March 12, 2026 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS Vol. LI No. 8
Please be advised that this is a PARTIALLY EDITED portion of the House of Assembly sitting for Question Period on Thursday, March 12, 2026. The edited Hansard will be posted when it becomes available.
The entire audio/visual record of the House proceedings is available online within one hour of the House rising for the day. This can be accessed at: https://www.assembly.nl.ca/HouseBusiness/Webcast/archive.aspx
Oral Questions
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you, Speaker.
After months and months of keeping this legislature closed, we’ve finally been able to ask questions on behalf of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, but sadly the Premier and his ministers have done everything they can to avoid giving answers to every question.
So I’ll ask a simple question: The staffer in the Premier’s office being paid with health care funds, can the Premier tell Newfoundlanders and Labradorians the first day he was in the office after the election, whether it was paid by MCP, whether it was volunteering, and whether it was part of a secret transition team? One date would be an answer we would really appreciate, and so would Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: Speaker, I make no apologies for taking the advice of health professionals in this province who are working in the front lines of our health care system. As I have said before, if you want to fix a health care system – and we certainly know this health care system needs fixing – then go talk to the people that work in it. That’s exactly what we’re doing, and we will continue to do, Speaker.
That’s why when we talk about nobody having to pay to see a nurse practitioner, that’s something that we will take care of. The over 300 people that are currently sitting in acute-care beds right now, waiting for proper placement, that is something that we will deal with, Speaker. We will continue to advocate on behalf of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you, Speaker.
As we’ve been saying for weeks, there’s a difference between bureaucratic advice and political advice. This individual is under a political staff contract.
So I ask the Premier: Is the advice he is getting and taking on health care political only? Is that what we’re doing with the health care system, politicizing it? It certainly seems like it, so thank you for that.
I hope the Premier can answer that and I hope the answer is he’s not politicizing health care, even though it seems that that’s what they’re attempting to do.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.
PREMIER WAKEHAM: Speaker, we were elected by the people of Newfoundland and Labrador to improve health care, and that’s exactly what we’re heading down the road to do, by investing in MRI machines in rural Newfoundland and Labrador –
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: – so that people will not have to travel long distances to have basic services again. By making sure that nobody who has to travel – that we will pay 100 per cent of their transportation costs. That’s the movement that we’re talking about. By working with the Nurses’ Union to establish a made in Newfoundland and Labrador solution, so that we never have another travel nurse scandal like we had in the past (inaudible) –
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: – that cost us $240 million.
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you, Speaker.
Again, zero for two, didn’t get an answer. I certainly see where this is going.
I ask the question again: Why wasn’t the advice followed that was given by the public service to the Premier’s Deputy Chief of Staff, Steve Outhouse, to not politicize health care? Why didn’t he take the advice and pay the individual in his office out of the political staff budget, rather than the health care budget?
He is clearly politicizing health care. Please explain to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians why you’ve chosen to do that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
The hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: Speaker, the advice once followed and the other day I asked the hon. Member to table any documents he has related to that and I’d be certainly welcome to take a look at them.
But, Speaker, let me keep talking about what we’re doing for health care, because we’re turning around and actually making those investments in health care. We’re talking about adding more seats to the nurse practitioner program. We’re talking about making sure that when our students enter their programs and health care programs that we’re actually going to offer them a job on the way in not on the way out. We’re going to actually have a human resource plan, a medical, a health care human resource plan that is actually in place and working and not done by AI.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Speaker, again we’re talking about the secrecy and non-transparency of this government. What we received was a redacted email. They have the un-redacted email so I would say if you want all the information out, you table the un-redacted information.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
J. HOGAN: I don’t expect you to do that and I certainly don’t expect the Minister of Energy to agree with anything about public disclosure because yesterday in the House, he continued his stance to refuse to release the Bay du Nord agreement. He spouted a bunch of facts; he expects everybody to rely on when the easy answer would be show us the agreement so you can back up what you’re saying.
The Premier, however, overruled his minister and said he will release it and there will be a review process, but the public can’t be expected just to rely on rhetoric in the House of Assembly.
Why won’t the Premier table the agreement here today so we can all see it?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Energy and Mines.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. PARROTT: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I’d like to give the Leader of the Official Opposition a little history lesson here today. In the 10 years they were in power –
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
L. PARROTT: – not once, not once did they ever publish a benefits agreement, in 10 years. So you either never got any or you wouldn’t put them out.
SPEAKER: Address the Chair, please.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. PARROTT: Not one.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
Order, please!
I would ask Members to address the Chair.
