April 28, 2005 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS Vol. XLV No. 18


The House met at 1:30 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): Order, please!

Admit persons to the press gallery.

Statements by Members

 

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Speaker has knowledge of two member's statements. The hon. the Member for the District of Terra Nova and the hon. the Member for the District of St. John's North.

The hon. the Member for Terra Nova.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. ORAM: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a group of individuals and families who go widely unnoticed to many people. Foster parents, Mr. Speaker, play a vital role in the lives of hundreds of children in this Province that find themselves in difficult predicaments. These caregivers open their homes and their hearts to children from all parts of this Province. In 2004, a total of 688 children came into the care of a Director of Child, Youth and Family Services and were given residence with a foster family.

I know firsthand, Mr. Speaker, just how important foster families are. My Aunt Geraldine is a foster parent. A number of years ago, when her own children were raised, she and her husband Aubrey, opened their home to children who were in need. In opening her home, and her family to these children she has given them a stable and loving environment, something that every child deserves. While a loving family should not be a privilege, it is easy to see that these children consider it just that and their appreciation is quite evident. The children affectionately refer to her as Aunt Ger and consider her to be a family member.

Mr. Speaker, my Aunt Geraldine tries to instill a sense of morals and Christian values in these children. Whether that involves going to church each Sunday, making sure that they take part in household chores or checking their homework. She has a genuine care and concern for these children.

While I mention my aunt, Mr. Speaker, I realize there are many others doing the same thing. I would ask all hon. members to join with me today in paying tribute to all foster parents in this great Province that go above and beyond the call to ensure that these children receive the care and love they deserve.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. RIDGLEY: Mr. Speaker, yesterday I was very pleased to attend the first annual Premier's Athletic Awards ceremony held at the Holiday Inn here in St. John's. During the ceremony, some ninety-five athletes were recognized for their accomplishments in their various sports and they were awarded grants in the amounts of either $500, $1,000 or $1,500 to help offset the cost associated with training, based on an athlete's experience in competing at local, national or the international level.

Most of us know just how difficult it is for any athletes to dedicate themselves to excellence in their sports because if they are to reach the elite level, there has to be an unwavering dedication to rigorous training. Indeed, over the past few years athletes from Newfoundland and Labrador have demonstrated that, even with our small population, we can compete and we can win at the national and international level.

Mr. Speaker, our young athletes need our support and encouragement. Therefore, I am delighted today to congratulate four of yesterday's group of athletes who live in St. John's North. These are: Mike Pottle for baseball, Hannah Moffatt for athletics, Laura Murray for swimming, and Nicholle Hamlyn for rowing.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all members of the House to join with me in congratulating these and all the athletes who were recognized yesterday.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: A further statement by the hon. the Member for St. John's West.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS S. OSBORNE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to commend the students, staff and student council of Cowan Heights Elementary School on a read-a-thon held at the school last week.

This read-a-thon was sponsored by the school council and its purpose was twofold. It served as a fundraiser for the school but, more importantly, it promoted reading among the students. The event was embraced by the entire school and the community. The read-a-thon was opened by the town crier and I, myself, had the pleasure of reading the first story book to the students. A lantern was passed from class to class for the entire week to signal reading time for the students. Children were entertained by celebrity readers at various points as representatives from local media, police forces, the arts and music industries and sports teams participated in this worthwhile event.

Over the course of the week, the almost 500 students at Cowan Heights Elementary School raised over $8,000. Perhaps more importantly, the read-a-thon served as a wonderful learning tool as students embraced reading on a new level.

Mr. Speaker, I want to commend Cowan Heights Elementary School and all those involved with this novel idea for their participation in this successful event and ask all hon. members to join me in doing so.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Statements by Ministers.

Statements by Ministers

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to inform this hon. House, and young Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, about the Council of the Federation Youth Internship Program.

This internship is aimed at encouraging Canadian youth to become actively involved in public policy development, public service, government and political life.

The Youth Internship Program is a paid internship for a period of twelve months and will be located in the nation's capital, Ottawa. Applicants must be twenty-five years of age or younger, graduated from either an undergraduate or graduate program from a recognized university, and legally able to work in Canada. They must also demonstrate an interest in Canadian politics, federalism, and be able to communicate in both official languages.

Mr. Speaker, the Council of the Federation was formed in December of 2003 and many strong initiatives for our country's youth have been developed. Last June, young people from our Province participated in the Youth Forum which took place at Niagara-on-the Lake.

I believe this internship will provide an invaluable experience for youth of Newfoundland and Labrador. To work in the heart of the Canadian federation is a great opportunity, and I strongly encourage young Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to apply.

All of us in this House of Assembly realize what a tremendous privilege it is to serve your fellow citizens. The Council of the Federation Youth Internship Program is a positive initiative to allow our future leaders an early opportunity to experience this privilege.

Mr. Speaker, the application deadline for the internship is Friday, May 20, 2005. Further information and application forms can be viewed at the Council of the Federation Secretariat's Web site www.councilofthefederation.ca.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Further statements by ministers.

The hon. the Minister of Government Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS WHALEN: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge April 28 as National Day of Mourning.

It is on this day each year that our thoughts are with the families of those workers who have been killed while on the job.

Mr. Speaker, this day is recognized across Canada in all workplaces as a day to remember those workers who have been killed or injured in some way as a result of their employment. It is a solemn occasion, particularly due to the fact that workplace accidents and illnesses can be prevented when we take responsibility for health and safety.

While much has been accomplished over the years to greatly improve working conditions, there is still much left to be done. Workplace health and safety is an ongoing challenge. We must never let our guard down in our pursuit of safe and healthy workplaces where every employee returns home safely at the end of each shift.

Mr. Speaker, we must all do our part to eliminate job-related deaths and injuries. Government, employers and employees all have a role to play in ensuring that Newfoundland and Labrador workplaces are safe and injury free. This can be accomplished if we all work together and make safety our priority.

As Minister of Government Services, I have responsibility for overseeing the Occupational Health and Safety Branch.

I can assure this House and the people of the Province that we have an extremely professional group of people dedicated to protecting the health and safety of workers in this Province.

As a government, we also take our responsibility in this area very seriously. We will continue to foster the development of an environment where employees can go to work and know their safety is of the utmost importance.

Mr. Speaker, today I laid a wreath, on behalf of the government, at the Day of Mourning ceremony.

I ask all members of this hon. House to take a few moments today to reflect on the importance of our collective responsibilities in working together to make the workplaces in our Province as safe as possible.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Further statements by ministers.

Oral Questions.

Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

Tabling of Documents.

Tabling of Documents

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

MR. MANNING: Mr. Speaker, the Government Services Committee have considered the matters to them referred and have approved, without amendment, the Estimates of Expenditure of the Department of Finance, the Department of Transportation and Works, the Aboriginal Affairs segment of the Department of Labour and Aboriginal Affairs, and the Public Service Commission.

MR. SPEAKER: If we could have consent of the House to have that included under Presenting Reports by Standing and Select Committees.

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes.

MR. SPEAKER: Agreed.

Further Tabling of Documents.

Notices of Motion.

Notices of Motion

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I give notice that I will on tomorrow move that the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole to consider certain resolutions relating to the advancing of guaranteeing of certain loans made under the Loan and Guarantee Act, 1957.

MR. SPEAKER: Further notices of motion.

The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources and Government House Leader.

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

I give notice that I will on tomorrow ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, "An Act Respecting the Management of Government Information for the Province." (Bill 16)

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.

Motion 1, in the name of the hon. Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board, to move that this House approves in general the budgetary policy of the government, commonly known as the Budget Speech.

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. HEDDERSON: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about and in support of the Budget that has been put forth by this government at this particular time. A Budget, I might add, Mr. Speaker, that is certainly pointing a strategic direction of this government as we move forward into 2005-2006. After eighteen months in government, we certainly see our direction going in the best interests of the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Along that road, Mr. Speaker, there have been challenges, as there remains to be challenges, but this government is prepared to meet those challenges head on, as is demonstrated by this Budget which we put forth in this particular fiscal year. A Budget, I might add, Mr. Speaker, that is entitled: A New Future. A Renewed Pride. I, as a member of this Assembly, certainly take great pride in our ability to move forth in any number of different areas. As in any budget, it is a Budget that looks to the future, that looks at the needs of the people in the various parts of this great Province of ours and moves in a direction that can provide the services, the direction that is needed to move us along as we go forward as a people.

In a general sense, Mr. Speaker, we have been able to, this year, move forth in a number of the initiatives of our plan, our strategic planning for the future of this particular Province. Overall, of course, our fiscal situation certainly looks a lot different than it did with the presentation of our first Budget last year. I say, positive, because we have certainly brought down the deficit, which gave us the opportunity to move forward now with the money that has become available because of the measures that we have taken to move forward with initiatives that are initiatives, I say to you, Mr. Speaker, of investment, that are initiatives for future growth and that are initiatives which are going to bear well as we move forward with, again, our vision of where we should be as a people, as a Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Again, we are investing strategically in any number of different areas. I would say to you, Mr. Speaker, a Budget that looks at all the sectors of Newfoundland and Labrador. Whether you live in a small community or whether you live in one of the larger cities, this Budget certainly will look at the specific needs that these different parts of the Province would present to us and moving forward.

One of the main thrusts that I see as following from the aspect of a renewed pride, a new future, is our aspect of culture. I specifically reference the tourism, culture and recreation initiatives that are coming forward to, again, build up in us a sense of a people, a people for whom we are moving forward in an identity of who we are and what we might become.

Looking at the different ministries - and, of course, I could go down through the Highlights, but given the time, Mr. Speaker, I would look at, first of all, the people who I directly represent, which is my District of Harbour Main-Whitbourne, and the some 12,000 constituents who fall in that particular area. I say, Mr. Speaker, that, as a rural district, there are certainly many, many challenges that present themselves to me, as a member, as I move forward.

