PDF Version

April

5, 2017

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLVIII No. 6

The

House met at 10 a.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Osborne):

Order, please!

Admit

strangers.

Orders of the Day

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Government House

Leader.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Yes, Mr. Speaker, I call

Order 2, third reading of Bill 5.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Government House

Leader.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded

by the Minister of Service NL, that Bill 5,

An Act To Remove Anomalies And

Errors In The Statute Law, be now read a third time.

MR. SPEAKER:

It is moved and seconded that

Bill 5 be now read a third time.

Is it

the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

All

those in favour, 'aye.'

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Aye.

MR. SPEAKER:

All those against, 'nay.'

Carried.

CLERK (Barnes):

A bill,

An Act To Remove

Anomalies And Errors In The Statute Law. (Bill 5)

MR. SPEAKER:

Bill 5 has now been read a

third time and it is ordered that the bill do pass and its title be as on the

Order Paper.

motion, a bill,

An Act To Remove Anomalies And Errors In The Statute Law, read

a third time, ordered passed and its title be as on the Order Paper. (Bill 5)

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Government House

Leader.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Yes, Mr. Speaker, I call from

the Order Paper, Order 1, Address in Reply.

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Fogo

Island Cape Freels.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BRAGG:

Good morning, Mr. Speaker.

It's

great to be here on a Wednesday morning and to get up and speak on Address in

Reply, talk about the Speech from the Throne,

The Way Forward to Greater Prosperity .

Mr.

Speaker, before I get into what I have to say, I want to bring some attention to

some I guess you would call it, not a weather bomb but a snow bomb that

was dropped on my district over the last two to three days. We started off with

a polar bear, and now we ended up with over 100 centimetres of snow. I'd just

like to bring attention to all the workers, all the contractors, all the highway

workers, all the town crews

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BRAGG:

I've been in constant contact

with everyone out in the district, and we have numerous roads not yet open. I

put a posting on Facebook this morning advising people if you have to get out,

if you can get out, exercise caution. People on this equipment have been working

long hours and they need you to respect their working space and help them

through this. If you're out and about today, take your time.

again, Mr. Speaker, I'll get back to the Speech from the Throne,

The Way Forward to Greater Prosperity . I'm not going to get up here

and remind the Members opposite of how we got here they all know. They're all

googling it over there this morning. They're saying how can I hold my head high

after spending the lottery.

Well,

being the positive type that I am, I'm not going to spend a lot of time looking

back, because it does say The Way Forward

to Greater Prosperity , and I look forward to prosperous things. I'm always

proud to rise in this hon. House and talk about scenic and historic district.

And it's a pleasure to sit back and listen to the Speech from the Throne. I

noticed one of the quotes was, Our world-class tourism experience and rich

culture will greet you at the door. I thought, my God, that must be written for

my district because tourism and culture is exactly what Fogo Island Cape

Freels district is all about. My best example, although they're snowed in this

morning, would be Tilting on Fogo Island.

If ever

you want a cultural experience, you should go over to Tilting and visit Tilting.

Tilting has a direct connection with Ireland, so they're Irish descendent, their

Irish accent, their way of life, the way that they portray things, their events

throughout the year is something I would recommend everybody do.

I know

sometimes I drop my T's and add an H where I shouldn't, and everyone has a way

of saying they know where you're from based on your dialect. But if you ever

talk to anyone Tilting and say where you from, they say, just listen to me. So

that can tell you when you talk about culture and where they're from.

I always

have to say too to my Avalon counterparts, my district is not Florida, but it's

where others come from this area, from the Avalon region, to visit. That's one

thing that I would like to provide about my district. I always said it was a

four-season district.

So if

culture abounds and meets you and history at every door just think about it.

In my district, we had the Barbour site in Newtown. Thousands visit there every

year to see how people live in years gone by. While there, you'll learn the

story about Forty-Eight Days Adrift

where in 1929 Captain Joe Barbour, skipper on the

Neptune II , a three-mast schooner ran into trouble. They were

returning from St. John's with a load of groceries for the winter. They were

carrying a load of cod and salt fish. It was November 29, they ran into a storm.

Today, we'd probably it the perfect storm but back then the boys on the boat

called it another day at the office.

The

Neptune got battered for days

and driven off course. All three masts were broken and, for 48 days, they

drifted in the North Atlantic. You have to think everyone at home had them given

up for lost, but on January 16, 1930 they drifted ashore in Scotland. The first

thing the skipper did was to send a message to his mom.

Mr. Speaker, something like Brad Gushue when he won the

gold medal, the first thing he did only the technology was a little different

and the message was very simple: Arrived in Scotland; all are well.

Mr. Speaker, that was a time of wooden boats and iron men.

Meanwhile, I left out many of the details because I encourage everyone to visit

the Barbour site, but I'll give a hint of other things to learn there. There's a

story of a Mrs. Humphries who was on the boat; she was passenger. Then there was

another story of how the gas motor came to Newfoundland and it had to do with

Forty-Eight Days Adrift .

So I encourage everyone to

visit the Barbour site and learn about our history.

If that

was a step back in time, let's drift on over to Fogo Island where you can stay

and play on one of the most historic islands, and stay at the ultramodern Fogo

Island Inn; 29 rooms with panoramic ocean view; the rates, a little pricey for

most of us, from $1,500 to $5,000 a night. Initially, many believed the founder,

Zita Cobb, was flushing her money out into the Atlantic, but the Shorefast

Foundation has made it happen on Fogo Island.

I don't

know if you can remember the TV show on about the Vietnam War,

MASH ,

where the chopper was landing every day the locals in Joe Batt's refer to

their town as MASH because there are

that many choppers landing on the hills every day.

So these

guys, they have enticed the rich and famous from all over the world to visit.

Now, for all those not able to stay at the inn there are numerous B & Bs and

quaint cottages, so the tourism on Fogo Island will rival anywhere else in the

province opportunities abound in my district, Mr. Speaker.

Couples

are lining up to get married on Fogo Island. The last time I was over there, Mr.

Speaker, it felt like Vegas, only there were no Elvises on the corner but there

were Marjories and Susies lining up everywhere with licences to wed.

that's a couple of attractions, then next to that we have the beautiful Change

Islands, which is exactly two islands joined by a little bridge that is across

it. If you ever go there, you'd never drop your camera. But over there we have a

unique thing too; it's called the Newfoundland Pony Sanctuary. And Netta over

there, she has 12 ponies in her stables. I think Netta would think more over the

ponies than she probably does her spouse, because she spends more time with

them. The thing over there, though, it's somewhat like Disney. Disney you have

to be four feet high to ride a ride in Disney, but to ride a Newfoundland pony

you have to be four feet or less. So I encourage everyone to go over and visit

that.

The

other thing in my district, Mr. Speaker, is the numerous sandy beaches. From

Cape Freels, Lumsden to Musgrave Harbour you will find miles and miles of sandy

beaches. If we could only get the weather and the sun to go with it, we would

have some of the best accommodations and best beaches in the world to visit. You

can stay and play at our numerous accommodations along with the beaches. People

staying at the Beach House Inn are truly amazed by the miles of beaches. They'd

rival any Florida beach the only thing missing, like I said, Mr. Speaker, is

the sun. So I'm going to talk to the minister in charge of climate change to see

if he can bring some more of that up our way.

Being a

true Newfoundlander and Labradorian, we make the best of any season. We have all

kinds of parks. We have Windmill Bight and (inaudible) Harbour Park, Indian Bay

has a park, New-Wes-Valley has a park. So that's our take on tourism.

Then we

have numerous salmon rivers. There are 20 rivers in my district where you can

cast a hook. The mighty Gander River is probably one of the best ones. I know

the Member for Gander would love to take credit for the Gander River, but it

flows out my way and the salmon comes in from there. There are numerous bed and

breakfasts; there are outfitters on that river. The number of people that go

there is amazing.

AN HON. MEMBER:

The famous Gander River boat.

MR. BRAGG:

And that's right, the Gander

River boat. It's very unique. We may have our dories on the South Coast and

Southwest Coast, but we have the Gander River boat. It's probably like 22, 23

feet long and three or four feet wide. Just wide enough for the average person

to sit in but it's uniquely made to go up the river.

Then we

have the groomed trails, which with the snow this year, Mr. Speaker, as you can

imagine, the groomer and this may not impress the Member for Torngat Mountains

that we have groomed trails, but for us it's a great way to bring people in.

Most people on the Avalon, as you know, while we're suffering snow, it's raining

here. So a lot of people go to Central and Western. So that's a big attraction

in our area.

We have

easy access to the fishing grounds. The District of Fogo Island Cape Freels

has something for everyone and for every season. I encourage everyone to visit

my historic and scenic district, but we're just not all about tourism.

I'd like

to highlight some of the employment opportunities in my district. There are

seven fish processing plants: Barry Group in Dover employs over 250 people for

up to nine months of the year; Wood-Pick in Wareham has a sea urchin plant and

employs over 30 people; Beothic Fish in Valleyfield, which is multi-species,

employs over 300 people; Wheaton's Limited in Carmanville that does

multi-species, employs 20 or more; Hodder's fishery in Stoneville, which does

sea urchins, 30 or more people. Then we have the Fogo Island Co-op, which does

all the species I think that swims in the ocean, employs over 200 people; and on

Change Islands they have a plant that does the sea cucumber, that employs

another 25 more.

As you

would have heard in the last couple of days, the cuts to the shrimp and the

crab; it is something that affects my district. It is such a big part of the

employment. So I look forward to working with these people.

The

other thing we have, we talk about the return to the cod fishery. Cod was what

brought John Cabot here. Cod is what put us here and cod is what will probably

keep us here. Cod is an important part of rural Newfoundland as anything else

that's out there.

We have

other important opportunities for employment, from forestry to manufacturing.

Stoneville, in the north end of my district, as forestry workers, saw mills.

Centreville has one of the most high-tech, wood molding shops in the province.

Most of the moldings, I would think, sold here on the Avalon comes out of the

Centreville office. We have a fibreglass shop in Centreville which is second to

none for any boat that you can find in this province. The Seabreeze Boat is

second to none.

Mr.

Speaker, to say that my district is unique is probably not right, but it has

something for everyone. It has something for someone for every season.

In the

Throne Speech, we talked about we are going to support social enterprise. Well,

we had the best example of that with Fogo Island Co-op, which turns 50 this

year. They went from the grassroots of cod back to the cod again. I have an

organization like the Cape Freels Development Association, which employs a lot

of people and brings a lot of employment to the area.

We're

looking at providing better services, and there's no better time to talk about

better services than what we are doing today out on the islands and out in all

the coves and the small towns in my district. Every piece of equipment possible

is employed out there today to deal with this snow.

So, Mr.

Speaker, I don't think I'm going to be using up all of my time. I will stop by

saying we are going to, in the Throne Speech, support a healthier province. We

are going to work with the schools and communities to develop healthy

foundations.

I have a

Member's speech later today which is going to highlight one of the teachers from

my district volunteering for school sports in the province. That, I think, is

very important. I can't wait to give the Member's statement after lunch. That

will highlight the importance of having school sports in these schools to

promote healthy living for kids.

On that

note, Mr. Speaker, I do believe I will take my seat and turn this over to the

next person willing to jump up.

Thank

you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the

District of Lewisporte Twillingate.

MR. D. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The hon.

