PDF Version

April

16, 2014

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLVII No. 20

The House met at 2:00 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Wiseman):

Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Statements by Members

MR. SPEAKER:

Today we will have members' statements from the

Member for the District of Carbonear Harbour Grace; the Member for the

District of Bellevue; the Member for the District of Humber Valley; the Member

for the District of St. John's North; the Member for the District of Conception

Bay East Bell Island, and the Member for the District of Terra Nova.

The hon. the Member for the

District of Carbonear Harbour Grace.

MR. SLADE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in this

hon. House today to congratulate two young people from my District of Carbonear

Harbour Grace who recently won prestigious awards at the forty-fourth Annual

Carbonear Kiwanis Regional Music Festival.

Sixteen-year-old Leslie

Norman from Carbonear has joined a select group of performers by winning the

Senior Rose Bowl at this year's festival.

Leslie is a member of the Carbonear Collegiate school choir, plays piano

and the soprano saxophone, and trains with her singing coach, Calvin Powell.

Leslie is also very active in public speaking and plans to pursue a

career in French.

Sixteen-year-old Matthew

Cooper of Carbonear was the recipient of the Junior Rose Bowl at the same event.

Also coached by Calvin Powell.

Matthew began his specialized vocal training just three years ago.

He performed two songs in the festival to

capture this coveted award. Singing

is his passion, and he was honoured just to be nominated for the award.

Both Leslie and Matthew

enjoy strong support from both family and fellow students.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon.

members to join me in congratulating Leslie and Matthew on winning the Senior

and Junior Rose Bowls at the Carbonear Kiwanis Music Festival.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District of Bellevue.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. PEACH:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this hon. House to

recognize two students from Crescent Collegiate of Blaketown in the District of

Bellevue on wining first and second place in the Community Five Lions speak off

Speaking on the topic,

fears, Hailie Parsons of Markland won first place, while the second place winner

was Steven Day Reid of Dildo and he spoke on the topic, self confidence and

self-esteem.

These two students gave

outstanding speeches, very positive, very confident and with a great poise they

captured the attention of everyone in the audience.

In fact, they made it very difficult for the judges to decide a winner.

Both students advanced to the next round of speak offs.

Community Five Lions Club has been sponsoring and supporting the

speak-off for twenty-plus years, Mr. Speaker.

I ask all the members to

join me in congratulating Hailie and Steven on winning the Lions speak-off at

the Crescent Collegiate in Blaketown.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Humber Valley.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this hon. House

today to recognize Ruby's Rat Pack of Pasadena, a non-profit organization made

up of seven women who started the group in 2009 when their friend Ruby Watts was

diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of forty-four.

The group held several fundraisers to help offset the cost of Ruby

travelling from Pasadena to St. John's for her cancer treatments.

The group immediately

recognized the value to Ruby's family and decided that they would continue to

support the breast cancer fundraising campaign by participating in the annual

Relay for Life event. The funds they

raised were put to good use locally in Pasadena.

Through donations from

residents, and community businesses, Ruby's Rat Pack raise funds by holding

various fundraisers throughout the year to help families in Pasadena who may be

required to travel for medical treatment; 100 per cent of the proceeds go

towards helping families in Pasadena.

Since November 2009 the group has helped thirty-seven families, raising

and giving away almost $20,000 to a community of just 3,350 residents.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all

members of this House to join with me in recognizing Gay Walsh, Marie Walsh,

Juanita Walsh, Ruby Watts, Bonnie White, Michelle Kennedy, and Nancy Ann

Rockwell of Ruby's Rat Pack of Pasadena.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR. KIRBY:

I rise today to congratulate Leary's Brook Junior

High student Teniqua Hayter on winning the twenty-third annual Bridge Building

Competition organized by the Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of

Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Model Bridge Building

Competition is held each year as part of National Engineering and Geoscience

Month. Students across Newfoundland

and Labrador participate by designing and constructing the strongest model

bridge they can using only popsicle sticks and white glue.

Each entry is judged by a

panel of practicing civil engineers who grade each bridge's quality.

Then, each bridge is tested to destruction as they are subjected to

increasing pressure until they break.

Teniqua's bridge withstood

800 kilograms of force without failing.

It could have withstood more pressure still, but 800 kilograms was the

full capacity of the hydraulic actuator used for the competition.

Incredibly, her bridge has been sent to Memorial University of

Newfoundland in order to find out exactly how much weight it can hold up to.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon.

members to join me in thanking the Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of

Newfoundland and Labrador for their sponsorship of the Model Bridge Competition,

and congratulating Teniqua Hayter of Leary's Brook for her award-winning

engineering.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Conception Bay East

Bell Island.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise to acknowledge a

resident of my district who this past weekend was inducted into the Newfoundland

and Labrador Sports Hall of Fame.

Mr. Colin Abbott of Portugal Cove-St. Phillips has been acknowledged as

Newfoundland and Labrador's most accomplished fast pitch softball player.

Colin is recognized in the

international softball community as one of the most feared hitters in the game.

His career spans some twenty-eight years from local to international

competition, and this has led him to represent his country fifteen times in

international play.

Colin's career started as a

young man and included representing our Province at the 1989 Canada Summer Games

in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. This was

the start of Colin's travels as a noted superstar.

Colin has achieved sixteen international championships, thirteen national

championships, two junior championships.

As an individual, he has won three international MVP awards, a Top Batter

award, and an unprecedented fifteen All World selection nods.

Colin is also considered one of the Province's most respected hockey

referees.

I ask all members to join me

in congratulating Colin on his induction to the Newfoundland and Labrador Sports

Hall of Fame.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District of Terra

Nova.

MR. S. COLLINS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to recognize a

tremendous gentleman from my district, Mr. Ross Saunders of Gambo.

Born in 1931, he spent the

greater part of his working life as a telegraph operator, and then as technology

progressed Mr. Saunders had to retrain and adapt his skill set, later becoming a

telecoms technician. After moving

around the Province with his work, he and his wife, Grace, whom he had met while

in Corner Brook, moved back to his hometown of Dark Cove, or Gambo as it is

known today.

Mr. Saunders, upon his

arrival back home, became a very active volunteer in his community.

He was particularly involved with the Society of United Fishermen.

He has held a variety of roles in this organization, including Treasurer,

Secretary, and most recently, Chaplain.

Mr. Speaker, I had the

pleasure of attending the one hundred and fifteenth Anniversary of the St. John

Lodge #40 in Gambo a couple of weeks ago.

It was at this event that Mr. Saunders was honoured with his sixty-fifth

year of service to the group a remarkable feat!

I ask all members of this

hon. House to join me in thanking Mr. Saunders for his lifetime service to his

community and to the charitable work of the SUF.

You are to be commended.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CRUMMELL:

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in this hon.

House to provide an update on our new Move Over legislation under the

Highway Traffic Act , which came into

effect on March 10. The law protects

emergency, enforcement, and other types of roadside assistance personnel as they

carry out their duties at roadside.

Mr. Speaker, the Move Over

law requires motorists to slow down and move over to an adjacent lane or

otherwise safely give a wide berth when approaching designated vehicles and

workers performing their duties by the side of the road.

The response we have had to

this legislation has been overwhelmingly positive.

reached out to thousands of drivers.

Key stakeholders including police forces and municipal enforcement agencies,

utility companies such as Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro and Newfoundland

Power, roadside assistance companies, the media and the general public have

helped us spread our message that drivers need to slow down and move over.

Our YouTube video, which provides animated examples of how to respond to

the new law, is one of the most viewed videos on the provincial government's

YouTube channel.

Mr. Speaker, the practice of

slowing down and moving over reflects safe, responsible driving.

Motorists who choose to ignore the new law can be fined up to $900 and

receive four demerit points on their driving record.

It is everyone's responsibility to ensure they operate their vehicles in

a responsible manner to protect those working at the side of the road.

Mr. Speaker, the new Move

Over law supports existing highway safety legislation that requires drivers to

pull over and yield to emergency enforcement vehicles which are approaching with

sirens activated and lights flashing.

It is essential that drivers obey the law in order to ensure that

ambulances, fire trucks, and police vehicles are able to reach their

destinations as quickly as possible in order to save lives and provide essential

public safety services.

We encourage all drivers to

visit our Web site at servicenl.gov.nl.ca to be sure they understand the law.

By working together we can improve safety for workers and all who travel

on our Province's roadways.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl South.

MR. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for an

advance copy of his statement. Mr.

Speaker, I think this is a wonderful piece of legislation which was passed.

We all voted for it unanimously in the House of Assembly back during the

last sitting of the House of Assembly.

It is great to be able to

protect our emergency service workers, whether it be RNC, RCMP, ambulance

operators, fire department, or crews with Newfoundland Power and so on who are

working on the side of the roads and to have a piece of legislation in place to

protect them. We certainly support

it.

In in terms of this

particular Ministerial Statement, I am not sure what the big announcement is in

this particular one. I see the

minister talked about they have a government YouTube site that a few people went

on. I guess that is great to promote

it any way you can. It seems to me

If that is what it is about

then I will pat myself on the back, I will pat my colleague on the back, I will

pat the Member for St. John's East on the back, and the Member for Bay of

Islands on the back, because we all passed this unanimously.

I would also say to the minister, I hope we get to the point in time in

the House of Assembly where we can all likewise get up and pat ourselves on the

back because we are actually enforcing the blue zone legislation, which was

passed in this House of Assembly.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. LANE:

I know it may take a while because before we can

do that, of course, we need to get our hospitals up to

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The member's time has

expired.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's East.

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would also like to thank

the minister for the advance copy of his statement.

I am not afraid to pat government on the back for listening to New

Democrats this time when they said this law was needed.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. MURPHY:

We worked long and hard for this one, so I will

pat government on the back for actually listening to us this particular time.

Mr. Speaker, there needs to

be a little bit more evaluation done on this because there is a pretty important

point here and I will bring it to the attention of government now.

I was listening to an RCMP officer the

other day who was doing one of this on-the-road log reports, if you will,

talking about the traffic. She was

talking about, at that particular time, the lack of compliance with the law at

the same time.

I have to ask the government

about their evaluation techniques they are talking about in this.

Yes, it is a great piece of legislation.

I was only too proud to have supported that legislation that day and to

have fronted that to the government in the first place.

Again, I would be very interested to see

government's evaluation techniques and how they are going to evaluate the

performance of this act.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you very much.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to rise

in this hon. House today to highlight the success of Newfoundland and Labrador's

agriculture and agri-foods industry.

This industry is one of the

fastest growing in our Province and it is continuously developing and

diversifying. The value of

production from agriculture and agri-foods industry, including the secondary

processing of dairy products such as ice cream and milk, is approximately $500

million per year.

