loans, but this will apply actually to

46,000 people right now who are currently repaying their loans in Newfoundland

and Labrador.

In some of the calculations that we looked at - and this was certainly

verified by the person who represented people in repayment at our roundtable,

and it was Mr. Mercer who first gave us these numbers and we looked at them and

they were indeed accurate - for people who came through the university system in

the 1990s, in the mid-1990s, the whole grant system was removed and those

students had to borrow every cent from the provincial government for the

provincial portion of their loan as opposed to getting the grant. So, it was the

students who went in the mid-1990s who were most impacted by some of the changes

that happened at that time. By reducing the interest rate for people who

graduated with a maximum student loan, they will save approximately $3,500 in

interest rates in their repayment.

This one person pointed out that he had a full student loan for the years

that he went through, as did his wife. With this amendment that we are passing

today, this legislation, that couple alone will save $7,000 in interest payments

in the life of repaying their student loan.

Mr. Speaker, the change that we are talking about today through the

legislation will actually come into effect on August 1, which will be in time

for the school year of 2007-2008, and it will certainly provide support to those

who are struggling to meet their debt obligations.

So, it is not just that we are reducing the interest rate, which will affect

the 47,000, but, Mr. Speaker, bringing back the upfront needs-based grants means

that the provincial portion of the student loan right now, for people who borrow

the maximum - because I usually focus on the maximum when I am speaking - right

now they are entitled to borrow up to $140 a week, but we will have that capped

at $70 a week. Anybody who is eligible for a full, maximum student loan, right

now they will borrow $70 but the additional $70 will be in a non-repayable grant

for the provincial portion of their loan. Then anyone who gets any portion of it

above $70 will get the grant. So, that is how this new system will work, Mr.

Speaker. This is something that the students really wanted. They were really

upset in the mid-1990s, that this system of grants had been eliminated by the

provincial government.

Mr. Speaker, this amendment also supports government's poverty reduction

initiatives because not always are we trying to reduce poverty from people who

are in the lowest income levels, but there are certain times we try to remove

the stigma that poverty causes and separates people into certain classes and

certain groups.

Mr. Speaker, one important initiative we introduced last year was the

elimination of school fees. At that point in time, it was very important that -

I felt, as the Minister of Education, and certainly the former Minister of Human

Resources, Labour and Employment - when small children go into the school that

first day and they are handed a note which they have to bring home that night,

when they open their book bags, the first note that comes out is saying they

have to bring in $40, $50, $60, even $70. Then the discussion that happens at

the dinner table that night where the parents look at it and say: Well, we just

cannot afford it. I do not know when I can send it in. I do not think you are

going to be able to have it. I cannot believe this notice being sent home. I

cannot believe I spent all that money getting things ready for school. I did not

realize this was coming in behind. That little person, Mr. Speaker, whether they

are five, six or seven-years-old has to go back to school that next day - now,

they had heard that conversation the night before. Then they have to walk into

that classroom and they have to look as other children are bringing up their

payments, and they have to wonder: well, what is wrong? Why am I different? How

am I going to hide the fact that I cannot pay this money? What little lie am I

going to tell here to say why I forgot it this morning?

Mr. Speaker, the whole face of poverty, we do not need that in our school

children. They do not need to learn very early in life that maybe they do not

have the same amount of money as the family or the person sitting next to them.

So, we eliminated school fees. That was part of our poverty reduction

initiatives.

Mr. Speaker, for this coming September, we will ensure that textbooks from

Grades 9 to 12 are of no charge to the families of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS BURKE: Mr. Speaker, that is a tremendous investment of over $12

million this year. We were the only Province in Canada that actually charged for

high school books. Again, it goes back to say, this is not just going to help

low-income families, it will help everyone but it will also even the playing

field for people who are in our K to 12 system.

Mr. Speaker, students do not need to know, as they are going through school,

that they have to pick their courses because they have books available or

somebody in their family did the course. They certainly need to work to their

potential and achieve their best. Again, bringing in the payment of the

textbooks is almost like the same idea as the school fees, we evened the playing

field.

Mr. Speaker, it goes beyond the K to12 system into post-secondary, because

what we stand for as a government is affordable and accessible post-secondary

education. We need to make education a priority so that everyone feels if they

have the potential to go to university or post-secondary, that they can afford

to go and they can afford to work and live in this Province afterwards. Mr.

Speaker, again, we are levelling the playing field to help everyone in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

One thing we have also done is with our White Paper we have committed to $90

million in our post-secondary system and we have moved even beyond the White

Paper with some other initiatives. We are investing millions in infrastructure

in the new residences.

