April 25, 2007 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS Vol. XLV No. 2


The House met at 2:00 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Statements by Members

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

This afternoon we have members' statements as follows: a statement by the Member for the District of Carbonear-Harbour Grace; a statement by the Member for the District of Terra Nova; a statement by the Member for the District of Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi; a statement by the Member for the District of Kilbride; a statement by the Member for the District of Humber Valley; and a statement by the Member for the District of Conception Bay South.

The Chair recognizes the Member for Carbonear-Harbour Grace.

MR. SWEENEY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this House today to extend congratulations to the Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars, the 2006-2007 Herder Memorial Senior Hockey Champs.

Mr. Speaker, there won't be another thirty-nine-year waiting period for the Herder Memorial championship in Conception Bay North. The Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars vanquished - yes, Mr. Speaker, vanquished, I say to the Member for Humber Valley - the Deer Lake Red Wings 5 to 2 before a packed house at Corner Brook's Pepsi Centre on Saturday night to capture their second straight provincial senior hockey title. Before winning the Herder last year, the CeeBees had not hoisted the trophy since 1967.

Mr. Speaker, the Conception Bay North Female CeeBees Hockey Team won the 2007 Senior Female Provincial Championship. The win came recently at the S.W. Moores Memorial Stadium in Harbour Grace. This is their third consecutive senior female provincial championship.

Conception Bay North, and especially the Town of Harbour Grace, is already steeped in historic sports milestones. Now there is another reason for the Town of Harbour Grace to wear its historic town mantle - a second consecutive Senior Herder Memorial Championship and the third consecutive Female Senior Hockey Championship.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all members of this House to join with me in extending congratulations to the Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars, the 2006-2007 Herder Memorial Senior Hockey Champions.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Terra Nova.

MR. ORAM: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a tremendous individual, William Burry. Mr. Burry spent thirty years as a teacher. He taught in Springdale, Baie Verte, and in Carmanville. In 1969 he moved to Hare Bay, where he taught there and in neighbouring Dover. The last six years of his career were spent in Gambo, where he presided as principal of Bayview Heights Academy.

Mr. Speaker, while busy teaching, Mr. Burry devoted much of his remaining time as a member of the Hare Bay-Dover Lions Club for approximately twenty-seven years. While a Chartered member, he was also bestowed the honour of the title of District Governor.

Mr. Burry was active with the local air cadets and served on the recreation committee in the town. He was also very active at Knox United Church in Hare Bay, and served on its board of management for a number of years. Mr. Burry was known as a person who was always there to help out in any way he could.

Bill Burry passed away on April 6. His funeral was held at the church in which he served for years, with over 200 people in attendance. Amongst those paying their respects were many Lions Club members, as well as teachers, students and friends.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all hon. members today to join with me in celebrating the life of this great man, and his legacy.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS MICHAEL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am very pleased to stand today and pay tribute to the work of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada and to recognize Sean Kirby and Sarah Cowan from the Society, who work untiringly for the constituency they represent. Today we have all received red carnations from the Society marking MS Awareness Month in Canada which will begin next Tuesday.

During May, MS Society volunteers and staff carry out numerous public awareness activities both nationally and locally. It is also the time of its spring fundraising season.

The month of May is very special to people impacted by MS. It marks a time when the Society not only promotes awareness but also reflects on the outstanding progress that has been in treatments and the search for a cure.

Staff and volunteers of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada are tireless in promoting the needs and concerns of people suffering from MS. Some key highlights of their programs for a healthy and well-balanced life include: support and self-help groups; special equipment provision and funding assistance; services and reference materials to support those who provide full-time care to a loved one with MS; a cross-Canada education series to help people deal with depression, a common symptom of MS; programs directed at children six to eighteen years old who have a parent with MS.

The MS Society is to be congratulated on its many programs and the untiring work it carries on in supporting people with this disease. It is also to be congratulated on its successful fundraising that results in its being the primary funder of MS research being done in this country.

So, I urge all of my colleagues in the House to wear the red carnations proudly today and to support the MS Society's fundraiser later in May by procuring many more carnations at that time for family and friends.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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, I rise in this House today to pay tribute to an outstanding individual in the District of Kilbride.

Master Warrant Officer Terry Hurley of the Goulds was recently presented with the Chief of the Defence Staff Commendation by General Rick Hillier.

Mr. Speaker, Terry was commended for his bravery in foiling a robbery at a store in Kilbride on February 21, 2004. When Terry walked into the store shortly before 9:00 p.m. on that night, he saw a man holding a knife to the clerk's throat. The robber attempted to run away but Terry, without any regard for his own safety, grabbed him and restrained him until the police arrived.

Without his presence and quick action that night, nobody knows what could have happened. His decisive action was instrumental in taking a criminal off the streets and probably protecting other unknown victims from future robberies by this individual.

Terry Hurley has dedicated his life to the Canadian Armed Forces. He joined the Forces on February 2, 1971, and retired in April 2004 after thirty-three years of service. He is presently a Company Sergeant Major with the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, First Battalion.

He and his wife, Roxanne, also received the Chief of Defence Staff Coin, a personal memento from General Hillier for their dedicated military service.

Mr. Speaker, I ask this hon. House to join me in recognizing Master Warrant Officer Terry Hurley's great courage and dedication, and I should mention that he is here in the House today.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Humber Valley.

MR. BALL: Mr. Speaker, I rise in this House today to recognize a special constituent from my district, Mr. Dick Baker of St. Jude's, who is hailed as a bona fide hero.

On a Sunday afternoon Dick Baker was sitting at home with his friend, Vaughn Cross, overlooking Deer Lake, when fate cast a new role for the retiree. Mr. Cross had seen two snowmobilers cross the lake and had noticed that they disappeared. Dick grabbed his binoculars, he spotted two dots on the lake and realized that an emergency was happening.

Mr. Speaker, the quick-thinking Mr. Baker immediately threw on his boots and coat, jumped on his snowmobile and headed out as fast as he could. By the time he got to the couple, Allan Rubia and Clara Cull, they had been in the frigid water for over ten minutes. Their snowmobile had plunged through the ice about a mile offshore from Baker's lakefront home.

Knowing time was running out, he had to move quickly. Baker threw a rope to Cull who was able to get out of the water without too much trouble. Helping Rubia out however, proved to be a trickier piece of work but he succeeded. Baker managed to get them both back to shore with the help of his buddy, Vaughn Cross, who had called the ambulance. They took the survivors to Dick's home until the ambulance had arrived.

Mr. Speaker, the search and rescue crew arrived and praised the efforts of Mr. Baker for his rapid response to an emergency which most assuredly saved the lives of not one, but two people.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all members of this House to join with me in extending congratulations to Dick Baker on his wonderful act of heroism in saving the lives of Allan Rubia and Clara Cull.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to inform my hon. colleagues about an exceptional individual from my district who has been named the Conception Bay South 2006 Citizen of the Year. Zita Butler was one of three nominees, which also included Neil Tilley and John Scott. An award was presented to Ms Butler on April 14 by the Conception Bay South Lions Club.

Ms Butler has volunteered her services to a variety of social programs to assist her community. She has been involved with the Girl Guides since 1951, the Canadian Cancer Society and the Conception Bay South-Paradise Community Food Bank. She is also known as the Breakfast Lady for her work in ensuring elementary children have access to the most important meal of the day.

Ms Butler is a member of the Salvation Army where she serves as community care secretary and visits homes to provide an uplifting spirit of love and encouragement.

Her contribution to CBS also includes being a member of Emergency Response, a coordinator of the CBS Red Shield Campaign, an active participant in the Christmas Kettle Campaign and is a member of the Salvation Army Congress Committee.

She also knits caps for newborn babies, makes lap blankets for the elderly and knits for those in need overseas. She also canvasses for health causes, assists with catering at All Saints Anglican Church, volunteers for the Canadian Bible Society and helps coordinate the World Day of Prayer.

I congratulate Ms Butler on her commitment and achievements and ask all hon. members to join with me in congratulating her.

Thank you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair has been advised that Mr. Sean Kirby and Ms Sarah Cowan of the Multiple Sclerosis Society are also in the public galleries and we want to welcome them.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to provide an update on the Red Tape Reduction initiative. I am pleased to report that this initiative is continuing to deliver results in reducing regulatory requirements for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

During the period from July 1 through December 31, 2006, a total of 4,295 regulatory requirements were removed from the system.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: This brings the total number of regulatory requirements removed from the system to 21,205 since the initiative began in August 2006.

The department is now over one quarter of the way to achieving the objective of reducing the number of regulatory requirements within government by 25 per cent in three years. I am very pleased with the success of this project to date, and I am confident we will achieve our objective within the specified time line.

Not only are we seeing results in terms of the numbers, we are also seeing positive results with regards to the level of service government provides to clients. The Red Tape Reduction initiative is fostering an environment where government is more aware of the impact of regulations on the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, the Red Tape Reduction initiative is also about supporting a change for the better in the way government interacts with clients. I believe that the positive impact on how government views the regulatory process will remain for years to come.

The work of the Department of Business with regards to regulatory reform would not be possible without the support and commitment of departments, agencies, boards and commissions. I believe the success of the red tape reduction initiative to date has largely been a result of the tremendous work of government employees involved in the project. I extend my thanks and appreciation to the red tape reduction initiative team at the Department of Business, and all government employees for your continued commitment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS FOOTE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement today.

This is nothing new in terms of a red tape reduction committee. I recall, before I was elected to government, in fact, that the government of the day had such a committee as well, but I do commend the government and those involved in trying to do away with a lot of the unnecessary rules and regulations sometimes that tend to creep into government policy and government regulations.

I would be interested, in fact, in seeing a list of the regulations that have been done away with. I know the minister says that since, I guess, July, when they started this, that some 21,205 regulations have been done away with, and I would be interested in having those. There must be a list of them somewhere. I would really be interested in seeing those, just to see the type of impact this is making on people in our Province and, yes, in terms of government service. Obviously that is what this is all about, trying to simplify a lot of things that are going on today in government for the people who have to avail of government services and regulations.

One thing that I do recall, though, when this was done previously, was that there was a tendency for them to creep back into the system if you are not diligent in trying to ensure that those that are removed stay removed.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. member's allotted time has expired.

MS FOOTE: Just to clue up, Mr. Speaker?

MR. SPEAKER: Leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MR. SPEAKER: Leave has been agreed to.

MS FOOTE: Just a caution that you might want to stay on top of it to ensure that they do not creep back into the system, as there is a tendency for that to happen if we are not diligent.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: Further statements by ministers?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HEDDERSON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in this House to inform members of how the Province's collection of original works of arts has been substantially increased and enriched with the addition of sixty pieces purchased under the 2006 Art Procurement Program. The works acquired from fifty-four artists include: stained glass, oils, acrylics, watercolours, tapestries, wood block carving, sculptures etchings, textiles and mixed-media works. With these recent purchases, Mr. Speaker, the Art Procurement collection has risen to a total of 2,586 pieces.

These pieces were created by Newfoundland and Labrador artists, people living right here at home and taking their inspiration from our beautiful Province. The newly purchased works will be displayed in public buildings throughout the Province for years to come, bringing attention and recognition to visual arts and artists of the Province in the long term. These works, Mr. Speaker, can also be viewed on-line at www.therooms.ca

Mr. Speaker, last year I had the great pleasure of announcing a $125,000 budget for the Art Procurement Program - a $50,000 increase from the previous budget of $75,000. This investment demonstrates this government's continued commitment to the local visual artists. Our research shows us that our Art Procurement Program is one of the strongest and most widely supported in this country.

The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery manages the submissions and adjudication process, as well as ongoing support and care for the acquisitions. The art procurement jury is made up of five regional representatives from the arts community.

Mr. Speaker, through the Arts Procurement Program we enrich our public spaces while also shining a well-deserved spotlight on our local artists and their accomplishments. Not only does the program offer visual artists - emerging and established - a chance to showcase their work to a wide audience, it also increases the public's awareness of the great importance of arts and culture in our daily lives.

I would like to thank all of the artists who submitted their works for consideration and recognize the contribution they make to our cultural landscape. Artists and the art they create are the heart and soul of cultural activity. In Budget 2006, this government firmly established this role in our future by implementing the first-ever strategic cultural plan, Creative Newfoundland and Labrador: The Blueprint for Development and Investment in Culture.

Mr. Speaker, the work of every artist in this Province is a testament to the rich talent we have in this Province. The Art Procurement Program continues to contribute to the professional development and economic success of our very valued artists.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. ANDERSEN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement. Unfortunately, I forgot my reading glasses at home today but I paid great attention as you read your statement.

Minister, it is a good news story. We, too, applaud all the artists in the Province who make such a huge contribution to our society. We look forward to another increase in the Budget this year because, if you give another increase, Minister, it will bring it back up to the amount that the previous Liberal government had allotted in the years that we put money into this program.

Certainly, Minister, it is a tremendous boost and we, too, want to thank all of our artists who play such a vital role in making our Province of Newfoundland and Labrador proud of its heritage and proud of its culture.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Further statements by ministers?

Oral Questions.

Oral Questions

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

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

On Monday, Mr. Speaker, government announced it would be appointing Mr. Paul Reynolds as the Chief Electoral Officer and Commissioner of Members' Interests. Even though this position has been traditionally held and occupied by impartial and non-partisan individuals, as it still is in every other province in the country, the Premier appointed an individual who is the past-president of the provincial Tory Party, a close personal associate with the current PC election chair, Mr. Ross Reid, and is still an active member of the Virginia Waters PC District Association.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the Premier: Why was there no mention of Mr. Reynolds political ties in his biographical information that you released on Monday?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, based on comments from the Opposition when we appointed the last Chief Electoral Officer, we felt that information was not particularly important because, to quote Mr. Kelvin Parsons, the Opposition House Leader: It is the Premier's prerogative to nominate a person of his and the Cabinet's choice. To me, politics are irrelevant. To me, if he is appointed for this job, which he no doubt will be, he parks his politics at the door. When he goes in to work, he is the Chief Electoral Officer and he is the Commissioner of our interests and he parks his politics at the door.

Politics was not relevant. It was not relevant when Mr. Chuck Furey was appointed, and it is not relevant now.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I say to the Premier, politics are relevant in this issue. He is supposed to be impartial. The Premier did not quote what I said when I stood and faced the individual sitting in the gallery at the time, and told him I would not be voting for him and did not vote for him, I say to the Premier.

Mr. Speaker, one of the guiding principles of Elections Newfoundland and Labrador is that you must be non-partisan. As a matter of fact, ads - and I have a copy here for you, Premier, if you do not have one - currently being run in The Telegram and other newspapers around the Province say that enumerators and returning officers cannot apply if they had been in the service of a political party.