The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: I can tell what we did table, an agreement worth $225 billion.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
J. HOGAN: I can tell you what we did do: we opened up this House of Assembly for four days to debate this.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
J. HOGAN: I can tell you what we did: we brought the experts onto this floor so we could ask questions, to make sure everybody knew how good this deal was for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
J. HOGAN: So I have a little history lesson for the Minister of Energy.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order please.
The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: I have a short little lesson for history for the Minister of Energy as well, because I know he likes going on Facebook. Go on my Facebook page, see the videos about you talking about debate. See the videos about you saying the documents to be disclosed and take a lesson from yourself from 2020.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Energy and Mines.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. PARROTT: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
You would think, given his previous career, he’d know the difference between a benefits agreement and an MOU. That’s the first thing.
The second thing is we go on his Facebook page, and guess what, he won’t listen to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. He has his comments turned off, and that’s the specific reason why they didn’t vote for them.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: I very much do know the difference. The difference is the MOU was not binding so we gave Newfoundlanders and Labradorians an opportunity to see it before we signed it behind closed doors.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
J. HOGAN: We gave Newfoundlanders and Labradorians an opportunity to see it before it was signed. However, the Minister of Energy forgets that he said everybody should see every document and contract like this before it was signed. They chose to sign it behind closed doors.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
J. HOGAN: They chose to keep a secret. They chose not to tell Newfoundlanders and Labradorians what they’re doing behind the scenes. So, again, go look at my Facebook videos, minister, and tell people why you’ve changed your tune before the election and after the election.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Energy and Mines.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. PARROTT: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
October 14 was the date. Just remember that. That’s when the people of Newfoundland and Labrador said they didn’t want the MOU.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. PARROTT: But I’ll go back because 179 days he was the Premier, and he –
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
L. PARROTT: – ignored the building trades; 179 days he ignored Energy NL, he ignored Equinor and he came up with nothing, and now he’s grasping at straws.
Mr. Speaker, I’ll tell you what, 10 years, not once did the Liberals put a benefits agreement up, not once.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you, Speaker.
We welcome the democratic process, and we accept the results of the election. We’re disappointed that the MOU is not moving forward, but it certainly sounds to me the Minister of Energy took the election to mean that we will not be proceeding with the MOU. That’s what he just said.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
J. HOGAN: So, minister, can you confirm that you will not proceed with the MOU and wasting $475 an hour to pay three individuals to tell you what you already want to hear is a waste of money. So please tell Newfoundlanders and Labradorians what we already know, you do not want to proceed with the MOU and the $225 billion for our province.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
The hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: During the election campaign, Speaker, we committed to doing an independent review of the MOU.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: Thank you, Speaker.
A review that would not be handcuffed by the terms and conditions. We heard the Member opposite from over in Corner Brook area, Humber - Bay of Islands who talked about the fact that the recommendations for the review that they had thought were going to be a part of this review were all changed, and so the review that they had talked about lost its effectiveness. We’ve now set up an independent review that will bring it’s results in April.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you, Speaker.
While we see that deal slip away, we see the hundreds of billions of dollars that we could use for important things like child care in this province because parents in this province have been receiving letters warning them that the Conservative’s new policy, which contains no wage increases for early childhood educators, may lead them not to renew the Liberal-created, $10-a-day program. Will the Premier commit to parents in this province that he will update his policy urgently so children won’t lose child care spaces?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
P. DINN: Thank you, Speaker.
As I’ve said many times since I’ve gotten up here and in the Opposition, child care is our most valuable resource. They are the most valuable resource in this province. We’ve reached out, we’re trying to clean up a mess that was left to us with this Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program. We have contracts that have been signed –
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Did you hear me say order?
The hon. the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.
P. DINN: I appreciate the protection. Thank you.
We have an agreement that was signed that does not address the needs in this province. It’s underestimated, the number of child care positions that are needed. We are going to try to fix that. It’s going to take some time –
SPEAKER: Order, please!
The hon. minister’s time has expired.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you, Speaker.
I think the minister, when families hear about – that they think it’s a mess that their children are in child care so they can go to work and deliver good early childhood education for the children in this province, to call it a mess, I think the minister will be hearing from a lot of parents on that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
J. HOGAN: I say as well, the minister said yesterday that despite promises that were made, that he’s looking at creating pensions over the next four years. He just said that he will try and create new spaces. Minister, trying and looking at things will not deliver child care spaces for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
Again, this was a promise that was made in the Blue Book, which is now the mandate of this government. Will you promise, as you did before, to deliver on those commitments to families in Newfoundland and Labrador?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
P. DINN: I don’t know what to call what we were left with. A mess is what comes to my mind. I can tell you since I came in, I’ve written the federal minister, I’ve gone to Ottawa to meet with my provincial counterparts to clean up this mess, I’ve had an individual meeting with the minister, I’ve written letters with my four Atlantic partners. I’ve done everything I’ve can and I’m going to continue to do it because the parents in this province need more than what they did.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
P. DINN: This government that signed a five-year extension with no additional money.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: The hon. Member’s time has expired.
