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November 19, 2014

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS

Vol. XLVII No. 42

The

House met at 2:00 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Verge):

Order, please!

Admit

strangers.

Before

we start today, I want to welcome to the public gallery four members from the

Northeast Avalon Atlantic Coastal Action Program: Phoebe Metcalfe, Matthew

Simms, Kimberly Orren, and Bill Stoyles.

Welcome

to the House of Assembly.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

Statements by

Members

MR. SPEAKER:

Today we will hear members'

statements from the Member for the District of Torngat Mountains; the Member for

the District of Kilbride; the Member for the District of Harbour Main; the

Member for the District of Bonavista South; the Member for the District of Bay

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

The hon.

the Member for Torngat Mountains.

MR. EDMUNDS:

Mr.

Speaker, I rise in this hon. House today to recognize Ms Liz

Evans-Mitchell, who recently retired as principal of J.C. Erhardt Memorial

School in Makkovik. Ms

Evans-Mitchell was the first graduate in Makkovik in 1979 following the reign of

residential schooling. She went on

to study at Memorial University and graduated with an Education degree in 1984.

Ms Liz

Evans-Mitchell then returned to Makkovik where she spent her thirty-year career

teaching the children of her hometown.

She went on to become principal of the school, a position from which she

retired on October 31, 2014. I was

very honoured to present her with a certificate of appreciation on her special

day.

Evans-Mitchell was not only a teacher to the residents of Makkovik she was a

role model who was very active in all community events and a true example of

dedication to her Aboriginal culture and heritage.

Her commitment to dedicate her full career to the children of Makkovik

will always be appreciated by both students and parents.

Mr.

Speaker, I ask all hon. members to join me in congratulating Ms Liz

Evans-Mitchell on her teaching career and to wish her good health and best

wishes in her retirement.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the

District of Kilbride.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DINN:

Mr. Speaker, this is the

International Year of the Family Farm.

It is a year we reflect on the importance that family farms have played

in the history of this Province.

At this

year's Annual Agricultural Home and Garden Show at the Jack Byrne Arena on

October 3, Hector Williams and his family of H & E Williams Dairy Farm in the

Goulds were honoured for their contributions to family farming.

The

Williams Farm was started in the early 1900s by Henry Williams, a fisherman out

of Petty Harbour. Henry was a

part-time farmer who had two sons, Ernest and Manuel, who became full-time

vegetable and dairy farmers. Ernest,

too, had two sons, Hector and Eric, who took over the farm when their father

died in 1970.

Eric and

Hector expanded the dairy side of the farm and built up the herd from thirty

head of cattle with seventy-five acres of land to over 300 head with 450-470

acres of land. After over 100 years,

the Williams farm is in its fourth generation and still operating under the

direction of Hector's son, Terry.

I ask

all members to join me in commending the Williams family for its contribution to

the agricultural industry in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the

District of Harbour Main.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. HEDDERSON:

Mr. Speaker, it is with great

pleasure I rise in this hon. House to congratulate three high school students

from the District of Harbour Main.

Each

year, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador awards $1,000 Electoral

District Scholarships to the three high school graduates in each electoral

district who achieve the highest Department of Education scholarship score.

This year, Mr. Speaker, the three recipients in the District of Harbour

Main were Mr. Dylan Percey, Mr. Nathan Hart, and Mr. Christian Phillips-Hume

all who attended Roncalli Central High School in Avondale.

This

achievement, Mr. Speaker, demonstrates the outstanding commitment, dedication,

and hard work of each of these recipients.

Mr.

Speaker, I ask all members of this House to join me in congratulating not only

these three students, but certainly the entire class of 2014, wishing them well

in their future education and training.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the

District of Bonavista South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. LITTLE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Honourable colleagues, I would like to recognize and congratulate the Town of

Bonavista in receiving the 2014 Prince of Wales prize from the Heritage Canada

National Trust during the annual conference in Charlottetown, Prince Edward

Island.

The Town

of Bonavista and the Bonavista Historic Townscape Foundation worked together in

order to preserve and revitalize the community through the development of

programs such as the Historic Properties Investment Program, the Historic

Properties Salvage and Development Initiative, the Townscape Development and

Restoration Team.

With the

assistance from municipal, provincial, and federal programs, as well as local

businesses, these initiatives help to restore forty heritage properties and

benefited the rehabilitation of many prominent historic structures.

There were also two major projects involving the town centre and the

harbour front. As well as employing

many local and skilled workers, these programs brought new economic

opportunities to the town and improved the quality of life for its citizens.

Honourable colleagues, please join me congratulating the Town of Bonavista, its

many volunteers, and all of its residents for receiving the 2014 Prince of Wales

prize and for their continued hard work and dedication throughout these heritage

conservation and development initiatives.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Bay

of Islands.

MR. JOYCE:

Mr. Speaker, I rise in this

hon. House to recognize the passing of a great athlete and an avid sports fan

from the Curling area. On September

21, Mr. Ed Roche passed away at the age of eighty-five.

Ed was a

stellar athlete, particularly in soccer and hockey.

Over the years, he was a member of various Curling and Corner Brook

all-star teams, as well as the Corner Brook Royals.

In 1994, he was inducted into the Soccer Hall of Fame as a player and a

builder; however, it was on the soccer pitch with the Curling Rangers where his

heart truly laid playing with the Rangers from 1947 until his retirement in

Ed was a

competitive, carefree, and quick-witted man.

He was a personal friend to many young athletes in Curling and on many

occasions kept us on the right path.

No player was refused a road trip because they did not have the funds to travel.

Ed would dig deep into his pockets and give all athletes a chance.

Mr.

Speaker, I ask all members to join me in recognizing the contribution that Ed

Roche made to the sports community of Corner Brook and extend condolences to his

family on his passing.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's North.

MR. KIRBY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise

today to recognize my constituent Mrs. Margret Reid who celebrated her ninetieth

birthday just last week on Monday, November 10.

Originally a Harington from Carbonear, Mrs. Reid married her husband

Harold in our year of Confederation 1949.

The Reids raised most of their nine children in Harold's hometown of

South Dildo, Trinity Bay, where they owned a sawmill operation.

They

moved to St. John's in 1985 and always lived in the District of St. John's

North. Mrs. Reid will quite proudly

tell you that no less than seven of her children studied at Memorial University

of Newfoundland. Three of her girls

still live in St. John's, while the rest of her family have spread out all over

Canada and the United States. Mrs.

Reid says she is not much of a traveller herself, so she always enjoys visits

when her family comes home from away.

She

especially enjoys spending time with her fourteen grandchildren and seven

great-grandchildren.

She

watches the House of Assembly proceedings every day, so I ask all hon. members

to join me in wishing a very happy ninetieth birthday to Mrs. Margret Reid of

St. John's.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Statements by Ministers.

The hon.

the Minister of Natural Resources.

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, I just rise on a

point of order.

Yesterday, the Leader of the Opposition asked a question about the quarterly

reports from Nalcor. I committed to

report back to the House when I had a date.

I am pleased to report that the first quarterly report from Nalcor will

be out on December 1.

MR. SPEAKER:

There is no point of order.

Statements by Ministers.

Statements by

Ministers

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Service Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CORNECT:

Mr. Speaker, I rise in this

hon. House to recognize today as the National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash

Victims. This morning, I had the

honour and privilege to commemorate this day with the families, friends and

colleagues of vehicle collision victims.

As well, we all paid tribute to the lives of loved ones lost or those

seriously injured on our Province's roadways.

The goal

of the National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims is to raise awareness

of the number of people who have been affected by the consequences of highway

collisions, including those who have been injured, those who have died, and

their families and friends. Mr.

Speaker, nearly 2,100 individuals, or one person every five hours, are killed

every year on Canada's roads.

When we

get behind the wheel, we rarely, if ever, think of how that journey could impact

our future or the future of those close to us, and this speaks to this year's

theme of Drive with Caution, Future Ahead .

Mr.

Speaker, this government is committed to improving safety on our roadways.

We have maintained that commitment through our work in bringing forward

various improvements to the Highway Traffic Act.

These improvements include more specifically defining school zones and

doubling the fines for speeding within these zones, as well as establishing laws

related to slow-moving vehicles being prohibited from travelling on highways

where the speed limit is greater than eighty kilometres per hour.

These improvements are in addition, Mr. Speaker, to changes that brought

in the move over law.

Mr.

Speaker, if we take it upon ourselves to affect positive change through

establishing a culture of greater road safety in our Province, we can most

certainly make a difference. By

taking the time to plan our trips, eliminate distractions, wear seat belts, and

drive more defensively, we are taking important steps toward saving lives on our

roads.

memory of those lost or seriously injured, I urge all hon. members to join me in

encouraging Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to reflect upon the impact of

unsafe driving habits, and to rethink the way you drive.

Please slow down, buckle up and watch the road ahead, and never drive

impaired or distracted by cellphones or other technology.

The life you save may be your own or a loved one's.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount

Pearl South.

MR. LANE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

First of

all, I want to thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement.

I, too,

along with my colleagues, want to recognize the National Day of Remembrance for

Road Crash Victims. I, too, had the

opportunity to attend the ceremony at Motor Registration Division this morning,

along with the minister, and had the opportunity to speak to family members of

people who had loved ones who were lost as a result of collisions on our

highways, our roadways, and so on, Mr. Speaker.

Mr.

Speaker, any time government brings in measures to improve safety, and some of

them are listed here, move over laws and so on, that is a positive thing, but I

believe there is more we all need to do and that government needs to do.

I have had discussions with members of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

They have some issues they are advocating for in terms of changes to

legislation to help curb impaired driving.

Something which I never saw in the statement, nor did I hear it mentioned this

morning by the minister when he spoke, was the issues we are having in our

Province with moose-vehicle collisions.

We know there are many things and suggestions that have been put out

there to deal with moose-vehicle collisions on our highways, things such as

better brush cutting, enforcement, and a lot of other ideas have been brought

forward. I encourage the government

to do

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

I remind

the member his time has expired.

The hon.

the Member for St. John's East.

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Whether

it is a problem with our roads or whether it is weather conditions, I want to

thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement.

We also join government in remembrance of road crash victims and their

families this day.

I also

want to thank the government for the move over legislation that we want to pass

in this Legislature, but awareness of the legislation also has to include a

strong public relations campaign, and enforcement, to bring understanding of

what the move over law is and how it works.

Better knowledge of the act will bring with it safer highways and a

better understanding by all drivers that we can and must be cautious out there.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER:

Further statements by

ministers.

