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May 16, 2022

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. L No. 54

The

House met at 1:30 p.m.

SPEAKER (Warr):

Good afternoon.

Statements by

Members

SPEAKER:

Today we will hear statements

by the hon. Members for the Districts of Mount Pearl - Southlands, Ferryland,

Bonavista, Terra Nova and Harbour Main.

The hon.

the Member for Mount Pearl - Southlands.

P. LANE:

Mr. Speaker, I rise in this

hon. House today to congratulate winners of this year's Mount Pearl Paradise

Chamber of Commerce Best in Business Awards.

This

year's banquet was recently held at the Reid Community Centre in Mount Pearl and

recognized businesses and business owners alike for their dedication and

commitment to the community at large.

This

year's nominees and winners are corporate leaders in the community and are very

deserving of this honour. Congratulations to O'Neill Automotive Group, selected

as this year's Outstanding Business of the Year; Innovation Award winner,

Golfshotz; Entrepreneur of the Year, Jacobean Craft Chocolates; Best New Company

to Watch Award winner, EASY Safety Training; Community Impact Award winners,

Admiralty House Communications Museum and Paradise Physiotherapy; Customer

Service Award recipient, Image 4 Digital; Employee of the Year Award winner,

Kelly Power of Reddy Kilowatt Credit Union; Resilience Award winner, Sophie's

Pet Boutique; and Director's Choice Award winner, Mr. Scott Hillyer of Coffee

Matters.

I ask

all Members of this House to join me in congratulating all of the nominees and

winners of this year's Best of Business Awards, as well as the Mount Pearl

Paradise Chamber of Commerce for hosting this wonderful event.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Ferryland.

L. O'DRISCOLL:

Thank you, Speaker.

I rise

today to congratulate Team NL Bowling on winning the Canadian 5 Pin Bowlers'

Youth Challenge national championship in Calgary.

The team

members were Jack Walsh from the Goulds, from the Ferryland District. Jack bowls

out of Plaza Bowl and was the anchor for the team. Amy Harris is from Paradise.

Amy was a member of the Canadian all-star team and bowled lead for her team.

Brady Roberts from Southlands, who bowled third in line. Both Amy and Brady bowl

out of Paradise Lanes.

Abby

Tiller and Jordan Park both from Corner Brook, bowl out of Centre Bowl. Abby was

the third bowler in her lineup and Jordan bowled all positions. Art Wells was

the male coach and is from St. John's, who represents Plaza Bowl, YBC. Corinna

Hogan-Sears was the female coach and lives in CBS. Corinna represents the YBC

program at St. Pat's Bowling centre.

Speaker,

I'd like to ask all my colleagues of this House to congratulate Team NL for

going undefeated in the tournament and bringing home the gold.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for Bonavista.

C. PARDY:

Speaker, it is an honour to

celebrate the exemplary lifetime volunteerism of Joyce Matchem of Bonavista who

has dedicated a significant portion of her life volunteering at the Golden

Heights Manor long-term care facility in Bonavista.

Born in

1942, Joyce has been volunteering at the manor for nearly 30 years. With her

daughter Tracy at her side, her service began with providing nighttime snacks on

Thursday nights to the residents where she quickly established friendships

throughout. This grew to six days per week visits – except Sundays – to the

manor where she became active in the recreation room hosting bingo games, other

recreational activities and whatever was needed of her. Whenever the bus was

required to take residents on a field trip, like the seniors' party at the

Lion's Club, Joyce was there to lend a hand as well.

Joyce,

80 years of age on November 22, loved taking the lead in the once-per-month

birthday celebration for all birthdays occurring in that month – a special event

for which she states she is fortunate to be able to do it for as long as she

has.

I ask

Members of the 50th House of Assembly to join me in celebrating the outstanding

volunteerism of Mrs. Joyce Matchem of Bonavista.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Terra

Nova.

L. PARROTT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Over the past two years the graduating high school

students in the District of Terra Nova and, certainly, the entire province have

shown resilience, determination and dedication in these uncertain times. They

have worked diligently to focus on their high school diplomas. Over the next few

weeks, we will see the class of 2022 celebrate their accomplishments with high

school graduations taking place. Today, I would like to thank and congratulate

each student.

What may seem like the end for some students is really

only the beginning.

Take pride in how far you have come and have trust in how far you can go.

I wish all graduates of the class of 2022 the strength to face challenges with

confidence, along with the wisdom to choose their battles carefully. I wish them

the best of luck on their journey and may they always stop to help someone along

the way.

Please join me is celebrating the class of 2022 from Clarenville High School,

Random Island Academy, Southwest Arm Academy, Glovertown Academy, Holy Cross

School Complex and St. Gabriel's All Grade.

Good luck to all graduates of 2022.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Harbour Main.

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Speaker, with Come Home Year scheduled to take

place this summer, I would like to recognize a destination for visitors planning

to visit our province this summer.

This attraction within the District of Harbour Main is

one I had the pleasure of touring last summer. It is the Avondale Railway

Station Museum.

This original structure, built in 1887, and with

renovations, it has been transformed into a station museum filled with artifacts

from the past. An exciting feature is a scenic train ride on original tracks

laid by the CN Railway, which from personal experience was absolute fun.

Most impressive was that volunteers within the Town of

Avondale operated the entire operation from the tour guide right to the

conductor. Visitors from all over the province visited there last summer. For

the older guests it brought many fond memories and for the younger, well they

got a glimpse of our history.

I ask

hon. Members to join me in recognizing the Town of Avondale and the many other

volunteers who helped bring this museum to life. I congratulate and wish much

success for this Come Home Year summer of celebrations within the Town of

Avondale.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Statements by Ministers.

Statements by

Ministers

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister

Responsible for Indigenous Affairs and Reconciliation, and Labrador Affairs.

L. DEMPSTER:

Thank you.

Speaker,

we were saddened on Friday upon hearing that a pioneer of Inuit self-government

on the North Coast of Labrador had passed away.

Jim

Lyall truly left his mark on everything he did. He had the distinction as the

first elected President of Nunatsiavut, a position he held from 2008 to 2012,

following the formation of the Nunatsiavut Government in 2005.

Nunatsiavut President Johannes Lampe described Jim Lyall as someone who spent a

lifetime advancing the rights and issues of all Labrador Inuit. He is remembered

for his determination, a strong will and an overriding desire to invoke positive

change for the benefit of the community of Nain, where he lived since 1956, and

Nunatsiavut.

occasion when I spoke with Jim about issues, he was articulate and respectful in

expressing his beliefs and hopes for a better tomorrow for the beneficiaries and

Nunatsiavut.

During

the formative years of the Labrador Inuit Association, Jim served as executive

director. He also worked for the provincial government stores, served as

postmaster in Nain, led the community of Nain as mayor and successfully operated

a business in Nain for more than two decades.

Speaker,

Jim Lyall passed away only a few hours after his wife Jean passed – an

incredibly difficult week for the family. I take this opportunity to express my

personal condolences and on behalf of the Government of Newfoundland and

Labrador. Please join me in reflecting on the contributions of a man who was

devoted to family and a friend to everyone.

Rest

easy, Sir, your legacy will live on.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Speaker.

I thank

the minister for an advance copy of her statement.

Speaker,

the Official Opposition joins with the minister in offering condolences on the

passing of Jim Lyall. A tireless advocate for the people of Nunatsiavut and the

whole of Labrador, Mr. Lyall was a driving force behind Inuit self-government on

the North Coast. We are deeply saddened by his passing, as he will be fondly

remembered and celebrated by his family, friends and those that he fought for.

Speaker,

Nunatsiavut would not be what it is today without Mr. Lyall. The Official

Opposition and the Members of this House will mourn this leader who inspired so

many.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Labrador West.

J. BROWN:

Thank you, Speaker.

I thank

the minister for an advance copy of her statement. The Third Party would also

like to extend our condolences to the family, friends and community of Jim and

Jean Lyall.

As the

first elected president of Nunatsiavut, Jim proved himself to be a powerful and

respected Inuit leader, advocating on behalf of those who he represented. A true

leader who is beloved by all Labradorians. Jim and Jean will truly be missed.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Further statements by

ministers?

The hon.

the Minister of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

D. BRAGG:

Speaker, Agriculture in the

Classroom NL is a fantastic, hands-on program that teaches children where food

comes from and how to grow it.

Our

department invests $305,000 in this program every year through the Canadian

Agricultural Partnership. Nearly 30,000 students are learning about agriculture

through initiatives like Canada's Agriculture Day, Canadian Agriculture Literacy

Month, the Amazing Agriculture Adventure and the Little Green Thumbs program.

Right

now, more than 5,000 Little Green Thumbs and Little Green Sprouts are busy

growing nearly 300 gardens at schools all over the province.

As a

part of the program's 10th annual harvest celebrations, students will be

visiting vegetable and dairy farms, greenhouses and grocery stores to learn more

about nutrition and healthy eating.

They

will also enjoy fresh, healthy food that they grew themselves.

Speaker,

Canada's agriculture industry is facing extraordinary global challenges. As

always, we are working closely with farmers and producers, commodity groups and

the federal government to support this sector. In these difficult times, our

Little Green Thumbs and Little Green Sprouts remind us why a sustainable,

reliable food system is so important.

Thanks

to Agriculture in the Classroom NL and the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation

of Agriculture, students are making a vital connection to the hard-working

farmers and producers who dedicate their lives to growing our food.

Thank

you to the program staff, teachers, sponsors, farmers and volunteers who make

these important programs so successful.

Most

importantly, a big green thumbs up to our Little Green Thumbs and Sprouts. I

look forward to visiting your school soon and meeting the province's future

farmers.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Exploits.

P. FORSEY:

Thank you, Speaker.

I thank

the minister for an advance copy of his statement.

The

Official Opposition would also like to take a moment to recognize the good work

of individuals involved in Agriculture in the Classroom NL. There has never been

a more important time to educate and involve our youth in our food supply.

Speaker,

within a single generation, the number of farms in Newfoundland and Labrador has

dropped from 3,500 to approximately 500. Of the existing farms, 58 per cent of

those operators are over 55; only 4.8 per cent are under 35 years old.

Programs

like CAP and initiatives like Little Green Thumbs expose thousands of children

to enriching educational experiences that they would otherwise not have had

without that opportunity. The experience of growing their own food in a

community setting will no doubt inspire young people to consider farming as a

real career choice.

Speaker,

our job as leaders is to make sure that young farmers have the supports they

need in all their farming journey. The further investment in support programs

like Little Green Thumbs is the first step in raising a new generation of

farmers.

behalf of the Official Opposition, I would like to sincerely thank all the

volunteers and educators that make these programs possible for so many young

people. They are the future of food security in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Third Party.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

I, too,

thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement, and I congratulate all

those who are participating in the Agriculture in the Classroom NL. While such

programs do bring awareness of the importance of healthy eating, of sustainable,

reliable food systems, they do little to fix the broader social and economic

issues that prevent so many of us from acting on that information. In light of

the cost of living, we call on the government to take much-needed action to make

good, healthy food more accessible to all the people of the province.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

Before

we get into Question Period, it's my pleasure to certainly recognize and welcome

Chief Brendan Mitchell to the House of Assembly today.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Speaker.

