March 28, 2006 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS Vol. XLV No. 3


The House met at 1:30 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): Order, please!

Admit strangers.

Statements by Members

MR. SPEAKER: This afternoon, we have members' statements as follows: the hon. the Member for the District of Bellevue; the hon. the Member for the District of St. John's Centre; the hon. the Member for the District of Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair; the hon. the Member for the District of Lake Melville; the hon. the Member for the District of Fortune Bay-Cape La Hune; and the hon. the Member for the District of Mount Pearl.

The Chair recognizes the Member for the District of Bellevue.

MR. BARRETT: Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to congratulate Mr. Roger Jamieson, who has been awarded the 2005 Doug Wheeler Tourism Award. This award recognizes outstanding efforts to promote or develop the tourism industry in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, Roger Jamieson is the owner of Kilmory Resort, located in Swift Current. Opened in 1991, Kilmory is one of the most successful resort operations in the Province and has expanded four times in the last ten years. Roger has been a board member of Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador for fourteen years and served a two-year term as president. He currently sits on the Canadian Tourism Commission board of directors and is an executive member of the Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism Marketing Council.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all members of this House to join with me in congratulating Mr. Roger Jamieson, the recipient of the 2005 Doug Wheeler Tourism Award.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of St. John's Centre.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SKINNER: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This past Saturday, Sport Newfoundland and Labrador held its Annual Athletic Awards Banquet. The ceremony recognizes the achievements of our Province's elite athletes, coaches, and executives. There are seven awards presented and they are given to individuals and groups who have shown outstanding contribution and performance for various sports categories. Each of the awards is also named after an accomplished sports figure in Newfoundland and Labrador sporting history.

The winners for 2006 were: the Junior Female Athlete of the Year; the Margaret Davis Memorial Award went to Katarina Mirabelle Roxon, a swimmer. The Junior Male Athlete of the Year Award; the Joseph P. Mullins Memorial Award was Joey Russell, figure skating. Coach of the Year; John Drinkwater Memorial Award went to Pat Parfrey, for rugby. The Executive of the Year; the Graham Snow Memorial Award went to Brian Murphy, soccer. The Team of the Year Award; the Edward P. Browne Memorial Award went to the Brad Gushue curling team. Senior Female Athlete of the Year; Elizabeth Swan Memorial Award, was Julia Howard of track and field, and the Senior Male Athlete of the Year was Ford Hayward Memorial Award, Brad Gushue, curling.

I ask all hon. members to join with me in congratulating the achievements of our sporting community.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to congratulate a resident from Charlottetown, Labrador, Cherie Lee Campbell Oram, who was awarded the Atlantic Centre of Excellence for Women's Award.

Cherie Lee has been employed as a regional nurse for ten years and has worked in many small, rural communities in Northern and Southern Labrador. For the past five-and-a-half years she has worked in her hometown of Charlottetown. The clinic provides health services to two other nearby communities.

Mr. Speaker, Cherie Lee has been a strong advocate in the areas of health promotion and prevention in women's health. She has worked diligently with other committee members to establish a multi-purpose building to house a family resource centre, as well as a youth centre. Also, she co-leads the senior's group and takes great pride in educating elderly in health promotion. She has been trained in ‘train the trainer' for HIV and AIDS awareness and prevention. She is the mother of three young children and she finds the time to enhance her studies as a nurse practitioner to better meet the needs of her community and the needs of women.

The Atlantic Centre of Excellence for Women's Health is one of four national Centres of Excellence for Women's Health and is funded by Health Canada. Their awards recognize leadership on the part of individuals who have made a significant contribution to the improvement of women's health throughout Atlantic Canada.

So, Mr. Speaker, I ask all members today to join me in congratulating Cherie Lee Campbell Oram on receiving this prestigious award.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Mount Pearl.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DENINE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Today, Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the students and staff of O'Donel High School in Mount Pearl on their recent musical production AIDA. This is a production with a musical score by Elton John and Tim Rice, - a timeless love story.

The show ran from March 16 to March 19 at the Arts & Culture Centre and was well attended. I must add, that a great number of schools in the surrounding area also went to see the students during the day to see this musical. This is another fine example of the support received by their peers.

Mr. Speaker, this is also the twentieth anniversary of O'Donel High and the pride of the patriots can be seen in AIDA. O'Donel is well-known for portraying great musicals and displaying talent of young people in our Province. The sets, the costumes, the students were outstanding.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to thank the staff, parent volunteers and sponsors of this event. Without their help and financial assistance, events like this would not be possible. I am very proud of the energy and enthusiasm shown by the students of O'Donel High in Mount Pearl.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all members of this House to join with me in congratulating them on a job well done.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. LANGDON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge the tremendous contribution of Ms Doreen Vallis as a devoted volunteer to her community. Ms Vallis was recently named Citizen of the Year for Harbour Breton.

Mr. Speaker, Doreen is currently the president of the hospital auxiliary, treasurer for the Harbour Breton recreation commission, member of the Chamber of Commerce and a former member of the economic development committee.

Mr. Speaker, Doreen has been an enthusiastic volunteer for over twenty years and is well-known throughout the region for her tremendous involvement with the hospital auxiliary. During her presidency, tens of thousands of dollars has been raised for the local hospital. Doreen says volunteering is all about helping someone and with the hospital auxiliary they have the chance to reach out to so many people.

Mr. Speaker, we can all learn important lessons from people like Doreen. As everyone in Harbour Breton struggles with the economic realities facing the community, Doreen still believes that by volunteering it is her way to give back to a community that has given so much to her. Although honoured for the recognition of Citizen of the Year, Doreen did not forget to recognize the hundreds of volunteers in the region that contribute to their respective communities.

Doreen Vallis is an asset to her community and the Coast of Bays region. Her dedication and perseverance to make health care more comfortable for those in need is remarkable. I wish her much success in the future and may she continue to provide her guidance and support to all those around her.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all members of this House join me in congratulating Ms Doreen Vallis for her outstanding volunteer efforts and her strengths for continuously helping others.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Lake Melville.

MR. HICKEY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise in the House today to give deserved recognition to the Melville Mantas Swim Club of Happy Valley-Goose Bay who, this year, is celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary.

Mr. Gord Wheeler, former manager of the Labrador Training Centre, started the Melville Mantas Swim Club in the late 1980s and the club has been active ever since. When Mr. Wheeler moved to Gander in 1982, Mr. John Baird and a succession of other volunteer coaches took over. Today, Paula Dawe, Kerry Rideout, Gail Thorne and Andrew Rowsell are the dedicated volunteers for the Mantas.

Throughout the years, the Mantas Swim Club has been a strong competitive club. It has earned the respect of the provincial swimming community through its sportsmanship, involvement at the provincial meets, and high standard of good behaviour from the swimmers.

Mr. Speaker, the Melville Mantas has had representation on the Canada Games Swim Teams, Provincial Summer Games Teams, East Coast Championships and various university teams. The strength of the club lies in the strong parental involvement, the high level of commitment from volunteer coaches, and indeed the dedicated hard work of swimmers.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all members of this hon. House to join me and to congratulate the Melville Mantas Swim Team on their twenty-fifth anniversary, and to wish them every success in the future.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

Statements by Ministers

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am pleased to rise in the House today to inform members and the people of the Province, particularly those on the Northern Peninsula, that Corner Brook Pulp and Paper has agreed to reverse their decision to not purchase pulpwood from the area this year.

Officials in my department and myself as minister, in consultation with my colleagues from The Straits & White Bay North and St. Barbe, entered into discussions immediately last week, on Wednesday and Thursday, with Corner Brook Pulp and Paper. We clearly impressed upon the company that if fundamental changes are required in the industry, it needs to be done over the longer term and from a strategic point of view. This decision, if not reversed, would have effectively put an entire industry in a region into a tailspin overnight.

Mr. Speaker, myself and the MHA for The Straits & White Bay North and the Member for St. Barbe met with twenty-five representatives of the logging industry in Plum Point on the Northern Peninsula on Sunday afternoon, to inform them of the outcome of government's discussions with the company. Government and the loggers in the area know the challenges facing the pulp and paper industry and the necessity for a long-term plan for moving the industry forward.

We have reached a short-term agreement for this year with Corner Brook Pulp and Paper that will see them continue to purchase approximately the same amount of fibre or pulpwood from the Northern Peninsula this year as they did last. In exchange, the Province has agreed to look within its existing budget and programs to see what can be done to mitigate the costs to the industry of fire suppression, spray, silviculture and access roads programs.

Government has also reached an agreement to purchase the Main River Bridge from the company for the benefit of the people in the area and for recreational and tourism development. The company no longer has use for bridge and planned on relocating it to some other aspect of its enterprise. The replacement cost of the bridge is $300,000 and funding will come from savings in this year's spray program as result of lower than projected costs relating to dealing with the hemlock looper.

Mr. Speaker, the decision by Corner Brook Pulp and Paper on Tuesday of last week, if implemented, would have been devastating for loggers in Forest Management Districts 17 and 18. It would have potentially resulted in the loss, immediately, directly, of 250 jobs.

The company originally made the decision because of the surplus of wood in the Maritimes, which is available today at a lower price. This surplus is a result of the closure of the Stephenville mill, the UPI Mill in New Brunswick, and the labour dispute currently at STORA Industries in Nova Scotia. The forestry industry throughout Canada is re-positioning itself to reflect high energy costs and fibre costs and, equally important, the impact of a strong Canadian dollar and a declining North American demand for newsprint.

Mr. Speaker, today I am announcing that we are responding to these challenges by undertaking a complete review of the forest industry in Newfoundland and Labrador. This initiative will assess the current state and structure of the industry and provide a path for a new and sustainable forest industry that is responsive and meets the challenges of the global economy. This initiative will occur over the next six to eight months and will include a fairly extensive public consultation process, which we will outline in several weeks.

Additionally, we will immediately complete an assessment of the short-term competitiveness issues that face the forest industry today. We will evaluate management programs such as silviculture, forest protection, road construction, inventory and other programs where the residents of the Province benefit to share the costs on management.

Mr. Speaker, the forest industry, little known or little promoted, provides the most jobs and the most returns for rural Newfoundland and Labrador. For example, last year the industry was worth $1.2 billion and employed, directly and indirectly, some 12,000 people.

Mr. Speaker, I guess, from our point of view, we have committed to working in consultation with the logging industry to identify the needs that we need to have a look at, so that we can move this industry forward from a strategic long-term sustainable point of view.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to thank the minister for an advance copy of his statement.

It is very pleasing, indeed, to see that government, and in particular the minister, has responded in an up-front fashion and in a very timely manner, I might say, with regard to this urgent issue on the Northern Peninsula.

It is easy to be negative. Someone could say, you know, there are all kinds of ways to give away resources, whether you do it through bad deals or you do it through subsidization, but I say sincerely here, I think the minister has dealt with this issue in a proper way.

It seems many companies in this Province, as of late, have taken a confrontational approach when it comes to governments, and in dealing with government, and they seem to try to put government's back to the wall a lot of times, and it puts government in a reactionary position rather than in a position where they could have some forethought, assessment and proper planning in order to deal with the issues.

I can appreciate, and the minister was right up front again and said, this is a short-term solution, and he realizes, and I think he has taken the proper steps to see that there has to be some long-term planning and assessment. So, I say, hats off to him for dealing with the short-term issue. It is important not only to those loggers on the Northern Peninsula, but it is also important to the industry in general, but far more significant that it get dealt with in the long-term so that we do not have these situations reoccurring and people's lives are tossed in turmoil and governments have to react rather than be proactive.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. HARRIS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We are certainly pleased to hear that the minister and his government have been able to alleviate this problem on the Northern Peninsula with respect to the 250 loggers whose jobs were at risk as a result - and not only their jobs but also others in the forestry and in the lumber industry on the Northern Peninsula at stake - but there is another problem, Mr. Speaker, and I know the minister is aware of this as well.

In addition to the Northern Peninsula loggers, there are another 60,000 cubic metres of wood that Corner Brook Pulp and Paper plans to import from the Maritimes this year, resulting in between twenty and twenty-five loggers not being recalled to work this year from their unionized workforce and another 250 loggers who will have five or six weeks less work this year as a result of importing word from the Maritimes.

Mr. Speaker, this is a significant problem, not directed towards one or two communities such as we have had on the Northern Peninsula, but it is a serious problem indeed. I hope the minister is able to achieve similar results for that workforce as they have been able to do for the Northern Peninsula workforce. This is a significant problem, Mr. Speaker. If they are, for short-term reasons, able to get cheaper wood from the Maritimes than cutting it here on the Island, the big question has to be asked - the forest resources in many cases are owned and managed by these companies and we would like to see them use them and utilize them to the maximum benefit of the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Further Statements by Ministers?

Oral Questions?

Oral Questions

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. The Opposition House Leader.

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My question is for the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

Minister, there is a lot of confusion in the public domain as to whether or not FPI broke the law. In your rant from the back of the pickup truck last week you said: They shipped and they shipped and they shipped and they broke the law and they will be charged. Then on Friday, your press release says that your investigation was not complete and no decision had been made regarding charges.

Are you admitting, by your Friday statement, that your Tuesday comments were indeed inaccurate and unjustified and just an emotional rant?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Not in the least, Mr. Speaker! Not in your wildest dreams! Even if you wanted me to I wouldn't do it.

The fact of the matter is, what I said the early part of last week is that, as a result of information that had come to me indicating that FPI had shipped out greater quantities of unprocessed fish than they were alleged to have approval for, which we found out during the course of our investigation there was no approval for but they shipped out in excess of what they allegedly had approval for - our audit showed that they shipped out significantly in excess of what they had requested permission for. On that basis, we had given instructions that an investigation be carried out, and when the results of that investigation are available then decisions will be made accordingly. That is what I said, Mr. Speaker, nothing less, nothing more, and I stand by that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I think it is quite clear, minister, exactly what you said for the media: they will be charged. Now, minister, would you at least agree that this was a serious mistake of judgement on your part as a Minister of the Crown and Deputy Premier up in the back of a pickup truck with a union toque on telling the whole world that an internationally, publicly traded company was going to be charged and you did not have your homework done? Now, minister, you made these shocking, and I would suggest irresponsible, accusations about the company. You said in this House that the company has not given you important financial information that you require. Don't you think that you have poisoned the well enough now that someone else, other than yourself, should be dealing with this most serious issue?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I make no apologies for jumping up in the back of a pickup truck and speaking to people in this Province who invited me to speak to them. No apologies whatsoever, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: And, Mr. Speaker, I make no apologies for - I did not put on a union toque, by the way, somebody put it on my head, but I do not apologize for that either, Mr. Speaker. Those are union people. They deserve to - they asked me to come speak to them, they deserve for us to do that.