The hon.

the Minister of Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Mr. Speaker, I rise in this

hon. House to highlight Mineral Resources Review, the annual conference and

trade show that took place earlier this month during Mining Week.

This

year's conference established the 150th Anniversary of the Geological Survey.

I would like to thank conference organizers, staff with the department's

Mines Branch, and the local

chapter of the Canadian Institute of Mining,

Metallurgy and Petroleum for all their work.

During

Mineral Resources Review, I had the opportunity to speak to delegates and to

reflect on some of my experiences during this past year.

What stood out to me the most was the resilience and enthusiasm of the

professionals in the mining industry.

They continue to work diligently in rural communities throughout the

Province, despite short-term global challenges in the industry.

This

enthusiasm was evident to me today during the celebration of first nickel

production at the Long Harbour nickel processing site.

I was impressed by the employees who work at this multi-billion dollar

facility. Many are young people who

have returned from out of Province to take on responsibilities for the

operations of this complex plant, and to build a career here at home in

Newfoundland and Labrador.

The

magnitude of the Long Harbour Project is enormous, and I would like to

acknowledge former Premiers Grimes, Williams, and Dunderdale whose vision helped

to get to this milestone today. We

have witnessed important opportunities in the mining industry this year, such as

Vale's first nickel production and the potential development of Julienne Lake

iron ore deposit in Western Labrador.

Mr.

Speaker, we have also faced many challenges, such as delays in the Alderon

project and the closure of mining and processing operations at the Scully iron

ore mine. We understand that this is

a very difficult situation for the workers and the community of Wabush.

We continue to engage with stakeholders,

including the town and the companies interested in restarting the operations.

Mr.

Speaker, my experiences this year, and the people I have met have only

strengthened our belief in this dynamic industry one that will require

continued co-operation and focus on the long term.

It is indeed a pleasure to stand here today and recognize those who work

in the mining industry in rural communities throughout our Province.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I want

to thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement today.

I, too,

had the privilege of attending the conference and trade show just recently in

St. John's, and we had several good discussions with the hard-working

professionals, as the minister said, involved with the mining industry at that

conference. As you know and has been

mentioned by the minister, the Liberal Party and the Official Opposition have

been big supporters of the mining industry in Newfoundland and Labrador.

I would

like to acknowledge and thank the minister for the acknowledgement of former

Premier Grimes who, of course, was instrumental in making the celebration

possible today that we saw in Long Harbour.

Just a few years ago, we were talking about loopholes with Mack Trucks,

so I wondered today if the celebration included a Mack Truck or two around Long

Harbour.

I will

say that many of the successes we have seen in the mining industry in our

Province have come from the hard work of many Administrations.

Even today, as the minister mentioned about some of the challenges

communities like Wabush and Labrador City are facing today, I think it is

important that all governments continue to support our communities so those

hard-working miners are still intact when the mining industry recovers, which we

all hope it will.

Also, I

do think we need to look at the impact this industry has had on the health care,

and we continue to support the former miners in our Province.

Thank

you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

I, too,

thank the minister for the advance copy of his statement.

I share the optimism of the professionals in the mining industry.

Despite short-term setbacks, it is an exciting industry with a great

future; but it must be a future that benefits all people in the Province, and we

must ensure we extract our non-renewable resources in a way that protects our

workers and our environment.

In the

recent past, government paved the way for two ponds, Duck Pond in Central

Newfoundland and Sandy Pond in Long Harbour, to be turned into tailings dumps.

There are still worker-safety issues outstanding in Labrador, so I ask

the government, Mr. Speaker, to make sure the future of the industry better

protects workers and the environment.

Thank

you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Further statements by

ministers?

The hon.

the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CRUMMELL:

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to

recognize an important award the Council of the Federation's Excellence in

Water Stewardship Award.

This

award annually recognizes businesses, institutions, and community groups in each

Canadian jurisdiction for their commitment, achievement, innovation, practice,

and leadership in water stewardship in their community.

This award is part of a larger strategy to improve stewardship of our

valuable water resources and foster better practices across Canada.

Mr.

Speaker, I am happy to announce the 2014 award winner from this Province is the

Northeast Avalon Atlantic Coastal Action Program.

This group is an environmental citizens' organization which works with

all sectors of the community, including all three levels of government, to

protect and enhance the aquatic environment quality of watersheds and

coastlines.

Northeast Avalon Atlantic Coastal Action Program has a long history of

environmental stewardship since its inaugural project in 1993 when it focused on

the issue of raw sewage in St. John's Harbour.

Today, this dedicated group plays a major role in water quality

monitoring throughout the Northeast Avalon region and is actively involved in

public outreach activities and scientific studies, acting as a community advisor

and partnering with various organizations to protect aquatic environments.

Through these activities they prove their commitment to being stewards of

water resources in the Province every day.

Mr.

Speaker, this government recognizes the fundamental importance of water, and our

collective obligation to be responsible water stewards for Newfoundland and

Labrador, for Canada, and indeed the world.

The

Excellence in Water Stewardship Award publicly recognizes leaders in the field

of water stewardship and rewards remarkable achievement.

Congratulations to the Northeast Avalon Atlantic Coastal Action Program.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

Georges Stephenville East.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. REID:

I thank the minister for an

advance copy of his statement. I

would also like to congratulate the Northeast Avalon Atlantic Coastal Action

Program on winning this year's Council of the Federation's Excellence in Water

Stewardship Award.

The

award builds on the council's water charter, which recognizes the collective

obligation of Canadians and their government to promote water conservation and

protect water quality. Water is

fundamental to life on Earth, and its sustainable management is crucial.

The

Northeast Avalon watershed work has included planting ground cover to control

erosion, water quality monitoring, wetland surveys, and cleanups.

The Northeast Avalon ACAP also has an interest in environmental education

and hosts many educational outreach activities.

colleagues and I join with government

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MR. REID:

in congratulating the

Northeast Avalon.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

I remind

the member his time is expired.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's East.

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I, too,

thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement here today.

Congratulations to Northeast Avalon ACAP for having won the Council of

the Federation's Excellence in Water Stewardship Award; I think it is well

deserved. This group has made a huge

contribution to our community in its work to protect the water bodies and water

supplies, particularly in the Northeast Avalon region.

Recently, they have been working to combat sedimentation in local waterways due

to poorly managed commercial development.

Mr. Speaker, I can speak to that one; I lost a river in behind Lawlor's

Brook when I lived on Hunts Lane.

Sedimentation causes fish kills and habitat destruction and must be stopped.

I commend NAACAP for its recent work educating stakeholders in proper

mitigation (inaudible)

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

Oral

Questions.

Oral Questions

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yesterday, the Premier admitted that the $400 million CETA fisheries fund has

not progressed as planned. This

comes over a year after his government announced the deal.

The current Premier said not being able to reach a finalized agreement,

he found that troubling.

I ask

the Premier: If the agreement with the federal government was not finalized, why

did your government make such a high-profiled announcement over a year ago

without the federal government in attendance?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes, a

year ago an agreement was reached between the federal government and the

Province in relation to a Fisheries Innovation Fund a very important Fisheries

Innovation Fund. It was a 70-30

agreement, 70 per cent, 30 per cent; $280 million by the federal government and

$120 million by our government based on five key principles.

The five key principles pertain to our support for CETA and, in

particular, the policy change on the minimum processing requirements.

Mr.

Speaker, we reached that agreement with the federal government a year ago.

Since that time we are working out the details of the administration of

the agreement, the administration of the fund.

As I said yesterday, those discussions are ongoing.

I can

tell you, and I can tell the people of the Province, that I fully expect the

federal government to uphold their commitment that we reached a year ago, Mr.

Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

question was about why they did not show up to the meeting or the celebration

that was at The Rooms last year.

The

Premier has been in the current position now for two months and he sat at the

Cabinet table when the fund was announced.

I ask the Premier: Have you met with the federal minister on this issue?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Since

this announcement last year, I can tell you that ministers in our government, my

government, have been very active on this file.

They have been in constant communication and discussions with ministers

in the federal government. I know

the Minister Responsible for Intergovernmental Affairs, in his previous

portfolio, has been deeply entrenched and involved in this process.

I am quite certain that the minister responsible who is here in the House

with us today would be quite pleased to provide any details on those

discussions.

As I

have said, this is very important to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

This is particularly important to rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

It is very important to the fishing industry.

It is important to fish processors.

It is important to fish harvesters and it is important to us, Mr.

Speaker. We fully intend for the

federal government to uphold their commitment made to this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I asked

the Premier if indeed he had met with the federal minister in this particular

case, because keep in mind that not being able to reach a finalized agreement

yesterday, he said he found that troubling.

We are talking about $280 million, which is indeed very significant to

the growth of the fishery in our Province.

I ask

the Premier: Why have you not met with the federal minister yourself?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Municipal and Intergovernmental Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. HUTCHINGS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr.

Speaker, we entered into discussions with Canada

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MR. HUTCHINGS:

all the provinces and

territories, with regard to the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement

between Canada and the EU. In that

process, the provinces were asked to identify what the issues would be moving

forward in terms of a trade agreement that would benefit each province and

territory certainly, it would benefit the Province of Newfoundland and

Labrador. Within that, and within

the scope of that agreement, we heard from industry, we heard from the FFAW, we

heard from industry, processors, and all collective stakeholders.

One of the big priorities was access to that huge market, in terms of

reduction in tariffs. We were able

to secure that.

addition, looking forward into our fishery and how we can build on that $1.1

and build on those pillars that the Premier talked about.

We expect to hold them accountable for that agreement, and we expect the

results to come to Newfoundland and Labrador.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Two

hundred and eighty million dollars in an agreement, it is so important to the

fishery that all those people got involved, as the minister just said.

I will

ask the Premier: It is such an important issue; why have you not met with your

federal minister?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Municipal and Intergovernmental Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. HUTCHINGS:

Mr. Speaker, I guess a year

ago after the announcement, which obviously we were quite pleased with in terms

of a Province and a government in what we had achieved.

There was indication from the federal government that the lead for the

federal side in terms of execution of this, in regard to the fund, would be

Minister Rob Moore, who is responsible for ACOA.

January, as Minister of DFA, I met with Minister Moore, officials from ACOA, and

officials from DFA. We went through

the five pillars, as the Premier has indicated, went through what we believed in

how it needed to roll out and how we would move that forward.

There was agreement at that time that that would take place.

We would move forward in the budget in terms of working through this

initiative.

When it

was initially announced, they said the agreement would take eighteen to

twenty-four months. There is no

surprise, those deadlines are still on.