Last

week the out-of-touch Liberal budget passed, without the Premier taking the time

to speak to it during debate.

Is the

Premier trying to distance himself from the budget because he realizes it does

not help reduce the cost of living on the citizens of this province?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I speak

to the budget all the time, Mr. Speaker, to the media, to the people in the

province, in every community around the province. I'm happy to speak to the

budget and the merits of the budget, and how it sets a sustainable path forward

for the future of Newfoundland and Labrador, Mr. Speaker, at any time.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Speaker.

The

Premier had many opportunities to do it, to outline what his plan would be, and

how his administration would help the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. We

didn't hear any of that during the debate – the nearly 75 hours.

October 2020, right before the last election, the Premier had no trouble

participating in the budget debate. But this year, when people are struggling to

afford gasoline and groceries, he was silent. The Premier had three separate

hour-long chances to defend his own agenda.

Why did the Premier choose not to outline and defend

his plan to help the people of this province?

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We always welcome healthy debate on the budget and any

other piece of legislation before this hon. House, Mr. Speaker. I was quite

content with the merits of the budget, Mr. Speaker. We were working very closely

with the Minister of Finance the whole time. She spoke quite eloquently to this

and defended the merits of the budget for the future of this province.

I am quite content with how the debate has evolved, Mr.

Speaker. As I said in the first answer, I have spoken to this many times to the

public and to the media. I am happy to support the Minister of Finance and her

voice in this hon. House, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

BRAZIL:

Speaker, we are hearing from the people of this province that it was defenseless

to be able to argue that this budget helps the people of Newfoundland and

Labrador when they are in such a need.

Speaker, people are worried about their health. There's

a lack of doctors, nurses and health professionals. There are surgery backlogs.

If someone is lucky enough to have a doctor, the price of gas is so high they

can't afford to travel to receive care. People don't have enough money to buy

food and the cost of everything is soaring.

When people are facing real troubles, why does your

administration refuse to help the people of this province address those issues?

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

As we said many times before, we are continuing to help

the people of this province, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

PREMIER A. FUREY:

are continuing to help the people of this province, Mr. Speaker; $142 million to

offset the cost of living right now and we are always responsive. That is what a

government should be.

I apologize for the chirping from the Members opposite.

We will continue to evolve. We will continue to be

responsive, Mr. Speaker. We have made great progress with respect to the Health

Accord, Mr. Speaker, in addressing some of the acute health requirements of the

people and then into the future for a sustainable system.

Last week, we met with the NLMA and announced a task

force to deal with the surgical backlogs, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.

BRAZIL:

Unfortunately, Speaker, it's that side of the House that doesn't understand. It

doesn't go far enough. It doesn't do enough to address the issues that people

are facing in this province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

BRAZIL:

The

government continually tells us the carbon tax is a federal policy that it can't

control. The prime minister is coming in town tomorrow. Will the Premier ask the

prime minister for permission to lower our provincial gas taxes to reduce the

suffering the Liberals have inflicted on the people of this province?

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The prime minister and I will talk about many different

topics as it relates to Newfoundland and Labrador and the federation, in

general, Mr. Speaker. Obviously, the –

HON. MEMBER:

(Inaudible.)

PREMIER A. FUREY:

will let him see the value of the surgical backlog, the proposal that we are

proposing with the NLMA, Mr. Speaker, in terms of the task force.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Sorry, Mr. Speaker, am I able to get some quiet?

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

I am only interested in hearing the person that I

recognized to speak.

Thank you.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

And

will continue to do so, Mr. Speaker.

I am happy to address the environment, climate change,

the carbon tax, all items facing Newfoundlanders and Labradorians with the prime

minister, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Leader of the Official Opposition.

D. BRAZIL:

Thank you, Speaker.

I know

the people of this province right now, what they're facing, would like the

Premier to ask the prime minister one question.

Will you

ask him to outline a tax regime that would lower the cost of gasoline and home

heating fuel for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians when you meet tomorrow?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

PREMIER A. FUREY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I've

talked to many premiers around this country. This is an issue that's facing

every jurisdiction, every province. Everyone is feeling it, Mr. Speaker. And I

will certainly address –

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

PREMIER A. FUREY:

– this with respect to the

concerns and the anxieties that have been provoked in Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians. Of course I will.

I am the

first minister and I will address this with the prime minister, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for Bonavista.

C. PARDY:

Thank you, Speaker.

Extraordinary times require extraordinary measures. So that conversation would

be great.

Speaker,

I understand that there's a report from the fish licensing board on the

minister's desk.

When

will the minister be making a decision?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

D. BRAGG:

Thank you very much.

I wasn't

clear, Mr. Speaker, which report he may be referring to, but there's – it was

the fish licensing board, I'm sorry. I'm going to meet with the board and in due

time I will make my decision.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for Bonavista.

C. PARDY:

In due time.

Speaker,

this issue has been dragging on for weeks with divisiveness pitting one

community against another. The fishery is too important to have communities

fight over it. We should be coming together to fight for our province in Ottawa

to better manage our fishery resource, not fighting against one another.

When is

the minister going to stop playing politics with people's lives and give us a

firm decision when the decision will be made?

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Minister of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

D. BRAGG:

Mr. Speaker, I take exception

to that, playing politics. There's no politics here. This is an industry. It was

a billion-dollar industry last year that I take and this side of the House takes

very seriously. There will be no knee-jerk reactions when it comes to licensing.

It will be thought through, it will be discussed with the board and a decision

will be made thereafter.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

Thank you, Speaker.

I'm sure

the people involved in the fishing industry await anxiously the result of the

minister's decision.

I also

hope, Speaker, that the Premier will ask the prime minister's permission to

lower our gas prices tomorrow.

But I

also ask the Liberal Minister of Finance here: Has she talked to her federal

counterpart about getting permission to lower the gas tax to help people of this

province who really need it?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

It's good to see you in the Chair.

I was

listening to the Member of the House of Assembly from Bonavista, extraordinary

times mean extraordinary measures, and we have taken those extraordinary

measures, $142 million in the budget.

Yes, I

do speak to my colleagues across the country. I do ask them how they're managing

this very serious situation and the cost of living. I've spoken to many of my

colleagues about the measures that they are taking and about how we may be able

to utilize some of their experiences and them utilize our experiences on this.

There is

$142 million that we've been able to provide back to the people of the province,

money in their pockets. We certainly would like to do more and we're

investigating everything that we can do to support the people of the province

during these extraordinary times.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

In all of that, the answer

was no, she has not asked. The minister hasn't asked.

Speaker,

the government is demanding transparency from the very agency who sets the gas

prices.

Would it

also apply transparency lens to its own self? I ask that and tell us exactly how

much money do you collect from the residents, from the people of the Province of

Newfoundland and Labrador, each time the price of gas goes up by a cent?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

I'm sure the Member opposite

is aware of how the tax system from the provincial gasoline tax works. It does

not work on escalating values; it is 14.5 cents per litre. So even if the price

goes up, it is still that 14.5 cents. The same with carbon tax, it's the same.

It's based on per litre.

The

Member opposite might be referring to the HST; that does escalate with the

price.

I will

say to the Member opposite, as I've said to him last week, we have budgeted no

big increase. If he looks at the 2021-22 budget versus the '22-'23 budget, we've

budgeted for no major increase in HST. It does take a number of years for that

to flow through.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

Speaker, it's not about what

they're budgeting, it's about what they're receiving. What we're talking about

is increased prices in gasoline. That's exactly what I'm talking about, the HST,

which increases every single time the price of gas goes up.

Now

there are a lot of smart people over in the Department of Finance and I'm sure

they could estimate the additional revenue that the minister is collecting.

Will the

minister use this additional revenue to rebate back the people of Newfoundland

and Labrador who are struggling with the cost of gas?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you very much.

I echo

the Member opposite's comment that there are very smart people in the Department

of Finance who work very, very hard, and around the clock, Speaker. We have some

very good public servants in Newfoundland and Labrador and I'm very proud of all

of them.

I will

say to the Member opposite, as I have said in this House, as the Premier has

said publicly and as I have said publicly: We're certainly considering what we

can do to assist the people of this province with the cost of living. We have

already provided $142 million. We recognize and realize the cost of living is

still increasing because of the fuel prices, Speaker, and we will be doing

something, I'm sure, to support those people as we move forward.

Thank

you.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Stephenville - Port au Port.

T. WAKEHAM:

Speaker, again we've heard

that the minister is considering doing something. I suggest that the people of

the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador cannot wait until the fall for

something to be done. It needs to happen now.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

T. WAKEHAM:

So why is the minister

choosing not to move forward and implement a home heat rebate program now? Make

the announcement now; let the people know.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

The Member opposite realizes

that I have already made that announcement and already put that on both the

Income Supplement and the Seniors' Benefit.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

S. COADY:

Of which both the home heat

rebate has been rolled into those programs. We have already done that. We are

looking at what we're going to do to continue to support the people of the

province. I have already said that in this House. The Premier has already said

that publicly.

We're

working to see what we can do, further to the $142 million we have already

provided back, but one thing is for sure, Speaker, this side of the House –

indeed everybody in this Chamber today recognizes the tremendous impact that the

cost of living is having on the people of the province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Harbour Main.

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Speaker, is it possible

that this government does not understand that the people of this province are at

a breaking point?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

And that their refusal to

help them is callous and unconscionable.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Speaker, last week when I

asked the Minister of Justice why Elizabeth Fry organization did not receive

funding in the budget he said, “… there was no formal funding request from that

group ….” However, an ATIPP response we received indicated that the minister met

with Elizabeth Fry about their funding request.

Would

the minister like to take the opportunity now to correct the statement he made

last week?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Justice and Public Safety.

J. HOGAN:

Thank you.

I will

say that I don't need to correct that fact that I did say last week that I did

meet with Elizabeth Fry when they opened up their new office here in St. John's.

I'm sure we discussed a number of things, including funding and working together

with them as they go forward here, to work to help all Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians that unfortunately do have to deal with the justice system.

I will

add as well, Speaker, that in the event that there is a request or a need for

beds – which is something that Elizabeth Fry is looking to do; there is no need

for beds at this point in time. But if and when that does occur, as it will be

an open process, a request for proposals will be put out and certainly Elizabeth

Fry, if they want to bid at that time, they can and it will be done in a fair

and thorough and even process for all groups that want to make an application

for those beds.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Harbour Main.

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Speaker, he indicated

last week that there was no formal funding request from that group. That was

incorrect. On August 18, 2021, the Ministers of Finance, Justice and Public

Safety, Women and Gender Equality met with the Elizabeth Fry Society regarding

their request for funding from all three departments.