Mr. Speaker, we have also held a tuition freeze, which cost government about

$25 million, but we were committed to a tuition freeze and we carried on,

certainly, with that commitment. We now have the lowest tuition anywhere in

Canada, outside Quebec, and that is thanks primarily to our tuition freeze.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS BURKE: Mr. Speaker, certainly, the key to our future is education and

we need to make sure that our students can move forward with their lives,

becoming full productive citizens in their communities.

I just want to highlight some of our Budget 2007 initiatives that we have

outlined in education, specifically for post-secondary. We allocated $14.4

million, and this is for upfront grants and reduction in loan interest payments.

That came directly from our round table and our discussion with the students and

what they felt would be the best way for us to address student debt.

We also made a five-year, $62 million commitment for residence construction

for both MUN and Grenfell. We have committed $8.8 million for a new academic

building at Grenfell; $2 million for the College of the North Atlantic facility

improvements and equipment upgrades; $600,000 to improve disability access at

the Burin campus of the College of the North Atlantic; $800,000 for a marketing

campaign for MUN; $200,000 to recruit international students; $500,000 for

distance education at MUN; and $3.5 million in skilled trades and technology at

the College of the North Atlantic.

Mr. Speaker, there are other initiatives within government that also support

our students. One is the new career information resource centres and ten new

HRLE career information officers. We have also committed over $1 million to

expand the Graduate Retention Program to accommodate an additional 100

graduates. We also committed $1 million for the creation of the School of Ocean

Technology. Budget 2007 invested $6.7 million in the area of skilled trades.

This speaks to a total of $22.1 million additional funding for MUN and an

additional $8.2 million for the College of the North Atlantic.

Mr. Speaker, we are spending $14,000 per student at the post-secondary

levels. The total expenditures have increased by 52 per cent since 2003, and the

total expenditure for post-secondary education this fiscal year is nearly $377

million. These are government-wide initiatives but we certainly have direct

assistance to students as well, and the interest-free loans will provide

interest breaks for people who are in their repayment. It will affect 46,000

people right now and it will reduce their interest rates, as I said, Mr.

Speaker, to the lowest interest rates that any students will be repaying in

Canada. I think that is commendable, and I certainly want to thank the students

for being part of those discussions.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS BURKE: Mr. Speaker, this amendment that we are bringing in today will

allow us to be able to adjust the interest rates on student loans from prime

plus 2.5 per cent to prime.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that all colleagues in the House certainly see the merit

to that, they have respect for the people who sat at the round table that we

held in March and have listened to the issues and the solutions that were put

forward. Not only did we have the round table, not only did we heard the

solutions and listen, Mr. Speaker, today this is action that we are taking on

what we heard.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER (Fitzgerald): The hon. the Member for Grand Falls-Buchans.

MS THISTLE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am delighted today to stand and respond to the Minister of Education on her

bill, Bill 13,

An Act To Amend The Student Financial Assistance Act. I always

say, if we can do anything to improve the lives of students and their families

in this Province, it is generally a good thing.

I am delighted, too, that the government has paid attention to the

Opposition. I am delighted that the government has paid attention to the debate

in the House of Assembly that ensued after the Budget was brought down.

One of the most important things today that the minister mentioned was the

fact that government is now going to increase the ceiling on parental income.

That means that students can now borrow more money, or they will be able to

qualify for grants easier. That was always a hindrance here of recent times

because even through two working parents are making beyond $65,000, it was

always a hindrance because it limited the amount that a student could actually

borrow towards the cost of their education and it also, most recently, limited

the ability of a student to qualify for the non-repayment grants.

Being a former Minister of Post-Secondary Education I understand quite well

the dilemma that students and parents faced in trying to get an education here

in this Province. I was glad that we had, during my term of office, a complete

overhaul of the student loan package and it made huge improvements, but this is

always a plan in the works because you never do get it all done and there is

always something coming up from day to day that would hinder students from

getting a good education when they have to consider the cost of the education.

It is a moving document and it is a moving department, and it needs to be

revamped almost on an annual basis.

I have to refer back to the minister. She said it was a great improvement,

having free textbooks for K-12. I would say it would be also a great improvement

to have free textbooks for university students because, when you look at the

cost of textbooks for university students, it is astronomical. Any of them will

tell you the cost involved, and the parents, I think, get a big shock when the

students bring home the list of textbooks and material they will need to do

different courses at university.

Of course, ideally, free education, no doubt, is a goal for students in this

Province. Free education, that was the way it was first when it started out. You

know, there are actually Members in this House of Assembly who went to

university and benefitted from free education. Now, there are older Members in

this House of Assembly who had that advantage, and from time to time during

debate they will stand up and they will tell what a great benefit it was to have

free tuition when they attended university.