We expect the federal government to stand up and meet the obligations

they made in our negotiations on CETA.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

What the people in

Newfoundland and Labrador want to see is not this government talking about the

five pillars are important. We know

that. When we find an agreement,

when it becomes troubling, what we want to see is the Premier of this Province

extend an arm, reach out to the federal minister, and work this out.

We also understand that the provincial government has already committed

some of the money of this fund to various projects.

I ask

the Premier: How much money has already been committed from this agreement?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The way

we operate as a government is I fully expect ministers to lead their departments

in the very important work they do and in the work especially when it deals with

a very important matter such as CETA, and about the implications for rural

Newfoundland and Labrador, the importance and the implications for a very

important fishery.

The

minister has been leading that department and leading this file.

He has been having communications.

I can tell the hon. House as well that I have already had one discussion

with the Prime Minister since I took office here.

The Prime Minister and I intend to have further discussions on CETA, Mr.

Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The

latest Stats Canada labour force numbers show that our Province has lost a

staggering 7,500 jobs in the last year, all of this with three megaprojects on

the go. On top of that, the Premier

and the Finance Minister are indicating that next year we will see our fourth

budget deficit in a row.

I ask

the Premier: Will you bring down the Budget before the next general election?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN:

Mr. Speaker, I want to remind

the member opposite, in last ten budgets we have had six surpluses.

The focus of the Opposition constantly seems to be on the deficits.

I am

glad he asked me a question about the Province's finances, because it is only

today, moments ago in fact, the Dominion Bond Rating Agency confirmed our A

rating.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN:

A couple of significant

points, it says: challenging demographics and a competitive tax system should

support labour retention and assist with efforts to attract and repatriate

highly skilled workers because of our tax additions that we have taken over the

last ten years, Mr. Speaker.

They

also acknowledge the tremendous effort to put in the Muskrat Falls, and

acknowledge that it will go a long way in diversifying our economy.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon.

the Leader of the Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I ask

the Minister of Finance, since the Premier did not answer the question: Does

that help the 7,500 Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who lost jobs this year?

Does that really help them?

Almost

three years ago, Premier Dunderdale made a commitment to reduce the per capita

debt to the Canadian average in ten years.

However, we know this government has allowed per capita debt to grow each

year since that promise.

I ask

the Premier: Are you still committed to reducing the per capita debt to the

Canadian average seven years from now, or even if there is a plan to do so?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank

the Leader of the Opposition for giving me an opportunity to read further in the

Dominion Bond Rating Agency's report today.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

I remind

the hon. minister that in Question Period you may refer to documents but you

cannot read directly from them.

The hon.

the Minister of Finance.

MR. WISEMAN:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

commend you for being so sharp in your new role.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN:

So let me refer to it, Mr.

Speaker, and I will paraphrase. They

have acknowledged the tremendous work we have done in prudent fiscal management

and in posting six surpluses in the last ten budgets.

They are expressing confidence in our ability to manage our way through

what is a very challenging time ahead of us, because they know we have proven

and they know that we have had a successful track record in fiscal management in

this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Official Opposition.

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I remind

the Minister of Finance that I think your track record was built on oil

royalties. If you look at the

successes that you talk about in those six budgets you will see it is all

related to oil.

Government published a 10-Year Sustainability Plan on March 26, 2013, but we

have heard very little talk of it since.

It calls for a return to surplus next year.

I ask

the Premier: This ten-year plan was only announced a year and a half ago; are

you still committed to that plan?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Finance.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN:

Mr. Speaker, thank you.

When he

talks about the success of our oil industry, we will acknowledge this year about

30 per cent of our revenue comes from oil and gas, but it is not where the money

comes from. It is how we spend it.

I want to remind members opposite, and the people of Newfoundland and

Labrador because they understand, they get it.

They recognize that we have put over $6 billion into infrastructure that

we have not had to borrow for in the last ten years.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN:

They also know we have had

six surpluses in the last ten budgets.

They also know we have had tax-relief measures putting $640 million back

in the pockets of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN:

It is with that new money and

their confidence in the future of Newfoundland and Labrador that we can both

increase consumer spending and increase consumer confidence in the fiscal

capacity of this Province, Mr. Speaker.

That is the reality this Province faces.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon.

the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR. JOYCE:

Mr. Speaker, this government

first promised to build a new Western Memorial Regional Hospital in 2007, seven

years ago. They said the acute care

facility would be completed in 2014.

In 2010, government said it would be completed in 2016.

In 2011, government said it would be completed in 2017.

In 2012, government said it would be completed in 2018.

In 2014, government said it would be completed in 2020.

I ask

the minister: With five failed promises, five failed completion dates, why have

you failed the people of the West Coast of the Province?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

MR.

KENT:

Mr.

Speaker, sometimes I wonder whether the member opposite wants to see a new

hospital built on the West Coast, with some of his questioning and some of the

statements he has made including statements that were made in a news release

late yesterday. The new hospital on

the West Coast will be a state-of-the-art facility.

There have been changes in the process over the last number of years, as

the member tries to point out.

I can tell people that the project is now on track.

We have made some great progress.

We are going to have a state-of-the-art facility with expanded services.

The drafts of the functional programs have been received.

The design process is well underway and construction will commence in

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

Mr.

Speaker, just to let you know, the reason a lot of the infrastructure is put in

place is because the Leader of the Opposition wanted radiation; we proved

radiation. We wanted a PET scanner;

we got a PET scanner. We wanted

additional beds; we got additional beds.

That is what we are doing, fighting for the people of Western

Newfoundland.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

JOYCE:

Mr.

Speaker, a provincial radiation therapy review was supposed to be completed by

late August. Government's news

release said the consultant has significant experience in radiation treatment

planning and implementation, yet this report is almost three months delayed.

Your track record for delivery on the new hospital is far from stellar.

I ask the minister: How are the people of Western

Newfoundland expected to believe this government when you tell them there are no

more delays?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KENT:

Mr.

Speaker, as I stated yesterday, the review of provincial radiation therapy has

no impact on the timeline for the development of the West Coast hospital.

The member opposite knows that, but he continues to make statements

otherwise, which is rather unfortunate.

We have a clear plan in place where we have a Corner

Brook care team in place with multiple partners active in the design and

development process for the West Coast hospital.

There are stakeholders in the region who met with Western Health just

earlier this week and there are ongoing discussions with those involved.

We are making progress.

The design process is underway.

Construction will start in 2015.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

Mr.

Speaker, I am glad the minister brought up the meeting that was held Monday.

The action committee was told Monday that the acute care hospital will

start in 2017.

Mr. Speaker, to avoid any confusion so we can inform

the people of Western Newfoundland and Labrador, I ask the minister: Will you

have a public meeting in Corner Brook so you can face the people so we can get

the facts straight, not from one source or the other source, so you can inform

the people of the actual facts of what is happening with this hospital?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KENT:

Mr.

Speaker, I am happy to talk with any residents of the West Coast who are

concerned about the plans for this new facility.

It is a hospital campus.

There are multiple buildings and construction of those buildings will not all

start at the same time. As we get

further into the design processes, there may even be adjustments to what goes in

particular buildings and whether there is one building or two buildings for

certain functions.

All of that is being considered.

We will provide regular updates to the public.

I will be on the West Coast later this week in fact.

If there are members of the community who are interested in having a

dialogue about where things stand, we are absolutely committed to providing

regular updates to contradict some of the misleading statements some people

continue to make.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Bay of Islands.

MR.

JOYCE:

Mr.

Speaker, attacking me is not going to help the people of Western Newfoundland.

It is just not going to happen.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Oh,

oh!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

MR.

JOYCE:

clarify all this, Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister once again: When you are out

this weekend, will you have a public meeting in Corner Brook so people can ask

the questions they are asking me to ask in this hon. House?

Will you stand up and have a public meeting in Western Newfoundland?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KENT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Premier and this government is very interested in

hearing what people all over the Province have to say about health care.

That is why we are holding a series of regional forums in the next few

weeks, one of which will be in Corner Brook, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KENT:

The

dialogue needs to be an ongoing one.

There are many opportunities for people to have input into that important

process. You can participate online,

you can call, you can e-mail, you can write, and you can attend the forum that

will be happening in Corner Brook.

It is interesting, though, that the member opposite

always only talks about Corner Brook.

We are talking about a facility, a health care campus, that will meet the

needs of the entire West Coast of the Province.

It is not just about Corner Brook, I say to the member opposite.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

For

the minister's attention, the Member for Bay of Islands said Western Regional.

As a member of the West Coast, we all know that this hospital in Corner

Brook services us all.

We have over 57,000 people living with diabetes in this

Province. There are almost another

90,000 at risk of developing it.

Unfortunately, 30 per cent of them are undiagnosed; that is almost 20,000

people.

I ask the minister: What are you doing to increase

screening for diabetes in this Province?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KENT:

Mr.

Speaker, we are very concerned about diabetes in this Province.

Chronic disease rates in this Province are high; they are too high.

There is much work to be done to address that issue.

We have twenty-four established diabetes clinics

throughout the regional health authorities in Newfoundland and Labrador.

In recent Budgets we have expanded programs and services to help those

with diabetes. We realize that it is

a chronic disease that affects the lives of many people in this Province.

That is why we have expanded programs and services; that is why we will

continue to expand programs and services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Mr.

Speaker, diabetes was first brought to this government's attention by the

Auditor General in 2011. He stated

that diabetes would cost our Province over $300 million in just six years' time.

A diabetes registry is necessary to track diagnosis and manage the

resources to care for these patients.

I ask the minister: Why have you failed to introduce a

diabetes registry when clearly this is a significant health issue in this

Province?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Seniors, Wellness and Social Development.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

JACKMAN:

Mr.

Speaker, we know diabetes is very much a symptom of lifestyle.

The Premier has struck a new Department of Seniors and I will stress the

second part, Mr. Speaker Wellness.

The focus we need to take on as a Province is around that type of lifestyle we

lead, in being more healthy, being more active, looking at our diets.

Preventative medicine is what this department is about.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for Burgeo La Poile.

MR.

A. PARSONS:

Mr.

Speaker, I have to point out that the minister completely ignored every single

person in this Province who has Type 1 diabetes.

That has nothing to do with lifestyle.

I ask the question again: When will the registry be put

in place that we have been asking for?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KENT:

Mr.

Speaker, in addition to the clinics that I mentioned earlier, there are many

other things we are doing to support people with diabetes.

There is not just one solution, as the member opposite seems to suggest.

In fact, since 2010 we have invested approximately $20 million to cover

diabetes-related medications in the Province.

The Prescription Drug Program covers twenty-two

medications that relate to diabetes.