The agriculture industry

generates employment for 6,500 people in rural communities of Newfoundland and

Labrador. It puts food on our tables

and fresh produce on our shelves.

Historically, agriculture is as much a part of Newfoundland and Labrador as the

forest and fishing industries, dating back to the time when families grew the

bulk of their own food.

Today, our Province is home

to the largest poultry broiler operation in Canada and one of the largest dairy

operations in Canada. We are

self-sufficient in dairy and chicken, and we export significant amounts of eggs

and fur. We recognize the tremendous

opportunities as we continue to develop the potential of our fresh fruit,

vegetable, and processing sectors.

Mr. Speaker, the provincial

government, through Budget 2014, is committed to supporting responsible resource

management and development with strategic investments in the Province's

agriculture and agri-foods industry.

We have a suite of programs available to assist the industry from start-up to

production, and we have helped hundreds of farmers and producers.

The provincial government

has committed more than $12 million to further grow the industry, for programs

such as Growing Forward 2 and the Agricultural and Agrifoods Development Fund,

which will foster innovation, competitiveness and adaptability, as well as help

farmers develop new markets and industry capacity.

Under the Provincial

Agrifoods Assistance Program we are improving industry competitiveness.

Our Land Consolidation Program provides an opportunity for non-farm

landowners and retiring farmers to sell granted land to the provincial

government making that land available for new farm initiatives.

Our Agriculture Research

Initiative funds many projects that enhance sustainability in the industry.

In 2013, for example, one forward thinking initiative took a creative

approach to growing winter wheat on the West Coast of the Province.

The goal is to offset the cost of production for the dairy and poultry

industries. Also, through our

Agricultural Limestone Program, farmers can purchase limestone at a reasonable

cost.

By continuing to support our

farmers and producers, our government is encouraging the further development of

the agriculture and agrifoods industry in this Province.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

I want to thank the minister for the advance copy

of his statement today. Of course,

much of the activity that the minister talks about happens right in the Humber

Valley area, much of it in District of Humber Valley.

The $500 million per year that the minister mentioned my District of

Humber Valley is certainly home to many dairy farmers, and the winter wheat

project that the minister talked about to support the dairy farmers occurs right

there. It is a great project.

There has been a lot of success to that, and I would certainly encourage

you to further invest in that; because what it does is it supports the industry

as we then feed the dairy cattle.

Mr. Speaker, we have 25,000

acres of producing farm land in our Province.

Through our Estimates that we had this morning in Natural Resources, one

of the questions that came up: In order to provide food security in our Province

when it comes to fruits and vegetable, how much land would be required?

Well, the answer came back to be 100,000 acres that we would need to be

producing. That is an important

number of remember.

We all know that within

recent days when we look at Marine Atlantic and the challenges of the ferry

system not being able to deliver fresh fruits and vegetables on a regular basis,

the challenge that it creates. So it

is important for us to be able to have the food security in our Province, grow

it right here in Newfoundland and Labrador.

We need the 100,000 acres,

as I mentioned. Right now, we

currently have available to us, as farm land, about 77,000, but unfortunately

this is number that is falling. So

in order for this industry to continue to grow no pun intended we will need

to make sure that we have farm land available to us to get to the 100,000 acres

that was mentioned.

There is significant

opportunity in our Province, I say, Mr. Speaker.

I would encourage the continuing of this investment.

I certainly want to reach out and say thank you to all the farmers and

their families for the great job that they do feeding Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for the

advanced copy of his statement. I

have to say I was very encouraged this morning in Estimates, hearing a lot of

the good news regarding the agricultural and agrifoods industries.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS MICHAEL:

The people in the Province are working hard at

this and I am glad to see that government is supporting the work of our farmers.

It is a truly sustainable industry which is very important for rural

areas of the Province, whether it is increased grain production on the Avalon

Peninsula, the work towards food security or the increase in the interest of

certified organic farming we do not have anybody certified yet, but moves are

going in that direction there is good news for the industry.

I hope the department will

work hard to encourage young people into agriculture surely a tough career,

but one which will be very rewarding for them.

We have great officials in the department I was really impressed with

them today who are clearly devoted to the promotion of this industry and I

say, keep up the good work.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Tourism, Culture and

Recreation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH:

Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to a native

Newfoundlander and Labradorian who made our Province incredibly proud throughout

her performance at the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Kaetlyn Osmond, originally from Marystown, showed our Province, the

country, and indeed the world that she is one of the best in the sport of figure

skating.

Ms Osmond's road to the

Olympics began when she was two years old and put on her first pair of figure

skates. She moved to Alberta when

she was ten and joined the Ice Palace Skating Club, which she currently

represents. In the 2012-2013 season,

Ms Osmond won her first international title at the 2012 Nebelhorn Trophy

competition. She then made her

senior Grand Prix debut at the 2012 Skate Canada event, where she captured the

gold medal. She went on to win her

first senior national title at the 2013 Senior Women's Canadian Figure Skating

Championships and also place eighth at the World Championships.

Mr. Speaker, undoubtedly

televisions and SMART Boards all throughout Newfoundland and Labrador were

turned on for Kaetlyn's outstanding performances at this year's Olympics.

I am certain cheers could be heard all across our Province when she won a

silver medal in the team figure skating competition, and we were also

exceptionally proud of her performance in the women's long program.

Her perseverance and passion are truly inspirational, and she

demonstrated these qualities well during her time at the Olympics.

There are many

characteristics associated with being an elite athlete, and Kaetlyn Osmond

personifies each and every one of them.

Aside from her athletic ability, she has exhibited professionalism and

strength of character that are second to none.

Her journey is a wonderful example of how dedication, commitment and a

passion for a sport can help you attain the ultimate in sport achievement,

namely the Olympics. Our government

is exceptionally proud of her outstanding accomplishments.

Mr. Speaker, I can think of

no better role model than Kaetlyn Osmond to encourage young people to always put

their best efforts forward and follow their dreams.

She is a shining example of how hard work and commitment help us succeed,

no matter what path we choose to follow.

Tomorrow, Mr. Speaker, we

are delighted to have the opportunity to meet Kaetlyn when she returns home to

the Province, and we will host an event in her honour in the East Block lobby at

1:30 p.m. I certainly invite all

people who work in government and all members opposite to please join us.

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

I want to thank the minister for the advance copy

of his statement. Certainly, all of

us in this House of Assembly and everyone in Newfoundland and Labrador would

want to congratulate Kaetlyn Osmond on her achievements in the world figure

skating.

I cannot imagine being

two-years old, after going and putting on your first pair of skates I would

assume that from there on in it was a dream for her to participate at the world

stage in the Olympics. We all

watched with anticipation and certainly with great pride as Kaetlyn performed in

the Winter Olympics at Sochi.

I want to congratulate her

friends and her family in Marystown, who truly showed what it is to be

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians as we supported and rallied to support Kaetlyn

in her endeavour.

She represented not only

Newfoundland and Labrador, our Province, but certainly the country.

She did it with poise, she did it grace.

She was a major part of the silver medal win in the team competition.

More than that, she is a great ambassador for our Province and certainly

for the country of Canada.

She is a perfect example,

when you look at her skating, the perfect example for the next generation, very

inspiring, and she would encourage others to follow in her footsteps in the

world of figure skating. It tells

when you have family support, you have great coaches, great sponsors, that is

certainly a great recipe for success and Kaetlyn did that with grace.

Mr. Speaker, we do look

forward to meeting Kaetlyn tomorrow, some at the airport, some right here in

Confederation Building, but the journey will continue as she moves on to the

Burin Peninsula and in Marystown this weekend.

Well, I can assure you there will be probably thousands of people out to

meet her in Marystown on this weekend.

We continue to wish her all

the success, and as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians we will certainly be

watching her career with great interest in the future.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for the

advance copy of his statement. I am

delighted to have a second opportunity to respond to a Ministerial Statement

with regard to Kaetlyn Osmond.

I was really lucky.

In 2012, I was at the national championships for Canada when Kaetlyn

skated for the first time in the senior competition and received her bronze

medal, and then again in 2013 and 2014 when she won the national championships.

Each time she has skated in our national championships she has been a

medal holder. Then to go on the

Olympic team, it was just fantastic for her.

I knew the minute I saw her

on the ice in 2012, I said to her parents I was really happy to meet them at

that time. We were sitting very

close together in the stadium. I

said she has something special, and she has proven to the world that she has

something special. She really is

special. That smile says it all.

For anybody who has not met

her, I really encourage you tomorrow to meet her.

She has an openness and a self-composure, and a real sense of herself in

a very humble way. I just find her a

very fantastic person. I am

delighted that she is getting the recognition.

I would also like to

recognize her parents because they were the ones who saw it.

They were the ones who supported her, who were willing to move, to go to

Alberta to be able to support her in her career.

Congratulations to her, her parents, and all of her family and friends in

Marystown.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yesterday it was revealed

that costs at Muskrat Falls are going up and that first power may be delayed.

In response to this news, the Government of Nova Scotia said that this

delay would have zero impact on them as Nalcor is still required to deliver the

energy by some other means or reimburse Nova Scotia for the cost.

I ask the minister: Where

will you find the extra power? It

will not be available here on the Island?

Where will you find the extra power for Nova Scotia or will you just

simply pay a fee?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the independent engineer's

report was released to the public.

It is a very technical and detailed report that outlines many positive aspects

about Muskrat Falls and the work that Nalcor is doing.

It is certainly a strong endorsement for their overall ability to carry

out this project and be successful with the project.

A couple of things

highlighted around cost pressures, Mr. Speaker, and

schedule pressures, built in

around that obviously there is a response from Nova Scotia and concern about

their power supply. Obviously we are

in a contractual agreement with Nova Scotia, an agreement that we feel we can

live up to our obligations. In the

event of any significant project delays, which are not foreseen at this point,

then obviously under the agreement we would provide the power to Nova Scotia.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The question was more about

we understand the dynamics around the agreement.

The question is you have to have available power.

I ask the minister: What are

the options for that available power to meet the needs in Nova Scotia, or will

you just pay the fee?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, obviously Nalcor has worked out

those issues.

I want to raise a point here

that the member opposite is raising, because for some time in this House we were

criticized very much so on the fact that we are going to have surplus power and

nobody wanted to buy it right? If

there is enough power out there, nobody is going to want our surplus power.

Now when we look at the fact that if we do get in a situation where we

need power, obviously, as attested to by the critics, there is power out there.

So, we would either go to the spot market to provide that power or enter

into another contract, but obviously there would be a commitment from Nalcor to

provide Emera with the power, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We have seen in recent

events if Muskrat Falls is delayed, there is no power available, as I said, on

the Island. So it is obvious that

people in our Province will have to pay Nova Scotia or find that power.