Member yesterday talked about his unique district and, no doubt, he's a unique

character himself.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. D. BENNETT:

Before I talk about some of

the great things that are happening within our Department of Children, Seniors

and Social Development, and also Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation,

I, too, want to send my appreciation to all the hard workers that are out there

trying to clear the roads in my district.

Since

Friday, Mr. Speaker, we had over 130 centimetres of snow accumulated, and there

were areas that had probably, five, six, up to 10 feet of drifts. Crews have

been working very diligently to keep the areas closed. So I just want to say a

big thank you to them, and I also want to thank all the people in my district

for their co-operation and understanding during these difficult times. Most of

the roads have been opened now and people are trying to get back to normal life.

Schools have remained closed this morning. They haven't been back in session

since last Thursday. So I'm sure students are getting eager to get back into the

classrooms.

Mr.

Speaker, I'm pleased to rise in this hon. House to deliver my Address in Reply

to the Speech from the Throne. Since December 2015, I've had the privilege of

serving as parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Children, Seniors and

Social Development and Minister Responsible for the Newfoundland and Labrador

Housing Corporation.

It was

an honour to be selected for this responsibility and it comes after a long

career in municipal administration with a focus on tourism and recreation. It is

fair to say that I have a strong background in the community sector. One thing I

would like to say with all certainty is the minister that I serve as

parliamentary secretary has done a tremendous job in leading this vital

portfolio which touches the lives of many people within our communities.

Mr.

Speaker, our government is continuing to move forward to enhance the lives of

people in our province in a variety of ways. We are addressing poverty, violence

and mental health issues, enhancing education, working co-operatively and

effectively with Aboriginal communities, improving inclusion for persons with

disabilities, and also enhancing health care and wellness.

Providing an enhanced service delivery to all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians

is a priority of our government. Through all stages of their life, Mr. Speaker

the people of this province deserves access to quality programs. That is why in

late August our government created a new Department of Children, Seniors and

Social Development which combine the previous Departments of Child, Youth and

Family Services and the Department of Seniors, Wellness and Social Development.

There

are natural synergies and areas in both the former departments which overlap,

and as a proactive government we had to look at ways on how to best provide

critical services across a wide range of society. I'm encouraged by the merger

of these two exceptional teams. The outcome is a more responsive approach to the

needs of all residents with a strong focus on their individual well-being.

important point about the creation of the new departments is that there are no

changes whatsoever to the important front-line Child Protection Services that

are delivered in every region of this province. The safety and protection of our

vulnerable population, such as children and youth, is an important focus of this

government. It is our goal that the advancements made in child protection will

help to ensure children and youth are receiving the best possible services, Mr.

Speaker.

We are

continuing the ongoing work of building a revitalized child protection system

that is responsive to the priority needs of children and youth, as well as

continuing to make significant progress in creating a culture of accountability,

excellence and consistency across all programs in all regions.

The

protection and healthy development of our children is paramount to the

department and the services that we provide. That is why we're always monitoring

and assessing our services. In fact, we completed a review of our legislation

back last year. A legislation review of the

Children and Youth Care and Protection Act took place between June

and December 2016. Following this engagement phase, we are now considering all

of the feedback collected to determine how we will move forward. A What We Heard

summary document will be posted online later this month.

Mr.

Speaker, the review focused on six policy areas: improving information sharing

between children, seniors and social development and other stakeholders;

supporting prevention services for children in need of protection and enabling

children, seniors and social development to licence and make regulations for

out-of-home placements; identifying options to improve permanency planning for

children and youth is also a priority; improving services to youth in need of

protection; and, finally, strengthening services to our Aboriginal children and

youth. The youth services program was also an important element of this review

as well.

The

minister's mandate letter directed her to conduct a review of the programs to

ensure the program is responsible to the unique needs of vulnerable youth and it

does not discriminate based on whether a child was in care with the Department

of Children, Seniors and Social Development when they turned 16. The program,

Mr. Speaker, provides supportive, residential, financial, education and

rehabilitative services to youth aged 16 years and older, and if they are at

risk or being maltreated that would be addressed.

There

are different requirements for youth to receive services beyond the age of 18 on

whether they are in care by their 16th birthday. As age and eligibility for

services under the youth services program are defined in the child and youth

care protection act, this review was also conducted concurrently with a

statutory review. As I said earlier, Mr. Speaker, our government is continuing

to move forward to enhance the lives of people of our province at all stages of

their lives in a variety of ways.

Mr.

Speaker, for some time the public, seniors' organizations and major stakeholders

consistently and strongly called for an establishment of the Office of the

Seniors' Advocate. In our government's five-point plan, we promised to have the

Seniors' Advocate in place, and we are well on the way of honouring that

commitment.

December 13, 2016, legislation to establish the Office of the Seniors' Advocate

received third reading in this hon. House. While we already have the mechanism

in place to handle information services and to address individual seniors'

issues, the core mandate of the Office of the Seniors' Advocate will be to

address systemic issues impacting our seniors, Mr. Speaker.

The

Seniors' Advocate will report to the House of Assembly and make recommendations

to government. The advocate will work closely with other entities, including the

Office of the Citizens' Representative, and the Seniors' Resource Centre of

Newfoundland and Labrador, but it will not duplicate or impede their mandates.

We are working hard to have the advocate in place by this spring.

Mr.

Speaker, the Status of Persons with Disabilities is also in the minister's

mandate letter to review existing legislation and implement inclusion-based

legislation for our province. Inclusion-based or broad-based accessible

legislation is a growing trend across our country. It goes beyond making

buildings accessible to making all aspects of our communities and private and

public services accessible to everyone. We know citizens of our province still

experience barriers on a daily basis, barriers that exclude people from taking

part in their communities, from employment opportunities and even from public

services.

Mr.

Speaker, we want to hear from the people of our province and work with our

community organizations and other stakeholders to develop a made in Newfoundland

and Labrador legislation. We will consult and engage with people who have

disabilities, and other stakeholders like community organizations, industry

associations and municipal governments. Individuals and groups are already

turning their minds on to how this legislation could look.

The

Provincial Advisory Council for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities has

begun discussion on the legislation options. Over 60 individuals recently

participated in the federal consultation on this legislation. The Disability

Policy Office is monitoring what is happening across the province and within

other countries.

transportation is essential to participation and inclusion. We know accessible

transportation is not an option in many areas of this province, and for that

reason we continue to offer programs that remove these barriers.

Mr.

Speaker, the Accessible Vehicle Program is making a real difference in the lives

of people by helping individuals and their families retrofit personal vehicles

to be accessible. We have improved the application process and are now funding

applications on the wait-list from last year. We have opened the program this

past fall to accept new applications. Within the 2016-2017 budget, 80

individuals throughout this province have accessible transportation because of

this program. The 2016-17 program funded 10 applicants on last year's wait-list,

as well as an additional eight on the new applicants.

We know

transportation can also be challenging for older adults, as well as persons with

mobility issues. Seniors identified transportation issues as one of the main

barriers to social participation and engagement. They want transportation that

is accessible, available and affordable.

Many

residents of our province are benefiting from the continued support of the

age-friendly transportation initiative through an investment of $1.3 million

over three years. We committed $300,000 to support six age-friendly

transportation projects throughout the province. Five pilot projects are taking

place in different parts of the province and we're working closely with these

groups to ensure accountability and sustainability. An evaluation of the program

has identified ways to strengthen existing programs through learning and best

practices.

Mr.

Speaker, the evaluation included other elements that support transportation

throughout the province including one in my district, the community wheels

project in Twillingate New World Island, as well as the Accessible Taxi

Program and the Accessible Vehicle Program for private vehicles. The Accessible

Taxi Funding Program is actively addressing some of the barriers by helping taxi

mobility devices such as wheelchairs or scooters can avail of taxi services.

Mr.

Speaker, the accessible taxis can also be used by anyone and are not restricted

to just persons with mobility issues. This program has kick-started an interest

in providing accessible taxi services. Just two years ago, there was one

accessible taxi in our province. There are now 11 in the St. John's area alone.

Ridership has gone from zero when there was no option for accessible taxis to

200 in the first month, and now over 1,000 trips a month by persons who two

years ago didn't have an option of a taxi.

The

Accessible Taxi Program has provided seven grants to taxi companies. Helping

companies in St. John's, Dildo and Grand Falls-Windsor add accessible vehicles

to their services. In addition, we recently announced two more grants to taxi

operators on the West Coast.

Mr.

Speaker, I would now like to focus some of the great initiatives that are being

undertaken by the department and the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing

Corporation over the past while. While the minister at the helm, a series of

province-wide stakeholder consultations were launched back on January 10 to

review Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation's programs and services.

The minister led the review with a goal of ensuring that residents in need have

access to safe, secure and affordable housing across the province.

I had

the opportunity to attend a session in Gander and was very pleased with the

turnout. Stakeholders and other attendees enjoyed the session and networking,

and also the learning opportunities. They were very grateful for the opportunity

to have their views and opinions heard, Mr. Speaker.

This

review set out to identify ways to serve the needs of clients with greater

efficiencies and effectiveness. These consultations sought to bring all

stakeholders into a discussion as our government implements

The Way Forward which is our

comprehensive vision for getting Newfoundland and Labrador back on a secure and

economic footing. In The Way Forward ,

one of the action items committed to this review.

Mr.

Speaker, according to the official Way

Forward document, this review aimed to ensure the mandate of the

organization reflects the current priorities, optimize the use of federal and

provincial funding to deliver programs and services, and realize efficiency and

service improvements, and also to streamline organization with no negative

impact on our clients.

I will

add, The Way Forward is proof that

changes we are making and the actions we are implementing are working. In late

March, the Premier announced phase two of

The Way Forward which turned the focus on growth and job creation in

Newfoundland and Labrador's private sector. At that event, the Premier announced

that the efforts undertaken in phase one resulted in a net annualized savings of

$45 million. In a time of fiscal restraints when every dollar counts, that's a

very positive development.

Another

thing he announced was the initiative contained in phase two would result in

approximately 14,000 person years of employment. Again, in a time when our

economy is suffering from a downturn in the global commodity markets and the

conclusion of several major, large industry projects in our province, this is

very welcoming news.

The Way Forward

is a plan that will help us to deliver Newfoundland and Labrador back to firm

ground and relieve future generations of the weight of the crushing deficit our

province is currently undergoing.

Mr.

Speaker, in January of this year, the minister, along with the Member of

Parliament for Labrador, announced an investment in affordable housing and

supportive services for victims of domestic violence and their families for

communities in Happy Valley-Goose Bay. MP Yvonne Jones announced this initiative

on behalf of her federal counterpart, the Minister of Families, Children and

Social Development. The provincial and federal governments invested $600,000 in

this initiative, and the Homelessness Partnering Strategy contributed over

$300,000. This investment offered hope and support for victims of domestic abuse

and it is something we should all be proud of.

To be

able to enhance provisions of stable and secure housing for vulnerable

individuals, that is one of the initiatives, I must say, I'm quite grateful to

be part of. I think investments like this that involve funding from both federal

and provincial governments and stakeholder groups in the non-profit sector show

what is possible through strong intergovernmental co-operation. We have been

very fortunate to have a strong partnership with our government in Ottawa.

Because of this strong friendship and mutual co-operation, we've been able to

provide dozens of key investments in Newfoundland and Labrador that simply would

not have been possible without.

Mr.

Speaker, I can tell you a good relationship with Ottawa was not a priority of

the last administration. As a result of the poor relations, programs and

initiatives were not funded, opportunities were missed and progress stalled. I

am glad to serve in a government that has reversed that lonely position. Now we

have a direct line to Ottawa and a strong partnership with our federal

government that wants the best for the province just like we do, Mr. Speaker.