How can

the minister say that there was no request for funding while three ministers,

including himself, met with them? He said that last week, he did not.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Justice and Public Safety.

J. HOGAN:

Thank you, Speaker.

Again,

I'll just say that I did meet with the group from Elizabeth Fry when they had

their office opening here in St. John's, and we discussed a number of

initiatives and how they could contribute to the justice programs here in the

province, and I'm sure one of the things that did come up was money, as it

always does with groups like this.

We look

forward to working with them in the future. As I said, again, if there's any

need for beds, which is one thing that they supply in this province, or are

wanting to supply in this province for individuals who leave the justice system,

the prison system, it will certainly be a formal request for the proposal

process. We'll follow government guidelines and they can make that application

and we'll deal with them accordingly, as we would with any other group, in a

fair, open and transparent manner.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Ferryland.

L. O'DRISCOLL:

Maybe if we didn't spend $5

million in the US, we might have a bit left over.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

L. O'DRISCOLL:

We have hearing a lot of

people who are really frustrated. The minister himself has said people are

frustrated with the price of gasoline.

Can the

minister outline how exactly transparency will ease people's frustrations?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Digital Government and Service NL.

S. STOODLEY:

Thank you, Speaker.

absolutely agree with the Member that people are very frustrated with the price

of gas. We have on the Order Paper now changes to the

Petroleum Products Act , which will increase transparency to the work

that the Public Utilities Board does.

One

thing in particular I'm very interested in understanding is exactly how they use

the interruption formula. So that information is an internal procedure document

within the Public Utilities Board, and that's one of the first things that I'm

going to request once we make changes to the

Petroleum Products Act .

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Ferryland.

L. O'DRISCOLL:

Thank you, Speaker.

interruption should happen right now for the people of this province, not

waiting five or six months. Transparency is good, but what people need is a

reduction in the price of gasoline. The minister said this past weekend – and I

quote – we think that the current model works. These are your words.

How can

the minister say that the current model works when people can't afford to fill

their cars?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Digital Government and Service NL.

S. STOODLEY:

Thank you, Speaker.

So in

terms of the current process where you have the Public Utilities Board

regulating the price of gas, we have spent – this House – over a day, I think,

talking about and debating that bill. None of my Members, none of my colleagues

have brought up the issue around regulation.

currently have regulation; it's been in place for over 20 years. It's a

challenge. There's no perfect solution. The price of gas globally is extremely

high. The current process ensures that there is a maximum price. Retailors and

wholesalers do not have to charge the maximum price. I wonder why they are. We

only set what the maximum allowed price is – the Public Utilities Board. There

is no minimum price.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for Ferryland.

L. O'DRISCOLL:

Thank you, Speaker.

We've

been debating this budget for a good many weeks and nothing has changed here

yet, so we don't need no other applications or anything else to change it. So

let's get with it and change it for the people of the province today or this

week. We have the opportunity to do it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

L. O'DRISCOLL:

The minister also said that

when changes are expected, the price of gasoline should not be leaked on social

media, but no notice for people.

Does the

minister realize that many people are saving a few cents per litre means the

difference of being able to fill up their car or buy groceries?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Digital Government and Service NL.

S. STOODLEY:

Thank you, Speaker.

Currently in our regulations and legislation, it does indicate when retailors

are told the new maximum price on a Thursday that they should keep that

confidential.

Mr.

Speaker, it's very important that our public safety officials, for example, are

able to access gas. We wouldn't want to limit and have a run on supply, for

example. I would challenge the Member: So he's suggesting getting rid of

regulation? If we got rid of regulation, there would absolutely be no maximum

price and you could not predict when that change would happen.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Topsail - Paradise.

P. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

There

are no fears of a run on supply with the prices still going up and up – not

going to happen.

Last

week we learned of a document that was critical of cybersecurity issues at

Newfoundland and Labrador's largest health authority. That was presented over

two years ago.

When a

cybersecurity expert tells the Liberal government the system has numerous

vulnerabilities, security concerns and compliance issues, and this is ignored,

whose fault is it when thousands of people are harmed?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you, Speaker.

Nice to

see a fresh face in the Chair.

The

issue around the document the Member opposite is referring to is an unsolicited

business proposal from a private company; it went to Eastern Health, which was

concerned with the security and integrity of biomedical equipment. This is gone

to their Centre for Innovation, which is a centre we support, but is in no way

related to the cyber incident of last year.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Topsail - Paradise.

P. DINN:

Thank you, Minister.

Unsolicited or not, it was the cybersecurity experts who presented this.

I remind

the minister, this issue has cost the government at least $16 million directly

and untold security issues facing thousands of residents in the province.

The

minister is trying to play down what is an incredibly serious situation.

Why does

the minister say in one breath that there's nothing to this story and in another

breath that Eastern Health is the problem and contact them?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

Once

again, Eastern Health has a Centre for Innovation. This was an unsolicited

business proposal from an outside company looking to sell something. It was

around the security of biomedical equipment and is in no way related to the

subsequent cyber incident that we had in October of last year. The two are

completely separate.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Topsail - Paradise.

P. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

When my

gas light comes on – unsolicited – I check the oil. That's what I do; I check

the oil. That's what it does right.

The

Liberals used security concerns to hide from accountability.

Will

they place the hidden –

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

P. DINN:

– documents in the hands –

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon.

the Member for Topsail - Paradise.

P. DINN:

Thank you for the protection

from all the heckling we're getting here today.

It is a

serious issue. The Liberals used security concerns to hide from accountability.

Will

they place the hidden documents in the hands of the Information and Privacy

Commissioner, who has the expertise to protect security while letting the public

see what they ought to be seeing about the shocking and preventable cyberattack?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

J. HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

interesting

preamble to the question, but to deal with the cyber incident, which

is separate from the issue around the Centre for Innovation. We have retained

national and international security experts to advise us through this process,

Mr. Speaker. I, this government, are following their recommendations. We would

be foolish to do any less. We are consistent with other jurisdictions who have

also found themselves in this unfortunate position.

We will

await, with interest, the result of the RCMP investigation from a criminal

perspective and also the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner.

Thank

you.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Exploits.

P. FORSEY:

Speaker, the minister

dismissed concerns of farmers who said their operations are in jeopardy because

of rising prices. He said it was the first he'd hear of it.

This

government has a pattern of ignoring the concerns that people raise instead of

listening to them. Farmers in jeopardy impacts our food security.

When

will the Liberals start reaching out to farmers in trouble to help them supply

food to our province?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

BRAGG:

Thank you, Speaker.

I think the Member may have taken out of context what I

said. What I did say is that we have $10.8 million in programs that's readily

available to our farmers. I encourage those farmers to reach out to our

department and see if there is any of these programs they could avail of.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Exploits.

FORSEY:

took that from farmers. I don't think they took it out of context.

When asked about farmers last week, the minister

referred to the James Bond movie, The

World Is Not Enough , saying, basically, that you can never satisfy these

people.

Does the minister believe that the forecasted food

shortage is a joking matter?

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

BRAGG:

Thank you very much.

Once again, Mr. Speaker, the Member opposite has taken

me out of context. That's what I said about the Members opposite. Everything is

never enough. Not enough. Not enough. That's been their theme. Last year, it was

I don't know. I don't know. But this year it's never enough.

We are doing what we can for the farmers in our

province with the programs that we have. I am ready to reach out and we are

ready to talk to any farmer that needs to have a discussion. My ADM has been

reaching out to farmers to see how they are doing.

I have some prominent farmers in my contact list who

have yet to reach out to me. I encourage these folks to reach out to me as well.

Thank you very much, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Exploits.

FORSEY:

A farmer interviewed last week said there is a very real danger of people losing

their farms.

The Liberals say they are trying to promote farming and

food security but why do their actions speak otherwise?

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

BRAGG:

Mr. Speaker, I would hope the Member opposite would come and visit some of our

farms and see what we are doing. In Wooddale alone, in his district, 4.5 million

transplants last year that we put out to the farmers. That is doing our part to

help the farmers. And out of these transplants, Mr. Speaker, about 100 per cent

success in the grow rate. That was turnip, cabbage, I don't think there was

carrots, but leek and there was four or five other things that I can't think of

right now. But we are doing what we can to help the farmers here in this

province.

We have more than eligible and willing staff that would

go out to any farm to have any discussion with any farmer in this province, Mr.

Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Grand Falls-Windsor - Buchans.

TIBBS:

Thank you, Speaker.

Last week, Central Health advertised that they were

hiring a virtual emergency room diversion coordinator, but the next day the

posting was changed, removing the reference to the diversions.

Does this mean that patients who need an emergency room

in Central Health will no longer be diverted?

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

HAGGIE:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

There

was indeed an advert that was poorly worded. I think the correct description of

that job advert should've been a diversion avoidance coordinator. That has been

remedied. This is to make sure that there are adequate virtual ER supports for

those communities where there are physician shortages or challenges with

provision of hands-on service. That service has been well received across

Central Health and indeed is working in other regions in the province.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for Labrador West.

J. BROWN:

Thank you, Speaker.

Speaker,

Alberta has applied a $150 rebate directly to electrical bills over three months

to offset the rising costs of living.

I ask

the minister: Why are we not doing something similar for our residents to help

with the increasing cost? People need direct help today.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Industry, Energy and Technology.

A. PARSONS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Happy to

have a question from the Member opposite. I appreciate what Alberta is done;

certainly, it's a good step. I'd like to point out the $5.2 billion that we

reached an agreement with Ottawa to provide to all Newfoundlanders and

Labradorians as it relates to the costs coming from Muskrat Falls. I think that

works out to about $2,400.

So the

reality is that we are well above what Alberta is doing and that's something

that we'll continue to try to do to ensure that we don't endure complete rate

shock.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's Centre.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

Will the

Minister of Finance commit to directing revenue from the carbon taxes into

electrical regional public transit services so that we can leverage our fair

share of the $14.9 billion that the federal government is investing in clean

transit over the next eight years?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you very much.

I can

say that we're always interested in supporting our transit system. We have been

working with the federal government. Of course, as you know, the federal

government has made a commitment to both affordable housing and transit. We are

prepared to match that funding. It's approximately $4 million. It is winding its

way through the House of Commons right now. I've already had a discussion with

the mayor of St. John's and will be meeting with him, because it will be $8

million that we can use for affordable housing and transit.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's Centre.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

The City

of St. John's released a statement last week explaining that the price of fuel

is fully $1 per litre above the 2022 budget. Metrobus expects on average this

year of approximately $1.4 million. There is $4.136 million allocated to

Newfoundland and Labrador of federal emergency funding for ongoing COVID-induced

transit operation revenue shortfalls for 2022. This funding is conditional on

provincial matching and, as such, the city is calling on the province to confirm

it will be applying for this important federal relief.

Can the

Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs provide this confirmation?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

I just

confirmed that, yes, we have applied for that amount of money. As the Member

opposite said, it is $4.136 million and we have applied for that money; it is

winding its way through the House of Commons right now. We will be matching that

money. It is used for both affordable housing, as well as transit, and we'll be

having a discussion with the mayor of the City of St. John's concerning the

same.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for St. John's Centre.