You know, it is quite likely that will happen in the future - there is no

reason why it would not - but, when you think of ways to get young people to get

a good education in this Province and stay here, I believe that government needs

to go back to the drawing board and they need to look at the first bill that

they cancelled here in this House.

The first bill this new government cancelled in this House, when they had

their first session in 2004, was a bill that I actually brought to the House,

and it was to give students an income tax reduction when they paid on their

Newfoundland and Labrador Student Loan, if they would stay in the Province and

work. That was an enticement for our young people to stay in the Province and

work. While there are factors today that will help them in paying off their

student loan, all too often, as soon as our young people get educated, they head

west and they head all over the world, in fact.

When you look at the fact that our previous government had a piece of

legislation - for every dollar paid on their student loan, which was the

Newfoundland and Labrador portion of their student loan, they were going to get

a break on their income tax. That was the first order of business when this new

government was formed, their first order of business in the House of Assembly in

the spring of 2004. I think they actually need to go back and have a look at

that because, in a week's time now, the Premier will be having the job fair

around our Province saying they are going to be hiring 1,000 civil servants.

Now, we do not know what categories they are going to be in and so on, but I am

sure if he could add that to the package: Look, stay and work in Newfoundland

and Labrador and when you start to pay off your student loan at prime interest

rate we will do something more than that; we will give you a break on your

income tax.

You know, government should never be too big that they would not go back and

have a second look at that. They have an opportunity now. They have reduced the

interest rate on the student loan. That was always a detriment, the high

interest rate, particularly in times when interest rates were really high.

Judging the way the Canadian dollar is today, at ninety-three cents, it is

quite likely that interest rates will escalate as well in the very near future.

Economists are predicting that within two to three years our Canadian dollar

will be on par with the U.S. dollar, so that is going to be a huge challenge for

businesses that depend on exporting.

You take, for instance, where I come from, my district, the pulp and paper

industry are going to be facing a huge challenge. Even today, the government's

approval of the sale of Fishery Products, when you look at the exporting of fish

from our Province, the effect of the Canadian dollar is going to cause a lot of

challenges for those types of industries and manufacturing in general.

When you also look at the fact that interest rates are quite likely to rise

now in the near future, I think you have to look at, what does it take, firstly,

to educate a young person in our Province and, once they are educated, what does

it take to keep them here, to get them contributing to the economy?

I was really surprised when the former minister, who is now the Minister of

Tourism, Culture and Recreation, announced their White Paper study on education

in our Province. I thought for sure they would look at the possibilities of

expanding the two-year university program at the College of the North Atlantic

in Grand Falls-Windsor.

The College of the North Atlantic, the Town of Grand Falls-Windsor and the

previous government, had spent a lot of money doing a report, hiring

consultants, doing a report and finding out what the need was for post-secondary

in Central Newfoundland. It was very unfortunate that, when that White Paper

study was completed, there was no mention of our two-year university program in

Central Newfoundland. That is unfortunate, because right now the College of the

North Atlantic basically offers business programs, and they have been really

successful. In fact, there has always been a full program for every program that

is being offered there. In fact, they are bursting at the seams.

So, it is unfortunate that the current Administration - I know that Dr. Axel

Meisen was very keen, when I was the minister, in looking at the campus in Grand

Falls-Windsor as a centre of excellence in some category. We were at the very

early stages of finding out which one would fit best with the population that

would be attending there, and also the potential population. That was more or

less shelved with the changeover in government, but I was disappointed that

there was no mention in the White Paper study, although there was clear evidence

that is a growing concern, being able to accommodate a lot of our students;

because, as most people know, in Western and Central Newfoundland, a lot of our

students go to mainland universities, which is unfortunate. It is not like the

people living right here in St. John's. They always look at the fact that if

you have to pay for your son and daughter to attend university, a lot of them

think that it is no more expensive to go to, say, Acadia or St. Francis Xavier

or some of those universities in Atlantic Canada, because it is probably the

same cost as sending a young person to St. John's.

Government needs to look at these factors again, and have a look at the fact

that there is a lot of our population coming from Central Newfoundland. When you

think of how successful our first and second year studies have been at MUN, and

the number of students who naturally go on to MUN in St. John's after

attending classes in Grand Falls-Windsor, it is something that would cut down on

the cost for the family if students were able to continue on with a

degree-granting program in Grand Falls-Windsor, and it would certainly cut down

the cost of those coming from rural Newfoundland and Labrador, so that is an

area that government could certainly turn their attention to.