I ask the Premier: Do you see the irony in appointing a sitting member of the PC Association to the Chief Electoral Officer's position while lower-ranking staff working in that office must be non-political and non-politically affiliated?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the Leader of the Opposition: Why didn't he raise that point in the by-election in Humber Valley when the sister of the candidate was working as the returning officer and was basically showing up at polling stations? I didn't hear him mention any impropriety about that then. It was not an issue then, but he was out there, so it is not an issue.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Anyway, irregardless of that, Mr. Paul Reynolds is an exemplary individual. He has an outstanding record of public service. He was a former Mayor of Wedgewood Park. He was a councillor in Wedgewood Park. He was a councillor in the City of St. John's. He served on many volunteer boards. He has been in the private sector. He has been in the public sector. He is very capable of doing that job. There is no need for you to disparage his reputation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, the individual to whom the Premier referred from Humber Valley was appointed to that position many, many, many years ago and she was not politically aligned, unlike Mr. Reynolds today.

I ask the Premier - he does not need to try to besmirch the character of that individual in Humber Valley whom he knows was non-politically aligned when she was appointed to that position.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, the Chief Electoral Officer and the Commissioner of Members' Interests is not only supposed to be impartial, but he or she must be perceived to be impartial.

I ask the Premier whether he believes it is appropriate to appoint a long-time political friend and worker of the PC Party to oversee a general election. How does this instill confidence and ensure fairness in our democratic process?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, I ask the hon. member opposite if it is appropriate to appoint some of these people: Mr. Eric Gullage, a former candidate who was appointed to the Workers' Compensation Review Commission; Mr. George Saunders, a former candidate and Mr. Grimes' campaign chairman, appointed to the Regional Appeal Board; Mr. Gerry Glavine; Mr. Norm Whalen, past-president of the association, appointed to three particular boards; June Alteen, who ran against me out in Corner Brook. Was it appropriate to appoint her to any of these boards? Mary O'Brien; Len Stirling; Danny Dumaresque, a good friend of everybody over on that side over there and now the president of the party. He couldn't sleep at night before, but now he is a good president for the party. Paul Dicks - everybody remembers Paul Dicks - Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro Corporation; Siobhan Coady, EDGE Evaluation Board; Wanda Dawe - and it goes on and it goes on and it goes on. The nerve of him to get up and speak from the other side of his mouth.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, none of those individuals were appointed to positions that were supposed to be politically impartial.

I say it to the Premier, lets talk about some of the ones that he has appointed in the last three years.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. REID: Dean MacDonald, Steve Marshall, Valerie Marshall, Glen Tobin, Mike Monaghan, Len Simms, Darren King, Joan Cleary, Leon Montgomery, Nada Borden, just to mention a few, I would say, Mr. Premier.

Mr. Speaker, not only was Mr. Reynolds bragging this morning in The Telegram about his close ties to the Tory party, but we have been advised by several people that Mr. Reynolds had made no secret of his dislike for the Liberal party. These are certainly not the actions of an independent officer of the House of Assembly. As a matter of fact, he was also quoted, Premier, this summer on a local golf course as saying that he was not too pleased with you because he had not been rewarded with a political appointment.

I ask the Premier: Is this appointment an effort to reward a disgruntled political friend or is it an attempt to subvert the democratic process for your own gain, or is it a combination of both?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, I can tell you something he did not do, he did not phone up and ask to be appointed as a judge and offer his son up as a candidate for the Tory party. He did not do that.

Let's go back to when Mr. Furey was appointed, the people who agreed when we appointed Mr. Furey, the people who agreed with it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Anna Thistle: I believe he will give an unbiased decision. That is what Anna Thistle said, the member. The House Leader basically agreed with it totally: It is the Premier's prerogative to nominate a person if it is the Cabinet's choice. And it goes on. Judy Foote: I believe that he will give an unbiased decision, every decision he makes.

The person we appointed the last time was a former Cabinet minister, a Liberal, and all of these people who are now shouting out and disagree with Paul Reynolds agreed with that position because he was one of them. The biggest criticism was that we should not put a former political candidate in office and we did not do that. We put an exemplary gentleman in that office and he will fulfill his mandate well.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, the Premier says he did not put a political person in that office this time. Where have you been? Where have you been? Read the newspaper from this morning, I say, where your chosen one indicates his ties to your party and to you, I say, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the Chief Electoral Officer is responsible for the placing of ballot boxes throughout districts in this Province and the hiring of staff during an election. It is certainly questionable whether these decisions will be made in the best interest of all political parties in an equitable manner, and I will go further to say that officials in the PC Party may have additional influence in the decision-making process as a result of Mr. Reynold's tight ties with Ross Reid, the campaign chairman for the provincial Tory campaign.

I ask the Premier: Why would you appoint someone with such close ties to your campaign manager, Mr. Reid? Is it to influence the process?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: That type of statement is not worthy of a comment. The answer is no, quite simply.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: I did not think you would have an answer for that one.

Premier, let's see if you can answer this one. Mr. Reynolds will also be responsible for reviewing all MHA's conflict of interest statements. Every year each individual in the House of Assembly has to present a statement to the Commissioner in which he or she outlines how much money they owe, as well as how much they own and all of their assets.

The taxpayers of this Province, I should say, paid to establish a blind trust for the Premier - and I think it cost the taxpayers around $35,000 - yet he has refused to state publicly the name of the trustee overseeing that blind trust to remove any perception that Mr. Reynolds might be unwilling to release this information because of political considerations.

I ask the Premier: Will you stand here today and tell us the name of the individual or individuals who control your blind trust?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, it appears that the hon. gentleman opposite is trying to impugn that I have done something wrong with regard to the establishment of a blind trust; that it was inappropriate for me to submit expenses on a blind trust, which cost me several hundred thousands of dollars, actually, to set up. I have taken the business interests that I have had and I put them in the hands of somebody else in order to serve the people of this Province. I have done it quite willingly. Are you trying to impugn that there is something wrong with that?

If you are concerned about Mr. Reynolds, I can tell you quite clearly, Mr. Reynolds is not the blind trustee of my blind trust.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Humber Valley.

MR. BALL: Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health and Community Services.

The announced expansion of the Prescription Drug Program was, indeed, welcomed news for a number of individuals and families dealing with high drug costs. Although this program enhancement does not fix the entire problem of high drug costs, it is a step forward. One problem with the announcement, Mr. Speaker, is the lack of detail on what will be included in the calculation.

Can the minister please provide assurance that the cost of all medications and essential items, like ostomy and insulin pump supplies that are not covered by either program but are widely used, would be included at least in the calculation of the application process?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

As the member opposite would well know, given the fact that he has been proclaiming his knowledge of the health industry because of being a pharmacist for many years, he would know the answer to that question very clearly.

What we announced yesterday, or a couple of days ago, was an enhancement in our Prescription Drug Program. We said at that time that we were expanding the program to include many more people; in fact, 14,000 more families.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN: And that the program provided for a contribution towards the drug costs based on your income.

Now, the question that he is asking today here in the House is: What drugs are actually covered in the program? As I had said during the briefing on this particular issue - and if the member had an opportunity to attend, some of these questions would have been answered at that particular time - that clearly this is not a process where we are looking at adding new drugs to the program. I had indicated at that time that there is an annual review process. There is a mechanism in place to review new drugs to be added to the program, and that is a separate exercise, a separate part of a process. What this does, Mr. Speaker, is enhances the coverage to many more Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, and that is the basic thrust of this program.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Humber Valley.

MR. BALL: I will remind the minister that my question was not about what was included. I realize they will not be included. What I asked for was the ones that are not included, like insulin pump supplies and ostomy supplies. Can they be included in the calculation, not the benefit list?

As you know, Mr. Speaker, inflation over time can shrink a family's limited income. That is why I am concerned to see that there is no mention of indexing in this program to counter inflation. For those families who are on the threshold of established income levels, a small increase in their pay could bump them into another category and result in higher drug costs.

Can the minister please indicate that it is the government's intention to index this important program so that individuals and families can at least keep pace with inflation and not be negatively impacted?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am not sure what the member means when he says, include in the calculation, because it is pretty simple. It lays it out pretty clearly. We have thresholds established from zero to $40,000 annually, you pay 5 per cent; a simple calculation, not a lot of factors to be considered, just two digits. A second grouping is between $40,000 and $75,000, you will contribute 7.5 per cent; again a simple calculation, two digits. The third level takes you from $75,000 to $150,000, and for those people in that income bracket they will pay 10 per cent; once again a simple calculation, no other factors to be considered. Straightforward. A pretty simple calculation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Humber Valley.

MR. BALL: Well, I love the idea that it is a simple calculation because that may answer question three, because it is important to remember that people will have to wait at least six long months before this program benefits. I have called for this program to be made retroactive to the beginning of the fiscal year. The minister has indicated that he is not prepared to make this program work for all patients until election time.

I ask the minister: Is he at least prepared to commit the necessary resources so that the turnaround time for processing applications under this program is within a few weeks rather than the eleven-week delay we now see with the energy rebate program?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN: Mr. Speaker, I do not think the people of Newfoundland and Labrador mind waiting four or five months to have such a major enhancement to this program, considering the fact that prior to this, this program was never improved since 1980. The members opposite sat in government from about 1989 through to 2003 and never made one single improvement in this program.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. WISEMAN: Here we are, Mr. Speaker, in the last three years since we have been in government we have taken the budget for this program from $97.5 million to this year being $151 million.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN: Mr. Speaker, this is the second year in a row that we have added more people to coverage. This is the third year in a row where we will add new drugs to the formulary.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. WISEMAN: The member opposite stands in this House and complains about having a program announced today and it takes some time to ramp up, establish the application process, to make the changes in the software to accommodate it. I do not think the people of Newfoundland and Labrador mind waiting four or five months, considering they waited twelve years for the people opposite to make an improvement in this program.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Fortune Bay-Cape la Hune.

MR. LANGDON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, last year the Town of Stephenville received $600,000 from the provincial government to cover the shortfall in the town's budget when Abitibi Price closed the mill in the town.

I ask the minister: Is the provincial government providing the $600,000 grant to the town for 2007-2008 to balance its budget this year?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Municipal Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we are in negotiations with the Town of Stephenville, had conversations with the Mayor of the Town of Stephenville, and we will certainly be doing something to alleviate their concerns this year with respect to that problem.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Fortune Bay-Cape la Hune.

MR. LANGDON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is clear that the Town of Stephenville has suffered because of this closure and it is understandable that they receive funds from government as they struggle with the situation, but, Mr. Speaker, there are many other towns that are struggling because of the lack of constructive economic policy.

I ask the minister: Can these other towns, like Harbour Breton, Fortune, Marystown, recently Botwood, Bishop's Falls, Grand Falls-Windsor - who had to take a portion of their budget as a result to keep Abitibi Consolidated in the Town of Grand Falls-Windsor - can these towns then expect to receive some relief from government as well?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Municipal Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I will just remind the hon. member opposite that at the time of the situation with the mill in Stephenville, the Town of Stephenville also had a major flood there at that point in time. They lost over 100 homes that we had to replace. We put in something like $20 million, as a government, to help the people in Stephenville and the municipality. They were hit twice with a major catastrophe in their town, Mr. Speaker. Therefore, we have not had representation from the municipalities that he mentioned with respect to that particular problem.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Fortune Bay-Cape la Hune.

MR. LANGDON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I understand, as the minister said, when the problem was in Stephenville, just the same as it was when it was in Badger, that the provincial government spends a certain amount of money, up to $500,000, and then from $500,000 to $3.2 million, I believe it was, and after that the federal government takes up 100 per cent of the cost. I can understand that.

I want to ask the minister as well: The fact that he is helping the community of Stephenville, and I asked for the other ones - there are many other small communities out there - it has come to my understanding and I just want to ask the minister if he can confirm it, that when we were in government we did the infrastructure program, and to many of the smaller communities the provincial government picked up as much as 90 per cent of the small town share of the infrastructure program. It is now my understanding that the provincial government will pick up no more than 30 per cent of the share of the smaller municipalities and many of them cannot avail of improvements and new infrastructure or construction because of that. I ask the minister: Is that correct?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Municipal Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Two issues here: One with respect to the infrastructure. There are municipalities in this Province today, as we speak, that get an 80-20 ratio and some as high as a 90-10 ratio in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, as we speak. That really has not changed. We do try, Mr. Speaker, to keep it at 70-30, but depending on the financial situation, the financial evaluation of the municipalities. If there are emergencies, or whatever the case may be, we would address that in particular.

With respect to rural municipalities and some of the municipalities that the hon. member just mentioned, with respect to the plants closing and what have you, this past two years this government has put somewhere around $20 million into these communities for work and to help alleviate the problems, Mr. Speaker. We try to distribute that in a fairly even manner across the Province.

As a matter of fact, Mr. Speaker, not long ago I asked the people within the Department of Municipal Affairs to give me the stats on it and see how it broke down, and it was just unbelievable how balanced it was between the districts on that side of the House of Assembly and the districts on this side of the House, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS MICHAEL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My questions today are for the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

The department has stated that 480,000 tons of garbage end up in our landfills every year. The Auditor General reported for 2004 - and these are the latest figures that I could find - that we had the lowest waste diversion rate in Canada. The minister has finally promised a new Waste Management Strategy to deal with this problem, so my questions for the minister are: How soon can we expect the new Waste Management Strategy, and will it include annual targets for waste diversion from landfills and adequate resources Province-wide to bring our solid waste diversion rate in line with the rest of the country?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Municipal Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BYRNE: Mr. Speaker, the provincial solid Waste Management Strategy is something that we inherited, as a government, when we took over. The previous Administration came up with a plan that we endorsed, at that point in time, with some minor changes. The problem was, at that point in time, Mr. Speaker, they had allocated no funds in the short term or the long term; $200 million was the price that they had put on it.

We, as a government, had worked out a deal with the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Municipalities with respect to the gas tax. We will be implementing that. As we speak, there are meetings with the Northeast Avalon Joint Council today, I think, with respect to waste management. I had meetings last week with the Humber Valley Joint Council on waste management a few weeks ago, and the program now, Mr. Speaker, is that we can move forward. It was only last week that it came to Cabinet for the final approval. We have had $5 million in the Budget this year for it under Municipal Capital Works, and there is going to be upwards of $20 million from the gas tax in the next year or two years. So, Mr. Speaker, we are actively pursuing that.

With respect to closing out dump sites or waste sites, whatever the case may be, we have an overall strategy to close out the sites and bring in a number of sites, from 250 down to approximately 3 major sites with some transfer stations around the Province.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS MICHAEL: Mr. Speaker, I did not get a direct answer to my question. I am presuming that the two departments are going to be working together, since my question was for the Minister of Environment and it was the Minister of Municipal Affairs who answered.