We have expanded the Insulin Pump Therapy Program in this Province, and 440

people have received support through that program in 2014 alone.

We are taking the issue very seriously.

It is one that affects many families, many individuals in our Province,

and we will continue to look at chronic diseases like diabetes to see what more

can be done.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for The Straits White Bay North.

MR.

MITCHELMORE:

Mr.

Speaker, the former Premier and Minister of Public Engagement announced the Open

Government Initiative on March 20 without any plan or direction on how this

would be achieved.

It has been more than 240 days, so I ask the minister:

When can we expect to see improved quality of government information on the Open

Government Web site and a true culture of open government, or are you going to

continue to hide behind the secrecy of Bill 29?

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Minister Responsible for the Office of Public Engagement.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

KENT:

Mr.

Speaker, I am really pleased with the progress the Office

of Public Engagement has made

in our Open Government Initiative.

We had consultation sessions and an online process that took place throughout

the Province over the last number of months, and a What We Heard document has

been drafted, which will soon be released.

It will highlight all of the findings that have come through that

consultation process.

We are

working on an Open Government Action Plan, as I committed back in the spring,

which will highlight many of the new initiatives we are going to take to make

Open Government an even greater success story in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Departments in this government are doing things every day to make more

information available than ever before.

We have enhanced proactive disclosures for every department in this

government, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for The

Straits White Bay North.

MR. MITCHELMORE:

Mr. Speaker, the last

consultations ended more than six months ago, and other jurisdictions are taking

open government seriously. It is

mandatory for departments and agencies to identify and publish three high-value

datasets that were previously unavailable.

Data and research is an asset that could be used to accelerate growth and

help diversify the economy, instead of being hidden from the public eye.

I ask

the minister: When will you show leadership and make it mandatory for

departments and agencies to publish high-value usable datasets that are

currently unavailable?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister

Responsible for the Office of Public Engagement.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Mr. Speaker, over 3,700

people in Newfoundland and Labrador participated in the consultation process in

recent months. We are going to be

making a comprehensive What We Heard document available very soon which

summarizes everything we heard, in addition to the raw data that is already on

the Web site. Open data is one of

the key pillars of our Open Government Initiative, and we plan to make many more

datasets available, as opposed to what is already available.

In the

category of open information, we are releasing more information to the public,

proactively, than ever before: things like restaurant inspection reports,

details on long-term care facilities and personal care homes, information on

salary details, completed ATIPP requests, and the list goes on and on.

It is all available, and I would encourage the member to check it out.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount

Pearl South.

MR. LANE:

Mr. Speaker, in 2000,

eighty-eight purchasers of prepaid funerals lost $500,000 when a funeral home

owner in Port aux Basques declared bankruptcy and skipped town.

This fraud resulted in prepaid funeral legislation, which says trust

account audits must be submitted to the minister each year.

However, according to Service Newfoundland and Labrador, 43 per cent of

licensees did not submit audited statements in 2013.

I ask

the Minister of Service NL: What are you doing to protect the purchasers of

prepaid funerals, who are mainly seniors?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CORNECT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr.

Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for his question.

Mr.

Speaker, our focus is ensuring that the money in the Consumer Protection Fund

for prepaid funeral services is being cared for properly.

Mr. Speaker, it is because of this fund, and the hard work of our staff

and individuals, people buying prepaid funerals should feel confident their

money is being protected.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for Mount

Pearl South for a quick question.

MR. LANE:

Mr. Speaker, I do not think

they are feeling too protected if they are not doing the audits.

Also,

Mr. Speaker, according to the department there is no dedicated position

MR. SPEAKER:

I ask the member to get to

his question, quickly.

MR. LANE:

Mr. Speaker, how come there

is no dedicated position, as was promised by the department, to do these audits?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Service NL.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. CORNECT:

Mr. Speaker, again, thank you

to the hon. member for the question.

Mr.

Speaker, legislatively, all prepaid funeral sellers are required to file

financial statements. The division

aims to work with sellers to ensure they understand the requirements and their

obligations under this legislation.

I have every confidence in the employees, in the staff, in the public servants

of the Department of SNL to do their job, and to do it correctly for the people

of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The hon.

the Leader of the Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

In 2010,

47,000 people in Newfoundland and Labrador suffer from diabetes.

By 2020, it is expected that 73,000 persons in this Province will have

diabetes. Without investment in

primary health care, our system will be overwhelmed.

I ask

the Premier: When will he take action and set up more primary health care teams

and diabetes centres around the Province to help stop the growth of diabetes?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. KENT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is an

appropriate time of the year to be highlighting what a significant issue

diabetes is for the people in Newfoundland and Labrador.

As I

said previously, there are already twenty-four established clinics that run

throughout our regional health authorities to meet the needs of diabetes

patients in our Province, but there is more work that needs to be done to

prevent diabetes and also treat diabetes.

We have invested millions of dollars, as I said earlier, in medications

for people with diabetes.

Primary

health care is a major focus of our upcoming Premier's Summit on Health Care.

It will be the primary theme.

We want to make sure everybody in the health care system is practicing at their

full scope of practice and that will enable us to move forward.

We need collaborative care on the frontlines.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Leader of the

Third Party.

MS MICHAEL:

Thank you very much, Mr.

Speaker.

Yes, we

all know what is needed, but government has left it up to the regional health

authorities to scrape together the money to set up more teams and diabetes

centres to combat diabetes across this Province.

Will the

Premier ensure that new money is set aside in the 2015 Budget to set up more

primary health care centres?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The

member opposite raises another important matter.

Yesterday, a member discussed the members here in the House we

discussed the importance of mental health and addictions.

Today, of course, the topic of discussion, as far as health care, is on

diabetes and diabetes prevention, and overall wellness and health of the

population.

mentioned earlier during Question Period, we established a new department to

focus on wellness and the future of the population.

As well, the Minister of Health, as he has very clearly articulated here

in the House, is following our plan of developing a very broad-reaching

opportunity for people throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, people within

health care itself, people who are stakeholders, significant stakeholders within

health care throughout the Province, to come together, provide information, and

have an exchange. All in the view,

Mr. Speaker, of improving health care for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's East.

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yesterday in the House, when I asked the Minister of Natural Resources about

West Coast representation on the fracking review panel, he said, In considering

West Coast candidates, they did not exactly fit the priority that we needed on

the panel.

Would

the minister clarify his remarks?

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

Surely, Mr. Speaker.

As I

have indicated many times, the importance of this issue for the government and

for the people of the Province, and our focus in dealing with such an important

public policy, Mr. Speaker, in developing our resources will be around

protecting the health and safety of people and the protection of the

environment.

To do

that, Mr. Speaker, we made a very responsible decision to engage in a process

that would allow everybody, who wanted to have input into this public policy

debate, to be given that chance. We

have done so, Mr. Speaker, in setting up an independent fracking review panel.

On that panel, Mr. Speaker, there are five very creditable, qualified

people to be able to deal with the process and to ensure that others come

forward.

In my

reference yesterday to West Coast, Mr. Speaker, the candidates' names that have

come forward did not exactly fit the requirements we were looking for, for the

panel.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's East.

MR. MURPHY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I have

to ask the minister, when he says responsible decision, is it a responsible

decision not to have somebody representing health on the panel?

Is it a responsible decision on the part of this government not to have a

West Coast representative on the panel?

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Minister of

Natural Resources.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. DALLEY:

What is responsible, Mr.

Speaker, is that a government provides a fair process, a fair opportunity for

everyone to have input. What is

responsible, Mr. Speaker, is when there is a potential for economic opportunity

in this Province that government stands up and explores that opportunity.

What is

responsible, Mr. Speaker, is that we do what is right for the panel.

It was not a geography test.

It was important that we put the right people with the right education, the

right skill set on the panel. That

is exactly what we did.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

The time

for Question Period has expired.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling

of Documents.

Notices

of Motion.

Answers

to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for the

Bay of Islands.

MR. JOYCE:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I will

just stand here for a few minutes on a petition on the Western Memorial Regional

Hospital:

WHEREAS

we wish to raise concerns regarding the recent delay on the construction of a

new hospital in Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House

of Assembly to urge the government to commit to the planning and construction of

a new hospital in Corner Brook as previously committed to and in a timely manner

as originally announced without further delay or changes.

Mr.

Speaker, earlier, I went through the list of all of the delays.

Now we are getting from the government: trust me, trust me.

I want to tell the people of Western Newfoundland the acute care hospital

will not start in 2015. The design

has just started for it. There is a

pre-commitment in the Budget that was tabled in this House for 2015-2016 of $4.8

million to do the design of the acute care facility.

Mr.

Speaker, you can spin it however you like.

We even went to phantom polls.

One minister was out saying that was done phantom polls about

radiation, until the Leader of the Opposition presented facts to the former

Premier. The facts showed that there

should be radiation; there is going to be radiation.

The facts showed there should be a PET scanner.

We proved it.

Mr.

Speaker, when I stand and ask questions in this House about delays, when you

talk about 2010 there was a commitment, 2011, 2012, 2014, and now I am told

trust me. I am sorry, but my duty is

to ask questions. I said it before

and I say to the people of Western Newfoundland and Labrador, who are going to

be using this hospital, I am prepared to go to any public meeting any time to

justify everything I have said in this House, anything I push for in this House,

anything whatsoever because I am fighting for the people.

We have

improvements because of the Opposition.

We do have improvements but we do not have a hospital yet and I am going

to fight for it until the people of Western Newfoundland sees what they deserve,

Mr. Speaker.

Thank

you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Member for St.

John's North.

MR. KIRBY:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

To the

hon. House of Assembly of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in

Parliament assembled, the petition of the undersigned residents of Newfoundland

and Labrador humbly sheweth:

WHEREAS

autism spectrum disorder has been estimated to occur in as many as one in

eighty-eight children; and

WHEREAS

individualized and intensive early interventions are important for improving

outcomes for children with autism; and

WHEREAS

long wait-lists are forcing many parents to wait up to two years before their

children receive needed pediatric assessments and diagnostic services; and

WHEREAS

the Intensive Applied Behavioral Analysis Program is not available for children

after Grade 3 while research supports the use of Applied Behavioral Analysis

throughout the lifespan; and

WHEREAS

a co-ordinated multi-agency approach among key government departments and

agencies is needed to ensure that individuals with autism spectrum disorder are

provided with services that will promote independent living; and

WHEREAS

a comprehensive Province-wide strategy for autism spectrum disorder will

decrease the lifetime costs of treating and providing services for persons with

autism;

WHEREUPON the undersigned, your petitioners, humbly pray and call upon the House

of Assembly to urge government to develop a comprehensive Province-wide strategy

for autism spectrum disorder in consultation with parents, advocates, educators,

health care providers, and experts in the autism community

As in

duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray.