I ask the minister: If

Muskrat Falls is delayed by one year, how much money will the taxpayers of

Newfoundland and Labrador have to pay the Province of Nova Scotia?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, that would be contractual details.

I am sure I could look into some of those details, but what is important

here is that we are on schedule. We

are on a tight schedule. There is

aggressive management for this project, Mr. Speaker.

There is a full commitment by Nalcor, and certainly by the government,

that we are going to aggressively focus on costs and scheduling to keep the

project where we say it is going to be.

Built in around that and the

contractual agreements, because it is a good deal.

It is a good deal we have with Emera and Nova Scotia, because it provides

reliability, Mr. Speaker, another advantage to this project.

Within that agreement we will live up to those obligations and we believe

we will meet our targets, but, Mr. Speaker, because of the deal with Emera,

should there be any issue on the Island around power, we also have the ability

to bring power in for the people of the Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Well, I remind the minister

that we have heard many, many times in this House that this is a project that

has been studied more than any other project in the history of the Province.

We have heard that over and over again, yet here today we find ourselves

in a situation, if this project is delayed one year we do not know what the

liability is for this Province.

I ask the minister: If this

project is delayed one year, what are the total additional costs?

Are they in the magnitude of $100 million, $200 million, $300 million, or

do we even know what the magnitude is?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, if I had a number I would certainly

provide it to them, but there are a number of factors obviously involved in

that, and I do not have a number that I can give to the hon. member.

I will say, because he referenced about the project I think what is

important here for the people of the Province to understand as well, as we look

at this project, it is a significant project; thousands of workers, and it is a

five- or six-year project.

When the independent

engineer did their work, Mr. Speaker, and the report released yesterday, it

clearly outlined that there are going to be issues, but what is important for

the people of the Province and government is that the right management is in

place. In the report yesterday, the

independent engineer said that Nalcor is qualified to design, contract,

manage, commission, operate and maintain Muskrat Falls.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I remind the minister this

was not about Nalcor. It was not

about delivering this project. What

it was about was delays in this project.

I remind the minister the independent engineer clearly said we have to be

concerned about delays.

Also in the engineer's

report, Nalcor blacked out most of the information around firm energy and firm

power available from Muskrat Falls.

Yesterday, the Premier said he did not know why Nalcor was keeping such basic

information secret.

I ask the minister: Will he

order Nalcor to release this information so the people of the Province can know

how much firm energy and firm power Muskrat Falls will produce?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, the number for power availability

out of Muskrat Falls is 824 megawatts.

That has not changed 4.9 terawatts.

I think the hon. member would know, certainly from his business

background, when you have something you want to sell you do not lay your cards

on the table as you go into negotiations.

You do not reveal the information.

We have 824 megawatts of

power, Mr. Speaker, and there are various scenarios about the different needs we

will have in our Province. We are

firmly committed that the people of the Province have first right to this power,

but any excess power we are going to sell and make a profit for the people of

the Province that we can spend all over this Province and improve the standard

of living in this Province. The

details around those scenarios are not out there because it is sensitive to

negotiations and we are not going to jeopardize that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

I ask the minister, if it was sensitive, what did

you just release? What we were

talking about is firm power, therefore there must be a difference if you just

released 824 megawatts and there is another number somewhere.

If it is sensitive, you would not have released that number, I say, Mr.

Speaker.

According to Estimates this

morning, government has budgeted close to $1 million, several hundred thousand

dollars, to complete the review of the energy system in our Province.

Keep in mind just a couple of years ago they shut down the PUB saying it

was a waste of money before we got the DG3 numbers to spend $2.5 million to let

them continue.

I ask the minister: Why are

you spending close to $1 million in taxpayer money, only to duplicate the

efforts of the PUB?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, there is no defined number; we are

going through an RFP process. We

have committed to the people of the Province that we are going to help restore

confidence in our utility system.

We have committed, as we did

in our 2007 Energy Plan, that we are going to move our electrical system into a

new era. We are going to come in

line with the North American system.

We are going to move from an isolated system to an interconnected system.

With that, Mr. Speaker, we are committed to take a look at structure,

roles and responsibilities, governance, legislation, jurisdiction, regulation,

all of those aspects that are important as we go forward.

Mr. Speaker, the PUB is an

important stakeholder of our utility system, along with Newfoundland and

Labrador Hydro and Newfoundland Power.

Surely the member opposite is not suggesting that we let the PUB define

their own role in our utility system in this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR. KIRBY:

Mr. Speaker, parents and teachers have shown zero

support for the so-called no-zero policy previously adopted by the Eastern

School District. In the meantime,

the Minister of Education has chosen to remain silent on the matter.

He has had little or nothing to say on the subject.

I ask the minister: Will he

see that his appointed board of trustees does not force this wrong-headed

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN:

Mr. Speaker, the policy that the member

references is a school board policy.

boards into one is a stable policy across.

That is something that the board is working on.

Mr. Speaker, the important

thing about this is that I as minister, we as educators, never give up on

children. Sometimes there is a need

for a second chance. We do not

condone cheating or procrastination or anything like that, but sometimes

children need a second chance just as adults do.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR. KIRBY:

Mr. Speaker, as usual, the minister bobs and he

weaves. He says very little and he

hides behind his appointed trustees.

Parents and teachers have

been loud and clear on the no-zero policy.

They think it is ridiculous.

It penalizes teachers by preventing them from doing their job to the best of

their ability. It penalizes students

by not teaching them the lessons they need for the real world.

I ask the minister: Will you

do the right thing for students and teachers and give this no-zero evaluation

policy the failing grade it deserves?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN:

Mr. Speaker, I find the comments of the member

as an educator himself, I am at a loss at his approach to questioning.

I am at a loss to his approach to children.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MR. JACKMAN:

I will never stand up and defend someone who is

cheating or their timelines that you set for students to have projects in, but

the premise of the no zero is that we do help children.

Mr. Speaker, if we did not

give second chances to people, there would be a lot of us who may not have been

successful. This is about never

giving up on children, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl South.

MR. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I give the minister's office

a zero these days.

Anyway, Mr. Speaker, as a

fix for the overcrowding of schools, such as Paradise Elementary and Beachy Cove

Elementary, the minister has budgeted for modular classrooms.

I ask the minister: Why

doesn't he provide the same financial flexibility to the board to explore more

suitable solutions like modulars for schools in Mount Pearl?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN:

Mr. Speaker, I can indicate to the member that we

have allocated funds to the school district that will now get on with the

planning process in the Mount Pearl system.

The work will be done, because, Mr. Speaker, November creeps upon us very

quickly. That is when we start to

get into our budgetary process, so work needs to be done previous to that.

Mr. Speaker, we have

allocated the funds to the school district to start that process.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl South.

MR. LANE:

Mr. Speaker, I would say to the minister that

they needed the funds prior to the decision being made, not after the fact.

Anyway, Mr. Speaker,

according to the Schools Act, the Cabinet can either appoint a board of trustees

or order that there be an election.

I ask the minister: In the

interest of openness and democracy, will you immediately call for an election of

the school board so that the people of the Province and not the people of your

Cabinet are making important decisions that are disrupting the lives of parents,

teachers and students.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN:

Mr. Speaker, many of these people let's start

first these are elected trustees.

Second, these are volunteers. They

put in countless hours and days and months to do what they consider to be right

by children.

I find it disrespectful of

this member to take advantage of Question Period and to downgrade what these

volunteers are trying to do for the children and the people of this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Mr. Speaker, yesterday pharmacists met with the Minister of Health to

discuss expanded scope of practice for our pharmacists.

Most of Canada already has existing or pending legislation for expanded

scope. This government will not even

negotiate an expanded role.

I ask the minister: Why are

you not letting our pharmacists perform to the full scope of their ability, like

virtually every other province?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Finance.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, our government

is committed to discussing with the pharmacy association and to working with

them to identify opportunities so that they can work to their full scope of

practice.

Mr. Speaker, we did receive

a discussion document from PANL, it outlines six recommendations.

Our department, the Department of Health, has indicated that we are ready

to move on all six recommendations, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Mr. Speaker, there must be a failure or a lack of communication here

because pharmacists in this Province are insulted with the way this government

is treating them, and this is up until today.

Services such as medication

management, flu shot injections, and prescribing for minor ailments are being

done in most other provinces.

Again, I ask the minister:

When will this government get serious about actually providing pharmacists with

a scope of practice that is at least equal to their peers in the rest of Canada?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Finance.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We are very serious, and

that is why the Minister of Health does meet with the pharmacy association.

As I said, we were pleased to receive their discussion document where

they outlined six recommendations.

That includes medical adherence, smoking cessation, expanded medical reviews,

self-monitoring of blood glucose, type 2 diabetes, immunizations, and minor

ailments. We indicated to PANL that

we are ready to move on six of those.

We will be putting a working

group together to quickly act on five of them.

The sixth one, the minor ailments, requires a larger discussion, Mr.

Speaker. It will require discussion

with health professionals, but we did indicate we are ready to move on that one

as well.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for The Straits White Bay

North.

MR. MITCHELMORE:

Mr. Speaker, when asked about the status of the Youth Advisory

Committee, the minister deflected, despite an inactive Web site and no annual

reports since 2011. This youth led

advisory committee provided a forum for key issues affecting young people of

Newfoundland and Labrador and had direct dialogue with government.

I ask the minister: Why is

your government moving away from youth engagement by abolishing a youth led

committee that was appointed to give you advice on youth programs, services, and

policies?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Municipal and

Intergovernmental Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Mr. Speaker, this government is more committed to

youth engagement than any government in our history.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

In fact, it is ironic that the member opposite

asked a question about youth engagement when his caucus well the caucus he

sits in at the moment anyway is against a youth engagement initiative that we

are bringing into this House of Assembly through Bill 6.

In terms of the Youth

Advisory Committee, it has not been active for a period of time.

Through the Office of Public Engagement we have conducted a series of

youth forums around the Province over the past year.

We are in the process of re-launching a new initiative that is going to

replace the former Youth Advisory Committee.

It is part of our youth engagement strategy.

There are more initiatives going on related to young people in this

government than ever before.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for The Straits White Bay

North.

MR. MITCHELMORE:

Mr. Speaker, the only thing that is ironic is this government does not

practice what it preaches.

Mr. Speaker, the provincial

government should listen to the people of the Province, especially our youth.

I ask the minister: When

will your government get serious about youth engagement and establish the

provincial Youth Advisory Committee to allow a direct forum with youth in the

Province to have their voice heard?