That's something this province has needed for a while.

Just one

day after our minister, along with MP Jones, announced the funding in Happy

Valley-Goose Bay, the Minister Responsible for Newfoundland and Labrador Housing

Corporation also announced a major investment in supportive housing in Labrador

West. These affordable housing units will benefit single-parent families and

individuals who require supportive housing. Between the province and the federal

government, $1.8 million will be spent on this initiative, made possible through

investments in the Affordable Housing Agreement.

Mr.

Speaker, this development, in partnership with community groups and the Lab West

Housing and Homelessness Coalition. Under our predecessors, a major member of

potential partnerships on this scale was missing from the equation. The federal

government and the PC government were not able to work together. As a result,

many worthwhile initiatives just like the ones I mentioned went to the wayside,

but, Mr. Speaker, those days are over. They are just a few of the many

worthwhile initiatives undertaken by the department and also the Newfoundland

and Labrador Housing Corporation in the last few months.

It has

been an honour and a privilege to serve alongside the minister and the many

dedicated bureaucrats and front-line workers who provide the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador with valuable and essential services. Through

The Way Forward and our solid working

relationship with Ottawa, I believe we can build on the successes of our first

fiscal year and get this province back on track. Already, the changes we have

implemented have started to work. Again, I'll reference the $45 million in

savings in just the first six months of our

Way Forward .

Mr.

Speaker, this comes as a result of working to promote a flatter, leaner approach

to our government. Now with a focus on growth in the private sector, I believe

this province has already started to rebound from the very dire situation it was

in back in 2015 when we took office.

This

pretty well concludes my time, Mr. Speaker. It's been an honour to rise to

Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne.

Thank

you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Service NL.

MR. TRIMPER:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

It's a

great honour, as most of my colleagues like to start their remarks, by just

being able to be here in the House of Assembly and to represent your

constituents. I represent the great District of Lake Melville, some 100,000

square kilometres and probably somewhere in the vicinity of 8,500 souls no

10,000 souls. So it's a pretty low density.

colleague from Cartwright L'Anse au Clair wants me to list off the

communities. So going from west to east is, that's Churchill Falls, Happy

Valley-Goose Bay, Northwest River, Mud Lake and Sheshatshiu. So a great variety

of indigenous cultures, European cultures, Newfoundland cultures and so on.

Address in Reply, I think it's most appropriate that we talk about just what was

the Speech from the Throne and what it was entailed to do. Frankly, it was to

remind everyone in the province that we have a plan. As boring as it may seem to

some, it's very important that when you develop a plan to address a variety of

serious issues that you stick with the plan.

I can

only think about the approximately 50 items that are outlined in

The Way Forward and the importance of

identifying how we're going to do it, when we're going to do it, what will

achievement look like, so that these are all measurable. So that we can reflect

back whether or not we are able to achieve, where did we struggle, what do we

need to do to fix it in the future. The report card we just recently released

shows what we are able to accomplish and, frankly, less than some six months,

there's no question there's a lot that has been done, there's a lot more that

can be done and is being done.

I guess

when I was thinking about planning, I was thinking about I like to look around

for examples in my life, and T he Wealthy

Barber comes to mind. Not that I go to a lot of barbers these days, but I

think of David Chilton and his advice on financial management. There are several

interesting quotes from that very wise barber that provides the author with the

wisdom. I just had a couple there, just for example.

First of

all, as you receive money make sure you pay yourself first. Essentially, that's

meaning put some money away, take care of your debts and ensure that you can

ride out those low points, even though right now you may be at a good point. I

only have to bring up some of these examples to think back to a lot of the

commentary from the team around me, the people in this House when we talk about

the wealth that the province enjoyed some, what is about 10 years ago now when

we were at peak oil production, peak oil prices, with tremendous revenues and we

were still out spending.

I'm just

thinking if a few more people had read The

Wealthy Barber at that time, maybe we'd be in a different position than we

are now.

Also,

David Chilton likes to talk about establishing an emergency fund. I think about

the criticism we received about the concept of having a contingency fund in our

budget just one year ago; yet, I think we've been able to demonstrate the items

that we have had to apply to the contingency fund are often items that were

completely unforeseen. Situations, for example, like the big storms that have

occurred here in the fall and my previous responsibility on the T'Railway. These

are the kinds of items where you don't see them coming but you sure need to be

ready for them. As that Wealthy Barber said, putting aside some revenue to

address them when you don't see them coming is very wise advice.

As I've

mentioned in this House of Assembly several times, I spent some 14 years in

Russia. I was living here but I was certainly working extensively there. I

watched a superpower implode. It was amazing. I was there from 1990 to 2004,

watching this massive country, incredibly powerful, completely disintegrate.

I look

at my colleague, the Page here, knowing where he comes from and knowing some of

the regions I worked in, in Turkmenistan, Central Asia and so on, I watched

countries completely fall apart. As they tried to rebuild, it was interesting

that there was a great deal of chaos for several years, but as oil prices

started to increase and production certainly was on the rise, the government,

through the 1990s and in through the early parts of 2000, were relying on oil.

Again,

oil is not all bad. Certainly, as the Minister of Natural Resources knows, it's

a very important resource for us. Canada and this province are indeed very

blessed to have such reserves as we do; however, oil and the abuse of the

revenue that can come from it can hide a lot of sins.

What I

watched happen in Russia is, I think, very parallel in many ways to what I've

seen happen here. There were a lot of messes. My role in Russia I was working

with a firm, we were cleaning up oil spills everywhere. Pipelines were falling

apart. There had been no maintenance. There had been no monitoring of spills,

and oftentimes we would find ourselves coming into an area where a pipeline had

broken and it had been spilling for some long period of time. Now foreign aid

was coming in to help address the issue.

I guess,

I kind of think of ourselves in the same way. I constantly, and even this

morning, I am encountering issues that frankly have been germinating for the

last several years, punted out into the future and not addressed, and it makes

it all the more tougher for us as a government. We have so much hope and

aspiration and wanting to do the right thing but constantly pulled back and

challenged by whether it has to be spending more money on servicing the debt

than we spend on education, as my colleague, the Minister of Education,

indicated yesterday in some of his responses.

That

pressure and what it does to any minister, to anybody who has any kind of

decision-making capacity in government, is oppressive. It's just such a shame

that we didn't, some many years ago, realize the revenue we were enjoying some

it's been quoted some $25 billion in revenue that we 'shoulda, coulda, woulda'

taken clear advantage of and applied it in a great way.

I next

wanted to speak a little bit about other kinds of planning. Representing

Labrador as I do, with my colleagues from Cartwright L'Anse au Clair, from

Labrador West and from the great Torngat Mountains and that great club, I'm

really proud to be part of the geography. While there are other great groups and

so on within our caucus and within government, being as we are in Labrador, and

all being on the same party, I have found it very productive to work with them.

We had a great meeting again this morning. Most of us were there dealing with

issues that are important to us, and it's a great synergy.

One of

the key pieces of what preoccupies us these days is the completion of the

Trans-Labrador Highway. As many of us can recall, I think we can all recall, I

think Brian Peckford not Brian Peckford but Brian Tobin was the premier of the

day, and Barney Powers providing a flatbed truck, pulled it down at the end of

the Churchill Road at the time, because it certainly didn't go anywhere past

Churchill, and made announcements of investment in that project.

gentleman by the name of Hank Shouse, who was a former mayor of Happy

Valley-Goose Bay, he was a nation builder. Even though he is from the United

States, he had great hope and provided great determination to ensure that the

Trans-Labrador Highway could get started and hopefully one day could be

completed.

It is

interesting to see the progress that's been made over the last some 20 years.

One criticism I hear sometimes from outside of Labrador is, why we are spending

so much money on the Trans-Labrador Highway and enjoying great support from the

federal government? Well, the fact of the matter is and the answer is that until

the project is done we're not connected.

You can

have all the lanes of highway, all the pavement you want, but if you can't get

from A to B you still need to work on the project. Frankly, that's where we are

with some, what it is 1,100 kilometres of highway from St. John's to even where

I live in Goose Bay, another 500 to my colleague from Labrador West. My other

colleague in the Torngat Mountains, well, he has to snowmobile home. So it's

even further for him.

What I'm

trying to say is you're not going to accomplish this kind of project in four

years. You have to look forward. You have to think 20 years out and you have to

make sure you're making progress and doing what you can. I'm pleased to say that

we are indeed doing that.

Further

to this, and in support of my comment that until it's connected, we're all

connected from A to B, is the money we've set aside, that three-quarters of a

million dollars to update the feasibility study between Newfoundland and

Labrador. Now, why is this important? It's interesting; I have an interesting

perspective on this. I actually was involved in the development. I was involved

in the proposal process and the development of the feasibility, and then the

fixed link project between New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. I was part of

a consortium of companies. They bid on the project, we won the project and we

did it.

My role

was involved in the environmental assessment of that project. It was interesting

at the time, folks were genuinely concerned. Yes, there was a change in sort of

the social, economic, cultural dimensions, particularly of Prince Edward Island;

but, as we all know, Prince Edward Island continues to flourish and continues to

enjoy a much more efficient, a much more progressive way to interact with the

rest of the country. That is what we are asking for here.

By the

way, this isn't a feasibility study for Labrador. This is a feasibility study

for the province, and as soon as most folks realize that the majority of the

population, which is some 94 per cent of us which live on this Island, realize

that finding a more efficient, direct access route through to Central Canada

where most of our goods come from is going to be a very good thing. Yes, there

are going to be changes and, yes, we're going to see some we're going to need

to think again over the long term.

Issues

like Port aux Basques and the ferry to Cape Breton, absolutely, we're going to

need to continue to use that kind of service. We can't go cutting off our close

relationship with the rest of Atlantic Canada.

AN HON. MEMBER:

A great circle route.

MR. TRIMPER:

As my good colleague says,

this is indeed a great circle route through the Atlantic region and so on. I

expect that this is going to be such a tremendous economic opportunity.

I was

lucky about, I'm not sure, maybe 15 years ago I spent a day and a half with

Tom Kearns. Many of you will know this name. It was really interesting. My

colleague for Cartwright L'Anse au Clair will appreciate this. We spoke, him

and I, at a Chamber of Commerce in the Labrador Straits area, south of where she

lives. But it was interesting; he spoke about nation building, talked about Sir

John A. Macdonald building his railway. Well, I would suggest that the fixed

link that will connect Newfoundland and Labrador finally together physically

will be very much a very important part of nation building.

Given

I've used so much time, I want to now turn to just another issue. Yesterday, the

Leader of the Opposition was talking about his concern that we had somehow

dominated the airwaves, dominated the press, dominated the communications inside

this House of Assembly, telling people it's bad, making them feel bad. He used

the expression yesterday that people no longer felt like they were first-class

residents or citizens of this province.

AN HON. MEMBER:

That's a shame.

MR. TRIMPER:

Well, I would agree.

I would

suggest that our point is that first of all people need to know the facts. They

need to realize, as I just said a few minutes ago, we spend more on interest

payments than we spend on educating our children. That's a shocking statement

and, frankly, that's an embarrassment. So I'm very proud to be a part of this

province. I feel like a first-class citizen, but I also feel like a broke

first-class citizen.

getting on with the plan and getting on with a resolution is a very important

task and a very important priority. That led me to and I think they're

watching at home, so I'm going to give them a little plug. I was at the in-laws

last night, Mr. and Mrs. Hong, having a nice little chat with those people and I

happened to have a glance through The

Telegram .