I am delighted to say, Mr. Speaker, that this government has come forth with a strategy, and not only a strategy but an action plan, that certainly would put my district, a rural district, in a good position to move forward in any number of different initiatives. One of the initiatives that the people, not necessarily of my district but of my region, have been lobbying for over the last number of years has been a dialysis unit in the Carbonear hospital, a dialysis unit that would serve not only the needs of the greater Carbonear area but certainly into my district as well. I am very pleased that the acting Minister of Health and Community Services could be available last Friday to go out and officially open the dialysis unit at the Carbonear hospital. Let me tell you, Mr. Speaker, there was certainly a great sigh of relief throughout all of the district, because we know that was a priority and a priority that certainly has been delivered by this Budget, and we would thank the government for bringing forth that particular initiative.

As well, when you look at my particular district, Mr. Speaker, when you are serving the number of communities that my district consists of, there are other issues as well. Another area in my district is our personal care homes. These personal care homes have been lobbying for some assistance, as they provide such a valuable, valuable service, Mr. Speaker, to the people not only in my district but the surrounding area. Again, with regard to their ability to upgrade their homes through things like sprinkler systems and so on, this government is moving forward to ensure that the proper assistance is put in place so that these personal care homes can deliver the quality service that is absolutely necessary in order for our seniors to be properly cared for. Again, another initiative that I am delighted to be able to stand on my feet and talk about.

The cultural pieces there: Roads, again, Mr. Speaker, seem to be an area which - obviously, with my district being so close to the capital city and the City of Mount Pearl and Paradise, this general metro area, there is a lot of commuting back and forth between my district and the larger city area, and roads play a very, very important part. Again, I am absolutely delighted to see this government put forth $33.7 million to address the needs certainly not only of my particular district but the Province at large, and being able to meet certainly not all the needs - there are a great many needs, I know - but, again, maintaining a steady stream of funding that would see the roads in my district undergo some improvement in this particular fiscal year. Again, kudos to our government for seeing it as a priority, searching out the needs and putting the money in place that can certainly take care of a lot of those particular needs.

Again, Mr. Speaker, as a rural district, I do not have to remind the hon. members in this House how important it is with regard to the Municipal and Provincial Affairs Ministry and the great needs that are out there as we try to address municipal services to our population. Harbour Main-Whitbourne are no different from any other district in the sense that, with the rising cost of this infrastructure, in particular water and sewerage - again, I am delighted that the Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs has seen fit to incorporate into his planning this year basically three different funds that will see great improvements to our municipalities. We have the Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund, we have the Community Enhancement Program, and we have the Multi-Year Capital Works Program, again putting funds into these three, I guess, areas to ensure that the municipalities, the local service districts throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, have an opportunity to move forth on their agenda in trying to provide services to their constituents.

Mr. Speaker, I could go on and on as we talk about the initiatives, but I leave it up to other members in this House to bring forth, I suppose, their look at how progressive this particular Budget is in moving forth with initiatives that are adequately addressing the needs of our particular Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, I would be remiss as well, given the time limit, as I move from my responsibility as the Member for Harbour Main-Whitbourne - I move to the ministry that I represent, which is, of course, the Department of Education. As Minister of Education, I was absolutely delighted to see our government move forward in such a bold and progressive manner with regard to education.

Mr. Speaker, as in all things, there are great needs that present themselves to our government, and education, as I think everyone can truly attest, is, I suppose, the heart, the backbone, the main way that we can prepare not only our young people - because this Department of Education looks not only at specific areas such as the K to 12, or simply post-secondary - this department is responsible for the lifelong learning of every man, woman and child in this Province. So, when we look at the learners that are there, Mr. Speaker, we are talking about in excess of half a million Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who have specific needs.

I say to you, Mr. Speaker, that I am confident that the Budget that has been put forth with regard to education - I say to you that it is the second in regard to the amount of money that is dedicated in the ministries, next to health, and it is an important component. When we look at how we can distribute those funds to make sure that the priority needs of the learners out there are met, we certainly can talk about strategic planning.

On that, Mr. Speaker, I first of all would address the early childhood learners. As most people are aware, it is a key area because the patterns that are established in early childhood, the readiness skills that are established in the early childhood years, are key to entry into the more formal education system of K to 12 and beyond. So it is important, as a government, that we realize the importance of early childhood care, early childhood learning.

On that point, again, the Ministerial Council that was a commitment of this government last year is in place, it is up and running and moving forward along with a secretariat; a division of childhood learning established within my ministry to support that ministerial panel, that Ministerial Council, as we move forward in filling in that gap of early childhood learning that is so, so important.

With regard to the K to 12, and certainly with the K to 12 - I think if we talk about the K to 12, Mr. Speaker, one of the main areas that has come back to us as a need is to make sure that we have safe, secure learning environments; that our schools are healthy; that our children are cared for and that they are safe. We have to, as well, ensure that the resources are there.

With regard to that, Mr. Speaker, we have put in place $16 million provided for the maintenance of the school buildings; an increase of over $8 million over the budget of last year. With this $16 million, Mr. Speaker, I am confident that the learning environments - in particular, the roofs, the windows, the doors, that these particular needs will be met, and we are moving forward with that initiative even as we speak. We have had challenges, and these challenges are going to be addressed with this certain amount of money.

As well, with regard to school construction, the Herdman, the Mobile school systems, $9.5 million to complete these previously approved projects and, certainly, to move forward as we go into other projects as well.

On that as well, Mr. Speaker, I have to certainly congratulate the government for their vision because part of what we are doing is trying to meet the immediate needs, but, as importantly, to have the vision to get out ahead of the needs that are going to be there in two years time, in three years time, certainly in five and ten years time. We have asked the boards to bring forward a strategic plan with regard to the buildings, with regard to the structures, with regard to the systems, the configurations.

As we speak, Mr. Speaker, the boards are putting together their long-term plans. As a matter of fact, central nova have already presented to their school communities a vision, a draft plan, of where they, as a school board, would like to see their school systems go over the next five years. That is generating good discussion, consultation, and certainly at the end of that, we should have an idea, a solid idea, as to where we should be going in that particular area.

As well, Mr. Speaker, the Budget set aside $250,000 for me, as a minister, to use, to put together not only the plans of the individual boards, but of the comprehensive plan for Newfoundland and Labrador so that we can properly resource that over the next five or ten years.

Within the schools, Mr. Speaker, we certainly listened to what the school communities were telling us. One of the commitments that this government made in our Blue Book - if I could go back to that - eighteen months ago, was that we were going to put in a strategic plan to bring down the class sizes in the area that would be most beneficial. Of course, no one would disagree that the area would be in the Primary, in the K to 3.

In this our second year, Mr. Speaker, we have redeployed fifty-two teachers back into the system to move us along in that strategy, so that by 2007 we will have in the primary grades no class beyond twenty-five. We see that as very strategic planning and one which I am delighted to be able to say that we are one year closer to that particular initiative.

On the other side of it, Mr. Speaker - just to go back to what I spoke about when I first got on my feet - that an important part of where we are going as a Province has to do with who we are as a people. Again, I reference the minister with regard to culture, tourism and recreation and the cultural strategy that his department has put in place, which we are a part of that in the education ministry. We have put forth a cultural strategy in our schools, a $9 million commitment over the next three years, that will see us, again, build up a capacity within our young people to truly understand who they are, where they came from, who they are as a people, and that will carry them on as they go on into the future. We have deployed twenty-three teachers to help to augment the teacher resources that are already in there, but apart from teachers, Mr. Speaker, we have also put in a professional development component, we have put in teaching resources, and we are engaged with the arts community to make sure they come into the schools.

Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that we are restricted by time, and I believe I am probably into the last minute or so of the time that is allotted to me. In saying that, I didn't get into other aspects of the Budget.

Let me just say this, Mr. Speaker, that as a member of this government, as a member who represents a rural district, I am more than pleased with the initiatives that are put forth in this Budget. It is a budget that I believe, Mr. Speaker, we have turned the corner on, not only in education, but we have turned the corner in many different ways. As we go forward, this Budget will allow us to fulfill the commitments that we made to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, commitments that are going to make this Province stronger, to make our people stronger, and to make sure that we are the best province in this great Country of Canada.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Justice and Attorney General.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. MARSHALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is indeed a pleasure for me to rise in my place again today to take part in the speech commonly known as the Budget Speech. The last time I spoke in this House was during the debate on Interim Supply. At that point I talked about the items in the Budget that would have an affect on Western Newfoundland and, in particular, the district I am pleased to represent here, the great District of Humber East, and the communities that are contained in that district.

Hon. members, of course, will recall my remarks at that time. I called the Budget a Corner Brook Budget in the sense that it was allowing the District of Humber East, it was allowing the City of Corner Brook, an area that feels it may have been forgotten over the past number of years by provincial governments in terms of the allocation of its spending - I want to congratulate the Premier and the ministers of this government for recognizing that and allowing the Humber East area, allowing the Humber Valley area and the Bay of Islands area, a chance to catch up with the government resources that have been allocated to different parts of the Province. As I say, Humber East has been, in my view, not getting its fair share over the last number of years, and I am certainly delighted that this Budget intends to rectify that.

Building on the new MRI machine that the government announced and the Premier recently opened at Western Memorial Regional Hospital in Corner Brook, I am pleased to see that this Budget provided ample funds for additional world-class, state-of-the-art, diagnostic equipment for Western Memorial Regional Hospital. This will provide enhanced health care not only for the people of Corner Brook and not only for the people of Western Newfoundland and the people of Humber East, but indeed enhanced health care for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Island and Labrador.