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of

Municipal and Intergovernmental Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We are very proud of the

initiatives we have undertaken as a government to advance youth engagement and

youth involvement, and I would ask the members opposite to reconsider their

position. A member stands and asks

questions about youth engagement, yet he has berated this government for

bringing in an initiative that will allow young people to have a more meaningful

voice in local government. It is an

initiative we very much believe in and it is going to do great things to advance

youth engagement in communities throughout Newfoundland and Labrador.

It is indeed ironic, Mr.

Speaker. I would ask the member

opposite to reflect on his position and consider his actions in this House.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Member for

Torngat Mountains.

MR. EDMUNDS:

Mr. Speaker, as many as thirty residents living

on low incomes are now essentially homeless with the closure of Newman's

Boarding House in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

Government and community groups have stepped in to provide some temporary

housing.

I ask the Minister

Responsible for Poverty Reduction and Housing: What is the long-term solution to

help these residents find safe and affordable housing?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and

Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN:

Mr. Speaker, since 2009 we spent about $15.9

million in the Labrador area in regard to housing initiatives.

My main focus since Monday

evening has been on the residents who were displaced out of Newman's.

I had my staff on the ground on Tuesday morning and we met with community

partners. We addressed the issue in

regard to everybody having a place to stay; meals were provided.

As well, we have engaged Newfoundland and Labrador Housing and the

Friendship Centre, too, Mr. Speaker, for more long-term solutions.

I would like to announce as

well in this House today that I have triggered an action team which is going to

be made up of senior officials from Advanced Education and Skills, Newfoundland

and Labrador Housing

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Member for

Torngat Mountains.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. EDMUNDS:

Mr. Speaker, we are still waiting for a long-term

solution, but I do have an offer.

The Paddon Home, a former senior's facility in Goose Bay, has been vacant for

four years now. Almost $1 million

was invested in 2011 to repair the roof and the sprinkler system.

I ask the minister: If this

work was completed, why are you failing to make this facility available,

especially when we have a housing crisis in Lake Melville?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and

Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN:

Mr. Speaker, just to finish where I left off

before in the previous question in regard to the action team.

Senior officials from Advanced Education and Skills, senior officials

from Newfoundland and Housing, senior officials from Health and Community

Services, the Nunatsiavut Government are all involved in regard to coming to a

solution, a long-term solution for Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

One of the areas we will

look at, absolutely, is the Paddon Home.

We have been looking at other solutions as well as we partner with

community and also the action groups, and especially the Salvation Army in that

area, Mr. Speaker.

My focus in on the people

who were displaced. I have to take

care of that in the interim. Then I

have to get to the long-term solution after that.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Cartwright L'Anse au

Clair.

MS DEMPSTER:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We are hearing that 147 jobs

were cut from the College of the North Atlantic in Qatar yesterday.

I ask the minister: Can you

confirm this? If so, how many of

these positions were filled by Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, and how many

college employees right here in this Province will be bumped as a result?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and

Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN:

Mr. Speaker, it is well-known that the Qatar

government made a cut in regard to funding right across all post-secondary

sectors in that country about a couple of weeks ago.

As a matter of fact, the University of Calgary closed down, I think,

pretty well their entire operations there.

There is a minimal impact to

the college and the contract in regard to the College of the North Atlantic in

Qatar. It will affect some people.

We will absorb most of them in vacancies.

There are about twenty Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who will be

affected once their contracts are finished.

We are evaluating that as well to see what kind of an impact it will have

on Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Cartwright L'Anse au

Clair.

MS DEMPSTER:

Mr. Speaker, the original comprehensive agreement

expired in August, 2012. A

three-year agreement was announced in early 2013.

We submitted an Access to Information request for a copy of the new

agreement one year ago but we were denied.

I ask the minister: Now that

you claim to be open and transparent, will you provide us with a copy of the

renewed, comprehensive agreement between the State of Qatar and the College?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Advanced Education and

Skills.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN:

Mr. Speaker, that particular contract, we did

extend the contract for three years.

The main contract will be signed very soon. As

soon as I get that contract signed, I certainly will endeavour to share it with

the hon. member.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yesterday, with the release

of the independent engineer's report, we learned finally that the Muskrat Falls

Project is not the least-cost option that the provincial government trotted out

to the public in order to sell their deal.

I ask the Premier: When is

this government going to admit that Muskrat Falls is on the road to becoming a

nuisance beaver?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, when we started this out we

recognized there was a need in this Province for power, a major problem in our

future. Our government had a vision

that we needed to solve that problem.

Added to that we had a commitment to the people of the Province that we

are going to need power, we are going to solve a problem, and we are going to

find the least-cost way to do that.

Not only did we do that work

and Nalcor did the work, the Public Utilities Board had an opportunity.

There is a long list of independent reports and reviews that looked at

all kinds of options in this Province, what the cost would be, and the

conclusion is that the least-cost option is Muskrat Falls.

Mr. Speaker, even the Opposition have stood in this House and agreed that

there is a need to build Muskrat Falls.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Here is a bit of reality for

the minister; interest during construction was originally estimated to be $700

million. The independent engineer's

report reveals $1 billion. A review

of major hydroelectric dam projects around the world and in Canada show that

costs balloon out of control, which is now happening.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the

minister: Is this dam project still the least-cost option?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Absolutely, Mr. Speaker.

Let me give the Leader of the Third Party a little dose of reality as

well. It is the least-cost option;

the difference was $2.4 billion, not $300,000.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

The other thing, Mr. Speaker, I will say to the

member opposite, unlike the member opposite we believe in the people in the

Newfoundland and Labrador who are going to build that project.

We are not building it in Manitoba; we are not building it anywhere else

in the world. We are building it

right here in Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Leader of the

Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I ask the minister: How much

will the people of this Province, who he loves so much, have to pay Emera when

power is not running to Nova Scotia by 2017?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of

Natural Resources.

MR. DALLEY:

There is no question; I love my Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

There is no question, Mr. Speaker, as minister,

and the people in this government, we will do what is right for the people in

the Province. We are going to

develop resources in this Province so we maximize the benefits, so we can have

the best possible deal. The best

possible deal and development of our resources out of Muskrat Falls, so we can

sell the power and we can make money for the people of the Province.

We are committed to

developing the resources for the maximum benefit of the people of the Province.

I just wish, Mr. Speaker, that somebody who wants to stand in this

Province and be a leader in this Province would at least get behind us and

realize that we are developing resources to benefit the people of the Province.

Why won't you go along with it?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I ask the minister: When are

they going to admit to the people of this Province how much the dam is really is

going to cost them, out of their pockets?

When are they going to admit it?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite wants a number.

I can commit to the people of the Province that they are going to get

their numbers; they have a right to know.

Mr. Speaker, I explain to the member opposite and I have always believed

this, even when I was involved in education, with rights, there are

responsibilities. Do people

have a right to know that number?

Absolutely, and they will; but, Mr. Speaker, there is a responsibility attached

to that right. The responsibility

rests with this government, rests with me as minister, to make sure that we

protect that project, we minimize the cost in every way we can.

We are not going to put numbers out there that are going to negatively

impact our negotiating and bargaining position on contracts.

Why is it the members

opposite want numbers out there so they can drive the cost of the project?

We are committed to the project and we are committed to the people of the

Province, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Member for St.

John's Centre.

MS ROGERS:

Mr. Speaker, the minister is closing three group

homes, cutting experienced public servants and uprooting confused, upset, and

afraid children. Since after first

announcing the Level 4 residential care initiative no one no one has told

the staff or the children when they will move, where they will live, and who

will take care of them.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the

minister: Where is his transitional plan for these children?

Why has he abdicated his responsibility for the care of these children?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Child, Youth and Family

Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DAVIS:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

When the new department was

formed in 2009, we brought in services from regional health authorities.

As we were developing the department, we were developing new plans, we

were developing new legislation and a new policy, the Auditor General made a

recommendation. The recommendation,

specific to residential services for children and youth, was that we should go

through a competitive process. That

is the right thing to do, and I agree with the Auditor General.

As a government and being

responsible for the provision of services in my department, for provision of

services to children and youth and to ensure we are getting the best value we

can and the best product we can, we went through a competitive process.

We have done that, Mr. Speaker, and as a result of that we have awarded

contracts throughout Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's Centre.

MS ROGERS:

Mr. Speaker, the children still do not know where

and when they will be going. In just

six weeks the new houses must be bought, renovated to code, rezoned and

furnished, neighbours must be consulted, staff hired and trained, programs set

up and vulnerable children prepared to move, and all of this just even before

the school year ends.

Mr. Speaker, government had

years to prepare. Why is the

minister inflicting these drastic changes so suddenly and haphazardly on the

children in this manner?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Child, Youth and Family

Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is most unfortunate that

the member opposite tries to insinuate that I, as minister, and the people in

the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services have nothing less than the

best interests of the children and youth in mind.

That is what we have, Mr. Speaker.

I can tell you I, as the

minister, the people who work in our department, the officials in our

department, and the front-line social workers throughout Newfoundland and

Labrador have top of mind at all times is the best interest of children.

That is what we are seeking here, Mr. Speaker.

We did a competitive process

and, in doing so, we wanted to ensure that each individual child, that

opportunities, services and programs were best for those children.

That is what we have done, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The time for Question Period

has expired.

Presenting Reports by

Standing and Select Committees

Tabling of Documents

Tabling of Documents

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Finance.

MS JOHNSON:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to

section 26.(5)(

a) of the Financial Administration Act, I am tabling three

Orders-in-Council relating to funding pre-commitment for the 2015-2016 fiscal

year.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER:

Notices of Motion.

Answers to Questions for

which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's East.

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

To the hon. House of

Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in Parliament assembled,

the petition of the undersigned residents of Newfoundland and Labrador humbly

sheweth:

WHEREAS Tordon 101 contains

the chemicals 2,4-D and Picloram; and

WHEREAS the chemical

Picloram is a known cancer-causing carcinogen; and

WHEREAS the provincial

government has banned the cosmetic use of the pesticide 2,4-D; and

WHEREAS safer alternatives

are available to the provincial government for bush clearance such as manual

labour, alternative competitive seeding methods, and/or the mechanical removal

of brush; and

WHEREAS the provincial

government is responsible for ensuring the safety and well-being of its

citizens;

WHEREUPON the undersigned,

your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House of Assembly to urge

government to cease the use of chemicals covered under its own cosmetic

pesticide ban and begin using safer methods of brush clearance that will not

place the citizens in harm's way.

As in duty bound, your

petitioners will ever pray.

Mr. Speaker, this petition

is from the people particularly in Central Newfoundland.

We can talk about the Central area of the Province.

