April 13, 2016
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS
Vol. XLVIII No. 12
The
House met at 2:00 p.m.
MR. SPEAKER (Osborne):
Order, please!
Admit
strangers.
I
understand we have a group in the gallery, which I'm about to read out. We'd
like to welcome to the gallery today a group of students from Keyin College, the
business and human resource program. The instructor is Paulette Sampson.
Welcome.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
Statements by
Members
MR. SPEAKER:
Today we have Members'
statements from the Members for the District of Conception Bay East Bell
Island, Placentia West Bellevue, Virginia Waters Pleasantville, Cape St.
Francis, Exploits and Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.
I
recognize the Member for the District of Conception Bay East Bell Island.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. BRAZIL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I rise
today to acknowledge and congratulate a new organization in my district. I speak
of the Paradise Minor Hockey Association. In 2004, Paradise was granted a minor
hockey association contingent on a number of conditions being met. It took 11
years for all conditions to be met, which included the building of the Paradise
Double Ice Complex.
With
this facility open, the next chapter in the establishment of the Paradise Minor
Hockey Association was to have an executive put in place to organize the
2015-2016 hockey season. Under the leadership of President Chris Griffiths, the
entire executive and a number of volunteers, the first season of the Paradise
Minor Hockey Association was very entertaining and successful. The association
had nearly 500 registered players in their first year, competing in all
categories of the minor system.
In
February, after calling for the public's input into the name of the
association's teams, it was decided that the association name would be Warrior.
In typical Paradise fanfare, the logo and name was unveiled by the president in
front of hundreds of supporters.
I ask
all Members to join me in congratulating the Paradise Minor Hockey Association
on a successful first season.
Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for the
District of Placentia West Bellevue.
MR. BROWNE:
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in
this hon. House, not in celebration of a happy event, but in recognition and
appreciation of the work volunteer firefighters do across Newfoundland and
Labrador.
On March
22, a vehicle crash on the Trans-Canada Highway near the Long Harbour-Chapel Arm
intersection claimed the lives of five people one of the worse highway
tragedies our province has seen in recent memory. Twelve first responders of the
Norman's Cove-Long Cove Volunteer Fire Department rushed to the scene from their
home and from their jobs.
An
accident of this magnitude would be difficult to witness even for experienced,
career emergency responders. As we mark Volunteer Week, I ask all Members of
this House to join with me in recognizing the invaluable and difficult role
played by volunteer firefighters in our communities who step up to the plate in
the face of challenge and adversity.
I
especially ask Members to join me in saluting members of the Norman's Cove-Long
Cove Volunteer Fire Department. For their selfless efforts, they deserve our
sincere recognition, gratitude and respect.
Thank
you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for the
District of Virginia Waters Pleasantville.
MR. B. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I rise
in this hon. House to recognize a pioneer in the fight for better health care in
the developing world. Dr. Robert Walley is an emeritus professor of Obstetrics
and Gynecology at Memorial University, and is founder and executive director of
MaterCare International. MaterCare is a charitable organization headquartered in
St. John's, operating with the mission to bring obstetric care to some of the
poorest regions of the world.
Dr.
Walley's expertise in the field of maternal health care in the developing
regions of Africa has earned him international recognition, including a papal
medal. On March 17, Dr. Walley was selected as a panellist for a side event at
the United Nations during its 60th session of the Commission on the Status of
Women. He delivered a presentation that advocated on behalf of mothers who are
suffering due to inadequate obstetric care in their home regions. This
presentation, aimed at bringing greater awareness to the Western world of this
vital issue, was the latest in an outreach effort that he's championed for
decades.
I ask
hon. Members in this House to join me in recognizing Dr. Walley for his
humanitarian advocacy and his long-standing effort to bring accessible maternal
health care to the developing world.
Thank
you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Member for the District
of Cape St. Francis.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. K. PARSONS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I rise
in this hon. House today to congratulate the organizers of the 2016 Snowfest
celebrations in the Towns of Flatrock and Pouch Cove. The time and dedication of
many volunteers have made this event a success again this year.
I had
the pleasure of bringing greetings at the opening ceremonies, during which
marvelous talent and incredible community spirit was shared. It was fantastic to
see the joy and excitement from the children and the families in attendance.
Snowfest
is filled with fun activities for all ages, which includes a kid's pajama movie
party, craft fair, ice fishing derby, community skate and a delicious hot roast
beef dinner hosted by the Pouch Cove Lions Club. There was also a kids' bingo,
card games, a scavenger hunt, youth musical showcase, heritage society contest,
tea and bake sale and an adult dance.
Our
seniors also had special activities to attend, like bowling and the seniors'
food celebration, which offered a healthy living workshop. Organizers, with the
assistance of the Volunteer Fire Department, hosted a bonfire night at the beach
in Flatrock with storytelling and refreshments.
Please
join with me in congratulating the organizers and volunteers for this fantastic
Snowfest celebration.
Thank
you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Member for the District
of Exploits.
MR. DEAN:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I rise
today in this hon. House, midway through Volunteer Week, to acknowledge the past
and ongoing efforts of the thousands of volunteers in the District of Exploits
and throughout our province. Day in and day out, without pay or fanfare, devoted
volunteers bring their talents, compassion and time to our tables.
For
communities across the province, volunteerism is an essential component of
society. Volunteers enrich communities and make them safer and more welcoming
places for us all to call home. It helps to strengthen trust and solidarity
amongst participants and recipients and it encourages greater community
participation.
An aging
population, smaller families and outmigration are all contributing to declining
numbers in our volunteer ranks. In spite of this, and to the benefit of
communities across the District of Exploits, and the rest of the province, there
is a firm resolve by those remaining. They show a continued willingness to forge
ahead in their unselfish pursuit of making things better for others. Their
continued efforts greatly enhance our quality of life and add to the moral
fabric of our society.
I ask
all hon. Members to join with me in thanking our faithful volunteers for their
profound benefit to all of our communities.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Member for District of
Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.
MS. DEMPSTER:
Thank you.
Mr.
Speaker, today I rise to recognize an outstanding citizen of Labrador, nurse
Isabel Rumbolt of Mary's Harbour.
A young
nurse from Glasgow, Scotland, Isabel came to Mary's Harbour in 1973 to provide
health care. She extended her service to include the north and south coast.
In 1975,
when a medical clinic opened in Charlottetown, my hometown, she was our first
nurse, and a phenomenal one at that, I might add.
In 1976
she married school teacher Reg Rumbolt. She not only married the love of her
life, she also in many respects married Labrador.
In 1998,
Isabel set out to do something special. Along with Barb Rumbolt, they came up
with the idea of building a senior's home in the region. In 2004 that dream
became a reality. Today nurse Rumbolt serves as chair of the board of Harborview
Manor, and she is tireless in her commitments to the residents.
She is
also an amazing volunteer in many areas. She works hard for her church, for
seniors' groups like the knitting club, and for many years has taught guitar
lessons to the youth of the region.
Nurse
Isabel is a true Labrador treasure, and I ask all hon. Members to join me in
offering our heartfelt thanks to Isi for her outstanding contribution to her
adopted homeland, Labrador.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
The Commemoration
of the First World War and the Battle of Beaumont-Hamel
MR. SPEAKER:
Today for Honour 100 we have
the Member for the District of Conception Bay South.
MR. PETTEN:
I will now read into the
record the following 43 names of those who lost their lives in the First World
War in the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, the Royal Newfoundland Naval Reserve, or
the Newfoundland Mercantile Marine. This will be followed by a moment of
silence.
Lest we
forget: John Thomas Ellsworth, Walter Emberley, George Emberly, Hugh S. England,
Gordon Etheridge, Richard Etheridge, Henry Evans, Hubert Evans, John Evans,
Joseph Wellington Evans, Leonard Evans, Nicholas Evans, Francis Evoy,
Joseph Ezekiel, Stephen Fallon, Joseph Farewell, Martin Patrick Farrell, Patrick
Joseph Farrell, John Roy Ferguson, Stewart Small Ferguson, James Joseph Fever,
Lawrence Joseph Fewer, John Field, Charles Fields, Frederick Fifield, Frank
Fillier, Ernest Fisher, John Fitzgerald, Thomas Joseph Fitzgerald, Alphonsus
Fitzpatrick, David Flannigan, Richard Fleming, Richard Fleming, Dominic Foaley,
Albert Folks, Albert Follett, Elias Ford, Gerald Ford, James Ford, Stephen
Fortune, William Fortune, Norman Forward and William Fowler.
(Moment of silence.)
MR. SPEAKER:
Please be seated.
Statements by Ministers.
Statements by Ministers
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.
MR. CROCKER:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, on Monday a fire destroyed the Quinlan
Brothers' shrimp and crab processing plant in Bay de Verde. This afternoon, the
Premier, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and I will visit the town to witness
first-hand the impact of this devastating fire.
I would like to begin by recognizing the incredible work of
the volunteers and communities who came together during this time of need. I was
in Bay be Verde on Monday and was overwhelmed by the support. The first
responders were on the scene, working tirelessly to extinguish the flames,
including neighbouring fire departments. Town councils, community groups,
schools and residents assisted in any way they could to help those affected.
During our visit, Mr. Speaker, we hope to speak with the
residents of Bay de Verde and hear their concerns. We are also meeting with
Quinlan Brothers to discuss arrangements to process their crab purchases and
redeploy plant workers to nearby plants.
Mr. Speaker, we will continue to engage with those involved
including residents, plant workers and Quinlan Brothers. We are committed to
working with the company as they move forward with short-term options and as
they make long-term decisions about the future of their operation. This is truly
a terrible loss for the region and, during this very difficult time, we will
remain committed to doing everything we can to help the workers, the company and
the communities.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Member for Cape St. Francis.
MR. K. PARSONS:
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
I would like to thank the minister for an advance
copy of his statement. We, too, join with the people of the province and realize
what happened on Monday was very devastating to the people of Bay de Verde, the
Quinlan company, family and anyone in the surrounding areas that worked in the
plant. We realize that there are 700 workers out there and it is one of the
major industries in the area. As a matter of fact, one of the largest processing
plants in the province and the huge effect it has on the people in the area.
We, too,
want to thank all the volunteers. It is something that we are as people in
Newfoundland and Labrador, whenever devastation comes to our communities it
always seems that we get together and do our best. There is no sweat to get
volunteers to come out. I believe there were nine different volunteer fire
departments that responded. They even came from 100 kilometres away.
Any time
that we see something like this, it's important that we all work together to
make sure that the people that need our help are there. We understand the crab
fishery started just recently and this has a devastating effect on a lot of
people in the area because unemployment is running out and it is a source of
income for these families.
It is
very important that both sides and everyone in this province work together to
help these people in their time of need.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for St.
John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
I, too, thank the minister for the advance copy of his
statement. The people of the community of Bay de Verde and the workers who lost
their jobs with Monday's devastating fire are in all our thoughts of course.
It's a miracle that no one, including first responders, was physically hurt. The
truth, however, is that many will be hurting financially.
I was really pleased to see the minister say that he will
remain committed, he and his government, to doing everything they can to help
the workers, which I point out was a bit of a change from the original draft we
got and I'm glad to see the change. We are going to need to find tangible
financial solutions to ensure workers are properly looked after until the new
plant opens.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
Further statements by ministers?
The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
MS. COADY: Mr.
Speaker, I rise today in this hon. House to provide details on two recent Call
for Bids issued by the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum
Board.
The calls include 13 parcels in the eastern Newfoundland
region and three parcels in the Jeanne d'Arc region. Under the new Scheduled
Land Tenure System, four of the 13 parcels are being reintroduced and have been
made available in the 2016 call.
This province's offshore offers some the best prospects of
any frontier regions in the world, and our government is actively engaged in
creating conditions for increased exploration and development that ensures we
maximize value to benefit Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
The previous Call for Bids in November 2015 resulted in a
total value of $1.2 billion in work commitments for seven of the 11 parcels
offshore. This was the largest total bid ever in the Newfoundland and Labrador
offshore area, and demonstrates that we have a great opportunity for further
exploration and development.
The November 2015 bid has already resulted in drilling. As
one of the successful bidders, Statoil was issued an exploration licence in
January 2016 and, by March, had already begun drilling a well.
Our government looks forward to a positive 2016 Call for
Bids as we create an environment that captures the full potential of
Newfoundland and Labrador's offshore petroleum industry.
Thank you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Opposition House Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I certainly want to thank the minister for an advance copy
of her statement. Despite some of the volatile oil prices we see today and some
of the challenges we have, the offshore industry in Newfoundland and Labrador is
certainly well positioned for the future when we look at the reserves we have
offshore and the seismic work we have done and what that is indicating.
As mentioned by the minister as well, in 2015 there were
record-breaking bids. About $1.2 billion in work commitments for seven of the 11
offshore parcels was received at that time. I'm certainly optimistic that this
year's bids, as well, will be equally as significant.
The minister mentioned Statoil. In the near future, we
would certainly look to have an update on negotiations with Statoil and how
those are progressing. As well, I wanted to point out in reference to the
(inaudible) Law of the Sea, as we expand our oil explorations and productions,
there is a 7 per cent growing royalty there that we believe is rested with the
Government of Canada. We have already stated that it needs to rest with Canada
and certainly hope the minister follows up and adheres to that as well.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Member for St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
I, too, thank the minister for the advance copy of her
statement. This announcement is exciting news for government and our offshore
industry, and for the people of the province. I hope we see as good, if not
better, results from this round of land sales. Despite the current slump in oil
prices, I believe our offshore industry will continue to be of great benefit to
our province down the road.