Now, getting back to the substantive matter of the question, if there was one, Mr. Speaker. If there is any well poisoned here, Mr. Speaker, it is done by the company. I choose to say nothing about the proposals that FPI were putting forward until the union choose to make them public. The government said not a word about them, Mr. Speaker, even though we had been aware of them for a few days prior to that happening, but we didn't poison any wells.

This company, Mr. Speaker, on the weekend before this event happened, changed all of their positions that they had in front of government and came back with other positions that they wanted us to consider. They change in the sand, Mr. Speaker, almost every other day and they expect us to take that, say nothing and be good boys and girls about it. Not on your life, Mr. Speaker!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: This company has responsibilities to their workers, to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, and if they need to be told that, Mr. Speaker, I will tell them. I don't care whether it is in this House, from the back of a truck or from the top of Confederation Building.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I would ask for the co-operation of members to keep their questions and their responses within the usual one minute.

The Chair recognizes the hon. the Opposition House Leader.

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister, I think we have seen enough, and the people of the Province have seen enough of your bluster and rhetoric and ranting. This is a serious situation that calls for level heads and rational thought. Be sure, there are no apologists over here for FPI either, but at the end of the day, all parties have to go back to that table and find a solution to this complex and devastating problem. I think your actions have seriously compromised government's role in that process.

Wouldn't you agree that you made a very serious error in judgement and you ought to step back from this situation because you created it?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, I make no apologies for the way I answer questions or the way I make a speech. As I said to this House before, I only know one way to do it and I do it in the way that I am comfortable with. I am passionate about it and I share that passion, and I don't make any apologies for that.

Now, if there are people who are engaged in business in this Province who cannot stand the government, or a minister, or a union taking a different public stand than they want to take, then I cannot help that either. This government has said that we are quite prepared - I have said, that we are quite prepared to facilitate a return of FPI and the FFAW to the table with government if they want us. We are quite prepared to do that through ministers or through the Labour Relations Agency or whatever it takes. But no, Mr. Speaker, I do not think we have soured anything. We have dealt with this company in an open and accountable way. We will continue to do it - point out when they change their minds in positions that they put the government, then we are not going to sit back, Mr. Speaker, and say nothing about it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister, to say nothing of the possible defamation action that you have opened this government up to and this Province up to, given your confrontational approach with FPI, given FPI's refusal to give you certain financial information that you have requested, given the ongoing dismantling of FPI, as we speak, obviously without government's approval and involvement, would you now agree more than ever that we do need a public inquiry into FPI, and at the very minimum, we need the FPI Act brought back here so that we can put some teeth in it and it is not just a piece of toilet paper as displayed by The Independent?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, the slowness or the tardiness, whatever the right word is of FPI in providing financial information to the auditors that we have in there, there was no connection between that and any other comment I made about FPI last week. That is something which happened long before that, so you cannot attribute that to that particular situation. Whether or not the FPI Act is not worth any more than a piece of garbage -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. RIDEOUT: Whether or not the FPI Act is not worth any more than toilet paper, Mr. Speaker, the FPI Act that we are dealing with today was the FPI Act that was last amended by this Legislature when the hon. gentleman and ladies opposite were the government. Now, if we come to the conclusion that we need to amend that -

MR. PARSONS: You created it, we amended it. (Inaudible).

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. RIDEOUT: That is the last piece of amendment that was done to the act.

Now, Mr. Speaker, if we come to the conclusion, as a government, that we need further amendments, we will be back in this House looking for them.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My questions are also for the Minister of Fisheries.

Mr. Speaker, on Friday FPI circulated an internal memo that stated that Mr. George Armoyan, was now going to take over, or head up, the American division of FPI - that is the secondary processing and the marketing division that exists in Danvers, Massachusetts.

Mr. Speaker, given that FPI was created by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and is governed by the FPI Act in this Legislature, I ask the minister: Were you consulted or advised of this significant restructuring and if so, what were your comments?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: The answer to the question was no, Mr. Speaker.

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

MR. REID: I think that is the point that my colleague was trying to make, that you do not know what is happening with FPI.

Mr. Speaker, under the direction of Mr. -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. REID: Mr. Speaker, under the direction of Mr. Armoyan, FPI is now dividing its American assets into four separate parts. This is the most profitable portion of the company and it has traditionally subsidized the less profitable groundfish operations.

I ask the minister: Have you been advised of why this restructuring is taking place, why it would be good for the company and, more importantly, what impact might this have on the people who work for FPI in this Province?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, as I said in response to a question earlier in Question Period, the FPI Act as amended, that we are dealing with today, that FPI is bound by today, was last amended in this Legislature by the hon. gentlemen and women opposite when they were the government. So there is nothing different in that act today, in terms of their requirements to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, than it was then.

There is nothing in the FPI Act, Mr. Speaker, that requires FPI to consult with the government in terms of management restructuring or anything of that nature. Nothing, Mr. Speaker. What is in the FPI Act is control over the amount of shares an individual can hold and a prohibition on them selling off all, or substantially all of their assets. That is what is in the FPI Act, Mr. Speaker, and we will make sure, as a government, Mr. Armoyan or no Mr. Armoyan, restructuring or no restructuring, that the FPI Act is lived up to and, as I said earlier, if we require further amendment then we are prepared to consider that too.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I beg to differ with the minister. A lot has happened since we amended that act in 2002. We see two communities closed down: Harbour Breton and Fortune. We see approximately 1,500 people whose futures are in jeopardy.

Mr. Speaker, when the current board of directors divided FPI into three divisions, it said that each division will sink or swim on its own merit. We now see the groundfish operation sinking, with plant closures and hundreds of layoffs. Armoyan is now going to divide the American division into four parts.

I ask the minister: Are you concerned that some of these parts may also sink, including the newly-formed Canadian division, which includes the secondary processing plant in Burin?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, if the hon. gentleman is going to quote me, then he should make sure he does so accurately. I did not say nothing has changed with FPI; I said nothing has changed with the FPI Act since it was last amended by this House when the hon. people opposite were the government. That is what I said, Mr. Speaker, and that is a fact.

Now, in terms of the other parts of his question, Mr. Speaker, we will see. We believe we have plenty of legislative authority to make sure that the interests of the people of this Province are protected, and we will not be hesitant to use it, Mr. Speaker, if we have to.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. REID: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

He says: If he has to. Three hundred and fifty jobs gone in Harbour Breton, three hundred and fifty jobs gone in Fortune, potentially another three hundred going out of Marystown, when are you going to bring the act back in here and amend it, I say to the minister?

Mr. Speaker, my final question. Mr. George Armoyan and Mr. John Risley are very close personal and business friends, and have close business ties. Between Mr. Armoyan and Mr. Risley, they now own approximately 30 per cent of FPI. Both of these individuals sit on a number of boards together and, in fact, Mr. Armoyan, upon until recently, sat on the Board of Directors of Clearwater Fine Foods - a company, I might add, which is owned by John Risley.

I ask the minister: Given the close personal and business relationships between those two individuals, do you believe that the spirit and intent of the FPI Act may be compromised with regard to the share restriction?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDEOUT: Mr. Speaker, the politic rhetoric in the hon. member's question, that is just what it is. The hon. member knows that when the act was last looked at for amendment by this Legislature, when they were the government, the all-party committee recommended that there be nothing put in the act regarding closures of plants, layoff of workers, or things of that nature. So, it is not in the act. There is nothing in the act that speaks to that. We may or we may not want to do it, but it is not there now, and the reason why it is not there is that those hon. gentlemen and ladies opposite chose not to put it there when they were the government, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My questions are for the Minister of Health and Community Services.

The former federal Liberal government created a national early learning and child care program for provinces, allowing for quality, affordable, universal child care programs, something that we have lobbied for in this country for many years. The agreement first signed here in Glenwood in May of last year allowed for, I think it was approximately $50 million in investments for child care in our Province. I would like to ask the minister how this money has been invested in the last year.

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. OSBORNE: I will look into that for you. I cannot tell you at this point how that money has been invested over the past year. I can say that we are preparing for the changes that the federal government are making to their early learning and child care plan, and we are making arrangements internally within our own department to come up with our own early learning and child care plan.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, from what I know, there hasn't been a cent of it invested to date into child care centres in the Province, but I will certainly wait for the minister's response.

My next question is for the Premier, because the present Conservative government is now threatening to dismantle the entire child care program as we know it, and erode services to families. All other provinces have opposed to this new federal Conservative approach to child care, and your government has received opposition already to the plan from both the Nurses' Union, the FFAW, the Dietitians Association and others. I have to ask: Why have you been silent on the issue? Why are you not adding your voice to the voices of other premiers across the country and oppose this ridiculous move by the Harper government?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, we are going to use the same approach that we used with the Atlantic Accord and other issues that we had with the last government. We are going to pick our spots, pick our fights, and decide on the issues that are of the most importance to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. This is an extremely important issue.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: I am not acknowledging that it is not, but I have asked for a meeting now with the Prime Minister. I will be meeting with him. I will be discussing that issue with him.

From my perspective, it is a matter of prioritizing what are the most important needs for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians that, at the end of the day, will give us the greatest return so that we can do the things that are necessary, the kind of things that we have been doing over the last couple of days: our innovation strategy and our strategic cultural plan, initiatives in education which we have announcing over the last week.

From our perspective, we get -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: - significant monetary assistance from the federal government.

Like I said, I like to pick my spots. Our government, our Cabinet, our caucus likes to pick our spots, so I have been silent on this, but when I sit down and I have a face-to-face meeting with the Prime Minister I certainly will be discussing it with him.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, in February of last year, when the Minister of Health was going off to federal-provincial discussions on this issue, he made a statement that this national child care program is of the utmost importance to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Here today we have a Conservative government in Ottawa that is prepared to dismantle the entire program as we know it today and, as a result, this Province, in the next year, could lose as much as $23 million in investment in child care centres and could also lose up to 3,000 new places for children in our Province.

Mr. Speaker, I have to ask the Premier again: Will he intervene immediately? Will he take a strong stand to protect the integrity of this program and ensure that the benefits go to children in Newfoundland and Labrador?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: First of all, Mr. Speaker, this is a minority government and this government cannot do this by themselves, so it will be in co-operation with one or two or three other parties, whatever is done or whatever is decided at the end of the day. I think that should be pointed out. This is not a majority government.

Secondly, from our perspective, this is a priority for me, there is no question, but I do not necessarily feel, on this issue, it is one that we should be negotiating in public, in the press, as others are doing.

What we will do is, we will negotiate it -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: - when we do have a meeting with the Prime Minister. We will discuss it with him, we will bring it to his attention, and (inaudible).

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, my next question is for the Minister of Health.

It has been brought to my attention that the West I unit of the Harbour Lodge in Carbonear, which is the Alzheimer's unit, is scheduled to close, and that six residents will be transferred outside the region. I would like to ask the minister if this is indeed true. If it is, can you tell me where the patients are being transferred and, most importantly, why that unit is being closed?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. OSBORNE: Government takes the issue of seniors and long-term care very seriously. The residents at Harbour Lodge in Carbonear, there are three of them that are being transferred to St. John's. Government are working with the other two families that are being affected. Harbour Lodge will continue to offer care for dementia and Alzheimer patients, but patients who are high risk and have special needs obviously cannot be looked after at Harbour Lodge because of the low number of patients who are out there requiring those services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. HARRIS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My question is for the Premier and is also regarding child care.

Mr. Speaker, his government has a signed agreement with the Government of Canada on child care giving the Province an additional $55 million to support early learning and child care over five years. The new Conservative government threatens to cancel child care agreements, yet Premier Charest has gotten assurance that Quebec's plan will continue. Mr. Speaker, a signed agreement with government should be as good as an election promise from Paul Martin.

Why hasn't he, as the Premier, spoken out on this issue which is so important to the 49,000 women with young children in our workforce who only have access to 4,800 regulated child care spaces? Why isn't he more out front on this issue based on a signed agreement with the Government of Canada?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Finance and the President of Treasury Board.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I actually was a signatory to the agreement last year, and, in fact, $11.5 million has already flowed to our Province. In 2005-2006, $5.5 million, and $6 million in fiscal year 2006-2007 is flowing from that agreement. As the Premier already indicated, there is a minority government. It is an issue of funding by the federal government to flow that money through. Two separate governments have had two different stances on delivery of that. It is a minority government in both instances in the House of Commons. We will see what happens over the next while. The Premier will make our position clear on where we stand on that particular issue, so we will see what happens in the House of Commons.

It is one of the five priorities campaigned by the Conservative government. There are two sets of campaign platforms out in the public. I am not sure if the Government of Canada wants to deliver on both sets, both the Liberal set and their own set, but we will see. Our government will make representation on that. I must say about 20 per cent of that has flowed already and will be utilized here in our Province for the benefit of early learning and child care.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. HARRIS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

On the Atlantic Accord issue, the Premier didn't sit back and let the NDP do all the work although they certainly had our help. Why is he doing it with this issue?

Mr. Speaker, equally important to economic development in Newfoundland and Labrador is the participation of women and young people and young families in the workforce. He should know, and his government should know, that a quality day care and child care program is essential to the development of our workforce to take advantage of the opportunities that are here.

Why isn't this front and center and just as important to the development of Newfoundland and Labrador? One half of the workforce, Mr. Speaker, relies on child care to be possible to work, and this is something he should be placing more attention on. Why has he given this the back burner as compared to other important issues?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. OSBORNE: I thank the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi for his question.

We are looking at making child care more affordable in rural Newfoundland. We are coming out with our own plan. There will be announcements in the upcoming budget. We are looking at making training available for child care providers, making it more affordable for child care providers. We are looking at providing subsidies to some of the child care centres in rural areas of the Province, in addition to the $1,200 that will go on an annual basis to the mothers of children throughout the Province for children under six years of age.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My questions are for the Minister of Health.

I preface my question by saying, I have never asked questions in this House of an individual concern. In fact, I have never found it necessary to do so because I have always had very reasonable co-operation from officials and ministers. It is unfortunate, I cannot say the same about the Minister of Health - to date. Perhaps by asking in a public forum with the citizens in question listening and watching we might get an answer, at least an acknowledgment from the minister, that he has received my correspondence and that the concern has been passed on to him.

My question, Minister - I wrote to you on March 14, on behalf of seniors and representatives of the Status of Women in the Port aux Basques area, asking if Port aux Basques could be added as a site for the public consultations on healthy aging. Could you acknowledge if you got my correspondence, not necessarily that you got an answer, but that you at least got my correspondence that I have asked about?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. OSBORNE: I can say to the member opposite that I have not personally seen your correspondence. You were a minister at one point as well; you know how the system operates. Oftentimes, letters such as those go through the system, responses are prepared.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. T. OSBORNE: One of my colleagues, I say to the member opposite, is looking after the consultations on that, and it is quite possible that letter has gone to him.