It could be undergoing some brush clearing.

Of course, last year it did.

We know in the Budget this year, a very good initiative on the part of

government, they were showing a $2 million investment in brush clearing, but we

still do not have the answer from government as regards to what they are going

to be doing after they clear the brush.

Are they going to move in

with equipment after, specialized equipment and end up spraying some very toxic

chemicals around these particular areas where they did clear the brush; or is

government's policy going to be one of using mechanical methods from now on,

which we know are going to be a lot safer?

Number two, they can come in and use a competitive growing method, for

example, a plant that might be a little bit more competitive against such types

as the alder.

We know there are other ways

for government to be combatting the problem of roadside brush.

We know it is a safety issue as well when it comes to the clearing of

roadside brush. We know their initiative,

for example, is directed solely, I think, toward moose management and prevention

of moose accidents. We know it is a

good initiative to be clearing the stuff from the side of the roads, clearing

away brush, but we need them to take a second look at the possibility of

poisoning various water supplies and poisoning the environment by using toxic

chemicals.

On the part of these people,

it is a pleasure to present this petition on their behalf.

I want to thank them, as well, for their input into this matter.

It is a very important matter.

Hopefully government will address it in the future by reducing, if not

eliminating, the use of roadside chemicals in brush clearing.

Thank you very much.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl South.

MR. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

To the hon. House of

Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in Parliament assembled,

the petition of the undersigned residents humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS there are extreme

overcrowding issues at St. Peter's Elementary and Mount Pearl Senior High, a

direct result of the poor planning by the Department of Education; and

WHEREAS the solution imposed

devastating impact on many students, families and teachers in Mount Pearl Senior

High, Mount Pearl Intermediate, St. Peter's Elementary, and Newtown Elementary;

and

WHEREAS there are other less

disruptive solutions which can be introduced to alleviate this overcrowding

issue including capital investment as a preferred option as well as catchment

area realignment; and

Board was not provided with the financial flexibility by the Minister of

Education to explore other more suitable options; and

WHEREAS the government has

intervened in board decisions in the past such as in 2005 in Bishop's Falls,

reversing the closure of Leo Burke Academy;

WHEREUPON the undersigned,

your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House of Assembly to urge the

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to intervene in this matter, commit

more suitable options

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

Orders of the Day

Private Members' Day

MR. SPEAKER:

This being Wednesday, Private Members' Day, our

Standing Orders call us at 3:00 p.m. to go directly to the member whose motion

is on the Order Paper.

I call on the hon. the

Member for Signal Hill Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I move the following

resolution, seconded by the Member for St. John's East:

WHEREAS more than two-thirds

of minimum wage earners in Newfoundland and Labrador are women, and one-fourth

of minimum wage earners are the sole earners in their household; and

WHEREAS the minimum wage is

inadequate and does not provide enough money for the necessities of life because

a person earning minimum wage working forty hours a week makes $20,800 a year

which is barely above the Low Income Cut-Off of $19,496, and a working couple

with two children are also close to low income; and

WHEREAS in 2012 the Minimum

Wage Review Committee recommended an increase in the minimum wage in 2013 to

reflect the loss of purchasing power since 2010, and an annual adjustment

beginning in 2014 to reflect the Consumer Price Index; and

WHEREAS the provincial

government instead legislated two 25-cent increases, one in October 2014 and one

in October 2015, with no indexing; and

WHEREAS other provinces and

territories are continuing to raise their minimum wage, and six now have a

higher minimum wage than Newfoundland and Labrador;

THEREFORE

BE IT RESOLVED

that the House of Assembly urge government to legislate an increase in the

minimum wage in 2014 to reflect the loss of purchasing power since 2010, and

make an annual adjustment to the minimum wage beginning in 2015 to reflect the

Consumer Price Index.

I am very pleased, Mr.

Speaker, to be able to bring this issue to the floor of the House of Assembly.

I thank in advance my colleagues in the House for what I believe will be

a good discussion in this House, a debate that recognizes the issues that are

being raised in this resolution.

We all know or people

watching may not know that there are regular reviews of the minimum wage

according to legislation. In 2012,

the government received the report from the latest Minimum Wage Review Committee

with regard to the minimum wage in this Province.

This government had taken a

step forward in 2010 and had made changes to our minimum wage which really

brought us up in the country in terms of where we stood.

We were almost a leader in this country with regard to our minimum wage.

Now after four years of nothing happening, we have slipped to seventh

position with six provinces ahead of us when it comes to the minimum wage.

Mr. Speaker, as the

resolution said, in this Province two-thirds of minimum wage earners in

Newfoundland and Labrador are women, and one-fourth of minimum wage earners are

the sole earners in their household, and many of those are single women.

The issue is one of so many people working long hours, and some of them

working more than one job, because their jobs are minimum wage jobs and the

minimum wage is so low, that one job just does not bring in enough money to

cover the needs of the wage earner and the wage earner's family.

The number of people and I do not have a statistic on this one, it is

one that is harder to get who hold down more than one job is very high when

you are talking to people who are on minimum wage.

The other day, Mr. Speaker,

I was being served by somebody in the service industry who was doing a great job

and in chatting with her I discovered she had just come off work in the hospital

at Eastern Health where she has a full-time job, and was now working her second

job in the service industry. This is

what is going on, Mr. Speaker. We

have people working for minimum wage or next to minimum wage and cannot keep

things together. They have to work

more than one job.

We even have students who

are holding down being in college or being at the university also more than

one job. Because they cannot even

get a full-time job that would give them enough money, they have to take

part-time work. The combination of

part-time work, and the minimum wage is almost right on the low income cut-off,

the combination of those two things means we have thousands of people in this

Province who are working morning, noon and night and just managing to hold

things together.

Low income salaries do not

provide enough money for the necessities of life.

You have low-income working people who are going to food banks because

they do not earn enough money to be able to feed their families adequately,

clothe their families, and take care of all of the needs of the family.

Economically, it makes sense

to have people earning better salaries.

People at the low end of the scale, Mr. Speaker, do not get to save

money. Even if the minimum wage went

up right away today, even by $1, the people getting that minimum wage would

still be spending every cent they earn.

They would be spending every cent, and the money they earn would be going

back into the pockets of people who are running businesses.

Mr. Speaker, the government

had an opportunity. They had a

wonderful committee, an objective committee, of learned people in place who made

solid recommendations to government, and this government ignored those

recommendations. Now, I went over

the answer from the minister when I raised this issue in a Question Period here

in this House, and the minister proudly said that they do not have to listen to

recommendations.

Well, Mr. Speaker, I do not

know why they bother to put a committee in place that has expertise on it, and

that takes the time because they had been appointed to do it to look at all

the factors, and then puts together learned recommendations and then to have a

minister say well, we do not have to listen to their recommendations.

The recommendations from the

committee pointed out that because the last increase in minimum wage had been

2010, by the time they were studying the situation, people had lost money

because of course inflation was going ahead.

Cost of living was moving ahead while they were at a standstill.

They were at a standstill of a minimum wage that was poverty level.

So, their first

recommendation was extremely important.

Their first recommendation was government had to bring the minimum wage

up, and what they wanted the government to bring it up to was a wage, in 2014,

in this year, that would reflect the loss of purchasing power since 2010.

No, actually they said 2013 because they were doing the study back in

2012 so that in 2013, they wanted government to bring the wage up to in 2013

to a level that reflected the loss of power since 2010.

It is now 2014, that has not happened.

They then wanted government, from that new point, to start indexing

minimum wage every year.

So already people on minimum

wage are two years behind two more years behind, because the report came out

in 2012. What government has opted

to do it in this fall of 2014 they are going to put up the minimum by

twenty-five cents which is a pittance, after these people who are minimum wage

losing four years of purchasing power.

Then it is only committing itself to another twenty-five cents the

following year. They are not even

looking at the indexing. I do not

want them indexing at the low level, because indexing at the low level would

make no sense. They did that, by the

way, at one point, with Income Support, and they have even dropped that.

So this government is

showing that it does not have concern for people who are living in poverty and

living on the edge. They have no

concern for people who are working fifty and sixty hours a week on minimum wages

trying to survive. I cannot

understand where they are thinking is and it is going to be very interesting for

me to hear today what their response is going to be, because I have not been

impressed over the past years in any responses they have made on this issue, Mr.

Speaker.

That is why this resolution

is calling for this year, in 2014, for the government to change its position and

recognize the need to bring the minimum wage up to represent the loss of

purchasing power since 2010, and then next year to start indexing.

I know they have not done it in their Budget, but they have reversed all

kinds of decisions that they have recognized are wrong.

I would ask them to recognize how wrong this one is.

Poverty is one of the

contributors to ill health. It is

one of the indicators of health recognized by anybody who studies health and the

issues of good health. The longer

that we keep people living in poverty, the longer we will have people who are

not in good health, people who are spending a lot of time going to the medical

system to get help because they are ill and this government has not even done,

I do not think, a cost-benefit analysis to the government and to the public

purse of what it would mean to bring up the minimum wage.

What would happen is that we would start getting people being healthier,

because they now have a greater ability to take care of their needs.

They would be healthier because they would be able to put more money into

feeding themselves and their families good food, and we would see a change in

the use of our health care system.

This government has not done

any analysis like that, Mr. Speaker, which really disturbs me.

This is the kind of lack of long-term planning that I keep talking about

in this House of Assembly, that I see exhibited by this government.

A cost-benefit analysis would show them that putting up the minimum wage

would be a benefit to the economy for all kinds of reasons.

One, as I have already mentioned, because they have more money in their

pocket they put that money right back into the economy; they have no choice.

They have to; it helps them continue living a better life, the money goes

back in.

Secondly, we would see an

improvement in the cost of our health care system.

Third, Mr. Speaker, you would see people being able to work.

Right now we hear many stories of people, especially women with children

they are trying to raise on their own, who do not take on a job at the low

minimum wage. They are actually on

income assistance because on income assistance at least they are getting some

other benefits that are helping them.

Mr. Speaker, it makes

absolutely no sense for government to continue down the path it is going.

Going down this path, we will not have six provinces and Territories

ahead of us; we will have ten or eleven ahead of us in two years' time at the

rate this government is moving.

I noticed that in July 2010

when the wage reached $10 an hour and government sat back on its laurels, the

Minister Responsible for AES noted, This increase is another way the Williams

Government is improving the quality of life of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians

Increasing the minimum wage helps individuals and families achieve increased

self-reliance and contributes to a stronger provincial economy.'

It has to move beyond where it is, Mr. Speaker, because being right on

the edge of the low income cut-off point is not helping people.

Take, for example, this

year. This is not the minimum wage;

this is people on Income Support.