Mr.

Speaker, this is another one of these areas that keep emerging and also are not

just about new expenditures. A lot

of what is in this petition really speaks to the idea of spending more smartly

rather than just spending more, and that is not always a solution.

I did

speak to a constituent of mine just last week who said that her child had just

aged out of the ABA program because she had finished Grade 3 and still needed

that support. That person lives in a

low-income, economically depressed area of my district.

She is a single mom and has a great deal of difficulty getting by,

despite the fact that she manages her personal household expenses as best as she

can and as responsibly as she can, but she has to pay now for someone to provide

the ABA. If she did not, there would

be consequences for her child in the school system, which would require more

resources from the Province; so, in fact, she is kicking in out of her own

pocket to provide for where the Province will not for her child, which is a

gross injustice, Mr. Speaker.

Thank

you.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

Orders of the Day

Private Members'

Day

MR. SPEAKER:

This being Wednesday, Private

Members' Day, it being 3:00 o'clock I will now go to the Member for Humber

Valley to move the private member's motion that is on the Order Paper in his

name.

The hon.

the Member for Humber Valley.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. BALL:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This is

a motion that we put on the notices of motion there just a few days ago.

It is a private member's motion.

The motion today will be legislating the mandatory reporting of deaths

and critical incidents to the Child and Youth Advocate in our Province.

The

motion will read like this:

WHEREAS

the Province's Child and Youth Advocate has requested that the government

introduce legislation for the mandatory and immediate reporting by all

government departments and agencies of the deaths of, and the critical incidents

involving, children and youth; and

WHEREAS

government has not taken a lead in notifying the Advocate's office of such

incidents, and instead, the Advocate has relied on calls from the public and the

media to be made aware of cases needing her involvement; and

WHEREAS

legislating a direct reporting mechanism from all departments and agencies to

the Advocate would help improve outcomes for all those involved, as would it

improve outcomes for other children and youth receiving services; whether as a

direct result of earlier intervention in specific cases where a death or

critical incident has occurred, or indirectly as systemic issues can be more

readily identified and addressed;

THEREFORE

BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Assembly urge government to

immediately introduce legislation for the mandatory and immediate reporting by

all government departments and agencies of the deaths of, and the critical

incidents involving, children and youth.

This is

seconded by the Member for St. Barbe.

Mr.

Speaker, the reason we are introducing this motion today is really because it

comes after a series of requests made by the Child and Youth Advocate to have

this mandatory reporting, rather than just hearing about it from family members

or hearing about it from people in the communities, or just reading about it in

the media or seeing it in the media.

It is important to the Advocate in order for her, in this case, to do her job as

she sees fit based on the mandate that she has been given.

It is important for the officer that she get this mandatory reporting.

I want

to go back to just where this all began, the Child and Youth Advocate within the

Province. We go back to November

2002 when the Office of the Child and Youth Advocate was opened.

It was opened in November 2002.

It goes on to say, The Advocate for Children and Youth is an Independent Statutory office of the House of Assembly of

Newfoundland and Labrador. This

office has the authority to represent the rights, interests and viewpoints of

children and youth who are entitled to receive services and access programs

provided by the government of this province.

The term for the Advocate is six years and the Advocate

can serve a maximum of two terms.

The legislation that deals with the mandate is in the Child and Youth Advocate

Act.

In the recent events we have seen, we have seen this

discussion taken to a different level.

If I go into 2014 I would go back to June, where the Advocate once again

reiterated or called for mandatory reporting to the Advocate by all departments

and agencies of the deaths and the critical incidents involving children and

youth.

When we have asked the question why the critical

incidents piece, in this case the Advocate is very concerned and believes and

feels this would help prevent further deaths, deaths by children who are in care

from departments and agencies in our Province.

The Advocate has recommended mandatory reporting in three investigative

reports, but nothing has changed.

The Advocate has done three significant investigations.

In each investigation there has been a recommendation that we get

mandatory reporting. She goes on to

say: As a result of these recommendations being ignored, she is therefore

seeking legislative changes.

I will go back just to remind people who may be

watching or people who are in the House, the magnitude of those investigations.

One was Joey's Story, which was in August 2011.

The recommendation there was Recommendation No. 9, and is said that the

protocol must be developed by CYFS or the Department of Child, Youth and Family

Services, and to ensure immediate reporting to the Advocate of any critical

incidents or events occurring with children and youth in the Province.

The same thing, a similar recommendation, in Turning a

Blind Eye in July 2012. It was

Recommendation No. 12, the same thing about mandatory reporting to the Child and

Youth Advocate. Out of Focus in

September 2012, Recommendation No. 13.

What we see here is after thorough investigations or

three major investigations within the Province, the recommendations came back

after investigation suggesting that we have mandatory reporting of deaths of

children and critical incidents within the Province.

This is the view of the Child and Youth Advocate in our Province right

now. So you ask yourself, after we

have been twelve years into this office, why is it that the Advocate feels so

strongly about this after the work her office has been doing?

One thing I want to go back to, she feels that the

mandatory reporting would go on, if done appropriately and this legislative

change was made, that it could save children's lives because, in 2014, just a

few months ago, it was noted there were thirty-five children and youth who have

died while receiving government services since 2009.

This is documentation, of course, coming from government.

Any and all reviews and investigations that have been

made and have been done by the Office of the Child and Youth Advocate have been

based on this rights-based perspective.

When we talk a little further about that, the rights-based perspective,

Mr. Speaker, it is an interesting approach to all of this and one I believe all

members in the House of Assembly, all forty-eight MHAs, would support because

the language around rights-based perspective and this came out of a statement

that was made in June this year of 2014.

She goes on to say: I continuously call on the

government departments and agencies to work from a rights-based perspective.

When we ask ourselves what is this all about because we have seen even

at the UN convention on the rights of children, the rights of a child legally

guarantees that all children these are key points should have the right to

survival; the right to develop to the fullest; the right to protection from

harmful influences, abuse and exploitation; and the right to participate fully

in family, cultural, and social life.

Mr. Speaker, you see that this approach by the Advocate

is indeed one I think we could all agree to.

This rights-based approach the Advocate mentions really aligns up to

where we are as a society today, Mr. Speaker.

When we look at the current process as it exists in the

Province right now, one of the things that have become part of this discussion

is a Child Death Review Committee versus the mandatory reporting of critical

incidents in our Province right now.

The Child Death Review Committee where did this come from?

This review committee was recently established in in 2012 and there were

amendments within the Fatalities Investigations Act.

This coming from the Turner report, the Fatalities Investigations Act

goes back to 1995.

When we look at the current process that we have in our

Province right now, we have the Chief Medical Officer, this individual that we

have in the Province would review deaths that are in question that we would see

in the Province. In some cases what

we would see here, depending on the circumstances of the examination, you would

see this go to the Child Death Review Committee.

This is for all children, regardless if they were in care or not.

It could be for any child, really, up to the age of eighteen.

Then after the Child Death Review Committee does their

piece of work around all of this, and we have seen just recently where this

committee has been put in place and established, then there is a report that is

actually sent to the minister and then there would be a discussion to the

Advocate, so we can see this could be timely.

What the immediate notification to the Advocate could mean is that if

she, or the person in that office at the time, could get involved, the process

would be much faster.

Where we have been now since September with the new

minister that we have in place with CYFS, there seems to be a verbal commitment

to make that call for the verbal, immediate notification of a death of a child

receiving care in the Province; but what the Advocate is saying, this should not

be notification just from the Child Youth and Family Services but there should

be notification when deaths or critical incidents occurs amongst all agencies.

One of the things the Advocate has some problems with

when it comes to the verbal commitment around all of this is one of really

leadership, because what we have seen over the last five years, a number of

different ministers that have been in this role and you could get a verbal

commitment as we have from the current minister, but that may not necessarily be

true for the next minister.

The Advocate is saying and suggesting and recommending,

based on the investigating she has done, that if you have a minister who is

willing to make the verbal commitment, well, why not just go to the next step

and make that notification part of legislation so it becomes mandatory?

That would include not just the Department of Child, Youth and Family

Services but indeed all agencies within government.

The question then would be: Why is the Child and Youth

Advocate not sitting on the death review committee?

The

response to this question from the Child and Youth Advocate is that individual,

or the current Advocate, would prefer to stay in somewhat of an unbiased role.

The

review committee would do its work, but she could probably respond much faster

if there was immediate notification that was put in place.

Often, in many circumstances, we would see other family members.

The Advocate could move in and probably prevent further incidents from

happening, or even further deaths in the worst-case scenario, I say, Mr.

Speaker.

Not

being part of the Child Death Review Committee, she sees herself because

remember, this Advocate is an officer of the House of Assembly, and not being

part of the Child Death Review Committee, she feels that she could fulfill her

mandate in a much better fashion by the immediate reporting of critical

incidents and deaths in the Province.

Indeed, she could intervene and reduce the harm to other members in some

cases.

The

mandatory reporting of critical incidents is really irrelevant when you look at

the Child Death Review Committee, because these incidents do not involve the

deaths of children, I say, Mr. Speaker.

Therefore, when I look at the process here and the establishment, or the

piece of legislation for what the request and the recommendation coming out of

a series of investigations.

The

reason we are making this motion today is we believe in this process.

We believe it will allow the Advocate to do an even better job than she

is doing right now. We also believe

in being at arm's length from the current committee.

As an Officer of the House of Assembly, this will allow and she agrees

that she will be able to fulfill the mandate she has been given, to do her job

in protecting children, and not only children in care, but children who are

receiving services from various departments and agencies in the Province right

now.

Mr.

Speaker, that is why we are prepared today to make this motion.

I look forward to debate today, as it will occur here this afternoon.

I really believe what the Advocate is actually looking for here right now

is a mechanism that will allow this individual to do a better job in her

position in making sure children in our Province are safe when they receive

care, safe when they receive services from Child, Youth and Family Services and

all the other agencies we have in our Province.

Mr.

Speaker, right now I look forward to debate as we will see it unfold here.

We will have other speakers to this, and I am sure the minister himself

will be speaking. I appreciate the

fact that he has made a verbal commitment, but I would think if you are willing

to make a verbal commitment, it goes without saying you do not have a problem

with somewhat of a mandatory reporting in this particular case.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER:

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

PREMIER DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

appreciate the opportunity to have some time this afternoon to address this very

important private member's resolution that has been presented by the Leader of

the Opposition.