There

was a little

article in there, a letter to the editor from a former politician

with this House, Peter Fenwick. If people had a little glance at that last

night, there were some very disturbing comments. I think further to Leader of

the Opposition's comments yesterday about us dominating the negative airwaves, I

would refer folks to his call to action which he says in Thursday's budget and

I'll have to change some names for roles here, so I don't get myself in trouble.

He says in Thursday's budget the Premier will have to cut close to 8,000 public

service jobs if the province is to remain competitive in the long run. Well,

what brilliant insight that is in terms of how we're going to get ourselves out

of this fiscal situation.

concludes with a real gem, which is: What is clear, however, is that timid

layoffs of 300 or 400 will not be enough to save our future. And having just

gone through a series of layoffs and watched the very difficult decisions that

we've had to make, both last April, had to make in my department, and what we

had to go through in March, and my colleague, the Minister of Health, and the

difficult decisions that the regional health authorities have had to do, I find

that quite insulting that he is thinking that the decisions and the altered

lives of some 300 or 400 people don't matter. Well, I can tell you that every

single one of those lives matter.

Having

been in the private sector for most of my life, where you let someone go because

they are a non-performer or because they weren't working out with a team; but to

watch people go out the door because we can't afford them, I found it very, very

frustrating. I'm going to make sure I do what I can to ensure that we do not

find ourselves in this mess again again, sticking to the plan. It may sound

boring, but my gosh, we are going to get ourselves through this thing. I look

forward to a day when it might have been boring, but you did a very good job

at getting this province back on its feet.

I am

just sort of zeroing in on some key things, and I thank the Speaker yesterday

for allowing an introduction of a very fine young man who is up here. His name

was Jonathan Buckle. This is the other side. Despite all the difficult

situations that I've just talked about for three quarters of my time, I want to

talk some of the real key positives.

Yesterday, we had a young lad here. He had come to my office only recently, him

and his father, and he is deaf. Through some surgery that he had received years

ago, he had what are called cochlear implants, which has allowed him to have an

ability to hear. With upgrades that are needed in advancing technology, it's

marvelous the function that we can now provide people who have this hearing

challenge. I have to turn to my colleague, the Minister of Health and Community

Services, for his role in ensuring that financial support was here for Jonathan

and for some 13 other young people of this province. It was, I have to say,

extremely heartwarming to have him walk into my office yesterday, excited.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. TRIMPER:

I had seen him a few weeks

ago and he just couldn't believe the world that he was experiencing around him.

Frankly, I think that's why so any of us are in politics, is to make sure we can

do good; whether it is one individual, like Jonathan, or to connect our province

through a completed Trans-Labrador Highway in a fixed link. It's all about

making progress, and it's all about helping our fellow man and woman.

I have

just a few minutes left, and I want to comment on a very serious issue that is

going on in my district. It is one that by way of taking in two minutes now I'm

going to provide a little bit of an update. That is on human health issues

around the Muskrat Falls Project.

As the

House knows, I've been heavily involved in this issue, both before I came into

politics and certainly since. I'm happy to say that with my colleague, the

Minister of Municipal Affairs and Environment, we will be working very closely.

What we've done and folks will recall that in October, the Premier and I, and

the Minister of Natural Resources, along with our colleagues from Labrador spent

a marathon session with the indigenous leadership of Labrador. We struck on the

idea of creating an Independent Expert Advisory Committee which will, with

financial support and good expertise, provide recommendations to government, to

myself and my colleague, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Environment.

We will

take those recommendations and use them in the mitigation and monitoring

direction that we would then apply to the project. As the Premier has said, as I

have said, this government will not tolerate situations where if we could do

something to protect the human health of the people of Lake Melville, and then

passed on it because of whatever reason, we will not ignore that. This is not

the situation of years gone by. This is not Russia where we ignore issues. This

is where we genuinely care about our people and we're going to make sure that

they are going to be protected.

I've

very much look forward to seeking that advice and, by way of an update, I wanted

to indicate that I believe we are in the final steps of concluding the terms of

reference that will guide the committee. I look forward to coming to the House

soon to reporting on that. We're just waiting now the province is reviewing

the final text, as are the three indigenous organizations. Once that's complete,

I look forward to announcing that, as well as announcing the key staff, the key

folks, that will guide us in issuing those recommendations.

With

that, Mr. Speaker, I'll take my seat and I thank you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Placentia West Bellevue.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BROWNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Indeed

it is always an honour to rise in my place as the Member for Placentia West

Bellevue. I often think of the tremendous privilege each of us are given by

those who elected us to govern this province. I thank them for their confidence.

Before I

get into my remarks in Address in Reply, I want to say a very special greeting

to one of my predecessors, Mary Hodder, who is celebrating her birthday today.

Happy birthday, Mary!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BROWNE:

She's still a very active

luminary in the community, the Burin Peninsula community, someone who is very

involved in her community. She was the first female Deputy Speaker a terrific

trailblazer for the current Deputy Speaker, who does a tremendous job sitting in

the Chair, when she's in a good mood, Mr. Speaker. So it's always a pleasure

certainly to rise and recognize one of my predecessors and my seatmate as well.

Mr.

Speaker, with that, I will say thank you to all the Members who have contributed

to the debate. As those watching at home can tell, my seatmate and I have a good

rapport; if not, we would suffer together. I would say that it's a pleasure to

rise in this motion that was moved by the Member for Stephenville Port au Port

last week for Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne. I thank him and

the Member for Exploits on that day for their good words and, of course, a

special thank you to His Honour the Lieutenant Governor for his delivery of the

Speech from the Throne last week.

With

that said, Mr. Speaker, I'd like to raise some matters of concern relating to my

district. I know and this government knows that the people of Newfoundland and

Labrador are strong. We are resilient. We are determined and we are ready for

whatever challenges come our way. Indeed, that was focused on over the last few

days and it is still highlighted in parts of the province that are crippled

under severe snowfall amounts.

The

Burin Peninsula, as an example, had at least two impasses on the Burin Peninsula

Highway, as of this morning, clear. The Grand le Pierre Road was blocked and

there were crews out around 10 o'clock last night trying to make a first cut

through and then they weren't successful. I just heard from the mayor just a few

moments ago who tells me everything is good and trying to normalize and getting

back to where they were. So I'm very grateful to the crews. I'm very grateful to

all the employees and those who worked very diligently and hard to make that

happen.

I will

say, Mr. Speaker, in that line, we know there are challenges that come and some

things that we can't control. Certainly, there are other things that we can

control and things that we can respond to. There is no denying that there are

challenges, but what I want to use my speaking time today for is to focus on

The Way Forward , which is a positive

path before us, rather than dwell on the negative.

It is

important that we first recognize some achievements. I think it's important to

look back, not as far back as prior to the 2015 election because we know the

mismanagement, we know what happened and that story has been told, and I

certainly have been one of the storytellers of it, Mr. Speaker.

I want

to look back on the last year particularly since our government took office,

where we passed 71 pieces of legislation compared with an average of 35 pieces

of legislation. So for those watching at home I'll repeat that again; that's 71

pieces of legislation in our inaugural year, compared to 35 pieces of

legislation

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BROWNE:

that the Progressive

Conservatives passed in the last 5 year of government. So Mr. Speaker, for those

who say we don't have plan which has become quite a mantra from the Opposition

because they have nothing else to say other than hanging their heads into shame

for what they did to this province. These are clear facts, these are numbers and

numbers don't lie.

So I

wanted to take a few moments, Mr. Speaker, to highlight some of the pieces of

legislation that we brought forward and some of the initiatives contain therein.

Crown lands access is something I think that's important to many rural

districts. Increased access for municipalities as an example so now Crown

lands within their municipal boundaries, they will have greater and easier

access to it. Across the province now, there has been an increase in the

identified areas for access for agriculture.

In my

own district in the Goobies area, Mr. Speaker, there has been an identified

area. In the Bellevue-Thornlea area there's another identified area, where the

department has gone out and done soil samples and tested where the very fertile

grounds are to do farming and agriculture. Of course, it's natural for us to

think of ourselves as a people of fishing and people of the sea because that's

why we came here; that's who we are. Both my grandfathers were fishermen. My

father spent some time fishing before becoming a teacher. It's who we are; it's

in our blood. Madam Speaker, my wonderful friend, we cannot neglect other

industries and we cannot neglect the value in a diversified economy.

So the

point of what we have done with Crown lands access, Madam Speaker, is to focus

on freeing up the Crown land for economic development. This is something that

has been a long time coming and I believe is terrifically important for the

province as a whole.

Certainly if you look at my district, of Placentia West Bellevue, which I

often liken to be the industrial heartland of the Island portion of Newfoundland

due to the vast wealth of industry that it holds, we cannot lose sight of the

natural resources either, and agriculture is equally as important to anything

we're doing. So that is very important.

I also

want to make mention of the creation of the Newfoundland and Labrador Income

Supplement

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BROWNE:

and the increase to the

Seniors' Benefits. Madam Speaker, for those who are watching at home, today the

second installment will be coming out either in direct deposit or the cheques

will be going into the mail, depending on what you have set up. This is very

important. Unfortunately, this was debated in the House and it was voted against

by Members of the Opposition, but it's something we feel strongly in favour of

because the seniors of this province have built this province, they have

sustained this province, and they deserve every opportunity that we can give

them as leaders and as legislators in this province to be able to give back to

them.

So that

was an investment of $76.4 million last year in the budget. The Seniors' Benefit

was increased by $250, but also the Income Supplement was introduced for

low-income families, seniors and persons with disabilities. That is a very

important thing to highlight. I just want to say again to those at home, the

second installment is coming out today. If you have any questions, please

contact me; phone my office at 279-2912 and we will answer any questions that we

can answer, and get the answers to those that we can, Madam Speaker.

I also

want to highlight the presumptive cancer coverage for volunteer and career

firefighters. This extended beyond our original election commitment. It gives

security to those who are serving and protecting our communities and their

families and it gives peace of mind, and that's an important thing.

I was in

Come By Chance this past weekend where the Come By Chance volunteer fire

department partnered with the Come By Chance Lions Club to host a

sensory-friendly parade for World Autism Day. As many would know, I've said

before, the fire chief in Come By Chance is also the president for the

provincial association for volunteer firefighters. He has played a leading role

in leading training for fire departments, with autism.

Indeed,

the Lions Club in Come By Chance has funded a lot of that, and that is a very

important fact to note. So to give them the coverage that they deserve, that

they require, that they have asked for, for quite some time and didn't get, we

were very happy, and I am very proud to have seen that move forward. For those

of us who are in the media centre downstairs that day Doug Cadigan was there,

and I will never forget his words, where he said it was a commitment given and a

commitment delivered. That is very important.

I also

want to highlight the bill on impaired driving, which is something that Members

of the House would know I am very passionate about. The Member for Burin Grand

Bank and I have been active with the local

chapter of MADD on the Burin

Peninsula. It's something that I am very proud that we did. I can tell you, in

all sincerity, those kinds of bills that I am talking about here now are the

reasons why I offered myself for public office, and I know a lot of other

Members were very happy to support those. It will make our roads, our young

people and our population safer. Getting behind the wheel while driving under

the influence, it is a choice. It is a choice, and I'm very happy our government

took steps to curb further impaired driving.