Also, it is good to hear hopeful news from government today
instead of the endless doom and gloom they have been manufacturing.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
Further statements by ministers?
The hon. the Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services.
MS. GAMBIN-WALSH:
Mr. Speaker, I rise in this hon. House today to highlight an important
partnership between Child, Youth and Family Services and the Dave Thomas
Foundation for Adoption.
This foundation is a national American non-profit public
charity with the mission of dramatically increasing the adoptions of children
from North America's foster care systems. Through the foundation's Wendy's
Wonderful Kids Program, grants are awarded to public and private adoption
agencies to hire child-specific recruiters. These recruiters implement
proactive, child-focused recruitment programs targeted exclusively at moving the
longest-waiting children from foster care
into adoptive families.
In June
2014, the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services obtained a grant to
contribute towards hiring its own child-specific recruiter. Our recruiter
receives ongoing training from the foundation to help employ practices and
proven tactics focused on finding the best home for a child through the starting
points of familiar circles of family, friends and neighbours, and then reaching
out to the communities in which they live.
The
department is now in its second grant year and, to date, almost 10 children have
been successfully matched and are in various stages of the adoption process as
they move towards having a permanent and forever home. As Dave Thomas once said,
These children are not someone else's responsibility. They are our
responsibility. And it's time to take action.
Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'd like
to thank the minister for an advance copy of her statement. We join with Members
opposite in recognizing this important relationship between the Newfoundland and
Labrador government and the Dave Thomas Foundation.
Mr.
Speaker, we know that there are more than 30,000 children in Canada who are
waiting in foster care for, as their website says, their forever families. Every
child deserves a loving, stable home, a home that provides a safe environment
that allows them thrive. The service offered by the Dave Thomas Foundation does
a fantastic job of ensuring that happens for so many, but it is only a single
piece of a much larger puzzle.
We all
too aware that much more work remains and there are numerous challenges we face.
We have so many children in this province alone who are in foster care. Let's
continue with every effort to have those children and youth find a loving,
adoptive family. They deserve nothing less.
I'd like
to thank the Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services for acknowledging an
important partnership facilitated by our administration. We are all very glad to
see that they are continuing to support it. I would be remiss if I never took
this opportunity to also acknowledge the fantastic work of those in the field of
adoptions, many of whom work with the Department of Child, Youth and Family
Services.
MR. SPEAKER:
Order, please!
MS. PERRY:
The job you do is so
important and we cannot thank you enough.
Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Member for the District
of St. John's Centre.
MS. ROGERS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I, too,
thank the minister for an advance copy of her statement. It is good to hear that
the hiring of a social worker as a child-specific recruiter is producing results
results on behalf of the children.
Three
years ago the new Adoption Act
expanded the definition of family members who can adopt and changes were made to
speed up the process. It is also crucial that government continue to support the
Poverty Reduction Strategy to ensure that no child grows up or lives in poverty
and that no family is broken up due to poverty or the lack of supports for
families.
Thank
you very much, Mr. Speaker.
MR. SPEAKER:
Oral Questions.
Oral Questions
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the
Opposition.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, along with other oil-producing provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan,
our province faces significant financial challenges. We are by no means in a
unique situation.
I ask
the Premier today if he is confident that he has made every available effort to
lobby the federal government for additional funding and additional assistance,
and will extra funding and support from the federal government be identified in
tomorrow's budget?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Well,
there are obviously ongoing negotiations with our federal colleagues, and we've
talked about that quite a bit in this House of Assembly. We, and all our
ministers, are engaged in whatever opportunities are available to us to bring
more benefit to Newfoundland and Labrador. This is what we are engaged in.
I find
it, again, ironic that the Leader of the Opposition continues to raise this when
they were virtually shut out of and had a number of opportunities that they
themselves even with the Small Communities Fund, as an example, just last
year, which they did not even go after, nearly $35 million that was available to
them. The CETA fund is another example, which they could not close those deals.
We've
been there now about four months and we've made significant advancements with
the federal government, and we will continue to do that because we know that
Ottawa will be and can be a part of the solution; but the bigger part of the
solution for our problems is to actually proper plan and proper manage the
affairs of this province.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the
Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
We well
know that the communities fund is a 10-year fund. It's not going to expire
anytime in the near future. The government's going to have lots of time to
anticipate and to involve themselves in that fund. I suppose the next part of
the blame game will be them saying that we're also responsible for Alberta and
Saskatchewan's circumstances.
Mr.
Speaker, the Premier claimed only just a few short months ago that his Liberal
government would make a one-time investment of $8 million in 2016, and that
would create a return of $78.9 million this year.
I ask
the Premier: Will this plan be laid out in budget 2016, and will the revenue
they claimed they could deliver on be included in the budget, the expected
revenue for 2016?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I
noticed yesterday you made comment to the House of Assembly about being concise
in our questions and answers, and I'm going to try and do that. So within a 45
second time frame, unless you give me more time, I would like to remind the
leader opposite that back in 2009 and 2014 they missed two opportunities to
actually renegotiate and talk more with their federal colleagues about
equalization. Guess what, Mr. Speaker? They did not. They did not even get
involved in any of those discussions. Yet, when they talk about the blame game,
they come to us today and talk about things and actions that we should be doing.
They refused to get involved in that.
I also
want to remind the leader opposite that Saskatchewan is actually not in that bad
a position. They planned for the position they're in. They are nearing a
balanced budget right now, even with the volatility they have in their own
economy, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the
Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
He may
have made an effort to be more specific to answering the question, but he wasn't
very specific in answering the question. I will give him another chance to do
that I'll give you another chance. You made a claim a few months ago that an
$8 million investment would create a return this year of $78.9 million.
The
question is very simple: Will we see that revenue in this year's budget?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
There
are a number of different things that we're going to see in tomorrow's budget
when it comes to how we create some economic diversification in our province. I
just mentioned Saskatchewan. It was actually just a few months ago they were
mentioned because of the great work that they had done in terms of economic
diversification within their own province. That was a government that had
realized you cannot focus all your attention on commodities like oil. They took
the advantage, in some ways, to actually create investment in other areas.
You can
see this government will take an approach to look at all the industries, all the
opportunities that we have available to us. We will make the necessary
investments where we see we will get the return for Newfoundlanders and
Labradorians.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the
Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I really
believe and truly believe that the people expect and deserve more than the
inaccurate history lessons and blame games that are going on opposite, Mr.
Speaker. So I'll try this one because the Premier is also on the record that his
one-time investment of $8 million would return $360 million over four years, a
10,000 per cent return on investment.
Just to
remind him in case he's forgotten, a MUN professor who has a Ph.D. in
mathematics, Tom Baird, called the Liberal promise gibberish and magical
thinking. An editorial said, It is in the realm of flying reindeer and dancing
broomsticks.
I ask
the Premier once again: Will the revenue that he's projected resulting from the
$8 million investment be in this year's budget? If he wants to give the answer,
it is very simple. Yes or no, will we see that in this year's budget?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
When we
stand in this House of Assembly, when we talk about inaccurate history lessons
that's the professor now that we need to be taking lessons from about the
economy in our province? Actually, I would say that based on the experience of
the previous administration with the financial affairs of this province, they
are the ones that probably needed a history lesson on how actually to properly
manage the affairs of our province.
Also, I
would say it was in this very chair right here that the past, former minister of
Finance said that math wasn't his forte. I can tell you what; if there was
anything that proven right, it was that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
PREMIER BALL:
I say, Mr. Speaker, we will
bring a budget to this House tomorrow afternoon, to the people of our province.
Based on the lessons that we have learned from their experience, we will do
what's right for Newfoundland and Labrador.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the
Official Opposition.
MR. P. DAVIS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
It
sounds like another no from the Premier, that it won't be included this year. I
guess it's another promise they won't be keeping and that the people won't have
to look forward to in tomorrow's budget, or even in budget number two this fall
for that matter.
Mr.
Speaker, in last year's budget our administration included a list of priority
infrastructure projects. People that we're hearing from are expressing their
concern about this year's budget in many ways, but also very concerned about the
status of projects and projects that they believe and fear may be cancelled or
delayed in this year's budget including, we already know, the Springdale health
centre is being delayed. We're hearing concerns about Coley's Point school. We
know there are concerns about the development of long-term care, also the
Trans-Labrador Highway needs investment.
So I ask
the Premier: Can you advise or confirm for us if a list of infrastructure
projects and timelines will be included in this year's budget?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
There
will be major infrastructure investments into the Province of Newfoundland and
Labrador. So when the Member opposite speaks about delays in infrastructure, I'm
just surprised that he raises some of those because they were the very projects
that they delayed for many years.
The
budget tomorrow will outline infrastructure investments that we will make into
the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador and information about where those
investments are, what will be jointly shared with our federal colleagues.
So we
recognize an investment in infrastructure in our province is important. Number
one, it's important to keep the economy moving. Therefore, tomorrow's budget
will outline many not just about infrastructure of the things that we plan
to do in the future for our province.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Opposition House
Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, before Easter we asked the Minister of Finance if she would be keeping
her election promise to achieve $50 million in revenue from the sale of unused
assets. The minister said these decisions could not be rushed but her election
plan promised $50 million in revenue in this fiscal year.
I ask
the minister: In the budget tomorrow, have you determined which assets your
government will be selling this year, and will your plan and list be laid out in
budget one on Thursday, or budget two in this fall?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
I thank the Member opposite
for the question. I look forward to answering all the questions on the details
of the budget when the budget is released to the people of the province, which
will happen tomorrow.
When it
comes to decisions about the sale of assets that the government currently owns,
those decisions will be made when we review the assets that we have available.
We make decisions in the best interests of the people of the province.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Opposition House
Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I remind
the minister that the commitment was made for this fiscal year, for the $50
million of assets to be disposed and it would be a revenue generator for this
fiscal year.
Are you
saying that's not the case, they won't be shown this year as $50 million in
revenues as you indicated you could do and would do in this fiscal year?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, the Member
opposite is certainly aware of the budget process. Tomorrow as we unveil the
budget and we take the other actions that we're going to take over the course of
the next number of months to correct the fiscal situation that the province
finds itself in today, based on the actions of former administrations, we'll
certainly be making the information public to the people of the province when we
make those decisions.
Our
intention is to make sure that any assets that are not generating cash or have
cash stranded in them are made available to use for the people of the province
so we can lower the amount of borrowing that we're doing. Nobody in this House
I'm sure, the people of the province don't want us to be investing and spending
money when we don't need to borrow. Certainly if there are opportunities to sell
assets to get money, we will do that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Opposition House
Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
So I guess the answer is no,
Mr. Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, a December 22 directive spoke about the reduction of consultants used
by government.
I ask
the Minister of Finance: How many consultant contracts have been eliminated
since your December 22 directive?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, that one's a
relatively easy one. Every consultant contract that we didn't need was the ones
that we eliminated.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Opposition House
Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Mr. Speaker, the question was
how many. So you know the ones that were eliminated, how many were eliminated?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Finance and President of Treasury Board.
MS. C. BENNETT:
Mr. Speaker, every minister
and every deputy minister and leader of an agency, board and commission was
directed to take a look at consultants that they might be using and, in all
cases, those decisions were left to and encouraged and followed up on by
Finance. We certainly encourage those departments, agencies, boards and
commissions to continue to take very clear analysis of whether or not they are
going to use consultants.
To the
Member opposite if he would like to get a detailed list of all the consultants
that we use or we don't use, he can certainly drop by my office and we'll have
that chat.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Opposition House
Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
So she doesn't know. She said
there was ones that were cancelled but she can't give us the numbers of which
ones they were.
Mr.
Speaker, the Ernst & Young report yesterday on Muskrat Falls, the Minister of
Natural Resources indicated that she would accept all of Ernst & Young's
recommendations.
I ask
the minister: Has she lost faith in the oversight committee chaired by the
Clerk, as well the Nalcor leadership team, as she indicated she would
automatically accept all the recommendations?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
MS. COADY:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
The
Ernst & Young did an incredibly important piece of work for the province. It was
very important to have this independent review of the Muskrat Falls Project, and
of course, as I indicated yesterday, the cost schedule is being re-baselined and
we hope some components of it will be available by the end of May.
Regarding the oversight committee and the project governance, we are
strengthening project governance and we will be expanding the oversight
committee. As Ernst & Young cited in its report, its recommendation was that we
have independence on the oversight committee, and that is something we will be
doing.
Thank
you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Opposition House
Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, I remind the minister that Ernst & Young was involved in the prior
quarter oversight committee report. So they were already involved in oversight
in regard to Muskrat Falls and involved with it through the oversight committee.
Again, I
ask her: Based on your suggestions yesterday that all recommendations after the
$1.7 million you spent or maybe more, you'd automatically accept those
recommendations. Are you going to do those in isolation of the oversight
committee now, Nalcor management team, and do you have that confidence still in
the management team and the oversight committee that now exists?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
MS. COADY:
As I said, Mr. Speaker, we
will be adopting all recommendations that are in the interim EY report that was
released yesterday. That specifically does mention project governance, and we
will be working on expanding and improving upon project governance. We will be
adding independence and expanding the oversight committee, as was requested in
the EY report.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Opposition House
Leader.