I asked specifically around targets. Are the two departments looking at annual targets? How are we going to get to the 50 per cent reduction that we have been told the government wants to have happen?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Municipal Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. BYRNE: Mr. Speaker, the Waste Diversion Strategy that we have, yes, there is a target of 50 per cent. There are areas in the Province now - we have Eastern, Western, Central and Labrador - whereby the plan that is in place will have varying stages of readiness. The overall target is 50 per cent diversion, make no mistake about that, and it will give us a longer lifespan for the waste sites that we are contemplating putting in place.

The government will be again subsidizing the sites themselves. The waste diversion is a strategy that we will be working with the Department of Environment and Conservation on, working hand in hand to implement the Provincial Waste Management Strategy. To say any more than that, I do not know what more you would be expecting other than that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My questions are for the Minister of Transportation and Works.

The minister continues to announce the money for ‘hardtopping' of the Trans-Labrador Highway, telling people, going back as early as six months ago, he had a signed deal in front of him, on his desk, with the federal government. Then, like a broken record again just a few weeks ago the minister announced - for the fourth time, I think, this government, in the last three years - that a deal is now reached and they will proceed. Yet, the federal Member of Parliament in the Cabinet for Newfoundland and Labrador has said that there is no deal signed.

As recent as Friday the Premier was noted in the news as saying that without a deal, if the Province moves forward, the federal government has said they are on their own.

I would like to ask the minister today, Mr. Speaker: What is the real story? Will your government be moving forward with the paving of the Trans-Labrador Highway, and is there a deal with the federal government?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Transportation and Works, and Labrador Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HICKEY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Just to correct the Member for Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair, I never, ever said - she said, I never said - that we had a signed deal. What we had from the federal government, Mr. Speaker, was a proposal, which we accepted, of $10 million from Minister Cannon and Minister Hearn. That was in November of last year.

Mr. Speaker, I went through the correspondence there just yesterday. We have had seventeen engagements with the federal government, and that includes my predecessors, in this government since we have been.... This is the number one project for the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The sad part of all of this, Mr. Speaker, is that just recently in a meeting in which my deputy minister spoke with the deputy minister from the Department of Transport Canada we were informed, after Minister Hearn had made a $175 million infrastructure announcement in the Province, of which he had included the Trans-Labrador Highway, we find out in a meeting of the officials that the deputy minister of Transport Canada said he really did not care what the regional minister had announced, but he had also stated that we could not - because obviously we would like to start this, this June - the deputy minister has stated that it will take ten to twelve weeks before the agreements are signed. Further, Mr. Speaker, he said that Treasury Board and the Cabinet had not approved the funding up to this particular point in time.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. HICKEY: That is the reality of the day, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

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

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, I want to remind the minister that it was him, in a telephone conversation with an individual in Labrador City, who ended up in the local papers in Labrador, quoting him as saying he had a signed deal in front of him. I just remind him of that, Mr. Speaker. He has a short memory; short on facts, for sure.

Mr. Speaker, communications are so poor now between the Province and the federal government they cannot even get clarification on a public announcement.

On March 22 in the House of Assembly you committed, in Hansard, Minister - you can read it - that the provincial government would proceed with or without the feds on the Trans-Labrador Highway.

I ask you today: Do you stand by that commitment, and will the Trans-Labrador Highway start this spring?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Transportation and Works, and Labrador Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HICKEY: Mr. Speaker, let me say to the hon. Member for Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair who just, by the way, received $1.5 million for roads upgrading in her district last week -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HICKEY: Mr. Speaker, the same member who just got the ferry Apollo extended on a number of occasions this past year -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HICKEY: Mr. Speaker, let me say without question that this Premier, this government, this minister - the Trans-Labrador Highway is the number one infrastructure going forward in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and we will start this highway this summer and she will have the pleasure to come in to the announcement. I will ensure the member - she did not come to the Northern Strategic Plan last week when the good money was announced for Labrador, but I will commend the Member for Torngat Mountains. He was there - and the Premier recognized him - and was very glad of the money that has been spent in Labrador. Mr. Speaker, this government will put our record against anything that government over there ever did when they were (inaudible).

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The time allocated for Question Period has expired.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

Before we proceed with other matters and routine proceedings, the Chair would like to rule on a point of privilege raised by the Member for Grand Bank on March 26, 2007. Specifically, reference was made to the fact that the Premier, in responding to a question on March 23, quoted from a letter from Mr. Jake Thornhill, Chair of the Concerned Citizen's Committee of Fortune.

Because of its nature, a true question of privilege arises very infrequently in Parliament. As noted in Parliamentary Privilege in Canada (2nd Edition) by Joseph Maingot, on page 14, and I quote, "To constitute "privilege" generally there must be some improper obstruction to the Member in performing his (or her) parliamentary work in either a direct or constructive way, as opposed to mere expression of public opinion or of criticisms of the activities of the Members...".

Again, to quote Maingot, page 223, "A dispute between two Members about questions of fact said in debate does not constitute a valid question of privilege...". The same point is made in Beauchesne's 6th Edition of Parliamentary Rules & Forms, Article 31, page 13.

Further on page 224, Maingot states that, in circumstances where the government is alleged to have provided information only to its supporters, the matter "...may well amount to a grievance against the government, but in the absence of any order in the House forbidding such activity, there is no personal or corporate privilege that has been breached in the doing, and neither does it constitute contempt of the House in the "privilege" sense."

Thus, while the matter raised by the Member for Grand Bank may cause her some concern and she is free in a parliamentary sense to communicate her viewpoint, the actions and commentary of the Premier in the House on Friday, March 23, does not constitute a prima facie case for a point of privilege.

The Chair wishes to further rule on a point of - the Chair will have to defer the ruling. I do believe that the Clerk has a copy.

I wish to rule on a Point of Order raised by the Government House Leader on March 26, 2007. The Point of Order referenced an exchange at the beginning of Question Period between the Opposition House Leader and the Premier. Specifically, the Opposition House Leader referenced an affidavit signed by the Premier and forwarded to the Auditor General with regard to the fibre optic deal. In the exchange, the Opposition House Leader stated, "This affidavit appears deliberately evasive...".

The Government House Leader, in raising the Point of Order questions the use of the words deliberately evasive in the context of describing an action of the Premier and it was his view the comments of the Opposition House Leader, "...accuses and imputes to an hon. member that the member is deliberately misleading or not being forthcoming with the House in a response."

I have reviewed the context of the comments and I thank both the Government House Leader and the Opposition House Leader for their presentation on the Point of Order. The Chair wishes to reference the advice in Marleau and Montpetit, chapter 13, pages 525-527, "The codification of unparliamentary language has proven impractical as it is in the context in which words or phrases are used that the Chair must consider when deciding whether or not they should be withdrawn."

I am satisfied that the words used by the Opposition House Leader, particularly in the context of an affidavit, are unparliamentary and I ask the Opposition House Leader to withdraw them.

The hon. the Opposition House Leader.

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I accept your ruling and will do the honourable thing and withdraw my remark.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling of Documents.

Notices of Motions.

Answers to Questions for Which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Petitions

 

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

MR. DINN: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition from the injured workers and Injured Workers Association of Newfoundland. These people want our government to address the hardship and poverty among its members created by the legislation referred to as the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission Act, the offsetting pension clause in that act.

During my campaigning this past winter, when I ran in the by-election in Kilbride district, I had the occasion to talk to several injured workers. I spoke to them individually about their own circumstances, but there was one case in particular. At the end of January I knocked on a door in my district and a young fellow answered the door. His mother was inside and they wanted me to come in. When I went in they wanted me to wait a few minutes so I could talk to the father, the husband in the family. I waited ten or fifteen minutes for the gentleman to get out and be ready to talk to me. It took him that long to be able to get himself out of bed. When he came out and spoke to me, the man was pretty well in pain the whole time, but what I thought was most outstanding, the thing that stands out in my memory more than anything else, is the fact that he told me his financial circumstances. He said that when his Canada Pension and what he was getting from workers' compensation were put together, he was getting $15 a month from workers' compensation and that he was basically living in poverty. Now this government has done a lot of good things, and I think they can do an awful lot of more good things. I would ask that this government check into that situation. Have a good investigative inquiry into that so we can see different circumstances that are there.

I also met with a delegation from the Injured Workers Association and speaking to them, they told me that they are nine years, I think, at this and their dedication and sincerity led me to believe that this is not something that is a fly-by-night or something that is not very serious because I think it is. What I would ask our government and our minister responsible - and I am sure he will do this - is to have a good look at this situation and see if we can do something to rectify that in some way.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: It being 2:59 p.m. - normally, we would go to Private Members' Day at 3:00 o'clock automatically. The Chair will not call for further Petitions, there would not be time to complete. Unless there is agreement, the Chair will call for Orders of the Day.

Orders of the Day

 

Private Members' Day

MR. SPEAKER: In accordance with Orders of the Day, it being Wednesday, I do believe we have a private member's resolution being presented by the hon. the Member for Grand Bank.

The hon. the Member for Grand Bank District.

MS FOOTE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I stand today to speak to my private member's motion on the crisis in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. I do this with some reservation, Mr. Speaker, only because the situation that rural communities find themselves in, in our Province today, is sad. It is a sad situation when I look at what has happened in the last couple of days - actually, last year as well - when we talk about a job fair. The heading in the paper, of course, today said: Alberta Bound. That is indeed a sad situation. In fact, many of these people are lining up to find work in Alberta and it is not just in the oil industry any more. Now, of course, we have people looking for jobs in the health care sector. We have people looking for jobs in the call centres out there. A lot of these people - I would suggest the majority of these people - are, in fact, from rural Newfoundland and Labrador. That is what is so sad about this, because a lot of these individuals have never before left their communities either to travel or to look for work. So, for many of them it is actually their first time away from not only their community but away from Newfoundland and Labrador.

When we talk about a crisis situation, when you end up with out-migration to the extent that we are seeing today from our rural communities then yes, indeed, we are facing a crisis situation in rural Newfoundland and Labrador and, in fact, in some of the urban areas as well. At this point in time, the crisis that I see whenever I visit a community in rural parts of our Province, they are, in fact, in crisis. You can see that because a lot of our councils are having a lot of difficulty collecting taxes; and, of course, it is those taxes that go to pave roads and provide other services in this communities.

When I drive through a lot of the communities, and I look at Fortune in particular, the roads have not been done in ages. Of course, we know that the plant in Fortune has been closed now for two years, so when a council there tries to collect taxes they are met with blank stares from people who are saying: I don't even have enough money to feed my family. I don't have enough money to do any of the things that I am supposed to do as the head of the household or as parents for our children.

It is a difficult situation, particularly in a place like Fortune where the plant closed down two years ago and today they really have no indication of what the future has in store for them.

It is not just Fortune. I singled out Fortune because that is where the plant is located, but in reality there are at least seven other communities that depend on Fortune and the plant in Fortune for employment. Look at Lord's Cove. Look at Lamaline. Look at Point May. Look at any of those communities. Even some of our people in Grand Bank work at the plant in Fortune. So, when I say they are in a crisis situation, I know what I am talking about because I live it with them every day. The calls that come into my office, and come into the offices of my colleagues, most, I guess - all of us who represent rural communities - the calls that we get tell us the true story, and it is not the story that was presented in the Throne Speech yesterday.

That is not reality, and as much as you try to paint a rosy picture of what is going on in this Province, you are not living in the real world. I would ask the government to be realistic, to wake up and recognize and realize that our Province is, in fact, in a dire circumstance, particularly the rural parts of our Province.

Job fairs - I mean, people who want to go away to work should be allowed to go away to work, and we should encourage them to do that, but people who are being forced to leave this Province in search of employment, that is a different story. In a lot of cases you will find the head of the household, the father, will have to go away and leave the mother behind, if the mother is not working, and the children. You know what happens in a lot of these cases? He goes away, or if the mother is the head of the household she goes away, and they miss so many important occasions in the lives of their children.

It is a sad situation when we see what is happening to the fabric of the family in Newfoundland and Labrador today. Again I say in rural Newfoundland in particular because again the majority of those who are signing up at these job fairs are, in fact, from rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

Now, I know the Premier says from time to time: Well, you know, they will come back. I think he calls them homing pigeons, and his good friend Dean MacDonald, I think, recently referred to them as the same thing when he spoke to the Chamber of Commerce in Conception Bay South.

I find that insulting, and I am sure they find it insulting, to be referred to as homing pigeons. Oh, they will go away and they will come back - kind of nonchalant, you know. Oh, no big deal here. They will go away and find work in Alberta, or they will find work in P.E.I., or they will find work in British Columbia, but they will come back when the work is here.

Well, you know, that is not true. That is not true. How many times do you have to go away, leave your family, before you realize: I would much rather have my family with me. I would much rather have my children grow up around their parents.

That is what is happening now in places like Fortune. It is what is happening in places like Marystown. It is what is happening in places in every rural part of Newfoundland and Labrador, and it is not just parents and their children. Now we have the grandparents going as well.

So, we have rural communities that are disappearing, and disappearing because people have no choice. They have no choice but to leave and go look for work elsewhere if they are going to provide for their families.

Now, I know there has been some project funding, and I know there has been some retraining, and I know the federal government prefers to retrain, but retrain for what? There are no job opportunities today in many of our rural communities, so what are they retraining for? Retraining to go to Alberta?

That is not what we are all about in Newfoundland and Labrador. We need to be able to find employment here. We need to have a government that recognizes that we are not homing pigeons. We need a government that acknowledges there is a serious situation in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, and I do not see that from this government and I certainly did not see that or recognize that in yesterday's Throne Speech. In fact, I wondered what world the government is living in. It sounds like a wonderland, not Newfoundland and Labrador. That is why I repeat again that this government has failed in its responsibility to do everything it can to help create employment opportunities in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Now, I am not one who believes that government has a responsibility to create jobs. I do not believe that for a minute, but I do believe that government has a responsibility to put in place policies, programs, and rules and regulations that will help create jobs in our Province, that will ensure that companies are attracted to our Province, that they will want to invest in Newfoundland and Labrador. That is why I have great difficulty with a government who has put up a sign that you are closed for business. Well, it is time to take down that sign. It is time to take down that sign.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair notices there are a great number of conversations going on. I ask members if they could keep their words and their volume somewhat under control and the Chair would be able to hear the hon. the Member for Grand Bank with greater clarity.

Thank you for your co-operation.

The Chair recognizes the Member for Grand Bank.

MS FOOTE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am not sure how interested the individuals opposite are in this particular private member's motion, but I can tell you that the people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, and many of the people who are watching today to hear what you have to say are very interested, and are really under a great deal of hardship and want to know that those of us who are elected to represent them are doing the best that we possibly can to make things a little easier for them.