They are going to have maybe another $106 in their pocket with the increase that

was made. What is that, Mr. Speaker?

One hundred and six dollars approximately I might not have the figure

right, but that it is almost it a year is nothing.

It is nothing. It is the same

way with minimum wage. Put the

minimum wage up twenty-five cents next fall is nothing.

This government keeps

talking about how they care about the people in this Province.

Well, you know they do not, or they do not understand what the life

really is for people who are living in poverty.

They really do not understand what it is for a single-parent mom to be

holding down two jobs. I have met

them. Have they met them?

They are in their districts; I have met them in their districts.

I have spoken to the people in their districts.

Why are they not talking to them?

Why are they not listening to them?

These people exist everywhere in the Province, Mr. Speaker.

A raise in the minimum wage,

some people sometimes say and I have heard people from the opposite side of the

House say, is hard on small business.

You see, you find other ways to intervene to help small business.

They have taken a small step this year in the Budget, and I am glad they

have done it, by dropping the small business income tax to 3 per cent from 4 per

cent. I hope they are going to do

what we would do, and that is get it down to zero.

That way, you are helping small business deal with having fairer salaries

for people who are working for them.

All of that, Mr. Speaker,

helps the economy, but you have to have a plan, you have to have analysis.

You have to be forward looking in order to see how all of that works, and

this is what this government does not seem to understand.

An increase to the minimum

wage have helped young workers, women, workers over fifty-five.

These are the people who absolutely need to be helped.

Without increases in the minimum wage women will be falling seriously

behind.

They like to tout that we

have made great strides with regard to poverty in this Province.

We have not, Mr. Speaker, we have not.

When you take the statistics and read them the way they are written, we

have not. We have people suffering

in this Province, we have people working in poverty, we have lineups at our food

banks that are growing, and there is not a community in this Province that I

have been in, that does not have a food bank, Mr. Speaker.

We have to make this change.

This government has to see that this change is necessary.

I find it very difficult when I see blinkers on them, of course we see it

around a lot of things, but this one in particular really makes me upset.

The minimum wage is an important policy lever that a government can use.

It is not going to take money out of their pockets, Mr. Speaker.

This is what I do not understand.

My time is up.

Sorry, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you for reminding me,

and I will get a chance to speak at the end of the debate.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the District of Terra

Nova.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. S. COLLINS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am happy to stand to

discuss this topic today. I can say

in all sincerity, Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to be part of a government that

has taken such a role in helping those low-income earners and people on fixed

income. While I go through my notes

today, I will refer to this group as low-income earners, but of course that

includes fixed income as well as others.

I just want to talk a little

bit about the Budget issue.

Certainly, we can look at this Budget in how it has addressed so many needs for

those low-income earners. That is

something that is not exclusive to this Budget.

If you look over the past decade, since this government took power in

2003 there has been a huge amount of initiatives and different policies that

have worked for people, low-income people, and we have heard it.

As MHAs we have to be very

genuine here and we have to say there are issues out there, sure there are

issues, but there are also people who are very happy with the things we have

done, and things that have made real change in people's lives.

We hear that every day. So it

is very important to acknowledge that.

In ten years of hard work,

ten years of a lot of good decisions, there are years ahead of us.

There are still things to do and we acknowledge that, but we are on the

right path and we have made huge differences in people's lives.

It is something that I am very proud of this government, proud to be part

of it. As a government, of course,

it is incumbent on us to care for the most vulnerable.

It was great; I attended the

new Premier's inaugural speech, I guess you would call it, down at Government

House. It seems to be a long time

ago now but it was not really that very long ago.

Premier Marshall, what he said was very poignant, especially when it

comes to this discussion. He said,

So let us ensure that the fight against poverty and inequality intensifies in

our province and we never forget the needs of those who are aged, who have

disabilities, who are infirmed, and who live on fixed and low incomes.

That was one of his

mainstays. That was one of his

touchstones. When he got up and

spoke at that inaugural speech, his very first speech to the public that is what

he hung his hat on. I thought it was

so refreshing. It was great.

It just feeds into all the work we have been doing over the last ten

years, but it is very important as a government that has been in power for such

a long time, to remember those things.

For him to state that, and

really be the main crux of his message, I think was really assuring to me, he is

someone who really thinks this is important.

I am sure I speak for a number of colleagues on this side of the House

when I say that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. S. COLLINS:

Mr. Speaker, minimum wage is just one piece of the equation.

While the Leader of the NDP can rise and say minimum wage, it has to be

done, we have to raise it this amount.

It is very short-sighted, it is very narrow-minded to just take one

thing, one item and say we have to fix this.

Then by extension to say: If we raise the minimum wage it will be great

for the economy.

What a thing to say.

How far has she thought that through?

Because while it is a very important piece, it is not the only piece.

If you ask small and medium-sized businesses in particular how minimum

wage affects their business, it has a huge impact.

We have to take a balanced approach.

We cannot simply go out and raise it through the roof; no other

jurisdiction has. Currently, we sit

at sixth in the country.

I also remind people

watching at home, and I am sure many people would know this, the difference

between sixth place and first place is very minimal.

We are not talking $5 or $10.

We are talking in many cases, cents, twenty-five cents, fifty cents.

While we are sixth today, in a very short amount of time we are going to

be up to number two. That is

thirteen jurisdictions right across the country.

We are making strides.

The fact remains that even right now as it stands today, we are in the

middle of the pack. In the middle of

the pack is not the place we want to be.

We want to be even more progressive, and that is why we are raising the

minimum wage again. Again, something

I am very proud of that we are doing and it is nice to recognize that minimum

wage is but one piece; a very important piece but one piece.

What we have done as a

government, we have taken a broad standpoint.

We have looked at this from 30,000 feet we will say.

That is kind of what we have looked at.

Of course, when you are on the government side there are a number of

departments and there are a number of ways you can effect positive change for

low-income earners. It is not simply

by raising the minimum wage.

I will also say to the

members across the way, raising the minimum wage does not necessarily cost

government money. It is not a

monetary attachment. It is not like

we are saying: Well, we cannot do that because it is going to cost us on our

bottom line. It is a fact about

taking a balanced approach. What we

have done and what has gone on our bottom line is the number of social programs.

Some of those things I want to talk about here today.

Before I go into some of the

issues I want to touch on with regard to health care, I wanted to just state for

the record here, minimum wage will be increased to $10.25 on October 1, 2014 and

to $10.50 on October 1, 2015. This

constitutes a 75 per cent increase in just ten years 75 per cent in a decade,

a huge increase.

Then we go a step further.

Right now no province in Canada has a minimum wage of $10.50.

In fact, only two territories have a rate that is higher than that.

That really gives you a perspective as to where we are in the

Confederation, I will say.

We have been a leader on

minimum wage increases in the country and will continue to be one.

While we may again be currently in sixth place, we are a leader.

We are going to come up even further than that.

I would say we are a leader as opposed to a follower.

That is something that I am oh so proud of.

Let's take a look at some of

the programs. When I asked to speak

to this private member's resolution, I did so thinking that I wanted to talk

from a health perspective. We all

know how massive the Department of Health is.

We know how much of the Budget is consumed by the Department of Health.

You have a $3 billion budget; every single dollar affects every single

person it seems in this Province.

Nothing could be even more accurate to say that it affects low-income earners.

A lot of our programs are particularly focused and to be able to cause

positive impact on low-income earners.

In particular, one of the

things that really jumps out at me I looked at a bunch of different ones, but

one of the ones that really stands out to me is the Newfoundland and Labrador

Prescription Drug Program, the NLPDP.

This is something that has come a huge way in the last number of years.

It is something that did not exist anything near this, there was not even

a shadow of a comparison to this program in years past.

It is something that affects many people.

I go back to the fact that

as an MHA you get to speak to constituents, you get phone calls on a daily basis

from people with issues with regard to hospital stays, or transportation, or

medications, whatever the case is.

It is great to be able to reply to that person: Do you know what?

I think we have a program that can help you.

So many times I find myself saying that, and it is so good to see.

It is tangible results. You

hear from these people who are able to keep money in their pocket, and in many

cases money they did not have in their pocket.

They are able to get life-sustaining medication.

That is a program I am very proud of.

I just want to talk a little

bit about the NLPDP. It provides

financial assistance for the purchase of eligible prescription medications to

over 130,000 residents of Newfoundland and Labrador.

About less than one-quarter I suppose, but 130,000 residents of

Newfoundland and Labrador avail of this program.

Budget 2014 provides a total investment in the Newfoundland and Labrador

Prescription Drug Program of $147 million.

This brings our administrative investment to over $1.3 billion since

2004. One decade, $1.3 billion into

prescription drugs. Now, I did not

hear the member talk about that one particular thing, but maybe that was simply

an oversight.

So, I will tell her a little

bit more about the NLPDP. So there

are five portions of the program, and three of those five specifically target

and offer assistance to our vulnerable populations and those living on low

incomes.

The Foundation Plan, as many

of us are aware, provides 100 per cent coverage of benefit items for persons and

families in receipt of Income Support, children in the care of Child, Youth and

Family Services, including services in Youth Corrections, certain individuals

receiving services through the regional health authorities through community

supports, and individuals who are subsidized residents of long-term care and

personal care homes. So that, in

itself, is a huge group.

There is a second piece to

that as well: the 65Plus Plan.

Another piece that has been so well received; I have heard so many people say,

obviously, they are availing of the benefits.

This provides coverage of eligible prescription drugs to residents

sixty-five years of age or older who receive OAS benefits and the Guaranteed

Income Supplement. There is no

specific application for this. If

you are in receipt of those things, you automatically qualify.

That coverage caps the co-pay to $6 per prescription.

If you are filling as a senior, a lot of times seniors have a number of

different prescriptions being able to cap that at $6 can save quite a few

dollars over the run of a year.

Again, it is greatly appreciated.

Why do I know that? Because I hear

from my constituents who have told me.

The third piece, the Access

Plan, provides access to eligible prescription drugs to individuals and families

with low incomes. The amount of

coverage is determined by net income level and family status.

So beneficiaries, Mr. Speaker, pay a co-pay of between 20 per cent and 70

per cent of the eligible prescription costs.

The lower the income, the lower the co-pay.

So again, that is a sliding scale; the less the money you make, the less

you pay for your prescription drugs.

Again, that is something

that is affecting quite a few lives in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Something that I know myself and a number of colleagues of mine has

lobbied for. When we sit around the

caucus table and we have these frank discussions, we will bring back what we

hear in our districts. Something

that we had heard, and I know I have heard from a number of people, I have heard

from a number of constituents and I am so glad that in Budget 2014 $700,000

has been provided to extend drug card coverage for residents on Income Support

under the Prescription Drug Program from six months to a year to help with that

transition into a job as such.