MR. HUTCHINGS:
Mr. Speaker, my understanding
is Ernst & Young had access to the information with Nalcor.
I'm just
wondering if the minister could identify what information her and her officials
couldn't get access to that Ernst & Young was needed to get access to that
information?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
MS. COADY:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank
you for the question. It wasn't a matter of access to information. The former
government had access to information. It was very important for this new
government in its earliest days to have an independent review of the Muskrat
Falls Project. EY brought in experts that had been involved in massive projects,
public sector projects. They have a depth of expertise. They reviewed and
compared and reviewed the costs and schedule from September, 2015. They will be
reviewing the re-baseline. They had some excellent recommendations to Nalcor, as
well as to this government, and we will be 'actioning' all those
recommendations.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Mr. Speaker, only a couple of
weeks ago government released the What We
Are Hearing document. This document notes: shutting down rural health
clinics, forced amalgamation and centralization of services. The Minister
Responsible for the Office of Public Engagement stated that the ideas would be
made into actions that will be reflected into the budget this Thursday, this
fall and in the budget next year.
I ask
the minister: How much of this document will be acted upon in budget number one
on Thursday versus budget number two this fall? Which budget will be an attack
on rural Newfoundland?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
MS. COADY:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
Thank
you for your question. Yes, we did, indeed, release a
What We Are Hearing document. It was exactly what we were hearing.
Over a
thousand people took time from their busy lives to come share with this new
government some of the things they thought were important, changes that they
think should be enacted. It was a discussion document. It was, as it was titled,
what we are hearing. It did not necessarily mean that it will all show up in a
budget document or that it would all show up in terms of what we are going to be
able to implement.
It was
what we were hearing. It was a reflection of those ideas.
Thank
you very much.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Member for Fortune Bay
Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Mr. Speaker, in reading the
document there's a reoccurring theme that singles out rural Newfoundlanders and
Labradorians; items such as forced amalgamations, sharing or eliminating of
local services and reductions in health care.
Given
that rural Newfoundland and Labrador represents 51 per cent of our population, I
ask the minister: If these suggestions are turned into actions, how hard will
rural Newfoundland and Labrador be hit when you finally make some decisions?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
MS. COADY:
Thank you very much for the
question. I appreciate it, Mr. Speaker.
The
people of this province, over a thousand people in this province came out to a
number of sessions we held around the province. Some 30,000 people went on the
app that we had available to them so they could have a dialogue.
This was
raw data that we were able to reflect in the
What We Are Hearing. It is exactly what we were hearing from the
people of this Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was their suggestions,
their ideas. We committed to ensuring that we produced a document of what we
were hearing and we've done just that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Conception Bay South.
MR. PETTEN:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, Monday when I asked, the Minister of Transportation was quick to boast
about the new process adopted by this government. He promised to take the
politics out of roadwork. All was going well until the minister admitted he sent
a list to the Premier for approval before sign-off.
Mr.
Speaker, I ask the minister: How is sending a list to the Premier for sign-off
taking the politics out of anything?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Transportation and Works.
MR. HAWKINS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'd like
to thank the Member opposite for his question and let him understand that it
went to the Premier's Office and the Premier did not make any changes.
As a
matter of fact, contrary to what the Member was saying, the last question that
he asked in the House was the fact that he had some idea that we weren't giving
the information. I want to point out, Mr. Speaker, that we indeed gave that
information. Not only did we give the information of the number of roads that
we're doing, we also printed the format and the criteria that we use to
determine what roads were going to be used and what needed repairs.
The
Member opposite should really start looking and doing his homework and seeing
what's going on and what we're doing.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Conception Bay South.
MR. PETTEN:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I have
another question. I'm going to come back to that, minister, but I wanted another
go at this politics question.
A
promise to taking politics out of the process is reminiscent of the Liberals
flawed signature piece of legislation currently before the House in Bill 1. You
promised a process of merit-based, non-political decision making but in reality
offered nothing but window dressing.
I ask
the Minister of Transportation and Works once more: Who directed you to send the
list for the 40 district to the Premier for sign-off?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Transportation and Works.
MR. HAWKINS:
Mr. Speaker, I can fully
understand why the Members opposite have a real problem in understanding how you
take politics out of this, what we are doing. I really have a real problem with
that.
It went
to the minister because we have the courtesy when we are Cabinet ministers, we
have the courtesy of informing the Premier of what we're doing. We don't leave
the Premier in the dark. So part of the process is that when the roads came to
me, I signed off on them without making any changes. They went to the Premier's
Office so that he would be well aware of what we were going to be announcing.
Let me
tell you something, the Premier did not change anything there. We announced the
roads without political interference for the first time in the history of this
province, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Conception Bay South.
MR. PETTEN:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I thank
the minister for his response. I'm not sure if politics was taken out of
anything but I'll stick to that.
I'm
going to ask another question that will probably tie it all together again.
AN HON. MEMBER:
That will be helpful.
MR. PETTEN:
Yes, it will be helpful.
Why an
ATIPP request provided a short list of approved roadwork projects? It was almost
a little bit bigger than a postage stamp. It completely failed to provide a
complete list of all the projects. I do have experience in that department. I do
know what the priority list is like, it's pretty extensive. Why wasn't the list
with all the projects (inaudible) an entire priority list shown? No.
I ask
the Minister of Transportation and Works: In the spirit of openness and
transparency, will you now table the entire I don't care which ones were
approved the entire list with the scores attached?
Thank
you.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Transportation and Works.
MR. HAWKINS:
Mr. Speaker, thank you to the
Member opposite for his question.
Again,
I'll state that I know the way in which we are doing things is being open and
transparent. I know it's very difficult for the Members opposite to understand
that process, but what we are doing is we are not doing it piecemeal. We are
looking at a broader picture when we look at infrastructure.
Part of
what we did, we are actually doing $18 million of work that this particular
government failed when they put tenders out in September knowing quite well that
the work wasn't going to be done in 2015. As a result of that, Mr. Speaker, we
now have to pick up the work that they didn't complete last time. We're working
with that and we will also work on the infrastructure piece that we have going
forward that we have put to the new Building Canada Fund and also to the federal
government to try to look for funding. That's what we are going to be doing, Mr.
Speaker.
Thank
you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for Cape
St. Francis.
MR. K. PARSONS:
So I guess the minister is
not going to supply the list. That's what all that just meant.
Mr.
Speaker, the minister's statement today talked about the devastation in Bay de
Verde. I understand, and I think it's great that the minister, the Minister of
Municipal Affairs and the Premier will be out in that community this evening. As
I stated in my comments, a lot of people, 700 people were employed in this
plant. This is the time of year when the crab season starts, unemployment is
over and people are really in desperate need.
I'd like
to ask the minister: What programs are you going to be offering the people of
Bay de Verde and the people who work in these communities to assist them,
because this is a real serious time of need for these people?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Fisheries and Aquaculture.
MR. CROCKER:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I thank
the Member for his question. I would like to take a moment, Mr. Speaker, to
thank all Members of the House on both sides
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. CROCKER:
for the genuine concern
they have shown for the people affected in Monday's fire.
I say to
the Member opposite, like he reiterated, the Premier, Minister Joyce and myself
will be in Bay de Verde this afternoon and we will be meeting with the company,
the town and other stakeholders involved to get a better grasp on the numbers of
people that are going to need assistance. If the Member wishes, we will
certainly update him as soon as the information becomes available on those
numbers.
Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for Cape
St. Francis for a very quick question.
MR. K. PARSONS:
Oh, a very quick question.
Mr.
Speaker, 700 people were really affected. Harvesters are also really affected.
The crab fishery started I know in my own area fishermen only went to the
water on Monday for the first time.
I am
wondering if the minister knows the contingency plans that are in place with
Quinlan Brothers. And can he show the House that none of the crab will be sent
off to another province or anywhere else to be processed?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Fisheries and Aquaculture.
MR. CROCKER:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr.
Speaker, to the question of the raw material, Quinlan Brothers has been very
active in the past two or three days making sure their buy of raw material is
allocated to plants throughout the province. That's one of their main concerns.
In a release yesterday to the media, they've reassured their harvesters they
will continue to purchase their product and ensure their product is processed to
the best interests of the people that were already employees of their
facilities.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for St.
John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
Nalcor
CEO Ed Martin has said Muskrat Falls construction contracts were unit priced and
that those prices were fixed, helping to provide some cost certainty for the
project budget. EY reports that, in reality, the MFG concrete contract is based
on person hours of labour expended, rather than the amount of concrete poured.
I ask
the Premier: Is Mr. Martin right and EY wrong, or are EY right and Mr. Martin
wrong?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The
Muskrat Falls Project, there are a number of different components to it. There
would be, essentially, about eight major contractors when you look at the
project in a general sense. The one that the Member opposite is referring to,
which would be around the powerhouse and the work that's done by a major
contractor, that actual budget or that tender package is actually divided into a
couple of different components. One would be around person-hours, and the second
one would be around materials, or essentially the concrete that's provided for
the project. So I think that's what the Member is talking about.
The
particular contract that she's referring to, I believe, is the one that refers
to the pouring of concrete that has two separate components one on person
labour hours, and the second one on materials.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for St.
John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
Before I
ask my next question, I invite the Premier to table the documentation to back up
what he has just said.
Mr.
Speaker, the province's Public Utilities Board was never given a true
opportunity to review the Muskrat Falls Project. The Nova Scotia government
ensured their board, the UARB, was given full oversight of the Maritime Link
Project to ensure Nova Scotian ratepayers were protected.
I ask
the Premier: Given the revelations in EY's interim report, will the Premier now
ask the PUB to assume oversight of the project?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Well,
proper oversight is something we had called for many times during the Muskrat
Falls debate we had in the House of Assembly. I'm sure the Member opposite can
remember those long evenings and those days we had here.
Right
now, this project is essentially well underway. In your scenario, the PUB would
have been in involved earlier, like it was in Nova Scotia. It was UARB that
actually went in. They reviewed the Emera piece of the project. It was on behalf
of the work they had done with Nova Scotia that there was actually an
intervention, if you remember, and there were some amendments made to this
project.
In this
particular case right here, what we have is a project, as I said, well underway.
We're well into the budget of this. So to delay right now, to cause much
disruption in terms of a massive review by the PUB in this particular case, what
we will do is look at the recommendations of EY and the recommendations that are
there to provide more oversight. These are the actions we will take based on the
recommendations we have.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for St.
John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
I ask the Premier: Will he
tell us what action he is going to take? He has to know by now what action he is
going to take to strengthen the governance.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER BALL:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The EY
recommendations are out there, so we have a number of options that are available
to us. This is a megaproject where we see many Newfoundlanders and Labradorians
right now who are currently employed on the project. We will look at the
individuals, the people who are available to us that could actually beef up and
strengthen the oversight on this particular project right now. These are the
actions we will take.
We've
been working very closely with the minister here who has accepted responsibility
for this. The EY report, as you have seen, you have that, the action that we
will take will stem from the recommendations from the EY report.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for St.
John's Centre.
MS. ROGERS:
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of
Natural Resources has again said that the Muskrat Falls Project is too far along
to stop.
I ask
the minister: If her government believes in evidence-based decision making, will
she table the specific evidence and decision-making process she used on which
she based her decisions?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
MS. COADY:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I
appreciate the question. As the Premier just mentioned, the project is far
along. We did review the entire project itself. We looked at our commitments. We
looked at our contracts. We looked at the loan guarantee. We looked at our
commitments to the Province of Nova Scotia through Emera. We looked at all of
these aspects and it has been determined in the best interest of this province
that we must continue on with the project. We will be ensuring we will be
diligent in our efforts to ensure that this project is on track from here on in.
Thank
you very much.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The time for Question Period
has expired.
Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.
Tabling
of Documents.
Notices
of Motion.
Answers
to Questions for which Notice has been Given.
Petitions.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Government House
Leader.
MR. A. PARSONS:
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to
Standing Order 27, I'd like to call Orders of the Day.
MR. SPEAKER:
I understand there's been
co-operation of all sides of the House.
We now
call Orders of the Day.
Orders of the Day
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Government House
Leader.
MR. A. PARSONS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I would
like to say, before I move forward, that I appreciate the consent of both
parties as we move forward and get consent to do third reading of these two
bills, Bills 7 and 8.
Mr.
Speaker, I call Order 2, third reading of Bill 7.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded
by the Government House Leader, that Bill 7, An Act To Amend The Vital
Statistics Act, 2009, be now read a third time.
MR. SPEAKER:
It is moved and seconded that
this bill be now read a third time.
Is it
the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion that the bill be read a third
time?
All
those in favour, 'aye.'
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Aye.
MR. SPEAKER:
Those against?
Carried.
CLERK:
A bill, An Act To Amend The
Vital Statistics Act, 2009. (Bill 7)
MR. SPEAKER:
Bill 7, An Act To Amend The
Vital Statistics Act, 2009, has now been read a third time and it is ordered
that the bill do pass and its title be as on the Order Paper.