I do appreciate, Mr. Speaker, that you brought to the attention of the members opposite the need to listen and to hopefully stand when you have an opportunity and speak to the people who are hurting today, particularly in rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

People are having to move away. Again, I say if it is by choice then more power to them, but when it is not by choice, when they are being forced to move in order to provide for their families, then that is difficult. That is why I refer to a crisis in rural Newfoundland and Labrador when they go, when their families follow them and houses get barred up, stores close, there are not enough people, in fact, to buy the goods and avail of the services that are provided by whatever agency or organization or store or school that exists in that particular community. When that happens communities die, and we are seeing it every day.

We have a government here who has been in power now for three-and-a-half years, six months to go before a fall election. The Premier campaigned, along with his candidates in the last provincial election, and suggested and said, in fact, that they had a strategy to revitalize rural Newfoundland and Labrador, a strategy to turn things around, because people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador were thinking that maybe things could get better; maybe I will not have to go away. Well, it is clear today that there was no strategy. There was no vision. There was no plan. There was not Plan A. What did we hear yesterday? Now there is a Plan B. It is a conference that is going to take place entitled: A Roadmap for 2020.

Well, I can tell you, based on the people I have talked to, and the communities that I have visited, there will not be many people around in 2020 to take advantage of whatever you are going to come up with based on that conference.

So, here we are. Obviously, there was no strategy. Obviously, there was no plan. Obviously, no vision, and six months out you are trying to convince people that you do have a plan, that you do have a vision. People are not fooled that easily, or I would like to think they are not. They need help now. They needed it a year ago. In my district they needed it two years ago, and to suggest that you are going to put a road map in place to get people through, and a road map, a plan, to take them up to 2020, does very little for those who are finding it hard today to make ends meet.

You know, my hat goes off to the people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. Whether you are on the Burin Peninsula, the Connaigre Peninsula, the Northern Peninsula, along the South Coast, wherever you are, they have hung in there, some of them, particularly families who watch their husbands or their wives leave, and they have hung in there because they want to stay in the homes they built. They want to remain in the communities they have helped build, and they are very determined, hard-working individuals.

It is a tragedy when they are not seeing the government, that many of them helped elect, do anything, put any kind of policy or program in place, to help them deal with the dire circumstances in which they find themselves.

They do not want to be Alberta bound. They do not want to be B.C. bound. They do not want to be P.E.I. bound. They want to live in the Province that they helped to build, the Province they love, the Province where they have worked so hard to make a living and to raise their families.

When I hear the federal government talk about retraining, I have to ask the question: Retraining for what? I know some of these fisherpeople who are being so-called retrained, but what they need is an early retirement package. They need someone to acknowledge that they worked year in, year out, in one of the most demanding industries in the world, and that is the fishery. They need someone to acknowledge that it is time that they were allowed to retire with dignity. They need someone to respect what they have done all of these years to help this Province make headway. An early retirement package is not too much to ask. They are asking this government to take the $30 million that it says it has set aside, to take that money and spend it on an early retirement package.

For the government to look up and say: Well, no, we are not going to let the federal government off the hook. We are not going to let the federal government off the hook, so we are not going to put our money into helping you. We are not going to do anything about an early retirement package until the federal government comes to the table.

Well, with the relationship that we see today between the federal and provincial governments, you and I know that will never happen. My fear is that the provincial government is using that as a way not to invest that money in a program that is so badly needed.

So, why don't you acknowledge the difficult circumstances that many of our people are finding themselves in, and put in place an early retirement program so that they do not have to work until they are sixty-five? People who have stood, day in, day out, on concrete floors in fish plants, people who have gone to sea, people who are looking to the government to acknowledge that at this stage of their life they would like to be able to retire - and that would be an important component of restructuring the fishery.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair advises the hon. member that the allocated time for her introductory comments has expired.

MS FOOTE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I will have time to clue up at the end of it.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise this afternoon to speak to this motion, actually, this private member's resolution. I say it is a pleasure to rise to speak to this resolution because it gives us an opportunity to set the record straight on what this government has done over the past three-and-a-half years since we took over government back on November 5, I guess it was, 2003, and to put it in perspective against what was here prior to us walking into government on November 5, 2003.

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member opposite, the hon. Member for Grand Bank, and her colleagues certainly have every right and are certainly correct sometimes when they talk about the problems, the challenges, the situation in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. Mr. Speaker, they could just as easily talk about the problems, the situation and the challenges in any other rural part of our country, rural part of our continent, and rural part of our world. Mr. Speaker, I suppose you could probably find the same kind of problems in rural China as you would find in rural Newfoundland and Labrador with out-migration, people moving to urban centres, people moving from one province to another province for better opportunities and what have you. That is what is happening in Newfoundland and Labrador, just as it is happening in rural parts of the rest of our country.

Mr. Speaker, our concern is not what is happening in rural parts of Alberta or rural parts of Ontario where out-migration is a problem as well. Our concern, of course, and so it should be, is what is happening in rural Newfoundland and Labrador and what is the most appropriate response to the out-migration that has plagued this Province probably since time immemorial, but certainly since the early 1990s in a more serious and substantial way.

The member opposite in her resolution says that the House of Assembly condemned government on its failure to deliver any comprehensive actions to deal with the crisis situation in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. Mr. Speaker, has she been asleep for the last three-and-a-half years? Did she miss the $3.5 million response to Arnold's Cove two-and-a-half years ago? Did she miss the $10 million response to Cooke Aquaculture on the Connaigre Peninsula about six months ago? Did she miss the $20 million-odd response to Stephenville when they faced their flood conditions? Did she miss the million and millions - I can't even remember the number now. What was it, $150 million?

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. TAYLOR: One hundred-and-fifty million dollars we talked about for Stephenville in order to try and keep Abitibi open, which they walked away from. That wasn't the government that walked away, Mr. Speaker, that was the company that walked away.

Where was she, Mr. Speaker? Did she miss the Aquaculture Working Capital Loan Guarantee Initiative that we brought in about two-and-a-half years ago to get Natures Sea Farms underway, amongst others, to do other things as well - but to get Natures Sea Farms in operation on the South Coast after North Atlantic Sea Farms went into receivership? Did she miss that? Did she miss what happened, the announcement back last fall when Cooke Aquaculture came in here and announced 200 direct jobs on the Connaigre Peninsula or Bay d'Espoir and Poole's Cove area? I do not know, Mr. Speaker, but they must have missed all of this because I certainly did not miss it.

I know we have a lot of problems and a lot of challenges in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, and I know that there are a lot of people leaving rural Newfoundland and Labrador to go to urban areas within the Province and areas outside of the Province, but every one of them are not leaving because they have to, I can guarantee you that. The vast majority of people that I am aware of last year in my area, the people who I know personally who left, did not leave because they had to. They left well-paying jobs at the hospital in St. Anthony. A good friend of mine left a business on the Northern Peninsula with six people employed and had all the toys that I could ever hope to have, had a very good business, had a beautiful home, but he decided to close it up, sell it to his brother and go to Alberta because that is where his buddies are. That is why he went, because there is big money up there to be made. He did not go because he was not making good money in Newfoundland and Labrador.

I heard the Leader of the Opposition yesterday talking about Augustine Rumbolt. I know Augustine Rumbolt as well as anybody. Next to the Member for St. Barbe, I know Augustine Rumbolt probably better than anybody else in this House. I have known her for a lot of years. I can tell you, Augustine Rumbolt - even though she said the Premier drove her out of Newfoundland when she was on the radio last fall. Well, I tell you, Augustine Rumbolt did not leave the day that she did the interview. Augustine Rumbolt had to wait to get her layoff from the Department of Transportation and Works before she could go. She worked for us for about six months last year, as she has done for the last three years since we got in government. Now, I do not know if she worked with them before that, when they were in government, but I can assure you she worked for three years with us with the surveyors on Conche Road. She had twenty-two weeks of work last year, if I am not mistaken. She did not leave because she had to leave, she left because she wanted to go. For anybody to suggest anything differently is completely misleading, including for Augustine to be saying it.

We did not hear her on shouting about digging up the road in Plum Point for the last couple of years. Why? Well, the last time I checked, the plant in Black Duck Cove was back in operation. The plant that was the cause, the root of Augustine's discontent, has been reopened. The plant is working very well under a different management. The people are getting as much employment as in any other shrimp plant in Newfoundland and Labrador. That is why you do not hear Augustine talking about digging up the road anymore because she does not need to dig up the road to stop the shrimp trucks from coming off the Peninsula because the four plants on the Peninsula have been doing very well, with the exception of last year when Daley's went into receivership and closed down Anchor Point. Well, I am not sure that any of us can stop receiverships from happening, but, Mr. Speaker, I am sure that they will be back in operation this year and they will have as good a season as they have ever had.

What have we done since we came into government? When we came into government - as I recall, the total budget for economic development in the government of the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador, the government of our hon. colleagues opposite, I think it was somewhere in the order of $2 million.

MS DUNDERDALE: Two point six million.

MR. TAYLOR: Two point six million, my colleague tells me, who was the Minister of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development for a number of years, so for sure she knows.

What do we have there now? Because we did not do anything, according to the Member for Grand Bank. Now that is a completely different message than the one you get when you talk to people engaged in rural economic development. That is a completely different message from the one that you hear from people in the business community who tell us that the programs we have in government right now are some of the best that we have ever had in the history of the Province. That is the message that we get from business. That is the message that we get from people in rural economic development. Why do they say it? Why? Because we brought in an aquaculture working capital loan guarantee initiative. We brought in an aquaculture capital investment program worth $10 million. We brought in a regional sectorial diversification fund, $5 million annually. We brought in a small and medium-sized enterprise fund that sits at $18 million now. We brought in a commercial cod aquaculture demonstration farm project funded at $500,000 annually, Mr. Speaker. That is what we have done on a program front for economic development in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Now, let me tell you where some of that money went.

AN HON. MEMBER: Not on Water Street.

MR. TAYLOR: No, it never went on Water Street, I can guarantee you that. None of it, not a cent went on Water Street, I can tell you. The Member for Grand Bank, she knows it because she was there with me when I announced it. Two hundred-and-fifty thousand went to the Grand Bank Heritage Society right in her own district, right in her home community, I believe, for the construction of a provincial mariner's memorial; $20,000 to the College of the North Atlantic Burin Campus to support research on the use of ocean wave technology; $984,000 to the Bay St. George college for the Campus of the North Atlantic in Stephenville to establish a training capacity and film a video production in para-medicine; $167,366, approximately, to the Hawke's Bay town council to assist with the construction of a salmon interpretation centre at the Torrent River Fishway. Mr. Speaker, next week we will be announcing a little bit more money on that - $154,059 to the town of Roddickton to develop a new natural heritage and resource centre; $132,332 to the - I am not sure if I am going to pronounce this right, I apologize to the Member for Torngat - Torngasok Cultural Centre to assist with the restoration and stabilization of the Moravian Mission building and historic complex at the Hebron national historic site.

Mr. Speaker, that is a long ways from a government doing nothing. What you want to do is try to find out where the $2.6 million was spent when they were in government because we are spending somewhere in the order, I would suggest, of around ten times that annually on economic development in Newfoundland and Labrador right now. Now, we did not do it the first year we were in government. No, our financial situation did not allow us to, but we started down the road of putting the right tools in place and the right funding mechanisms in place to go there. When we recognized the potential in various regions and sectors of our economy, we put the programs in place and we funded them, Mr. Speaker; and it made no difference.

I hear the Mayor of Port aux Basques, and I am sure the member for that region will probably bring it up when he speaks later today, talking about a company who was interested, supposedly, in coming to Port aux Basques recently, and blamed us for not getting the EDGE approval done. They never did provide us with the information that was required, even when they were told that they were going to be approved if they gave us the information. We met with them on February 24 and told them that. He did make a suggestion that maybe if their member was a different colour that they might have been treated differently and might have been dealt with more expeditiously.

Mr. Speaker, I do not believe that the Member for Burgeo & LaPoile - he did not treat me that way when he was in government, I can tell you that, because I remember a couple of times I went to him and we were jammed up pretty bad on the Northern Peninsula at the time. I remember that he provided funding to a couple of initiatives in our area, as he should, because it was required. I can guarantee you that this government does not work that way either. If we did, the tens of millions of dollars that have gone into aquaculture on the South Coast in the last little while would not have gone there, because I do not recall - there was a time when the member for that area was blue, but he is not blue right now; he is red.

So, Mr. Speaker, people need not make allegations of this government treating people unfairly because of their political strip. This government puts money and spends money and invests money in areas where it is justified to do so, and we will continue to do so in the future, regardless of the political strip of a district.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Mr. Speaker, I have to go on and talk about a few more initiatives that we have funded: a $250,000 loan to support iceberg water bottling in St. Anthony; $87,000 for cultural stone and brick manufacturing in Centreville; a $45,000 loan to Labrador Envirotech of Happy Valley-Goose Bay to implement a process to purify industrial waste water; $14,000 to Fab-Tech Industries Inc. in Glovertown; $34,000 to D&A Enterprises in Bishop's Falls; a $150,000 loan to the Gateway of the North RV park in Deer Lake; a $250,000 loan to Holson Forest Products Ltd. of Roddickton; a $50,000 loan to Nova Fish Farms Inc. of St. Alban's. Mr. Speaker, I could go on. There is a long, long list of it. There are press releases just about every week on various funding initiatives.

You talk about job fairs. I was just informed by my colleague, the Minister of Education, in May there will be two job fairs, two education job fairs, here in the Province where the provincial government this year will be hiring 300 teachers.

Mr. Speaker, yes, there are people leaving Newfoundland and Labrador and going to Alberta, and going to the Yukon, and going to B.C., and going to Ontario, and going to Florida and wherever else they are going for various reasons. Some of them have to go. I know a number of people in my district who go every year to the Annapolis Valley working on farms. Mr. Speaker, I hope there will be a day when they will not have to go.

Mr. Speaker, the groundwork is what we have been trying to lay for the last three-and-a-half years. We have made some very good investments, and we are continuing to make some very good investments, and we will make more investments as we become aware of them, Mr. Speaker.

You know, you would think, from listening to the member opposite talking about work, about investments - let's talk about the Roads Program, for example. Where do people think the roads money is being spent in Newfoundland and Labrador? The provincial roads budget is like Ivory Soap; 99.44 per cent of it gets spent outside of St. John's. It is a rural expenditure.

Where have we been building schools? L'Anse-au-Loup, Mobile, Port Saunders. I am not sure, there are more than that. Anyway, I am just trying to think of them now. Mr. Speaker, there is not a whole lot of school construction in St. John's, I can guarantee you that. The vast majority of the money on infrastructure and the vast majority of the economic development money spent by this government is spent in rural Newfoundland and Labrador and it far, far, far exceeds anything that was done by the previous Administration during their term in office.