We are looking at doing consultations on aging and seniors throughout the Province. We will take Port aux Basques into consideration - I can give him that assurance - but, no, I have not seen your letter.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister, I hand-delivered a letter to you dated March 21, last Tuesday, in this House. I subsequently sent you three notes across this House concerning a gentleman in my district who was stuck in the QEII hospital in Halifax, having had two heart attacks while outside of the Province and needing help with his ambulance cost.

Could you tell me if you have read the letter, that you received my notes, and are we entitled to more than a mere shrug of your shoulders and throwing the notes in the garbage? Can you acknowledge that you have them, Minister?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. T. OSBORNE: Mr. Speaker, the actions of the member opposite are absolutely deplorable. He did send me a letter last Tuesday in the House. Ten minutes later he sent me a letter saying: Did you solve this problem for me yet? I had not even had a chance to bring the letter upstairs and speak to officials.

On Thursday, in this House, he sent me another letter asking if I had it solved. I looked across and said no, but I am working on it. That is the fact of the matter. We are working on it.

The case that you presented is a very complex case of somebody who had gone to Prince Edward Island, had gone to New Brunswick, for care and is looking for this government to pay ambulance services back from New Brunswick to Prince Edward Island. It is not a simple case to solve. That is the fact of the matter.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am not concerned about whether the minister is discourteous to me, personally. That is not my concern, but when I pass concerns on to anyone, whether it is an official or a minister, at least the courtesy of a reply that you got my correspondence and that someone will look at it sometime is enough to get the ball rolling.

Minister, another case in point - this has all happened within a week - on March 22, I wrote a letter to the minister. A seventy-five-year-old lady, in my district again, had applied for assistance under the provincial drug card program. She is seventy-five years old, she has all of her own teeth, and her dentist recommends fillings which cost $510.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. PARSONS: MCP refuses to pay $510 for fillings, but the government will pay $1,500 to extract all of her teeth and give her dentures.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair asks members for their co-operation.

I do believe that the microphones were turned off for the question that you were placing. Could you repeat your question and then I will ask the government to give a reply.

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Again, these matters are of urgency. We have the seventy-five-year-old lady. Why would government not be prepared to spend $500, which it would cost to do fillings, but government, under another policy, is prepared to spend $1,500 to extract her teeth and give her dentures?

Her dentist is recommending it is cheaper, it is better, it is more healthy, it is more hygienic, to have her own teeth filled. Can we have an answer from government?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair recognizes the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. OSBORNE: Again, Mr. Speaker, I find the actions of the member opposite somewhat incredible. I have never received a phone call from you on your first letter. I have never received a phone call from you on this letter. I haven't read this letter yet, and to bring this - why didn't you call me? I mean, I would certainly take your call.

Mr. Speaker, any member of this House, on either side of the House, who has a concern with a constituent, I would be more than happy to help them with those concerns. Likewise with this, I will be more than happy to try and help the member opposite with this particular issue. There is no need to grandstand and to put on this type of a show in the House of Assembly on an issue of this nature.

He says he sent the letter on March 22. I have not yet seen the letter. He was a minister once himself. He knows how the system works. It is often five or six days between the time a letter is received in a minister's office and the time the minister gets to read the letter himself.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The time allocated for Question Period has expired.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Special Committees

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John's Centre.

MR. SKINNER: Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Select Committee appointed to draft a reply to the Speech of His Honour the Lieutenant Governor, I am pleased to present the Report of the Select Committee as follows:

To His Honour the Lieutenant Governor, The Honourable Edward Roberts, Q.C.

May it please Your Honour: We, the Commons of Newfoundland and Labrador in Legislative Session Assembled, beg to thank Your Honour for the Gracious Speech which Your Honour has addressed to this House.

Signed: Member for St. John's Centre; Member for St. John's West; and Member for Bay of Islands

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Further reports being presented by standing and select committees.

Tabling of Documents.

Tabling of Documents

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am pleased to table before this hon. House, the Annual Report of the Government Money Purchase Pension Plan for the Year ending December 31, 2004.

The Government Money Purchase Pension Plan provides pension coverage for part-time employees of government and its agency. As of December 31, 2004, they had 23,640 participating members, and assets totalling $168.9 million.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Further tabling of documents.

Notices of Motions.

Notices of Motion

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

MR. PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Under Standing Order 63.(3), normally we would give notice on a Monday of the following Wednesday's private member's motion, but due to the storm yesterday, the House of Assembly was closed, of course, and we were unable to do that. Tomorrow, Wednesday, is private member's motion. I spoke to the Government House Leader and I believe we have an understanding that we will be doing that today, in which case the Member for Grand Bank would move the private member's motion, if everything is consented to.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Grand Bank reading the private member's motion.

MS FOOTE: Mr. Speaker, I move the following private member's motion:

WHEREAS FPI was established by this Legislature to strengthen the fishing industry in this Province into ensuring maximum employment stability;

WHEREAS the provincial Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture admits that he is having trouble obtaining information on all FPI operations;

WHEREAS the provincial minister has said that FPI broke the laws of this Province in shipping out fish with no authorization;

WHEREAS the provincial minister says charges will be laid against FPI;

WHEREAS there are widespread allegations and suspicions involving the overall operations of FPI;

WHEREAS the livelihood of thousands of people in this Province are being thrown into turmoil as a result of the actions being taken by FPI;

BE IT RESOLVED that this House of Assembly calls on the government to establish an independent public inquiry into the operations of FPI.

We are going to try it again, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: Further notices of motion?

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

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I give notice that I will on tomorrow move that the House resolve itself into Committee of the Whole on Supply to Consider Certain Resolutions Relating to the Granting of Supplementary Supply to Her Majesty. (Bill 3)

Further, I give notice that I will on tomorrow move that the House resolve itself into Committee of the Whole on Supply to Consider Certain Resolutions relating to the Granting of Supply to Her Majesty. (Bill 4)

Further, I give notice that on tomorrow I will move that the House resolve itself into Committee of the Whole on Supply to Consider Certain Resolutions for the Granting of Supply to Her Majesty. ( Bill 5)

Finally, I give notice that I will on tomorrow move the following motion: That the House approve in general the budgetary policy of the government, referred to as the Budget Speech.

MR. SPEAKER: Further notices of motion.

Answers to Questions for which Notice has been Given.

Petitions.

Orders of the Day.

Orders of the Day

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that the House resolve itself into Committee of the Whole.

MR. SPEAKER: It has been moved that this House resolve itself into Committee of the Whole and that I do now leave the Chair.

All those in favour?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Motion carried.

On motion, that the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole, Mr. Speaker left the Chair.

Committee of the Whole

CHAIR (Fitzgerald): Order, please!

The Committee is ready to hear debate again on Bill 2, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Pubic Service.

The Committee is ready to hear debate on that particular bill and the resolution accompanying that bill.

The hon. the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Chair, and members of this hon. House, it is a distinct honour and privilege for me today to rise in this House for the first time as a newly elected representative for the great District of Placentia & St. Mary's.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Mr. Chair, when I contemplate and reflect on the great legacy of this Assembly, of the esteemed legislators of Newfoundland and Labrador who have taken their place in this House, and of the legacy that is reflected by the portraits that adorn this House, that I am humbled and deeply honoured to take my place here today in this illustrious House of Assembly.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Mr. Chair, I am pleased, and in fact delighted as well, to have been given the opportunity to join this great team, this Progressive Conservative Government under the tremendous and inspirational leadership of our Premier, Danny Williams.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: My timing could not have been better, Mr. Chair, because I share the opinion and sentiment of so many people in my district and so many Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who are saying we are in for some exciting times in the next few years under this government.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Mr. Chair, this has been manifested and reflected by the several good news announcements made by this government in the last couple of weeks.

Exciting times brought on my a leader, Mr. Chair, who enjoys unparalleled and unprecedented popularity in this Province, whose ratings have soared to over 70 per cent, and that was even before the McCartney affair, and dare I say it, Mr. Chair, even before my great election in Placentia & St. Mary's area.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Mr. Chair, my first duty today is to thank those people who gave me the opportunity to join this exciting team, the voters of Placentia & St. Mary's. The by-election campaign was a very exciting experience for me because it occurred in a district where my colleagues, friends and relatives live, people I worked shoulder to shoulder with for so many years, for most of my life, and where I developed friendships and relationships with these people; friendships and relationships that have served me in great stead in the last by-election.

I am humbled and I am grateful for the tremendous show of support and confidence they have given me and I rise today publicly in this House to thank them for it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Mr. Chair, no victory is possible without the support and direction of a capable and hardworking campaign team. I take this opportunity today to thank my campaign team for bringing it together and bringing it home for me; to my campaign manager and all the hardworking members of her team - and there were dozens of them - those who contributed in any way, and a sincere thank you to them.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: They had just come off a grueling two-month federal election campaign, Mr. Chair. They had achieved a monumental result in turning the District of Avalon around in favour of the Conservative Government of Canada. It was a campaign that left them emotionally drained and physically drained but after a couple of days rest they came back at it for me and that speaks volumes for their dedication.

Going one-on-one against any challenger for an office like myself is an uphill battle, especially when you are doing it for the first time, but we had to take on three challengers, Mr. Chair. With the leadership and direction of that campaign team, even though there were the naysayers who said the government could not retain that district, we won it and we won it handily, and I thank them for it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: I would also like to thank the Premier, his ministers and the members of this House who came out and helped me in this campaign, who campaigned for me, went door-to-door in Placentia & St. Mary's. Those of you who have gone through a by-election will appreciate the help that your colleagues give you in a by-election. They came out in great numbers. In fact, the members for the other side came out in support of their candidate as well.

Placentia & St. Mary's is a formidable district geographically and you need all the help you can get. One of the advantages of a by-election, Mr. Chairman, one of the advantages of having the Premier and his ministers and the members come out for you, is that they become familiar with the needs and concerns of the district. Mr. Chairman, I hope the District of Placentia & St. Mary's can capitalize on that and reap the benefit of that in years to come.

I want as well, last but not least, to thank my family, my good wife, Janet, my three children, Lisa, Paul and Jonathon, for their support and inspiration. In the early days when I was waffling on whether or not I really wanted to take this on at this stage in my life, they all, individually and in chorus, said, Dad, go for it, and I want to thank them for that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Mr. Chairman, this by-election had a number of quirks in it that were unique to this by-election: the nomination drew out 2,000 supporters; there were four challengers for the nomination, and after the nomination was closed the challengers keep coming out of the woodwork to run in the election; a 71 per cent turnout in the by-election; and media attention that was unique and certainly media attention that was akin to a general election. The quirk that I want to speak to today, Mr. Chairman, is that all the candidates were good friends, and for some of us not just casual friends. Even though we campaigned hard against each other we kept it clean and above board, and I want to thank Tom Hickey, Nick Career and Kevin Power for that and the fact that -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: - at the end of the day, Mr. Chairman, politics did not supercede friendship.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to say a few words about my district. The District of Placentia & St. Mary's has three geographical components to it, St. Mary's Bay, the Cape Shore and the Placentia region. As a district, it is no different from any of the other rural districts of Newfoundland. It has its fishing villages, it has its commuters who go outside to find employment, it has scenic beauty, it has hospitable friendly people, it has the same concerns as rural Newfoundland with respect to roads, an aging population and out-migration; nothing much different than any other rural districts in the Province.

Mr. Chairman, what I found, as I went door to door in my district, was that the requests and concerns of the people were not unrealistic, they were very reasonable. What they told me, for example, in St. Mary's Bay, was: We don't expect this government to build plants in each community and provide jobs for everybody. We don't expect government to build big shopping centres, medical clinics and hospitals. We don't expect government to be able to keep our people from leaving. Our young people have left for decades and will continue to leave. They have always pursued their fortunes somewhere else, where the opportunities lie. My own children, incidentally, Mr. Chairman, are scattered between Ontario and Alberta, and I do not live in rural Newfoundland; but there is something else they did tell me, though, in St. Mary's. They said: We are prepared to commute outside of our district for our medical services, for our shopping needs and so on. We are prepared to do that - it is only an hour away - but what we don't want, they told me, is to come back to our homes with a $2,000 repair bill when our vehicle is hurt or destroyed or broken on the highway. We want decent roads to drive on. That is not an unreasonable request, and not unrealistic.

They said: We need cellular phone service. Telephone companies are not reluctant to sell us telephones, but what good are they when we cannot use them? I found that out first-hand during my campaign, as many of you did. We need high-speed Internet. Even though we live in small rural Newfoundland communities, these are not luxuries any more. Decent roads and proper communication systems are not luxuries any more. What I am saying to this hon. House is, that a request such as these from rural Newfoundland and from my district are not unreasonable; they are genuine, simple and sincere requests and, if responded to, they can go a long way towards improving the quality of life in Placentia and St. Mary's, and indeed the quality of life in Newfoundland and Labrador.

These are necessities not only, Mr. Chairman, essential to the quality of life, but they are also essential to the growth of tourism in my district. Placentia and St. Mary's includes the Irish Loop. It extends from St. Shotts throughout St. Mary's Bay, one of the most scenic places in this Province. It includes Salmonier, the Salmonier Nature Park and other parks on the Salmonier Line. It extends through the scenic communities of St. Catherine's, Mount Carmel, Mitchells Brook, Harricott, Colinet, North Harbour, Branch and Point Lance, to the renowned bird sanctuary at Cape St. Mary's, and then along the scenic Cape Shore from St. Bride's into the historic French capital of Placentia.

Mr. Chairman, this area is ripe for the plucking as far as tourism is concerned, and there are several groups and agencies that work in the district fostering and promoting the growth of tourism. I have already met with some of them, and I am impressed with their enthusiasm and dedication.

Mr. Chairman, decent roads are essential to this development of tourism, and essential to the quality of life for the people in my district. The people there could not impress on me more the need to address this problem - not unrealistic, not unreasonable.

Mr. Chairman, dare I say that one of the reasons I am here today is because my constituents, being rational and intelligent voters, felt that their opportunity to best have these needs addressed was with this government.

With respect to Placentia, the Placentia region has depended on Argentia ever since the great base was established there in 1941. With employment from the base, the phosphorous plant in Long Harbour, Come By Chance Oil Refinery, two fish plants and employment from government services, Placentia was one of the most affluent areas of this Province for a long time. We always took comfort from the fact that we did not have all our eggs in one basket. When one employer failed, we had backup; but, Mr. Chairman, when the bottom fell out of her, it fell out of her in its entirety, and Placentia today is feeling the effects.