J. DINN:

Can the Minister of Education

confirm that the NLESD hired a private legal firm to fight the Churchill family,

who is seeking equitable education for their deaf child?

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Education.

T. OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I think

that question is better directed to the NLESD. I didn't sign off on the hiring

of any firm; that would be the NLESD itself.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for St. John's Centre.

J. DINN:

Since the department is in the process of integrating the NLESD into the

department, I would assume it would certainly be within their purview.

The

family would like to know how the Department of Education and government can

justify NLESD hiring of a private legal firm at $400 an hour to defend what they

believe is discrimination of their 11-year-old deaf child while claiming to have

no money to address other urgent issues facing Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Education.

T. OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I'm not

sure if the Member heard the response to the last question that he asked, but I

think those questions are better directed to the NLESD. At which point the NLESD

is brought into government, Mr. Speaker, that would be our responsibility but

they still have responsibility, at the moment, for operational and other issues,

and we don't interfere with their operational issues at this time. If we did,

the Member would have a different set of questions.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's Centre for a quick question, please.

J. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

I am

hearing from schools who are facing a significant loss of their technology, such

as Chromebooks and other devices, because they are being pulled from use because

they are deemed insecure and a security risk.

I ask

the minister: What plans does the Department of Education have to help schools

replace these devices that they are losing as a result of this decision?

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Minister of Education.

T. OSBORNE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Again,

the Member last week said that the Chromebooks that were purchased out of the

$20 million are being taken out of service, which is completely inaccurate, Mr.

Speaker. All of the Chromebooks that were put in service for Grade 7 through 12,

out of the $20 million purchase to ensure that schools had those and students

had those especially during COVID, are in use.

What the

Member is referring to are Chromebooks that were purchased by schools prior to

government stepping in and doing this and some of those devices are quite old.

As he may or may not understand, electronics don't last forever.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The time

for Question Period has expired.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling

of Documents.

Tabling of

Documents

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs.

K. HOWELL:

Thank you, Speaker.

I'd like to table this document, as

requested last week. This is the jurisdictional scan conducted in relation to

Bill 58.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further tabling of documents?

Notices of Motion.

Notices of Motion

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you, Speaker.

Speaker, I give notice that I will on

tomorrow introduce a bill entitled,

An Act To Amend Revenue Administration Act

No. 5, Bill 63.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further notices of motion?

The hon. the Minister of Fisheries,

Forestry and Agriculture.

D. BRAGG:

Speaker, I give notice that I will on tomorrow

introduce a bill entitled,

An Act To Amend The Forestry Act, Bill 61.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further Notices of Motion?

The hon. the Minister of Children, Seniors

and Social Development.

J. ABBOTT:

Speaker, I give notice that I will on

tomorrow introduce a bill entitled,

An Act To Amend The Child And Youth Advocate

Act, Bill 62.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further notices of motion?

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

J. DINN:

Thank you, Speaker.

Speaker, I give notice that the following

private Member's motion, which will be seconded by the Member for Labrador West,

and this has to do with just transition legislation for Newfoundland and

Labrador.

WHEREAS the science unmistakeably tells us

that we need a 45 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and a

90 per cent reduction by 2050 in order to avoid ruinous climate change; and

WHEREAS the Secretary-General of the United

Nations recently noted that addiction to fossil fuels is mutually assured

destruction and that the world is sleepwalking to climate catastrophe; and

WHEREAS the effects of climate change are

already harming people of this province according to the final report of the

Health Accord, through more frequent and destructive weather events,

disappearing sea ice in Labrador, or through toxic pollution; and

WHEREAS any new development of offshore oil

and gas extraction is incompatible with keeping our international commitments,

meeting our obligations to future generations and averting global disaster; and

WHEREAS

the major economic transformations of the past were

carried out without consideration for workers in phased-out industries; and

WHEREAS

former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney stated in

the fall of 2021 that the green transition is the greatest commercial

opportunity of our age, and estimates from Stanford University predict the

creation of one to three million new jobs in Canada as we transition towards

safe and renewable energy; and

WHEREAS

Newfoundland and Labrador stands to gain by entering

early in the green technology sector, since we are

blessed with some of the

strongest, renewable energy resources in North America, a rapidly growing

technology sector, world-class education and research facilities, and

opportunities to gain federal funding for building this industry; and

WHEREAS

our workers in the oil and gas sector already have the skills and know-how

needed to build the new green industries and are therefore well placed to take

advantage of this unique opportunity; and

WHEREAS

a 20201 survey conducted by the Atlantic

Quarterly found that more than four out of five Nova Scotians and

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians not only wanted a transition to renewable and

efficient energy but also support for affected workers;

THEREFORE

BE IT RESOLVED that this government prepare for the coming decline of

the fossil fuel industry and make sure that the affected workers themselves

become leaders in the change by introducing just transition legislation in this

House, ensuring high-quality union jobs, guaranteeing workers who want to entre

the new industries receive the supports they need to do so and ensuring local

communities are the primary beneficiaries of the green transformation;

BE IT

FURTHER RESOLVED that this government recognize the gravity of the climate

emergency by introducing a climate and energy bill in this House that stipulates

a planned phase-out of the oil and gas industry, sets a clear targets so that by

2050, 85 per cent or more of the total energy consumption in this province is

clean energy, guarantees that all renewable energy production, distribution and

service remain in public hands, and commits to positioning our economy, research

centres and businesses to benefit from provincial, national and international

efforts to create new and renewable energy resources in wind, hydro and solar.

AND BE

new statutory office of climate accountability with a climate accountability

officer whose mandate would be to guide policy and targets, work with industry

to help advance low-carbon industry and infrastructure and review, audit and

report to this House annually on government, business and economy-wide progress

on legislative reductions of greenhouse gas pollution of 45 per cent by 2030 and

90 per cent by 2050.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for Labrador West

J. BROWN:

Thank you, Speaker.

This

will be our PMR that will be debated on Wednesday.

Thank

you.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Government House Leader.

S. CROCKER:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

I give

notice that I will ask leave to move the following resolution.

Be it

resolved by the House of Assembly as follows:

WHEREAS

subsection 6(3) of the

Independent Appointments Commission Act provides that the members of the

Independent Appointments Commission are to be appointed by the

Lieutenant-Governor in Council on a resolution of the House of Assembly; and

WHEREAS subsection 7(1) of the act states

that a commissioner may be reappointed; and

WHEREAS

the appointment of the following commissioners expire on June 22, 2022: Peggy

Bartlett and Gerald Anderson; and

WHEREAS

it is proposed that the said commissioners be reappointed as commissioners for a

term of three years from the date of the expiry of their terms, and

WHEREAS

the appointment of Philip R. Earle expires on May 24, 2022, and is not eligible

for reappointment; and

WHEREAS

the chairperson Earle Ludlow has resigned as chairperson and as a commissioner;

and

WHEREAS

subsection 6(4) of the act provides that the Lieutenant-Governor in Council

designate one of the members of the commission to be the chairperson;

NOW

THEREFORE

BE IT RESOLVED that the following persons be appointed or reappointed

as members of the Independent Appointments Commission for a term of three years:

Karen McCarthy, chairperson; William Mahoney; Brendan Mitchell; Jamie Schwartz;

Peggy Bartlett; and Gerald Anderson.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further

notices of motion?

The hon.

the Government House Leader.

S. CROCKER:

Speaker, I give notice that I

will ask leave to move the following resolution:

WHEREAS

section 4 of the Seniors Advocate Act

provides that on resolution of the House of Assembly, the Lieutenant-Governor in

Council shall appoint a Seniors' Advocate;

THEREFORE

BE IT RESOLVED that Susan Walsh be appointed as the Seniors' Advocate.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further

notices of motion?

The hon.

the Government House Leader.

S. CROCKER:

Thank you, Speaker.

Speaker,

I give notice that I will on tomorrow move the following motion: That

notwithstanding Standing Order 9, this House shall not adjourn at 5 p.m. on

Wednesday, May 18, 2022, but shall continue to sit to conduct Government

Business and, if not adjourned earlier, the Speaker shall adjourn the House at

midnight.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further

notices of motion?

The hon.

the Government House Leader.

S. CROCKER:

Sorry, getting ahead.

Thank

you, Speaker.

I give

notice that I will on tomorrow move, in accordance with Standing Order 11(1),

that this House not adjourn at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 19, 2022.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further

notices of motion?

Answers

to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for

Exploits.

P. FORSEY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The

residents of Pollard's Point are concerned with the recent decision of the

Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture who reduced timber lot sizes

for domestic cutting use in the White Bay South area and, in particular, the

area commonly known as Pinksen's Road.

This

area of Pinksen's Road has been used for domestic cutting by residents of

Pollard's Point for years and with the decision residents can no longer cut

firewood and logs in this traditional cutting area. The department did not open

another area, but the area in question is inaccessible to the general public.

Therefore, we urge the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to reverse this

decision and allow residents to continue to cut in the traditional area of

Pinksen's Road.

Mr.

Speaker, this is a petition that was sent to me from the residents of Pollard's

Point and Sop's Arm. I think every resident up there has signed this one.

They've been trying to get the attention of the Forestry Department to make some

decisions. It's something that I've heard all across the province, actually, in

regard to permits. There's a five-year plan. It seems like all the permits are

allotted to the bigger players. There are permits to get, but, like I said in

the House the other day, where you can get to, a permit that's high in the

country, high up in the mountains, you want to be a billy goat to get there.

people need their regular domestic permits to be able to go cut some firewood

and to be able to get in there. So the residents of Pollard's Point would like

for the government to sit down and talk to them and reverse this decision and

give some accessible permits back to the residents of Pollard's Point.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

D. BRAGG:

Thank you very much, Speaker.

I thank

the Member for presenting the petition.

I trust

the guidance of our very expert staff that we have in the department that would

go out and do a five-year forestry management plan. If they've changed it from

one domestic area to another, I'm sure it's not that far of a drive, if it's not

even closer.

I will

look into it and just see if there is a distance. But I do know and I do trust

the people that work to make these decisions.

Thank

you, Speaker.

SPEAKER:

Thank you.

Further

petitions?

Orders

of the Day

Orders of the Day

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Government House

Leader.

S. CROCKER:

Oh, no more petitions. Sorry,

my apologies, Mr. Speaker.

Mr.

Speaker, I call from the Order Paper, Motion 1, Bill 49.

SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you, Speaker.

I've

received a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor.

SPEAKER:

All rise.

Dated

the 9th day of May 2022:

Lieutenant-Governor of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, I transmit

Estimates of sums required for the Public Service for the Province for the year

ending 31 March 2023, by way of further Supply, and in accordance with the

provisions of

section 54 and 90 of the

Constitution Act, 1867 , I recommend these Estimates to the House of

Assembly.