Mr. Speaker, we can talk about economic development for a long time, and reference a whole lot of initiatives that we funded over the past few years. I am not sure if I said this one or not, but I will just carry on with a few more: $122,768 from the Regional Sectoral Diversification Fund and Business Market Development Program in Western Newfoundland's tourism industry. We invested $100,000 from the Regional Sectoral Diversification Fund and the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Fund for tourism development in Central Newfoundland. We invested $50,000 from the Innovation Program, the College of the North Atlantic, to establish a centre for Northern Peninsula diversification in St. Anthony; $101,000 for the King's Point whale pavilion and exhibit; $89,000 for the Town of Triton for their Great Whale Coast branding initiative; $29,000 from the Regional Sectoral Diversification Fund to assist groups grow regional economies in St. Mary's Bay Centre, Fortune East, Bay St. George. There have been millions and millions of dollars over the past three years put into forestry road upgrades and development; $75,000 to the Mary's Harbour Town Council for the Member for Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair, the Mary's Harbour Town Council, for major improvements to their ferry site, servicing Battle Harbour, as I recall; $18,000 to the Labrador Straits Historical Society for a walking trail system.

MR. SPEAKER (Fitzgerald): Order, please!

I remind the hon. Minister of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development that his time for speaking has expired.

MR. TAYLOR: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

If I could have a minute to clue up?

MR. SPEAKER: Does the hon. member have leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. member, by leave.

MR. TAYLOR: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

 

Mr. Speaker, I will just say this in closing. Over the past three-and-a-half years the amount of money that is put into rural economic development by this government far exceeds anything that has been put into rural economic development in the past twenty years.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Far exceeds, on an annual basis, Mr. Speaker.

As I said, Mr. Speaker, when we came into government there was a total of $2.6 million available for regional economic development and rural development in the government of the people who sit across the floor right now. Right now, Mr. Speaker, there is in excess of $20 million available; $5 million for grants; $18 million for loans, there is $10 million gone into aquaculture. There is a vast array of funding available on a loan guarantee initiative for aquaculture. There are millions put into road construction. Just to speak about that, the provincial roads budget right now is three times what it was when we took over government in 2003.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Three times as high, Mr. Speaker.

When people get up - I do not mind them criticizing us in government. I do not mind pointing out that there are problems in Fortune. They are absolutely right, but the problems in Fortune and the problems in Harbour Breton, and places like that, Mr. Speaker, maybe they would not be there today if the people across the floor had made the appropriate investments in aquaculture and economic development initiatives when they were in government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Instead, Mr. Speaker, we have had to do it since we got there, and the fruits of our labour are starting to show in places like that. You can certainly see the difference on the Connaigre Peninsula as a result of the work of this government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Mr. Speaker, in conclusion I will say this. While they say - about the Northern Peninsula, yes, there are lots of challenges on the Northern Peninsula, but the person who hopes to be their candidate in the next election, the Mayor of St. Anthony, has been in The Northern Pen on a number of occasions recently, and what has he said? Things have never been better in St. Anthony.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Fortune Bay-Cape la Hune.

MR. LANGDON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to have a few words as well on the private member's motion that was brought forward by the Member for Grand Bank.

I want to begin by saying, I guess like the Leader of the NDP did yesterday, the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi. Her comments, if I can paraphrase it, were something like this: When two people look at the same situation, or look at what is being presented, they very often come to very different conclusions and see things differently. I guess this is the whole idea when you have a debate and when you speak on a topic that is in front of you.

It would be remiss of me not to say, as the minister of rural development - I do not have the name right but he knows who I am speaking about, the Member for The Straits & White Bay - that there is good potential for aquaculture on the Connaigre Peninsula. There is no doubt about that, and it is the right thing for government to invest in an area.

I look at the Southwest Coast of the Connaigre Peninsula, which I happen to represent, it is ideally located for aquaculture. We are no different than, in a sense, to invest there in the Connaigre Peninsula than the Province of Alberta does in its oil sands. We have the best water areas for aquaculture in Newfoundland and Labrador for fin fish, and government should invest. I look forward to the day when there will be many, many more millions of dollars invested in that area to create more jobs than there are right now. I recognize that, as we speak, there are cages that are being built in the expansion of the aquaculture industry, but we always do not find that - in that particular industry that is there now, it is not going to employ every person who is on the Connaigre Peninsula, I recognize that.

Getting back to some of the comments that the minister made as well. You know, we sat in government for a number of years. I think it was six or seven years that I was part of government. I was a member of the party, but for six years Cabinet. I recognize that as a part of Cabinet - I was not there originally when it happened, but the Hibernia project, the Terra Nova project, the White Rose project and the Voisey's Bay project are all projects that were delivered by the previous Administration. Now as these people, as a government, are in power at this particular time, they are reaping the benefits from that. The millions and billions of dollars that they have to do schools and education and health and so on, came from the previous Administration projects. You can play politics with it if you like. I do not normally do that in the House. I try to present what I think is a good balanced debate on the subject when it is brought forward. These are the four or five projects that I have lined out. What are the ones that have been developed since the present government has been in Administration?

We see that the Hebron-Ben Nevis is not going ahead. We see that Hibernia South is not going ahead, and it is because of a breakdown in negotiations. There can be all kinds of reasons why it is not going ahead. Well, it is not going ahead and it is hurting people not only in St. John's and the Northeast Avalon, but it is hurting people in the rural communities as well. There are many, many communities in the rural parts of this Province that are in dire situations. All of us who represent rural parts of the Province, even though we come from different political stripes, we come from different backgrounds, has to recognize the fact that this so.

I would be remise also if I didn't thank the Minister of Transportation and Works for a million dollars of road work in the district that I represent. I appreciate that on behalf of the people who I represent. You are not giving it to me, you are giving it to them. They sent me here.

You know, in 2007 and 2008 a million dollars in road work doesn't go as far as it did ten years ago. You are looking at about $200,000 for a kilometre to repave and refurbish. A million dollars will do what? Five kilometres. The Bay d'Espoir highway because of increased capacity down there and the work that is being done in the agriculture industry, the road and the infrastructure, because the road wasn't built for it, is in a bad mess.

We have about eighty or ninety kilometres from the Trans-Canada over to Harbour Breton - when I came in here eighteen years ago we had none of it, it was all gravel road. Through the Road for Rails agreement and provincial money we did a lot of work in that particular area, but that was eighteen years ago and it is starting to deteriorate. You know, when you get to a place on the Harbour Breton highway called Redfish Hook Hill, out to Harbour Breton, there is about 30 kilometres, and, man, I am telling you, if you want to see rough road that is rough road. Going into St. Alban's it is the same thing, and there is about thirty kilometres on the Bay d'Espoir highway that is really, really bad. The crew that is there with the maintenance find it very difficult to fill in the potholes. That is the reality of it.

I am not any different than anybody else in other rural parts of the Province. It costs a lot of money and I recognize that. We have many municipalities out there, small rural communities in Newfoundland and Labrador, and as I said there are many people in the other side of the House of Assembly here who recognize that they are in a desperate situation. What has happened is the population is beginning to dwindle and people are moving out to Alberta and to Ontario and other places in Canada and there are no new people coming in. The people who are there are left with the responsibility to keep the towns going, to look after the maintenance and the infrastructure that is there, and they can't do it, they are finding it difficult to do so. Many of them can't even find the money to be able to look after the road clearing and they owe government sums of money they are finding difficult to pay.

I tried to dispel - and I think other members over there from the rural parts of the Province know what I am talking about. You get a lot of people on the Northeast Avalon when they talk about people in the rural parts of the Province: Oh, they don't pay anything. They don't pay any taxes. They don't contribute their fair share. Well, go down to the District of Bonavista North and ask the people in New-Wes-Valley how much they pay for water and sewer and I will guarantee you there is no other community in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador that pays as much as they do. They pay twice as much as the people in the St. John's region. They pay their fair share of taxes. I recognize the problem that any government would have, to be able to take care of the infrastructure needs. There are no two ways about that.

The other thing is that we are living in a different age. I can remember when the people from the community that I came from - I have said that in this House many, many times ago - when the people, as loggers, would go away for two or three months and then come back, mow the grass, do all the other chores that they had to do, and they would go back to work again. But, do you know what? The younger people in the communities, the younger couples that are there, are looking at it and saying: We cannot do it any more on seventeen and eighteen weeks work and unemployment insurance.

That is the reality of it, and they are leaving, and you cannot help but support them in that particular way. That is why I would like to commend and congratulate the people in Burin over the last number of days who defied Earle McCurdy, the union leader, who wanted them to take a wage rollback. Can you imagine? When they negotiated that contract, gas was about seventy or eighty cents a litre. What is it today? A dollar twenty. Stove oil and furnace oil was probably forty cents a litre. What is it now? Seventy-five cents. It is about time. If we are going to keep our young people and our young professional people in Newfoundland and Labrador we are going to have to pay them more. We are not going to be able to compete with Alberta, and pay them $35 an hour, and time-and-a-half after eight to ten, and double time after ten hours, but you cannot live any more on $8 and $10 an hour. We have to realize that. That is the situation that people in the rural areas are thinking about.

This morning, I had a call from my area down in Harbour Breton. This morning, as the bus went over to the Trans-Canada it was loaded with people from Harbour Breton going away to work again. Are they going because they want to? No, they are not. There is a lot of uncertainty in the community. Since Mr. Barry went in there and did the work in the plant, the work has been sporadic. When you are working for twenty-five or thirty hours a week, you cannot pay all of the bills. The people are out there and as we speak today the plant is closed. They do not know if it is going to be open next week or next year. I have talked to the Premier about that. He realizes that as well, but the problem is that these people have to live. It is not what is going to be two years down the road or three years down the road; they have to live now. These are the concerns that are there.

That is not fairytale something. That is something that is real, something that people here can understand. We represent these people, and I feel for them; not that I have a total, 100 per cent total concern for the people in rural Newfoundland and members opposite do not have it. That is not what I am saying. We all do. We all care. We all recognize the situation.

I have to again refer to the Minister of ITRD, I think is the acronym. He talked about the dollars that he gave to tourism. All power to you for giving it. You know, you will make the communities hopefully better by having those attractions for people who come to visit. I am going to tell you, and you know as well as I do - I do not have to tell you, you have probably forgotten more than I will ever learn on that - these tourism things are not going to sustain the communities. They will help but they cannot do it themselves, on their own. We have to find some employment for them.

I could go into all kinds of situations to say, for example, like in the last term before the election where the government said we have a plan, but there is no point for me to say that you had a plan and it was not carried through. The point is that today, as we speak, there are a lot of people out there in the rural parts of the Province who are hurting. We have to find a way to do it.

I think, if it is government that is led by the Premier here, or whatever government is in place, there is a real challenge out there to be able to meet the needs of the people who live in this Province. There are no two ways about that. It is very, very difficult, and obviously going to get worse.

I was somewhat surprised today when the minister talked about the Town of Stephenville, where they got $600,000 the first year when the mill was closed. I can understand that, and they should do it; but, if you are going to do it the second year then you have to stop and think about it and say: What about all of the other communities that are hurting?

You talk about putting $20 million into Stephenville because of the flood. The number of dollars might have been $20 million, but there was not $20 million paid by the provincial government. The provincial government paid the maximum of $3.5 million; the rest was picked up by the federal government. These things have to happen.

There are a lot of towns that are hurting. I remember Rex Barnes, the other day, when they were talking about Abitibi. They looked for the money, Abitibi did, from the town, because they did not want to move out. The same thing with Jody Fancey in Bishop's Falls and Jerry Dean in Botwood. I know all of those guys. I worked in their area for twenty years, and know it, and they were concerned. They did it out of fear.

I read an article not too long ago where a lot of the people in Stephenville are blaming it on the union executive for the closing of the mill, and that might very well be the case, I do not know; I would not lay blame there. I guess these people saw that it did close and they did not want it to happen to their communities in Central Newfoundland, because if Abitibi pulled out of Grand Falls-Windsor then I am telling you that it will leave a major, major void. I am not sure that anybody could go in, any other industry, and pick up what is there, because it is not only for Grand Falls-Windsor. It is from the South Coast and the Lewisporte area and Brown's Arm and all the way out to Springdale, Baie Verte. So these are the types of things we have to talk about, Mr. Speaker.

Talking about, also, the infrastructure for the small communities, I mention that again today. You know, there are many, many small communities. I think of the community of Sunnyside, and I think of a community like Brown's Arm, and I think of some of the smaller communities that were in the Member for Baie Verte's district, where we gave up to 90 per cent of the provincial portion to help pay for their infrastructure. I can tell you right now that I know of communities that are out there that would like to have improvement to infrastructure, water and sewer and so on, and they cannot afford the 30 per cent. That is the reality of it. These are things that government has to come to grips with. These are things that government has to do so that these people can find the right mix and be able to get the services that they have in their community.

Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt about it, what is happening in the rural part of the Province is a concern. I say that again and I repeat it in the sense that, not for the part of being redundant but also to highlight that it is really, really a concern. Never in my time, in my lifetime of living in rural Newfoundland, have I seen the concern of people. People have come up to me and said: I am afraid that ten years from now this community will not be here and I will have to move, and I have never had a credit card in my life. I have never had a debit card. I have never had a mortgage, and now I have to move to some area and I have to take out a mortgage.

They cannot cope with it. The stress is really, really there and all of us who represent the rural parts of the Province are confronted with that every day, and for us not to say it and not to recognize that it is there would be wrong.

These are the things that government has to come to grips with, and that is not done yet. Hopefully they will find some way. I am hoping that in the Budget tomorrow there will be some funds, millions of dollars, that will be given to - not in a sense to Grand Falls and to Gander, because these are not rural communities - rural, rural communities like the Harbour Breton area and the Coast of Bays, the Northern Peninsula, those that are remote, where you cannot drive to their communities and commute every day. There has to be some mechanism where you can find some way to create jobs. You are not going to create jobs for everybody in every community. That is not going to happen, regardless of what the government or stripe. There has to be something in that area so that people can find work and employment and they can earn meaningful employment and support their families. You cannot do it on twelve, thirteen, fourteen or fifteen weeks a year on $10 or $11 an hour. It cannot happen. If we expect that to happen then we are expecting people to do things different than what we do as we come here to work day after day.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I remind the hon. Member for Fortune Bay-Cape la Hune that his speaking time has lapsed.

MR. LANGDON: Just for a minute?

MR. SPEAKER: Does the hon. member have leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. member, by leave.