The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you.
I’m glad you wrote some letters, I’m glad you had a wonderful trip to Ottawa. Unfortunately, the obligation is on this government to deliver for children here.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
J. HOGAN: So will you do more than just travel around the country and write letters on your computer and commit Newfoundlanders and Labradorians’ money in this budget to deliver child care spaces for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
P. DINN: The Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care program is a federal program. It’s a federal program; they may not know what they signed, but it’s a federal program. That’s why I’m gone to Ottawa, face to face, dealing with this issue. Something that hasn’t been done. They signed it, they signed an extension – no additional money – and they think they put early child care first?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
SPEAKER: Order, please!
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Official Opposition.
J. HOGAN: Thank you.
We can talk about the federal program if that’s how they want to deflect. So let’s talk about some provincial programs that he does have control over, because the government and the Minister of Education in particular is doubling down on his 100 per cent enrolment provision in these new contracts. This will cause children born earlier in the year to age out of their present classrooms before vacancies open up. Where does the minister expect parents to send their children?
Will the minister fix his provincial discriminatory policy and immediately protect the Liberal-created $10-a-day spaces?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
P. DINN: Because of the inadequate approach that has been taken, we need to fill spaces. We need to fill spaces. Enrolment is where that goes. That’s not attendance, that’s enrolment. Just to clarify, we’re consulting with the stakeholders out there. We have not changed that policy today. We have gone out to the stakeholders and asked for feedback. It’s a policy that’s going to transition in over the year based on feedback from the stakeholders that we talk to. That’s where it is.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Mount Scio.
S. STOODLEY: Thank you, Speaker.
That policy says final draft, so I think the Department of Education should be clear with early childhood educators.
Speaker, the Conservative campaign and now mandate budgeted $5 million for pension for early childhood educators. Will the Premier confirm that this will be in this year’s budget? I also ask, what kind of pension can this government think that they can buy for $2,700 per early childhood educator?
Thank you, Speaker.
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
C. PARDY: Thank you to the hon. Member.
As we know, the budget will be coming this spring, and we are not at liberty to be able to share what would be in the budget; the only thing being is that we have a vast number of issues within the province that have been listed in our platform that we’ve committed to.
Without repeating our three pillars, I can say that the Opposition would know that off by heart, all the pillars will be addressed within the upcoming budget.
Thank you, Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Burin - Grand Bank.
P. PIKE: Speaker, the Conservatives promised paid sick leave for early childhood educators in their election campaign. The Minister of Education failed to incorporate this into the wage grid as part of the new contracts.
Will the government deliver on their commitment for paid sick leave or try to bump that down the road for four years as well?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
P. DINN: Thank you, Speaker.
Again, early child care is important to this province, and our early child care educators are even more important because they’re the ones there looking after our most valuable resource.
I’ve said it already in this House; it’s right here in our Blue Book, what we’re going to do over our next four years, “Support Early Childhood Educators by promoting access to pension plans and paid sick leave.”
It’s there in black and white. I don’t know what else I can do.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John’s West.
K. WHITE: Speaker, the Conservatives ran on a promise of lower taxes, but all they have delivered so far is keeping the taxes the same. We asked the minister yesterday if he would support a reduction in the gas tax and all we got was a joke for an answer.
Why won’t the minister help people and lower the gas tax even further?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: Speaker, I’m glad to get that question because, as the Member opposite said, we have committed to making the reduction in gas tax permanent.
Now, we heard a lot of Members yesterday, during debate, talking about the fact that, if they had to be still in government, they had intended to make this permanent, but the creative budget that they worked out of last year – the creative book that they used – forgot about a chapter about planning because there was nowhere in the fiscal forecast for any money to have that gas tax reduction permanent.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
PREMIER WAKEHAM: Speaker, as a result, I will tell the people of Newfoundland and Labrador that we will put $67 million in our budget this year to cover and make that permanent.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Placentia - St. Mary’s.
S. GAMBIN-WALSH: Thank you, Speaker.
In the Conservative Blue Book, the mandate for this government and on social media, the Premier committed to open the Whitbourne Emergency Room 24-hours a day.