The people of Placentia have always looked at Argentia as their saviour, as their hope, and when the Towns of Placentia, Dunville, Jerseyside and Freshwater amalgamated in 1992 - amalgamation which I worked diligently for, as Mayor of Placentia at the time - one of the conditions precedent in that was that Argentia would be included in the new boundaries of the municipality, because Argentia was its hope. We have marketed Argentia since the phase down of the base in the late 1960s. We pursued oil and gas industry, offshore supply bases, fabrication shops, numerous other commercial ventures. Since 1994, the Argentia Management Authority has been set up to market Argentia. It was on everybody's plate. Argentia was on everybody's plate. It was described by former Premier Peckford as being one of the apexes of the great golden triangle of Placentia Bay. It had everything going for it: deep sea, deep water port, ice-free port, built-in infrastructure, access to runways, roads and rails, and acres and acres of developed land. You could not miss; prosperity was always around the corner, but no commercial development of any great significance ever occurred.

The residents of Placentia have rode a roller coaster of expectations and defeats and disappointments over the last forty, fifty years, and it surprised no one, Mr. Chairman, that when Inco, in 1996, announced its project for Argentia, that there was dancing in the streets in Placentia until the wee hours of the morning.

Now, people in Placentia do not need any reason to dance in the streets in the wee hours of the morning, but this was a special occasion. Our ship had finally come in. Our ship had finally come in.

Well, Mr. Chairman, unfortunately, the higher you fly, the further you fall; and, within short months when Inco put everything on hold because of the nickel markets, we fell and we fell hard. As a result, a skepticism and a cynicism crept into Placentia that, to some extent, still exists today. The hopes and dreams were crashed. It was reflected in the devaluation of real estate, in the leaving of small businesses, in the out-migration and the sudden disappearance of potential investors in the Placentia-Argentia area.

Now, we were relieved somewhat in 2002 when Inco re-announced the hydromet testing facility was built and in operation; but, as we now know, the future of the commercial plant is uncertain - another dip in the roller coaster. Inco has made, and continued to make, for many years, commitments to Argentia. As late as October, 2005, the Chairman and CEO of Inco stood on the ground in Argentia and said: the commercial plant will be built, and it will be built here in Argentia. Within a short month, there was a proposal on the table of this government for Inco to relocate elsewhere.

It is understandable that the people of Placentia are concerned and feel somewhat betrayed by what has happened, but the people in Placentia, at the same time, though, Mr. Chairman, are pleased that the government has not accepted Inco's argument outright and has told Inco that, before we make any decision on this, you have to give us a heckuva lot more information and documentation; and, that information and documentation has been forthcoming. The government is analyzing it, and I am pleased to say that, before this week is over, we will be meeting with the stakeholders in Placentia and going over that information with them.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Inco has filed its EIS for Long Harbour, but the people in Placentia have been advised not to read anything into that. That has been filed for time-schedule purposes. This government is not giving up on Argentia. Inco is going to have to put up a strong argument, and the stakeholders and people in Placentia are resting their hopes on this government to keep Inco's feet to the fire with respect to its commitments for Argentia. That issue is crucial to Placentia, and the people of Placentia are confident that this government will do everything it can to make sure that a solution is found that is in the best interests of Placentia.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: In closing, Mr. Chairman, I want to reiterate that I am very excited to be part of this great government, this great team.

I was told during the campaign, by one of the Open Line hosts: A politician should, and tend to, blow their own horns. From my brief observation of this House over the last few weeks, I am inclined to believe that there might be some truth to that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Well, Mr. Chairman, I am prepared today to take some personal credit for my victory in Placentia & St. Mary's. In fact, at the risk of being egotistical, I am prepared to take considerable credit.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Having said that, I must also say that throughout the district I did find tremendous support for Premier Williams and for this government, and an overwhelming endorsement of this government's policies. There was no doubt in the mind of the voters, and they expressed it strongly and willingly. As one senior, elderly man said to me - and I don't think this gentleman had ever voted PC in his life - he said: My son, listen here; Mr. Williams is the man for us now. And that reflected the sentiment in a lot of the parts of my district.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: I don't mind, Mr. Chairman, if there are those who might suggest that my credibility as a candidate played second fiddle to the Premier's popularity. I am reluctant to believe it -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: - but I don't mind it at all, if there are those who say I rode in on his coattails, because I am prepared and I look forward with great enthusiasm to working with him and with his government as part of his team for the great District of Placentia & St. Mary's.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. F. COLLINS: Mr. Chairman, it is one thing to experience the elation of victory, but victory is always followed, as you all know in this House, by the reality of the tremendous obligations and expectations that that victory places on you. I am cognizant of those obligations. I am cognizant of those responsibilities. I accept the challenge that the voters of Placentia & St. Mary's have given me. I accept it readily, I accept it willingly and, Mr. Chairman, members of this House, I accept it proudly.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

CHAIR: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Carbonear-Harbour Grace.

MR. SWEENEY: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I, too, will try to blend in a little bit of humour as well, as my colleague from Placentia & St. Mary's.

Mr. Chairman, while I am on my feet I would like to congratulate the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's and acknowledge the great amount of wit that he seems to have brought to this House. At times here it seems to get a little bit humdrum and dry, but at other times it is nice to see a new member come in with his hopes and expectations - like the rest of us did at other times in our careers when we first came into this hon. House and sought to take our seat and represent the people who put us here.

Time tends to mellow all of that, I say to the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's, because as we all work towards satisfying the various needs of our constituents - and I will say to you, after being here since 1999, the needs of your constituents will vary from day-to-day, in not only demands but also in quantities. Being all things to all people, I think is something that a lot of us politicians try to be here, but the best thing to do - I will give you some very honest advice - is to be honest with your people, work for them as hard as you can and I am sure you will have a long and happy career here in this hon. House.

Mr. Chairman, while I watched with great interest over the past couple of weeks the leaves falling off the great money tree that the Province seems to have found here, there are also a lot of places where the money leaves have not fallen. While I notice that there is a new innovation document released today by the Premier - and it is easy to know when there is good news and the polls show that this stuff should be good because the Premier is here front and center. That is the remarkable part of it. When there is money to be given out or credit to be taken the Premier is there, lo and behold, with the big grin on his face, cameras flashing, lights blazing, but the other part that I noticed, and it is quite noticeable, when the people of Harbour Breton ran into trouble the Premier was not there. The people of the Burin Peninsula, the Premier was not there. Every now and then he will stand to his feet and he will say: I am all over that file. I keep thinking to myself: Well, so was Tweety Bird all over the paper in his budgie cage. But what do the people get by the Premier being all over the file?

When we turn on the TV and watch the news, like last night on CBC, and we saw those people, those men, separated from their families in Alberta, working for $10 to $11 an hour, dragging cables through the snow out in the wilderness. Then the camera flashes back to Burgeo where the wives and kids are left on their own for what can be the harshest times in their lives here in this Province, the dark and dreary months of winter. You cannot help but think all is not right, all is not right in this Province. The money tree is not that abundant, obviously. There has not been any great accomplishments done. You share that feeling with some and you say: Well don't forget now, the Premier got over $2 billion from the Atlantic Accord. Interesting enough there, too. I think anybody at all would have had that money because here was a Prime Minister who was in dire straits of trying to form a government and the couple of seats here in this Province that he needed and the couple of seats that he would have needed in Nova Scotia was enough there to help him through it.

AN HON. MEMBER: You are not funny yet, George, when are you going to start?

MR. SWEENEY: I will get there now, seeing as I have the Minister of ITRD there sputtering, grumbling amongst themselves. I will start now. I may even have to ask the Minister of Government Services to call in the boiler examiners to check her pressure. She may bust there in a minute if she keeps going.

The very problem when you start idolizing people, as is after happening -

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. SWEENEY: Oh, no - as is after happening here to the Premier, this great idolization process that is after taking place, the unfortunate thing about that, I have seen idols before. I have seen them before.

MR. J. BYRNE: (Inaudible).

MR. SWEENEY: The Minister of Municipal Affairs just mentioned somebody who was idolized by some people. I have always been slow to idolize anyone because the biggest problem we have in this Province is that people still write history books and history is the greatest taleteller of how great an idol was. I tell you, the history book is still being written on this particular idol because the chapter that I am most interested in seeing, is what is going to happen to rural Newfoundland? What is going to happen out there?

Many people in this Province who are associated with the rural development sector of this Province, the people who are out there as volunteers in the various communities, they tell me that this Province is being run by a one-man show and that everything has to go through there. They tell me what the rural development strategy is -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SWEENEY: And it is interesting to note, Mr. Chairman, that when you will not sing to the government's songbook they get rowdy with you and they start shouting and bawling because every now and then their nerves are a little bit raw. I can understand why some of them are touchy, because we have had three Cabinet shuffles now already, I think.

The Member for Lake Melville is still out there with his nose pressed to the glass looking in. The Premier took him down to Goose Bay, and he said: Now, member, we are going to make some announcements here today and we are going to have your picture taken and everything is going to look nice and rosy here for you. He steps back on the plane, pats him on the head and says: Oh, by the way, member, you are not going in Cabinet again this time. Be content with that. Put that new suit away. Bring that back to Tip Top and get your refund.

I was going on about the rural development strategy, and the real rural development strategy here in this Province, as told to me by the people involved in that sector, that this government has adopted the Wal-Mart strategy. If anyone does not know what the Wal-Mart strategy is, according to what my sources in rural development tell me, that wherever there is a Wal-Mart, well that is a good centre in which we should centralize all the communities around that particular area. There was a time when it used to be zones, but now they have gone and concentrated on Wal-Mart, because the Wal-Mart strategy is the one where you can find the most growth, because Wal-Mart has already done the work for this government. They have identified the growth sectors in this Province, the places where a store like that can survive.

AN HON. MEMBER: They are all along the Trans-Canada.

MR. SWEENEY: Lo and behold, most of them are stuck pretty close to the Trans-Canada. That is why communities like Burgeo, who send their men away every year to try to get their twelve or fourteen weeks' work, communities like Salmon Cove, Victoria, Northern Bay, Ochre Pit Cove, and all those other areas where people are going away, they are the communities who do not have the benefit of a Wal-Mart, where the growth is supposed to be taking place.

Mr. Chairman, the radio, this morning, had an interesting announcement, despite what the minister had said earlier last week, that there are 3,000 less people in Newfoundland right now. They have out-migrated. That sort of answers, to me - because, every time I go out Kenmount Road, I notice out there is a big U-Haul depot. I look at it, I look at the trucks coming in, being parked there, being prepared, and all of a sudden you will start seeing them going out the highway. My colleague from Bellevue mentioned that there were six that came off the Burin Peninsula last Friday, loaded, heading west. Those are the telling things. When you see a company like U-Haul with such a tremendous growth, that tells you that people are not coming in; people are leaving. This is what the people of this Province are seeing.

Granted, somebody mentioned there about the polls, the Premier's popularity. That is interesting, because you can only vote if you are home, I suppose. For many of the people who are being polled, I guess they are here in these areas, the growth areas, and everything is going okay.

Like the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's, I, too, knocked on doors down there during the recent election and, let me tell you, I wasn't told as much as he was being told. At the end of the day, I guess, many people said to me: We got nothing from the government before, and if we don't elect them back again we will get less.

That was the most telling thing, because many people said: I want to send the Premier a message. That wasn't the message they wanted to send him. That is what they told me.

Being a member of the Opposition, our job is to bring forward the complaints of the residents, as the Member for Burgeo & LaPoile did there today, of people who are not been serviced in this Province.

CHAIR: Order, please!

I remind the hon. Member for Carbonear-Harbour Grace that his time for speaking has expired.

MR. SWEENEY: Just to clue up, Mr. Chairman?

CHAIR: By leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes.

CHAIR: The hon. member, by leave.

MR. SWEENEY: Mr. Chairman, there are other things I want to touch on. I want to touch on the deplorable conditions of the roads in this Province. I know we have a Budget coming down here on Thursday, and hopefully that will be addressed.

MR. TAYLOR: (Inaudible).

MR. SWEENEY: Minister Taylor, I missed what he said, but I am sure he can use his ten minutes to get up like anyone else and say a few words.

I will also remind the minister that I was there the day in Carbonear when you promised the mayor that you would meet with him, and you still haven't had that meeting yet.

MR. TAYLOR: We met later that day (inaudible).

MR. SWEENEY: No, that wasn't the meeting he wanted.

Anyway, Mr. Chairman, the minister is sidetracking me in what I want to say, but it is time that we looked after home care. It is time we looked after the ordinary people of this Province, and I am sure, over the next month or so, I will have time to bring some of these points forward.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your time.

CHAIR: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Conception Bay South.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Before I go any further, I certainly welcome my colleague from Placentia & St. Mary's. I want to welcome him on board. He is certainly making a contribution already to our caucus and to our team, and in true St. Mary's and Placentia Bay wit, fashion and humour. It is good to have him on board and I want to welcome him. Like I said, I know he will make a valuable contribution, as he already is. I happened to be out of town, actually, the night he got elected, but I was proud to hear that he had won the seat. He won it handily. He is a true credit to his district, and I am sure he will make a difference here in the House of Assembly. I certainly want to welcome him on board.

Mr. Chairman, we hear all kinds of stuff from the Opposition, and I realize that we are talking about the Interim Supply Bill here, but I just heard quite a bit of information there a minute ago and I do not believe any of it, and I certainly do not believe in the faith of what they are talking about.

I want to refer to an article, an editorial that was written on Saturday, March 25, 2006. It was an editorial in The Telegram. Most people out there in the Province, and in TV land, realize that everything that is printed about government is certainly not always good news, but this was an editorial that was written, I guess, by an editor at The Telegram and they pinpointed things that I think are worthy of note. The first thing that it talks about, and I will go into this later on in a little more detail, but it is "Righting old wrongs", and I want to quote, "...Premier Danny Williams gave out $24 million to try and close an awkward chapter in this province's history. The payment dates back to decisions made in 1991, when the government instituted the Public Sector Restraint Act, and legislated away retroactive pay equity payments dating back to 1988."

Now, Mr. Chairman, what we have just seen is the coming together of the five unions who wrote the Premier on this issue and have agreed on behalf of the women of this Province - the majority of the women - and this certainly is a voluntary payment of $24 million. Like I said, the union has accepted this. It is in recognition of the value and sacrifices that some of these women have made through the years. Mr. Chairman, this government had heard women's voices across this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH: I can assure you, I have seen caucus hear women's voices on a regular basis. Me, personally, I live with three women so I hear them quite a bit at home as well. In this caucus we have some very strong women who sit around our table, and I take my hat off to them for furthering women's voices within our caucus.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH: If there is anything in this that really gets to me sometimes, as we read media and we hear people talk, it is that women are ignored by this government. Mr. Chairman, I can assure you, and assure members of this House, and assure the people of this Province, nothing could be further from the truth, and the women who are in this caucus are some of the strongest people I have ever met, and doing quite a job as well.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. FRENCH: Mr. Chairman, I certainly want to make mention of the unions, and thank the unions for demonstrating the exceptional commitment that they have made to these women's issues, and certainly never missed an opportunity to remind us, to remind government, of what they were duly owed.