One of the recent issues that came up over the winter, and I dealt with

several constituents in my district, was the fact that MUN had made a decision

to change the student housing on campus without giving full consultation time to

the students and their parents, so a lot of people were left up in arms

wondering how they were going to handle this, but after a lot of intervention by

a lot of people - I know MHAs all over the Province, myself included, and

parents and students - this issue has now been settled. It goes to show that

sometimes decisions are made at the top, without any consultation, and as a

result of that a lot of people are affected.

I was glad to finally hear that this government has acknowledged - and it was

refreshing to hear - that we in this Province have the lowest tuition rate of

any university across the country, with the exception of Quebec, and that used

to be -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS THISTLE: It is too bad Loyola Sullivan is not here today, because he

and I would spend hours debating that very fact. Even through this government

has not decreased tuition rates - it is the same as when we were the government

- he and I would argue back and forth across the floor. I would tell him: Yes,

we have the lowest tuition rate across the country, with the exception of

Quebec, who give an advantage to their residents, and he would argue black and

blue that we did not have the lowest rate. Now that they are the government,

there has been no change in tuition and now they have the lowest rate.

That is an indication of how people spin things during communications.

Whatever works at the time, and if you say it long enough, people will believe

it is true.

I am glad we continue to have the lowest tuition rate across the country.

MR. DENINE: (Inaudible).

MS THISTLE: I would like to tell the Member for Mount Pearl, who may not

be up to date on this, there has been no reduction in tuition since you assumed

government. It is the same as when we were there. We reduced it by 25 per cent.

It is still the lowest tuition rate across the country, and I am glad to hear

that this government has finally mentioned that.

There has been a big push on, to increase our student population, and I do

believe that is a good thing. Right now, there are about 17,500 students

attending MUN, and about 3,000 of those are international students. I read in

the paper over the weekend that the President, Axel Meisen, is putting on a push

to grow the student population in our Province. Of course, he is only one of

many universities across our country trying to attract international students.

We all know that international students pay more. They pay more to get the

opportunity to attend university in our Province. Naturally, it is an enticement

to attract in those young people, get their ideas, and hope that many of them

will want to stay here and take up residency in our Province. That is always a

good thing, but there is a lot of competition for international students. Anyone

will tell you that all universities have put a lot of money into marketing of

international students. It has become a way of life in order for universities to

survive across Canada, to keep up their student population; because, as the

minister already mentioned, there is a lot of money going into Memorial

University this year for upgrades and so on to the infrastructure throughout the

university system.

In order to maintain a campus of any university, you must have students. That

is the number one thing you must have. If you cannot find them from your own

sources, which are here right in our Province, naturally you are going to look

outside our Province and see if you can lure students in.

Let's face it, we have quite an expansive program across MUN, right here in

St. John's and in Corner Brook and other locations, for first and second year.

If that student population were to dry up, we would have a huge problem on our

hands, not having enough students to actually make up the courses that are

offered, and we would not be able to attract research and development money from

across the world. Generally, for every dollar you put into research and

development at Memorial University we generally get $5 back. So, if we did not

have a student population, we would not attract the faculty to run the operation

and we would not attract also these research and development dollars. So, having

a student population that meets or exceeds our present infrastructure is

crucial.

We have right now in our Province money - I will not say money to burn, but

for the first time in our history we have money in our Province that we can

allocate to education. We can do even more than we are doing today. We can look

at the fact that how can - there is a missing link here when you talk about

putting money into education. What is happening now is the student interest rate

is going to be lowered to prime rate, that is a good thing. The ceiling of

parental income is going to be increased. That means if someone is making over

$100,000 a year, a mother and a father or whatever the arrangement might be in a

parental situation, the student now has more of an opportunity to borrow more

money or receive a grant on his or her own. So, that is a good thing. However,

we need to look at, what can we do to even improve on that situation? You know,

the ultimate goal is free education, but are we providing a free education so

that our children can leave our Province and be a benefit to some other province

or some other part of the world? That is the key thing.

Last week, in this House, I stood and debated with the Minister of Finance

the issue of being able to extend retirement age beyond sixty-five. I thought to

myself when I was here speaking, you know, we need to be able to hold on to

people now that are over sixty-five. Never before in our history has the need

been greater for us as a Province then to have to hang on to the people now that

are over sixty-five. Number one, they do not have to actually pay student loans

back at that age, or not very many of them will be. They are already settled

here in this Province. They are already contributing members of our society and

will be, without very little cost to government.