Does the Minister of Health stand by this commitment and when will this Conservative Government deliver 24-hours of emergency services to Whitbourne?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. EVANS: Thank you, Speaker.
I don’t think anyone can really hear over the noise sometimes so sometimes I do have to pause but I am doing my stopwatch, Speaker.
Yes, Speaker, in the Blue Book we committed to restoring Whitbourne to 24-hour service for emerg and we’re actually working now with Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services and we’re making sure that it doesn’t impact recruitment and retention for the area and also it doesn’t impact the (inaudible) set out there, Speaker. We have to work with everyone involved to make sure that what we provide is actually the best service for the patients, Speaker, and we will live up to our commitments in the Blue Book.
Thank you, Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl North.
L. STOYLES: Speaker, the Conservative platform promised to help create affordable and independent housing for seniors. How many new senior-specific housing units have been funded since forming government?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Housing, and Poverty Reduction.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
J. WALL: Thank you, Speaker.
I thank the Member opposite for the question.
Housing for seniors is very important to us as a government. In the 135 days that we’ve been here, it was in the first month that we came into office, we had a groundbreaking for seniors here in the province. Speaker, this is important. I’m working with my staff as we move forward. Housing for seniors is of the utmost importance and we are going to put what we can into that and it’s not just in St. John’s or the metropolitan area; it’s right across our province. I’m working with people on the West Coast. I’m working with people in Central, on the Burin Peninsula. We have many places, Speaker, that need housing for seniors. Our Premier and our government will address that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Mount Pearl North.
L. STOYLES: Speaker, most of this stuff the minister spoke about was stuff that we had put in place before they took government.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. STOYLES: Where is the implementation plans, outlines, timelines, locations and funding for seniors? Will funding for this new housing be in the new budget?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Housing, and Poverty Reduction.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
J. WALL: Thank you, Speaker.
That was very close.
Speaker, I appreciate the question from the Member opposite. We are certainly doing our part.
As the Finance Minister said, we cannot disclose what’s going through the budgetary process right now, but I can certainly inform the people of this province and the Members of this House that we are working for the people of the province. We are listening to them. We are taking their needs very seriously, and we will come forward with a plan for housing for seniors in this province that the Opposition will certainly be proud of.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Cartwright - L’Anse au Clair.
L. DEMPSTER: Can the Minister confirm the CT scanner at the Health Sciences Centre is out of commission and that patients are being routed through the Janeway’s pediatric scanner? If so, what is the timeline for having that scanner back up and running to help with the now-growing backlog?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. EVANS: Thank you, Speaker.
I have to wait until the cheering settles down.
One of the things I want to point out when I’m answering the question though is that we’ve had a Liberal government here for 10 years and they’ve actually allowed a lot of the equipment to fall into disrepair, Speaker.
We are having trouble with the CT scanners, yes, we are, but, Speaker, we’ve actually mobilized a mobile unit to the Health Sciences. We’re going to have that up and running in the next couple of weeks. I think March 30 is the target date.
But, Speaker, we wouldn’t have this problem if there was actually a plan in place to maintain the equipment so we wouldn’t be faced with these breakdowns, Speaker. We wouldn’t be faced with these breakdowns.
Thank you.
SPEAKER: The minister’s time has expired.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Cartwright - L’Anse au Clair.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!
L. DEMPSTER: Speaker, we understand that equipment breaks down, but why didn’t this government tell the people? We maybe wouldn’t have got so many calls on the disruptions in the last few days.
The Conservative Blue Book estimated the cost of offering free medical travel costs for patients who must travel for essential medical care as well as the free parking which still hasn’t been done. It was estimated at $4.6 million, so I ask the minister, is that number accurate?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. EVANS: Speaker, the one thing that we will do is we will live up to our Blue Book promises.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. EVANS: And as the former minister, the former government knows that we know that MTAP needs to be improved, Speaker, and we’re going to do it. We’re not going to take 10 years to do it. The Premier promised that MTAP will be increased to the 100 per cent coverage for medically essential travel, Speaker, and we’re going to do that. Just watch us.
The problem with the caucus over in Opposition, now, they’re afraid that what’s going to happen is we’re going to actually take real action to improve the health care, improve health transportation. Speaker, we’re going to do it. Just watch us.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The minister’s time is expired.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Third Party.
J. DINN: Thank you, Speaker.
Speaker, in response to a question on Western Memorial Regional Hospital, the minister said her government supports increasing beds and will expand capacity for long-term and alternate-care level patients. Beds and expanded capacity require health care workers.