On
motion, a bill, An Act To Amend The Vital Statistics Act, 2009, read a third
time, ordered passed and its title be as on the Order Paper. (Bill 7)
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Government House
Leader.
MR. A. PARSONS:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'd now
like to call from the Order Paper, Order 3, third reading of Bill 8.
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of
Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded
by the Government House Leader, that Bill 8, An Act To Amend The Change of Name
Act, 2009, be now read a third time.
MR. SPEAKER:
It is moved and seconded that
the said bill be now read a third time.
Is it
the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion that the bill be read
The hon.
the Minister of Municipal Affairs.
MR. JOYCE:
Mr. Speaker, I'm just going
to have one word on this. I want to thank all Members in the House of Assembly.
Mr.
Speaker, this was a bill that was brought forth, it was put in the House of
Assembly yesterday, went through the three readings and will receive royal
assent today. With the Day of Pink, it shows that all Members in this House of
Assembly, the Members opposite and the Members of the NDP, are all concerned
about this bill. I just want to thank everybody in the House of Assembly who
spoke to the bill. I thank all the Members for speaking so well on the bill.
They expressed their views, and now, like I said yesterday, this is a proud bill
for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians that people could have pride. People can
now have dignity.
I just
wanted to thank all Members, because this is a bill that went through this House
very, very quickly. I mentioned yesterday, the Opposition had the bill ready to
go in the House. We brought the bill in, the NDP supported it. So I thank all
Members of the House of Assembly for recognizing this and what better day.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
Is it the pleasure of the
House to adopt the motion that Bill 8 be now read a third time?
All
those in favour, 'aye.'
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Aye.
MR. SPEAKER:
All those against, 'nay.'
Carried.
CLERK:
A bill, An Act To Amend The
Change Of Name Act, 2009. (Bill 8)
MR. SPEAKER:
Bill 8, An Act To Amend The
Change Of Name Act, 2009, has now been read a third time and it is ordered that
the bill do pass and its title be as on the Order Paper.
On
motion, a bill, An Act To Amend The Change Of Name Act, 2009, read a third
time, ordered passed and its title be as on the Order Paper. (Bill 8)
Private Members'
Day
MR. SPEAKER:
It being Private Members'
Day, I now call on the Member to present the private Member's resolution.
The hon.
the Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
It's
certainly a great honour for me here today to bring forward this very important
private Member's motion to the hon. House of Assembly of Newfoundland and
Labrador here assembled.
I will
be moving today, Mr. Speaker, the following motion:
WHEREAS
the remains of a Beothuk woman named Demasduit, and her husband, a chief named
Nonosbawsut, have for many years been in storage in Edinburgh at the National
Museum of Scotland; and
WHEREAS
the remains of these Aboriginal people of Newfoundland and Labrador should be
repatriated to Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, and laid to rest in the place
where the Beothuk people lived;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that this hon. House call upon the Government of the
United Kingdom to facilitate the repatriation of the remains of Demasduit and
Nonosbawsut to Canada so that they may be laid to rest with dignity.
Mr.
Speaker, this is, as I started out in my opening, such an important and historic
day for us here in Newfoundland and Labrador, because we are officially
advancing the process of repatriation of Demasduit and Nonosbawsut. We want to
bring them home to their native homeland. We want to bring them home to
Newfoundland and Labrador.
It has been a great pleasure for me over the last year
or so to work with Saqamaw Mi'sel Joe and the Miawpukek Band Council on this
very important initiative. Many of you may know Saqamaw Joe, and I certainly
attest and those of you who know him can attest that he is very committed and
very passionate about returning Demasduit and Nonosbawsut to their native land
where they can be laid to rest with their ancestors.
He has been pursuing this aggressively and has
personally travelled to Scotland twice so far in his quest. The first trip
occurred from October 3 to 9 in 2014 where he established some contacts and
initiated discussion. He then made a second trip in late April of 2015 where he
had the honour and privilege of being in the same room as the remains of
Demasduit and Nonosbawsut. There he conducted a traditional smudge sweetgrass
ceremony, which is the purification ritual, Mr. Speaker. He relayed to me that
it was an incredibly powerful experience and one he will cherish forever.
Since his return back from Scotland, he has been
ramping up his efforts and he has enlisted the assistance of myself, as his MHA,
and his federal MP for parliamentary support at both provincial and national
levels in Canada. He has spoken several times with media on programs such as CBC
CrossTalk and on the
Central Morning Show to increase
awareness of his efforts and garner further support, Mr. Speaker.
He has indeed already received a significant amount
of support with letters of support from the national chief of the Assembly of
First Nations, Qualipu, the Atlantic Policy Congress of the First Nations and
the Innu Nation.
I first brought this motion
to the floor, Mr. Speaker, last spring, on June 11, 2015, and the House closed
before we were able to debate the motion. I am absolutely elated to be back here
and completing this very important step in the repatriation process.
AN HON. MEMBER:
An important thing to
do.
MS. PERRY:
A very important thing to
do.
I am very pleased to report
to this hon. House that last year, after the motion was brought forward but,
like I said, we never had the chance to debate it, the former minister of
Aboriginal Affairs, and an Aboriginal person himself, Keith Russell, took the
initiative to write the director of National Museums in Scotland, Edinburgh, and
that letter was sent officially on June 15. It has started the official request
for repatriation. So the process is underway and we certainly thank the former
minister of Aboriginal Affairs for being very quick to get that addressed, Mr.
Speaker.
The return of their remains
is important to all of us in this Nation we call Canada. The Beothuk are an
integral part of our history here in this province and they deserve the highest
respect. While we certainly do trust that the remains are being stored properly,
these remains are of particular importance to the people of Newfoundland and
Labrador. In fact, under Newfoundland and Labrador's law, the
Historic Resources Act holds that The
property in all archeological objects, whether or not those objects are in the
possession of the Crown, is vested in the Crown.
There is no doubt in any of our minds, as people who
reside in this province, that Demasduit and Nonosbawsut are of significant
historical importance, Mr. Speaker. All Aboriginal communities in our province
have a very important historical significance and the Beothuk, some may say,
particularly so. Indeed, Demasduit and Nonosbawsut can be considered famous.
They are well known and their story is well known, Mr. Speaker.
The Government of Canada has also clearly acknowledged
this. On July 26, 2007, the hon. Loyola Hearn, who was then minister responsible
for Newfoundland and Labrador, held a ceremony at Botwood to erect a Historic
Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaque commemorating Demasduit for the
contribution she made in preserving the language of the Beothuk. As such, Mr.
Speaker, she is officially recognized as a person of National Historical
Significance for an entire country.
Despite the great adversity she faced, she helped to
keep the legacy of her people alive and provided a remarkable record of the
Beothuk language with over 180 words, including the word Beothuk. Madam Speaker,
we have that knowledge because of Demasduit and the knowledge she shared with
Europeans before she passed. In honour of her memory and significance, today I
want to enter into the record of Assembly some of the history of these
incredible people who once roamed our coastline and our interior as a way of
life.
Beothuk lived a semi-nomadic lifestyle living around
the lakeshores of the interior during the winter, where they hunted caribou and
other game, then travelling to the coast during the summers for food, mainly
salmon and seal. Nonosbawsut, a chief, and his wife Demasduit, were among the
last of their tribe. Their story is indeed tragic. Nonosbawsut was killed in a
conflict while trying to protect his wife from capture. Two days later, their
young son, whom she was nursing, also passed away.
Upon her capture, Demasduit was brought to Twillingate.
Many may know Demasduit as Mary March, the Christian name she was given while
living there with a Church of England priest, Reverend John Leigh and his
family. He named her Mary after the Virgin Mother Mary and March for the month
of her capture.
Eventually, she was taken to St. John's where she made
quite a favourable impression with those who were fortunate enough to meet her.
In fact, they were so taken with her and so upset about her capture that a group
of influential, high-society residents set out to raise the funds to return her
to her home in the interior. Sadly, she died on route of the dreaded
tuberculosis. They did bring her body back to the Beothuk campsite where her
people placed her body with that of her husband, Nonosbawsut, in a sepulchre.
During her time in the capital, she was a frequent
visitor to the governor and Lady Hamilton painted her portrait. Her beautiful
image hangs proudly in the corridor of this Chamber.
Demasduit and Nonosbawsut were kin to another famous
Beothuk, Shanawdithit. They were her aunt and uncle. According to the limited
knowledge we do have, nearly a decade after their death, their skulls were
removed from their burial site and transferred to the University of Edinburgh by
William Cormack in 1828 and, later, they were transferred to the National Museum
of Scotland. Cormack was born in Newfoundland, but educated in Scotland and held
a very close relationship with the university. Their remains have been stored in
Scotland ever since. Nearly 200 years now, Madam Speaker.
During my research for today's bill, I was pleasantly
surprised to learn that members of the Scottish Parliament have also brought a
motion to the floor of their House for the repatriation of the Beothuk back to
Canada, back to Newfoundland and Labrador. There motion acknowledges that
remains are of cultural and ethnic significance to us and commends the work of
Chief Mi'sel Joe and the Miawpukek First Nation to achieve this.
Madam Speaker, we all certainly acknowledge the good
work done by the Scottish Museum and other Scottish institutions in respecting
the bodies of our Beothuk, but we feel very strongly that they deserve to be
brought back home. We will accept nothing less because they deserve nothing
less. Their remains are sacred and they should be returned home. It is the right
thing to do. We must not stop our efforts until we reach success.
I'm absolutely honoured that we are debating this
motion here today. I look forward to the full support of this hon. House, Madam
Speaker. Many of us, those of us who are fortunate enough in particular to study
Newfoundland culture and heritage during our high school curriculum, learned a
lot about the Beothuk. I find myself enthralled with every piece of literature
that I do write. I thoroughly enjoy my
discussions I have with Chief Mi'sel Joe regarding their way of life and
regarding the significance and just how important it is to the Aboriginal people
of this province and to all of us living here in Newfoundland and Labrador that
they have returned to their rightful home to be laid to rest where they died
with their ancestors.
I truly
hope that this important step, this is the second step the official letter has
been made. As I said, the letter of request has been done by Minister Russell
and will continue I'm sure to be followed up by the present day government. I
trust that some of my hon. colleagues across the way will champion and see that
this does indeed get done, Madam Speaker. I certainly hope we are all around
when the day comes that they are actually brought back home so they can be laid
to rest.
Thank
you very much. I look forward to hearing what the other speakers have to say. I
am confident we will have full support.
Thank
you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MADAM SPEAKER (Dempster):
The hon. the
Member for Torngat Mountains.
MR. EDMUNDS:
Thank you, Madam Speaker.
I thank
my hon. colleague. I remember it was just last spring that she had proposed to
bring this statement forward but the House of Assembly adjourned before it could
be done.
It is in
reference to a very dark time in our history. Samuel G. Morton, a renowned
scientist in the 19th century, once stated: Races are not varieties of human
kind but rather separate inferior species. Madam Speaker, that's the attitude
that justified slavery and extermination of Aboriginal people. That was over 100
years ago.
Madam
Speaker, one of those peoples that are no longer with us, probably the first
people of this Island, is the Beothuks. They were hunters and gathers that lived
on the coast and actually travelled inland with the arrival of the Europeans to
get away from sickness and extermination or war. In the end, the whole tribe
perished.
Like my
hon. colleague said, Shanawdithit was the last remaining Beothuk and she passed
away in 1829. The repatriation case that we're talking about now is her uncle
and her aunt, Demasduit and Nonosbawsut. Her husband was killed in an
altercation. I won't get into detail because my hon. colleague had made
reference to it already.
When we
looked at the research, there were a lot of conflicting stories I'm sure my
hon. colleagues saw the same thing in terms of the names, the dates and the
English names that were attached. Shanawdithit was also known as Mary March, and
then another page said Demasduit was Mary March. There is a lot of conflict, but
I suppose when there's no one left out of people to explain it, these questions
will arise. Demasduit was taken back, she was captured. She eventually died of
tuberculosis and was taken back to her place of capture and buried.
My hon.
colleague referenced Mr. Cormack who somewhat stood up for the Beothuks, but
actually was the same person who removed the bodies, removed the skulls and
transported them to England. Craniology was a big study in the 19th century and
probably hence the reason for bringing the skulls to England. They eventually
ended up in Scotland, which brings us to where we are today.
This is
not just an isolated incident. About eight or 10 years ago we went through the
same process and brought back 180 of our ancestors from museums in Europe. We
laid them to their final resting place on Rose Island in Saglek Fjord. A little
while after we brought back 18 more and laid them to rest in Zoar, which is
about 30 miles south of Nain.
It's not
an easy process to just go over and say we want our ancestors back. In the case
of the Beothuks, you have to prove relations. Madam Speaker, if there's no one
left of your people, it's hard to prove relations. In some of the cases with the
Inuit repatriation, some of the family names that exist today, like Nochasak,
were actually the first names of some of the ancestors that were taken to
Europe. So there was a connection.
I talked
to a lady named France Rivet who did a lot of groundwork in the Abraham Ulrikab
story, where there are still eight Inuit ancestors at the national French
museum. She gave me a lot of insight into the process of getting your ancestors
back from foreign countries. It's a lot of work by a lot of people.