Sgd.:______________________

Lieutenant-Governor

Please

be seated.

The hon.

the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you, Speaker.

I move,

seconded by the Government House Leader, that the message, together with a bill,

be referred to the Committee of Supply.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

It has

been moved and seconded that the House resolve itself into a Committee of Supply

and that I do now leave the Chair.

All

those in favour, 'aye.'

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Aye.

SPEAKER:

All those against, 'nay.'

Motion

carried.

motion, that the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole, the Speaker

left the Chair.

Committee of the

Whole

CHAIR (Trimper):

Order, please!

We are

now reviewing the resolution to be submitted in the Committee of the Whole House

in relation to the granting of Supply to Her Majesty and related Bill 49.

Resolution

it resolved by the House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows :

“That it

is expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to Her Majesty

for defraying certain expenses of the public service for the financial year

ending March 31, 2023, the sum of $5,219,818,600.”

CHAIR:

Shall the resolution carry?

The hon.

the Member for Harbour Main.

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

Thank you, Chair.

I am

pleased to speak on Supply today, I am aware that I have approximately 15

minutes. There is a lot to say, Mr. Chair.

The

first thing I want to do is to direct a few questions, because just from

Question Period today it had become quite apparent that this government is not

aware that the people of this province are at a breaking point. They are not

aware of what is happening outside the walls of Confederation Building.

I'm

going to ask the government to consider and ponder a few questions. So each one

of the government Members, please consider this. Are you aware that there are

people who can no longer afford to drive to work? That is a reality. This is not

politics; this is not rhetoric. We are hearing from people in our district that

are indicating that they cannot afford to drive to work, Mr. Chair.

I have

heard and I have testimonials. I put it on my Facebook page this morning saying

that I am going to be addressing this in the House of Assembly, let me know what

you concerns are so I can raise them. Already I have three, just in a brief

period of time, and lengthy emails. And I'm going to repeat: I am going to make

you listen. You are sitting here; you have to listen to what the people are

saying. There are going to be more coming in, I'm sure, as the week goes by.

Are you

aware that there are people that cannot afford to buy food? Now this may sound

angry – I think I just heard a little chirp there, that it sounds angry. Well,

do you know what? People are angry.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

People are angry. And

where is this anger coming from? It's coming from fear, Mr. Chair. It's coming

from fear.

I was at

two events this week where I was meeting with people out in the District of

Harbour Main and that's all they talked about is how they're going to survive. I

talked to seniors. I talked to younger people, young families, a couple who have

a young family. I've talked to so many people, and we've all heard the same

thing. I'm sure you must have heard the same thing on your side of the House

here.

There

are people who can no longer afford to drive to work; there are people who

cannot afford to buy food. Are you aware that there are people that cannot even

drive to medical appointments? They can't drive to the grocery stores. They

can't afford to heat their homes. They cannot afford to heat their homes. People

are being forced to make difficult decisions. Our people in the province are

being forced to consider their living arrangements, whether they should live

where they are or do they need to try to get somewhere closer to where they work

so they can get to their jobs.

people are exploring opportunities. I've heard this as well, and I've got

emails, which I will read out throughout the night, as long as we sit. If it's

until midnight, so be it. And tomorrow night and Wednesday night and Thursday

night, that's why we are here.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER:

There are people

exploring opportunities to live closer to work, they are choosing whether to put

food on their table or turn on the heat. This is not rhetoric, Mr. Chair. This

is not rhetoric. These are the concerns we're hearing from people. I've even

heard from people who operate gas stations who said that there are people

committing offences, they're stealing gas at the pumps. This is how desperate

things are getting. They are stealing gas at the gas pumps. They're stealing

food in the grocery stores. This is reality.

We hear

the government say, well, there's $142 million. Well, that money – it is not

enough. Where it's been directed, the priorities, Mr. Chair, are out of whack.

They're just out of whack. They're not in touch with the people that this

government represents. The people are saying that it's not enough.

I am going to start off reading a couple of emails. One

gentleman from South River said: People are wondering why the cost of groceries

are going up. He says it is because of the fuel prices going up. The government

are using all kinds of excuses. This is his words. He understands the purpose of

different taxes and especially the carbon tax. He said to keep emissions down,

but he said this will drive up fuel prices more. The next thing, again,

groceries are going up.

The important point about what his email was, Mr.

Chair, is he said that the Minister of Finance and the Premier say they are

helping the most vulnerable with their big number of $142 million, but guess

what? That did not help. It is not helping the average Newfoundlander and

Labradorian.

I have heard from another constituent. I was speaking

with her and she explained, and also put this in a note that they are looking to

try to find ways to deal with this reality. She works in town. She had to fill

up two vehicles yesterday. It cost her $300. She drives from the community of

Marysvale to St. John's for work. This week alone – so that was just this past

week – she has put $160 in her own vehicle and that was only Thursday. She said

she carpools, also, with two other people and she is lucky about that because

she doesn't know how she would do it without the carpool.

She also told about her mother – explained that her

mother is a widow and a senior and she has got an income of approximately $1,600

per month. And do you know what she said? Her mother called her this week; her

mother, who is a senior, called her this week crying on the phone because she

had her oil tank filled up and the bill was $1,700 and she did not know how she

was going to pay for it. She didn't know.

Mr. Chair, we hear that there are plans that the

government and the minister has said we will consider a home heating rebate.

Consider it. It seemed like there was a suggestion that maybe later in this

year. But do you know what? People need help now.

This is causing anxiety, as I just read from this note.

It is causing anxiety amongst so many seniors because they don't know what they

are going to do once the fall comes.

If they don't receive some

help, they're not going to be able to do it.

Chair,

I've got another call to our office from a person from Kelligrews. He called to

express his concern surrounding the high cost of living and the cost of oil. He

informed our office that the oil companies are holding people hostage, because

you have to order a minimum of $300 worth of oil. Now, that was his view. He's

like, how is this possible, I mean, you've got to order a minimum? And he said

some of the companies want a minimum of 250 litres of oil before they will come

for a delivery.

He is

retired; he worked for 33 years in health care. He says there are so many ways

to save money in health care. And he says the ones making the big decisions need

to start to check with the people working on the ground. They would be able to

tell you how to save the money. That's what he's talking about: reaching out to

front-line workers. Which is apparent that this government does not do.

Chair,

there are so many people that are suffering right now. I also heard from another

individual. I'm going to read this verbatim, this email. She was from I believe

it was Clarke's Beach. She said: “I write this email to you as a concerned

resident of Newfoundland and Labrador, on behalf of myself, my senior mother and

in-laws, and my growing daughter. As you are all well aware, the cost of living

now is atrocious! The cost of gas and other fuels is beyond acceptable and those

costs are impacting other products and services, like food for example.

“As it

stands right now in our province, I wouldn't doubt if most of the residents of

Newfoundland and Labrador are nearing poverty. Everything is going up, except

for wages and salaries.” And, Chair, I heard that when I was out in my district

this week. I heard a number of people say that, that the price of gas, that the

price of fuel, home heating oil, everything is going up. But the wages aren't;

the salaries aren't. So how are people going to do it?

She

said: My mother, a single widow, now has to decide whether to eat or have heat.

She's contemplating giving up her car, her very source of independence, because

of rising costs. People are being forced to consider things they normally

wouldn't have had to do. And how is this affecting their mental health and

families?

Actually, she's from South River because she said: “I know I chose to live in

South River so my daughter could be raised close to family, in a quiet and safe

neighbourhood, enjoying the same things I did as a child. All the costs are

going to get worse, if government does not step in and take appropriate action!

People of the province will be left to make difficult decisions, about whether

to put food on the table or turn on the heat.” She went on to describe some of

the other potential consequences of committing offences.

So, Mr.

Chair, this is another constituent who just doesn't understand. I spoke to her

as well, personally. She said she doesn't understand why government is not

taking appropriate and positive action now – right now. Listen to the people.

These are the people that you represent. These are the people that you are here

to govern, yet there's no response.

I do

have three minutes left and I want to refer to someone else who contacted me, as

well, within the district. She as well was very reflective. In her email she

said: Look, there's considerable blame on rising costs because of the war in

Ukraine. I mean, these are savvy people that are reaching out. The people of

this province are very savvy. They know what's going on. But they don't

understand the lack of action by this government. They don't understand the

excuses that are being put forward.

But she

said there's considerable blame on rising costs because of the war in Ukraine.

While global commodity markets do impact gas prices, the simple fact is there

are multiple government taxes, both provincial and federal, on gas. But she said

blaming this all on the Ukraine is insultingly simplistic and a deflection. It's

a deflection of the role that his government plays.

She

looked at some of the math, and she does not understand. She said when I looked

at the math, more than a week ago, it was approximately 25 per cent tax on every

litre of gas. This was back on May 12, so it was a week before that. She said

there's a tax because of Come By Chance, but that's been sold. So why are

taxpayers still subsidizing this? A legitimate question.

There's

a government tax on gas and then HST on top of that government tax. So we tax

the tax here. Then she talked about no public transportation outside of metro,

no provincial trains or buses like other provinces. We have no choice but to buy

gas and to drive our cars on terrible roads, riddled with potholes and crumbling

infrastructure.

Forcing

people – Chair, I know I only have a minute left, but she basically said in the

last paragraph – there was a lot that she had to say – government is out of

touch, government is entrenched and they're repetitive with endless talking

points. That bears repeating: Government is out of touch, entrenched and

repetitive with endless talking points.

She said

there could be ways to find savings, very easily, but this government, their

priority choices have been wasteful in many occasions. She was very, very

concerned, very critical, and she was very frustrated. That's why she said she

reached out to me as her MHA. There are going to be more people, Mr. Chair,

reaching out. I'm encouraging them; speak up. Let this government know how you

feel. They have to know the concerns that you express.

Thank

you, Chair.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

CHAIR:

Thank you very much.

I next

recognize the hon. Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Chair.

appreciate being recognized. I listened intently to the Member for Harbour Main.

I can tell you I have never experienced in a House of Assembly, nor in the House

of Commons, such personal attacks. I was called callous and unconscionable

today, which certainly means that I have feelings of no sympathy, no empathy,

indifference to suffering. I can assure the Member opposite that is not the

case.

I was

also in this particular discourse this afternoon; I thought that the Member

opposite really did talk about the fear and the anger. And I can appreciate

that, but it's certainly not personal. I can tell you that I, nor this

government, we did not have impact on the supply chain issues, nor did we start

the war in Ukraine. All we've been trying to do in this budget is find a balance

– a balance between providing monies for the priority issues of the people of

this province.

We've

provided $400 million additional to health care, because we certainly understand

that there are health care challenges. We've provided, I think it was close on

$70 million in education, because we wanted to support young families in

assisting with child care. We wanted to support the 1,000 new children in school

with extra teaching supports. We thought that that was very important to the

people of the province.

I heard

the Member for Windsor Lake a moment ago and I can certainly say that we

provided money for safety and security, additional money for search and rescue,

additional money for first responders in this budget.