The biggest cost to government by keeping people in the system after

sixty-five will probably be health care. You will probably notice that when the

health care program that is currently just for civil servants alone with

Desjardins, when that comes up for renewal again, by having people in the

workforce over sixty-five will no doubt mean an increase in premiums for any

civil servant to pay who works for government, because it is only natural. I am

not discriminating against older people because, naturally, I am heading for

that category myself, as all of us here are, but it is only normal to assume

that once you reach sixty-five you will be needing the medical system a whole

lot more than when you were thirty-five. That will mean an increase in premiums

and it will probably mean a lot of other things with regard to defining and

making up a program that will suit individuals in that category. But, we need

people over sixty-five who have the talent, have the experience, have the wisdom

and are able to do good work in this Province.

Private enterprise; I know private enterprise often hire people beyond age

sixty-five even before this regulation was put into effect, because lots of

times they cannot find people to work in their establishments. If you go

somewhere in the U.S., for instance, and you go into a place like Wal-Mart or

Walgreens, or any retail establishment, you will be greeted by someone beyond

sixty-five years of age. They will be smiling at you and handing you a shopping

cart. No matter where you go into any kind of a business place, you will find

people beyond the age of sixty-five. A lot of times it is financial, more times

it is for people who actually do not want to stay home and vegetate. They want

to be challenged and so on. That is one of the areas now that government has to

turn their attention to. Once you create a possibility of young people getting a

good education and being able to pay less for their education, now you want to

turn your attention to finding something in this Province for them to work at.

It was interesting, I heard on VOCM news when Vic Young got inducted last

week, he said - I am trying to recall his exact quote. He said: Out-migration is

enemy number one for this Province. That is what Vic Young said, who was former

manager of FPI. He said out-migration is enemy number one. Any government that

comes to power in our Province has to find a way to create jobs so that our

young people, once they graduate from post-secondary education, they find a

reason to stay here and work here and contribute to our economy. That is really

a major problem right now here in this Province.

If you look at the polling that the Premier had done a while ago, and every

issue that was thought to be relevant to people in our Province, you would think

it would have been health care, but at that particular time, when the polling

was done, the issue that now is surrounding Eastern Health on breast cancer

screening and also the testing in Burin, that was not on the radar screen at

that particular time. So the polling that was done by the Premier about a month

ago had jobs as the number one issue in this Province. This has been a problem

for this government since they took over in 2003. They have not been able to

create the jobs that are necessary to hold our young people. Even though they

had lots of money to work with, they have not been able to come up with the jobs

that would entice young people to live and work here, and pay off their student

loans, start a family and contribute to our economy.

While I appreciate - and I am sure students will and their families -

amendments to this student loan act, part and parcel of it will have to be: What

happens beyond university? What happens beyond post-secondary education? It has

to be more than a ticket on WestJet or Air Canada. It has to be more than that.

When you see children being interviewed on television, particularly around rural

Newfoundland and Labrador, and an interviewer says to them: What are you going

to do when you finish school? They should not be saying: I am going to Alberta

to get a job. That is hard when you hear that. When you sit down in your

livingroom and you are sitting back with a cup of tea and somebody from CBC or

NTV will go to a classroom somewhere in rural Newfoundland and Labrador and they

will interview students. It could be a science fair, it could be a graduation,

it could be a closing of a school or it could be an opening of a school, and at

random the interviewer will say: What are you going to do when you finish

school? I bet you any money, and I have seen it time and time again, the

majority of those children will say: I am going to go out West to get a job. I

am leaving Newfoundland and Labrador. It is rare to find someone who is staying

here, who is going to start their own business and contribute to the economy. I

do not know if I ever hear that, but we need to get back to the basics. We can

do all we want to enhance the student loans, and that is a good thing, but you

also have to go the next step, and that is look at where the jobs are going to

come from.

What can government do? Government has a surplus now, after everything has

been said and done. Government has a surplus of $261 million and, with all the

people who are sitting there in suits every day on the other side of the House,

they have not been able to come up with a way to create jobs so that young

people in our Province will not have to leave. Now, I find that a bit hard to

swallow, having the money and not being able to create the jobs so our young

people will not have to leave.

What we are doing with student loans today is a good thing. Of course, it is

a moving document and we will have to look at this again next spring, but for

now it is a good thing and more needs to be done.

With that, Mr Speaker, I will sit down and I will listen to other debate on

this particular bill.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on this bill today.

Obviously, I was very glad with the information that was in the Budget for

2007, that indicated that our students would not be burdened with as high an

interest rate on loans as they now have. Obviously, this piece of legislation is

being put in place which allows government to set lower interest rates as a

regular thing. I think it is very important that the legislation does that, and

that government recognizes the need to keep adjusting the interest rates

downward, because we are not saying that it has the right to set higher interest

rates. We are recognizing that we need the interest rates to be lower, and the

Budget this year did take that step and I hope that it is going to be a step

that is going to continue. Seeing this piece of legislation now being put in

place, it encourages me to believe that, in actual fact, we will continue to

lower the interest rates.