Mr. Chairman , if I could, this $24 million is certainly a realistic figure in light of the current financial position of the Province; and, closing on that topic, I certainly want to applaud the five unions again for coming to the table on this. It was certainly remarkable. I have many, many friends who will benefit from this, many people who live in my district. I know they were glad to hear about it. I have been approached many, many times by various groups about this issue, and I am certainly proud that the Premier and Cabinet and caucus have resolved this issue.

Mr. Chairman, this bill is on Interim Supply. For those out there who do not realize it, this is not something different or something new. This is something that happens every year prior to Budget, whereby government brings in the Interim Supply bill while we are waiting for the Budget to be announced and then passed.

This particular bill, Mr. Chairman, Bill 2, is Interim Supply. The amount of money is in the total of $1,509,510,800. Mr. Chairman, what it does, it gives government the financial resources and the ability to continue on with the operations of government, to pay public sector salaries, to carry on the business of government.

One that I would like to speak to, in particular, which was announced recently, Mr. Chairman - as much as we hear tell of the doom and gloom, especially I have heard it from a number of speakers on the educational portfolio. There was recent talk in this House about the school board and how they were not happy with the school board. Mr. Chairman, I had the opportunity of doing a presentation after that report came out some time ago. The minister gave some advice on what she thought should be done with it, and I certainly support her on it. But then the school board, Mr. Chairman, took the time and went and met many of the stakeholders. In my district, like many other people, there were some issues dealing with many of the elementary schools in my district. I took the time to do up a presentation. We met, actually, at Roncalli High in Avondale. Me, along with many parents, made presentations. Mr. Chairman, I have to say, I am delighted with the school board. Very often than not, I have been known to criticize them in the past as well, but I certainly want to point out the initiatives of the people who were there that night for sitting and listening to us, hearing what we had to say. It certainly benefitted the Holy Cross school in Holyrood and it certainly will benefit the other school in my district, St. Edwards School.

Just to give you a little bit of a background about some of what is happening in the schools in my area, to me it is so significant that we are putting this money into education because, I guess, in my district, fortunately - not like all the districts in the Province - I have a growth area. What is transpiring in my area is that you have seen the demographics changing quite a bit and you get a lot of people moving from rural Newfoundland, who do not necessarily want to come to the city so they come to Conception Bay South, or they come to Holyrood because they can get, generally speaking, maybe a little bigger piece of land and they still have the rural setting. Many of them are employed, certainly, on the Northeast Avalon or around the Avalon Peninsula. So we have an influx of population, especially now in the Kelligrews area, Seal Cove area, Upper Gullies and Holyrood area.

Mr. Chairman, I guess that goes back to the announcement of the CBS Bypass, which goes now to the Legion Road. There have been hundreds and hundreds of homes built in that area and because of that, of course, we have hundreds and hundreds of new young families. Obviously, these kids need a place to go to school. Right now, for example, at St. Edwards School in Kelligrews, this school it at 100 per cent capacity and it is projected that - not only at 100 per cent, but in ten and twelve years out from now their numbers are going to increase, so they very well could be at 108 per cent to 110 per cent capacity in just a few short years. So this investment in education is very important to St. Edwards School. Again, I want to point out that the school board made the right decision on this item. They have agreed that, with time, they will even expand St. Edwards School in Kelligrews, and I have to say, Mr. Chairman, it is not without need. I know of a couple of cases there this year where we have had some big numbers in classes and hopefully this announcement, that I am going to get to in one second, will also alleviate some of those problems.

As well, Mr. Chairman, we have Upper Gullies Elementary. Upper Gullies Elementary is the closest elementary school to St. Edwards. I guess it is probably about four to five kilometres west of St. Edwards. That school, they tell me, is currently at 86 per cent capacity. Mr. Chairman, I have been to Upper Gullies school. Actually, I went to the school first when it was built some thirty years ago and had the opportunity to do my Grade 4 and Grade 5 there. Mr. Chairman, I am not one to ever turn down an opportunity to go visit an elementary school or a junior high or a high school when I am asked, and make every opportunity to visit. Very often with my colleague, the Minister of Tourism, him and I cross over on certain occasions and visit on times, and sometimes I visit with the Member for Topsail on the other end of town. So, I certainly try to get to schools as much as I can. I am certainly a big believer in education for the young people of this Province.

Back to the Upper Gullies School, Mr. Chairman. They tell me right now that it is at 86 per cent capacity and ten to twelve years from now we could be looking at 101 per cent capacity - which, of course, is overcapacity with an extra fifty-two students. So it is very, very important and very essential for my district, the people of Conception Bay South and Holyrood, that this money is put into education for a number of reasons, which I will get to very shortly.

As well, Mr. Chairman, we have Holy Cross in Holyrood. There was some talk of maybe closing that facility, and there are many, many reasons why we believe as a community and as a group and as residents of Holyrood that we should not see that school closed. But there is no doubt, Mr. Chairman, that development is happening and is moving west. Like I said to the board that night when we made the presentation, that as development moves west we certainly have to be ready for it. So, as it moves we have to be ready, and if they did decide to close the school in Holyrood and did make that error and did close Holy Cross, what you would see, in my belief, is that in five or six years time you would see them wanting to build a new school in Holyrood. So, you know, I certainly see it the other way around and I am certainly glad that the board made the decisions that they made and certainly glad they did.

Mr. Chairman, there were three points that were made during the recent announcement in education. Points that I am very proud of, very proud that our government has taken the time to make and this relates certainly to my area, like I said, which is a growth area of the Province. The first one they talked about was keeping 151 teaching positions that would otherwise have been taken out of the system. Mr. Chairman, that is a phenomenal announcement. It certainly bodes well in my area.

This year actually, for whatever reason, I had three Grade 5 classes in my area of the Province that had excessive numbers in them. Now, I do not know what was happening ten years ago to this September, but I can tell you that there is a big influx of Grade 5 students in my area. Not only Grade 5, but many in other classes, but that was a couple of the areas where teaching units were needed. I know we managed to help resolve some of the issues. Certainly, you cannot resolve them all, unfortunately, but I know that there are some very, very big numbers. So by not taking these 151 teaching positions out of the system, certainly, it will not make that situation any worse.

Mr. Chairman, the next point that I want to talk about will hopefully correct this problem. This refers to areas like mine and like our area in the Province where there is growth in numbers. There is $250,000 that is about to be provided to review the teacher allocation model. Like I said, that is certainly a big initiative for an area like mine, an area this year where we had, like I said, a Grade 5 class with some big numbers in it. We have dealt with them and got some extra people in to help with the classes and so on, but we have to keep our numbers down. I guess there is nowhere that feels the pinch, if you will, or the problems like a growth area. Certainly, in some of the smaller communities they can maintain the numbers in class sizes. Unfortunately, for all the wrong reasons. In my area of the Province, like I said, we have a growth area and we have to be able to deal with this big influx of population as it happens. To say we have twenty teachers this year and next year we will need another twenty, it is very difficult to go by that. It has to be looked at on a year-to-year basis and many times on a month-to-month basis, depending on the movement of people in and out of your community.

Mr. Chairman, this $250,000 provided to review the teacher allocation model is certainly money well spent, and I am looking forward to it. I know the parents and teachers in my area are very much looking forward to it.

CHAIR: Order, please!

I remind the hon. member for Conception Bay South that his time for speaking has lapsed.

MR. FRENCH: Just a couple of minutes to clue up, Mr. Speaker, by leave?

CHAIR: By leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes, sure.

CHAIR: The hon. member, by leave.

AN HON. MEMBER: Don't give him leave, boys, don't give him leave.

MR. FRENCH: Mr. Chairman, my colleague is riveted to his seat. He wants me to keep talking. He definitely wants me to have leave.

Mr. Chairman, the third piece of that announcement that I thought, as well, was very, very significant was the $150,000 to fund an independent assessment of the process associated with the Pathways models. Again, through my district, on numerous occasions I have had to deal with people who have special needs kids. I believe it is very, very important that these children have the proper avenues to learn in a classroom environment, Mr. Chairman, and again I certainly support the recent announcements by the minister, and I certainly take my hat off to her.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

CHAIR: Order, please!

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

MR. LANGDON: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

First of all, I would like to congratulate the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's on his speech today. We go back a long time, friendship over the years, and I think that is very, very important. One of the comments he made, I just jotted it down. He said he was humble and grateful for the opportunity to represent the people of Placentia, and I am sure that he is. Over time I am sure they will be able to see what a good member he will be and will continue to be.

He also thanked his family and friends for their support, and that is so important in this particular job right here. The other thing I noted from him, that I think is a good principle for all of us, is that politics does not supercede friendship, so that when we leave here we can all be friends regardless of what political stripe or political things you have in store, because, in fact, it does change, Mr. Chairman. I thought earlier about the people in the House. There are forty-eight people here. When I came here in 1989, seventeen years ago, there are only two people from that particular class who are here, just two people. The Minister of Fisheries didn't run in 1989, he was here before that, and I think the Member for Port au Port in the same situation. For the people who ran in the 1989, the 1989 class -

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. LANGDON: I am sorry! He did, so there are three of us left. I am sorry about that.

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. LANGDON: That is right. Three of us ran in that particular election, the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, myself, and the Member for Bellevue.

Mr. Chairman, when we talk about the situation that we find ourselves in today, as a Province, there is no doubt about it that over the last seventeen years since I have been here there have been a lot of changes, a lot of changes for the good and there have also been a lot of changes where people in the rural part of the Province have probably seen challenges that they never ever saw before.

I agree with the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's when he talked about how his family is not living here in the Province anymore, some of them are scattered all across the country. I can say the same thing for my family. The thing about it is, it is a little different now in the rural parts of the Province than it was when I grew up in a small community along the South Coast. First of all, what we have in the small, rural communities is an aging population. When my dad and some of the other people left and went away to work for Abitibi - not Abitibi, it was the AND Company at the time - and worked for Bowaters, there were young families in the community who stayed behind. These people worked for five or six months of the year, sometimes even longer than that, and their families stayed. What we see in many of the rural parts of the Province today, though, is that there are not a lot of younger people in these communities because the traditional work that the people did during those days, fishing, logging, forestry and whatever, has changed dramatically from that particular time. Anybody who wanted a job could work in the forestry, or anybody who wanted a job could work in the fishery. That is not there anymore. What we see happening in many of the rural parts of the Province, many of the smaller communities, is that many of the younger people who were involved in that are now finding themselves leaving.

I have a stat here that was given to me sometime earlier today that said, last year - I think the minister said there were 10,000 people who came into the Province in 2005, but there were 13,763 people who left the Province. That is people who change addresses and these are primarily in the rural part of the Province. We are not looking at the number of people in the rural parts of the Province who have been going away for a number of years, working for a number of months, and coming back into their communities. We are talking about 13,763 people who have changed addresses, that no longer reside here in Newfoundland and have gone to the mainland to work.

One of the communities in my district, over the last year and a half, that has been struck with a situation that they never had to face before was the community of Harbour Breton. When the plant closed in 2004, many of the people who worked there, the 350 of them, never thought, I am sure, that in March 2006 that particular plant would not be open for them to go back to work, and still it is not. There is a lot of uncertainty in the community. I know there has been some short-term work for the people. There have been make-work projects, there has been a severance that has been given to the people who are the union members in the plant there, but there is a lot of uncertainty. There are twenty-six people now who are looking to go to work in the crab plant in New Brunswick. There are people who are leaving to work in Alberta. What many of the community people are concerned about is that many of these younger people who go from Harbour Breton when school closes will take their families with them and will not be coming back to the community again. That can have a devastating affect on that community and will if that particular thing does happen.

I guess myself, like many of the other people from Harbour Breton, is hoping and praying that in the foreseeable future, whenever that will be, some months down the road or a year down the road or two years down the road, that many of them will indeed find work back in the community of Harbour Breton, and all of us would be very, very thankful if that happened.

On the Connaigre Peninsula itself, there are some things that are happening that are positive. We see some expansion in the aquaculture industry. In Pool's Cove, the week before last, myself and Bill Matthews were there and met with the council and with many of the different groups, and one of the concerns that they have is the wharf in the community is not big enough to accommodate the provincial ferry, the local fishermen and the aquaculture needs, and they are looking to expand that. There have been thirty or forty jobs in that particular community in the aquaculture industry, and you have to applaud that whenever that happens for the people in the region.

There is also another potential opportunity for people in the Belleorum area through the dimension of stone, and let's hope that will happen. I am sure the minister and the government are quite aware of that. It is a good prospect and let's hope that it materializes, and people of that particular coast, the Connaigre Peninsula, can take advantage of it. The idea for all of us is to see that wherever an opportunity is possible for employment and so on to take maximum benefit of it. Then obviously that would be the case.

Mr. Chair, I am somewhat constrained by time today on the Interim Supply, so that means my twenty minutes, I think it was that I have, I can expand into that later, at some other time. As for now, I think that there has been agreement between the Opposition and government that at this particular time we would have Bill 1 called for passing in the Legislature.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

CHAIR: Order, please!

Shall the resolution carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The resolution is carried.

On motion, resolution carried.

CLERK: Clause 1.

CHAIR: Bill 2, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service. (Bill 2)

Shall clause 1 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Clause 1 is carried.

On motion, clause 1 carried.

CLERK: Clause 2.

CHAIR: Shall clause 2 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Clause 2 is carried.

On motion, clause 2 carried.

CLERK: Clause 3.

CHAIR: Shall clause 3 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Clause 3 is carried.

On motion, clause 3 carried.

CLERK: Clause 4.

CHAIR: Shall clause 4 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Clause 4 is carried.

On motion, clause 4 carried.

CLERK: Schedule.

CHAIR: Shall the schedule carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The schedule is carried.

On motion, schedule carried.

CLERK: Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened as follows.

CHAIR: Shall the enacting clause carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The enacting clause is carried.

On motion, enacting clause carried.

CLERK: Whereas it appears that the sums mentioned are required to defray certain expenses of the Public Service of Newfoundland and Labrador for the financial year ending March 31, 2007 and for other purposes relating to the public service.

CHAIR: Shall the preamble carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The preamble is carried.

On motion, preamble carried.

CLERK: A bill, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service.

CHAIR: Shall the title carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The title is carried.

On motion, title carried.

CHAIR: Shall I report Bill 2 carried without amendment?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Bill 2 is carried.

Motion, that the Committee report having passed the bill without amendment, carried.