I stood

in the gymnasium of Christ the King School in Rushoon at the 10th Annual Cory

Kenway Classic, the basketball tournament in memory of Corey Kenway. I said this

was a commitment and we would deliver on it, and we have, Madam Speaker.

I also

want to highlight the secure withdrawal treatment for youth with addictions.

This enables parents who up until now felt helpless. Now they can facilitate

another option. How many information sessions did we go to on the Burin

Peninsula where drugs have afflicted the lives of so many young people. It's a

tragedy, Madam Speaker, it's a tragedy. Parents would be there saying: I feel so

helpless, I can't do anything.

This is

not the final answer to that problem but it's certainly a tool that can be used,

an exercise that previous to this could not be. I think just as it's important

to highlight the economic development initiatives that we bring forward, Madam

Speaker, it's equally important to highlight the social progress and the files

of social value that we're moving along.

Beyond

these legislative accomplishments, Madam Speaker, in my own district I am

working very hard to make things happen. There is so much potential that I see,

and the key now is to harness this potential, to yield its full success. I was

very proud recently to have our government announce its commitment to the

fluorspar mine in St. Lawrence.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BROWNE:

This is a significant

achievement, Madam Speaker, and I know certainly the Member for Burin Grand

Bank has worked very hard on this file. It was on her to-do list and on mine.

It's another check on our box, Madam Speaker. I can tell you, I offered any

support to her that I could because let no one be confused, St. Lawrence is not

in my district but it affects those I represent. It is an employment opportunity

and major economic driver for the Burin Peninsula, part of which I represent,

from Marystown and most of north of that, with the exception of part of the

Fortune Bay East area.

mentality of the past, Madam Speaker, is to only see what falls within the

border of one's own district, but we must think globally. We must look past

divisions of the past and support things that make sense to support. We have

worked very closely with the Burin Peninsula Chamber of Commerce on industry, on

tourism, on shipbuilding, on mining, on aquaculture and there is much more work

yet to be done.

I am

very much looking forward to the Grieg aquaculture project coming to fruition. I

support it, and we need economic development. We need economic diversification,

which is something we did not see at all under the previous administration.

As the

Premier has often said, the economy we inherited from the previous

administration was one overly dependent on oil and ripe with a culture of

overspending in their provincial government. The drop in the price of oil did

not create the problem, Madam Speaker, it exposed the problem.

We must

diversify this economy if we are to survive the post-oil economy as we await

that sector to rebound globally. We see this in our own province with the wind

down of Hebron at Bull Arm. There's such a wonderful morale amongst the workers

at Bull Arm. I've been there, I've visited there, I've toured the facility and

I'll be there again in the coming weeks. I can tell you they have done an

outstanding job. They have stayed safe for many, many hours out there, Madam

Speaker, and it's something I'm very proud of.

I want

to go back to diversification because it's extremely important. Aquaculture

performed in a safe, environmentally sound manner is a way to enable this

diversification. The shipyard in Marystown is also another terrific potential

for growth. This is a more challenging file for us as Members on the Burin

Peninsula because it's a private company that owns it, but I can tell you we

are, and I am, as engaged as possible on this file. Any role government can play

to move the sale of that project along, we will be there to support it.

colleagues, the Member for Burin Grand Bank and the Member for Terra Nova,

continue to work closely on this file together. Madam Speaker, I am not afraid

to adopt a team approach. That is how you get results. Operating in silo does

not work. The previous administration is proof of that. Letting boundaries

define your work gets you nowhere. We all have to pull on the same oar if we are

to get ahead.

So these

are three projects, Madam Speaker, the fluorspar mine in St. Lawrence, the Grieg

aquaculture project for Placentia Bay, and the Marystown Shipyard that I feel

will have a very positive outlook and focus for my district and the entire

region. I know there are other challenges as well but we need to focus on the

positive, Madam Speaker, rather than the negative. There is much to look forward

to and we must continue to look forward and harness those opportunities for

success.

I also

want to take some time now to mention some specifics from the Speech from the

Throne. I was happy to have in the opening remarks of His Honour's speech a

special mention of our own figure skating champion, Kaetlyn Osmond. She's a

tremendous young woman who makes us all proud, and I think I've said as much as

I need to say in my Member's statement some two days ago.

The

Speech sets out our top priority, jobs. I want to repeat that, Madam Speaker,

our top priority is jobs. That is why I am highlighting the Canada Fluorspar,

that's why I'm highlighting the Grieg aquaculture, that's why I'm highlighting

the Marystown Shipyard. Let there be no mistake where my focus lies. Let there

be no mistake where our focus lies as a government, to put people back to work,

Madam Speaker, and diversify an economy that for 12 years all it had was oil.

A new

Cabinet committee on jobs has been created to foster strong employment

conditions and opportunities. This forum will identify new whole of government

opportunities for private sector job growth, and to have this lens applied to

government decision making is a very welcome step. We know there's tremendous

potential and we know there are challenges.

I also

wanted to speak while I still have time, Madam Speaker, as it relates to the

Come By Chance refinery. This is a very big employer in my district. Of course,

there has been concerning news related to employment and layoffs in that area

and I can tell you, I stand by the workers and those who have been affected and

their families in this difficult time.

Last

week, I was very proud after having discussed this and worked with the minister

for him to have released all of the safety inspections. Our message to the

union, our message to those affected, those who work there, those who live

adjacent to it, is to pour through those safety inspections because we want to

ensure that any concerns are addressed or allayed as a result of them because

there's nothing more important than safety, Madam Speaker.

I also

want to highlight the fishery, because it's so important to my district. The

Fisheries Advisory Council is being formed as we work to achieve a successful

transition to ground fish. We will continue investments in new technology,

research and marketing activity by industry players through the Seafood

Innovation and Transition Program.

I was

very happy to be in Arnold's Cove recently, Madam Speaker, at Icewater Seafoods,

the leading ground fish processing plant in the province, to deliver $100,000 in

funding out of the Seafood Innovation and Transition Fund. Minister Judy Foote

was also there on behalf of the federal government with $50,000 for the

facility. These are excellent investments to further jobs and expand operations

at successful facilities.

We were

also there at that time, Madam Speaker, with about $1.7 million in capital works

projects to announce for the area in Arnold's Cove, Come By Chance, and Chance

Cove and Southern Harbour. These are very important job creators as well.

The

Speech, as I have already mentioned, Madam Speaker, raises expansion of

aquaculture. I spoke earlier of the Grieg project for Placentia Bay. This will

result in hundreds, potentially over 1,000 jobs in the construction phase, and

in the processing and operating phases will employ hundreds. This will be a

welcomed shot in the arm to the Placentia Bay economy.

Our

government, as part of The Way Forward ,

intends to work with the industry to increase the 22,000 metric tons of salmon

it produced in 2015 to 50,000 metric tons annually. The mussel industry is also

estimated to have the capacity to grow to 10,750 metric tons of production

annually. This will create jobs. We will not relax nor relent on the regulations

and rigorous criteria with which companies must meet in order to maintain site

applications and licences in the Newfoundland and Labrador agriculture licensing

system.

Madam

Speaker, we have much to be hopeful for. We have much to look forward to. So

long as I am the Member for Placentia West Bellevue, I will not allow

negativity to set in and I will not allow my focus to be taken off the ball.

Madam Speaker, we will persevere and we will prevail.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER (Dempster):

The Speaker

recognizes the hon. the Member for Harbour Main.

MS. PARSLEY:

Madam Speaker, I'm so

thankful to be able to stand in this House today and address the recent Throne

Speech. After my colleague just before me, I don't know what else I got left to

say. He's covered an awful lot of bills that was in mine, but I'll carry on and

try to speak about the great things that are happening in my district and in the

Province of Newfoundland.

It has

outlined a number of initiatives that's been undertaken by the government and it

also will outline a number of initiatives that will form part of our province's

planning going forward.

Before I

get into a few things, I would just like to talk about something. On Saturday

night past, Madam Speaker, I attended the Ice Show in CBS and let me tell you

the calibre of skaters Elvis Stojko was present from probably three- to

four-year-olds right up, and to think about the role model that Kaetlyn Osmond

is, it was phenomenal to see the potential that we have here in Newfoundland and

Labrador. To look at that arena, it's probably one of the best in the world and

it was such an enjoyable night. It was jammed packed.

So we

talk about things in our province, well, these are just some of the little

things that people take for granted; but let me tell you it costs money, it

costs everything and people have the interest now to go and be able to, from the

time a child is 3, four, put him in every facility that we're able to, and that

impacts on their adult life.

There

were a lot of good things contained in the Throne Speech and our

Way Forward plan which is welcome news

for our province. Most of the things addressed in the speech have been talked

about as part of The Way Forward

strategy, which government released six months ago.

Our

vision for sustainability and growth is all about taking action. In the first

six months, we have produced a report card so the people of our province can see

how we're doing in our plans; 39 different actions are addressed in the report

on The Way Forward and 33 of them have

been completed at this time.

promised a launch into the municipal leasing program for Crown lands, and that's

something that I'm very interested in. As a municipal leader, for years we

fought to have Crown lands. With the young farmers that are coming about I

know in CBS it's the farmland for the whole province, but just recently on the

way up to Holyrood you'll notice small, little groups selling vegetables on

Saturdays and Sundays, and these are young farmers between the ages of 20 and

Just

over this past summer, I stopped and bought some vegetables and was asking a few

questions. Apparently, one of them was a teacher and decided to go back into

farming part time. They're doing so well with it. They're going to make it a

career, and their children were there with them working on a Saturday and

Sunday. It's so great to see in our province. So the Crown lands are great

great for the district, great for my district especially from Harbour Main to

North River, Holyrood, Seal Cove.

promised to create a new Fisheries Advisory Council to help growth in this

essential industry in our province. That's all been done, Madam Speaker, and

there is a lot more to come. We promised to release a multi-year infrastructure

plan; this has been done and will have a huge impact on my district.

Madam

Speaker, when it comes to economic initiatives to grow our economy and create

jobs, the Throne Speech and The Way

Forward both addresses this need. In fact, the Throne Speech is

specific that jobs will be the top priority of this government. A new Cabinet

committee is being put together to address one major issue; how to create more

private sector jobs and it starts now. This is a positive response to the

challenges we face in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Government is also planning to make the fishing industry

the centerpiece of our economic development strategy; aquaculture will form part

of this. Government hopes to increase salmon production from 22,000 metric tons

to 50,000 metric tons annually. It will mean thousands of jobs and a real

investment in rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

We're seeking an expansion in the mining activity, which is

going to be worth $2.9 million this year. Oil and gas continues to be a strong

industry for us, even though prices are down but prices will rise again. Tourism

also continues to be a bright

economic light for Newfoundland and Labrador. This industry is worth over $1

million to us annually. In The Way Forward

we're planning to increase the value to $1.6 million.

Speaking

of tourism, Madam Speaker, there are lots of wonderful things in our province,

and I'd like to talk about my district for a moment. The Holyrood Squid Jigging

Festival, just the other day the lineup was announced for July; major people

coming in; people are excited. Summer, hopefully, is coming spring got to come

first. But people are excited about this. The Blueberry Festival in Brigus,

which brings thousands and thousands of dollars to the area; and then we come to

Cupids, where John Guy first landed, the Legacy Centre, the archeological dig,

which myself and the Minister of Tourism attended last year and actually watched

a lot of the schoolchildren there do a dig.