I heard

the Members opposite talk about our transportation system: 11,000 kilometres of

roads. So we provided $10 million more to assist with providing more pavement

for those roads. We provided $5 million extra for community groups.

We have

balanced those priorities with cost of living return so we provided for the most

vulnerable by giving a 10 per cent increase in Income Supplement and a 10 per

cent increase in the Seniors' Benefit. In the St. John's area, we provided free

bus passes. In other areas, we did other things. We also provided for everyone

in this province, because we recognized the impact of the cost of gasoline, we

provided a 50 per cent reduction in the fees around registering your vehicle. We

eliminated the 15 per cent retail sales tax on home insurance. We're looking to

impact as many people as possible and put money back in their pockets.

I can

tell you that we have tried to touch, in the first instance, the most

vulnerable. We impacted over 160,000 individuals in this province with the

reduction in the fees for your vehicle registration and for your home insurance,

we impacted many, many more hundreds of thousands.

What I

can say here is there is no magic bullet. There is no money tree that I can go

to. Every cent that I have just announced, in terms of the $142 million – it is

a lot of money, Chair, that amount of money that we provided, we had to borrow

it. So we have borrowed from our children and our grandchildren for today.

Now, we

all know interest rates are rising. By borrowing that money, we're having an

impact for generations to come.

Now, I

have said in this House of Assembly, I have said publicly, and the Premier has

said publicly: We are looking at what we can do further. We have provided to the

people of the province the entire amount we collect on the provincial gas tax.

We are looking at what further we can do. We recognize that the people of the

province are impacted. As we move forward through this year, they will continue

to be impacted and we're concerned about that.

But

being personally attacked in this House of Assembly, Chair, quite frankly, is

wrong. All I ask is that we are well able to debate the issues by saying what

the concerns are. We hear concerns, too. I have friends; I have family. I meet

people in grocery stores and on the street in my district all the time. We hear

their concerns and we know those concerns are heard across the country and

around the world.

We are

doing our very best, as I would expect everyone in this House to do, to ensure

that we provide as much as we possibly can back to the people of the province.

So $142 million has been provided at this point in time. I've given my

assurances, as we move through things and move through and understand what more

revenues we may be able to collect, what we can possibly do in terms of savings,

then we will be able to provide the people with additional supports.

We've

committed to doing that. It's not that we're wanting to hold on to the money

here. It's not that we want to burden the people of this province. Indeed, I can

tell the people of this province, I can tell the Members opposite, to rest

assured I do have a conscience. I do feel deeply the concerns of the people of

the province. That's why we made some of the very, very challenging and

difficult decisions that we have already to make sure that we can support the

most vulnerable, to make sure that we can provide money back.

It won't

be enough. There's not enough in the world right now with the high price of

gasoline and the high price of fuel and the high price of food. There are going

to be challenges. We recognize that. But I can say we will do our absolute best

that we can to provide for the people of the province.

We are

investigating – not investigating, we are moving forward on ways that we can be

able to provide additional supports and additional supplements and we're going

to continue to do that, as best we can, Chair. That is what we do.

The bill

that we are debating today is approval of the

Supply Act, 2002. It's the main Supply. It's been introduced at the

conclusion of the budget debate, and approval of this bill that we're debating

this afternoon is to ensure funds are available to meet the government

expenditures during the 2022-2023 fiscal year. It gives us the ability to be

able to provide those rebates that I spoke about. It gives us the ability to

provide the money back to the people of the province. It gives the ability to

provide money for health and education and safety and security and the other

major things that we have to do in this province. It provides legislative

authority to be able to meet the financial obligations of this province. It's

basically a routine administrative measure.

I can

understand the passion and concern that we all share about this rising cost of

living. Look, I share it as well. But I am faithfully and dutifully trying to

ensure that we have a balance. We have money to invest where we need it

invested: health care, education, safety, security, better transportation,

investments in new infrastructure for education, as well as some of the other

priorities of the cost of living and helping the most vulnerable and helping

people transition. This is a reality that we are faced with, Chair, and I know

that you've spoken very passionately as well about the transition that is under

way and the needs to address climate change.

I know

we've had some taunting back and forth in this House about the money that we

have provided to help people transition to from oil to electricity in their

homes. Now that is stackable, we give $5,000. There's more money available

through Housing, there's more money available from the federal government. I

think it's about $15,000 to help people transition from oil to electricity.

We have

provided money to help people buy electric vehicles. And I realize – I fully

realize that not everyone can do that. But those that can, we have provided a

stipend to assist them in being able to afford to transition. That stipend of

$5,000 that we have provided to move from oil to electrical home heat is a help,

especially when it's stacked on top of the other stipends that are available.

We've

provided $2,500, Chair, for those that are looking at purchasing a new vehicle

or even a used electric vehicle so that they can stack that on top of the monies

that are being offered by the federal government to have a discount on

electrical vehicles.

Chair, I

honestly do feel that we have addressed the most vulnerable: increases in the

Seniors' Benefit, increases in Income Supplement, bus passes, to name just a few

things. We also provided a $400 cheque to income support. Those families that

are on income support, we also provided them with $400 cash. That's helping the

most vulnerable.

We also helped all regular families in this province.

We also helped every regular family in this province who has a vehicle, who is

impacted by the price of fuel. We have helped them. And we also a provision for

people who wish to transition.

Chair, look, is there more to be done? Absolutely.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

CHAIR:

Order, please!

S. COADY:

Is there more we want to do? Absolutely – absolutely.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

CHAIR:

Order, please!

If the Member has a conversation, he can take it

outside, please.

Thank you.

CHAIR:

The hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.

S. COADY:

I will say when I listened to the Member from Harbour

Main, she did say one thing that I completely agree with: People of this

province are savvy. They understand that this is not brought by the Government

of Newfoundland and Labrador. They also understand that there is not a finite

amount of money. They also understand that we are borrowing from future

generations. They also understand that we have provided $142 million.

What I am hearing and what I accept is that more needs

to be done and that, I can assure you, we are considering. But in order to be

able to do even what I have announced in budget, even what I said that we want

to do, we have to move forward with the Supply Act. This goes in concert with

the Interim Supply that was debated in March of this year to ensure that we have

the sufficient authority for government to move forward on its financial

obligations.

Thank you for the opportunity.

CHAIR:

Thank you, Minister.

I now recognize the hon. the Member for Ferryland.

L. O'DRISCOLL:

Thank you, Chair.

It is a pleasure to be able to get up in the House and

thank the residents, again, from the Ferryland District for voting me in, and

they voted me in for a reason. That was to come in here and speak publicly on

issues and debates concerning the budget and concerning their cost of living.

While I was listening to the Member for Harbour Main

get passionate about her speech – she is not talking to the Finance Minister

personally; she is talking to the government. To take that personally is wrong.

She is here representing her district and for people who go over there on the

other side and say that that is not happening. Well, that is what we are here to

do, and that is what she is doing. She listened to that.

So it is her frustration level and then you get up and

you don't listen. So she is listening to that out in her district, out at

events. It is the same as I did when I went down to Foodland yesterday and a

lady said: Well, I know this is not the place to bring it up. But it is the

place to bring it up. I am there to represent you Monday to Sunday. Whatever day

of the week it is, if you have an issue, you can tell me.

I am not going down there to shy away from people. I am

going down there to get somebody – if they have an issue on their mind, then you

know what? They are going to tell you, and I am glad they do tell you. And that

is what she is here to do and that is what I am here to do.

We are the Opposition and we are here to bring up

issues that are brought to us in our district, and she is doing it very

eloquently without people pointing fingers back as us saying we are not.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

L. O'DRISCOLL:

We are here debating this budget and this budget came

out on April 7 and the price of gas has gone up – I don't know the number

offhand – but what

have she done since the budget? This is what people are worried about right now,

and these are the issues that are here in all districts. Not only mine,

everybody here, 40 districts, everybody got the same concern. So since the

budget came down, this is where the issues are. People need a break; they need

something to help them make it through this summer.

The

price of fuel is gone through the roof; we need a break. That's what they're

looking for. Every time you meet someone, that's the discussion: What can you do

with the price of fuel? Yes, there's only so much you can do, but you've got HST

that you're collecting revenue since the budget, and we haven't done one thing

to look at it. We're going to look at it in the fall. People need help now. Why

do you think they're asking us?

I get

over here and I never know what I'm going to say. But when you sit down and

listen to you, listen to the people on the other side there, listen to your

answer, and think that we're going to sit here and oh yeah, we'll all vote for

it, let's all pass the budget and we'll all go light a fire in the middle of the

room and everybody stand around and sing. We're not going doing that.

We're

here to fight for people. That's what we're supposed to do. We're not going to

sit down and do anything else. We're going to stand up and bring the issues. You

wouldn't have to worry about it. Or you'd probably have less to worry about if

you didn't give away the money – $5 million to the US.

So you

sit here and talk about we don't have the resources to do it. You gave $5

million to the US to do an evaluation on our properties. Yeah, no problem.

Chair, $750,000 in Central; where did that go? Do you think that might help the

people? We certainly need more than $5.7 million, for sure, to help out all the

residents in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

But

we're not going to stand here and be condescended to because we're speaking up

for the people in our districts. It's not going to happen. And the more you do

it, the more we're coming back. Sorry, we're not sitting down – not happening.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

L. O'DRISCOLL:

Oh, it gets me so riled, I

tell you. My hands are here shaking. It just gets me so riled up when you listen

to – anyway, I'll go somewhere else because it's not going to be good.

I'll go

back to the price of fuel and the fella who texted me last night. A month ago he

texted me, on April 1. I went over the prices of fuel. On that fuel, 500 litres,

it cost him $1,111.61. So he sent me another picture last night, and I said,

surely to God, that can't be a piece of machinery that's taking 1,675 litres.

That can't be a piece of equipment, surely God. But it's a tank. When he went to

fill that up – he needs that for his machinery when he goes out on the job –

$4,398.88 to go get that filled up last night.

Now,

that gets passed back to consumers. The price is going to go up on his jobs.

He's got no other choice. He can't just sit there and eat that cost. It just

can't happen. He has to pass that on to other people. Whoever is getting a price

on the job is getting a higher price, and the people are going to get less done.

We just need a bit of help for the people of the Province of Newfoundland and

Labrador. We just need some help on fuel prices. We can't wait until the fall;

we need some help now. It just can't wait until the fall.

They say

if you take care of the pennies, the dollars take care of themselves. My point

would be $5 million to the US, the Premier's office in Grand Falls-Windsor. So

if we look at that, is that something that you can look over here and say that

was a great move to do? I know we have to spend some money – you made an

investment in NASCAR, good investment. I'm going to say, over a period of time,

I'm sure it will come back to help. You invest to make money; no problem, you're

going to get more revenue back. I see that.