In the
case of getting our ancestors back, it went through the department of foreign
relations with the Government of Canada, and the European governments that held
possession of our ancestors at the time. It's a back and forth process; it's not
an easy process.
Coming
back to the Beothuk remains; we went out, myself and the Premier, to Conne River
last July and attended the powwow. We actually took some time to sit down with
the Miawpukek First Nation. One of the items on the agenda was the plan to
repatriate the remains of Demasduit and Nonosbawsut.
I've
talked to Chief Mi'sel Joe several times, and actually quite recently. He talked
a little bit of the frustration of the process. I think he's been to Scotland
twice; he's been over to Europe three times. He's met with the federal member,
MP Scott Simms, on due process and I was glad to hear of the work that was done
by the previous government. I just want to say, quite plainly, we will continue
that work. I'd like to be able to stand here and say the work will stop when
Nonosbawsut and Demasduit are returned to their resting place.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. EDMUNDS:
I won't go on too long
because my hon. colleague has given a lot of depth and detail, but I'd just like
to talk about another family that were invited to Europe in 1880. At the time in
Europe disease was running rampant, and unless you were immune to it or
immunized, then you were subject to it. These eight people included Abraham
Ulrikab and his family, wife and two daughters; Tigianniak and his family, wife
and daughter; and a young fellow name Tobias.
Now,
Madam Speaker, they weren't immunized when they got to Europe. As a consequence,
they all died from disease in Europe, and their remains are in a museum in
France.
I guess the current incoming president from Nunatsiavut, Mr. Johannes Lampe, did
travel over to Europe and went through that process. I talked to him afterwards
and he said it was very moving, it was very emotional and I know Chief Mi'sel
Joe said the same thing that it just strengthens your mandate to get your
ancestors back.
One thing that our government outlined in the Five
Point Plan for A Stronger Tomorrow was to work with all parties involved on all
levels of government, including international, to repatriate Nonosbawsut and
Demasduit and all of our ancestors, hopefully, that we can find outside of our
province and bring them home to their resting place.
Thank you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
MADAM SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.
MR. PETTEN:
Thank you, Madam Speaker.
It is a great pleasure to rise on this private
Member's motion today and support the call for the repatriation of the remains
of two of the last Beothuks. You might have to pardon me for pronunciations,
because I try, of the Chief Nonosbawsut and his wife Demasduit.
I first of all want to congratulate my
colleague, the MHA for Fortune Bay Cape la Hune, for educating us and being
passionate and supporting Chief Mi'sel Joe on this private Member's motion for
repatriation. She is very passionate about it. I just want to commend her for
keeping it alive and educating all of us. She has been very vocal on the issue
and I just want to acknowledge her for that.
Madam Speaker, children in our school system are
taught about the history of the Beothuk people in our province. I lived in
Newfoundland all my life and one time or another the Beothuks are a part of our
culture and it is part of who we are. They go back hundreds of years. I believe
right now it is part of the grade five, grade eight curriculums. I believe
repatriating these remains of these two individuals will bring the classroom to
life for these students.
It will help the students with their studies and
also serve as an educational tool for all of us because we should never forget
our past. As they say, you have to know where you come from before you know
where you are going. The Beothuks are deeply rooted in our culture, and it is
something that we should be aware of. I'm sure everyone in this hon. House is.
The discussion that we are having here today
should pique the interest of some members of the public. Through that, they will
remember the contributions the Beothuks have made to the province. But by
bringing the remains back to the province where they belong, they could serve as
a constant reminder to adults and children alike of the history of the Beothuks.
Madam Speaker, students in our province will be
familiar with the stories of Nonosbawsut and Demasduit. Nonosbawsut was a
Beothuk chief who died in March of 1819 in a conflict with the Europeans, as
we've already heard. He died protecting his wife and young infant son, which is
kind of a sad tale actually. When you look back, it's pretty basic we look now
and see wars happening around the world and people getting repatriated. We've
seen it in Afghanistan on a weekly basis. Unfortunately, bodies were brought
back home. There's a very solemn, somber ceremony held every time they come
back. It was almost a televised event. There are not many here who did not watch
a body after a war being returned to the country. It's a very solemn
reminder what was happening around.
When we ask about the Beothuks and repatriating these
remains, it's no different. It's only we're looking at something that happened
over 200 years ago. They should be brought back to their rightful place and
repatriated here. It's great to see the Scottish museum has done a great job
in preserving these remains, but they should be returned home. It's only the
right thing to do. I sure hope that our provincial government will lobby, in
conjunction with the federal government, and make representation to the
Government of Scotland to, in fact, have those remains repatriated.
As I said, the chief died in conflict and his wife,
Demasduit, was captured. There were among the last Beothuk people in our
province, which is another sad statement. After the capture, Demasduit was taken
to Twillingate, as we have all heard, and she lived with the priest. It's kind
of sad her remains never stayed in Newfoundland and they ended up in Scotland.
But, I guess, that's a history lesson in itself. It's part of the reason we're
stood here today, like I just said, debating, trying to get the federal
government to come on board and get these remains repatriated.
When you consider it, we're not really asking for a
lot. Chief Mi'sel Joe went there and did the sweetgrass ceremony which was very
touching for them. We seem to be asking a pretty basic question, though bring
them home where they belong. Repatriation may not necessarily mean Newfoundland.
We don't know, but I think they belong in Canada, Newfoundland preferably, but
somewhere they can be preserved for years to come and people can respect and
visit and do what's required.
During the summer of 1819, as I said, there were a
number of attempts made to return her to her people. As we heard, she
subsequently died of tuberculous which, again, is a sad story. The Beothuk, I
think, is a sad chapter in our history which we can't reverse, but doing
something right is never a bad thing. It happened. It's in the past and as we
all learn through schools and we all know any time anyone talked about the
Beothuks, it was pretty unfortunate what happened to a small tribe. I think
anything you can do now it is 200 years later, but I still think it's never
too late to do the right thing.
As I said, those remains are held in a National Museum
in Scotland. They've done a good job respecting these to date, but they do
belong in Canada and preferably in Newfoundland.
The application process has to have the support of the
local provincial government in conjunction with the federal government. From
what I gather, there seems to be a joint feeling. Everyone is on the same page
with that to get it done. I guess highlighting it through a private Member's
motion is to spur the conversation because sometimes things like these can get
lost in the shuffle of bigger things, like tomorrow brings, and every other day
in government.
It's good for my colleague to keep it to the front
burner because stuff like this unfortunately can get lost in the cracks. I
really do hope that both governments come together and do what's right.
As I said, Madam Speaker, Beothuks once were very
populous in our province and at the time of John Cabot's arrival we had upwards
to 1,000 individuals. As I said, disease ended up getting them and other causes,
as we all know. There's been a lot of study done on even the remains they have
now. We've discovered what their diet was, what water they drank and where they
lived. It is pretty incredible actually and I think some of those studies were
done on just two teeth from individuals, which is incredible when you look at
what you can learn from DNA.
Bringing the remains back I will say it again is
the right thing to do because they should be brought back where they belong.
I'll be honest, I didn't know all there was to know about this particular case
but after speaking to my colleague, I put a common sense light to it. Why aren't
they here? It's pretty common statement. Why are they over in Scotland when they
are native to Newfoundland, or at least to Canada? At the time it was
Newfoundland because we were our own country. I do hope that there will be
closure for the Beothuk and for these people, and for the people who are
lobbying on their behalf.
As I said, from the DNA we determined they were
semi-Nomadic people who went around the shores and beautiful lakes. We know
about their diet. They
built the mamateeks. I guess now I know where the Mamateek Inn name came from. I
wasn't really familiar at first. I didn't realize it at first but now I've
educating myself on that.
I do
hope that all Members of the House will support this resolution, and the
provincial government works with the federal government and the Scottish
government, the National Museum of Scotland to have these remains repatriated.
In the
past several years, as I mentioned just briefly, Chief Mi'sel Joe has been a
great advocate for this. He should be recognized because he has done a lot of
work. Like I said, he travelled to Scotland. He's done the sawgrass ceremony and
he has been a very vocal advocate to get these remains repatriated. He's close
to my colleague and he has lobbied her as well. He should be commended for that.
The
Assembly of First Nations, all chief assemblies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick,
Prince Edward Island and Quebec, the Innu and other groups, they all support
this. It's pretty unanimous support across the board, Madam Speaker. He has led
the efforts to bring these remains home for some time now and he has worked
tirelessly on this.
As we
all know, he is Chief of the Conne River Reserve. He started this because there
was no one around to speak up for the Beothuk people. If we don't all come
together and speak and try to fix do what's right now, even though it's 200
years later. I commend Mi'sel Joe for taking the cause and speaking up because
it's very important. Like I said, it may get lost in the cracks sometimes but I
don't think we should ever lose sight of the importance of our past.
In
closing, I just want to acknowledge Chief Mi'sel Joe and I encourage all Members
of this hon. House to commend him on his efforts too. I just want to say I
really wish; I really hope that we lobby the federal government to get the
support and join together to lobby the Scottish government and the national
museum of Scotland to bring these remains back home where they belong.
Thank
you, Madam Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MADAM SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Placentia West Bellevue.
MR. BROWNE:
Thank you, Madam Speaker.
We are
here today to bear witness to a tragedy, which is the passing of the Beothuk
people. Madam Speaker, I would ask the consent of all Members for a moment of
silence to reflect upon the passing of the Beothuk before I begin my remarks in
this hon. House of Assembly this afternoon on this private Member's motion.
(Moment
of silence.)
MR. BROWNE:
I thank all Members for their
consent for that moment of solemn reflection, Madam Speaker. I want to thank the
Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune for bringing this motion forward.
Who were
these people, Madam Speaker, who once made use of the rivers, plants, birds,
fish and animals of this land to raise their families, live their lives, and
practice their customs and immerse themselves in their spirituality?
Ingeborg
Marshall, at the launch of her book entitled,
A History and Ethnography of the Beothuk, said:
they were a
heroic people who valued their independence and traditions above all and were
prepared to face hostilities rather than be subjugated.
Before
the arrival of Europeans to this Island, Madam Speaker, the Beothuk lived here
as coastal people, organized in small bands throughout the various bays to fish
and hunt seals, other sea mammals, and birds. They visited interior locations to
take caribou at river crossings.
The
Beothuk lived in bark or skin-covered tents in the summer and in
semi-subterranean houses during the colder months. Bows and arrows, harpoons and
spears were used in hunting, which often took place from sea-worthy bark canoes
with a high prow and stern.
Beothuk
artifacts include carved bone, antler, and ivory pendants intricately decorated
with incised patterns. Their use of red ochre, with which they painted their
canoes, other artifacts, and even their bodies, was responsible for the term
'Red Indians', which later applied to all First Nations peoples. However, the
arrival of Europeans altered the natural rhythms of Beothuk life.
The
Beothuk camped at Red Indian Lake where caribou crossed the Exploits River. This
location also gave the Beothuk access to Notre Dame Bay during the summer, when
they harvested seals, birds and fish. However, Notre Dame Bay also became a
favoured location for settlement by Europeans during the 1700s and animosity
developed between the Beothuk and Europeans.
Firearms, which the Beothuk lacked, made it clear to the Newfoundland
authorities at the time that the Beothuk had to be protected. A proclamation was
issued in 1769 making it a capital crime to murder any Beothuk. For example, the
following excerpt is from the proclamation issued by His Excellency, the Hon.
John Byron in 1769:
it is His Majesty's royal will and pleasure that I do
strictly enjoin and require all His Majesty's subjects to live in amity and
brotherly kindness with the native
Beothuk
of the said island of
Newfoundland.
Unfortunately, Madam Speaker, this increased concern about the welfare of the
Beothuk would have little real effect. In 1792, Captain George Pulling surveyed
the English settlers on the Northeast Coast collecting accounts of actions
against the Beothuk and submitted this report to a parliamentary committee,
although nothing came of his efforts.
governors, beginning with William
Waldegrave in 1797, issued proclamations forbidding attacks on the Beothuk and
offered rewards for making contact with the beleaguered people, but again with
little positive result.
Hostilities continued and in the late winter of 1819, a group of settlers
attacked a Beothuk village on Red Indian Lake and captured Demasduit, after
killing her husband Nonosbawsut.
Demasduit, or Mary March, as her captors
would call her, was sent to Twillingate and then to St. John's to meet the
governor, who ordered her returned to her people. After a futile attempt to
reunite her with the remaining Beothuk, she died aboard Buchan's vessel in
January of 1820. Her body was returned to Red Indian Lake.
Seven
years later, William Cormack's expedition found the burial hut on Red Indian
Lake containing the remains of Demasduit and Nonosbawsut and their child. Later
he had the two adult skulls transported to Scotland where they remain today.
Madam
Speaker, repatriation and reconciliation are now long overdue. These remains
must be returned to their Island home for a respectful and solemn re-interment.
These spirits cannot be at rest in a foreign land. We must bring an end to this
torment and reunite Demasduit and Nonosbawsut with the spirit of the Beothuk
people. We must consecrate the memory of the Beothuk and allow that memory to
take place and a reconciliation in our hearts, and in all that we do as a
government in our relationships with Aboriginal people, and to ensure all
Aboriginal people may achieve their visions.