So, before a lot of people

would say gee, I would like to go back into the workforce, but I have my drug

costs and they are so high, and just to have that six-month period it is a

little bit rough, if we could only get a transition period that was a bit

longer. That is what we have done;

we have provided $700,000, and that has extended that from six months to twelve

months. That allows a person who is

re-entering the workforce to have one year, they still have prescription drug

coverage, and it allows them to transition.

Again, we talk about low

income and we talk about raising the minimum wage.

If you ask me, my main thing is not to have someone cope, living on

minimum wage; it is to give them the opportunities to try to get out of that

situation and to make it even better for themselves.

I know my colleague for Advanced Education and Skills is going to be

speaking and he will be talking, I am sure, to some of those programs.

It is short-sighted to just

say raise the minimum wage. That is

an important piece, do not get me wrong that is a very important piece but

there is also a piece of it of what else we can do for them with regard to

social programs that will affect each and every one of them.

Even more importantly, Mr. Speaker, as I said, how can we provide them

with the opportunity so they can take themselves out of a position where it is

less than ideal? How can we raise

them up and make sure they are able to provide a living for themselves and their

families that is not only sustainable but enjoyable?

I think that is what we all try to provide.

I want to speak quickly

about the Adult Dental Program. This

one here is another great program.

The provincial government invests $6.7 million into the Adult Dental Program to

provide select diagnosis and therapeutic dental services to individuals enrolled

in three plans, which I just mentioned under NLPDP.

In Budget 2014, that continues.

The only difference is, of course, we have taken the cap that was

previously set at $150 and we have bumped that up to $200, so it allows people

going in and getting dental work for people on low income getting dental work

that cap now has increased $50 to $200.

If you listen to the Member

for Burgeo La Poile, you would think it is an archaic program and it must be

the worst in the country. Nothing

could be further from the truth because if you look at it this program has been

extremely successful and it is one of the most comprehensive dental programs in

Canada. You have to put perspective

I hear my good friend rise on his feet a number of times and talk about the

Adult Dental Program and talk about how horrible it is.

The fact remains we are one of the leaders in Canada.

I can tell you again, I am

sure the people across the way must talk to constituents.

They must hear it. Of course,

you can take any program in any government and pick pieces out of it and say:

This could be improved; this could be made a little bit better.

That is fine. We understand

that. Every program is not perfect,

but this is a program that is making differences.

Who is it making a

difference in? Mr. Speaker, it is

making a difference in those who cannot afford the dental work.

We understand. I have sat

around tables before and I have heard the comment made: Dental health is so

important to your own personal health.

That is something we recognize and that is why we contribute over $6

million a year to that program.

Again, that program remains

the same; the funding remains the same.

I have heard from members before the program was cut.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

It has always been this amount invested in it and it is going to remain

that way. Like I said, we have given

a little bit more wiggle room where we can add that $50 so it increases the

amount of work these people can get done.

I have two minutes left and

one of the last things I have a number of things here, but one of things I was

very happy with this year was something that was new to the Budget.

It is something again, I seem repetitive when I say I have heard it,

but I have heard it from so many constituents: the smoking cessation program.

How wonderful is this? You

talk about return on investment and being able to spend money better.

We are investing in people, and this is again focused on low-income

earners. We are investing in their

health. If someone can take a

treatment program and be able to quit smoking, the effects on the health care

system down the road are immense. I

think we would all agree with that, of course.

Budget 2014 includes $712,000 for a provincial Smoking Cessation

Medication Program for people living on low incomes.

Eligible clients who wish to

use this program will require a prescription from a physician, obviously, and

the thing is we will subsidize access to these medications for clients and they

will be required to contribute $25 per month.

Now if anybody knows, I do not smoke personally but I know how much a

pack of tobacco is; $25 would probably get you a couple of packs, I suppose.

Anybody who is a heavy smoker, or even a moderate smoker, smoking a half

pack or a pack a day, you can see how many hundreds of dollars you spend in a

month.

We are asking them to take a

small portion personal responsibility because everyone has to have that pay

your $25 and we will provide this medication for you.

With the hopes that you will be able to quit and you will no longer

smoke, and obviously the increase financially to someone as well as their

health, the benefits are massive.

I only have thirty-nine

seconds left so I will start to tie up I guess, it is about time, but I just

want to talk about the fact that we talk about the Poverty Reduction Strategy.

We have a strategy that has been touted from East Coast to West Coast to

North Coast. We have something to be

so proud of in this Poverty Reduction Strategy.

I was kind of blown away to see the actual number of what has been spent

over the last number of years. We

are actually up over $1 billion spent on poverty reduction.

Again, that is not just minimum wage, because that is a piece and a very

important piece, but there is a whole umbrella of programs and policies that we

consider when looking at this.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I

will take my seat; I see my time is up.

Thank you so much for the opportunity.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St. John's North.

MR. KIRBY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is a pleasure for me to

have an opportunity to speak to this private member's motion.

Back in 2012, I wrote a brief for the group that was reviewing the

minimum wage and I will talk a little bit about what I had recommended and what

I had suggested at the time. I

looked at a lot of the research around the minimum wage that had been done, the

economics.

It is a fairly important

issue for me. It is an important

issue for me as well because I have a significant number of constituents in the

District of St. John's North who earn minimum wage and that is the income that

supports their household. I also

have a large number of constituents who are employers, who are operators of

small- and medium-sized enterprises who employ people who earn minimum wage, so

I can see that there needs to be a balance when it comes to this issue, and I

think it is important to view it from that lens, one that respects that it has

multiple implications for different constituencies.

I have more of a personal

perspective on this as well, not only because the first job I ever had was a

minimum wage job because when I grew up my parents were small business people

and I remember my mother working so incredibly hard; twenty-seven years she

stood on her feet behind a cash register operating our family business in the

community of Lord's Cove. I remember

how little time my mother had to spend with us because she worked for such long

hours. For every person who she took

on to help operate the store, that person was an earner of minimum wage.

I remember from a very young

age conversations around the dinner table about minimum wage increasing and the

cost of running a small family business in rural Newfoundland.

I do not look at this just based on the literature and the research that

I have done myself, or from a political perspective, it also is a very personal

matter to me. I just wanted to say

that off the top.

We know that minimum wage

workers in Canada and in Newfoundland and Labrador tend to be younger workers

between the ages of twenty-five a significant portion of them between the ages

of twenty-five and fifty-four as well.

Those jobs are concentrated mainly in the hospitality and service

sectors. A lot of people work at

fast food restaurants and other establishments that serve food.

They would be earning minimum wage.

Some people are more fortunate obviously if they are working in the

hospitality industry and they get tips, gratuities; they, fortunately, are able

to make a little bit more.

The way the minimum wage is

set across the country is significantly variable and it is interesting as a

result that there is such a small difference on whole terms between the absolute

values of minimum wage because the ways that they are set are so different.

In Nova Scotia, the minimum wage is tied to Statistic Canada's low-income

cut-off and that is a standard poverty measure used in Canada.

That low-income cut-off represents people who are devoting a

disproportionally larger amount of their income to paying for basic necessities,

food, shelter, and clothing.

In the Yukon Territory,

interestingly enough, they have something that is closer to what was recommended

for our Province. They tie their

annual increase in the minimum wage so it increases manually to the

increases in the Consumer Price Index, so increases in inflation for the City of

Whitehorse which is the capital, obviously, of that Territory.

While we have seen a whole

lot of different research on the minimum wage, by and large economists are of

the opinion as a whole that having a minimum wage substantially benefits

low-wage workers. Over the business

cycle, if you will, there are few long-term significant negative effects for the

economy.

I did read that in 2006, 650

economists from around the world, including five Nobel Prize winners, got

together and issued a statement saying that the minimum wage increases can

significantly improve the lives of low-income workers and their families without

the adverse effects that have been claimed by some critics.

I think that is also important.

One recent analysis, a macro

analysis so a study that looks at a whole bunch of different studies study

looked at sixty-four different minimum wage studies that have been conducted.

They said, if there is some adverse employment effect from minimum-wage

raises, it must be of a small and policy-irrelevant magnitude.

I think that is an important point.

The Canadian Federation of

Independent Business has frequently commented on the issue and it is their role

to do so. My family, my parents were

always a member of that organization, the CFIB, the whole time they operated

their business. They have said on

occasion that it would result in employers having to lay off workers.

I do not dispute that may be the case in some instances.

I am sure that is the case in some instances, but this particular macro

analysis said that over a long term it is sort of an infinitesimally small

impact.

Regular increases in the

minimum wage benefit the economy in part, because it increases overall buying

power. So, low-wage workers, they

will spend their new earnings on basic needs.

Because, remember, a lot of people who are living at or under or near the

low-income cut-off, they are spending the bulk, a disproportionately large

portion of their income on basic needs.

So, you want to remember that.

They will spend their new

earnings on basic needs and services delivered by local businesses.

So you think about convenience stores, like my parents had, laundromats

and local businesses like those sorts of family-run retail shops, neighbourhood

grocery stores, local restaurants, local pizza joints, and the gas station on

the corner. Those funds are

funnelled back through local businesses, and there are lots to indicate that is

the case.

There is a good argument to

be made for keeping up with the cost of living, no doubt.

The cost of food, we have seen that rise.

No doubt, it is associated with the rise that we have seen in

transportation costs. We have seen

the price of fuel spike and come back down a bit, but we are far from the days

of $25-a-barrel oil now, and it is unlikely that we are ever, ever going to go

back to anything resembling that again.

Electricity is going up and,

of course, with the Muskrat Falls mega-debt project that we were talking about

in Question Period again today, we can expect that by producing electricity for

the benefit of the people of Nova Scotia, we are going to have significantly

higher electricity costs for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, because we

have to foot the bill for the people of Nova Scotia to have more affordable

electricity. So we know that is

going to go up in the long term.

Rents are going up.

We have seen that the vacancy rate for rental apartments has gone way

down in recent years. Back in the

1990s when I was out sowing my wild oats and being an instudious university

student, and being more interested in my social life than I was in the things

that today I realize are important, the vacancy rate in the City of St. John's

was very high. It was easy to get an

apartment, and it was easy to get a reasonably affordable apartment, too.

The vacancy rate was up to around 13 per cent, 14 per cent.

Now the vacancy rate has gone way down.

While some of the new projects we have seen, like the new university

residences and so on, have added some to the rental housing market, we still

have a lot of pressures. Of course,

that has driven up the average monthly rent for two bedroom apartments and three

bedroom apartments.