We, over

here, have said it's timing. It's about the timing of it. Does it need to happen

this year? We're in a crisis here now. I look forward to Come Home Year. I have

four Come Home Years in my district. I spoke to a lady in Trepassey the other

day and their hotel is booked right until September, October. Now, she had some

occasional people cancel due to flight prices and the cost of fuel and rental

cars. We all know that's an issue and that's not going to go away.

So again

it's the timing, when all this was done. But she did say to me that fish last

year, when she bought it, was $3 a pound. Fish right now, for her to buy, is $7

a pound, and she's getting it out of Nova Scotia because she can't get it here.

Seven dollars a pound and the fish are different. She said it's smaller and it's

different. Now, I'm not an expert on that. I certainly know about fish. I came

from a fishing community; my father was a fisherman. But for her to have to buy

her fish from a supplier that's getting it out of Nova Scotia is completely

wrong – completely wrong.

We get

here talking about climate change and talking about fishery and scientists and

all this. We had a moratorium came in in 1992, July 2, my birthday. As I said

many times in here, that's 30 years ago that that came in. Thirty years ago, we

had scientists tell us that the fishery had to be shut down. Now, they must be

some group of scientists; it haven't opened back up yet. It hasn't gotten to a

point that it's going to open up yet, by the look of it.

We have

a Minister of Fisheries here, we have a seal issue problem and we're not dealing

with it. I said before, we'll stand behind you 100 per cent on this side if you

do something with seals – 100 per cent. You're a Fisheries Minister; what are we

doing for the fishery? You're pitting communities against each other now for

processing licences. That's what we're doing in the processing industry for

fishery, pitting communities against each other. One group don't want it, the

other group do. I mean, that is wrong. That is totally wrong the way that we

have ministers here that we have to – there is stuff that we could do. We are a

fishing province; that is our first thing. Yes, we're trying to go to oil, or

we've been at oil and now we're going to go green. All right, but our first

priority in this province is the fishery.

What do

we do with the fishery? How many news releases have we come out with on fishing?

We know what kind of tangle it is, that's for sure, and we have very little say.

Very little say. You get a crab price that comes down from the federal

government – they put out the quotas. The fishermen catch it and we collect the

taxes. So that's what we're doing for the fishery. To me, that's incredible. We

can't get our cod fishery back. We can't figure out how we're going to do it.

The

seals are a major issue in that problem, for sure, and we have yet to address

it. I know it is tangly, there is no question about it; it is certainly an

issue. But we have to get to it. It is never going to fix itself. We have to get

in and put our foot down somewhere along the way. We let them dictate to us and

it shouldn't be.

We have

had all these resources, and you're not the government that gave it away, I'm

aware of that, you're not the government that gave it away. You didn't give away

the oil and you didn't give away the electricity and you didn't giveaway the

fishery, but we have done it. The federal government is in control of everything

we've got. And what say have we got sometimes? Very little. We have no say in

the cod fishery. They're telling you exactly what the rules are and we have no

say in it.

Back to

the cost of living. I have a resident that emailed me, let's see if I can find

it. She said: I know you're not a Member of the Liberal government, thank God,

but as you're an MHA I would like to address the real rising fuel prices.

Seniors in their homes, heated by furnaces, soon won't be able to afford to keep

their homes. The cost to fill our tank is now over $2,000 – and this email is a

week and a half, two weeks old – less than two years ago it cost between $800

and $900. So where are the people getting the extra money?

You have

the opportunity, you have the knowhow and you have everybody in the departments

who knows how to do this. Let's give a break for three or four months. Let's

give the people of the province a break so they can sit back and be able to

enjoy their summer and when the fall comes, if the prices go down, so be it,

then you can put it back on. But up until that point, we should be doing

something right now so we can sit down and have a vote on something to help the

people of the province.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

CHAIR:

Thank you, Sir.

The hon.

the Member for Exploits.

P. FORSEY:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Again,

Mr. Chair, it is always nice to stand in this House of Assembly and represent

the District of Exploits, the people who put me here.

Chair,

being home this weekend, I heard their voices again this weekend, I really did.

It's the same wherever I go throughout the province; we're all hearing it

certainly through our 40 districts.

People

are in dire straits. There's no doubt people are in dire straits. When the phone

keeps ringing, when you're talking to people in grocery stores, gas stations and

your only topic is how do we get through it? What am I going to do? It's dire

situations here. People are making choices today that are unheard of. They're

making choices between whether they eat food or whether they stay warm. That's

an incredible choice to make.

When I'm

hearing people say I can't afford to buy the groceries anymore, especially when

it comes to single parents, you know, buying milk or something for their

children; single parents trying to provide for their children, trying to put

some clothes on their backs, trying to put some shoes or sneakers on their feet

so that they can go to school, so that they can go get an education, and we're

hearing this every day.

We're

not up here trying to degrade anyone and we're not making any personal attacks

on anyone. We're just putting those issues forward because we hear them in our

districts. I know you hear them in your districts. I really do. So there's

nobody trying to make stabs at anybody. We need to find a solution, right now,

today, to help the people of this province to make a better living for

themselves right at this moment. This can't continue. It's not going to

continue.

So while

those people are making those kind of choices, which are unfortunate choices

right now, so when people are making those choices, they're looking at me and

saying: Here are your choices you've made. The Member from Ferryland just

mentioned it; $30 million to a company in the States to streamline health care.

In the past two years, to streamline health care, $30 million went to the

States. Rothschild, again, $5 million to tell us what we own.

People

are listening to this out there you know. People hear this; they see this. So $5

million to Rothschild to tell us what we own so we can make evaluations on it.

I'm sure we could have saved a bit of money there in those two instances.

Again,

the Member for Ferryland mentioned the tough choice of putting an office in

Grand Falls-Windsor for the Premier. Really tough choice so that he could have a

voice in Central Newfoundland. I don't know how tough that gets, I really don't.

So that's $250,000 in initial set-up this year. So give that three years in

there, you're looking at anywhere from $750,000 to probably a million dollars

for an office in the Central area while a child can't go to school because they

have no shoes on their feet, or they can't buy milk for their child to go to

school. And that's a tough choice?

I do

believe that people do see this. When they see that money being spent like that

and they're trying to put a drop of gas in their car. They're even making the

choice of whether to go to work or not. I've even heard that, I've really heard

that. Will I go to work? I can't afford to do it. Now that's a tough choice.

That's a tough choice.

So the

choice of putting that office in Grand Falls to spend that kind of money when

people have to make those kinds of choices, it just doesn't add up, especially

when we already elected seven MHAs in the Central area. We already elected them.

There were seven of us that got elected in the last election to represent the

people in Central: Fortune Bay - Cape La Hune, an MHA down there; Baie Verte -

Green Bay, an MHA there; Lewisporte - Twillingate; Fogo Island - Cape Freels;

and Gander. That's five MHAs on the Liberal side. Grand Falls-Windsor - Buchans

and Exploits, that's two more, two more MHAs on our side. Seven MHAs

representing the Central area and the Premier could spend anywhere up to

$750,000 to a million in three years to support an office in Grand

Falls-Windsor.

Big

choices, tough choices, b'ys, tough choices. So I'm sorry, that's the way the

people feel about it. That's where their money is going when it should've gone

back to finding a way to help the people in our province. Because they see it,

they feel it. So when it comes to choices and helping out the people in my

district, in our other districts, it's not happening. I don't call that a

choice, I really don't. The only choice there is, is the choice that's taken

away from the people of our province that we could've helped them out in some

way. That's the choice that was made there.

The people of our province deserve better. As elected

representatives – and I know there are seven elected in Central Newfoundland –

we can certainly do better for the constituents in our region of Central

Newfoundland. I don't need a voice to stand up here, another voice in Central,

saying that the people are hurting right now, where to spend that money. That's

an office that certainly should not have been there.

So we need to do better for our people. Right now, in

Central Newfoundland, I am hearing a rebate. They need a rebate program. They

need something that they can get back that they can spend into filling up their

tanks with furnace oil. If they don't spend it in furnace oil, they can spend it

on another program so that they can use gas in their car or, either that, they

need some sort of a tax break.

They definitely need a tax break on the fuels that they

are buying right now to either get from one destination to another. I have

people in my area driving upwards to an hour, trying to get to work, to make

ends meet. For the most part, they can't afford to drive that hour to make ends

meet because by they time they get home, they get back, their cheque just

doesn't cut it anymore. It just doesn't cut it. Their cheque doesn't cut it. The

initiatives that the government put in in regard to funding in the budget that

the minister gets up and talks about the $142 million, that doesn't cut it

either. That just doesn't cut it.

So we need to find a way and we need to find it now –

we really do – to get those people assistance so that they can live better. We

are just putting them in a bracket where they can't afford to live. Right now

they are just surviving – barely surviving. We don't need people around here

trying to survive day by day by day by day. We can try to have people live

comfortably. We really can. We can try to have people live comfortably and in a

manner that they can get up in the morning and be able to drive to work,

reasonably, like they did before and support their families, support their

children, support things in their districts.

Mr. Chair, I never even got to the health part of it

with regard to doctors and emergency units and that sort of stuff in Central

Newfoundland that's in dire straits as well right now. So there are lots of

things to look at. But when you are talking about

tough choices, those were the

tough choices that I'm hearing people coming back to me saying: B'y, if the

government can spend money in places like that, then they can do something for

us that would alleviate some of the stress off the taxes that we're paying right

now on the fuels and the groceries. If government can make those choices, then

they can make better choices of helping us do what we need to do.

Thank

you, Chair.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

CHAIR:

Thank you.

The next

recognize the hon. the Minister of Immigration, Population Growth and Skills.

G. BYRNE:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I really

want to say thank you to the two hon. Members that proceeded me, the Member for

Ferryland and the Member for Exploits. They gave us some cogent points to be

able to process and digest upon. I want to thank the hon. Member for Ferryland

for providing us with a retrospective, a look back in time to an event which was

transformative for Newfoundland and Labrador and that was, of course, the

closure of the groundfish fishery 30 years ago. It will be 30 years ago on July

2, I believe, when former Minister John Crosbie formally shut down the

groundfish fishery and we have not seen it return since.

One of

the things that we all lamented at the time was that we failed to follow the

advice, the credence of science and we suggested to each other with experienced

voices that if we fail to follow the advice that's given, that we know in our

hearts that we must do, we will perpetuate disaster. 1992, of course, was the

largest industrial layoff in the history of Canada, when the entire groundfish

fisheries of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI and

Quebec were placed in perpetual hold. They have not rebounded.

Mr.

Chair, a lot of the conversation that occurs now today is a matter of science,

is a matter of the environment; it is a matter of taking tough choices before

those choices are imposed upon you. That really is the environmental paradigm

that we're in when it comes to climate change. Do we take a loss, do we incur a

penalty or do we accept that we must alter our standard of living or our ways

and means of making a living to avoid an absolute collapse? I think that really,

Chair, is the question that we face when it comes to climate change. This is an

inevitability that if change is not effected, every element of our society ,

our economy, our political socio-economic well-being will be placed in jeopardy

and to the point where the consequences may not be able to be effectively

reversed.