CHAIR: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I move that the Committee rise, report progress and ask leave to sit again.

CHAIR: The motion is that the Committee rise, report progress and ask leave to sit again.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

On motion, that the Committee rise, report progress and ask leave to sit again, Mr. Speaker returned to Chair

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Bonavista South and Deputy Speaker.

MR. FITZGERALD: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the Committee of Supply have considered the matters to them referred and have directed me to report that they have adopted a certain resolution and recommend that a bill be introduced to give effect to same.

MR. SPEAKER: The Chairperson of Committee of Supply reports that the Committee have considered the matters to them referred and have directed him to report that the Committee have adopted a certain resolution and recommend that a bill be introduced to give effect to same.

On motion, report received and adopted.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the resolution be now read a first time.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

CLERK: A resolution: That it is expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to Her Majesty for defraying certain expenses of the public service for the financial year ending March 31, 2007 the sum of $1,509,510,800.

Resolution

"That it is expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to Her Majesty for defraying certain expenses of the public service for the financial year ending March 31, 2007 the sum of $1,509,510,800."

 

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that this resolution be now read a second time.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

CLERK: Second reading of the resolution.

On motion, resolution read a second time.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that Interim Supply, Bill 2, be introduced and read a first time.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Finance shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service. (Bill 2)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the hon. Minister of Finance shall have leave to introduce said bill?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

Motion, the hon. the Minister of Finance to introduce a bill, "An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service," carried. (Bill 2)

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that Bill 2 be now read a first time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the said bill be now read a first time?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

CLERK: A bill, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service. (Bill 2)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that the Interim Supply Bill, Bill 2, be now read a second time.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that Bill 2 be now read a second time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the said bill be now read a second time?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

CLERK: A bill, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service. (Bill 2)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that Bill 2, the Interim Supply Bill, be now read a third and final time.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that Bill 2 be now read a third time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the said bill 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 For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31,2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service. (Bill 2)

MR. SPEAKER: Bill 2 is now 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 For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31,2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service," read a first, second and third time, ordered passed and its title be as on the Order Paper. (Bill 2)

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: Mr. Speaker, His Honour the Lieutenant Governor has arrived.

MR. SPEAKER: Admit His Honour the Lieutenant Governor.

Mr. Speaker leaves the Chair.

His Honour the Lieutenant Governor takes the Chair.

SERGEANT-AT -ARMS: It is the wish of His Honour the Lieutenant Governor that all present please be seated.

MR. SPEAKER: Your Honour, it is my agreeable duty on behalf of Her Majesty's dutiful and loyal subjects, Her Faithful Commons in Newfoundland and Labrador, to present to Your Honour a Bill for the appropriation of Supply granted in the present session.

CLERK: A bill, "An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2007 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service." (Bill 2)

HIS HONOUR THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR (Edward Roberts, ONL, QC): In Her Majesty's name, I thank Her Loyal Subjects, I accept their benevolence, and I assent to this Bill.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: All rise.

His Honour the Lieutenant Governor leaves the Chamber.

Mr. Speaker returns to the Chair.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I know, in discussions with my colleagues opposite, the hon. the Opposition House Leader and the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi, we gave notice today of two Supplementary Supply Bills and I think we are going to begin debate on Bill 4, which is, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No.2. (Bill 4)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Bill 4 makes reference, in the Schedule there at the back, Head of Expenditure, the Legislature for $367,700 and Justice for $2.530 million. These are expenditures that had to be incurred before year end. A special warrant had to be issued; it was tabled in the House pertaining to these. The first one -

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I do believe the Minister of Finance is supposed to present a message from His Honour the Lieutenant Governor.

MR. SULLIVAN: Mr. Speaker, I have received a message from His Honour the Lieutenant Governor.

MR. SPEAKER: All rise.

The message is signed by His Honour the Lieutenant Governor, Edward Roberts, ONL, QC, dated 15 March 2006.

As Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, I transmit Estimates of sums required for the Public Service of the Province for the year ending 31 March 2006, by way of supplementary supply and in accordance with the provisions of sections 54 and 90 of the Constitution Act, 1867, I recommend these estimates to the House of Assembly.

Sgd.: ________________________________________

Edward Roberts, ONL, QC, Lieutenant Governor

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

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that the message, together with the amount, be referred to the Committee on Supply.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved that the message, together with the bill and the amount, be referred to the Committee of Supply and that I do now leave the Chair.

All those in favour?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against?

Carried.

On motion, that the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on Supply, Mr. Speaker left the Chair.

Committee of the Whole on Supply

CHAIR (Fitzgerald): Order, please!

The Committee is about to hear debate on Bill 4, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2, and also the resolution that accompanies Bill 4.

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

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

This particular bill here looks for supplementary supply for the year ending March 31, 2006 of $2.897 million. It is broken down into two particular aspects. There had to be an initiative earlier - a special warrant had to be issued because the House of Assembly did not have the funding to meet its requirements, so a special warrant was issued and tabled here in the House. In Justice, about a $2.53 million overrun on their operating for this year, that has to be tabled and given approval under supplementary supply.

Just to look at what they were, under the $367,700 under the House of Assembly, there were over expenditures in three areas. One was in House Operations, Professional Services, and that was a significant amount - most of it was for that area, about $275,000, and that came from - I do not have all the specific breakdowns, but I know the members who sit on the IEC would know the specific component of that $275,00, but I do believe it was entirely used for the Turner inquiry, is my understanding in that specific issue. I know hon. members on the opposite side sit on that, too.

Also, in the Chief Electoral Office, salaries there were about $52,000. There was about $40,000 for Purchased Services for the Office of the Chief Electoral Office. So the Chief Electoral Office, around $40,000; about $52,600 for salaries of the Office of the Chief Electoral Office. So the two of these areas of the Chief Electoral Office, they were $92,700 short. I do believe the by-election was one of the reasons that there were extra costs incurred in this particular area here that caused overrun. Of course the Turner inquiry, that had to go on, there was significant money expended but that amount of money that was short was able to be found in the House of Assembly to cover that specific one. So, that is basically an explanation for that specific one.

Under the Department of Justice, the warrant that was tabled earlier in this House, warrants for the amount of $2.53 million, that was to cover four specific areas. The provincial courts needed another $500,000 to meet their financial commitment for the year. Also, Adult Corrections needed $630,000 extra for funding to get them to the end of this fiscal year. Under Purchased Services from the RNC, there was roughly $50,000 under purchased service, and under the total salary bill with RNC, there was $1,350,000. So, all of these add up to $2.53 million in those specific areas. There wasn't sufficient funding and when the House opened - a warrant had to be issued before the House opened. Back some time it was tabled here and the information was tabled here in the House with the details on the warrant to allow cheques to be paid out so we could meet commitments to the people who had worked and were due to get this money.

So, that is basically the total of these specific ones there. In each of these there were four different specific areas, subdivisions in the Estimates there. They are identified here in the bill. If anyone needs the specific subdivisions in the Estimates, I can provide it to them. For instance, under Justice, it was 4.1.01.01; 4.1,01.06 if you look at the Estimates book; 4.2.01.01 and the fourth one was 3.2.01.01, would be the four references in the Estimates book that we would now be asking for supplementary supply to increase these subdivisions by those specific amounts.

Under the House of Assembly, the specific areas in the House of Assembly, would be - in the Chief Electoral Office it is 3.1.01.01 and 3.1.01.06 would be the two specific areas under the Electoral Office. Of course, in the Turner inquiry, the Professional Services is 1.1.02.05, would be the references in the Estimates book by which you can add those amounts to those specific subdivisions.

With that, I will conclude my opening comments, Mr. Chair, on the specific supplementary supply bill that, I guess, gives legislative authority to the special warrant that was tabled here in the House back sometime ago when the House first opened.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

CHAIR: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Grand Falls-Buchans.

MS THISTLE: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I am pleased today to stand and speak to the supplementary bill, Bill 2, which the Minister of Finance just introduced a few moments ago.

I am surprised though, in a way, because I remember when the current Finance Minister was the critic for Finance and he stood, always, this time in the year in the House of Assembly and opposed special warrants. He opposed them vehemently when he was the critic for Finance. We all know the reasons for special warrants. They have -

MR. SULLIVAN: A point of order, Mr. Chair.

CHAIR: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board on a point of order.

MR. SULLIVAN: The hon. member is indicating - a special warrant is issued by the head of that department, the head of the department who feels a special warrant should be issued. It was not a special warrant issued by the Department of Finance. One is for the very Legislature in which we are sitting - it had to be done - and the other one was for the Department of Justice. I was not the issuer.

The Financial Administration Act says that the minister of that department, the head of the department in which it is issued, is the call of that. The comments -

MR. J. BYRNE: Wasn't she the President of Treasury Board?

MR. SULLIVAN: The member was President of Treasury and she should know the Financial Administration Act. I want to make that point.

It is my responsibility, as the Finance Minister and President of Treasury Board, to table those bills here in the House and answer questions on these bills, which I can, or any particular minister who wants to answer. The Speaker cannot answer on the House of Assembly because of the nature of the position. I know the Opposition House Leader-

CHAIR: Order, please!

I ask the hon. member to get to his point of order, or if not he can kindly take his seat. He can be recognized when his time comes around again.

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I will gladly take my seat and indicate that the member was wrong in making reference to a specific issue, a warrant. That showed that she did not correctly state what the Administration Act says.

CHAIR: Order, please!

There is no point of order.

The hon. the Member for Grand Falls-Buchans.

MS THISTLE: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

As predicted there was no point of order.

One of the reasons why we are standing here today is to find some money for the by-election that just took place in the District of Placentia & St. Mary's. Before I talk about that, I want to say congratulations to the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's. I enjoyed your speech immensely today. You did a great job, and I would say to all of the backbenchers who listened to you today, they are worried, they are very worried. From what I heard today and saw today, they ought to be worried. The next cabinet shuffle might make a change, you never know.

MR. SULLIVAN: Maybe the ministers should be worried, not the backbenchers.

MS THISTLE: The backbenchers over there should be worried because they all feel it is their turn for the next shuffle.

I can tell you, after hearing you today, you add a bit of levity, a bit of humour. That is wonderful because you are untouched at this point. You are untouched with the mundane, routine matters that go on in this House. It was refreshing to hear the bit of humour coming from your particular area. There is a lot of Irish from your area and I could pick it up in your speech. I just congratulate you and wish you all the very best. I want to say to the member, never lose sight of why you are sitting in that seat today and your chances of being reelected will be good.

Now, to the matter at hand, talking about Bill 2. I guess what we are looking at here today is a combination of a government that has a lot of money to spend before the end of March. From the news announcements that have come out over the past two weeks - I read the other day in The Telegram that the Premier said one of his quotes is that he is bursting at the seams with new initiatives. I would think that he has one a day for every day that he is standing in his place. There has been a big rush to get those new initiatives out before the end of March. Now, that is complete reversal, isn't it, from two years ago. Well actually, it is almost three years ago now since this government came to power. What will history record about this government that came to power in October, 2003.

MR. DENINE: Turned it around in twenty-four months.

MS THISTLE: Turned it around in twenty-four months. The Member for Mount Pearl said that his government turned around the economic situation of this Province in twenty-four months. That is what the member for Mount Pearl just said. Well, I would say to the Member for Mount Pearl, whoever devised the communication plan in October, 2003, should be getting a raise at this point. Now, was it Ross Reid or was it Doug House?

MR. DENINE: Good management and fiscal policies.

MS THISTLE: The Member for Mount Pearl said it was good management and fiscal policies. Thank goodness you had the opportunity to manage the revenue that was generated by the Liberal Administration.

AN HON. MEMBER: What?

MS THISTLE: You had the opportunity to manage the revenue that was generated by the Liberal Administration.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MS THISTLE: It is interesting and I think history will not prove me wrong. Whoever writes history in the next few years -

MR. J. BYRNE: I hope it is not you.

MS THISTLE: Well, it might be me because I am a woman who has kept a journal of every day since I have been elected, and I can tell you there would be a few heads roll if I were to publish a book.

That being said, history will prove that this new government has played, I guess, the greatest shell game that was every created. So far it is flying pretty good. So far you do not have to run for cover. It all started when this Province, through the insistence of the former Auditor General, who now sits as the Member for Topsail, persuaded us to go with accrual accounting. Most people do not know what accrual accounting is, but when this government decided to tell everybody in October, 2003 that the former government was bankrupt they played a wonderful mind game, because the Minister of Finance came out and said the Province owed $1 billion. That is a billion with a b. The Province owed $1 billion. I chuckled about that, because his first order of business when he came to the House in the spring, he was tearing himself apart to make sure that he got the Newfoundland and Labrador Student Loan portfolio put in so we could owe more money than we did before. By God, he had to get that bill! He got it. That was the first one he got. He wanted us to look like we had a $1 billion deficit. He said it would probably take four to eight years to clean up that deficit. Year three will not be up until October, 2006, and there has been no deficit since the first twelve months, because there never, ever was one.

An accrual deficit is one where you lay out everything that government is responsible for whether they are going to pay it today or twenty years down the road. That frightened the people. In fact, it frightened the public servants. They got so frightened that they clammed up, they went out on strike, and this government did something they said they would never ever do. They said they would never legislate people back to work. They legislated them back to work and they gave them nothing. They frightened them to death.

Now, less than three years later they are rushing to put through Special Warrants because they have so much money they have to try to spend it before the end of March this year, which is the end of the government fiscal year. They are pumping out news every day this week to try and spend this money so that they will not have to include it as an extra surplus on the bottom line at the end of March.

I had a chance this afternoon to read through the Throne Speech. It was interesting, the Throne Speech, because it is all a play on words, you know. That is all it is, a play on words. The Lieutenant Governor, who is the spokesperson for the government, starts off by saying, "A bold new attitude has taken hold in Newfoundland and Labrador...". Where is the bold new attitude? Is it with the people of Burgeo? Last night, I watched Land and Sea and I watched My Burgeo Home. Is there a bold new attitude down there?

A couple of nights ago, I watched the CBC one about the people in Harbour Breton who went out to Alberta. Is that the bold new attitude that the Premier is talking about, and the Lieutenant Governor? He said, "My Government took the initiative, beginning in 2003, by building a partnership with the people of Newfoundland and Labrador...". What kind of a partnership did you build? I have not seen any building going on. He said the people of our Province are to be commended for hard work. Well, I guess that would be normal - hard work.

They have a new buzz word now. Instead of coming out with something like a theme, the theme now is the strategy theme. The have the innovation strategy, they have the infrastructure strategy, they have the poverty reduction strategy, and they are going to be working on the immigration strategy. What is the latest one? A sport and recreation strategy.

MR. SULLIVAN: A culture strategy. We have all kinds of strategies.