I think my own goal would be, as long as loans are there, to have the

interest rates almost at zero. I can understand that maybe there might be some

administrative costs, that the government might want to have a small interest

rate on the loans in order to cover some administrative costs, but I think the

movement downward to as far as we can get to no interest rate would be very,

very good. Anything that we can do to help our students has to be of benefit to

the Province.

I think that every time we take a step like this, every time we take a step

to help those who are trying to do post-secondary education, whatever way they

are doing it, every time we take a step to those who are trying to make

themselves be better prepared to work for the good of the Province, that we are

investing in our economy. It is a social investment, and in that sense it is

creating social capital. Doing that can only be good for our Province. The more

students we have, the more young people we have, who are prepared, through their

education, to add to the benefit of the Province, the better it is going to be

for all of us.

As I have said before in this House, and will continue to say, the more that

we can have the financial burden taken off the shoulders of our students, either

by interest free loans, when loans happen, by no tuition fees, these are the

things that will benefit our students.

I think we have to do more for the post-secondary students than just deal

with the financial. I think the financial is important, but there is another

side to that financial that I think we have to do as well. That is, we have to

give them the assurance that, after putting the energy into getting their

degrees and their certificates, et cetera, that there are also jobs available

for them here in the Province. So I think we need to link more the needs in our

Province, like the needs in the health care system, for example, the needs in

education, with the education and training of our young people. I think that it

would be a tremendous investment by government if we looked at some very

creative ways around developing our social capital by developing the investment

in our young people, if we were to set a goal for a certain number of

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to be trained as pathologists, for example, set

a goal for a certain number of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to be trained as

radiologists, set a goal to deal with the deficit here when it comes to

professional people.

We have heard in the House, from ministers and from others, and we read it in

the papers, and we know from our own research, that we have a gap in specialists

in the health care field right across the country. Well, just imagine what an

investment it would be if we were to try to take care of the gap here in

Newfoundland and Labrador by educating and training Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians in the areas where there are gaps, so that we do not have to be

going outside of the Province looking for people in these areas, especially when

we are looking for places where there are no people. That is the issue.

We could also combine that with - because obviously it is good to go outside

the Province to have other blood brought in, there is no doubt about that, it

helps with our own creativity - also look at the immigration system and see how

the immigration system can assist us, and bring people in deliberately, knowing

that they may have to do more training when they come into our Province, but

bring in people in the health care field with a program set up, not just leave

it to the individuals who come in, but actually have a program, knowing that

they will have to do further training in order to get accredited in Canada, but

do that as a program.

I really believe that if we take this approach, which is a more holistic

approach of looking at the economy and the social together, we could come up

with so much more than what we have in the Province already. It takes planning,

it takes putting all the pieces together, but it makes such sense to me. It

makes such sense to me that we can be training specialists in the educational

system, we can be training specialists in the health care system, and all

aspects of the health care system, and these can be people who are from our own

Province. These can be young women and men from our own Province who are

assisted in getting their education and training. Most of it can be gotten here

in Newfoundland and Labrador, in our own institutions. Some of it may have to

happen when they go into the sub-speciality areas. Some of it may have to happen

outside of the Province, but if we were to build up our own bank of qualified

people in a whole lot of new areas in this Province, in areas were we have gaps,

in areas where, when people leave a position is not filled right away, and

sometimes the position is not filled right away simply because of the fact that

there are not people at our fingertips ready to be hired in those positions,

either in our own Province or in our own country, or maybe even in North

America. We do have various professions - nursing, for example, is one - where

there have been historic moments where there have been tremendous gaps in terms

of people available in that career.

I think we need to become very creative here in the Province with regard to

getting new blood into the various careers and professions in the Province;

getting new people trained, our own people from Newfoundland and Labrador,

putting programs in place to assure that they want to do it, number one, that

the remuneration is going to be enticing enough that they see the benefit of

co-operating with government, being trained to stay in Newfoundland and

Labrador; not being trained to stay here and miss out because they have stayed

here, but being willing to be trained to stay here knowing that they will still

get equal remuneration as if they went somewhere else.