I agree,

it is an important matter, and it is an important matter that we should take

some time to discuss here in the House.

I fully understand the intention and the intent of their motion this

afternoon. I think it goes without

saying that all members of this hon. House and all people in the Province feel

the safety and protection of children are of utmost importance.

I can tell you, through my lifetime I know from time to time I refer to

my own past is that the protection and best interests of children should

always be a paramount consideration when making decisions in carrying out the

roles we are given at the time.

Today,

we are here as a government, we are here as Members of the House of Assembly

representing the people of the Province, and ensuring the safety and protection

of children is always a paramount consideration that we should put first in this

type of forum and in this circumstance.

We all

know too well, it is always very troubling to us when we deal with or learn of

circumstances when harm has come to a child.

It is disturbing when harm comes to a child at the hands of somebody

else. It is very disturbing.

I cannot describe how disturbing and troublesome that would be.

When the injuries are serious or a critical injury, or a critical event

occurs or worse, then even more so significantly, not only for the families who

have to deal with such tragic and terrible events, but also other people who are

involved. We have seen incidents

where injury and death has come to a child or a youth where it has had

significant impact on neighbourhoods, on communities, and in cases on the entire

Province.

We also

know these types of incidents have very powerful impacts on police officers on a

front-line basis who deal with and handle such terrible matters, through people

involved with our justice system, justice officials, and stakeholders involved

in the justice system. Health care

workers are also quite frequently impacted by such terrible and tragic and

difficult circumstances. Social

workers are also impacted on a regular basis.

I say

this with the most serenity I can bring to this debate, because I have worked

side by side during my previous career, my policing career, with child

protection workers. Someone

sometimes asks and will address turnover in caseloads.

Turnover came up here in the House just recently, on the turnover in

child protection workers. Probably

one of the most challenging, difficult, demanding roles a social worker could

ever take on in their career is dealing with at-risk children and at-risk

families in a protection type of role.

For child protection workers, it must be the most difficult form of work

they can do.

I can

tell you, Mr. Speaker, I know child protection workers who have worked for many

years in the business of child protection and working with families, and I know

sometimes how those types of files and those types of interactions sometimes

have very difficult impacts on the people who work day to day in the provision

of services for children. As I

mentioned, health care workers as well quite often could be significantly

impacted in dealing with such matters.

We have

pediatricians in Newfoundland and Labrador who are very, very good and very well

trained, very knowledgeable and have great experience and expertise in dealing

with child protection matters, and matters involving assaults and inflections of

injuries against children. As I

mentioned as well, it can always impact, not only just the people in the family

and the professionals who work there, but then it can go beyond that to

neighbourhoods, to communities, and to the Province and beyond.

The

Advocate for Children and Youth has a very difficult job in her own right, at

this time, and the same with her staff, because they have a very important role

to play in the Province. Legislation

gives the Advocate for Children and Youth very broad powers and very important

responsibilities, not only for children and youth who are in the care of Child,

Youth and Family Services, but for all children and youth in the Province.

The Advocate's role extends beyond children who are having direct

involvement with a government agency or a government branch, but all children,

and also can have those powers and responsibilities over youth in our Province

as well.

What I

have done as Premier, in the couple of months I have been here, is I have been

reviewing and discussing the topic of the Advocate for Children and Youth being

informed of critical incidents and the death of children.

As has been discussed here in the House, we have recently, as a

government, created the new Child Death Review Committee who began September 1

reviewing cases of death of children and youth in our Province.

There is

a serious and important consideration to make and differentiate between the two

roles of both the Child Death Review Committee and also the Advocate for

Children and Youth. It is my belief

that these two different roles should work in concert and work together, but the

Advocate has been asking and has been lobbying, as the hon. Leader of the

Opposition has highlighted, has been asking for change in legislation so that

the Advocate's office be informed of critical incidents or matters of death of

children and be informed of that. In

correspondence I have received from the Child Advocate, the Advocate has

referenced immediate notification and also timely notification.

It is

important for us to define the difference in immediate and timely, and what

those expectations are. I have

written the Advocate and invited the Advocate and I mentioned this earlier

this week in the House. I have

written the Advocate and invited the Advocate to come to a Cabinet meeting, do a

presentation to Cabinet on the view and what the Advocate sees as the necessary

changes in legislation, so we can have a discussion about those changes.

One of

the matters I would like to talk to the Advocate about is how you define what a

critical incident is. What is the

definition? What is her

interpretation? What is she

referring to when she refers to a critical incident?

Sometimes there could be a differentiation between a critical incident

and a critical injury. Is she

talking about a case of a critical injury?

If it is a critical injury, what is a critical injury?

What should be defined as a critical injury?

In the case of a critical incident, what she defines or her expectation

is that the legislation should reflect when she is referring to a critical

incident.

I think

that is very important for us to grasp that understanding of exactly what the

Advocate for Children and Youth is asking government to do.

My belief is the best way for us to do that is for the Advocate to come

to Cabinet to present her viewpoints, to articulate what it is she is expressing

and what it is she desires, so we can have a full discussion with the Advocate

so we can grasp a full understanding of what it is the Advocate is looking for.

As I

said, in the correspondence I have had, as an example from her, the Advocate has

referred to immediate notification and has also referred to providing timely

information. I think it is important

for us to understand, is there a differentiation between timely and immediate,

and exactly what her expectations are.

appreciate the resolution that is brought forward today, but what I am going to

do is propose an amendment to the motion that is before the House this

afternoon. I believe it is a

friendly amendment, and I believe the amendment will strengthen the desire; it

will strengthen the intention of what the Opposition has presented this

afternoon. I will present the

amendment now in a few minutes.

I am

going to add to it that this be done in consultation with the Advocate, because

as I have expressed, I think it is important for us to have a full

understanding. The Advocate is in the

role, she carries out the work of the Advocate's office on a daily basis,

probably one of the best informed in the work she does and has experience in

what she does. No one else has the

experience of the Advocate and the people who work in her office.

I think it is important that we do make these decisions, understand what

it is you are looking for, in consultation with the Advocate.

I would

also point out that the resolution itself does not indicate who the reporting

should be. The resolution reads,

that the House of Assembly urge Government to immediately introduce

legislation for the mandatory and immediate reporting of all Government

departments and agencies of the deaths of, and critical incidents involving,

children and youth. It does not

reference, actually in the resolution, the Child and Youth Advocate.

So I am proposing an amendment to that to clarify this, and also to

include the Advocate in the process that we will undertake as a government.

Mr.

Speaker, I will present the amendment.

I move that the resolution clause of a private member's resolution now

before the House be amended by deleting the second recital clause, and by

replacing in the resolution the words, to immediately introduce legislation

and replace that in the resolution clause with the words in consultation with

the Advocate for Children and Youth to develop and introduce legislation.

Mr.

Speaker, this amendment is seconded by the Minister of Child, Youth and Family

Services.

MR. SPEAKER:

Order, please!

We have

an amendment proposed by the hon. the Premier, and the House will now take a

brief recess to consider the amendment.

Recess

MR.

SPEAKER:

Order, please!

We have considered the amendment as proposed by the

hon. the Premier and the amendment is in order.

The hon. the Premier.

PREMIER DAVIS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank you for your ruling.

I have a few minutes left, so I would just like to use up the time I have

this afternoon. I say I appreciate

the ruling. I appreciate the

resolution from members opposite and I hear some of the comments coming from

over there.

I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, that I made it quite clear

that as Premier of the Province, and I have made it quite clear to Cabinet

ministers, to our own MHAs, of what has been one of the paramount considerations

for me as Premier, and that is the safety of the people of the Province.

That includes children and youth, and children and youth who are

considered to be at-risk youth. It

is one of the primary priorities for me as the Premier.

I think the amendment before the House will strengthen the resolution

that is proposed by members opposite.

It does not create a delay; it creates an opportunity

to consult and do the work properly.

The Child and Youth Advocate and her office are in a very good position to

provide advice, information, and input to government and to Cabinet in the

development of the legislation. I

believe that is the right thing to do.

It is not an intention to delay or minimize the

responsibilities, to minimize the ask or in any way lower the importance of it,

because I can tell you it is very important for us.

I believe it is the right thing to do.

They have the opportunity to consult with the Child and Youth Advocate to

have an in-depth and comprehensive discussion with her so that our legislation

can be the best that it can be. I am

sure that is what members opposite want.

They want the legislation to be the best as it can be.

As I said when we talk about timing of immediate and

timely notification, we talk about critical incident versus a critical injury,

it is important for us to have those discussions so we can clarify and do a good

job in preparation of legislation, and have a good understanding of it.

So, Mr. Speaker, I will end my remarks this afternoon,

and again thank members of the House.

This side of the House has full intentions to support the amendment, and

then support the amended resolution when it comes to time to vote later this

afternoon.

Thank you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

hon. the Member for St. Barbe.

MR.

J. BENNETT:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is remarkable that tomorrow it will be fifty-five

years since the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of the Child.

This government and, more particularly, this Premier who wasted a half a

dozen months as the Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services, has found a

way to water down a private member's resolution that would protect the interests

of the child, fifty-five years, minus a day, after the United Nations

Declaration of the Rights of the Child.

Mr. Speaker, the rights of the child and I would hope

our Province would not want to be less mindful of the rights of the child

fifty-five years after the United Nations adopted a declaration.

What are the rights of a child?

Well, the rights of a child, according to the United

Nations over fifty years ago, the first one was the right to equality without

distinction on account of race, religion, or national origin; the right to

special protection of the child's physical, mental, and social development; the

right to a name and a nationality; the right to adequate nutrition, housing, and

medical services; the right to special treatment and treatment where a child is

physically or mentally handicapped; the right to understanding and love by

parents and society; the right to recreational activities and free education;

the right to be among the first to receive relief in all circumstances; the

right to protection against all forms of neglect, cruelty, and exploitation; and

finally, the tenth right, as enumerated by the United Nations fifty-five years

ago, was the right to be brought up in a spirit of understanding, tolerance,

friendship among peoples, and universal brotherhood.

Now, Mr. Speaker, that was followed by the Convention

on the Rights of the Child, November 20, 1989, which was twenty-five years ago.

So, internationally, we have had a history of making declarations, of

which Canada was a party and a participant, of which this Province is one of the

ten provinces of Canada, thirteen counting territories.

Mr. Speaker, the hon. the Premier, he said we do not

know what the definition would be.