Building on this new MRI machine, there was $260,000 for new ultrasound equipment, modern ultrasound equipment. There was $800,000 provided for a new nuclear medicine gamma camera at that hospital, which will certainly help. There was $700,000 allocated for an endoscopy unit at the hospital, and monies were also allocated for laparoscopic equipment at that hospital. In addition, and what is very important, Mr. Speaker, this government has finally allocated funds to enable the long-term care facility in Corner Brook to start.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. MARSHALL: Mr. Speaker, the long-term care facility in Corner Brook has been talked about for many, many years. Finally, in this year's Budget, we have funds to get the thing started.

Mr. Speaker, SGE Acres were contracted to examine the various sites that would be available in the Corner Brook area as a suitable site for the new long-term care facility. That study has now been completed. Two sites have been selected, or at least have been designated for final selection by government. One of the sites is a site behind the Sir Wilfred Grenfell College in Corner Brook. This site is at the back of the college, near the parking lot. The other site is a site on Elizabeth Street, in a residential section of Elizabeth Street.

Mr. Speaker, I am sure everyone will be interested to know that there have been arguments for and against the two sites. I believe that health officials would make the argument that a long-term care facility should be in a residential area with obvious other residences. For that reason, there would be a preference for the Elizabeth Avenue site.

The problem with that site is that there is a zoning difficulty. If that is a site that is selected, the project will be delayed for about a year in order to allow the rezoning process to be undertaken and in order to allow a full public consultation process. As a result of that, the initial construction will not start until the following year. That is not the case with the Sir Wilfred Grenfell College site. That particular site is zoned so that most of the project could proceed now. There would still be an area of land, maybe 30 per cent or 40 per cent of the land, that would have to be rezoned; but, given the zoning of that property now, that rezoning, with the support of the Corner Brook City Council would not take as long as a year and the rezoning would be completed in a reasonable period of time so that the facility could proceed and site work could start this fall.

I know I am looking forward to the Minister of Health, or the Acting Minister of Health - I understand that a decision could be made as early as next week and the final site selection will take place. I am optimistic that tenders will be called for the initial site work, the site plan and the site work. I understand that will involve site preparation and, I would imagine, water and sewer and storm drainage as well. Hopefully that work will be done this fall and put the project in a position that it could be completed fully, or at least the bulk of the construction could take place next summer.

In addition to that, Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased - and, as I mentioned before, the redevelopment of Herdman Collegiate will start. There is $3 million allocated in that Budget. This will be a redevelopment. It is not a new school but it will involve a redevelopment, and I am looking forward to the Minister of Education, when he comes out to Corner Brook and holds a press conference and he will show us the plans and everything that is intended for that school. Certainly, I know everybody in the Province would agree that school had to be redeveloped, and I am delighted that $3 million was allocated to get that going. I assume - and maybe the Minister of Education will be able to tell us this - that the work will start hopefully as soon as the kids are out school, as soon as the summer vacation arrives, and we can get the workers in there right away to start the redevelopment of this facility.

Mr. Speaker, as I spoke before on many of the items that affect the district, I thought I would take this opportunity to speak about the department that I have the honour to be the minister for, and that is as Minister of Justice and Attorney General.

The justice system is one of society's most important institutions; but, like other public institutions, it does face challenges. This year, the government will make strategic and sustainable investments to enhance justice services with improvements in technology and in infrastructure planning and in security. We will build on measures that were commenced last year to enhance policing services and strengthen our justice system.

When most people think of the justice system, Mr. Speaker, people think of policing. I think that, as Minister of Justice and as Attorney General, the biggest request, the most frequent requests I get are to meet with members of municipal councils and Chambers of Commerce and local concerned citizens who are concerned about the level of policing in their communities and would like to see enhanced policing services.

Obviously, people want to feel safe in their homes and they want to see more of a police presence. Because of this, we have worked closely with the RCMP. I understand that, in the year 1995 - I know all hon. members will certainly be interested in this - there were 424 RCMP officers in the Province. That year, unfortunately, fifty-one officers were removed from the system. I think that we are feeling the effects of that decision today with reduced police presence throughout rural Newfoundland.

Between 1995 and the time that this government took office, there was a net of forty RCMP officers taken out of the system. There were fifty-one, as I said, taken out in 1995. More came out. More were put back in by previous governments. The net result was that forty RCMP officers came out of the system. I was therefore very pleased that, when this government took office last year, one of the first things we did in the Budget was to put four new RCMP officers in the system and, subsequent to that, with the consent of the Members of this House of Assembly, an additional seven went in the system, so that was a total of eleven RCMP officers last year, and this year, Mr. Speaker, there will be an additional six RCMP officers, in this Budget, put back in the system. Four of them will be deployed in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, as determined by the executive of the RCMP. One will work with the new National Sex Offender Registry that will be established, in addition to an RNC officer and a public employee who will be hired by the RCMP to work there. Also, there will be an RCMP officer allocated to Conne River. That is a total of seventeen new RCMP officers in two years, the bulk of whom will be in rural Newfoundland.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. MARSHALL: Mr. Speaker, in addition, the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, we discovered, when we took office, had real needs. They had needs for new equipment, they had needs for new manpower, and they had needs for training, and a plan was put in place to deal with those needs over a period of three years.

I was extremely pleased that the government has established, with Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, a program that will result in seventy-five new police officers over the next three years. The first class will be deployed, we anticipate, in September of this year.

That first class that is in training - there were originally thirty recruits accepted into that training. I think one withdrew, that leaves twenty-nine; fifteen of them are women and fourteen are men. We have a majority of women making up the first year class, which I was very pleased to see. The government has given a commitment to hire not less than 25 per cent of that class. When the class is deployed, possibly we might even hire more than that. The first class of recruits, a minimum of twenty-five new RNC recruits will be deployed in St. John's, in Corner Brook and in Labrador West - again, rural Newfoundland, we anticipate, by September of this year.

I recently met with Chief Deering. Chief Deering told me how pleased he was with the program. He told me that morale of the force is high and he is extremely pleased with the quality of the cadet that they have attracted as part of this new effort with Memorial University, and we are pleased as well.

Next year there will be another twenty-five. The government has also committed to a third year of twenty-five. Last year the government also put in resources to obtain six new

RNC officers. That will be a total of eighty-one new RNC officers over a three-year period. Now, we realize, Mr. Speaker, that through attrition there will be retirements as well, but the net effect is that there will be forty-five new officers over a three-year period. That will certainly help address the resource needs of the RNC.

In addition, Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to say that the government has put additional resources for training for the RNC. I think evidence that was presented at the Lamer Inquiry, and at the Reid and Power Inquiries, certainly showed that there was need for more training. I am glad the government has stepped up to the plate there to provide that training. There will be training, not only in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, but training from outside the Province as well. This will all be extremely helpful in ensuring that we have, or we continue to have, a first-class police force. We are fortunate to have, in fact, two world-class forces here in Newfoundland and Labrador, where we follow the two-force policing model.

Mr. Speaker, in addition, the RNC have been provided with equipment resources. They were provided with money to acquire new vehicles; they were provided with funds to repair old vehicles, which is a problem they were having; they have been provided with money for bulletproof vests; for Tasers; for semi-automatics. The revolvers will all be replaced and there will be training on new semi-automatics for the police as well. Also, with recommendations coming out of the Reid-Power Inquiry, there will be collapsible batons.

The hon. Member for Labrador West had a concern about the fact - he wanted to make sure that all our RNC officers had cellular phones, and there will be a cellular phone in every RNC vehicle. I believe there are thirty-five more cellular phones that have recently been ordered for the RNC.

So, it is important that the RNC be given the resources that they need to do the job we are asking them to do, because here on the Northeast Avalon, we all know that because of drugs there has been an increase in property crimes. The property crimes have gone up quite drastically in the last number of years. Thankfully, there has been a decrease in violent crimes.

I have met with Chief Deering of the RNC and I have met with Assistant Commissioner Lynch of the RCMP, and we have discussed that situation. The Chief of Police has indicated to me that the plan that was put in place is a good one and he says it will work. Now, he also said that, obviously, if we could give him an extra 300 police officers he would love to have them. He feels the plan will work, and we will ensure, to the best of our ability, with the help and assistance of all members of this House of Assembly, that the police will be provided with the manpower they need, with the training they need, and with the resources they need to be a first-class police force for the people of this Province

Mr. Speaker, another thing we are doing in the Department of Justice this year, is that we are rolling out to the Western section of the Province a court security program. Most members will know from times that they go down and visit the courts or they might see on the nightly news, that we have a deputy sheriff system in Newfoundland that provides court security to the courts. You will probably see these officers in their uniforms and in many cases wearing the Kevlar vests for protection. They are seen on television taking people who have been remanded to the courts, in and out of the court.

This system only exists - this resource has only been provided to the courts in the City of St. John's, the courts on this side of the Overpass. And, Mr. Speaker, that is not acceptable. We ask the people who work in the court system, we ask our judges to perform a very, very important service. These judges adjudicate disputes between members of society. They incarcerate people. We call upon them to be independent and to perform that role, and we have to make sure that in performing that role that they are truly independent and impartial. We cannot have a system where our judges, the people who will resolve disputes between our citizens, can be harassed or threatened or intimidated in anyway. Therefore, we have to make sure that there is a court security system in place. I understand, in 1994 it was the intention of the government of the day to bring this court security system out to the court in Corner Brook, but for budgetary reasons that didn't happen. I am extremely pleased that this government is now bringing this out to the Provincial Court in Stephenville and to the Supreme and Provincial Courts in Corner Brook, and I am very hopeful and optimistic that next year we will bring it out to the courts in Central Newfoundland, that is Grand Falls and Gander, and thereafter to Labrador and to the Eastern section of the Province other than the Northeast Avalon. We are doing it on the basis of the number of cases that are taking place in these courts. The courts in the Western region are the courts that have the highest number of cases, apart from the courts here in St. John's, so we are starting on the West Coast, next would be Central, and hopefully we will get it done in the reasonable future.