MS THISTLE: Yes, the Minister of Finance just told me that they have a culture strategy. Will you cook that up for supper some night and we will eat that? Listen, I would like to get the recipe for that.

You have an innovation one, you have an infrastructure one, you have a poverty reduction strategy, you have an immigration one, you have sport and recreation and you have culture. Can you cook that up some night and we will eat that for supper?

What difference is that going to make, all of those strategies? All of those strategies the government has, the Premier said he is bursting at the seams with new strategies. The Minister of Industry, Trade and Rural Development has a lot of strategies. She has nine new strategies, nine new committees formed to develop the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Some of them are regional, and some of them are local. I don't know if she has found the answer yet, but she is working on it, she said. She put out a book last year, last spring, that was a report on the economic situation in the Province. When I looked at it, I said: That is pretty good. What she had done up to that point, she had created nine regional councils. So, what have nine regional councils been able to do? Can you eat them for supper? Because we have eight new strategies today, can you eat them for supper?

MR. SULLIVAN: Culture strategies.

MS THISTLE: Culture strategy. It is something like GDP. Can you eat that for supper? He has all of these strategies. I would like for the Minister of Finance to stand in his place -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

CHAIR: Order, please!

MS THISTLE: I would like for the Minister of Finance to stand in his place and tell me how many -

It is not your turn yet.

MR. SULLIVAN: You asked me to stand in my place.

MS THISTLE: I never asked you the question yet.

They have the answer, all right.

MR. SULLIVAN: You don't want me to stand now. I will sit in my place. You asked me to stand in my place.

MS THISTLE: I would like to know what new revenue was generated by this government, and how many jobs did you create other than the Atlantic Accord? Now, if you can tell me what you have done in this Province in the past three years to generate new revenue -

MR. SULLIVAN: Go in on the Web site.

MS THISTLE: Oh, yes, go in on the Web site.

If it wasn't for the increase in the price of oil and gas - you budgeted $38 a barrel and last week it was $64. Of course, in your own words, you said, in The Telegram of September, 2005: This Province will reap $1 billion a year in existing offshore -

CHAIR: Order, please!

I remind the hon. Member for Grand Falls-Buchans that her time for speaking has lapsed.

MS THISTLE: I wonder, Mr. Chairman, could I have a little bit of extra time?

CHAIR: By leave.

MR. SULLIVAN: How much?

MS THISTLE: An hour or two.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: No.

MS THISTLE: It appears I have not been given leave, so hopefully I will rise again.

CHAIR: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DENINE: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I am delighted to get up and speak, to rebut some of the things that the Member for Grand Falls-Buchans just said. In her opening comment, she said: What will history say about this government?

What will history say about this government? I kind of say, well, I kind of read the history the other day. On March 25, in The Telegram, the editorial wrote the history of this government of twenty-four months, just over twenty-four months, and the achievements that they have done. This government has been written up already, if the hon. member would only read the paper. It says, "Righting old wrongs". Premier Williams gave a voluntary $24 million to the unions to help with the pay equity payments, and that was a voluntary payment. We righted that wrong. That was not corrected by the former Liberal government.

Also, Mr. Chairman, we took the $2 billion in that Atlantic Accord and we put it to the debt of the teachers' pension. Now, if the Liberal government was there, what would happen to that $2 billion? Well, I will tell you what would happen to that $2 billion. It would be taken and wasted and thrown after everything that they could think of, and then call an election on it. That is what they would do. Then, they would call an election.

We took that $2 billion and we invested it in the debt. What happens is that now, forever and a day, there is $180 million at the disposal of this government and in every other budget to follow through.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DENINE: That is what we call fiscal responsibility; fiscal responsibility. The hon. member was a former Finance Minister, if I am not mistaken -

AN HON. MEMBER: President of Treasury Board.

MR. DENINE: - and President of Treasury Board. That is what it was, yes.

Mr. Chairman, we also provided $3 million retroactive workers' compensation spousal benefits to fifty-eight women who had unfairly been denied that money. That is $3 million. Those were three things that were said, and one veteran political reporter at The Telegram said, and I quote, "A veteran political reporter in The Telegram's newsroom put it this way: the government could just as easily have frittered away every bit of the Atlantic Accord money on political advantageous projects like buildings or roads, but the Williams government chose not to - and they deserve credit for that. The Williams government has made sensible choices that sometimes have not been ones that would garner them the most possible political points. They've done them because, and as the government has put it, it is the right thing to do."

I am going to tell the hon. Member for Grand Falls-Bucksons, that is going to be the legacy. We did the right thing because the right thing was the thing to do.

AN HON. MEMBER: Buchans.

MR. DENINE: Grand Falls-Buchans. Did I mispronounce that?

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes.

MR. DENINE: What did I say?

AN HON. MEMBER: Bucksons.

MR. DENINE: Oh, I am sorry. Well, it is Buchans and I apologize to the hon. -

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. DENINE: Pardon?

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. DENINE: I apologize to the minister on that.

Mr. Chairman, this is what the legacy of this government is going to be. We have done the right thing for the right reasons, with the right research and the right vision of this Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. That is what we did things for. We did not wait to make it politically advantageous for ourselves. We did the right thing for the right reasons.

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. DENINE: We certainly do, from the hon. the Member for Bay de Verde, we certainly do believe that because it was not the philosophy of the last Liberal government, let me tell you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

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

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).

MR. DENINE: Port de Grave.

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible) geography in your caucus.

MR. DENINE: Well, I am sorry. He just interrupted me and I threw off the name. I apologize to the hon. member, but I had to set him straight because that is the philosophy of the previous Liberal government, not the philosophy of this government here.

Madam Chair, when you look at what has been achieved over the last twenty-four months, we have turned around a $1 billion deficit into a small surplus. In twenty-four months - a $1 billion deficit to a surplus. Now, I am not sure if they are listening again. I am going to say it one more time: a $1 billion deficit into a surplus. That was done by strategic planning and strategic decision-making - and the accrual thing, that was always in play when they were here, but I do not know; it is all new accounting now. That is what we have done.

Madam Chair, the hon. member mentioned the Throne Speech. I challenge anyone in this House, because I have been here in my previous role as Mayor of the City of Mount Pearl and listened to a number of speeches brought in by the former Liberal government. I am going to tell you, this Throne Speech that was delivered by the Lieutenant Governor in the House last week - education itself was mentioned so many times it was delightful to hear, because never in a Throne Speech has education played such a high priority.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. DENINE: That has resonated throughout this Province, because I have gone to numerous faculty rooms, staff rooms in different schools, and let me tell you, Madam Chair, the morale out there now is as high as it has ever been. It has never been as high, because they see this government as taking positive steps to correct some of the wrongs that are there and make education a tool with which we can thrive with economic development. Without the education, our economic development policy will not flow. Madam Chairman, this, as a former teacher, I am very, very pleased with.

Also, my hon. colleague from Conception Bay South - I got that one right, thank God, one out of three is not bad for the day. I will get them right, don't worry about that. We left 151 teachers in the system. The critic for Bay de Verde - Port de Grave, is it? - I am going to have to apologize to you, my hon. colleague, because I was trying to get the education critic from the other side. When we put the 151 teachers back into the system - they are not going to be coming out - the critic says: Well, they should put more in.

From 1993 to 2002, guess how many teachers came out? I bet you they don't even know. Over 1,200 teachers came out. Twelve hundred. They are over there looking now to see; there can't be that many. They are amazed by the stats. The stats are there. Look at them. The critic can certainly look at that and add them up. I will send over the calculator, because we are doing skill development, too. I will send over the calculator so he can do it all up. Madam Chair, we are saving 151 positions that would have normally gone out of the system next September. That is a significant contribution to the education of our youth in this Province.

MR. J. BYRNE: Using their formula.

MR. DENINE: Using their formula, that is right; it is their formula that would have lost 151.

In that, Madam Chair, we are going to review that ratio, see what faults are there and correct some of the wrongs again, correcting the wrongs that were done with previous government. That is our legacy. That is history. We are going to show that we are going to make the right decisions. We are doing that, and we are going to look at that formula. We are going to visit that formula by an independent group, to look at it and see where we can improve on that and make it advantageous to our children and the education system as a whole.

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible) ISSP.

MR. DENINE: Getting to that one.

A number of years ago, Madam Chair, even when I was teaching, the Pathways came in, the ISSP meetings. This Pathways system will challenge children to different routes to get their education, different Pathways: one, two, three, four and five.

AN HON. MEMBER: Who brought that in?

MR. DENINE: Who brought that in? The Liberal government brought that in. Oh, he is taking credit because he brought it in, but the next step - they brought it in, but they did not give the teachers the resources to follow through on it. That is the problem. They did not have the resources in the system to carry through, so the hon. member across the way is correct. That was a Liberal initiative but they did not follow through on the total package.

MADAM CHAIR: Order, please!

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

MR. DENINE: Can I have a moment?

MADAM CHAIR: Does the hon. gentleman have leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: Leave.

MADAM CHAIR: By leave.

MR. DENINE: Now, very quickly, the Minister of Education announced in Stephenville last week, $6 million; $6 million in skilled trades and technology and education. Four million dollars of that will be broken up in two components, Madam Chair. One component is $3.5 million to give the resources back into the schools for skill development; $3.5 million to twenty-five high schools. That is over $100,000 for each school, to equip them with new technology. That is what this government did. There is $500,000 of that for in-services and for curriculum development. That is what we did.

On top of that - my God, there is so much good news, it's not funny. I don't know. Make no wonder they are despondent over there; the good news is just reeling off. Now, on top of that, from K to 12, technology integration program, 500 new computers to enhance the delivery of curriculum in the primary and elementary. Fifty new computer systems to enhance work stations in twenty-five schools that will pilot these new skills trades courses, 1201 and 1202. Three hundred new computer systems to supply each school in the Province with the new high-end computer system and accompanying flexible video camera system to support science instruction in K to 12. That is what we are doing. A new microscope and balance set for each primary and elementary school. A new microscope and array box optic set for each intermediate school. An additional 350 computer work stations for the Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation on-line distance education. That is the total, $6 million.

The time is up, Madam Chair. Just one short sentence. This has been the biggest investment in education that anyone in this House can remember and in the history of Newfoundland and Labrador's Budgets. Let me tell you, it is a positive step. We wrote our history and if the hon. Member for Grand Falls-Buchans wants that history, let me know, because I will write it for her.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. HARRIS: Thank you, Madam Chair.

I was not anticipating following the Member for Mount Pearl. It is a bit of a hard act to follow. You know, the Member for Mount Pearl just told us he used to be a school teacher. I understand he was the principal of the school and it seems to me he must have spent a lot of time watching the cheerleaders, because he learned an awful lot from the cheerleaders; how to cheer on his government. In fact, one of the notions of cheerleading is a little bit of exaggeration from time to time. For example, even the Minister of Finance does not claim that he is going to save $180 million a year by looking after the Teachers' Pensions. He only says $150 million. Now the Auditor General only says $90 million. The Auditor General says $90 million, the Minister of Finance says $150 million, but the Member for Mount Pearl says $180 million. Maybe we should get the Minister of Finance to tell us where the Member for Mount Pearl found the extra $30 million and what he intends to do with it. If that is the kind of information we are getting from the Member for Mount Pearl, we have to wonder whether he is going to be the new Minister of Finance, if he can come up with an extra $30 million just like that at the drop of a hat.

AN HON. MEMBER: His heart is in the right place.

MR. HARRIS: Someone says his heart is in the right place. Yes, Madam Chair, but someone caught him for mispronouncing the name of Buchans there today. I was telling him the other day, I heard him on the radio when he was doing another one of his cheerleader functions, praising the government, praising his new minister for the program on teacher allocation, Madam Chair. He was talking about this report. I think we all heard of the report. Dr. Linda Younghusband produced a very important report which caused a lot of repercussions, almost got a couple of people fired, but a very important report, very significant, and the government, to its credit, responded to it.

Madam Chair, in his enthusiasm for praising the government and acknowledging the work of Dr. Younghusband, he called her Dr. Youngblood. I do not even think he realized he did it.

MR. DENINE: A point of order, Madam Chair.

MADAM CHAIR: The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl on a point of order.

MR. DENINE: The hon. member brings up a good point, but given the fact that my name is Denine I have been called everything, divine, deneen, Denine, so I respond to any names that relate to that. There was no insult to Dr. Younghusband, none at all, and for the member to bring it up is just frivolous.

MADAM CHAIR: There is no point of order.

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

MR. HARRIS: Madam Chair, his name may be Denine but he is certainly in a denying mood today, and maybe that is one of the mispronunciations of his name that he has had to encounter over the years as well. He is right though, Dr. Younghusband was not insulted. I spoke to her personally last week because she was here for the Throne Speech. I related the story to her and she kind of laughed and she said she had taken it as a joke. She was not insulted at all. She is a very fine woman, a very sensible educated woman, who understands that certain names are not usual including hers. She was telling me the story about when she was in Australia and she had a letter carrier who constantly mispronounced her name as well. I do not think he called her Youngblood, I think it was another name. I cannot remember it right now, but it was another mess made of her name. Anyway, it was all done in good cheer, Madam Chair, and she was not insulted at all.

To get away from the cheerleading for a second, I understand that the member has a role to play here in supporting his government's actions. We too recognize that many of the things that are being done with the Budget expenditures that have been pre-announced this year are positive. This morning, for example, the expenditures that have been announced with respect to cultural strategy are very positive. Very positive, Madam Chair! In my own District of Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi, the recognition is being given to the work done by the Resource Centre for the Arts, the theatre group that operates out of the former LSPU Hall, Madam Chair, that has been developed for the last twenty-five years or more, thirty years I guess now, as a theatre operation and in arts as well. They have an art gallery there. That theatre group and the Resource Centre for the Arts and its predecessors, the mummer's troop, have had a significant impact on the cultural identity of Newfoundland and Labrador. It has been called, Madam Chair, and recognized across the country, one of the greatest crucibles of the development of creativity and fine art and theatre culture all across Canada. The government has recognized that by supporting, with a grant of $500,000, a rebuilding and reconstruction of the hall to make it more accessible from a physical disability point of view, to make it a more permanent structure, to fix some of the structural problems, and to make it more attractive to people going to the hall. It is a very fine investment that has been announced today by the Premier and the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation.

He and I had a discussion about this last fall when I, along with others I am sure, were asked to support the effort to obtain a grant of $500,000 for this major project, a very worthwhile project. We spent time discussing that and I have to say I was doing a lot of urging for that project. It was a very easy task, I will acknowledge, because the minister, and obviously the government, recognized the great importance of that project to the cultural development and the future of Newfoundland and Labrador.