Well, I can direct him to no further than other Canadian provinces who have

already defined these terms, other Canadian provinces who have said, for

example, in Alberta under their Child and Youth Advocate Act and Alberta has

mandatory reporting on serious injuries and deaths, and this is for children

receiving designated services. They

say, serious injury', in respect of a child, means (

i) a life-threatening

injury to the child, or (ii) an injury that may cause significant impairment of

the child's health.

Mr. Speaker, I met with the Child and Youth Advocate

probably a month or so ago and had the discussion of what was happening, what

was in the works to date; and on the basis of our discussions with her, one of

the most pressing issues the Child and Youth Advocate has in this Province today

is that she is not advised of the deaths of children and she is not advised of

what happens when there is a critical incident she referred to as a critical

incident. So the Child and Youth

Advocate is clearly able to define what she means by a critical incident.

If she were to define this, what harm would come if the Child and Youth

Advocate was advised of a child who had not died and maybe was only left out in

the freezing cold for a little while, while in care of the Province?

They should not have needed to have died.

Mr. Speaker, what we have seen in the last few months

in this Province with respect to child deaths literally would curdle a person's

blood. Yet, we have a government who

has found a way to try to delay and defer, and defer and delay.

Now we know the government can move quickly when they wish to move

quickly, because just this week they moved to amend the Elections Act to correct

an oversight or an error they say was committed by bureaucrats under their

purview.

At this point, this government and its new minister

who I accept at face value is doing the best that he can.

I have no criticism with the current minister.

Clearly, he is overseen by Cabinet and the Premier.

The Premier is a former minister of the department.

He has made oral commitments essentially to report and to do the best

that he can, as I understand your

interpretation through the media, but this is

a haphazard way of doing reporting.

It is not

all-encompassing. It is not a

statutorily mandated way. It is not

legislated by us. I would argue that

it would be a benefit to the minister if we were to legislate that any child

receiving services from the government, or any child and child defined under

the Advocate's act means a child past the age of eighteen, because that child

may still be in receipt of services.

The

briefings I have had through the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services

have been very helpful. In fact,

they have been the most beneficial briefings I have had in five departments that

I have been responsible for being the critic.

The staff are doing their best.

They are working. They seem

to be maybe under-resourced in some respects, but in some areas doing a good

job. In this particular area, so

many children are falling through the cracks that it is absolutely shameful.

A simple

piece of legislation would mandate that the Child Advocate is the person who is

advised immediately, just provided notification.

The child shows up in whatever, they come in contact with any government

service, and that child suffers a serious injury, or a sentinel event some

agencies call it. A very bad thing

has happened, or is about to happen, or is happening to that child.

The child could be one of maybe dozens or even hundreds who are overseen

by the department, but they are still in the care and custody of their families.

Not

everybody draws the best family, and that is not the child's fault.

Many parents are unable, or in some cases, unwilling.

Generally, if they are not providing properly for their children,

protecting them, caring for them, clothing them, it may very well be because of

substance issues, mental health issues, but decisions are made to keep the child

with the family quite often. Quite

often that is the best decision.

Sometimes it is not the best decision.

However, if harm comes to that child, why should the Advocate have to

find out because of a court proceeding years later, as was the case in Joey's

Story?

Why

should the Advocate have to find out well, I picked it up in court that these

people were sent to jail because of how they so badly abused their children so I

thought I should investigate. That

is absolutely shameful. It is

absolutely shameful that the most vulnerable people in society, the ones we are

charged to protect and look after and the single person in more than 500,000

people who is mandated to represent a child is not told, statutorily by this

government, if something bad has happened or is happening to that child.

You must tell the Advocate.

In the

discussion I had with the Advocate, my question was and I met with another

caucus member and researcher. It was

a good discussion. It was more than

an hour and a half. I would

encourage the Premier, having formerly been the minister, to maybe get

acquainted with some of the people who are carrying out the government's mandate

and meet with some of them.

Do not

say at this point I am going to meet with the Advocate and find out what is

going on. It is a bit late for that.

He is quite a bit late. If

having been one of the four ministers in the last fourteen months he needs to

find out from the Advocate what she needs, then, what was he doing when he was

minister?

Mr.

Speaker, the proposed amendment is simply a stall.

It is a watering down tactic.

It is a way for this government to be able to duck and delay, bob and weave and

defer, and not do something else.

This is not something else that would be highly expensive.

In having this discussion with the Advocate I posed the question: what

would it cost? It is important to

know what that would cost. It is an

improved benefit. It is an important

benefit.

Mr.

Speaker, I can report back to the House that she indicated her budget is in the

range of $1.3 million. For less than

$150,000, she would be able to employ two other staff personnel who could handle

that overload. One would be a

professional investigator and one would be more of a lower-level but qualified

position. For approximately

$150,000, the Child Advocate could be staffed, in her view, adequately to be

able to handle all of the reporting that comes in from government.

Cases will be triaged, some cases will be more urgent than others, and

she would handle whatever would be the caseload.

This is

shameful, Mr. Speaker, to have to come here not to bring the motion.

I can understand the government might

want to defer and delay, and delay and defer, but when it comes to a private

member's resolution, to take it and to water it down, and to say they are

improving on it by way of consulting with somebody who has been the Advocate for

five or six years, by somebody who has now three of the last five ministers

sitting around a Cabinet table, one of whom is the Premier and they want to

consult with the Advocate why? Why

do we need to consult at this point?

Mr.

Speaker, this shows a deeply ingrained inability of this government to act.

This government is able to make spending announcements.

They are able to call for proposals.

They are able to request studies.

They are able to consult, but they are not able to perform.

The reason they are held in such low regard by the people of this

Province in my view, as seen by the public opinion polls, is because they are

not seen as doing things that are very important to the people of the Province,

that are very beneficial on a social basis, and that will help vulnerable

people.

This

lifting of the veil really started with DarkNL nearly a year ago.

It is intransigence. It is an

air of entitlement. It says we know

what we are doing; you do not know we are doing.

You are not going to tell us what to do.

By the way, we will make another spending announcement.

We will delay a hospital for three, four, five, six, or seven years and

we will delay this little piece of legislation which will correct an enormous

shortcoming in the Office of the Child Advocate.

It would generate such an enormous benefit for her to do a job for the

most vulnerable people in our Province at a minimal cost, yet the government

still wants to delay and defer.

predicted, Mr. Speaker, that would happen.

As a matter of fact, I predicted within the last hour this would happen.

I publicly predicted this would happen.

I took the opportunity to explain on the Open Line show what Private

Members' Day was all about so the people of the Province could understand what

we do and that what we were putting forward today is what we thought was the

most important issue that we could do as a private member.

When the

host Pete Soucy said, how many of these get through, I explained to him that

some get defeated, as did the fracking regulation PMR we put in.

Some get defeated and others, when the government feels they must be seen

to be doing something they do not really want to be do something, but they

must be seen to be doing something then they will amend it in a way that would

be favourable to them. They will use

their majority to pass the amendment.

Then passing the amendment, the resolution will pass.

Then

they will issue a press release saying what a great job they have done, when all

they have done is ignored a situation for half a dozen years.

After refusing to do something for so long and a private member's

resolution comes forward to them, they water this down with an amendment and

take credit for doing something, when in fact they have done nothing and they

have only delayed progress at the expense of the most vulnerable people in the

Province.

This

could be a Christmas gift to all those little children we do not even know about

who are cold, scared, hungry, in pain, and neglected.

Right now, today, they have not died yet.

Based on the numbers we have seen of three dozen or so in the last five

years, they are probably dying at the rate of one every month and a half.

The advocate is not being told about this.

This is

what this government is delaying today.

I would encourage government to withdraw the amendment, pass the

resolution, introduce a new bill next week, and let's all get together and pass

it.

Thank

you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER (Littlejohn):

The hon. the

Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR. S. COLLINS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr.

Speaker, I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak to this today in the

House of Assembly and also to talk about the tremendous work that is happening

in our Province and in my department, in the Department of Child, Youth and

Family Services.

I would

also like to thank the Opposition for allowing me that opportunity to go over

some of the progress we have made in the last number of years and lead up to the

discussion surrounding legislative changes, the critical incidents, and the

reporting of deaths.

I must

say, Mr. Speaker, at first blush, I came into this department we always go

into new tasks and new things in our lives, and sometimes we are somewhat nave.

I had some of the same concerns and I asked some of the very same

questions the members opposite had asked as well, thinking this was just a

simple project, something we could do and enact very easily with very little

ramifications or cost.

It goes

to show, when the member speaks just a couple of quotes here: it would be a

little piece of legislation, was the quote he used, and it would be simply two

positions at the Advocate's office.

I think that shows the scope of how they envision this.

I think that is a starting point where we need to start and talk about,

but this is a much larger piece of legislation with much further implications

that would have to be considered as well.

It is not to say that it is not important, it absolutely is, but we have

to understand the full breadth of this, to understand it is not simply something

that can be done overnight and all the implications, there would be none.

Mr.

Speaker, I think each one of us here today agrees that children and youth

obviously are the most important things in our lives and in our Province.

Certainly, as a father of two young daughters, I get that not only as a

politician, as a minister, but also as a father and a parent.

I can

remember when I got the call from then Premier Marshall at the time with regard

to asking I do not know if Premiers always ask if you want to go somewhere,

but he did. He asked.

He said: How do you feel about going to Child, Youth and Family Services?

While I understood the huge responsibility, the important role and some

of the things that are so tragic that you have to deal with, but I understood

the importance of it and the great responsibility.

Actually, I look forward to the opportunity of having some impact in that role,

and in the progress that has been made over the last number of years.

We still have a ways to go, Mr. Speaker.

I will be first to admit, we still have a ways to go, but I am happy to

be part of a team that is looking forward to that progress.

There is great work happening in our department each and every day.

Again,

it was an honour to come to this department.

While coming to work every day is not easy because sometimes we deal with

the most sensitive and, as I said, tragic events, and when you are talking about

children there is nothing more difficult.

While I understand the responsibility and the toughness of what that job

entails, I look forward to the opportunity of having some real positive impact

in this role.

Never

before has there been a provincial department solely dedicated to Child, Youth

and Family Services. If we look back

at what this government has done over the last decade, one of the things I look

to as one of the biggest achievements is we have a department solely dedicated

to Child, Youth and Family Services.

That is something we did not have before, of course.

It was under the Department of Health and the four regional health

authorities.

We are

continuing to build and revitalize a child protection system that is responsive

to the priority needs of our children and youth, as well as making significant

progress to creating a culture of accountability, excellence, and consistency

across all programs, across all regions in the Province.

In 2009, our government created the Department of Child, Youth and Family

Services to address systematic issues identified through internal and external

reports. One of the reports that

come to mind, and one that was so important, was the Clinical Services Review.