So, Chair, we are today, hopefully, learning some of

the lessons of the past, but as I listen to the debate it appears we may have

forgotten. We may have forgotten that if we do not learn from the past, then we

are doomed to repeat it. Mr. Chair, in some measure, some of the pain we feel

today is a consequence of taking action to avoid something which will be

absolutely catastrophic.

Nobody likes to incur additional costs. Nobody likes to

have their normal ability to make a living or to enjoy recreational pursuits or

anything else impeded upon. But of course this is not a free exercise,

unfortunately; it's something that comes with a certain amount of discipline

that is required.

Just as, had we taken action before 1992, had the

federal government taken action before 1992, we would probably not have a

groundfish closure or reduced groundfish catches as we see today. If action had

been taken much more proactively, we would be at a very different spot.

I cannot help but think that when we look at the

inflationary pressures, when we look at the dynamic that is around us in the

entire world whether it be the illegal and unethical, immoral invasion of

Ukraine by Russia and the consequences that has had on the geopolitical

landscape of all continents, of all six continents, we are left with not only

inflationary pressures but we are impacted by reduced supply with strong demand,

but reduced supply for petrochemicals which is driving costs up as well and we

see that going down the supply chain.

So, Chair, as I reflect on what the hon. Member for

Ferryland, as well as the Member for Exploits, had to say about the need for

action, what we can report, what this House is very much aware of is that one of

the largest support programs for any citizen in Canada comes from the people of

the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador in an offset for something which is

very unfortunate but inevitable.

Mr.

Chair, I would love to be able to announce, our government would love to be able

to announce, not through debt financing, but through cash flow, other

initiatives, such as – and I'll just use this as a hypothetical. I'm sure all

hon. Members of the House would love to participate in this. If we were to

announce a $100-million seniors' income top-up program, along with a

$100-million working family top-up program, along with a $100-million children's

support top-up program, coupled with a $50-million student support initiative,

coupled with a $50-million municipal government support program, coupled with a

$50-million industry support program, coupled with a $50-million service

organization support program.

If we

were to announce all of that: a $100-million seniors' top-up, a $100-million

working family top-up, a $100-million children's support program, a $50-million

student support program, a $50-million municipal support program, a $50-million

industry support program and a $50-million service organization support program,

what we would be announcing, Chair, is the exact same amount of money that we

have to spend on rate mitigation because of Muskrat Falls every year, year after

year, year after year, year after year.

So we

are investing money –

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

CHAIR:

Order, please!

G. BYRNE:

– because we have no choice

but to offset the incredibly catastrophic impacts of Muskrat Falls. No choice

has been given.

We have

to debt finance; we're a government that's been left with the highest debt

financing of anywhere in the entire country. And we have chosen to offset the

cost of Muskrat Falls through rate mitigation, which does cost us $500 million a

year. That is unavoidable.

Just as

we speak of the fishery, just as the hon. Member for Ferryland speaks of the

fishery, speaks of the past and the mistakes of the past, I, today in this House

of Assembly, speak of the past, the mistakes of Muskrat Falls and the

consequence that it's left us. We have less ability to deal with the

circumstances of today, not because we have no interest, not because there is

not empathy but because we have tied up resources –

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

CHAIR:

Order, please!

G. BYRNE:

– significant resources in

dealing with the misguided project that is called Muskrat Falls.

So as we

speak truth to this entire scenario, Chair, our government has not only provided

support to seniors, to families, to students, to children, to all those who we

have supported and helped, and will continue to do so, whether it be through the

Child Tax Benefit, through other initiatives or the family support benefits. We

have supplied and we will continue to look for opportunities to be able to

support working families, seniors, students, children, community organizations,

municipalities and everyone who is a major and dominant force in our society.

They all deserve support, but we can say honestly and speak the truth, we are

providing $500 million a year in an energy-offset program called rate mitigation

from the catastrophic failure called the misguided project: Muskrat Falls.

Thank

you very much, Mr. Chair.

CHAIR:

Thank you.

The hon.

the Member for Mount Pearl - Southlands.

P. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

It's

certainly a pleasure to stand in this House and speak to Bill 49. Of course,

this is a Supply bill, and as the Minister of Finance has said, basically, we're

just allowing the continuation of government, to pay salaries, pay for all the

government departments, offices and so on. We need to do this every year,

obviously, so that people get paid and government functions.

Mr.

Chair, this covers of course not just agencies, boards and commissions, not just

core government departments but this also covers this House of Assembly. Within

the jurisdiction of this House of Assembly, of course, we have the House here,

the people's House, where we have to operate, of course, and we do so in a

professional way, I think most of the time. And certainly it's critical that the

House of Assembly and all aspects of it operate with integrity. Part of the

House of Assembly, I guess, that part of what falls under the House of Assembly,

we have a number of statutory offices.

We have

the Office of the Auditor General, of course; we have the Citizens'

Representative and the money from this would help fund that. We have the

Commissioner for Legislative Standards, we have the Privacy Commissioner and we

have the Seniors' Advocate, which we just announced a new Seniors' Advocate here

today, the government did, and so on. They appointed a new Seniors' Advocate. So

there are a number of these independent statutory offices and these offices and

these officers all report to this House of Assembly. They don't report to a

minister. They don't report to the government. They report to this House of

Assembly. We are responsible to ensure that these offices are operating in a

proper efficient way and that everything is being done properly with integrity

and so on.

So with

that said, Mr. Chair, I received a call over the weekend from a constituent of

mine, it was a lady, she was a constituent of mine. This lady told me a very,

very disturbing, upsetting story about a statutory office that reports to this

House of Assembly, and she wants answers. She wants to know what's being done. I

said to her: Well, what is all this about? She told me – I'm going by what the

lady told me – that we have a statutory office that reports to this House of

Assembly, where apparently there have been several allegations of harassment,

bullying, nepotism and a whole bunch of other things. I said: Well –

CHAIR:

I ask the Member to please

try to stay relevant to the spending policies as opposed to a commissioner who

reports to the House.

Thank

you.

P. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

figured if we were talking about climate change, Muskrat Falls, everything else.

CHAIR:

Again it was related to

carbon tax, but I just ask you to try to steer on the spending policy of the

Executive.

P. LANE:

This is not the carbon tax,

Mr. Chair.

CHAIR:

Please, do not question the

Chair. Just try to stay focused on spending policy.

Thank

you.

P. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Well,

Mr. Chair, I would say the policy and the funding and so on, we are passing a

bill here to fund, not just core government but to fund statutory offices of the

House of Assembly that report to us. Just like any government department or

agency, board and commission, we have to ensure that those departments are

operating in an ethical manner and things are going properly, because the people

are paying for those offices. They're paying for those salaries. I think it's

very important to point out, for this House, to understand that this is a very

serious allegation that's been brought forward.

I said:

Is it just you? She said: 21 people. I said: 21 people? No way, 21 people.

That's what she said. Twenty-one employees under the whistleblower act have made

a complaint to the Office of the Citizens' Representative. I said: No way. When

did that happen? She said: It happened quite some time ago and that's why I'm

calling you. I said: Why? She said: Because it was made quite some time ago.

There's a report that has been completed. There are 10 recommendations for

correction and nothing has happened. I said: Well, I haven't seen any report.

She said: Well, it went to the House of Assembly almost two months ago. I said:

No way. It cannot be. I checked with my colleagues on the Management Commission.

They don't know anything about it.

I don't

know, Mr. Char, if this report exists or not. I don't know. I haven't seen the

report. This is what I have been told and I am not naming names. I am not naming

what office this is, but I want to know, the people deserve to know and this

House of Assembly deserves to know is there a report. Did this happen? Is there

a report? And if there is a report, where is the report? How come it has not

gone to the Management Commission? How come it is not tabled in this House of

Assembly so that we can debate it before the House closes – before the House

closes?

I don't

know if the government Members are aware of this or not. I wasn't aware of it. I

don't know if my colleagues here are aware of it. I don't know. But I would say

to the government Members, I would say to the Premier, I would say to the

Government House Leader, this is serious stuff, if this is true. I would like to

see that report, if there is a report. You need to go find out if there is a

report and see it and table it so we can have a debate in this House of Assembly

about what's going on. If there is anything going on. I don't know if there is

anything going on, but that's what I was told.

If it is

true, it is very shocking and it is very, very concerning. We should all be

concerned. The people should be concerned because it is the peoples' money that

we are approving in this bill that is funding those offices. Not to mention the

fact that if this is true – and this lady told me that there are people who quit

their job and everything. Again, I don't know, that is what she said. People

have quit their job. If that is true and we have a toxic workplace somewhere

within government that reports to this House of Assembly, then I think we need

to know about it. I think we need to know about it. We need to know what is

going on and what it is all about.

I'm just

going to leave that for now with the government but I really encourage the

government to find out if this is true or not and, if so, bring it to the

Management Commission ASAP and then let's get it to this House of Assembly, if

there is anything to it, so that we can debate what is going on before the House

closes. Because we certainly wouldn't want to wait for the House to close and

then we would be into September or October or whatever it is before we get to

debate it. We would want to know what is going on right now and we want to

debate it right now, if there is anything to debate. But I put it out there that

this is very important that we do that.

Now,

with that said, I'm just going to take a couple of minutes just to sort of speak

to the budget a little more.

Mr.

Chair, as has been said in this House of Assembly numerous times by my

colleagues, by myself, this is not about trying to beat up on government, it's

really not. When we come here and we talk about the fact that there are people

who can't afford to eat, there are people who can't afford fuel to heat their

homes, there are seniors cutting their medications in half or taking them every

second day. We're not making any of this stuff up. This is stuff that we're

really hearing from people on a regular basis. It's very important that all

Members understand it and I think they do.

appreciate the $142 million that the Minister of Finance keeps talking about

that was put into the budget. I really do appreciate that, and it does help some

people. No doubt it does help some people. But, again, as I've said many, many

times, if you're a senior who has a little bit of a pension because you worked

your whole life, or a few RRSPs, you have nothing. If you're someone who is

working a minimum-wage job, and some people are working two minimum-wage jobs

and so on, to try to make ends meet, it did nothing for them. And these people

are hurting; they really are hurting. A lot of these people are living paycheque

to paycheque and there's no break there for them.

So I

want to, once again, encourage the government please try to find more mechanisms

to help those people as well.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

SPEAKER:

Thank you to the Member.

I next

recognize the Minister of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

D. BRAGG:

Thank you very much, Chair.

It is a

great opportunity to talk about this bill today on Supply, and I guess

indirectly or directly it's the budget. I want to start off – because we always

get what's in the budget – in my Department of Fisheries, Forestry and

Agriculture, I'd just like you to know – and I think everybody should take note

of this – we actually invest $250,000 into the Newfoundland school milk program.

So that's pretty good. We put milk in all the schools in this province.

When we

talk about milk, and dairy has come up in the last couple of days and f