Mr. Speaker, we are also continuing with the RCMP telecommunications system. This is an officer protection issue. It is the building of a new telecommunication in order to improve police response time and the delivery of services to Central Newfoundland. The Budget provided $50,000 to prepare for implementation, while subsequent budgets will provide $635,000 on an annualized basis for ongoing equipment and operational costs. This initiate will build on the expansion that we announced last year that benefitted the Avalon Peninsula, the Bonavista Peninsula in rural Newfoundland, and the Burin Peninsula in rural Newfoundland. This year it will be extended into Central Newfoundland and next year we hope to bring it to Western Newfoundland and to the balance of the Province.

Mr. Speaker, the Budget also provides for planning for new courthouses, in particular for a new combined supreme and provincial court building in Corner Brook. There is $400,000 in the Budget for that. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Justice set up a new Courts Administration Advisory Board. This was a new approach, it has never been done in this Province before. I have to say the idea wasn't mine. We are following a model that Manitoba initiated. Sitting on that committee will be the Chief Justices of the three courts in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. There is Chief Judge Reid from the Provincial Court of Newfoundland and Labrador, there is Chief Justice Derek Green of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador Trial Division, and there is Chief Justice Wells of the Newfoundland Court of Appeal. That committee set up sub-committees dealing with the needs of the courts in the future. We have looked at the planning needs for courts in Corner Brook, for Stephenville, and for St. John's. Also, I should mention that the planning for the courthouse in Clarenville was, in fact, completed a number of years ago. Those plans are done and we intend to complete the planning process; because, as Chief Justice Derek Green did, in fact, indicate in an address at the opening of the court last fall, and in a further address to the Canadian Bar Association, he said: Even if it does take ten years before we get the courts, the time to start the planning is now.

We have heeded the call. This government has heeded the call of the Chief Justice, and we will do the planning to provide for the courts of the future.

Mr. Speaker, another initiative of the Department of Justice this year - and, by the way, Mr. Speaker, I think it is important to point out that initiatives from the department this year will create approximately twenty-seven new positions in the Province. I just want to say briefly, Mr. Speaker, where those positions will be. There will Victim Services new positions in Carbonear, in Clarenville, in Grand Falls-Windsor, in Corner Brook , in Stephenville, in Port Saunders, and in Happy Valley-Goose Bay. That is rural Newfoundland, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. MARSHALL: In addition, there will be court security people hired in Corner Brook; four in Corner Brook and two in Stephenville. There will five new Provincial Court positions, two Supreme Court positions, the RNC officer that will be assigned to the National Sex Offender Registry, the new RCMP officer assigned to the National Sex Offender Registry, a public service employee working with the RCMP as well, four regular members of the RCMP, and one in Conne River. These are twenty-seven positions, most of which will be in rural Newfoundland -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. T. MARSHALL: - because this government recognizes the importance of rural Newfoundland, and this government will continue to ensure that resources are made available to all people in Newfoundland and Labrador, regardless of what part of the Province in which they may live.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Human Resources, Labour and Employment.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS BURKE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am quite pleased to be able to stand today and speak to the Budget and highlight some of the initiatives that are happening within the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment and, as well, in my capacity as Minister Responsible for the Status of Women, some initiatives in the Women's Policy Office.

Mr. Speaker, before I address some of these issues, I would just like to build on some comments just made by the Minister of Justice. Certainly, representing the area of St. George's-Stephenville East, to hear that we will be having court security in our courthouse in Stephenville is something that is very welcome; because the courthouses right across this Province, no matter if they are located in an urban or more rural setting, deal with all kinds of offenders on a regular basis, and to be able to introduce security in that courthouse, I think, is a move in the right direction.

Another initiative by the Minister of Justice that was just spoken to, as well, is in relation to being able to provide victim services to children. That is also very important, Mr. Speaker, because Victim Services certainly provide the assistance that people need as they move through the court system. As a Province, we have not been able to offer these services to children who are probably some of the people most traumatized by the whole legal system. I also support that as a move in the right direction. As Minister Responsible for the Status of Women, I certainly feel that being able to provide victim services to children is something that was long overdue in this Province.

Mr. Speaker, we have victims, unfortunately, in this Province because we continue to have violence within the Province. One of the initiatives of this government is the Violence Prevention Initiative. We came in on a previous Violence Prevention Initiative in the last couple of years, and we had a look at the initiative and what was working and how we could improve that initiative, and we held a forum in March where we brought together people from across Newfoundland and Labrador, from the grassroots, who are involved in the various regional councils that deal with violence prevention. From that forum we have some suggestions and some ideas, but, most importantly, we heard in that forum what is working, and the support that we have in this Province for our rural and regional councils to be able to deal with violence; not just in rural Newfoundland, but these councils exist throughout the Province and certainly here in St. John's as well.

We will continue with the Violence Prevention Initiative. This year we announced $500,000 to continue with the initiative basically as it has been set up, but we will be looking at ways of coming together, with the information that came from the forum and an evaluation that was done on the program, and put together a Violence Prevention Initiative that will bring us into the future. Mr. Speaker, I certainly look forward to having that initiative finalized so that we can present it to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, but I feel there is support for a further Violence Prevention Initiative, and some of the good work that is being done across this Province certainly needs to continue.

One effort that comes to mind, that I felt was a very positive message, a very good tool to use with children, was a book that was written by the Grand Falls-Windsor Regional Council for the Violence Prevention Initiative, and I urge anyone who would like to deal with the issues of bullying to access that book that was put out by that regional council. I think it was work very well done, and something that will be in this Province for quite some time.

Mr. Speaker, last summer, in August, I had the opportunity to tour Coastal Labrador, and we visited the coastal communities. When I was in Coastal Labrador, I had the opportunity to meet with women and women's groups, and health providers, particularly nurse practitioners who provide health services to women. I listened to their concerns and their issues and tried to integrate some programs, some services, that would help meet the needs in the Aboriginal community.

Mr. Speaker, the meetings that were held in Labrador last summer fed into a federal-provincial conference that we had here in Newfoundland and Labrador in September, where we had the federal Minister Responsible for the Status of Women as well as the provincial ministers here. One of the agenda items that was discussed was certainly issues regarding Aboriginal women, and the fact that women who live in our Aboriginal communities are at a much higher risk or have been victims of violence.

Mr. Speaker, that is just not right. No one in Newfoundland and Labrador, or in the country of Canada, should become a victim of violence, and in no circumstances should we accept the fact that certain communities experience more violence than others. I think it just gives us more ammunition to go in and be able to support these communities to deal with their own issues.

Mr. Speaker, as a result of my meetings in Labrador last summer, and from the emphasis that was put on issues regarding Aboriginal women, this year in the Budget we have been able to put aside $20,000 - we announced $20,000 - for a conference to deal with Aboriginal women's issues, particularly around violence. This will be a conference that will be held in Labrador and that will be planned by the women leaders in the Aboriginal community. It will be a forum for them to come together to do some capacity building to identify their issues and to assist us, as government, to be able to prioritize and see what is important in the Aboriginal community and what types of efforts will be necessary to deal with some of the issues.

Mr. Speaker, in addition to that, we have also announced this year, through the Women's Policy Office, that we have $70,000 for the shelter in Hopedale. I had the opportunity to visit the shelter in Hopedale. They had no operating funds and were unable to open. It is a very needed facility in Hopedale. The women in that community, if they were victims of violence and needed to get away from an abusive partner, really had no place to go for support within the community. The centre was there and the women's movement, the women's community in Hopedale, really wanted funding to be able to get that place open to offer a safe haven for women in Hopedale. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to say that we announced $70,000 for the shelter in Hopedale so that the women of that community will have a place of safety.

In addition, Mr. Speaker, during our forum that we held in March here in St. John's, where we looked at the violence prevention initiative, there were some suggestions at that time that the Aboriginal community felt that some of the literature and some of the information that was available regarding violence prevention was not necessarily available in the Aboriginal languages in Labrador. They felt, because of that, there was some - in some way, they felt that they were at a disadvantage.

Mr. Speaker, we have also been able to announce $100,000 to address some of the issues within the Aboriginal communities. Particularly, being able to transcribe some of the information, some of the pamphlets, some of the public education into the Aboriginal languages so that the people of Labrador do not feel that they are at a disadvantage when it comes to being able to access this information from any other person who lives in this Province.

Mr. Speaker, another important initiative that we were able to fund was an increase in the grants to the women's centres in Newfoundland and Labrador. The women's centres were originally funded by the federal government, who pulled away from the women's centres, and the Province had to step in and step up to the plate when the federal government walked away from this Province and no longer funded these centres. These centres have been funded for a number of years at $50,000 a year grant. Last year, despite our fiscal situation and the fact that we had to practice such restraint, we were able to increase the funding to the women centres last year from $50,000 to $55,000.

Mr. Speaker, I am really pleased to indicate this year that we are able to increase the funding for each of the eight women's centres in this Province by another $10,000. They have gone from $50,000 to $55,000 to now $65,000. This is an area where I think we can still continue to work to be able to recognize the work being done by the women centres across Newfoundland and Labrador. These centres provide a valuable service to our communities. They provide front line information and support to women, and the women who need to figure out what services are available and where they need to go for support. They also provide advocacy within the women's movement as well. They fill a very important role within our communities. The workers and the board members who operate these councils certainly need to be commended for the work that they are doing.

Mr. Speaker, other than the Women's Policy Office, we have certainly had some initiatives within the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment that I feel are very worthy to mention to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, because we have been able to look at that department. This department, in essence, for the last seven or eight years has moved forward. In 1997 this department was created. It came from the former Department of Social Services, where income support and other services - whether it is child protection or young offender services - were lumped in one department. The break was made and the Department of Human Resources and Employment, at the time, was created and has now expanded to be considered the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment. This department focuses, primarily, on the Income Support Program and being able to assist people who are on income support to move into the labour market. The primary focus of this department is the labour market attachment for people receiving income support.