When we

talk about tourism, it brings an awful lot of money into our district. When we

think back, we think of Team Gushue who made us so proud this year, and who is

now as far as I know from yesterday still winning in Alberta. People are

excited about him. He is bringing new excitement to the province, just like I

mentioned Kaetlyn Osmond.

Newfoundland and Labrador has so much potential. It starts in the early years

and that's what we have to do; we have to have hope. We have to have hope for

our children. We don't want our children to be in debt. We don't want our

grandchildren to be in debt. We want them to be able to go to school, attend

university and come out with clear minds to be able to challenge whatever they

want to do in life and bring some of the visions forward.

Mr.

Speaker, one of the areas of primary concern for me in our province is health

care. While we seem to spend more money on health care than anyone else, the

outcomes we get are not the best. We have to change this somehow. Our government

is going to do a lot in the next 18 months to do that.

In our

Phase 2 document entitled Realizing our

Potential there are a number of initiatives to be undertaken: expanding

primary health care across the province; improving the use of technology and the

delivery of health care to our rural province (inaudible); implement a

centralized ambulance dispatch centre; implement healthy living assessments for

seniors to keep seniors healthy at home for as long as possible. And there has

been work done this year with the seniors. The money that's about to come out

today I've had calls last night: Is the money going to be in the bank

tomorrow? People are depending on it. It's a source. It's been a long winter,

long power bills, heavy. Seniors are finding it hard, but we are trying to make

it better. When I told people last night that tomorrow the cheque is supposed to

be released, people are happy about that. We have to be happy about something in

the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Implementing living assessments for seniors, to keep them healthy, to keep them

at home as long as possible and that is so important. We have a number of

long-term care facilities. But if we can keep one senior out of 10 in their

home, that makes a family happy. Once you go into a long-term care facility

sometimes you have no choice. But once you go in there, it's on a route for

another path. So let's do everything we can to keep seniors happy.

Most

important to me is our government's commitment to improving and expanding mental

health services in our province by adopting the recommendations of the All-Party

Committee on Mental Health. Madam Speaker, congratulations are in order to the

All-Party Committee on Mental Health and Addictions that was just completed.

Mental illness, as we all know, it is so important to have healthy minds in our

young adults. I know this. It comes within my family. We celebrated World Autism

Day on Monday, and my colleague here in the House and I chatted.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS. PARSLEY:

It's not about wearing a blue

ribbon on Monday. Every day in the life of a child is a day with autism. Every

day that you get up in the morning has its different challenges. Let me tell

you, our school system is phenomenal. We have a grandson in grade 10, and

there's not a moment in that school that he is not taken care of, chatted about,

emails and we got the supports there. So when we say that our schools are not

working, I can speak that they are. He can go off to school every morning and we

know if a problem arises that day, the people there in that school, the

teachers, the student assistants are there to help.

Like I

said, it's not just a day to wear a blue ribbon, a day to talk about it. It's

like Bell Let's Talk Day on mental health I also have a son with

schizophrenia. I am not afraid to say it. But I have spent the last year and a

half at the Waterford. And to walk through those corridors every day and to see

these young people, mental health, addictions, whatever they may be, exercising

in a room, probably lifting their beds no exercise equipment. That's why I'm

glad that this government is committed to a new mental health institution. We

need it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS. PARSLEY:

The staff there are

phenomenal, but they can only do so much. Like I said, it's been a challenge to

walk these steps of a building that was built in the 1800s and to see the dark

corridors and the dark side of mental illness. Let me tell you, it's no pretty

picture.

Every

day that you walk in there and you walk out, you have to realize how important

it is to have a healthy mind. You can have everything else healthy but if your

mind is not healthy, your body doesn't work the same. Let me tell you as far as

I know, my Opposition over there I first meet the Member for St. John's Centre

a few years ago when she started at St. Teresa's Parish in a little room and we

were one of the people there that night. We were there trying to get help for my

son because there was no help. The only help was to bring him to the Waterford

and let me tell you that's not a choice any parent wants to make.

So in

order to make Newfoundland and Labrador whole, a healthy place for our children,

we have to have healthy systems in schools; we have to keep drugs out that's

why we have the All-Party Committee. It starts there. It doesn't start at 18 or

20; it starts at grade seven, eight and nine when kids go in and get exposed to

things they shouldn't.

We have

some good things in our province. Just recently on Friday the 13th I will

share an experience with you; I'm going to talk about the RNC for a moment. I

had a minor car accident and a heart attack at the scene. I was so worried about

the other person that day in the car that hit me; I was trying to console her.

But the RNC were too busy trying to get me in an ambulance to get me to a

hospital. They offered to take my car, which they did later on that afternoon

and drop it to a parking lot. I mean, what RNC worries about your car; they just

get it towed away.

But

that's the kind of calibre of people we have in Newfoundland and Labrador and we

seem to forget the good things. We focus on the bad and let me tell you, doom

and gloom is not the situation here. We need to focus on the good.

AN HON. MEMBER:

Hope and hard work.

MS. PARSLEY:

Hard work.

I came

into this House of Assembly. I was a former mayor. I had those challenges I just

talked about, while my late husband died. Instead of me and him spending hours

together on a Wednesday or Thursday night before he died, we were trying to put

the town's finances in order. We worried about how much money we had; where the

next project was going to come from.

Those

last moments should have been spent with us, but the commitment that we both

made was about our town, Harbour Main. Let me tell you, anybody who comes in

through this door and don't worry about their constituents got it all wrong.

Because our constituents elected us; they voted us in; they put their faith and

hope in us to come here and do a good job. If we don't fight for them, who do we

fight for?

Getting

back to my speech, I will just touch on a few more things. I come from a great

district. I come with strength and determination. It takes strength and

determination to get out of bed each day and face the challenges that I have,

but I come in here and I put my job first, and my job is my job. My colleagues

even on the other side, I had phone calls the day after my car accident asking

me if they could help me, and my colleagues here have been phenomenal. They

fitted it in every day, every other day, asking me do I need to be here; is

there anything they can help me with. We're a team here and if we're not a team,

we're nothing.

I came

in under the leadership of Dwight Ball and I have worked hard. I think I

canvassed 9,000 homes in my district with six seniors, no young people, no young

Liberals. We got up every morning and we had Tim Horton's kind of our block seat

there but, at the end of the day, we did our job. And I was lucky enough to be

elected to this House, to fight for the people of my district and I will fight

as long as I'm here. Let me tell you if we need something, I will fight for it.

There'll be no stone left unturned.

So I

think we have to kind of get down to the point of running our province, looking

at The Way Forward plan, the next

five-year plan will take us hopefully, there's a budget delivered here

tomorrow. After this budget, we're going to all move on and hopefully it will be

a little bit of good news in it. I can't say the Finance Minister knows what's

in it, but we will move on with a brighter future.

When you

see athletes like Brad Gushue, Kaetlyn Osmond and more to come, Newfoundland and

Labrador has a place in history.

Thank

you, Madam Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.

MS. PERRY:

Thank you so much, Madam

Speaker.

I'd like

to start out I guess with echoing some of the words of my colleague for the

District of Harbour Main. First and foremost, we have been elected by our

constituents to represent our constituents. As I elaborate on Address in Reply,

I'm going to come back to that point because I think it's a crucial point and I

think it's something that, as MHAs, each and every one of us should never

forget.

I know

I've been here since 2007 and never once did I put party above my district.

Always, the people of my district come first. If that's to my own peril, so be

it; the people come first, that's what I've been elected to do, and I truly hope

that should we have a repeat of last year's budget, that Members opposite will

stand up this time on behalf of their constituents, Madam Speaker, because we certainly didn't see that happen last

year.

Our

province has never had such a hard time as it has in the last 12 months, since

the 1990s, the last time when a Liberal government was in power. It has been

such a hard year.

I have,

in my 10 years as being an MHA, never experienced such a high volume of calls

from people who are genuinely experiencing true hardship. Most of it brought on

because of the regressive policies and measures introduced in

Budget 2016 , which many of us are

hoping we are going to see reversed in tomorrow's budget, Madam Speaker.

One in

particular that comes to mind that is affecting every person who owns a vehicle

and every business that's out there, particularly in rural Newfoundland and

Labrador, being the gas tax. We were told at the time it would be reviewed every

six months, and if the price of oil went up, the gas tax would be eliminated. We

have not seen that review of six months. We have seen the price of oil increase.

So I, for one, am truly hoping that at the very least we will see gas tax

reversed tomorrow. I certainly would like to see a lot more of the regressive

measures reversed, Madam Speaker.

I didn't

mean to start there today when I got up. I wanted to talk a little bit about the

wonderful, fine people of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.

AN HON. MEMBER:

They are great people.

MS. PERRY:

They are great people, I tell

you, and there are great people all across Newfoundland and Labrador. When we

experience hardship and tragedies, I like to refer to the expression: When the

going gets tough, the tough get going, and I've seen that in spades in the

District of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.

When we

looked last year at the budget, there was $30 million set aside for contingency

of a natural disaster. During the filibuster, I was probably one of the ones who

criticized that the most. Lo and behold, did I have not one but two significant

tragedies in my district shortly thereafter. At the same time, the $30 million

contingency was eliminated and put back into current account. I'm still baffled

by that, but we are working through, and the federal government was able to come

to our aid through the Disaster Relief Program. Unfortunately, the result of the

disaster has led to expensive tens of millions of dollars.

I was

just looking the other night we talk about ferries. I have three communities

in my district that are isolated and accessible only by ferry or chopper, and

it's quite a struggle, particularly this time of year. If the ferry breaks down

and it's bad weather, the chopper is not getting in either to get people out.

It's a great worry. If someone is about to give birth or if someone is sick and

has a heart attack or a brain aneurism, very, very serious concerns.

When I

hear things, Madam Speaker, like Newfoundland has the highest cost per capita in

health care, yes, so we do but you know what? That's the one sector I would

never, never compromise. There is never a price you can put on people's lives.

We are a relatively, sparsely populated Island spread over a large geographic

area and so our health care costs are going to be higher, and so they should be,

because our people deserve nothing less than the best of health care. Now if we

want to do more to achieve better outcomes, absolutely, but let's not cut health

care for the sake of saving dollars when people's lives are at stake.

Getting

back again to the people of Fortune Bay Cape La Hune. I want to throw out a

bouquet to them, before I leave this part of what I wanted to speak about today,

for the unwavering support they gave to each other. I represent 21 communities

spread over 11,000 kilometres, what I felt during both tragedies was that we

were very much one community. Everyone came together.

The fire

departments from all areas descended upon us, came to our aid during the fires

we had in January, hats off to each and every one of them. It was a very, very

worrisome time for all of us, very dangerous time for all of us. We had two

fires actually prior to the arson incident. A week before there was a building

in the Town of St. Alban's that housed three businesses, a taxation business, a

computer shop and a carpentry shop. All three of those businesses were lost

seven days prior to losing our school, our RCMP building and our town hall in

Milltown.

I was

talking to a friend of mine who was watching the firemen at work. She was

saying, oh, they're going in now. The firemen were going in on their hands and

knees and someone was holding their feet as they were going in to look around

and make sure there were no people in there and everyone was okay. Just to hear

the description, it was really hard to listen to. All I could think about was

the wives and the children of these firemen who were out there putting their

lives at risk to try and save the building and the houses nearby. They did a

fabulous job, no other houses were lost.