Mr.

Speaker, I do not have to talk around it.

There were huge deficiencies in the system prior to this department being

formed. There were organizational

structures, and I say that with all sincerity.

There were major issues and we recognized that.

It was through the clinical review, as well as through other

recommendations, that the government saw fit to build this department.

When I

say build this department, it was not simply just taking out from the regional

health authorities and say go operate as you were before.

We had to create the whole department from the ground up.

There was a lot of work done by a lot of people, and I think we are

starting to see the benefits of that.

This is

not a process that can happen overnight.

We went through a transition where the four RHAs were rolled into the

department, the last one being the Labrador region in March 2012, I believe it

was. Once we had that transition,

then we would look towards the transformation, and that is what we are going

through right now. We are how I

envision it about halfway through the transformation.

We have

been told through clinical reviews and through conversations with Susan Abell,

who was one of the authors of the clinical review, she said this is not

something that is going to happen overnight.

It is not an easy piece of work whatsoever.

She was quite well versed in this, and she had seen how this unrolled in

other jurisdictions. She was quite

pleased with the step. I think it

exceeded her expectations when we came to a point where we were creating an

entirely new department focused and dedicated to the children and youth of this

Province. That is something I am so

very proud of. I think it just talks

to where we were and where we are now.

I think it is important to recognize that.

As I

said, the clinical review is a very important one.

It was the first bit of reading I had assigned to me upon coming in to

the new department. I have since

found out it is referred to as the commandments in Child, Youth and Family

Services. It is our touchstone; it

is something we always go back to.

With all policies and all directions of the department, we go back and we

reflect on the recommendations put forward by Susan Abell in that review.

It was commissioned by government and authored, as I had said, by Susan

Abell, who is a child protection expert in Canada; well

known, very good reputation. It

evaluated the clinical social work and management practices within Child, Youth

and Family Services programs.

The

recommendations of the Clinical Services Review were fully accepted by

government another important piece.

It is fine to ask for recommendations, but the most important part,

obviously, is that you recognize them and accept them, and that is what we have

done. We have been working towards

full implementation of those recommendations ever since we received them.

Over the

past couple of years we have accomplished significant milestones, significant,

that certainly enhance the services and care we provide to children and youth

and families. Including, and as I

had spoken about, transitioning of all youth and family services staff and

programs from four regional health authorities.

That in itself was a major piece of work, when you look at how big the

size of the regional health authorities, under the Department of Health, that

umbrella it is absolutely massive.

As I

said, just so everyone knows, in March, 2011, Western transferred over; Central

followed in July, 2011; Eastern, we broke up into two pieces in 2011 as well, in

October and November; and then finally, as I had said, Labrador was the final

transition in March, 2012.

We have

also enacted new legislation, great legislation, things that needed to be

updated. We responded in June, 2011,

I believe it was. The CYCP Act,

Children and Youth Care and Protection Act, as well as the adoptions

legislation, which I think was only in the last sitting of the House.

New

organizational structure is very important as well.

We talk about a team structure.

Again, we had to build this department.

It was not simply just extracting it from the RHAs.

We had to build an entirely new department.

That, of course, came with a plan, and a plan that has been enacted and I

think has been fantastic.

We came

with a goal, and this is something that is very important because we talk about

social workers and their workload.

We recognize that, and we wanted to address it.

So, we came with a goal of having a ratio of 1 to 20.

I am happy say now we sit at about 1 in 21, which is nearing the goal of

1 to 20.

envision when you look, you do not only look at tomorrow but you look at years

down the road. I look at perhaps

making that ratio even lower again, because we understand the hard work that

social workers do. I can stand up

here and describe to you how hard it is, but I do not think I could truly do

that. It would only be from a social

worker's mouth, and I have heard from many, and it is not easy work.

So anything that we can do to make sure their jobs are as easy as they

can be, obviously recognizing the type of material they deal with and the

incidences they deal with on a day to day basis.

We are

very proud of the strides we have made, Mr. Speaker.

Every accomplished milestone can be credited to the input and hard work

and the co-operation of CYFS staff all throughout the Province who are committed

to making positive difference and significant impact in the lives of children

and youth. While I have gotten to

know many of the staff at the provincial office, where my office is located

down on Elizabeth Avenue, I have also had a number of opportunities in my brief

time in the department to also meet staff out on the West Coast in regional

offices in Corner Brook and in Deer Lake, and I have met with a number of staff

in the metro area as well.

I was immediately struck by the type of people that we

have working in the department. That

is not to say anything about anyone else working in any other department, but I

was struck by the type of person that I came across it seemed that each and

every time I met new staff who are working on the frontlines in our department,

they are passionate people and they are dedicated.

They are not in this for the lifestyle.

They are not in this because it is an easy job.

People do not get into social work for the money; it is

just like teaching. You look at a

bunch of professions, they pay and you can make a living at it, but certainly

you are not going to become a rich man or woman doing it.

The people who get involved in social work do it for absolutely the right

reason. I think when you met social

workers and when you have that chat with them, you can see that.

It is written all over their face.

They get up every morning to go to work and it is with

the utmost intentions and it is to improve the lives of children, youth, and

families in this Province. I applaud

them for the absolutely fantastic job that they do day in and day out.

While they are open to criticism and we all are I can assure you if I

can, if I may speak for them, they have every best intention in their mind and I

think they do an absolutely fantastic job, as I said, for the children, youth,

and families of the Province.

Mr. Speaker, we continue to move forward with a focus

on further enhancements to child and youth care.

We continue to drive change that results in best practices in enhanced

approaches to supporting children and youth in our Province.

As I said it is immediately obvious how

passionate employees are about what they do day to day, and I have experienced

the high level of professionalism in the work concerning areas of child

protection, youth corrections and adoptions, Mr. Speaker.

It is within this context of this professionalism that many difficult

situations and decisions are encountered on an ongoing basis.

The assessment of risk is a major component in

front-line staff. That is what they

do each and every day. It is no

different as I said from what a doctor would face perhaps in difficult decisions

that they have to make, or nurses, or whatever the case.

Social workers, I put them in that same box with those professions as

well, because each and every day they have to make such important decisions that

people's lives are influenced by every decision they make.

Social workers regularly work with families receiving

services from the Department of CYFS to deal with a variety of risk areas as a

result of the action or inaction of parents.

Some of these risk areas, as we are all too familiar with sometimes it

seems: physical and emotional harm, sexual abuse and exploitation, inappropriate

supervision, substance abuse or other abuse.

All of these matters are taken very seriously.

I think if you look at the types of activities and types of behaviours

over the last number of years and if you reflect on what was happening a decade

or two decades ago, it is even more alarming the types of behaviours and the

types of substance abuse that we are seeing.

These are things that we are trying to progress with

because, again, the target is always moving but we always have to try to adjust

and try to enhance our services to meet that target.

As I said, that is certainly what we attempt to do.

I am quickly running out of time, so bear with me one

second. Our government understands

the Child and Youth Advocate has an extremely valuable role to play in our

Province and certainly any recommendations she brings forward we take very

seriously.

Since becoming the Minister of CYFS, I understand

first-hand the importance of her job and what she has to do on a day-to-day

basis. Shortly after coming in, I am

happy to say that I actually met with the Advocate it was not too long that I

was into the role to discuss, obviously, the very sensitive and important

matters that came out of the news with regard to the children's deaths.

During that meeting, the Advocate advised me that she would be seeking

legislation. Certainly, I welcome

that, and I think we all do.

While she has full disclosure and that is something

we have to be very clear on of all files minus the referrals, for obvious

reasons, but she has full disclosure, she is looking to enhance that.

So certainly if she wants to bring forward something to us to consider,

we would be more than happy to do so.

As was mentioned, as an interim measure while we work

through the process I do not want to predetermine what happens with regard to

legislation, but I felt it was reasonable that I could provide her with the

deaths as they occur. We did make

that interim measure and put it in place, and hopefully we can resolve that

through the Child Death Review Committee or through other changes.

When we talk about critical incidents, it is very

important to know that it is very different than deaths.

It is not so black and white as deaths.

The hon. member mentioned a couple of provinces.

He actually mentioned one: Alberta.

There are no provinces, as I understand from a primarily jurisdictional

scan, that have in their legislation the mandatory reporting of critical

incidents. What you have in BC and

Alberta, as the member mentioned, is critical injury and death.

That is also a very important fact and just points to the fact that

semantics and critical injury is very different than critical incident.

I welcome the definition from the Advocate.

Actually upon meeting with her, I had asked that question to her and she

did not have a reply ready for me at that time.

Certainly, I look at the opportunity, I think, for her to come in and

present to Cabinet. I think it was a

great move by our Premier to allow her to come in and explain to us what she

envisions. Because, again, it is

always nice to look at other jurisdictions in Canada to see what they are doing,

but currently they are not. That is

not to say that we cannot look at it, but it is a very complicated piece of work

and we have to recognize that off the get-go.

We all have the very, very same view as it comes to the care of children.

We want to be able to provide the best possible care to children, youth,

and families in this Province.

While sometimes it seems as though myself and the

Advocate are coming from different standpoints, that is absolutely not the case.

I have had a great working relationship with her.

I respect the role that she holds.

I appreciate the work that she does.

We have exactly the same goal, and that is to be able to provide the best

possible services to the children, youth, and families in this Province.

I think through working together and through a collaborative approach,

which I think I have had since becoming Minister of Child, Youth and Family

Services, we will come to a place where the children, youth, and families are

better served.

With that, I will take my seat.

I look forward to further comments.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS:

Hear, hear!

MR.

SPEAKER:

The

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

ROGERS:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am happy to stand in this House today to speak to

this very important, crucial, and in some circumstances, life-saving

legislation. It is about improving

our services to the children and the youth of Newfoundland and Labrador.

It is about alleviating suffering.

It is about helping our children in recovery and in resilience.

The role of the Child and Youth Advocate is paramount

in ensuring that our public services are serving the needs of our children.

It is paramount in ensuring when gaps or mistakes happen that they are

resolved and not repeated. It

ensures that we are providing the best possible supports to some of our most

vulnerable children and youth, and in some cases their families.

Her mandate is guided by the UN Convention of the

Rights of the Child. That is where

she is coming from. That is the

language that she speaks. That is

where we want her coming from. That

is the language we want her to speak.

It is a language that we understand.

It is a language that we honour.

It is a language that we are committed to.

In preparing to speak to this legislation I had the

privilege of contacting other provinces and their equivalent offices to our

Child and Youth Advocate. I am happy

to report that our Child an