All the pieces have to be together, but I think it can be done. I believe

that the various associations of professionals in the Province will be delighted

to work with government to develop a program like that for all their relevant

areas, a program whereby we could have young Newfoundlanders and Labradorians

trained in all the various professional areas where we have gaps in this

Province, but it also means that government has to assure that it keeps up the

hiring in our public institutions, whether we are talking about the health care

institutions or the educational institutions. In those two areas in particular,

where we have so many opportunities in the public sector for employment, where

making sure that we have adequate people working in those areas is going to help

both the social needs of the Province and also the economic needs of the

Province, because the more people that we have working in our Province, the more

people that we have earning good salaries, the better it is for the Province. A

large proportion of that money goes to the Province in the form of income tax. A

large proportion of that money goes to the Province in the terms of retail tax.

So, it is never lost money when we create a job in the public sector. Creating

jobs in the public sector so that young people can get trained and educated in

Newfoundland and Labrador in professions so that they can stay here is probably

one of the best investments that we can make.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MS MICHAEL: It is hard to keep my train of thought, Mr. Speaker. I will

try to do it. Thank you very much.

I really did lose my train of thought, sorry.

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MS MICHAEL: Thank you.

The point I was making with regard to the training I think is a very

important one, I mean it very seriously. I really think it is something for us

to pursue. Again, and this is where I was going - so I have my thought back,

thank you.

AN HON. MEMBER: Don't lose it again.

MS MICHAEL: No, I will try not to, with your help.

I think another thing, because of the pieces of legislation that we passed

last week - and, for various reasons, I did not speak on the issue with regard

to the changes in the age of retirement and removing the forced age of

retirement. I do understand the need to have changed that and I think I was in

agreement with it, but I also think we have to be careful now that we have done

it. Now that we no longer have an age for forced retirement and we are going to

have older workers staying in the workplace - and it will not just be in the

private sector, it is going to be in the public sector, too. If we do not

balance that with adequate positions for new entries into the workplace, we

could end up with a problem in ten years time. We could end up with a very top

heavy workforce with more people staying on at the older age, and if those

larger numbers staying on at the older age are not balanced by enough younger

people coming in at the entrance level, then we could end up with a much older

workforce than we now have, and we currently already do have an older workforce.

So, I think that government is going to have to be very careful, especially

in the public sector. Government is going to have to be very careful about

making sure that enough new positions at the entry level are there, whether it

is in education, whether it is in health, whether it is in the public sector,

working within the government agencies. If we do not balance this out, we are

going to be in trouble. I think having the older workers stay on is good,

because the older workers have wisdom and experience that can be shared with

younger workers, but if we do not at the same time maintain a healthy number of

younger workers coming in, the older workers who are staying on are not going to

have anybody to mentor, are not going to have anybody to share their experience

and knowledge with. So, I really think that government could put a plan in place

that would have a lot of pieces - several of the pieces that I am talking about

now have all those pieces there. If we were to do that, we could have a

workforce of wonderfully trained Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in areas where

maybe not enough of them are thinking about being trained and educated at the

moment. We could have younger workers being mentored by older workers. We could

have more people employed, if you put in place what it is that I am talking

about; if we make sure that we have enough people in place to do the work.

We have the proof that we do not have enough people working in the health

field. We do not have enough people working in education. Over the years we have

cut back too much in all of these areas, that we do not have adequate people in

positions; not because the people are not there to get hired. They are not being

hired because the positions are not there, because the positions have been cut.

I really do think, to use an old term, we are cutting off our noses despite our

faces when we are doing that. We may think that we are saving money when

positions are being cut, when in actual fact we are creating an awful lot of

problems in the Province. I really think that if we are going to support our

students in being educated in the post-secondary institutions, then we have to

come up with a creative plan that is going to keep them in this Province. We

also have to come up with a plan that is going to make sure these students are

going in areas that would be good for the Province as well and not going

elsewhere to do their programs.

Those are some of my concerns with regard to post-secondary students and our

post-secondary institutions and education, that government just should not say

our only responsibility is putting money into these areas but our responsibility

is to create an environment where people will be trained and will want to stay

here in the areas that they are being trained in, and there are all kinds of

ways in which that happen. Agreements can be made with students that if so much

money is put into their education they will stay in Newfoundland for so many

years. The thing is, whether you are from here or not from here, if you are

making adequate money for the work that you are doing and if your expertise is

being recognized, staying here is something people want to do because the

lifestyle is so good. The lifestyle in Newfoundland and Labrador is a wonderful

lifestyle. So if people are getting adequately remunerated for the work that

they are doing, whether they are original to Newfoundland and Labrador or not,

they will want to stay here.