Much has
been done on reconciliation, but much more remains to be done. I would be remiss
at this point if I did not pay homage as the Member for Fortune Bay Cape La
Hune and the Member for Torngat Mountains did to Chief Mi'sel Joe for
crusading for the repatriation of the remains of Demasduit and Nonosbawsut. He's
been to Scotland twice for this purpose and performed a ceremony with the
remains.
Chief
Mi'sel Joe, I thank you for inspiring all of us to bring those spirits back to
this Island that we share. I wish to assure you, Sir, that we will continue to
work with you in this great and noble cause.
It is,
indeed, inspiring that Aboriginal culture in Newfoundland and Labrador is
expanding. We see the Innu taking control of their education and income support.
The Inuit have established their own government. The Miawpukek First Nation is a
model First Nation in Canada, the Qalipu are experiencing a cultural revival of
epic proportion and the members of NunatuKavut are showing their traditions to
the world.
With
this expansion of Aboriginal culture, it is fortunate that we will still have
the traditions of the Beothuks as told to us by Demasduit, Shanawdithit and
others, and scholars like Ingeborg Marshall to work on these traditions.
We must
honour our Aboriginal heritage and those traditions which is why the Premier
asked the National Museum of Scotland for the return of the remains, which was
outlined as a commitment in his mandate letter. I am very fortunate, Madam
Speaker, to work with him in his capacity as the Minister for Labrador and
Aboriginal Affairs to realize these goals.
Our
government recognized that it is time to lay them to rest with dignity in the
home of the Beothuk. The Museum of Scotland has replied that three conditions
will have to be met. First, the federal government must support the return;
secondly, a national museum must support the return as well. And we will be
working with federal ministers Carolyn Bennett and Joly, as well as the
parliamentary secretary, the Member for Labrador, Yvonne Jones, to see that we
can meet these first two conditions.
We hope
to work with Chief Mi'sel Joe and others to meet the third condition on
Aboriginal participation in the return. Sadly, there is no longer any Beothuk
community to support the return.
As well,
we must continue to reconcile on all fronts. We must bring the Innu Land Claims
to a conclusion. We must effectively work with the federal government and the
Nunatsiavut Government to implement the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement,
and we must build stronger relationships with NunatuKavut, the Qalipu and the
Miawpukek First Nation.
At the
second National Roundtable on Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls in
Winnipeg in February we committed to participate in and fully co-operate with
the National Inquiry into Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls. We
must heed the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that is
a responsibility of this government to address.
We must
ensure provincial programs and services are delivered in culturally appropriate
ways, and we must advance Aboriginal autonomy and aspirations at every
opportunity. We are very pleased that our new prime minister desires a new
relationship with Aboriginal people, especially given the federal government's
exclusive constitution's grant of jurisdiction for Aboriginal people to the
federal government.
We are
also pleased that there is an increased federal funding for Aboriginal people,
including funding for Aboriginal people in this province, like the new federal
$15 million for housing in Nunatsiavut. We want to work in partnership with the
federal government and Aboriginal governments and organizations to create a more
inclusive province where all hopes may be realized.
Madam
Speaker, I want to reiterate again, to say thank you to the Member opposite for
Fortune Bay Cape La Hune for bringing this forward, not only here today but
last year. This is something that she's long worked on and I hope that all
Members of this House will join with she and I to make sure this becomes a
reality moving forward.
I agree
also with the Truth and Reconciliation Commissioner, Justice Sinclair, when he
said: Words are not enough. Reconciliation is not an aboriginal problem it is
a Canadian problem. It involves all of us. Therefore I look forward to that day
when we bring Demasduit and Nonosbawsut back home and that the consecration of
our efforts to the legacy of the Beothuk will cause all of us to live in a
shared province of hope, pride, diversity and happiness, freedom from want and
fear and to never again have a people disappear. That we will feel on our quiet
lakes, ponds and rivers, and barrens and woods the spirit of the Beothuk always
moving in us.
Thank
you, Madam Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MADAM SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for
Conception Bay East Bell Island.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. BRAZIL:
Thank you, Madam Speaker.
It's
indeed a pleasure to stand and speak to this private Member's bill today for a
number of reasons. We've had a very high level of education here when we talk
about an understanding of the Beothuk Indians and the tribe and the historic
significance here and what this repatriation of the two members of the tribe
mean to this province, mean to us historically.
As
parliamentarians we get an opportunity every week, as backbenchers or
Opposition, to present private Members' bills around what we feel are
significant issues, significant pieces of policy or issues that we feel should
be brought out to the public domain for discussion. I want to thank my colleague
the Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune for putting this forward. I know my
history with her going back prior to my political days dictated knowing when she
worked on the Connaigre Peninsula and particularly around the work she did in
Conne River and those areas that this was on her agenda for many years. This is
not just a political issue right now. It's an important issue because it's
significant, not only to the region but to this whole province.
I
support this for a number of reasons, but particularly because this is an
important resolution from a historical point of view and a cultural point of
view, but from a moral point of view. It's the right thing to do. It's the right
place for this to take place. It's the next step, particularly around the
political next step, in moving this forward and making sure that the
repatriation is done in the right manner and expedited as quick as possible.
It's a great opportunity for us to bring back our native sons and daughters back
to their homeland.
My
experience with the native community has come about in the last 30 years from
some direct experiences and working relationships. I have an unbelievable
appreciation now for the cultural significance and the importance around the
spiritual needs, when people need to be repatriated back to the land that they
were the forefathers of. They're the ones who made this province an important
part of our history. It's unfortunate that history didn't deal them the right
set of cards, and history in the previous centuries was cruel and very
devastating to our Aboriginal friends here.
I do
remember, as a young man, my first encounter with various cultures, particularly
around Aboriginal challenges or Aboriginal-unique cultures was when I had the
privilege, with the Leader of the Third Party, of working in Labrador, in
Sheshatshiu, and doing some work with the band council for a period of time and
getting a real understanding, as a young man, not really realizing the cultural
differences and the particular challenges. And particularly, maybe some of the
misunderstandings we have, as a European society, around the cultural needs and
where the Aboriginal and our first settlers here, particularly the Aboriginal
community, about the significance of the land and what it means to them. I got a
great understanding and a great appreciation for what that meant.
When I
was asked to speak to this, I said, of course, I would. I think it's a very
important resolution. I know everybody in this House will support it because, as
I mentioned at the beginning, it's the right thing to do. When you have
champions like Chief Mi'sel Joe who, for the last number of decades, has been
beating the drum around making sure the right thing was done. He has made every
effort through the federal politics, to international politics, to ensure this
wasn't forgotten.
Now
we're at a stage where we have an opportunity to move this to the next level.
I'm glad we're here in the House and we're hearing some very articulate,
committed movers and discussions around exactly how we put this forward.
I did
have the privilege, in a previous life, of doing some work on the Connaigre
Peninsula and getting to go to Conne River, and being part of an Aboriginal
ceremony and getting a better understanding of the cultural needs there; but
getting an understanding, particularly, around the spiritual needs when it comes
to repatriating these two tribes people who, unfortunately, were taken away at a
young age but also were taken away from their homeland.
The
significance of the Beothuks as we all know, historically, and it's been noted
here before, is one of the cornerstones of this great province. It's perhaps one
of the scorns we also have to live with, of how our forefathers came here and
mistreated our Aboriginal friends.
Mr.
Speaker, as was mentioned before, this is about righting a wrong. It's about
doing the right thing. It's about expediting that, so that community can heal
and these individuals, from a spiritual point of view, can get back to their
land.
We talk
a lot about what's gone on in the past, and we talk a lot about historically
what our Aboriginal people mean to us. Mr. Speaker, we have an opportunity now
to make this a very important issue here. I know the discussion here in this
House of Assembly is all about doing the right thing and moving that forward.
It's
important we look at not only this part of our Aboriginal needs, but how we also
improve the Aboriginal stake for our other Aboriginal communities that we have
in this province it's an important part of it. This brings to light injustice
done in the past, but we want to ensure we continue to move things forward in
the present. It's very important to all of our cultural needs here.
I do
want to go back to my time in Conne River and an understanding that the people
there have a unique connection to the land. Again, from a spiritual point of
view, and I don't consider myself overly spiritual at times, but it was moving,
because of their respect for the land itself, their understanding of the land
and what it means for them.
So as we
go back and we reflect on exactly what this bill is about and what this member's
statement is about, it's particularly around doing what's right, bringing two
native citizens back to their homeland. It's about now taking this and moving to
the next level.
This
also gives us an opportunity to fully move forward to all parts of our society
here, the history of the Beothuk tribes in Newfoundland and Labrador,
particularly around what impact it had on our culture hundreds of years ago.
Maybe it gives us a better understanding of our own forefathers, some of the
challenges they faced, some of the mistakes that were made. We need to reflect
on those things so that future generations understand it and have a better
appreciation for what's gone on.
Mr.
Speaker, I know there are a number of other people here who want to speak to
this member's motion. I know it's very important to a number of people here
because they have significant connection to the Aboriginal communities, and I do
again want to thank my colleague, the Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune, for
bringing this forward. Again, it's been a testament to her desire and the people
she's worked with in that particular area for the last number of years. It's
been a testament of the dedication from Chief Joe over the last number of
decades. It's a testament to the people of this province, because it hasn't gone
away.
People
wanted us to bring it forward. Now it's brought forward. Now it's us as the
elected legislators in this province, it's for us to bring it to the next level
and to ensure that we do correct the wrong in the past.
Mr.
Speaker, I want to make it known that I will be, and I would think along with
all my colleagues here, supporting this member's motion.
Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER (Lane):
The Speaker recognizes
the hon. the Member for St. John's East Quidi Vidi.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
I'm very
pleased to be able to stand and speak to this private Member's motion here on
our floor today:
BE IT RESOLVED that this Honourable House call on the
Government of the United Kingdom to facilitate the repatriation of the remains
of Demasduit and Nonosbawsut to Canada so that they may be laid to rest with
dignity.
I think
it's a terrible shame that we have to be standing in 2016 asking for this to
happen. One would have thought by now in our civilization, as we like to call
it, that we would understand these bones should not be resting outside of where
these people lived. These bones should be back here.
I think
one of the things that have been said by one of our Aboriginal leaders in this
province is something that's worth quoting here today. Miawpukek First Nation
Chief Mi'sel Joe got it right when he asked, as a matter of comparison, what
would happen if we went over and dug up the bones of one of Scotland's most
beloved poets. Here's how he put it: Maybe what I need to do is go and dig up
[Robert] Burns, maybe that'll open somebody's eyes
I mean, what's the
difference in me going to dig up [Robby] Burns and bringing him back to study in
Newfoundland than them taking the remains of our people to study for all these
years?
That's
the shame of it. That's why we should make sure as a provincial Parliament, that
our federal Parliament takes action on this. I would suggest to our colleagues
in government that we make sure it happens quickly because I feel certain that
we're all going to vote for this motion here today. Then I'll be urging the
Premier to make sure that action is taken. We can't let this go on.
There
are two parts to this; one, the bones should physically be brought back. They
should be buried here where they belong. The other is that this is symbolic.
It's symbolic of what happened to Aboriginal peoples in this province when we
became part of Canada in 1949. The repatriation of the bones might be a
repatriation of the rights of Aboriginal people, a symbol of the repatriation of
the rights of the people in this province. I think that's what makes it so
important.
I want
to go to that history a bit because probably some of our older and younger
generations aren't aware of what actually happened in 1949 when negotiations
were taking place with regard to the Terms of Union of Newfoundland, as we were
called then, joining Canada. I guess Labrador the way it happened at the time,
and I think this is symbolic too was sort of dragged along. It took us a long
time to recognize Newfoundland and Labrador ourselves and the importance of
Labrador as being part of the province.
When the
Terms of Union were being done, the original Terms of Union had reference in
them to the Aboriginal people on the Island. What happened was that the
reference to Aboriginal people on the Island and in Labrador was literally
pencilled out in the Terms of Union.
So
Aboriginal people were pencilled out and what that did is it created an
atmosphere in Newfoundland and Labrador that Aboriginal people didn't count.
Aboriginal peoples were not free to even see themselves as Aboriginal. Name
changes happened, a denial of who they were.
Not only
was it that they didn't benefit from what existed in 1949 on a federal level
with regard to the Indian Act, not
only did they not benefit and the benefits weren't as good as they are now.
Even now, we know we are far below what they should be. Because of not having
that recognition, they were wiped out on the very land in which they lived. I
have brothers and sisters in this room who have Aboriginal blood. I think we
need to apologize to them. One of our brothers stood today. We need to apologize
to them for the way in which they were literally wiped out.
It's
been a struggle for our Aboriginal people in Newfoundland and Labrador. I'd like
to remind ourselves of some of those struggles. I have to say that I've been
privileged to be able to have been in solidarity with some of the things that
happened over the years.
When the
Labrador Inuit Association, the LIA, was first formed in the 1970s, I was
already involved in social justice work, mainly on an international development
level. The LIA made contact with some of us here in St. John's at that time when
they were first formed. I have this connection for almost 40 years with the
Inuit of Labrador because of that, in different stages of their negotiations
with government, both provincially and federally, being involved and being in
solidarity with them.