When it

came to the fires we had a week later, they came for two days. Firemen from all

over the coast came for two days. A lot of them lost a lot of their equipment

during that fight because it was 48 hours at least that they were spraying and

the weather wasn't on our side at the time. Hats off to the Department of

Municipal Affairs who are helping us out with some of the equipment we lost;

hats off to everybody involved and kudos to all of you.

In terms

of the flood that happened, Hurricane Matthew, we're still dealing with the

roads. We did manage to get ourselves back in service and able to get from one

community to another, but a significant amount of roadwork does need to be done

and repairs this summer to get us back to where we were. The bridge in St.

Alban's is completely gone. Now that it's over, one of my fond memories is

always going to be that rowboat that became the St. Alban's ferry for five days.

We can all look back now and be quite proud of what we've done.

I'm

going to use that analogy of our strength to compare it to how we, as a people,

are dealing with the budget. What we've seen, unfortunately, since last year's

budget is a huge drop in our population again. For the first time in 10 years

we had a report last year on June 29, 2016, released by the Fraser Institute

that showed the first drop in our population due to out-migration in almost 10

years. I was so upset to see that, Madam Speaker, because of all the work and

all the strides we had taken since the early 2000s to rebuild confidence in

ourselves as a people and to try and encourage people to come back to

Newfoundland and Labrador and make this their home.

With the

regressive taxation measures, Madam Speaker, many people just can't afford to

live here. They leave for greener pastures, they build their homes, they have

their children and they don't come back. So I truly, truly, truly hope and

I'll probably say this about 10 times during my speech that some of these

regressive measures will be reversed in tomorrow's budget because they clearly

have not created a better tomorrow. They clearly have not laid a foundation for

a stronger Newfoundland and Labrador. They have destroyed people's confidence in

themselves. To hear a lack of confidence in what our people can do, it is very

disheartening.

strongly believe, Madam Speaker, that our entrepreneurs in Newfoundland and

Labrador are some of the best anywhere. I know we have people, even from my

rural, remote area, that work in places like Nassau. That work in some of the

largest companies we have internationally throughout the world, because we do

have the capability. We do have the intelligence and we can become a stronger

province, Madam Speaker, but we need people to believe, and particularly our

leadership to believe.

When it

comes to the private sector, there's no better way to stifle the private sector

than to burden them with unreasonable taxation, which is exactly what has

happened through Budget 2016 . I go

back, when the House of Assembly closes, to my district and every time that I

come back to St. John's, I see another closure sign. I see another business,

another restaurant, that's shut down; another retail outlet that just can't make

it anymore because the fees and taxes are so prohibitive. People are not

spending money because they don't know where their next pay cheque is going to

come from.

That has

to stop, Madam Speaker. We as a people in the House of Assembly, in particular,

have a responsibility to build confidence in our people, to let them know that

we are very confident that they have the ability to turn things around.

It's

really unfortunate that the measures of

Budget 2016 are going to take years to recover from they truly are. The

damage that was imposed was devastating. To see that we are the only province in

the country facing a recession is unbelievable. What baffles me and I try

sometimes to differentiate between left of centre, right of centre, middle of

centre. I think a lot of political parties over the last few decades have

operated primarily in the middle of centre, with some left policies and some

right policies.

I think

our former premier, Danny Williams, used to call himself him a left Conservative

because he was very much supportive of the social policies as well. I think we

all need to have a healthy balance of that. But when I look to what's happening

with the federal government in Ottawa, where in December of 2015 the national

government ran a surplus of $3 billion and then in December of 2016, under a new

Liberal government, ran a deficit of $18 billion, I'm saying how, in the month

of December, did we spend $21 billion more than we did in 2015. I'm still

baffled by it.

I see a

stark contrast to the approach of a Liberal government in Ottawa, which has said

we're going to spend our way out of this recession, to the Liberal government in

Newfoundland saying we're going to tax you, tax you, and tax you, and that's how

we're going to get our revenue and whatever happens, happens. People are leaving

us in droves; businesses are shutting down left, right and centre; the young

ones are saying we're not going to stay here and there's no life for us here. I

think it's absolutely terrible, Madam Speaker.

To that

end, I personally would like to see recall legislation. It was not what was

promised to the people. No taxes under our watch and lo and behold, what did

we see? Tax after tax after tax; fee after fee after fee 300 new fees, and a

levy. My God, what in heaven's name was that levy all about?

People

are now completing their tax returns and they're seeing the impact of that levy

on their incomes, and no one is happy about it at all. I truly hope that as the

oil monies come back and as the money starts to get thrown around and projects

start to happen in the next two or three years, as we get closer to an election,

that people don't forget what we were put through, unnecessarily, last year.

There was absolutely no need of those regressive measures. I do believe we're

going to see reversals of them because I do believe they are now enlightened and

they see that they've actually contracted our economy to an unacceptable level.

I have

so many things I want to talk about and we're quickly running out of time. So I

want to touch as well on Muskrat Falls. I was so happy so happy to hear the

truth finally be spoken at the Nalcor AGM last week. I was so happy to read the

annual report that shows this is a viable project, Muskrat Falls, and we, as a

people, will not have to rely on oil because we have water that flows. As long

as that water flows over the great Churchill, there is money to be made for

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

We only

have to look at Quebec and to see the success that they have had; our $1 billion

to their $80 billion. Do you know what? 2041 is not so very far away. My biggest

fear my biggest fear is that there was every effort being made to convince

people that the project was a bad one and lo and behold we're going to have to

sell it. But we as a people will never stand to see our assets, our natural

resources, our renewable natural resources that can provide us with revenue for

hundreds and hundreds of years we will not stand by and allow those assets to

be sold. They belong to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, and it will be

the people of Newfoundland and Labrador who will benefit.

It is so

great to know that the Liberals are finally admitting that rates will not double

because of Muskrat Falls. Now, as one of my colleagues spoke about yesterday,

our leader spoke about yesterday, it sounds good. It really helped you in your

election platform, no doubt, to say rates are going to double, but it wasn't

true.

The fear

mongering that you have done to the people and seniors is absolutely terrible.

The excess sales from this project, Madam Speaker, we know, can be used to

reduce the rates. The return on investment of an 8.8 per cent equity stake, we

know, can be used to lower the rates. The money we're saving on the loan

guarantee, we know, can be used to lower the rates. So everyone in Newfoundland

and Labrador needs to know it was never true

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MADAM SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MS. PERRY:

that rates were going to

double. This project, when we see new hospitals, and when we see new schools,

and when we are able to cut one heck of a deal with Quebec because come 2041,

we own all the power and we're not going to get weak in the next 20 years and

cave. We're not going to allow that to happen in this province. We're going to

stand tall. We're confident in what we can do as a people. We're confident in

our resources. We're confident that we have business people and the business

acumen to make this work, Madam Speaker, and we're going to make it work on

behalf of the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS. PERRY:

So I'm quickly running out of

time. I did want to say before I wrap up here today that it is great to be here

in the House of Assembly and it is great to have the support of your colleagues,

especially when times get rough. My good friend from Cape St. Francis, in

particular, is always here. When we have a rough day, he'll always say, tomorrow

is a better day.

We have

never given up on the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. We have never lost

confidence in the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. We will continue to fight

on their behalf and we'll continue to stand up for them each and every day in

this House of Assembly. When we're no longer here in the House of Assembly, I,

for one, will continue to support the initiatives of all future governments.

Whether the government is a Progressive Conservative government or Liberal

government or NDP government, I, for one, will applaud measures that I think are

in the best interests of the people.

I'll

have no problem standing up and applauding those, which is why today I stand up

and criticize Budget 2016 because I

think it was terrible. I truly hope that Members opposite in Cabinet will make

the right decisions and bring down a better budget tomorrow that reverses the

gas tax; a budget that reverses some of the impacts on seniors; that puts some

of the money back into the seniors' pockets that you took; that reverses the

hike on insurance; and that re-instills the business confidence in the people of

Newfoundland and Labrador so people do continue to invest.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS. PERRY:

What in heaven's name? Where

do you ever see a premier, or leaders, condemning the people of the province and

saying she's all doom and gloom? Don't expect anyone else to have confidence in

us if we don't have confidence in ourselves.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MADAM SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MS. PERRY:

Well, I'm here to say that we

on this side of the House very much have confidence in ourselves and we very

much have confidence in the future. We'll ride this storm and we'll come out

better at the end of the day, I have no doubt, Madam Speaker.

Back to

constituents; first and foremost, we were brought to this House of Assembly to

represent their views. We have no obligation to any party. We have an obligation

to the people that we serve, and if we stand up as individual MHAs the people of

this province will be better off for it.

I'm

quickly running out of time; I've only got a few seconds left. Hats off to all

of you for trying to make a difference. Hats off to the people who stand behind

us. Newfoundland and Labrador is on its way to a better place and Muskrat Falls

is certainly a part of the solution that's going to ensure we have a great

future for decades and decades and decades to come.

Thank

you, Madam Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER:

The Speaker recognizes the

hon. the Member for Baie Verte Green Bay.

MR. WARR:

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

It's

always a pleasure to stand up here and represent the beautiful District of Baie

Verte Green Bay, to quote my hon. Member across the way from Cape St. Francis.

Before I

get into a few remarks because, Madam Speaker, it looks like I'm between this

House and our lunch hour, but I'll try and make them short and to the point.

I wanted

to get a couple of housekeeping orders in place, and that is we all depend

greatly on our good CAs and EAs. I certainly wanted to wish my CA a happy

vacation. She's leaving the snow filled area of Springdale today, I guess, to

head off to the Dominican Republic, and I wanted to welcome Adrian Canning who

will be her replacement in her absence.

I want

to take an opportunity, Madam Speaker, to say thank you. I was on my way to the

House of Assembly Monday morning in the freezing rain and snow that we

encountered on Sunday night and early Monday. I had the opportunity to hit a

snowdrift on the Conception Bay bypass road, and certainly I want to say kudos

and thanks very much to the gentleman who stopped and plucked me from the drift.

Again, we all have stories about good Samaritans, and us as Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians, we certainly lead the way in this beautiful country that we live

in.

Just on

a personal note, I know my father is probably watching this morning. I had an

experience with my father last night; we had to rush him in an ambulance to the

hospital. So, Dad, if you are looking, I certainly hope you're feeling much

better this morning. It was a last night for us all, Madam Speaker. Anyway, I

hope he is on to a healthier day.

Madam

Speaker, I got up and spoke a couple of weeks ago

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MADAM SPEAKER:

Order please!

MR. WARR:

I got up and spoke a couple

of weeks ago and I read a quote. I'm going to read it again, and I may read it

every time I get up. I was accused by the leader of the Third Party of

lecturing. I am not in the lecturing business, but I do believe in the quote: to

produce a healthy province is to realize that success depends on us as a people

possessing a real willingness to change and a desire to fight for success.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WARR:

I believe in that quote,

Madam Speaker. Again, it's a quote that I will continue to read every time I

rise in this hon. House.

Madam

Speaker, I would be remiss if I didn't take the opportunity as I know my good

friend from Stephenville Port au Port will be doing a little later and that

is to remember the Abbott family in Port au Port who had a devastating fire of

an old family business of 132 years, known as Abbott and Haliburton in the

wonderful community of Port au Port on the West Coast.

I say

that, Madam Speaker, because Bill Abbott, who is the owner of that business, is

a personal friend of mine. We go back a long way, because I come from an old

family business as well. That fire devastated that community, devastated that

business, that old business. It's not about the four walls and the roof that we

think about today. It's the family heirlooms, all the old papers and

documentation of 132 years since that business has been established. I want to

wish Bill and his family much success in the rebuilding of that business.