This whole program is an expensive program in one sense, Madam Chair, but it is a kind of expenditure that - governments are fond of saying that they invest in this, they invest in that and they invest in something else. Governments do not spend money anymore, Madam Chair, they apparently invest. This, in fact, is a kind of expenditure that it is very worthwhile because the dollars are returned and multiplied very quickly and very exponentially, Madam Chair, in the sense that it has been identified and recognized that money spent for cultural projects has a very strong return within the community to the tune of six, seven, eight or more times. For example, somebody who gets a small grant to assist in the writing of a book then publishes that book, and the printers, the book publishers, the distributors and the book stores all participate in the creative endeavor of writing that book. Sometimes it might be made into a movie and all of a sudden we have two or three projects coming out of the one effort.

A good example would be Ed Riche's Rare Birds. Rare Birds was a book that was written several years ago and became a publishing success. It was well received both critically and by popular readers. A great book! A great read!. One of these books that is so true to the culture and people of Newfoundland and Labrador that it is an immediate success with people reading it. In fact, it is funny enough. It is the kind of book, Madam Chair, that if you were reading it 3:00 a.m. by yourself you would still laugh out loud because it is such a great story and a great yarn. That was made into a movie by Loinsgate Productions. In fact, the same producer who directed Rare Birds just released another movie called Beowulf & Grendel which is now showing in the theatres here in St. John's. So, an investment in culture can have many rewards. It was a film project developed here in Newfoundland and Labrador through Lionsgate films and a lot of local talent and actors and creative people - not only creative people but also people who worked in the industry in technical roles, as people who look after the lighting and the sound and all of the things that go into making a film. Some local people, like Andy Jones, starred in the film and played a terrific role, and a number of others. I think Mary Walsh was in it and a number of other local actors. This is the kind of spinoff that you get from cultural expenditures, but even more important than that, it also gives new talent an opportunity to develop their talent and skills. So, $500,000 to make sure that the LSPU hall and the resource centre for the arts will have a theatre space into the future is a very wise move and one that this government does deserve credit for.

Since we are really talking here about some justice matters, I do want to take a minute or two to mention one thing -

MADAM CHAIR: Order, please!

I remind the hon. member that his speaking time is up.

MR. HARRIS: By leave, Madam Chair, for a minute or so.

MADAM CHAIR: Does the hon. member have leave?

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MADAM CHAIR: By leave.

MR. HARRIS: There is a matter in the area of justice that has received a lot of attention in the last couple of days on the media, and this is really the first opportunity to bring it up. I know the Minister of Justice is not here, and I hope that when he returns he - or the minister speaking for him - will deal with this matter in the House because I think all members of this House and a lot of people in the Province were shocked to learn the details, at least the allegation that was made, about a woman kept in custody in Labrador without any clothes, without any furniture, a blanket, or mattress, or anything of any kind in a cell in Happy Valley-Goose Bay for several days, was a shock to our sense of what is fair and reasonable and sense of justice and how people ought to be treated who are, in this case, a woman who clearly had some mental health issues and expressed suicidal notions. This was allegedly done for her own protection, but, Madam Chair, when somebody is in that state of mind and being, that person requires more than being left naked in a cell with someone sitting outside or standing outside with bars and kept in bars. They need attention. They need treatment. They need a greater degree of respect and dignity than was granted, in this particular case.

If what is being said is true, and I have no reason to believe - no one has said that it was not the truth. No one has said it did not happen. I was quite shocked, and I have been around a long time in the justice system. I think we all were in this House, and I hope that someone from government is able to report to this House at the earliest opportunity. As I say, the Minister of Justice is not here and has a family emergency that calls him away, but I hope that someone is able to address it. Maybe the Acting Minister of Justice. I understand the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs - maybe the Acting Minister of Justice may be able to give some interim report to the House on what is going on there. But we have seen a lot of mental health issues in this Province over the last number of years that have caused great public concern and we have had a couple of inquiries dealing with that, individual mental health issues and mental illnesses being shot by police in extreme circumstances. I am very, very discouraged to hear that this kind of circumstance that has been reported having happened in Labrador to an Aboriginal woman kept in a cell can go on. I hope, Madam Chair, that something at the governmental level is being done, and being done very quickly, to ensure that this does not happen again and to find out exactly how this did happen and put measures in place to ensure that it never happens again and that this woman is given the kind of support and treatment and dignity that she deserves.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

MADAM CHAIR: The hon. the Member for Bellevue.

MR. BARRETT: Thank you, Madam Chair.

I would like to have a few words about this particular bill, supplementary supply or special warrant. No matter what the Minister of Finance might call it, it is still a special warrant.

Before I begin my few comments - actually, I have a few questions to ask the Minister of Finance about the bill that he tabled in the House. Before I start, I would like to congratulate the Member for Placentia & St. Mary's on his election recently and, I guess, it is nice to see a fellow person from Placentia Bay do so well. As a matter of fact, my understanding is he is from a small place in Placentia Bay, just up from the great community of Woody Island and just down from the great community of Port Elizabeth. I think he is in between the two there. The Member for Port de Grave is originally from Port Elizabeth. I am from Woody Island and we now have a person from St. Annes, and I want to congratulate him on his election.

AN HON. MEMBER: We can have a club now.

MR. BARRETT: Yes, we can have our own club, I guess, now. The Placentia Bay club. I want to congratulate him on that.

In this particular bill, in the vote for the Legislative Assembly - in terms of going over the budget of the Legislative Assembly, I am on the Internal Economy Commission of the House of Assembly and my indications are what the Minister of Finance had indicated, that there was a $275,000 expenditure for the Turner inquiry. I find that to be a bit amazing because the last meeting that I had, the meeting of the IEC, when we had discussed the Turner inquiry and what the costs were going to be, we had commissioned a person and the quote was $30,000. I guess I have a question for the minister because the IEC has not met since. So I do not know what the answer to the question is. It seems like the costs have gone up from $30,000 to $275,000. Before we pass this bill I would like to have a breakdown in terms of what the extra costs - because when we had commissioned a person to do the investigation, to do the inquiry, the quote that was given to us at that particular time was $30,000. I guess there is a lot of money being spent now. I would like to see the breakdown in terms of how the money was allocated.

The Government House Leader can squirm all he like but the IEC had approved $30,000.

MR. E. BYRNE: On a point of order, Madam Chair.

MADAM CHAIR: Order, please!

The hon. Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you.

On a point of order, this is a serious matter. Any monies that have been spent will be provided to the House. I take exception to the reference, Madam Chair, and the member saying that the Government House Leader can squirm all he wants. Whatever information a member of this House needs and requires they will have it, and it will not be at the behest of the member opposite, it will be at the behest of ourselves because that is what we would like to do anyway.

Having said that, if I left an impression with the member that I was squirming or whatever, the fact of the matter is that this child's death review was conducted by the former Administration. The situation that confronted itself, that brought itself forward, was a matter that members of the IEC were more than aware of - and I think he has referenced that - and that costs associated with doing it were only that, that they had to be done based upon the information that came forward to all members. I wasn't trying to squirm, or not provide information; that is the least of what we are trying to do.

I will leave it to the member to conclude his commentary and for it to be judged for what it is worth.

MADAM CHAIR: The hon. the Member for Bellevue.

MR. BARRETT: This is a new point of order, Madam Chair.

What I am indicating is that the members of the Internal Economy Commission were given a figure to do this investigation and to bring in a lawyer to do the investigation. We are looking at -

MR. E. BYRNE: The Internal Economy Commission also made a decision on the Citizens Rep which (inaudible).

MR. BARRETT: The hon. Government House Leader, will he stay quiet please?

MADAM CHAIR: Order, please!

MR. E. BYRNE: (Inaudible).

MR. BARRETT: Will you stay quiet, please?

MADAM CHAIR: Order, please!

MR. E. BYRNE: (Inaudible).

MR. BARRETT: That is your opinion, okay? All I am doing is asking a question of the Minister of Finance, which the people in this House of Assembly were elected to do. Whether the Government House Leader likes it or not, the Members of this House of Assembly are permitted to ask questions in this House. Right now we are asking to approve an expenditure of $275,000 without any kind of a breakdown in terms of what the expenditures were.

The other area of this particular bill is salaries for the RNC, $1,350,000. I would anticipate that the RNC had budgeted last year in terms of their expenditures, which meant that they went over by $1,350,000. I would like to ask the Minister of Finance: What was this expenditure for? Was this extra salaries? Why did we have to approve in the House of Assembly a special warrant that $1,350,000 had to be provided to the RNC? What was it for? What other special things did the RNC do, to be entitled to get this money? Was this because of the strike - by the raw material sharing? Was this the extra cost? Was the $50,000 extra purchased service by the RNC, was that the rental cars and the vehicles that were provided during the fisheries dispute? We saw it in the Auditor General's report, Madam Chair, the cost of the public service strike and the $50,000 in rental cars and the extra salaries, the millions of dollars that were expended by the RNC for overtime during these particular strikes.

Those are the couple of questions that I would like to see answered in this particular bill. It is a special warrant into this House of Assembly, and I would like to know the details in terms of these particular expenditures.

MADAM CHAIR: The hon. the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. OTTENHEIMER: Thank you, Madam Chair.

Maybe I can shed some light on the first issue that was raised in terms of professional services with respect to the Turner inquiry. The Turner inquiry, of course, deals with a very tragic set of circumstances that have taken place in our Province; and, by virtue of the fact that it has occurred in our Province, Madam Chair, it becomes a very important public issue. Members opposite certainly joined in the fact and saw fit that an inquiry was certainly important. An inquiry is not cheap, I say, Madam Chair. In fact, the amount that is indicated right here of $275,000 represents professional services, an actual statement of account, a number of statements of account that were forwarded to government totalling $275,000 from April 2005 to the end of the fiscal year, 31 December 2005. They represent, in particular, Madam Chair, professional services by Professor Markenstein, I believe is his name. He, in fact, then retained other additional senior council and other consultants to assist him. This particular individual is a pathologist. He is a professional person. He was retained by the former Child and Youth Advocate to conduct work on behalf of this very important issue.

Madam Chair, the total amount, the statement of account, the total amount, is, in fact, $275,000 from April 2005 to the end of the fiscal year 2005; but I think, despite the fact it is a significant amount, nobody can dispute, Madam Chair, the importance of the work that is being carried out and nobody can dispute the public interest being protected as a result of a series of issues that will be reviewed as a result of this review, and child death review and investigation.

Madam Chair, that perhaps gives some explanation as to the actual total representing professional services on behalf of the professor who was engaged by the Child and Youth Advocate, and subsequently other individuals retained by the professor who at first was retained.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

A bill, "An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2." (Bill 4)

CLERK: Resolution: That it is expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to Her Majesty for defraying certain additional expenses of the public service for the financial year ending March 31, 2006, the sum of $2,897,700.

MADAM CHAIR: Shall the resolution pass?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The resolution is carried.

On motion, resolution carried.

CLERK: Clause 1.

MADAM CHAIR: Shall clause 1 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Clause 1 is carried.

On motion, clause 1 carried.

CLERK: Clause 2.

MADAM CHAIR: Shall clause 2 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Clause 2 is carried.

On motion, clause 2 carried.

CLERK: The schedule.

MADAM CHAIR: Shall the schedule carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The schedule is carried.

On motion, schedule carried.

CLERK: Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows.

MADAM CHAIR: Shall the enacting clause carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

On motion, enacting clause carried.

CLERK: WHEREAS it appears that the sums mentioned are required to defray certain additional expenses of the Public Service of Newfoundland and Labrador for the financial year ending March 31, 2006, and for other purposes relating to the public service.

MADAM CHAIR: Shall the preamble carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The preamble is carried.

On motion, preamble carried.

CLERK: An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2.

MADAM CHAIR: Shall the title carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The title is carried.

On motion, title carried.

MADAM CHAIR: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Madam Chair.

Madam Chair, I move that the Committee rise, report progress and ask leave to sit again.

MADAM CHAIR: It has been moved that I rise, report progress and ask leave to sit again.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MADAM CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

On motion, that the Committee rise, report progress and ask leave to sit again, Mr. Speaker returned to the Chair.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): Order, please!

The hon. the Member for St. John's West and Deputy Chair of Committees.

MS S. OSBORNE: Mr. Speaker, the Committee of Supply have considered the matters to them referred and have directed me to report that they have adopted a certain resolution and recommend that a bill be introduced to give effect to same.

MR. SPEAKER: The Chairperson of Committee of Supply reports that the Committee have considered the matters to them referred and have directed her to report that the Committee have adopted a certain resolution and recommend that a bill be introduced to give effect to same.

It is moved and seconded that this resolution be now read a first time.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

On motion, resolution read a first time.

CLERK: Resolution: That it is expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to Her Majesty for defraying certain additional expenses of the public service for the financial year ending March 31, 2006, the sum of $2,897,700.

Resolution

That is expedient to introduce a measure to provide for the granting to Her Majesty for defraying certain additional expenses of the public service for the financial year ending March 31, 2006, the sum of $2,897,700

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that this resolution be now read a second time.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

On motion, resolution read a second time.

CLERK: Second reading of the resolution of Bill 4.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that the Supplementary Supply bill, Bill 4, be now read a first time.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Finance shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the hon. the Minister of Finance shall have leave to introduce the said bill?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

Motion, the hon. the Minister of Finance to introduce a bill, "An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2," carried. (Bill 4)

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the said bill be now read a first time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the said bill be now read a first time?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

CLERK: A bill, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2. (Bill 4)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that the Supplementary Supply bill, Bill 4, be now read a second time.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that Bill 4 be now read a second time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the said bill be now read a second time?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

CLERK: A bill, An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2. (Bill 4)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I move that the Supplementary Supply bill, Bill 4, be now read a third time.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that Bill 4 be now read a third time.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the said bill 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 For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2. (Bill 4)

MR. SPEAKER: Bill 4 has now been read a third time and it ordered that the bill do pass and its title be as on the Order Paper.

On motion, a bill, "An Act For Granting To Her Majesty Certain Sums Of Money For Defraying Certain Additional Expenses Of The Public Service For The Financial Year Ending March 31, 2006 And For Other Purposes Relating To The Public Service No. 2," read a first, second and third time, ordered passed and its title be as on the Order Paper. (Bill 4)

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I believe it is time to move the adjournment motion.

Mr. Speaker, in view of the fact that we normally close a little later than this but we have conducted our business today, interim supply by 3:15 p.m, this supplementary supply bill, I do now move the House adjourn and be back tomorrow at 2 p.m. to debate the Private Member's Resolution put forward by the Member for Grand Bank.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that this House do now adjourn until tomorrow at 2 p.m.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

MR. SPEAKER: All those against, ‘nay'.

Motion carried.

This House now stands adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, at 2 p.m in the afternoon.

On motion, the House at its rising adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday at 2:00 p.m.