For 30
years, they worked as the LIA to get to the point of having land claims
recognized. It wasn't until 2005 that Nunatsiavut was formed as a government.
Finally the Inuit people of Labrador were self-governing. The struggle, the time
it took, the energy it took for them to prove who they were as a people and to
become recognized to get to where they are today we don't understand how much
it took.
Let's
look at Miawpukek and Conne River as it's commonly known, and what happened
there. Some reference has been made to Chief Mi'sel Joe, but I want to go more
specific to what happened in 1983 when they came in from Conne River and in
total desperation took over I forget what it was called then the department
of northern and aboriginal affairs, I think, down at Atlantic Place.
They
came in and took over the offices to say we can't take it anymore. Their money
for the housing was being withheld by the premier of the day. Being withheld,
taking the federal government money and not giving it to them in Conne River,
which they deserved to have.
They
were imprisoned for it. They went on a hunger strike. I was part of a group that
supported them here in St. John's through all of those days. It was horrendous
what they fought for and what they had to go through.
Then we
had the Innu Nation when they formed in the 1980s as well. What were the first
issues they were dealing with? They were dealing with the fact that nobody
respected the impact on them and on the land they used, of the low-level flying
that was going on; those low-level flights which were the military jets from
European countries flying over their land with medical proof their children were
suffering from those flights. Eardrums breaking, blood coming from their ears
I'm not exaggerating, this is a fact.
They ended up being imprisoned. Elizabeth Penashue herself
was imprisoned in Stephenville with other women because they dared to protest,
because they dared to stand up and say, you can't do this to us and to our
children. This is our land.
This is our history. We're not talking 100 years ago when
we're talking about Chief Mi'sel Joe leading his people in here to St. John's,
and Elizabeth Penashue and the other women elders leading their people. May I
add, Elizabeth Penashue's son, Peter Penashue, should remember that as well,
what his mother and his
people went through to get to where they are today. They're still fighting. They
still don't have the final settlement of their land claims.
Then we
have NunatuKavut. The whole dimension of being Metis is another issue, an issue
that had to be dealt with in other parts of Canada. For us, it was like a shame
for them to have to start saying: but we are different, we are a separate group,
Metis are recognized by Canada as a different group and we need to be
recognized. Finally, they now know, after struggling, that at least they have
the right to be identified as an Aboriginal group, but the fight is still on.
We still
have land claims that aren't settled in Labrador. The Innu Nation is not
finalized. NunatuKavut hasn't even been recognized, whether or not they're going
to be able to go ahead and go through the process. They're at the very early
stages.
Then
finally we had the Qalipu Nation, a Mi'kmaq First Nation Band formed, a landless
band. The federal government messed that one up and that's not finalized. It's
an ongoing struggle and we have to acknowledge that struggle. We have to start
getting active as a provincial government to make sure the struggles end and
actions are taken to make life better, and to treat our Aboriginal peoples in
this province with respect. We have to acknowledge that.
So it's
wonderful that we have the motion on the floor today, but bringing back these
bones means nothing if we're not also dealing with the issues of our Aboriginal
people in this province today. You take, for example I can't go through
everything that's here on my sheets, and I thank our great researchers for
everything they've given me. I wanted to speak from my own personal experience.
I was on
the Voisey's Bay Environmental Assessment Panel. I was honoured because the Innu
Nation asked me to be their nominee. The reason they asked me to be their
nominee on the panel was because they didn't have elders who were fluent enough
in English to be able to be on the panel. The people who were fluent, the young
leaders, were needed to be part of the negotiations. They really couldn't spare
one of their young leaders who could have taken his or her place on the panel.
They asked me would I be their nominee and I was honoured.
One of
the things well, there are all kinds of things I remember from when I was on
the panel. One of the issues that were an issue when I was on the panel and it
is still ongoing right now there are many, but the one that really is a very
serious one is the whole issue of methylmercury downstream.
Methylmercury now is an issue with regard to Muskrat Falls, but it was an issue
also when we were on the Voisey's Bay panel. Now it's an ongoing issue when it
comes to Muskrat Falls. We know methylmercury has been an issue with the Upper
Churchill, but it was never recognized. So we have to look at something as
serious as this issue and say: Why haven't governments taken it seriously? Why
aren't we dealing with it?
I
remember the first time I brought it up in this House as an issue with regard to
the Lower Churchill. I was mocked by the minister on the opposite side when I
brought up the issue. I was just raising a fuss over nothing. Well, it wasn't a
fuss over nothing. The work we did on the Voisey's Bay panel was intense work.
That was a high point, by the way. This is something we should be talking to the
federal government about. We should be looking at as a government.
That
panel was unique because you had the provincial government, you had the federal
government, you had Innu Nation and, at that time, the LIA, Labrador Inuit
Association, all for an equal partnership in charge of the panel. It was a high
point of environmental assessment in this country. I'm sad to say there hasn't
been one like it since because it worked so well. All the decisions about how
the panel functioned were made together. The federal government or the
provincial government had no more rights in making decisions about how the panel
worked than did Innu Nation and LIA. It was actually a high point.
I invite
the current government and ministers involved to go back and look at that. We've
got to start looking at how we start working together respecting. The same way
when it comes to the whole issue of the missing and murdered Aboriginal women,
we're saying that we agree with the resolution that has been passed. A
resolution that we brought up there I brought into the House, as a matter of
fact, an all-party resolution to make sure the Government of Canada launched a
national inquiry. We have a government that is now saying it is going to do it.
I encourage us to work with them.
MR. SPEAKER:
The Speaker reminds the hon.
Member that her time for speaking has expired.
MS. MICHAEL:
Leave, just to clue up
please, Mr. Speaker.
MR. SPEAKER:
Does the Member have leave?
AN HON. MEMBER:
Leave.
MS. MICHAEL:
Thank you.
Just to
say there's so much that we have to do. We have to do it ourselves, but we also
have to work with the federal government. The motion is one issue and we have so
many more. I invite us to continue looking at how we do that as a Legislature.
Thank
you very much, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The Speaker recognizes the
hon. the Member for Cartwright L'Anse au Clair.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MS. DEMPSTER:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
A lot of
times, Mr. Speaker, when we stand to speak we say it's a pleasure and an honour
to speak to the motion or in debate. Of sorts, I guess, it is always an honour
and a privilege any time you get to stand and represent your district and speak
in the provincial Legislature. However, it's somewhat with sadness and mixed
emotion that I stand today and share a few words on this topic. I thank the
Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune for bringing this very important private
Member's resolution to the floor today.
It
wasn't so long ago, I think it was February, maybe, that I met Chief Mi'sel Joe
for the first time. He is a quiet man, but a wise man much wisdom. When you
sit at a table he doesn't say a lot, but when he speaks, you listen. I have some
very good friends, as the Member would know, from Conne River. I am looking
forward to attending my first powwow coming up this summer in Conne River.
Mr.
Speaker, today we're talking about a very dark point in our province's
colonization, the loss of a native people and their way of life, as well as the
immense loss of the long-term contribution the Beothuk First Nation could have
made to our province, our culture and our society. While we're a fairly small
province, just 527,000 people, we're very rich in history and culture. We have a
number of Aboriginal groups that have been mentioned here today. They contribute
significantly to our rich culture and heritage.
I stand
today, Mr. Speaker, not only as a proud daughter of Labrador no stranger to
anyone in this Chamber but also as a very proud member of NunatuKavut
Community Council. Somebody here who has southern Inuit roots, the mother of a
daughter who has southern Inuit roots and is also a member of NunatuKavut
Community Council, a very proud member.
NunatuKavut, like Nunatsiavut, is in the process of trying to settle a land
claim agreement. They have, as some would know here, put forth a document
unveiling NunatuKavut.
Mr.
Speaker, last night I read through I wanted to see who was Demasduit and
Nonosbawsut and Shanawdithit, the niece. I did some reading after I went home; a
tragic story, a very, very tragic story of a man and a wife; a man who lost his
life because he stood to protect his partner. Then we see she lost her life to
tuberculosis. Then they were taken away to a foreign land, taken away to be
studied, for some people to do some learning in a university.
In my
notes was a picture of the young lady, their niece, Shanawdithit. I looked at
her, a beautiful young lady. I read a little bit about what it said about her, a
lady who didn't smile very much. I reflected on that. What it must have been for
her, the weight that she carried on her shoulders, knowing that she was the last
of the Beothuk people. What a sad, sad story.
Mr.
Speaker, we heard it said many times, we cannot change the past. That's the life
we live. I have an uncle up in Labrador who always talks about how we are on a
journey. That's true because every day, once the day has passed, we can't have
it back. We can't change the past, but we can certainly learn from it.
So
today, Mr. Speaker, we're talking about doing the right thing, not just spend an
afternoon here in the Legislature today talking about we need to have the bodies
of this man and woman repatriated back and reconciled but we must ensure that
after today action is taken.
I'm very
proud to be a part of a government where our Premier, who carries the portfolio
for Labrador and Aboriginal Affairs, right in his mandate mentioned those two
Beothuk individuals. He said: In this role, I will support efforts to
repatriate the remains of Demasduit and Nonosbawsut from the National Museum of
Scotland and lay them to rest with dignity in the home of the Beothuk, and work
with the governments of Canada and the United Kingdom to ensure there is no
further injustice to their memory.
Mr.
Speaker, I reflected on I'm sure all of us in the House have lost people
belonging to us. In that process when you lose someone, from when you lose them
to when you lay them to rest there is a period of time and you begin to pick up
pieces and move on to a new normal after you lay them to rest. But there is
something very spiritual and sacred about that laying to rest.
Mr.
Speaker, what we're talking about today with this man and woman should not only
be important to the Aboriginal people of the province but it should be
important, and I'm sure it is, to all people of the province. That we bring
these individuals home and we lay them to rest.
When I
was looking through this and I was thinking about inadequacies and injustices,
many of us will agree there is nowhere that is more prominent than among
Aboriginal people. I represent a district where I have some people from my
colleague's district, Nunatsiavut, and I have many who are members of Nunavut
community council.
Mr.
Speaker, as I was campaigning last fall you knock on doors, you hear lots of sad
stories. I'm someone who always determines that I'm able to do it because I'm
very big geographically, I don't have big numbers, but I work long days because
it's so important to me to get to every single door myself, to talk to the
people that I am wanting to represent.
I
remember at the end of a long day, knocking on a door in Cartwright. This
elderly man and wife, not a lot of money, getting by, but he wanted to show me
something. He went into the bedroom and came out with this little Inuktitut
bible. That was the language. He talked about what he lost in being sent to
residential school. He said this was taken from me. I don't know my language and
every day I feel like something is missing because we were put in this very
difficult environment.
Mr.
Speaker, along with my colleague from Torngat, I stood back a few months ago out
front when the Truth and Reconciliation report came out. We heard many people
share their stories; stories of hardships, stories of ways of life taken from
them. While we can't change that, we can correct the course and we can adjust
the sails as we go forward.
I want
to share a quote by Romeo LeBlanc that I have carried and never forgotten. Romeo
LeBlanc was the I'm going to digress for a moment. When my grandfather, Ben
Powell, was received into the Order of Canada in the early '90s, a very proud
day for my family, Romeo LeBlanc was the governor. I know his son now sits to
the left of the Prime Minister.
Romeo
LeBlanc said, and I quote, We owe the Aboriginal peoples a debt that is four
centuries old. It is their turn to become full partners in developing an even
greater Canada. And the reconciliation required may be less a matter of legal
texts than of attitudes of the heart. I'm going to say that again, Mr. Speaker.
He said,
the reconciliation required may be less a matter of legal texts than
of attitudes of the heart.
As I was
going through recently, some of NunatuKavut, my own organization as I was
going through some of their Unveiling
NunatuKavut, the document that they have put forth in an effort to start
their land claim negotiation process, some very, very striking sections there,
Mr. Speaker, that many will relate to; many who have lived it, certainly, at a
different level than I have.
It
talked about, in the document, the stigma attached to Aboriginal people,
including the NunatuKavut Members, the southern Inuit culture and ancestry. It
talked about the stigma of looking native, Skimo often referred to, and how that
led to many of these people remaining silent with outsiders about their
ancestry.
Those
are the kinds of things that we're talking about here today, Mr. Speaker, in
this PMR, where we're coming here collectively as all parties to continue the
effort and to support Chief Mi'sel Joe in his actions to bring Demasduit and
Nonosbawsut home. I share that because we must not lose sight that we all need
to have the right attitude in our heart, that we are an inclusive society and
that we need to practice what we preach.
I think
about when I was reading about these two individuals and their skulls resting in
a museum in Scotland. Mr. Speaker, are they any less than the loved ones that
we, ourselves, have that are buried in sacred hallowed ground in many places in
Newfoundland and Labrador? I'm going to beg to consider they were not. Who are
we to be any respecter of persons? We are all to be valued the same way.
I was
raised in a home where my grandmother taught us that you treat the CEO and the
janitor with the same respect every single day, a rich heritage for me. I'm
impressed with the legacy that my grandparents instilled in me, Mr. Speaker.
I just
want to clue up by saying I'm happy to speak to it, but it's not good enough to
simply stand in the House and let each other know that we support the efforts to
repatriate the remains of our Aboriginal people from Scotland. We must do better
and we must go forward.