I have a lot of people who

are renting in the District of St. John's North, around the Prince of Wales

area, the Baird Subdivision; if you go up through Grovesdale Park in Kenmount

Terrace, around Crosbie Road, the Wishingwell area, all of those areas.

Near the university and the north end of Rabbittown there are a lot of

rental apartments. While there are

some decent rental apartments, I have seen a lot of people living in horrific

circumstances; circumstances that I have often questioned whether or not they

are up to the city code and have had cause to act on that.

Another problem we have had

with respect to housing is that the dream of new home ownership for people has

been a much more difficult dream to realize in recent years because we know that

while many have benefited from our natural resource wealth and significant

business activity that is associated with that, not everybody is able to afford

the same creature comforts as everyone else.

So while the housing market has taken off, not everybody has been able to

keep up.

I also wanted to say a

little bit about child care because I do know, and I am a young father myself,

and there are a number of young fathers here in the House of Assembly, they will

know what I am talking about. The

cost of child care is a significant household expense.

I have constituents in the District of St. John's North who have

children, many of them are working families and they have to pay upwards of $750

per month per child for decent, quality child care.

I would say that is far from affordable for the average income earner.

If you think about people

who are earning minimum wage, we have people who are trapped in cycles of

poverty in our communities because it is impossible to if a person is on

Income Support, and I have spoken to many of those people in my district, they

are on Income Support and they are trying to get off.

They have two children and sometimes three children.

If they are single parents, it is impossible.

It is not practical to get off Income Support and go work in a

minimum-wage job. There is a lot

more we need to do in that respect, I say to the Minister of Finance.

There is a lot more we need to do to help those people.

There is a variety of

different ways that can be done, like continuing to improve the subsidy.

There was an economist, I went to see him speak last week, I believe it

was, an economist from the Universit du Qubec Montral who was down here

talking about it. Craig Alexander,

who is the chief economist for TD Bank of Canada, was also here and talked about

the economic benefits of providing better child care and how that basically

helps more people get into the workforce.

All of the studies and

economic analysis around this points in one direction, not only the fact that

for every dollar we invest in affordable child care we get upwards of $1 back,

some of those econometric analyses have suggested it is up almost to $3, which

is a significant investment. As I

have said here in the House of Assembly before, find the mutual fund that you

can get your RRSP invested in that is delivering that rate of return and there

will be lineups around the block trying to get in to get that.

It is a great investment to

make. It makes a lot of sense.

More women would be working and more people would be able to pull

themselves up out of poverty.

I could say a lot more, Mr.

Speaker. I really appreciate the

opportunity to contribute to the debate.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER (Verge):

Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Port

au Port.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CORNECT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, before I get

into my debate mode this afternoon, I just want to correct the hon. Member for

St. John's North who just alluded to the fact that a person coming off Income

Support and going into the workforce with a family of three cannot avail of

child care services. It is fully

covered, I tell the hon. member. It

is fully covered, I tell the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CORNECT:

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure and

privilege to stand this afternoon and speak to the private member's resolution

as put forward by the NDP. An

increase in the minimum wage is just one of the ways our government is

supporting and improving the lives of low-income residents in Newfoundland and

Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, it is my

pleasure to stand this afternoon to speak about the investments in Budget 2014

for the Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Mr. Speaker, this government has demonstrated a dedicated commitment to support

those most vulnerable in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Department of Advanced

Education and Skills touches the lives of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians on

many levels. Essentially, this

department is about helping people, Mr. Speaker, whether it is through student

aid, skills training, poverty reduction, and various social and economic

supports. When services are needed,

I tell the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, when services are needed we are

there to help.

The provincial Poverty

Reduction Strategy is a comprehensive, integrated, and long-term approach to the

prevention, reduction, and alleviation of poverty.

Our goal is to improve the health, living conditions, education, incomes,

and overall well-being of vulnerable people throughout our Province.

By all available measures of low income, Newfoundland and Labrador is

seeing a significant improvement in reducing the overall level of poverty in our

Province.

Mr. Speaker, before our

Poverty Reduction Strategy was put in place, Newfoundland and Labrador had an

incidence of poverty that was above the national average.

Today, the incidence of poverty here is below the national average and

our Poverty Reduction Strategy is considered to be a model for others to follow.

The provincial government

has always known that fighting poverty would be challenging.

We recognize that poverty is a complex issue, Mr. Speaker, and that is

why we are taking a long-term approach to combat it.

We have put forward investments and initiatives that support a

three-pronged approach, preventing people from living in poverty, reducing the

number of people living in poverty, and alleviating the poverty experienced by

vulnerable people.

Mr. Speaker, as my hon.

friend from the District of Terra Nova alluded to earlier; approximately $170

million was announced in Budget 2014 as a total investment in the Poverty

Reduction Strategy. That, Mr.

Speaker, is to support the provincial government's long-term approach to

combatting poverty that has now surpassed $1 billion since 2006.

This historic investment

includes $4.8 million to raise the basic rate for people receiving Income

Support by 5 per cent beginning July 1 of this year, with a projected investment

of $32.3 million over the following five years.

This raise in the basic rate will put more money in the pockets of those

who need it the most.

Mr. Speaker, there will also

be an increase to the Seniors' Benefit.

The maximum payment seniors will receive in the October 2014 payment will

be the highest ever at $1,036, up from $971 back in 2013.

Mr. Speaker, the

Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation and the provincial government will

in Affordable Housing Agreement for an unprecedented five years.

This agreement also extends the

Provincial Home Repair Program and that assists 2,100 households with low

incomes to repair their homes. When

they can get grants from the provincial government to help to repair their homes

that is keeping money in the pockets of low-income earners in the Province.

Mr. Speaker, Budget 2014

also provides $12 million over three years to extend the Residential Energy

Efficiency Program, better known as REEP, across the Province.

This program will assist up to 1,000 low-income homeowners per year with

energy retrofits that will significantly improve affordability by reducing

heating costs. When you can get

subsidies and grants from the provincial government to retrofit your home, that

again is putting money and keeping money in the pockets of Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians.

Mr. Speaker, a further $1

million was added to the Rent Supplement Program, bringing the total annual

allocation to $9 million. This

program supports individuals and families on low incomes and individuals with

complex needs by paying the portion of their rent that exceeds 25 per cent of

their net household income directly to their landlord.

It also helps Newfoundland and Labrador Housing address its application

list. Again, when we can subsidize

rent, that is putting and keeping money in the pockets of Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians.

This government, Mr.

Speaker, is concerned about homelessness in Newfoundland and Labrador; $500,000

announced in Budget 2014 gives additional funding for the Supportive Living

Program for a total annual investment of $5.3 million to address homelessness.

Mr. Speaker, the Home

Modification Program will be extended with $9 million over the next three years

to provide financial assistance to homeowners with disabilities or seniors with

Budget 2014 also contributes $350,000 to a partnership with the

Nunatsiavut Government to assist low-income private homeowners in Nunatsiavut

complete major renovations.

Also, Mr. Speaker, $100,000

has been allocated for the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Community Centre

Summer Employment Program. This

program encourages twenty-four at-risk youth to continue their education and

career paths.

This government, Mr.

Speaker, is also working hard to advance inclusion and remove barriers for

persons with disabilities. A key

focus of the Poverty Reduction Strategy has been to remove barriers and

disincentives to employment and increase the inclusiveness of our education

system. This will mean more people

can take advantage of employment opportunities and benefit from and contribute

to the economic prosperity of our Province.

Budget 2014 includes $12.6 million to advance inclusion and support

employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.

Mr. Speaker, the expected

signing of a new four-year Labour Market Agreement for Persons with Disabilities

will see a $12 million annual investment from the provincial government

supported by a federal government investment of $4.6 million.

This program will assist individuals with a disability to acquire the

skills, the experience, and the necessary support to successfully prepare for,

enter, or remain in the workforce.

Mr. Speaker, let me talk

That will be supported by a $600,000 investment from Budget 2014.

retrofits to address transportation barriers for persons who have

mobility-related disabilities. If

they have a job to go to and they want to retrofit their vehicle so they can

successfully get to their workplace, we have programs and grants to assist them

as well. Inclusion Grants will

provide up to $25,000 to non-profit, community-based organizations to enhance

Mr. Speaker, something that

is dear to my heart and dear to the heart of this government is our commitment

to students. Our commitment to

students remains firm. In fact, this

past year some 12,000 students and youth benefited from our employment programs

and 20,000 students are supported through our ongoing tuition freeze.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CORNECT:

To be sure that our students, Mr. Speaker, have

access to a high-quality, affordable education Budget 2014 commits $14.7 million

for two years to eliminate provincial student loans, with a projected investment

of approximately $50.6 million over the next five years.

Mr. Speaker, approximately

7,000 students annually are expected to receive upfront grant assistance to help

them access post-secondary education.

With the complete elimination of provincial student loans and replacement

with upfront needs-based grants, students will see a significant reduction in

the amount to be repaid as a student loan.

The only loan to be paid back will be a Canada Student Loan.

Since 2005 we have invested more than $282 million to freeze tuitions,

making Newfoundland and Labrador students the envy of the country with some of

the lowest lowest, Mr. Speaker tuition fees and the best Student Aid program

in Canada.

As I stated earlier, when it

comes to reducing poverty in Newfoundland and Labrador we are making significant

progress, I say, Mr. Speaker. The

number of people in receipt of Income Support in Newfoundland and Labrador is at

an all-time low having been reduced by about 15,000 people since 2003, with

about 51,000 receiving Income Support monthly in 2003 compared to about 36,000

in 2013.

In 2003, Mr. Speaker, less

than 10 per cent of the population in the Province received Income Support

monthly. That compares to less than

7 per cent of the population in 2013.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CORNECT:

Low-income cut-off, Mr. Speaker, the most

commonly used measure to compare poverty levels in different provinces, show

that our Province has gone from having 12.2 per cent of the population living in

poverty in 2003 to 5.3 per cent in 2011.

That is the most current data available.

Mr. Speaker, our government

is committed to continuing to build on our successes and carry on the important

work of our Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Our Poverty Reduction Strategy is a model for others to follow, and is

widely regarded by national advocates as a leader in the fight against poverty.

Recognizing the complexity

of poverty and the need for a co-ordinated and integrated approach, our Poverty

Reduction Strategy is a government-wide strategy.

In 2003, Mr. Speaker, Newfoundland and Labrador had one of the highest

levels of poverty in the country. Since

then we have built on our successes and invested in initiatives to support those

who need our help the most. We are

making progress; we are making a difference in the lives of the Province's most

vulnerable.

According to the most recent

available data from Statistics Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador is tied with

Saskatchewan as the Province with the second-