Mr. Speaker, we can continue on with passive measures with regards to offering income support to people in Newfoundland and Labrador. I do not think we need to focus our efforts solely on determining if somebody is eligible for income support and then making sure they receive their cheque. This is an administrative function that is very important that we need to process, but I think the real efforts, the more active measures, need to be into employment and career services. There is more to this department than providing an income support cheque. This department has to also work with people who are receiving income support to be able to address the barriers and be able to help people work through these barriers so that they can make a realistic attachment to the labour market. To enable us, as a department, to be able to do that, we announced that over the next three years we will be investing $2 million into our employment and career services. In order to do that, we need to be able to make sure we have the staff to do it and they have the right skills to be able to offer the employment and career services. Mr. Speaker, that could be assisting clients in the identification of barriers to pay for supports, to help them address the barriers or it could be working with the employers to ensure that there are appropriate subsidies that they can take people into the workforce for a certain period of time and making that labour market attachment would be very important for the long-term success of that particular individual. So, to be able to invest $2 million over the next three years, I think, is a very positive initiative for this department.

Mr. Speaker, another problem that was noted within the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment deals with our young people. When a young person turned eighteen years old, they were no longer eligible for income support as a family unit. So, what was happening, is when a person turned eighteen years old, whether they were in school or not, a family would actually lose approximately $250 off their income support monthly payment. The young person could then apply for income support in their own right, which would amount to, approximately, $96 a month. So, the family would be out about $146 a month, for basically no reason, other than the fact that a young person turned eighteen. What is troubling about that is that a lot of times young people turn eighteen while they are still in the high school system, while they are in Grade 12 or Grade 11. The family has the same needs, they have the same number of children in school, but they have their income drop for no apparent reason.

Mr. Speaker, commencing in September this year, we have announced that we have $600,000 for our high school initiative program. What that means is that a family who is receiving income support and have a young person who turns eighteen years old, they will not see any reduction in their income support while that person remains in high school. That will also include the months of July and August when the person actually finishes school. I think that is a very positive move for families, and the fact that young people need to stay in school and complete their high school education.

Earlier this year, or last year, we had a study done on the intergenerational dependency on income support, and it showed that the key determining factor as to whether or not a person continues the cycle of income support with their family, or is able to break it, hinges primarily with high school education.

Mr. Speaker, we know how important high school education is, in order for some families to be able to break the cycle of receiving income support; therefore, this initiative is based primarily on that research and is there to assist families and to assist young people.

Mr. Speaker, we also have announced an additional $250,000 for the Newfoundland and Labrador Child Benefit, and there will be an increase in the first child rate for families who do receive this benefit.

Mr. Speaker, over the years, the families receiving income support, or low-income families, have seen some increases in the Child Benefit, but it seems there is another group of individuals in our Province who probably have not seen much increase in any rates over the years. Mr. Speaker, I am referring there to single people, or couples without children. In order to address the fact that they have not had increases for quite some time, we have announced $1.8 million to address single people and childless couples. What that amounts to is a 1 per cent increase in July of this year, and a further 1 per cent increase in January of this year.

Although a modest increase, it is a move in the right direction, and it is recognition that there is a group of people out there who have not seen increases certainly to the same extent of people with families. In saying that, we continue to have an increase in the Child Tax Benefit and we still recognize the importance of being able to meet your needs when you do have children.

Mr. Speaker, we also have announced over $6 million in the Student Investment and Opportunities Corporation, which will primarily help the youth of this Province. Certainly, with their career moves and as they move into the labour market, we will be able to address some concerns through the SIOC.

Mr. Speaker, last year when the departments were reconfigured, the Department of Post-Secondary and Youth Services moved, with Post-Secondary going into the Department of Education and Youth Services coming into the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment.

Mr. Speaker, Youth Services provides a very valuable service in this Province. We certainly have some employment programs and career and employment programming that addresses the needs of our youth. What was really disturbing, as I looked at some of the numbers and statistics for our employment programs, was the fact that a lot of our youth at risk, a lot of youth from low-income families, or income support families, were not availing of the programs that were set up for these very people, for the youth at risk.

Mr. Speaker, the take-up on the employment programs of Youth Services for youth at risk was approximately 7 per cent. So, Mr. Speaker, we have set a goal that in the next three years we will address, through our youth employment programs, youth at risk, and we will increase the take-up on this program from 7 per cent to 50 per cent. I think that is quite a goal for us to set. Mr. Speaker, there is a lot of work that needs to be done, but if we are providing services to youth at risk in this Province then we need to ensure that we are actually targeting the people for which this program is set up, and the needs there.

Mr. Speaker, we have also announced, this year, something that I am very proud to be able to announce: $200,000 to develop a strategy on poverty reduction. Mr. Speaker, we need to make links between poverty and gender, poverty and health, poverty and housing, poverty and education, poverty and taxation and financial policies, and we need to do it in a co-ordinated way.

Mr. Speaker, there are many departments of government that need to address poverty reduction, and it seems that we have been able to do it with one department addressing it in a certain way and another department making another announcement; but, Mr. Speaker, we need a cross-departmental strategy so that we are all working together, so that a housing policy does not affect a financial policy, or a taxation policy does not affect Child Tax Benefits. We need to be able to look to make sure that we have a comprehensive way of dealing with poverty. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to say that the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment will be taking the lead in this particular strategy.

Mr. Speaker, this government feels that we have had the highest rate of child poverty in Canada, and in ten years we want to reduce that so we have the lowest rate of child poverty in the country. Mr. Speaker, there is no way that can be accomplished without a strategic plan that we need to follow and guide us as we continue to address poverty. Mr. Speaker, the numbers will be quite high. The initiatives that we need to address down the road will come with a price tag, and, Mr. Speaker, as a government we will be able to look at it and see what initiatives will actually help us reduce the amount of poverty. Mr. Speaker, in saying that, we also have to be consistent in what we are saying, and there are a number of different ways to measure policy. I think that we are probably going to focus on the LICOs after tax statistics for poverty. As I say that, Mr. Speaker, people often look at information which could be the LICOs pre-tax or the Market Basket studies. We need to be consistent and we need a strategy that provides the consistency and provides us with targets and measurable outcomes. I am certainly looking forward to development of that strategy as we try to move this Province into prosperity.

Mr. Speaker, I also want to comment that this Budget has seen an increase of $411,000 under the Labour Market Development Agreement that will assist people with disabilities, and it will assist people with disabilities in making an attachment to the labour market. Our focus is certainly on helping people move into the labour market. Mr. Speaker, some people experience far more barriers than others, whether it is people with disabilities, whether it is physical or mental challenges, and we need to be able to address that and provide the added support that people need if they are going to make an attachment to the labour market.

Mr. Speaker, there are also other people who have a lot of difficulty making an attachment to the labour market, and we need to work with those people as well. We will certainly be expanding our pilot project where we work with single parents here in St. John's to another part of this Province where we will be able to address some of the barriers that single parents face as they try to move into the workforce. We all know that in order to move into the workforce you need to be able to provide the equipment and the clothing that you need to go to work. You also need certain education and training. Mr. Speaker, single parents always have to deal with the issue of child care and transportation.

Mr. Speaker, this year we have $500,000 in grants to address child poverty. One initiative is $250,000 to the Kids Eat Smart Program. Mr. Speaker, there was some question as to why that was reduced from the $500,000 grant last year. Based on our information from that foundation, we felt that a $250,000 grant was sufficient to maintain that program in the Province for this coming year.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I remind the hon. minister that her time has expired.

MS BURKE: By leave?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: By leave.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the minister, by leave.

MS BURKE: Mr. Speaker, the Kids Eat Smart Program has corporate sponsors and has a financial surplus right now, and with our grant they certainly will be able to meet their $899,000 budget for next year.

Mr. Speaker, we also have $250,000 set aside to offer services - I am not sure how it is going to be set up right now, but we are actively working on it. It deals with social inclusion and it will deal with youth who are unable to participate in extra curricular or recreational activities because of issues of poverty.

Social inclusion is a part of poverty that sometimes gets overlooked. If we want young people to grow with confidence, feel part of their community, be able to contribute to the community and we want to build capacity within that community, these people need to realize that they are very much a part of the community and they need to participate in these activities in order to develop self-esteem and confidence.

Mr. Speaker, I think this is a move in the right direction. It addresses poverty. It addresses social inclusion, and I am also proud to say that these initiatives will primarily be based in rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, I feel that the Women's Policy Office and the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment is moving in the right direction. We certainly have a strong social agenda and I think social policy, along with economic policy, developed together and not mutually exclusive is what this Province needs in order to move towards prosperity.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER (Fitzgerald): Order, please!

The Chair has to ask if the hon. Member for Gander has already spoken in the Budget Debate?

The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: By leave, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Does the hon. Member for Gander have leave to speak again?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: By leave.

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

MR. O'BRIEN: I thank my hon. colleagues for the opportunity to speak in this hon. House again today -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: - and stand and speak in favour of this Budget. I must agree with my hon. colleague, the minister who spoke just in front of me, that we are definitely - not only is her department on the path in the right direction we, as a government, are on a path of prosperity and a path of a bright future for Newfoundland and Labrador. I firmly feel in my heart that is where we are headed, and I think we will achieve it. It has been a long haul in eighteen or so months that we have been government, but I will tell you now, that it has been a short haul. I have always been a firm believer - in business for close to thirty years - that the best laid plans are the plans that will succeed. We have to, as a government, make sure that we do things in a slow, strategic, precise way where we can achieve those goals, because if you do not, as I said before, things will come up on a day-to-day basis that will throw those plans off. If you have it well laid out those things can be dealt with in a timely manner and we will move forward in regards to Newfoundland and Labrador.