Mr.
Speaker, I mention the Premier's mandate letter where this was a priority for
him. In addition to that, I was also very proud that in our platform
A Stronger Tomorrow, once again we see
the repatriate of the Beothuk remains. It was felt so strongly by members of the
Liberal Party that it was included as one of our pillars in our platform. The
federal Truth and Reconciliation report emphasizes the importance of correcting
past injustices in the treatment of Aboriginal people in Canada, and those are
some of the things I just talked about. In our province the extinction of the
Beothuk following European settlement remains a tragic injustice and
irrecoverable loss.
I'm not
sure who it was that said: staggering to think that people that have been here
for many, many, many moons, did we wipe them out in mere centuries? What have we
done with the full loss of a people?
Mr.
Speaker, I think it incumbent on many of us in our schools, in our educational
systems as we go forward, to ensure the story of Demasduit, Nonosbawsut and
Shanawdithit, that they're talked about, that the next generation knows.
Everything we do in life does have a butterfly effect, every decision we make
today, and I'm very cognizant of that as a parliamentarian.
While it
is a huge, huge privilege to sit in a Legislature and be a part of the democracy
in Newfoundland and Labrador, it comes with a huge, huge responsibility, Mr.
Speaker. Every decision we make every single day is going to impact somebody,
somewhere.
Mr.
Speaker, I'm pleased to be a part of a government, led by our Premier, that I'm
sure will continue to do everything it can to ensure the bodies of those two
Beothuks are brought home to the place of their homeland, laid to rest and given
the dignity and the honour that they, like our own people here, are so deserving
of.
Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER (Osborne):
The hon. the Member for
Cape St. Francis.
MR. K. PARSONS:
Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker.
I wasn't
going to speak on this motion today, but I felt that I wanted to because I
wanted to show support for this important motion. Also, I'd like to support the
Member here on the side of me, who sat on the side of me when I was over on that
side of the House too. We've been pretty good friends for the last number of
years. I remember when the motion first came forward, when she put it forward,
how important it was to her.
There
are things we do in this House that we all agree on sometimes. We had a great
couple of pieces of legislation that went through yesterday that were unanimous
and this is another part of it. This is something we really have to be together
on and make sure it happens because it's an important part of our history, for
one thing, and it's an important part of who we are.
I agree
with the speaker who just spoke that time for Cartwright L'Anse au Clair when
she said this is a start. There are other things we can do. There are a lot of
things we can't do, but sometimes you have to take those small steps first in
order to get to where you want to go down the road.
I think
this is an important step of who we are as people to show our young people. As
one of the Members mentioned here earlier today, it's taught in grades five and
eight, I do believe, in the schools. We all learned about the Beothuks. We
learned about what they meant to this and how they were here before we were.
I had
the opportunity this summer to attend a powwow down in Conne River with my hon.
Member. I had a great couple of days down there with her. We travelled her
district. It was absolutely beautiful. It's an absolutely beautiful part of the
province driving down. It's really heartwarming just to see the beautiful
scenery all the way along.
I had
the opportunity to meet Mi'sel Joe. I have to say, what a fine gentleman. We had
a cold night. They were all beating on the drums and we went through the
different ceremonies and everything else. Just to see the people of Conne River,
the young and old, and all people we did a drum thing they had there, three or
four drums and all hands around. It was beautiful to see. It was absolutely
beautiful to be able to be involved in it and to know the traditions of the
people are still being met in that part of our province.
It was
very eye opening for me. Meeting Chief Joe was a remarkable man. He still,
today, is a remarkable man. He was just a class act the whole time we were down
there. To know this is so important to him, so important to his people and so
important to the people of this province that we really show the Beothuk people
were
Mr.
Speaker, I'm an avid hunter. I love to hunt. I have a couple of trips every year
where I go to Red Indian Lake. We have a cabin up on the side of Red Indian
Lake. I go there. I can't wait to get on the bike and go up in the country and
look back at Grand Lake, Long Lake and all the different lakes in the area.
I can
only imagine the Beothuks there before we even came here, just realizing the
beauty of what they had. It's absolutely breathtaking to be up there when you
can sit in a cabin and look at Red Indian Lake and see a couple of caribou come
off the side, swim across and shake themselves off in front of you, in front of
the cabin. It's probably one of the nicest experiences I ever experienced in my
life. This is what they had. These people had a beautiful country that they
loved. They loved this area.
I'll
tell you a little story now about a friend of mine. His name was John Paul. I'm
not sure what descent he was, but he used to come to our cabin every time. We'd
bring him up a bit of salt fish. He was up in the country all the time and he
loved salt fish. So we'd go up and he'd make sure that the cabin he was all
the time checking on our place and making sure of everything. To see his respect
for the land and understand the land, understand the animals, understand where
the fish were and what was a good time to do this.
I'll
always remember one thing. We went and got two moose one year. Both of them were
bulls. One was, I think, a 14 point bull and one was seven point bull. We came
out the road now maybe he could have been a little bit farfetched or whatever.
He said, okay, you got that one, and he named the road we got it on, and he
named the other one where we got the other one. I was just blown away because
the people, they knew their land. They knew everything about their land. He
could name where we got the two moose and he was spot on where it was to.
We came,
John Cabot discovered. We came here in 1497 and there were about 1,000 of them
here. It's too bad, history will show that we didn't it was disease and there
were conflicts and everything else. The Beothuks became extinct after a while.
What a great day it would be today if we had them around to teach us the land
and to teach us to respect the land. I know that they always did respect the
land.
I know
one time when you'd go hunting or you'd go in fishing to a pond or whatever
you'd see people leaving tin cans, beer bottles and everything else. Today,
we're more educated. We're better people today. We take everything out now and
make sure that our land that's what those people were about. They were all
about the land and what they did.
This is
important in our history. It is important as who we are as a people to make sure
we keep the Beothuks. They were the first ones here on this Island. They were
the first ones to believe and look at the beauty that we have. Like I said, up
on the side of Red Indian Lake where they were, I drive in the road and I
didn't know this until the other day and we always pass by this bridge. I
didn't know it was the niece.
Shanawdithit is the name of a big river that runs into Red Indian Lake. It's a
great spot to go fishing. We usually take a break there all the time going in.
We always stop at the Shanawdithit Bridge on the way into our cabin. Hopefully
this year when I go up I'll be able to tell people the story of how it was the
niece of the two descendants that were killed.
It's a
tragic story that was told here today. It's a very tragic story when you see a
husband protecting his wife and his child and got killed. The child apparently
died a couple of days later through malnutrition. That's a very sad story. I
think the age is now she was 24 when she died of tuberculosis. We are not
really sure. I think maybe a couple of years older, but two young people died
and a young child died. It's sad. No matter what happens in any part of society,
that's a sad story.
It's
important that we do what we're doing here today. I respect everybody that got
up and spoke today. I really believe that this is an important part of our
history.
I really
commend the Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune because she is the one that
really wanted to push this through, along with the people in her district that
this means a lot to. It means a lot to me as a person. It means a lot to people
in our society.
I hope
that education that the children in our schools will learn about the Beothuks
and will learn something from the Beothuks. Learn that our land is so important
to us. It's so important that we keep our rivers, our streams and everything
that we do keep it clean. Keep it the way it was when they were here.
I can
only imagine when I go in on top of the hill and I look back at Long Lake and
Victoria Lake. I make the trip every year to go up and just have a look at it
because it's so beautiful. How lucky were they to be able to be there and be
able to see this and see the beautiful area that they had. Then we came and,
like I said, that's history.
This is
an important day for everybody in this province. It's an important day for the
history of Newfoundland and Labrador. I really encourage government to put this
on the priority list.
Sometimes, Mr. Speaker, you look at things like this and they can say, oh yes,
it's a nice thing to do; it's a great thing to do. There are a lot of important
issues in our province, but I urge the government to really put this on the
forefront because it's important. It's who we are as a people. It's important to
Newfoundland and Labrador to make sure that people know where we came from, who
was here and enjoyed it.
I
believe we live in the most beautiful province in Canada. I think we live in the
greatest part of this country. If you ask me to go on a trip anywhere else in
the world, or ask me to go to Red Indian Lake fishing or moose hunting, I'm gone
to Red Indian Lake. It's a beautiful area of the province. We're very fortunate
to live here.
I think
that knowing who was there before is so important. Shanawdithit; now every time
that I cross the Shanawdithit River I'll know it's a part of our history and
I'll know the importance of Red Indian Lake to the Beothuks.
Like I
said, I told a story about a gentleman that I knew. He's passed now. His history
and the love of the land he explained to me how they used to do the fur
trapping and how they had canoes. They portaged from one area to another area.
They'd start off probably in January, and by the time they got down it was
March. They'd have their big slew of pelts and furs and whatever they could hunt
over there. It's important. It's an important part that we keep the history of
Newfoundland alive.
I really
want to applaud the Member. I want to thank Mi'sel Joe for putting such an
effort into this and making sure that this is done. I want to emphasize to the
government that this is an important part of Newfoundland's history. It's very
important that we continue and make sure that this happens because we're
bringing people home to the province that they deserve to be home in.
Thank
you very much, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
If the Member for Fortune Bay
Cape La Hune speaks now, she shall close debate on this private Member's
resolution.
Seeing
no further speakers, I recognize the Member for Fortune Bay Cape La Hune.
MS. PERRY:
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'm
filled with great pride for the support shown here in this hon. House today for
the efforts of Chief Mi'sel Joe to repatriate Demasduit and Nonosbawsut back to
their native land. I would like to thank the Members for Torngat Mountains,
Conception Bay South, Placentia West Bellevue, Conception Bay East Bell
Island, St. John's East Quidi Vidi, Cartwright L'Anse au Clair and Cape St.
Francis for your very informative and interesting speeches this afternoon in
support of this motion, Mr. Speaker.
As many
of the speakers alluded to, repatriation is a very complicated process. As the
Member for Torngat said, it takes a lot of work by a lot of people for a lot of
years to achieve repatriation. I think we're well underway now with respect to
trying to see that Demasduit and Nonosbawsut are returned home, but we have a
lot of work left to do ahead of us. I think we all agree that none of us are
going to give up until we are successful, Mr. Speaker.
The next
step that has to be taken now is for the federal government to make a formal
request to Scotland for the return of the remains to parallel along with ours
provincially, Mr. Speaker. If the first request isn't agreed to by Scotland,
then I think our stance should be, both provincial and nationally, send another,
send another and send another. The federal government must be persistent until
we achieve success.
As I
alluded to when I did my opening address to the motion, I referred to a motion
that made its way to the floor from the Scottish Parliament just last year. If I
may, Mr. Speaker, I would like to read that same motion into our House here
today.
It
reads: That the Parliament notes that the remains of Chief Nonosbawsut and his
wife, Demasduit, two of the last members of the extinct Beothuk tribe of Canada,
are held in the collection of the National Museum of Scotland; recognises the
growing campaign in Canada for the repatriation of these remains, which are of
religious, cultural and ethnic significance to many; commends the work being
done by Chief Mi'sel Joe of the Miawpukek First Nation to achieve that end, and,
while urging the Scottish Government to ensure the museum accedes to the request
now made by Chief Mi'sel Joe in the spirit of common humanity and respect for
the dead, also recognizes previous good work by the museum and other Scottish
institutions in respecting those circumstances in which the rights and wishes of
communities, countries or cultures can override established policy on the
integrity and maintenance of collections particularly where human remains and
religious artefacts are concerned.
Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, that motion didn't carry; however, I do thank them
for their efforts, and hopefully through continued efforts in this province and
this country, with agreement from Scotland, someday soon we will see those
remains returned. We certainly look forward to working with them in that regard
until it does happen.
We've
talked a lot here today about why it should happen. It's hugely important, of
course, the historical significance in and of itself. What's even more poignant
to the larger discussion is these are human beings and they deserve respect and
dignity. These bones should be returned, if for no other reason than that they
were taken from a sacred burial site. Let's not lose sight of that most
important fact, Mr. Speaker.
Beothuks
played a significant role in our provinces rich history. We owe it to ourselves
and to future generations to ensure our heritage is preserved, appreciated and
respected, with an emphasis on respect, Mr. Speaker.
I would
like to, once again, thank everyone in the House who spoke today to this debate.
I thank Members opposite, and I trust the new Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and
his parliamentary assistant will do everything they can from an administrative
point of view to ensure this advances. They can rest assured I will continue to
lobby them on a regular basis, as will Mi'sel Joe. By working together, all
Members from all parties of this hon. House, we will achieve success because we
have determined we're not going to stop until we do.
If
anything, I think all of us have strengthened our resolve even more. So let us
continue this effort together, Mr. Speaker, in earnest, let's do the right
thing, and let's bring Demasduit and Nonosbawsut home.
Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
All those in favour, 'aye.'
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Aye.
MR. SPEAKER:
All those against, 'nay.'
I
declare the motion carried.
The hon.
the Government House Leader.
MR. A. PARSONS:
Yes, Mr. Speaker, just prior
to this House adjourning for the day, I'd like to announce that Bills 7 and 8
did receive Royal Assent this afternoon.
SOME HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear!
MR. SPEAKER: It being Private Members' Day and no further business, the House stands adjourned until 2 o'clock tomorrow, being budget day.