MR. LANGDON: In conclusion, Mr. Speak, I am not here to say that nothing has been done in the rural part of the Province to alleviate some of the difficulties that are there. It is a real challenge, there is no two ways about that. Everybody who sits on that other side of the House and represents a rural area realizes the challenges out there. It is going to take a lot of hard work and it is going to take some different things than are being done now in order to ensure that the rural part of this particular Province of ours, Newfoundland and Labrador, will survive and people will be able to have a decent standard of living and be able to look after their families in the area that they so choose.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Terra Nova.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. ORAM: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is interesting today to listen to the motion that has been put forth by the members opposite. I can tell you upfront, and I want to be clear about this, that I will not be supporting this motion. I am going to state for a few moments as to why I am not going to be supporting this particular motion.

Basically what I get from this motion, the gist of it, is, what is this government doing for rural Newfoundland and Labrador. I listened to the members opposite and, of course, I just listened to the Member for Fortune Bay-Cape la Hune and I can tell you some of the things that he said I agree with. You know, there really are. Life is not all perfect in Newfoundland and Labrador. Things are not all bright in Newfoundland and Labrador in terms of people having to leave the Province to find work and so on and so forth. There is a lot of truth to that and we recognize that as a government, and that is the reason we are working very, very hard and very diligently to put together programs and to put together plans to ensure and help our people to stay in Newfoundland and Labrador.

I want to say that out-migration is not a new thing to this Province. Out-migration was happening back in the sixties as well, because I remember my father telling me stories about back when he had his first ferry ride on the William Carson. Not only my father, but in fact, I think out of the ten children, there were six or seven children who actually went to Ontario. Back in the sixties, Ontario was the hot spot. That was where all the factories were and all the plants were and everybody wanted to go up there to make, as they called it back then, the big money, and to be able to buy, as they called it back then, the big cars. A funny thing, today if you have a small car you are doing really well. Back then, if you had a big car you were doing really well. They all wanted to go to Ontario and everybody was headed off to Ontario.

Now, the question is: Was there work back in Newfoundland and Labrador when they went off to Ontario? Guess what? Actually there was work in Newfoundland and Labrador, but people felt that the grass was greener on the other side, the money was better on the other side, so they felt: We should take off to Ontario and try to improve on our life.

Well, I want to tell you today, it is very funny that they spent a number of years in Ontario where the grass was greener. Guess what? Today, every single one of them are back in Newfoundland and Labrador. I am going to tell you something else too. They are not all retired. They are actually working in Newfoundland and Labrador, or they do what a lot of people do, they get ready and go away for a few weeks in the summertime and then they come back in the fall.

It is unfortunate, as I said, that people actually do have to leave the Province to find work, but I can tell you today that a lot of times, as the Minister of ITRD said just a moment ago, a lot of times people leave Newfoundland and Labrador to find work because actually the work up there is better paying. Let's face it, in Newfoundland and Labrador it is very difficult to find a job where you are going to get $50 an hour. I was speaking to a fellow the other day and he told me what he was offered out in Calgary. I could not believe it. He said: Do you know much money they offered me up in Calgary? I know what businesses pay in my area and it is not bad money. I know, for instance, there are a couple of businesses in the town that I live in that are actually paying out $20 an hour and it is a full-time, twelve months of the year job. They are finding it very difficult to retain people, not because it is not a good paying job there, because $20 an hour, in a small community such as Glovertown with living expenses the way they are, is not bad money. That is pretty good money.

This is what they are offering. They are offering this person I spoke to the other day - and what he does, actually, is he is a crane operator - they offered him $50 an hour. They are giving him his own apartment, completely furnished apartment. They are giving him - get this - $500 a week for groceries. This is a fact, because I saw the contract that he had. They are giving his wife a job in the office at $20 an hour besides that and they are paying all of his transportation costs as well as a vehicle and a credit card for gas. It is very, very difficult for companies in Newfoundland and Labrador to compete with that today. That does not mean that down the road, sometime in the future, we are not going to be able to provide those types of jobs for people. I truly and clearly believe that we are on the right path, we are on the right course to developing a plan and developing industry in Newfoundland and Labrador. It does not happen overnight.

We came into this government three years ago, or just about four years ago now, and we saw a lot of hard times. Back in 2003 it was very difficult. The people in Newfoundland and Labrador decided - do you know what? We have decided today that we want a new approach in Newfoundland and Labrador. We want somebody to come in and give us some hope in Newfoundland and Labrador. I believe that is exactly what this government has done. Did we spend all of our money, did we spend all of our efforts, did we spend all of our time in urban areas? Certainly not. Nothing could be further from the truth, because one of the problems that we had when we took over this Province, when this government took over this Province, was the infrastructure. There were major, major infrastructure problems in Newfoundland and Labrador, and more specifically, the roads in Newfoundland and Labrador were in a deplorable condition.

The members opposite, the amount of money they put into road work, I think the last year they were in government, was like $13 million for the whole year. I remember talking to a contractor back then, you know - and I wanted to use this because it is important that we realize that this government is the government that is coming forth and coming forward with a private member's motion today talking about how bad it is in rural Newfoundland and Labrador today. Well, back then, when they did $13 million worth of road work I had a contractor come to me who worked at that type of work - in fact, he is a well known contractor in the Province and has done very, very well. He comes, again, from the town that I live in. He was telling me how desperate the situation was - how desperate the situation was! - in Newfoundland and Labrador. He also said this to me: Do you know what? In order for this Province to ever bring its infrastructure back in line of where it should be, we are going to need about $100 million a year in a budget to do it. I acknowledge that and I think the minister would acknowledge that as well.

What did we do when we came in as a government? Well, I will tell you, we didn't come up with $100 million right away, certainly not, but we started a process whereby we could start putting more and more money into infrastructure in the Province. Infrastructure didn't only include trying to provide money for roads because we wanted to have a nice smooth road for people to drive over. We realize how important the infrastructure is to business in Newfoundland and Labrador, how important infrastructure is to rural Newfoundland and Labrador in terms of creating jobs. How important is business to rural Newfoundland and Labrador? Well, business actually creates employment. It creates a life for people.

We went out there and we said: Look, we have to try to find the money. This government decided they had to try to find the money to put into the infrastructure in the Province. Right away we started to deal with the problem. I think in our first year we put some $20-odd million into road work, basically double what the previous government had done.

I remember talking to that same contractor and he said: You are on the right road, but, of course, we still need a lot more. The next year we, I think, doubled that again, if I am not mistaken, and we put even more money into infrastructure in terms of road work. This past year, I am pleased to say, we are putting in $66 or $67 million. That is a huge, huge amount for infrastructure in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Now, the question is: Is this going to urban Newfoundland and Labrador? Is this going into St. John's? Let me tell you, the fact is that most of this money, again as the Minister of ITRD had stated earlier, most of that money, I think he said 99.44 per cent, is going into rural areas. Now, if this government didn't have a commitment to rural Newfoundland and Labrador and if this government felt that rural Newfoundland and Labrador was finished, there was no hope for rural Newfoundland and Labrador, we may as well shut the doors and go home, if we felt that way, do you think we would be investing all this money into rural Newfoundland and Labrador? I say, no, I don't think we would. I think we would be saying: You know what, it is no good for us to try anything, it is all done, all hope is gone, we can't get any deals with the federal government. This is never going to work. Let's shut her all down. Sometimes I wonder if maybe that is what the members of the Opposition would love for us to say. The fact is this, the proof is in the pudding, as my grandmother used to say. The proof is in what we are doing as a government. What we are doing as a government is we are standing up, we are stepping up to the plate. We are not just talking about it, we are going out there and we are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. The infrastructure, in terms of road work, is only a small part of it.

Let's move on to municipal and provincial affairs. If you talk to the Minister of Municipal Affairs, you will find out very quickly that we put millions and millions and millions of dollars into small rural communities. I am not even talking about communities such as the community that I live in, that has about 2,700 people. I am talking about communities that have 150 people, communities that have 300 people. I have made many requests to the minister's office to get funding to deal with infrastructure in smaller communities. The minister and the government have said: Yes, we will certainly provide that funding. We will do what we have to do to give communities proper water and sewer, proper roads, and all of these issues. I can tell you right now, it is for smaller rural communities.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. ORAM: Mr. Speaker, this is not all about big urban areas. This is about smaller communities.

Again, if this government had no concern and felt that rural Newfoundland and Labrador was finished, I would think that the minister would look at me and say: Paul, boy, what is the point? Let's throw it into St. John's and Mount Pearl and Topsail and Paradise. Let's throw it all into there, into Conception Bay, forget what we are going to do in the smaller communities. They are just going to die anyway. No, we are not seeing that. This government has a commitment to rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

I am pleased, again, to be a part of this particular government. I can tell you right now that - so there are two issues. First of all, it is the infrastructure in terms of roads. It is the infrastructure in terms of municipal work that needs to be done.

Let's get to economic development for a moment because, again, I hear members on the other side talking about the fact that: Oh, you know, we do not do anything for economic development. We are not doing anything there. Well, the Member for Gander and the Minister for Business was up today talking about a great initiative, the Red Tape Reduction initiative, which I was involved in and the Member for St. John's Centre. The member for Plum Point, he was involved as well. I can tell you right now, we worked on that and today we had a great announcement with red tape reduction.

Is that important for rural Newfoundland and Labrador or is it only for urban Newfoundland and Labrador? This is for every single person in Newfoundland and Labrador so that they can access the services of government, so that we can be more efficient, so that we can create better time frames, so at the end of the day, not only business - but I will speak specifically for business. At the end of the day, when a business goes to government because they need permits, when a business goes to government because they need licences, this government will be able to say: we can cut that waiting time down from six weeks to three weeks, or six weeks to one week. We realize that it is not our job to create jobs but it is our job to make sure and ensure that we have a business climate, a climate in this Province where business can grow. That is a part of the Red Tape Reduction initiative and we have worked very hard to do that. The minister and his department are working very hard to ensure that these regulations are cut, which will make government more efficient. This is working very well.

Secondly, I want to talk about the fishery because, again, the fishery is a very important part of Newfoundland and Labrador. In fact, it is probably the most important industry in Newfoundland and Labrador. Some folks would say: oh, the fishery is gone. Well, I am going to tell you something now. For those people in Newfoundland and Labrador, in Canada or in the world, who would think that our fishery is gone, I have news for them. Our fishery is certainly not gone.

If you look at our track record in terms of aquaculture, because we are putting more and more money into things like aquaculture, we have put millions and millions and millions of dollars into aquaculture. In fact, government is committed and partnered with Cooke Aquaculture to invest over $10 million in the next two years; a $156 million project that will triple our salmon aquaculture industry from its current production of 600 metric tons to 18,000 metric tons by 2008. Is this for urban Newfoundland, I ask? I ask everyone here today: Is this for urban Newfoundland and Labrador? Well, I tell you what, this is jobs for rural Newfoundland and Labrador. It is going to create 170 jobs over the next eighteen months and it will eventually create 350 new jobs. It is not for urban Newfoundland and Labrador. It is jobs for rural people, for the people who live in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. I am going to tell you the importance of the fishery. It is very, very important to urban Newfoundland and Labrador because the wealth that comes from our fishery is translated into what happens in urban areas. Again, this is just one of what our government is doing.

In Budget 2006, we announced $265,000 to support a new initiative design to address seafood trade and market barriers. That is for marketing. We want to market our product. We can have the best product in the world but if people do not know about it, people do not realize what kind of product we have, then we will never sell it. We will never create a job and we will never be able to keep our industry moving forward. But because of the marketing that we are doing today, this is paying off at the end of the day. Because of time, I could touch on - there are so many other things I can talk about.

I just want to touch on the fact that government paid $3.5 million to purchase a quota from Highliner Seafoods, a local company, Icewater Seafoods, to operate the processing facility in Arnold's Cove. I remember hearing during Question Period a question about this government being politically partial, that we were trying to be patriots to a particular political party rather than anywhere else. Well, I am going to tell you, the member for Arnold's Cove, the member who represents the Town of Arnold's Cove, is certainly not on this side of the House. I do not know if I have missed it or something, but from what I gather he is from the other side of the House and we still saw the need for the residents, for the people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, and we, again, did what we always do. We put our money where our mouth is and we stepped up to the plate.

I heard somebody talk about early retirement for fisherpeople and for fish plant workers. Our government has stepped up to the plate with a commitment for early retirement. I believe somebody across the way today had spoken about the fact: well, why is it that it is contingent on what the federal government does? Well, the fact of the matter is, that as a government this government cannot afford to go this alone, quite frankly. We would love to be able to go it alone. We would love to be able to make an announcement tomorrow and be able to say: Here is the money, but we just do not have that kind of money today. I can tell you that we have stepped up. We, again, have put our money where our mouth is and we are saying: Look, we are here to step up. We are here to provide the money to make this happen.

I want to talk about education just for a moment. Again, I realize that time is of the essence.

MADAM SPEAKER (Osborne): Order, please!

I remind the hon. member that his speaking time has expired.

MR. ORAM: Just one moment to clue up?

MADAM SPEAKER: Does the hon. member have a moment to clue up?

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MR. ORAM: Thank you very much.

I was going to talk about education, but I guess I will not get the opportunity. I want to talk, just for a few seconds, about the teacher recruitment that is going on in Corner Brook on May 8. The fact is, there are going to be 300 teaching positions available in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. So, it is not only a job fair that tries to bring people to Alberta, we do our own job fairs as well. Today, because of the commitment that this government has made, because this government knows and is committed to education in this Province - certainly, if you look at the stats here you will find that most of these positions are for rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

I just mentioned a few things. Do you know what? I got another twenty pages that I could talk about today. How anyone could take the time to put together - and I will say it, I hate to say this - such a silly motion as this is beyond me, when this government is trying to do everything it can, and it is doing so much to promote rural Newfoundland and Labrador and to keep rural Newfoundland an Labrador. We are working hard, we are going to continue to work hard. I can tell you today, all I can say to the people of this Province is stay tuned. We are going to make this Province the best Province in Canada and we will prosper as much as any other province in Canada.

Thank you very much.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Madam Speaker.

I would like to have a few words as it relates to the private member's motion that has been put forward by my colleague from Grand Bank.

Madam Speaker, I listened to the hon. Member for Terra Nova, and I listened to the Member for The Straits & White Bay North, and I think I sense that there might be some bruised egos on the other side over this particular motion.

Madam Speaker, we put forward this motion today because we feel that government could be doing much more in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, and we say that with great sincerity. We feel that our job, as the Official Opposition, is to indicate to government in areas where they could do better and where they should be doing more. We make absolutely no bones about that. You go around this Province today, in rural communities, and while many of us would like to think, because of bits of money and small investments in one place or another, that everything is just hunky-dory, that is not the case.

Madam Speaker, when this government ran and got elected in 2003, they did so with a commitment in their Blue Book that they would have a strategic plan for rural Newfoundland and Labrador, that they would ensure that there are employment gains, that there are industry gains, that there is economic stability.

MADAM SPEAKER (S. Osborne): Order, please!

MS JONES: We have yet to see it. In fact, Madam Speaker, I can use numerous examples just from members -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MADAM SPEAKER: Order, please!