As a past pharmacist, Mr. Speaker, in my profession that I entered many, many moons ago - I would hate to say how long ago it was, then people will know exactly what my age is. I have seen a lot in health care over the last thirty years. I have seen this government - and I think one of our hon. colleagues across the House spoke at one time in this House and said it was the largest influx of cash ever inserted in health care since the 1960s. Now, I would not be able to confirm that because, for the simple reason, I was not involved in politics then. I was quite young and would not be able to remember, but I think the hon. member is right, that is what we have to do. We have to follow the guidelines of Health Canada and we have to reduce the wait times. As a pharmacist, over the counter, as I said before, I listened to the customers and listened to my patients say that the thing they wanted was to access service and diagnostic services in a timely manner and at a reasonable distance. I think that is very, very important to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Also, Mr. Speaker, we have been cognizant and receptive and we have done a fair number of consultations with the medical field in regards to adding twenty-five new drugs to the Newfoundland prescription drug program. That is very, very important to me, as a pharmacist, because time and time again I had patients come up to the counter with their prescriptions and we had to turn them down because the drug was not on the Newfoundland prescription drug program. Now those twenty-five drugs are there, so they can not come up. They might have to fill out some special authorization forms, doctor wise, and send it in for approval and what not. That is only a very short process and a timely process. We should be cognizant that we are spending our monies in the right way and each and every one of the patients are getting their drugs in a timely manner, but we also have to be very, very careful that we are not over prescribing or prescribing the wrong thing.

So that process is in place as a check balance, and I agree with that because at times, over the thirty years I have seen a lot of things happen in pharmacy and what not. The doctor can only respond to what has been said to him in the office. They are very, very professional people and are helping us out in regards to their advice to all the drugs. We would have wished that we could have added more, but that was not possible at this particular time. We will get to it, because as I said earlier, we are on the right path and a path of a bright future for Newfoundland and Labrador. Part of that path is health care in Newfoundland and Labrador.

It brings to mind, only just a week ago we had an issue in Central Newfoundland in regards to cancer treatment. Even though it was not in the Budget at that particular time, this government reacts and shows that it has a compassionate side. We had various officials go out to Central Newfoundland, review the situation out there, and then we made an announcement on Wednesday past, I think, in regard to a cancer treatment centre in Grand Falls-Windsor and the hospital there, and also an insertion of about $350,000 worth of cash in the James Patton Memorial Hospital, to create a new cancer treatment centre there that is really equal to the one in Grand Falls.

Mr. Speaker, I must say at this point in time, from my own professional point of view, that the cancer treatment centre, a true sense of a cancer treatment centre, could not work in Central Newfoundland to the region that regional authority, that health authority, covers, because the geographic land mass is the size of New Brunswick. The people are not densely populated in one place so you need to stretch it out in service. There are two really densely populated areas, one to the west and one to the east. We see fit to put two in to service all of the people there where they would not have to be away from their homes and they could access their loved ones which is very, very important in that process. We recognized that need and we announced that last Wednesday. I am very, very proud of that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: I must also say, at this particular time, that my hon. colleague from Terra Nova, my hon. colleague from Bonavista North, and my hon. colleague from Windsor-Springdale, were at the Caucus table. They were advising the minister, the Acting Minister of Health, and also, really, the minister, because we had all talked to the minister prior to him getting sick, I guess, out in Gander. He was well taken care of out there, Mr. Speaker. In the meantime, we were all there and we were, I guess, very, very broad-minded in regard to the region. We were not only just thinking about our particular districts but we were thinking about all of the people that live in Central Newfoundland. We reacted to that and I think the government has done very, very well.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. O'BRIEN: Education, Mr. Speaker, is very important in this Province as well, and I am glad to see there is $26 million that is being carved out of the Budget this year for infrastructure. That is going to be very, very important, because during the election campaign in October, 2003 I heard, and heard loud, that the teachers wanted to reduce their class size, they needed better schools, they needed a better system and they needed to offer more programs. Working on 500,000 people and - I cannot remember exactly how many students are there, 170,000 or 200,000 students in a Province. We have to react to that in infrastructure and get new schools strategically located where we can offer the full range of programs within the educational system. That is what we are trying to do, Mr. Speaker, is make sure that our young are well educated and well educated to go out into the world. Hopefully some of them will become the leaders - and I know they will - of this great Province of ours, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, Innovation, Trade and Rural Development is very, very, very important to this Island of ours and Labrador. The minister has worked very, very diligently in regard to going across the Province, meeting with various groups, listening to their needs, and making sure she understands what is happening outside in rural Newfoundland and outside in Labrador. She has done that over the last year. As I said previously, the best laid plans are the plans that succeed, and that is exactly what she has done. She has laid out her plans, she has her foundation there, I suppose, if you want to put it there, if you want to compare it to building a house. She is in the process now of building that house, building that structure. I think, when she is finished over the next little while - and that will not take as long as building the foundation, because she aims to move forward now in a timely fashion in regard to growing the economy of rural Newfoundland, and diversifying that economy, and giving the people out there a fighting chance to have their businesses survive and have their dreams and expectations of the world realized. That is what they are looking for, and there are great entrepreneurs out there.

I have heard, time and time again, that the backbone of the economy, the backbone of Newfoundland and Labrador, the backbone of Canada, is the small-and-medium sized business, but when it came done to actually supporting that small-and-medium sized business, there was no support for it, Mr. Speaker. That is what I see, very limited at the least, especially for the new, young entrepreneurs with new ideas to bring to the table. It was very, very hard to get it from, if you are going to compare the baseball from the dugout to the home plate or first base.

Mr. Speaker, the minister and the department and the Cabinet have seen fit that they are going to top up the existing $2.1 million existing Small Business Seed Capital Equity Program by another $7.9 million, giving a $10 million revolving fund that will provide investment and provide small loans in regard to the small-and-medium sized business. They can go there and access that fund when they meet the criteria that is set down by the department, which is going to be upfront. They will have access to that money and they will go to work in their small communities, in rural Newfoundland. That is very important, you know, to this city, very important to Corner Brook, very important to Grand Falls-Windsor, and very important to Gander, in regard to growing our economy, Mr. Speaker, because if their economy does not grow, ours does not grow. That is the way it is, because my business was built not only on Gander, but it was built on rural Newfoundland. They came in and supported me, so I am proud to say that this government is moving in that direction.

Yes, our tourism and our fishery, especially our fishery, are very, very, very important to this Province, but we have to diversify, Mr. Speaker, because it is a moving world, it is a world that changes by the day. You know, one time you could put your eggs in one basket, but in this day and age, you cannot put you eggs in one basket. You have to have your eggs in many baskets, and that is exactly what this minister is trying to do. That is why she went across the Province and established a Rural Secretariat, which is very, very important. There are going be nine councils with one provincial council advising Cabinet, advising the Premier, in regard to rural Newfoundland and what rural Newfoundland needs.

They will go to work. I think they are going to be established after April 29, and then they will move forward. They will gather their information and put their information in a document fashion, I suppose, and they will advise the minister and advise the Cabinet in regard to that. These are the people who see things in rural Newfoundland that we cannot see on a day-to-day basis, because we are carrying on the government for Newfoundland and Labrador. It is very, very important that we have this communication outside of this House, outside of this government, because they are the people on the ground who see things and see the opportunities that are out there. They will be in the process of having a look at those opportunities, identifying those opportunities, and actually, also, trying to capitalize on opportunities that were there but were lost and fell through the cracks. They will move forward on that, as well.

We will also move outside the box in regard to moving out globally. We have our Ireland partnership. The minister, I believe, just got back from Chicago leading the trade mission down there which is very, very successful. I heard her on Open Line, and I heard one of the Ministerial Statements. I read that and it sounded very, very, very, very promising. I think Newfoundland and Labrador has come to a new place in its history. There is a new awareness, globally, on Newfoundland and Labrador. People are aware, not only in the United States but Europe, and these places are asking about Newfoundland and Labrador. I think they are starting to realize that this is a place that they would like to do business and they also would like Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to do business there.

You know, many, many Newfoundlanders have gone out from this land, they have traveled all over the world, and all you hear across Canada, and anywhere that you go, is how good Newfoundlanders are in their workforce. They bring a lot to the table. They are very, very well educated, they are energetic, they do not mind taking on a challenge and they will continue to take that challenge, Mr. Speaker, and we will continue to take the challenge in Newfoundland and Labrador. We will make this a Province of prosperity and a brighter future for Newfoundland and Labrador, a great place for our children and their children's children to live. That is very, very important to this government and very, very important to me, Mr. Speaker. I have three kids in this Province, and I am going to work as hard as I can within this government in influencing the path that we are taking, and influencing our investments in the business world to have every opportunity presented at their feet, where they can succeed, survive, and make this their home. This is their home, and I do not want to have that change any time in the future.

Mr. Speaker, there is also a $5 million Regional/Sectorial Diversification Fund. This is going to build on the prime sector strategies. It will partner with federal programs and the like, and then we will grow on that. I must say that our federal side is very, very important as well. We depend on the federal government. We appreciate their help in growing our economy. I think that is very, very important. We have forged a relationship, a very, very good relationship on the federal side. They have a new awareness as well of Newfoundland and Labrador, and what Newfoundland and Labrador means to Canada, Mr. Speaker. We are a part of Canada. We entered Canada in 1949 as proud partners in this great land. We will continue that, we will move forward on that, and we will strengthen Canada as a whole. That is exactly what we are going to do.

Transportation is very, very important to our infrastructure and growing the economy, Mr. Speaker. Two years in a row now we have increased our budgeting to years previous by $10 million. That is an extra $20 million going into roads and transportation issues in this Province, and that is very, very important.

I take the example that every dollar that is spent on the Gander Bay Road coming into Gander is very, very important to the small business sector and the business sector in general in Gander. Every time that is upgraded, it makes it more conducive and easy for people to drive in because people worry about the wear and tear on their vehicles and whatnot. We have to be able to provide every opportunity for them to move and get into Gander. Also, in saying that, we have to make sure that we move out in their area, for the simple reason that they support us and we have to support them.