While we

are talking about fires, I just heard the Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune

speak about the devastating fires in her communities just a few short months

ago. I happened to touch base with that Member during those devastating times to

offer support, and I know they took advantage of our offer. We had two schools

that had shut down in the District of Baie Verte Green Bay; actually, one on

Long Island and one on Little Bay Island. So we offered some school equipment

and I'm glad they took advantage of that.

Madam

Speaker, Address in Reply, talking about the Speech from the Throne. Obviously,

I wanted to reference The Way Forward

program, the three phases of The Way

Forward program: securing our future, realizing our potential and building

our future.

Madam

Speaker, I pride myself on being a good listener. I just want to highlight some

comments from the Throne Speech, and those comments were made by the hon. Member

for Topsail Paradise, the Leader of the Official Opposition.

The

Leader of the Opposition mentioned multiple times that our government does not

have a plan, stating that our government is moving the province backward and not

forward. This is a bit of a rich comment coming from the Leader of the

Opposition whose government not only never tabled their infrastructure plan

meaning the public had no accountability in where their taxpayer dollars were

going they never had a plan to move the province forward beyond hoping that

the price of the oil would rebound and it would become 2009 again.

The PC

administration had no real plan for Newfoundland and Labrador beyond their

poorly thought out legacy project of Muskrat Falls, which the hon. Member for

Fortune Bay Cape La Hune had just referred to, which not only did nothing to

diversify the economy of the province, but left our people in excessive debt due

to the lack of planning and foresight.

I also

heard the Leader of the Opposition mention, Madam Speaker, that the Liberal

electoral platform was a magic wish book of ideas that never would come to

fruition. However, he neglects to mention that in

Budget 2015 , under the PC administration, it was also a magic wish

book of wishing their independence on oil and lack of diversification for the

economy for 12 years under their rule would not be revealed. We've changed that,

Madam Speaker. We talked about releasing the public accounts certainly in

election years and prior to the election.

The

Leader of the Opposition also stated numerous times of what he had called a

great relationship with the federal government, when Newfoundland and Labrador

had actually lost more than it gained. This is not true, and the relationship

with the federal government is a welcome change from being neglected for 12

years due to a government that was unwilling to put its ego aside and actually

co-operate with its federal counterparts.

Newfoundland and Labrador has received significant funding through the federal

government, Madam Speaker, and there's more to come. Unlike the previous

administration, which made funding announcements in secret, hoping the public

would not notice that there was only one signature on their agreements with the

federal government. I state that again in reference to his comments to the

Throne Speech, and I sort of took some exception to those comments.

Over the

course of the last few months, we've heard the Official Opposition and Members

from the Third Party probably talking about the equalization funding to

Newfoundland and Labrador. A little bit of a background on equalization, for

those who are listening at home: The federal government makes equalization

payments to less wealthy Canadian province to equalize the province's fiscal

capacity and their ability to generate tax revenues. Equalization payments are

based on a formula that calculates the difference between per capita revenue

yield that a particular province would obtain using tax average rates, and the

national average per capita revenue yield at average tax rates.

The

current formula considers five major revenue sources. The objective of the

program is to ensure that all provinces have access to per capita revenues equal

to the potential of the average of all 10 provinces. The formula is based solely

on revenues and does not consider the cost of providing services or the

expenditure needs of the provinces.

Newfoundland and Labrador gained a so-called have statues for the first time in

its history, Madam Speaker, in 2008 which put an end to equalization, largely

the result of revenues from oil royalties. Former Premier Danny Williams fought

to exclude oil revenues from the equalization formula, claiming the volatility

of the prices made it exempt from being subject to equalization.

I bring

this up, Madam Speaker, because this government have been blamed with regard to

us not asking to be reconsidered for equalization. But I want to talk about the

federal assistance to Newfoundland and Labrador since 2016. In 2016,

Newfoundland and Labrador had begun repaying the federal government for the $271

million it was loaned from the federal government for the equalization payments

more than a decade ago. The PC government chose not to budget for this cost,

despite knowing it had to be repaid and, instead, focused its economic policies

on unnecessary expenditures.

Due to

the strong relationship, Madam Speaker, held by the provincial Liberal

government with the federal government, funding relief has been negotiated to

ease some of the burden from this province. In May 2016, the federal government

deferred the province's payments under the Equalization Repayable Floor Loan,

effective June 1 of that year.

Under

the 2005 Equalization Repayable Floor Loan, the province owed $378 million to

the federal government due to overpayments. Beginning in April 2016, the

province repaid a further $4.5 million. Those payments are now suspended until

April of 2022. Payments for the outstanding $267 million under the Equalization

Repayable Floor Loan will be recovered in equal monthly, interest-free, I might

add, amounts over a 10-year period from April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2032.

While

this is in not equivalent to equalization payments, easing the economic burden

for the province will allow Newfoundland and Labrador to build a stronger

province and emerge from this current fiscal situation quicker.

With

those few remarks out of the way, Madam Speaker, I just want to turn to my

district for a few minutes and talk about the good things that are happening in

the wonderful District of Baie Verte Green Bay. You've all heard my hon.

colleague for Labrador West talking about the mining in his district. I was

pleased to hear, during his speech in Address in Reply, talking about the mining

Centre of Excellence in Lab West. I want to talk about the fact that we have

been given some indication that the associate campus for the mining Centre of

Excellence will be housed in Baie Verte, which is our mining capital with regard

to my district.

I want

to talk about the good things that are happening in those mines and where we

have been. Mining has historically been and continues to be an important

economic driver for this province. It's one of the province's oldest and leading

industries, and it's a major contributor to the economy of the province. Mining

in our province has its origin on the Baie Verte Peninsula, in the wonderful

District of Baie Verte Green Bay, with the Dorset Soapstone Quarry in Fleur de

Lys

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MADAM SPEAKER:

Order please!

MR. WARR:

showing pre-European use of

the geographical resources of the province.

The

first major mining development for Newfoundland began in Tilt Cove, again in our

district, in 1864. We've got a rich mining history. With the two operating mines

on the Baie Verte Peninsula that was referred to by the Minister of Natural

Resources in her speech to Address in Reply the other day, she talked about the

good things are that happening at Anaconda Mining and Rambler Metals and Mining.

I'm not going to belabour that issue because we've talked about how important

this is and where we see things going.

I'll

tell you the highlight for me, Madam Speaker, is that we have 400-plus people on

the Baie Verte Peninsula who are associated in the mining industry. I know with

regard to that industry, we're looking at an average age of these people at 40

years old. I mean, at 40 years old it tells me that there's a wonderful future

for these young people, young experienced miners who normally had to probably

leave the province to go off for work. Now they have the opportunity to stay at

home, work at home, raise their families where they want to in the beautiful

Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

I want

to talk a bit, Madam Speaker, about the aquacultural projects. We talk about it

in The Way Forward program supporting

growth annually, especially for mussels. We're going to grow the mussel

production to 10,750 metric tons in The

Way Forward document. We have four processors in our district. I'm not going

to highlight each one of them, but I just wanted to highlight we all talk

about secondary processing and how important it is to have secondary processing

within our province. We have a plant that just opened in the community of

Triton. Right now, we're looking at employment of anywhere between 20 and 30

people, but it's a secondary processing plant and they're going to use about 1.3

million pounds of blue mussels.

Obviously, Madam Speaker, that goes right into where we are again with

The Way Forward program. It's a viable

project. I had the Minister of Fisheries ready to come to the district actually,

Madam Speaker, and he got waylaid because of the weather. But certainly, he

wants to take the opportunity to visit the district and visit these mussel

harvesters in our district. I'm encouraged by his enthusiasm, as well as the

enthusiasm of the people that are associated with that industry.

Madam

Speaker, I just want to again, while I'm speaking about the Minister of

Fisheries and I've had several conversations with my good friend and colleague

for Cape St. Francis on the seal industry. I've had the opportunity to take the

minister of BTCRD to a community in my district, Fleur de Lys.

In Fleur

de Lys, we have a seal plant that's open there. Again, Madam Speaker, 20 to 25

jobs and they had to shut down because of the closure of the seal hunt because

of the young being born, the whelping patch. We had many meetings with the

owners of that plant and through our federal colleagues and Minister LeBlanc and

with the Premier and the Minister of Fisheries when there were in Boston, had

conversations with the minister, and we were able to get that plant open again.

I'm

certainly very grateful and thankful for the opportunity to play a

part in that.

Again, I applaud and thank my hon. colleague across because he was onside with

us as well. He is the Fisheries critic and, like I said, I had the pleasure of

working with him on this.

Madam

Speaker, we got a quota this year of 450,000 seals. We won't take 75,000 seals

we are all reminded each day by the Member and certainly in the news, both on

the TV and the radio and print, about what's happening with the shellfish

industry. Yes, the price of crab is up, but the quota has been cut.

When we

look at the shrimp fishery as well because that picture was caught in my

district of a seal with 181 female crabs in the gut of the seal and those female

crabs can produce up to 2,000 eggs. So when you look at the devastation, we're

looking at 342,000 crabs. You talk about what's happening in the industry, it's

pure devastation. So it's great to see that industry opened up again.

I see,

Madam Speaker, that my time has elapsed. I'll take the opportunity to get up

again and take my seat.

Thank

you for the time.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER:

The hon. the Government House

Leader.

MR. A. PARSONS:

Yes, Madam Speaker, I would

suggest now, given the hour of the day, that with the consent of my colleagues

that we recess until 2 p.m.

MADAM SPEAKER:

This being Wednesday, Private

Members' Day, this House now stands in recess until 2 p.m.

Recess

The

House resumed at 2 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Osborne):

Order, please!

Admit

strangers.

We'd

like to welcome to the Speaker's gallery today, Mr. Roland Card and his wife

Helen Card. Roland is the Potentate of the Mazol Shriners.

Welcome.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

We also welcome to the

Speaker's gallery, members of The Singing Legionnaires, including their Director

of Music William Green, Accompanist Clyde Johnston and President James Healey.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

Statements by

Members

MR. SPEAKER:

For Members' statements today

we have the Members for the Districts of St. John's Centre; Baie Verte Green

Bay; Virginia Waters Pleasantville; Fogo Island Cape Freels; Conception Bay

East Bell Island; and Labrador West.

The hon.

the Member for St. John's Centre.

MS. ROGERS:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

The

Singing Legionnaires are celebrating 50 years and there is much to celebrate!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MS. ROGERS:

Founded in 1967, today's

group includes original World War II veterans, men who served in the Korean War,

UN Peacekeepers and folks from several Royal Canadian Legion branches.

The

joyous voices of these amazing men bring their repertoire of songs from the

World Wars and old standards from the 1920s to the 1960s to the veterans at the

DVA Pavilion, folks in nursing homes, civic functions, flag raising ceremonies

right here at Confederation Building, provincial and national conventions and

more.

Many of

us have seen them braving the frigid cold at the War Memorial for November 11

Remembrance Day ceremonies and the blistering heat of July 1 Beaumont-Hamel

commemorations. They lead us in song during these most solemn of occasions,

moving our hearts and our souls. In the weeks leading to November 11, they are

also incredibly busy singing at school and church services of remembrance,

teaching our youth about peace.

They

enjoy the benefits of singing together. It provides cherished camaraderie and

confidence in social development.

I ask

all Members to join me in celebrating and thanking The Singing Legionnaires for

their years of generous service. Bravo!

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.