There are several private conversations going on. I ask the hon. members if they would either keep the noise down or move their conversations outside.

Thank you.

MS JONES: Thank you, Madam Speaker.

I think it is only appropriate that members do take their conversations outside of the House of Assembly.

As I was saying, Madam Speaker, you go around this Province today and, despite the commitment that was made by the government opposite in the election campaign in 2003, what we have actually seen - and this is the reality - we have seen more out-migration in rural Newfoundland and Labrador communities. We have seen more job loss today than there was in 2003. In fact, we have seen the income levels of a lot of residents in rural Newfoundland and Labrador drop.

In my own district, if I were to make an estimate, I would say that the income levels of families have dropped by almost 30 per cent in some cases, simply because they work for less weeks, they work for less hours. They are fishery-related workers and the industry is not performing as it did three years ago. That is a reality and, because of that, their needs have changed. Their need for employment, their need for stability in their income is probably greater today than it was three years ago. I do not think anyone can ignore that.

I listened to members here today talk about the offers of big money to go to Alberta, and I am well aware of that. I have friends who have actually left jobs, who have moved out West or took jobs where they can be transient, simply because of the income. People will make those decisions based on whether you want to have a lifestyle in Newfoundland and Labrador and work for this amount of money, or you want to out-migrate to Alberta where you will make more money and have a different lifestyle. Those decisions are made all of the time.

Then there are hundreds of people in this Province who are forced to leave - forced - thousands who are forced to leave, and I know many of them as well. I know that today they are working in Alberta not by choice, but they are working there out of necessity, because in a lot of cases they have mortgaged homes and vehicles that they could no longer afford in Newfoundland and Labrador without a good income. They have young children who need to be educated, so they have been forced to leave Newfoundland and Labrador.

Is there more that the government could be doing? We listened to the Minister of Industry today talk about investments that have been made in some parts of the Province in some projects, some that I am aware of, but let's talk about where all the gaps are right now. The gap really is in addressing the employment issues in rural communities throughout Newfoundland and Labrador. That is where the real gap is. The gap is in not supporting existing industry that is there.

I will give you some examples, because I look at three rural areas in this Province today where the main industry is built around the work of a non-profit group or co-operative. I look at Fogo Island, I look at Torngat Mountains, and I look at Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair, where there are hundreds of people employed alone simply because of the work of a co-operative or a non-profit group. What assistance have government been lending to those entities to create more jobs in those regions? What have they done to enhance the opportunity for those individual non-profit co-operative companies to advance the level of employment for their workers?

Nothing that I am aware of, I say to you. Yet, we will go out and try and attract industry to the Province; nothing wrong with that. We will bring in call centres and we will put them in St. John's; nothing wrong with that, but the reality is that there are businesses and there are non-profit co-operatives that have invested in Newfoundland and Labrador for the past two decades that now are not being supported or enhanced by the government in creating new jobs and new opportunities in rural communities.

That is one strategy I think the government needs to look at. I honestly do. I think that many of these companies, if they were to have money they could focus into product development, into marketing, into doing the kinds of things they need to do to advance the employment levels in those regions, they would be a willing partner to make those things happen.

Mr. Speaker, also lets talk about infrastructure, because the members opposite love to talk about the amount of money they spend in roads. Well, I want to look at a section in the Auditor General's report here now, that talks about investments in road construction from 2001 to 2006. In fact, Mr. Speaker, in the years 2001, 2002 and 2003 were some of the largest investments in road work in this Province in the last six years. Mr. Speaker, in 2001 in road construction alone there was $79.4 million. Let's compare that to 2004 where there was $43.8 million. Let's look, Mr. Speaker, at 2002 where the Liberal government invested $80.4 million into road construction alone, and in 2005 the members opposite invested $36 million into road work alone. It is all there. It is in the Auditor General's report, page 346, and it is on line, Mr. Speaker. You can look at that particular report and you can see that in the three successive years before they took office there was anywhere from $55 million to $80 million annually spent in road work. That was just on the island portion of the Province. That does not include the over $100 million that was spent in Labrador during that same period of time, I say to members opposite.

It is good to get up and paint a nice picture and talk about all this being done, but the reality is this, that right now, today, in a lot of these rural communities, they don't have the infrastructure to support industry, and that is the truth. They don't have the roads to the class that they need to be. They don't have the breaks when it comes to electricity or availability of power for industry. They don't have the support of the government like you often do in urban centres. Because of it, Mr. Speaker, they are unable to advance any agenda that they might have for economic development.

I only have to look in my own district today and it absolutely blows my mind to know that I represent a region that has almost 100 million cubic metres of wood available today for production and nothing is being done, or very little, simply because these small entrepreneurs that hold the allocations for that wood do not have a supplier to sell their pulpwood to or their byproduct. They do not have any markets outside of their local markets for lumber. Because of the closure of Abitibi Price they are left in a situation where they have had to lay off dozens of workers in each company, and the workers who are still there are receiving less employment than they did two years ago or three years ago.

What does government do in a situation like that? They went out and they did a study which I supported and I thought it was a good idea: Let's look at the opportunities and the options that are available. At the end of the day they come back with a recommendation that says the industry for the production of this wood should be in Happy Valley-Goose Bay. What does that do for a rural coastline of seventeen communities that are surrounding this resource? It tells them you have a resource, you have an opportunity, but we are going to move it elsewhere for you and it is not going to happen here.

I have a problem with that, because if you are really committed to rural communities well then you are committed to making industry work around the resources that they have and not giving them a solution whereby trucking or barging a resource is going to be the answer for you. I have a problem with that because I know in my district today there are great opportunities. I know that I represent a rural district where we have limited opportunities in forestry, in fishery, in hydro power, in small scale manufacturing, but, Madam Speaker, none of it is going to be done without the support and the infrastructure of government. That is the reality.

I am sure my district is not the only one. I am sure there are many other districts around the Province, like in Terra Nova, where I am sure there are many families today that are contemplating whether they will have to go away to go to work. I am sure there are many families in Terra Nova that have already moved away in the last three years. I am sure, Madam Speaker, they have challenges in that district just like they do in every other rural district in this Province.

I do not buy into the argument that enough is enough. It will never be enough until rural Newfoundland and Labrador has a level of sustainability that will allow them to make an option to stay or go and not be forced to leave. That is when it will be enough. It will be enough when we know that all efforts have been made to maximize the opportunities and to create the jobs. It will be enough when families in rural communities in this Province do not have to choose between living in poverty in a rural community in Newfoundland and Labrador or out-migrating to Western Canada. Then it will be enough. It will be enough when people have the money in their pocket to access affordable education and medical services and not be crippled because of illness or have their children disadvantaged because they cannot afford to send them away to school.

I know in rural communities throughout this Province there is tremendous opportunity, and I know that there are still people in those communities who are willing to work for the long haul to try and bring back an industry and an economy to a flourishing level which they once knew. I also know, in the same breath, that there are many who have left because they have been demoralized, because they have lost sight of those opportunities and because they have been ignored and deprived by the existing government when it comes to being able to look at the future and look at what possibilities exist for them.

I know that there are members who are going to stand here today and give the full list of where we have spent money and, oh, we have put some money here and we have put some money there and so on and so forth. Madam Speaker, it does not mean that the problem has gone away. It does not mean that rural Newfoundland and Labrador today's economy is not crippling still under the leadership of this government, because the opposite would be true. I think we all know that and we all realize that.

What I would like to see, I would like to see the government investing more in these communities, investing in infrastructure that is linked to economic development, investing in infrastructure that will allow these communities to attract business, to create development, to be able to have new opportunities. I would like to see them partnering with companies like those on Fogo Island or the shrimp company or Torngat Fisheries, companies that have contributed for the last two decades to developing industry in rural areas of our Province. Why not let them be your partner? Let them guide the government in terms of where new jobs can be created in the industry in some of these rural communities.

MADAM SPEAKER: Order, please!

I remind the hon. member that her speaking time has expired.

MS JONES: Thank you, Madam Speaker.

I appreciate the time to participate in the debate today.

MADAM SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Thank you, Madam Speaker.

I guess I will start off by responding to some of the comments that the Member for Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair had to say. Towards the end there she got into, we are doing enough, that the crowd on this side seem to be saying that we are doing enough. I do not think that anybody on this side would ever say that we are doing enough. We are doing as much as we possibly can. I would ask her to consider if the people of the Province are thinking that we are moving in the right direction.

I would like to take her back to some of the things right from her own district. I had it here on my desk, I was not planning to use it, but it has to be an opportune time that with the recent announcement of the Northern Strategic Plan - this is a comment that comes from a fellow by the name of Stanley Oliver. I cannot say that I have ever met him. He is the President of the Combined Councils of Labrador. I am assuming when a media release comes out, this gentlemen is speaking on behalf of the mayors and the people who are the heads of local service districts and all of this kind of thing.

Here is what he says: Today is indeed a wonderful day for all of Labrador -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: - whereby we see a total investment of approximately $300 million in new initiatives to address eight priority areas. It is clearly obvious that a Northern Strategic Plan document that the government has recognized, took into account the Combined Councils of Labrador's concerns and issues, and brought them forth from its annual general meeting.

I think that kind of speaks to the issues, as we see it, coming out right from her backyard when you are getting people from Labrador who are saying this. This certainly tells me that there is an indication that we are moving in the right direction.

Then, I just happen to have in front of me some of the investments that we have put into Labrador. Just looking at one in education employment: $4 million over two years, a contribution to the construction of a new school in Sheshatshiu. I believe there is a new school that is going in Port Hope Simpson, right in her district; L'Anse au Loup - I go on down through, with $4.8 million over three years to construct a new K-12 school in Port Hope Simpson; $1.3 million over two years to construct a new facility for the Francophone school in Happy Valley-Goose Bay; $750,000 to work with partners, Aboriginal people, governments and organizations, to enhance K to 12 initiatives to prepare Aboriginal young people in Labrador for post-secondary education; $1.24 million to increase medical transportation programs; $2.6 million to construct an administrative building for the Labrador Grenfell Regional Health Centre in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

I do not know if she has it or not, but here is a list of all of the projects that are going into Labrador. I could not help but start with that.

The second thing that she highlighted was the money that the previous government, those people, put into roads in the Province. I think she said $79 million. I think it is important for the people of the Province to realize, I do believe - and I stand to be corrected - this was the last remnants of the Roads for Rail program. If that is indeed the case, what we have invested, the $60 million last year, the previous two years, all came from current accounts of our government. So, let's compare apples to apples here and let's just remind her and the people of the Province that it was an investment from government direct from our current revenues.

Madam Speaker, previous speakers have spoken about rural Newfoundland and Labrador. As I was preparing to speak on this, I thought I would just make a comparison. Let's say, step back thirty years and then let's look ahead thirty years. You know, we have seen many changes in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. My family moved to the Burin Peninsula in 1968 because that was where the work was. I will tell you one thing, I arrived in Terrenceville with eight of my siblings and my mother who took us to where our father was working in Marystown. I can honestly say to you that the move from the little community of Grole in Hermitage Bay, when I moved to Marystown, was probably more of a traumatic experience than it is for some people leaving this Province and moving to Ontario or Alberta. We moved from a two-room school to a school - I was in Grade 9 - that had four groups of Grade 9s. I think today it would be seen as a major counselling need, but that was the way it was.

We moved into a community where fish was aplenty. Draggers arrived every day with 200,000 pounds of fish. Oftentimes when they were fishing the Northern cod they arrived with bags of it on their decks. Everybody kind of looked at it, that here was a resource that was endless. It was to a point where somebody who was sixteen years old could go down, you could work Saturday, Thursday evenings, and, if you were willing, and a lot of people did, you could make your first trip on the dragger. Not at sixteen, I didn't do it, but I did it a few times. The result was that there was very little planning, or there appeared to be very little planning. As a result of the twenty-five to thirty years, what happened was that the resource dwindled. We see what the situation is on the Burin Peninsula, but if there is one thing that came from the dwindling of the fish stocks, I think it became a very important learning for us. The point to all of it was planning. We need to plan for the future.

So we look at our Province right now and we say to ourselves: Well, will it look, in twenty years time, the way it is today? Will it return to the way it was twenty-five to thirty years ago? I think we can say with a fair degree of confidence that it will not. I certainly do not go out there preaching that rural Newfoundland and Labrador will return to the population that it was. It simply won't.

I jokingly say this to some people in the community: My father and two of my uncles and their wives, in three families there were forty children. Forty children: one family of sixteen, one fourteen, one ten. That is a bus full, for God's sake, for some of our communities right now, but we are not seeing those family sizes any more, and that is certainly having an impact on what the status of rural Newfoundland and Labrador is.

I guess if we talk about out-migration - the Minister of ITRD spoke to it - we are facing a global phenomenon in the Province. I went to a meeting a little while ago where someone very readily produced for me what the population stats were for some of the communities in our Province where they have reduced. Well, I, as quickly, responded with an article that came from the Halifax Herald that said the same phenomenon is happening in Nova Scotia, that in a university Town of Antigonish, I believe it is, the population decreased by 10.9 per cent, I think it was. This is not a phenomenon that is new. We have a choice in this Province. We either sit back and say, well, that is evolution, or we decide to plan for the future, and that is the way this government is proceeding.

Someone mentioned to me yesterday, after the Speech from the Throne, and the speech given by the member opposite, and said: You know, he has a positive outlook. Of course, they said that in a joking manner. The point of it is that we hear the doom and gloom. I will tell you Madam Speaker, I cannot be that way. Never was, never will be. I am a true believer in: you shape your own destiny. We, as a government, take that attitude. We shape, and we will continue to shape, our own destiny.

How are we doing that? Well, let's take a look at some of the announcements, some of them that the Minister of ITRD mentioned, some of the investments into aquaculture. I have another document here somewhere. In fisheries and aquaculture, $10 million over the next two years in a $156 million project that will triple our salmon aquaculture. The Aquaculture Capital Investment Program will add approximately 150 full-time jobs in the industry within the next two years, 350 new jobs in the aquaculture sector, and let's talk about the spinoff.

Madam Speaker, I know an individual who lives in Pool's Cove, Belleoram area, where the aquaculture industry is very active up there right now.

MR. RIDEOUT: More news tomorrow.

MR. JACKMAN: Pardon?

MR. RIDEOUT: More news tomorrow.

MR. JACKMAN: More news tomorrow, the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture tells me.

The gentleman told me that he has been living in this area for about thirty-five years. He also said to me that he has never seen the area so busy before. There are people who are setting up apartment buildings. There are trucks coming and going with materials to construct houses. There are people commuting. The place is a beehive of activity.