The other thing that I want to talk about is the younger students. I know

government is doing good things. I was very, very happy again - I know this is

not a Budget discussion, but some of the issues that we are talking about are

contained in the Budget - yes, I am glad that we have the free books for

everybody in the school system now up to Grade 12. I would ask government to

consider, you know, as it goes on, and thinking about the directions it is going

in, that this was a wonderful step but we also have a whole area of programs

that are not core curriculum, and very often the programs that are not core

curriculum, it is really good to have a course that you want to do just because

you are interested in the course, not because you have to do it but because you

are interested.

I feel a little danger with the fact that it is only core curriculum books

that are free, because we could have in the Province a division happening

between children who can afford to do courses that are purely for pleasure

because they can afford to buy the textbooks in the courses that are not core

curriculum, and have students who cannot afford to pay for books not choose

programs that are not core curriculum because they cannot afford the books. I

think it would be really bad if we actually got a class distinction happening

between people doing programs for pleasure and core curriculum.

I think government has to realize that we need to have more than just core

curriculum books free. If we are going to make sure that everything is equal in

the educational system then the children who cannot afford the textbooks, or can

only afford to have them if they can find second-hand ones or have them passed

down, that those children should still have the freedom to choose curricula that

are not part of the core subjects. It is something that I urge government to

think about and, as we move on in the future, I think we have to make sure that

children can access all books, not just the core curriculum books.

I also think that we have to make sure that the needs of all students are met

in this Province, too, and I am particularly thinking about the school lunch

program and the Kids Eat Smart program. Not every community has the resources to

put a group of volunteers in place to work on this program, and I really think

that government, if it is going to be concerned about our young people, if it is

going to be concerned about education, and how our children are being educated,

and if it is going to be concerned about children being healthy in school, then

I think we have to look at government's responsibility for assuring that every

school is part of this program, that every student is able to be part of Kids

Eat Smart, that it should not depend totally on the ability of the community to

partner.

To me, it is part of the need for healthy nutrition in the schools, and again

it is part of making sure that we do not have distinctions, that everybody is

being treated the same, because in our public system everybody should be treated

the same and children should not have better opportunities because they are

living in St. John's rather than in a rural area or in Corner Brook and not on

the Coast of Labrador, that the opportunities should be the same for all of our

students.

I think, Mr. Speaker, I will close there. I think I am close to using my

twenty minutes. I will be happy to add to what I have to say when we meet in

Committee.

Thank you very much.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

If the hon. the Minister of Education speaks now she will close the debate at

second reading of Bill 13,

An Act To Amend The Student Financial Assistance Act.

The hon. the Minister of Education.

MS BURKE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Certainly, it has been a great experience to be able to speak in this debate

today and be able to introduce amendments to the Student Financial Assistance

Act which will indeed see the lowering of interest rates and will effect 46,000

people right now who are in the process of repaying their student loans.

Mr. Speaker, to come up with the suggestion to reduce the interest rates and

to also bring in the other initiative that is not part of this legislation but

to bring in the up-front needs based grants came from a roundtable, as I had

indicated, that we had with various student leaders and some people who had

graduated and were in the repayment process.

We looked at a number of different issues that we could have addressed,

including up-front transportation grants, up-front needs based grants, up-front

low income grants, reducing parental contributions, reducing interest rates,

expanding the debt reduction grants, introducing skill shortage grants or

introducing tax rebates and, Mr. Speaker, the students had those suggestions.

They came very well informed, and they came up with two suggestions. They were

the up-front needs based grants and the reduction in interest rates, and that is

exactly what we delivered by this government, in this Budget, and exactly what

we are debating here today, the interest rates.

Mr. Speaker, just before I close this debate, I just want to acknowledge that

the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador are certainly seen as leaders right

now in being progressive in addressing the issues of student debt. It was just

last week that the Premier had the opportunity to address the Canadian

Federation of Students in Ottawa at their annual general meeting. He received

thunderous applause, according to a Maclean's magazine article, and

certainly received a standing ovation from the students before he started the

speech, applause throughout the speech, and certainly another standing ovation

after. That just goes to show that the initiatives that we are taking in

Newfoundland and Labrador, in this government, to address student issues are

something that are recognized by all students throughout Canada.

I would like to certainly thank my hon. colleagues for their contribution to

the debate here today. With this, Mr. Speaker, I will close debate.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: It is the pleasure of the House that Bill 13 be now read a

second time?

All those in favour, aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, nay'.

Carried.

CLERK: A bill,

An Act To Amend The Student Financial Assistance Act.

(Bill 13)

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

When shall this bill be referred to a Committee of the Whole House?

MR. RIDEOUT: Presently.

MR. SPEAKER: Presently.

On motion, a bill, "An Act To Amend The Student Financial Assistance

Act," read a second time, ordered referred to a Committee of the Whole

House presently, by leave. (Bill 13)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I would like to