I ask the minister: How? What will her department do to recruit and retain the necessary health care professionals needed to care for the people in these beds?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. EVANS: Thank you.
I’d like to thank the Leader of the Third Party for his question. It’s a good question. One thing we’re going to do is we’re going to plan efficiently but we are also going to deliver, Speaker, and what we witnessed is 10 years of neglect of our elders, our elders that need an alternate level of care, Speaker. The thing about it is we’re going to look after our elders because they looked after us when we were growing up and they need our help, Speaker. We’re going to increase the capacity. We’re going to, also, look at recruitment and retention. We are left with, basically, a problem with recruitment and retention. It’s not effective, Speaker. We’re going to. Actually. go in and work with NL Health Services now to make sure the retention part and the –
SPEAKER: The hon. minister’s time is expired.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Third Party.
J. DINN: Thank you, Speaker.
The minister will have ample opportunity this year. Unions representing many health care workers will be negotiating new collective agreements this year.
So I ask the minister: Will your department work with them, address the recruitment and retention concerns that health sector unions have been fighting for in the past number of years?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. EVANS: Speaker, recruitment is key but also retention is key. We are struggling with what we’ve been left, I consider it a mess, Speaker. We hear stories. We’ve been hearing stories for years now of people trying to, actually, access jobs and not getting a call back. We’ve, actually, witnessed where – I’ve, actually, had occupational therapists, basically, have to ask for leave because her partner was, actually, going on family leave and she was denied, Speaker. She came back and said, if I don’t get the leave, I’m going to have to resign. They sent her the letter, the form on how to resign, Speaker. That’s not retention. That’s not retention. We are going to–
SPEAKER: The hon. minister’s time is expired.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John’s East - Quidi Vidi.
S. O’LEARY: Speaker, in a pre-election questionnaire sent to those running for premier by ActNow, Premier Wakeham promised to implement an ankle-monitoring program for those on bail for intimate partner violence within two years of being elected.
We know the work has been done on this.
So I ask the minister: When will we see ankle monitoring brought into this province?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice and Public Safety.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
H. CONWAY OTTENHEIMER: Thank you, Speaker.
I can say that intimate partner violence is of serious concern to our government. It is alarming when we see the numbers of individuals that are subjected to intimate partner violence, gender-based violence and family violence in its entirety.
I can say that we have had numerous meetings in the short time that we have been in office. I’ve met with many groups already – End Sexual Violence, PLIAN, Iris Kirby House, Libra House, Georgina McGrath – all discussing this important issue when it comes to implementing ankle monitoring. So we will be looking at the feasibility of this. This is very important.
SPEAKER: Order, please!
The minister’s time has expired.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. John’s East - Quidi Vidi.
S. O’LEARY: Speaker, so undetermined.
Speaker, at least 10 residents in the apartment building in my district are being priced out of their homes because of skyrocketing rent increases driven purely by financial gain.
I ask the minister: When will your government implement rent controls to stop unfair rent hikes and prevent people from being forced out of their homes and pushed towards homelessness?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Government Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
M. GOOSNEY: Mr. Speaker, that’s a very important question. I want to thank the Member opposite.
Since coming into this role in the past four months, I have met with many stakeholders and I’m here to work with every stakeholder. I signed up here to serve in the best interests of the residents outside these four walls. That’s what I’m going to continue to do. As we have a billion-dollar deficit, struggles to implement certain asks and wants, but that’s what we’re committed to do, is to improve the lives of others and we’re going to do that for all of us, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Third Party.
J. DINN: Speaker, First Light is proposing an Indigenous-led collaborative care clinic in St. John’s that will serve urban Indigenous people currently without primary care.
I ask the Minister of Health and Community Services, and Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation: Will she support this initiative and allocate the necessary money in the upcoming budget to support the clinic?
SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services, for a quick answer.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
L. EVANS: Speaker, we met with First Light. We’re reviewing their proposal now. We actually support improving access to medical care for Indigenous people in the province as a whole, and we do understand that the urban region is where a lot of resources need to be placed to ensure that they can get access to adequate and effective medical care.
So, Speaker, we are committed to working with First Light and Indigenous leaders across the province to make sure that the Indigenous people, whether in urban or in rural, will get the supports, but we’re especially looking at the urban region. We are actually looking at the report to see where we can support them, Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
SPEAKER: The time for Question Period has expired.
Please be advised that this is a PARTIALLY EDITED portion of the House of Assembly sitting for Question Period on Thursday, March 12, 2026. The edited Hansard will be posted when it becomes available.