I will tell you, I will say to the Member for Grand Bank, she may stand after me and talk about, you know, how she does not see it happening on the Burin Peninsula. I can tell her one thing, that if she wants to look into the future - and I will predict this - in twenty-five years time, twenty to twenty-five to thirty years time, Marystown will still be there, Burin will still be there, Baine Harbour will still be there and likewise a small community, a remote community accessible only by ferry, South East Bight will still be there. Will the fishery survive? Yes, it will.

I said here a little while ago in the House, a young fellow that I know and I have a lot of respect for, I think he is twenty-eight years old, just bought a licence and he sees that there will be a future there for him. This is the type of gentleman who I feel will make rural Newfoundland and Labrador and the fishery a strong place in which to work and to live. This young fellow will make a go of it.

Likewise, let's take Marystown again. Right now it may be only for three months or six months but at the facility, the Kiewit facility in Marystown, we have 400 to 450 people working in that facility. Yesterday someone alluded, the Leader of the Opposition I think, alluded to the fact that there was no one working there. Not only that, Madam Speaker, but we have people who are returning. I spoke to a young fellow the other night who got married last summer and has a young son, and I am telling you, you want to talk to an excited individual. He got called back to the yard, and the thing that he said is: Your government direction is the right one.

If there is one thing that the people have been exposed to as they leave our Province is they see what other provinces are reaping from their resources. The people in Alberta certainly see what is being reaped from their resources, and those who return and those who I speak to are saying: Why can't we have the same? How long is it is in this Province we have been saying, we have 500,000 people, we have an endless wealth of resources and -

MR. JOYCE: What did you do with the FPI?

MADAM SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. JACKMAN: Madam Speaker, all of a sudden - we hear references sometimes made by people opposite about what people sitting over here are doing and laughing and this kind of stuff. Well, you know, one heckler just returned. I have not seen him over there for most of the session but he has returned now. I will tell him and I will speak to the FPI thing. I have a lot of respect for the Member for Fortune Bay-Cape la Hune.

MR. JOYCE: Point of order, Madam Speaker.

MADAM SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Bay of Islands, on a point of order.

MR. JOYCE: Madam Speaker, if you are going to follow the rules you have to follow all of the rules. If a member is allowed to speak when the Member for Bay of Islands steps out and steps back in, which is unparliamentary, you have to question and put a stop to it Madam Speaker. That is your right, that is your duty, and I ask that you do your job as Chair here in this House.

MADAM SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. RIDEOUT: Thank you, Madam Speaker.

I will not belabour the point, but I mean that is a rather rude point of order that is not a point of order. Your Honour is quite capable of doing her job. Madam Speaker, if Your Honour is not doing her job there is a process for the House of Assembly to deal with that. Now if the member feels that you are not doing your job, then deal with it, but do not get up and make those rude points of order that are in fact not a point of order.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MADAM SPEAKER: The hon. the Opposition House Leader.

MR. PARSONS: Yes, I will not belabour the point either, Madam Speaker. It is probably not technically a point of order and I certainly mean no disrespect to the individual who occupies the Chair, but I guess the frustrations sometimes can spill over to all of us here. We have had occasions in the past where this Chair before has been sanctioned, has been brought to bear because sitting in the Chair one moment and in the next moment up on the benches saying rude things to people over here. So I guess that frustration sometimes spills over. I will certainly have a word with the Member for the Bay of Islands as well, but we understand it is not a valid point of order at this point, but frustrations sometimes take the day.

MADAM SPEAKER: The Chair did not hear the remarks of the Minister of Environment and Conservation, but I will be glad to review Hansard.

The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

I remind the hon. member's time is up.

MR. JACKMAN: Just to clue up, I have to say I am in no way frustrated.

The simple fact of the matter is that the sense I am getting from people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador is that this government is moving in the right direction.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: It is as simple as that.

The final point that I make, Madam Speaker, is that I truly do believe people who leave this Province and are returning are seeing other provinces who are reaping the benefits of their resources and their question is simple: why can't we do the same? I think they expect no less of this government than to take stands that bring those benefits back to where they rightfully belong, to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

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

When the hon. member speaks now, she will close the debate.

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MS FOOTE: You can go if you want.

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

I remind the hon. member that the Member for Grand Bank does have the right to begin to close debate at 4:45, so if you have some agreement between you -

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. SPEAKER: Okay.

The hon. the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Madam Speaker.

I will try to conserve time. It will be more than three minutes, though, but I think I have the permission from the hon. member to do that.

I do want to take time to speak to the motion that is on the floor which deals with the failure of the government to take comprehensive actions to deal with the crisis in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. Unlike some of the hon. members on the government side of the House, I do believe there is a crisis. I believe many, many people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador believe there is a crisis also.

There is a danger that the government gets caught up in sometimes and that is the danger of believing ones own rhetoric. You know, I was looking today at some of the rhetoric that has comes out from government recently particularly with regard to employment and the employment situation and the labour market participation levels in this Province. I am looking particularly at the news release from February 12 of this year, 2007, which talks about the wonderful rosy picture in this Province with regard to employment. What the government continually fails to do in its press releases about labour market participation, is that it fails to break the numbers down regionally, it fails to break the numbers down with regard to urban and rural, as if people do not know the difference. People in a community that has 70 per cent unemployment know that the figures in this press release do not relate to them. People on the Burin Peninsula know that these figures do not relate to them. People on the Northern Peninsula know that these figures do not relate to them. They probably relate to the northeastern section of the Avalon Peninsula, but they do not relate generally around the Province.

I do not think it is just of the government - and I like the fact that the Premier yesterday, in speaking to the Speech from the Throne, used the word justice. He used the word equality as well, I think. Well, it is neither just nor is it equitable nor is it a sign of equality to put out figures such as the ones that are in this press release - and they come out all the time - that act as if what is in this press release is true for everywhere in the Province when we all know it is not true for everywhere in the Province. That bothers me, but it also shows me that the government thinks they are fooling people. You cannot fool people who are living the reality. You cannot fool the workers in Marystown who still do not have a contract. You cannot fool the people in the communities where the fishery has completely died. You do not fool the people who are living their reality. They know what that reality is.

So, I get upset with the government when it gets into doing what has happened here this afternoon, where members of the government, ministers get up and list off all the expenditures that government is making. I know government is making those expenditures, but these are expenditures that are part of the norm. Of course, money is going to go into our schools. Of course, money is going to go into our roads. That is what you are there for. You are there to spend the money on those things. Telling me, and telling those of us on this side of the House that we should be excited about the money that is going into schools that are falling apart, or the money that is going into schools to replace schools that are falling apart is a big deal. No, that is not a big deal. That is what you are supposed to be spending your money on. I do not get excited by that. I get very upset when you put that in my face and I am supposed to see that that is part of a comprehensive plan. Maintaining the schools, trying to maintain medical services -maintaining roads is not part of a comprehensive employment plan, I am sorry. If we are going to talk about the life of rural Newfoundland and Labrador, we have to be talking about employment. We have to be talking about people's access to waged work. We have to be talking about people having access to adequate money to live on. I do not see a comprehensive plan for that. That is what is not there. That is what is lacking. There is no comprehensive plan and that is what I am looking for.

That is why yesterday, when I spoke to the Speech from the Throne, I put out ideas about the direction in which I think government could go if government were doing a comprehensive plan. If we really believed that we needed to work with people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador to maintain their communities, then we would say: What is it that the people need as they put together plans for their community? Some of the ideas that I put out yesterday I would like to reiterate. The thing is that people will not be able to build their communities without assistance from government. I just do not mean assistance, the money assistance to help them work on projects or to pay salaries. That is not what I am talking about. I am talking about the resources that are needed to help people develop their skills so that they can come up with the plans for their communities so that there will be, on the ground, community economic development.

I want to talk a bit about the employment issues. We all saw this picture today in the paper about the 2,500 people who turned out at the Glacier for the job fair, and we all remember last fall the 9,000. These are the realities. These are the things that people know about. These are the things that you cannot tell them is not true, because they are living it. They are the people going looking for the jobs.

I can listen to the Member for Terra Nova talk about how people are going because they want to go, but I am willing to bet that an awful lot of the people in this paper and an awful lot of the 9,000 last fall did not go because they wanted to go. If they wanted to go because they are not earning enough money here, than we have a serious situation in this Province. Why should workers have to reject a contract that in every way looked good? Why did the majority of the FPI workers reject the contract? Because they were asked to take a cut in their pay. Well that is unacceptable. The government should be dealing with that. The government should be dealing with an industry that is asking workers to take a cut in their pay.

Ironically, we can look at that industry and say it is the fishery and that there are problems and FPI needed help. I do not agree with that. It could be said, but let's look at IOC. Similar stuff was happening up in IOC as well, in the contract negotiations up there. Now I do not know what they voted on today and I do not know where it has gone, but I do know that they were being asked to give up benefits that they had. You cannot, in this day and age, come in and ask people to take less, whether it is less in salary, whether it is less in benefits, whether it is less in contract language, you cannot expect that. A government should not be sitting back and letting key industries in this Province expect our workers to take less under the guise of: Well, we cannot do any better here. If you want to do better you will have to go away because we cannot do any better here in Newfoundland. We cannot do that. It is not acceptable. People do not expect it from government. They do not expect it from their Members of the House of Assembly to sit back and say that it is acceptable, it isn't.

I have an e-mail here form a young woman in my own district. Now some of you will say: well, that is not rural. No, it is not rural, but I want to point out that the reality of difficulties with employment is real in the urban setting as well, where we do have better employment. This is a young woman who is a student at the university who wants to be a social worker - and I will not read her whole e-mail - but she is frustrated. She is the daughter of a single mother; a single mother whose husband left her a few years ago. When this young women had to go to university she had to take out student loans because her mother is just eking out an existence. The two of them are working part-time as she goes to university. She is really frustrated because she cannot get jobs in the summer. She says: Ever since my first year at Memorial I have been trying to get a full-time job during the summer, but every time I tried it seemed like you had to know someone in order to get the student jobs in the summer. I have been trying to work a lot during the summer to save up to pay off my student loans when I finally finish university. Ever since my father left, my mother and I have been working with different jobs, such as babysitting, waitressing, retail, and other different jobs. I have a significant amount of work experience for my age, but I am looking to broaden my experience much more.

This is a young woman who is utterly frustrated. Getting a full-time job for her in the summer is something that is essential for where she is headed. So, where is government in supporting that? Where is government in helping a young woman who is not part of a network, who does not have parents working in jobs where they can speak to somebody and get a summer job for them? This is a young woman who does not have any of those resources, so government has to be responsible for this young woman. Who else is going to be responsible?

I listened to the minister for Burin-Placentia West make the comment that we pull ourselves up. I am not sure if this was the colloquialism or another, but we pull ourselves up by our bootstraps or we are the ones who create our future. Well, yes, in one form or another we have to take some responsibility -

AN HON. MEMBER: Seven minutes.

MS MICHAEL: Seven minutes. Okay, thank you.

But the barriers that are there for a young woman like this, it is government's responsibility to break down those barriers.

Mr. Speaker, I will not go on. I am just alerting today the things that I am concerned about and I will look forward to the discussion of the Budget to continue what I am talking about today. I do thank the member for letting me take the time.

Thank you so much, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): The Chair recognizes the hon. Member for Grand Bank.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS FOOTE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The difference in the comments that have come from those of us in Opposition versus those on the government side are really telling today. In fact, to suggest that people are leaving to go away to work because it is by choice, how callous is that? How callous is that, when you see people like we saw last night, the gentleman on the airwaves talking about going because he did not have a choice, being forced to leave. How callous when you think about Augustine Rumbolt, the Mayor of Bird Cove, who made it quite plain that, as far as she was concerned, she was leaving this Province because of this government and this Premier. How callous that you cannot see through your own rhetoric, the rhetoric of your Premier and the rhetoric of others who suggest that everything is rosy in Newfoundland and Labrador. Well, everything is not rosy.

You know, you get up and, as the Leader of the NDP said, you rhyme off all of the money that has been spent. Well, you are not spending any more than is expected of you as a government with the money to spend. It is funny, because I listened to the Minister of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development talk about the money that is going into Grand Bank, into my hometown, for the Mariners' Memorial. Do you know what is really ironic about that? When he was the Minister of Fisheries and he was approached to support this particular initiative, guess what? They had to convince him that the provincial Mariners' Memorial, which is in tribute to those who have lost their lives at sea, and to the women who were left behind to care for children, they had to convince him that should go in rural Newfoundland.

AN HON. MEMBER: Not true?

MS FOOTE: Absolutely. He thought that the provincial Mariners' Memorial should go in front of the Confederation Building in St. John's. Now, that is commitment to rural Newfoundland and Labrador for you. That is understanding what the fishery is all about.

Then the Member for Terra Nova says, you know, the government have put their money in for an early retirement program but they cannot let the feds off the hook. This is not about letting the feds off the hook. This is about taking care of individuals who are having a rough time, cannot make ends meet, and are having to go off to Alberta or other parts of this country in search of employment. This is about people. This is about Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who are having a really difficult time. This is about people who do not know where to turn, so they turn to their government in hopes that this government will understand their plight, but they cannot. They obviously cannot.

Obviously, from the comments that have come during the debate today, the government has been so defensive, they have stood and talked about all of the money that is going into various initiatives and various programs of government. Well, you are not doing any more than any other government has done in the past; but, given the difficult circumstances that we face in this Province today with a fishery that has collapsed by and large, particularly in rural Newfoundland, given the difficult circumstances that people find themselves in, you need to go the extra length. You need to do what needs to be done to take care of people who have made this Province what it is, who raised their families here, who supported their communities and now are looking to us, particularly to the government, to help them survive. It is about survival. It is about survival for people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador today.

If the truth hurts, too bad, but it is the truth we have to deal with. The truth is that our population dropped and, contrary to what the Member for Burin-Placentia West says, that this is a global phenomenon, well, forgive me but Newfoundland and Labrador lost population last year - lost population last year - so we do not want to talk about a global phenomenon. We want to talk about what we can do to make a difference in the lives of the people in Newfoundland and Labrador, particularly in rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

That is what this motion is all about today. We are in a crisis situation in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. You have to take off the rose-coloured glasses and you have to acknowledge that this is serious situation and the government must deal with it if we are going to see rural Newfoundland survive.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The resolution before the House reads as follows, and we will dispense with the whereases, "THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that this House of Assembly condemns Government on its failure to deliver any comprehensive actions to deal with the crisis situation in rural Newfoundland and Labrador."

All those in favour of the resolution say ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: Those against the resolution say ‘nay'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Nay.

MR. SPEAKER: The Chair rules that the resolution has been lost.

This being Wednesday, Private Members' Day, under Standing Order 9 this House now stands adjourned until tomorrow, Thursday, at 2:00 of the clock, when it will be what we call Budget Day.

This House now stands adjourned.