Then, we get to tourism in regard to transportation and moving these people out into the small rural areas. People out there right now, as in the past, and in the recent past, want to see rural Newfoundland. That is what Newfoundland is all about, rural Newfoundland. Yes, they do come into St. John's, and we all appreciate St. John's and its history and whatnot, where everything is located, such as The Rooms, which is a beautiful facility, but, in the meantime, they want to see rural Newfoundland. They want to see the scenery, they want to meet the people, because this people have a name all across the world, their friendliness and the way they treat their fellow man, Mr. Speaker. So, we have to give them every single opportunity to move out there, and that is one of it, because if we turn them off in regard to bad roads - which we all understand we have; we have really bad roads across the Province - it is imperative that we deal with that. Based on our finances today, the Cabinet has seen fit to increase that by $10 million for the past two years. Twenty million dollars might not be a lot of money in transportation, but at least it is a start and a good start. It is part of a long-term strategy in regard to that.

Also, I think there is some monies there in regard to ferry services and replacing ferries, getting new ferries to our islands, which is very important as well, because I think they have a role to play and I think they have a place there in Newfoundland and Labrador in regard to tourism. I think they can actually enter the business world. I firmly believe that things can be produced in places like Change Islands, on a small basis, and exported out of Newfoundland and Labrador. A fine example of that is out in Point Leamington, in regard to their plant out there. I had the opportunity to export a lot of their product, Mr. Speaker, over the last three or four years - gloves and that kind of gear. I used to access that out of that plant and then sell it globally-wise. They actually said, and I had reports back, that it was the best product that they ever had and ever dealt with, so we did very, very well there and that can continue, Mr. Speaker.

I think that small manufacturing can happen in rural Newfoundland. It is just that we have to do it right and we have to provide, I guess, the roads and the transportation and the infrastructure to get that product to market, Mr. Speaker. That is very important, because if you actually produce a product then you have the challenge of getting it to the market at the right price. So, part of our strategy and our long-term strategy is to get that product out there and out to the global world, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I must also speak in regard to the $850,000 that we invested in the protection of our inland waters. That is very, very important as well, Mr. Speaker. I believe the Member for Terra Nova was talking about how important that was to his area, as well as my area, because the great, mighty Gander River is a well known river around the world and a part of my district, Mr. Speaker. It employs a lot of people. A lot of people go there not only to catch the salmon, but just to look at the scenery. It is beautiful down there, and I would recommend any of the members, any of my hon. colleagues, if they ever get the chance to do down the Mighty Gander, please do. That is very, very important.

I heard the hon. Member for Terra Nova mention that, and I was hoping - I don't think it was picked up by Hansard - but I was hoping that he was actually going to start to eat salmon, because I understand that he doesn't eat too much salmon. If he is talking about the inland waters and how important it is, I am going to hope and pray that he starts to eat salmon as a part of his diet. We will get him up there and we will get all of these people down on the Gander River, and it is very, very important that we do that, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I have been out in my district and have talked to many, many people out there with regard to what they thought of the Budget, and all the way around they thought it was a great budget under the circumstances we have as a government. We hit a financial wall when we got in here in 2003. We have dealt with that in a timely fashion, Mr. Speaker, and we are on the path to overcoming that hurdle. We have moved forward on that. They have said it is a good Budget all around, it was fair, it was balanced, and it tried to take into account all of Newfoundland and Labrador. There were some great investments in Labrador itself. That is a great land up there; a Big Land I think is what it is called. I have been there a few times myself, not in a business way but in a pleasurable way. I was salmon fishing and whatnot, and just seeing the land itself. Labrador is so important to this Island, and we all - at least I do - love it so much. I would love to be able to go up there more and more, I guarantee you, because that is so important to our economy.

Mr. Speaker, when I was out in the district, all walks of life, to be honest with you, not just business people who I meet and have coffee with and whatnot, but just the ordinary person, and how important it was. It was only just a few months ago that we had an announcement in Gander on the Multi-Year Capital Works under Municipal Affairs, of $3.6 million. They now can plan out, and plan in advance, just what they are going to do. There is a lot of road construction and street construction moving now, and they can plan it out, not as in previous years. They don't have to wait for the last minute and then go out to tender, costing them more. They can plan themselves. They can actually sit down and plan it out in a very strategic way.

We are moving forward, Mr. Speaker, and it is very important that we do. We have other projects in the hopper and whatnot. I will be working very, very closely with my district in regard to moving the economy of Gander forward. I think this Budget is very, very good for Gander. I think we will move forward in regard to the location of services in our health field and we will grow the economy.

Mr. Speaker, I thank you for this opportunity to speak in the House and I thank my hon. colleagues for the opportunity to speak again on this Budget. It has been a pleasure and I hope to speak again in the House. I probably won't get a chance to speak on the Budget again, but I will speak in the House shortly and will move forward, Mr. Speaker, to a bright and wonderful future in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is a pleasure to stand here this afternoon and speak for a few minutes on the Budget Debate and reflect a little on government's actions and performance over the past sixteen, eighteen months, I guess, since we took power, and to look to where we are going in the next sixteen to eighteen months, or certainly in the next twelve months as a result of what we laid out in our Budget back about a month ago now, I guess, it was.

Mr. Speaker, I would just like to start - I guess before I get into what the Budget was all about and some of the specific issues in the Budget - to speak for a few minutes on what has been accomplished by this government, all of its members, and the Premier, in particular, over the past year. Certainly, everybody will remember - if you go back to January of 2004 it was clearly articulated to the people of the Province the fiscal situation of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the kind of debt levels that we had encountered as we took over office; the projections on deficits and the projections on what our accumulated debt, how that would ramp up over the coming years. I think most reasonable people would - anybody who looked at it objectively - have to say that the road we were on had some pretty fearful things involved. Mr. Speaker, we confronted that back in January of 2004 and laid out a plan in April of 2004 on how to deal with that. I think if people look at where we are, just twelve months later, on the fiscal situation, while we have a tremendous way to go, we have certainly come a long way in a very short period of time.

If you look back to January of 2004, there were projections at that time of government deficits running in the order of $1 billion for the foreseeable future. We were at a $10.5 billion, $11 billion accumulated debt with a projection over the course of the next four years - or looking from 2004 to 2008 - we would hit over $15 billion in accumulated debt. Mr. Speaker, the kind of debt load that that would leave to - not only to the present generation but probably, more importantly, to future generations of this Province would have been extremely cumbersome and really would have undermined any possibility that future generations would have to have a prosperous future in this Province. Since that time, what has happened? Well, there have been a number of very successful negotiations on the part of government. The Premier being the lead on that, with the federal government, resulting in a substantial improvement in funding on the health care front, in a substantial improvement in the way equalization is dealt with for our Province and protection on that front for the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Certainly, if we look at the highlight of the past twelve months, the successful conclusion and negotiations on the Atlantic Accord, we see a dramatic change in not only the immediate fiscal situation of the Province, but also in the long-term prospects for the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. If you look back to last year, the deficit was projected at that time to come in at around $840 million and we actually came in at $473 million. Now, personally, I think a $473 million deficit is still a pretty scary scenario and something that we still have to work on, something that we have to grapple with, something that has to be wrestled under control because we cannot continue on down that road. We have to achieve a balanced budget, not only for the people who currently reside in Newfoundland and Labrador, but for the people who will pick up the reins after we are all long gone.

Mr. Speaker, if you look at our actual cash deficit, we were projecting last year a cash deficit of $362 million and we came in with a $14 million deficit. That is a pretty phenomenal improvement in a very short period of time, but of course there is a long way to go yet.

Mr. Speaker, I am sure if we go back to a year ago there was certainly a great deal of concern and a great deal of questioning by a lot of people in this Province about the route that the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador had taken - the route that we had taken and some of the positions that we had taken at that time. I would suggest that it is not terribly different from some of the concerns and questions that we see in the Province today about government policies as it relates to the fishery for example. Twelve months later, I think the vast majority of the people in Newfoundland and Labrador look back on the past twelve months, and while they had great concerns and substantial questions twelve months ago and fourteen months ago about the path that the government was on, twelve to fourteen months later many of them see the merit and see the good judgement that was exercised by this government over the past twelve to fourteen months and see, for the first time in many, many years, the hope of a better future and a more stable fiscal situation and therefore more security and services, and what have you, for the people of this Province.

Mr. Speaker, as I said, I do not think that is terribly different from what we see presently in Newfoundland and Labrador. Out in the lobby of the Confederation Building right now, and throughout the past eight weeks, we have seen considerable opposition to a plan that we have laid out as a government for restructuring the fishery. If people could give it the time - if people would take the time to try and work with this, as we did with the plan that we laid out twelve and fourteen months ago as it related to our fiscal situation, if people could take the time and work through this for the next twelve to twenty-four months, maybe people would see the utility in what we are advancing right now as it relates to fisheries management. It is not always easy for people to look at change and see what it will hold for them in the future. It is not always easy to accept what that change will be. It is not always easy to understand what that change will mean for individuals or communities or groups or associations or unions or what have you - or fleets, in the case of the fishing industry.

Mr. Speaker, you can never find out what change will bring unless you try. That is all we are suggesting right now is that we try, just as we said twelve to fourteen months ago on our fiscal situation. We recognized then that there was a tremendous problem on the fiscal front in Newfoundland and Labrador. We recognized that the financial situation of the Province and the government was precarious and that it had to be dealt with. We laid out a plan back then that caused a lot of people concern. It caused a lot of people to question our wisdom, and twelve to fourteen months later a lot of people, as I said, have seen that the plan that we laid out had a great deal of merit. It is putting us on the road towards sustainability and self-sufficiency.

Mr. Speaker, I want to speak just very briefly to a couple of the issues in the Budget. I am going to try, to the extent that I can coming from a rural district, to touch on issues that are primarily, in my view, or certainly significantly impact the future of rural Newfoundland and Labrador. I will start in Tourism, Culture and Recreation - only because that is the way my notes run, not because I see tourism as anything greater than fisheries or forestry or whatever. They all contribute substantially to the present situation in Newfoundland and Labrador, in rural Newfoundland and Labrador and to the future. I think if there are, probably, three cornerstones for rural Newfoundland and Labrador, three pillars that rural Newfoundland and Labrador will live on going forward, three of the most important ones will be tourism, the fishing industry and the forestry industry. Mr. Speaker, I say that, because all three of those are renewable and, when managed properly, can do a great deal for our people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

Just on Tourism, Culture and Recreation, if we look at the investments that this government has identified in the Budget that we just laid out before the people, that we are debating here today, there has been $2.4 million allocated to support the growth of cultural industries in Newfoundland and Labrador. We have added an additional $1 million for tourism marketing, bringing the total tourism marketing budget to $8 million. That is in addition to the $1 million that we added in last year's Budget, the first substantial increase in tourism marketing expenditures by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador in many years. An additional $160,000 was allocated for the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council, and $500,000 was provided to support the 2006 Labrador Winter Games.

Government is providing $1.3 million over the next two years toward the future development of the Provincial Training Centre. That, Mr. Speaker, while it will be located in St. John's, will be for the benefit of all people in Newfoundland and Labrador, to allow our athletes throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, who are training and planning on participating in national competitions, international competitions and what have you, the opportunity to avail of a first-class facility in order to advance their aims and objectives in sport.

Beginning this year, the Department of Tourism will be providing $100,000 over the next three year and each year to implement Destination Labrador.

In rural Newfoundland and Labrador, we all recognize that there is a substantial problem for small and medium size businesses in particular, but for the vast majority of people who want to advance economic development in those areas it is a great deal of trouble to raise the necessary capital to advance their business interest. If you look at what the government has laid out in Innovation, Trade and Rural Development, what we have laid out is over $8 million in additional funding provided for IT initiatives to assist in fulfilling government's commitment to streamline and enhance service delivery, and $7.9 million, in addition to the $2.1 million previously allocated to the Small Business Seed Capital Equity Program, will be used to establish a $10 million Small and Medium Enterprise Fund. This fund will be used to provide loans and equity investments to small and medium size businesses.

Mr. Speaker, it has been recognized, it has long been talked about by many people in Newfoundland and Labrador in the small business community, particularly in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, that there is a great deal of trouble trying to access the financing that they require to move their businesses forward.

Mr. Speaker, we see here, clearly, evidence that this government recognizes that. We recognize that the future of Newfoundland and Labrador, the future of economic and employment growth in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, is going to be based on the advancement of the small business community. Mr. Speaker, this is how we have responded and we believe that will be a great initiative.

Five million dollars is provided to establish a Regional/Sectorial Diversification Fund that will provide contributions for economic development initiatives that address regional and sectorial development, diversification and innovation. Funding for the Business and Marketing Development Program has been doubled from $500,000 to $1 million annually, and $1 million has been allocated for the implementation of the provincial Innovation Strategy.

Again, Mr. Speaker, just to reflect on that, we look at major issues that have been debated widely and for a significant period of time by the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, the people in rural economic development, people in the small business community, people throughout Newfoundland and Labrador who have been calling for these types of initiatives, and at the first opportunity, after going through the difficult time that we had last year from a budgetary perspective, trying to get our spending under control, trying to generate more revenues both through increased royalties, through better deals with the federal government on health care, better deals on equalization, a better deal on the Atlantic Accord, we have managed, Mr. Speaker, very quickly to be able to get ourselves in a position where we can start to respond to some of the needs of people in Newfoundland and Labrador from an economic development perspective.

Mr. Speaker, that is what this was all about. That is what we said last winter, that is what we said last spring, when we were talking about getting the fiscal situation in this Province under control. We talked about, if we do not get the fiscal situation under control, if you do not get to a point where you have a balanced Budget, if you do not get to a point where your expenditures are less than your revenues, then you will never be able to free up the type of finances required to foster economic development, to foster innovation, to be able to invest in infrastructure, to be able to build our roads and maintain our ferry services, to be able to keep our health care system and our education system and all of those things that government has to do. If you do not get your fiscal situation under control, we will never be able to do the kind of job in that respect that we need.

Mr. Speaker, that is the plan that we laid out. That was not immediately obvious, I am sure, to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador last year, but I think it is becoming, after twelve months, very apparent to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador that this government knows what we have to do and is willing to take the difficult decisions that are required in the short term for the long-term benefit of the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. TAYLOR: Mr. Speaker, I have to say this: You know, it is very easy, very, very easy, to be a popular politician in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is very easy to be popular if you want to tell people every day, every hour of the day, every week while you are in politics, what they want to hear. If you want to tell people that yes, we have money for this, and yes, we have money for that, and no, we are not going to make the changes in the fishing industry that you say we do not want, and we are not going to do this and we are not going to do that, anything that you see that might be confrontational, that is the easy way to be popular in Newfoundland and Labrador in politics - or anywhere for that matter, not only in Newfoundland and Labrador - but, Mr. Speaker, people get elected, people vote for change, people put governments in to make the decisions that are required to look after their best interest for the long term, not to look after anybody's, necessarily, best interest in the short term, to look at the bigger picture, to look ahead as far as we can see to try and see what the future holds for us, to try and determine how best to position ourselves, how best to make decisions in the short term to position ourselves in the long term. That, Mr. Speaker, is how we have approached government over the past sixteen, eighteen months. While we have made some difficult decisions, it has always been with a view of trying to position the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the economy of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, in a position where, in five years, in ten years, our economy, our financial situation and our people are sustainable.

We cannot - and I just want to switch gears away from the Budget a little bit and talk, if I could, for a few minutes on the situation in the fishing industry. You know, I have said this many times and I think it bears repeating. I have to say again today, it bears repeating, that the decisions that we take today, while they have, in some cases, a direct, an immediate, impact on people in the fishing industry and in communities, in boats, in fish plants, in trucks and on wharves and what have you, we also have to bear in mind that, either by design or default, whatever we do as a government will have an impact on the industry and communities in five to ten years.

We saw, Mr. Speaker, if we go back to 1989 when the evidence was clearly on the wall, when the writing was clearly on the wall for the Northern cod stock or for many groundfish stocks around Newfoundland and Labrador, at that time governments could have made the decision to look to where the resource was going, to look to where the industry was going, and to try and lay out a plan to deal with that reality, to deal with that eventuality. Mr. Speaker, what was done, clearly, was governments of the day decided that they did not, could not, would not, for whatever reason, take the difficult decisions that were required to position the industry, to ramp down production, to ramp down harvesting, so that we could maintain a suitable groundfish stock that hopefully would be around for the long term. The wrong decisions were made at the time. Maybe there was no other way of doing it, but the wrong decisions were made at the time and we ended up with the total annihilation of the vast majority of the groundfish stocks around Newfoundland and Labrador; because the right decisions were not made. Like I said, maybe there was no way of making the right decisions at that time.

Today, Mr. Speaker, we can choose to do the same thing. We can choose to lay our hands off. We can take a hands-off approach to this. We can allow the market to determine what happens, which is essentially what happened in 1989. We can allow communities to go wherever communities go, and plant workers to go wherever plant workers go, and fishermen to go wherever fishermen go, but we have to recognize that, clearly, all of the evidence, in crab in particular, points toward a declining resource. We have to acknowledge that all of the evidence points, clearly, towards a declining market. We can choose to disregard all of that, but we disregard it at our peril. We can choose to let the market forces determine what happens in our fishing industry this year. We can choose to let the market forces determine what happens in our communities this year. We can choose to let the market forces determine what happens in all of it for the next two and three and four and five years.

Mr. Speaker, we can only expect from that a very similar outcome to what we saw in 1989. Everybody knows what happened after 1989, where we ended up in 1992 with a Northern cod moratorium, where we ended up in 1993 with a moratorium on just about every other groundfish stock, or we can try and have a managed approach to this. We can try and lay out a plan where we stabilize everything, we freeze everything in time for the next two years as we laid out in our raw material sharing system, we freeze everything in time, everybody knows what they are going to get, everybody knows they can deal with the market on that basis, and people know when they are going to work. We fix the Fishing Industry Collective Bargaining Act so we do not have continual disputes over prices, we freeze it in time and we take the next two years to fix the problem, we take the next two years to deal our rationalization, to deal with our regional issues, and what have you.

Mr. Speaker, I speak about that today because, as we all know, our crab fishery is worth somewhere in the order, depending on the market, depending on where we go with the resource, somewhere between $300 million and $500 million to the Province. That has, of course, a substantial impact on the coffers of the provincial government. Any response that government would have to deal with the fallout from a collapsed fishery would have to be factored in.

Mr. Speaker, so it is important for all of us to recognize that the fishing industry and the management of the fishing industry has to be looked at very carefully. It has to be done in a planned way, Mr. Speaker. If not, the implications for not only communities, but for the provincial coffers, can be very substantial and very drastic.

On that note, Mr. Speaker, I think I am just about out of time. Hopefully, in the coming days I will have an opportunity to talk on this further.

Thank you.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for Trinity-Bay de Verde.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is certainly a pleasure today, Mr. Speaker, to speak on behalf of the Budget this year. I will probably be a little while because there are a lot of great things in this Budget to talk about.

What a difference a year makes? Last year was probably one of the most difficult budgets that any of us members ever had to face; certainly no fault of our own. Again, like I said, what a difference a year makes! This year, as I am sure everybody in this room would agree and everybody in the Province would agree, this one of the best Budget's that has come down in the history of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Mr. Speaker, today I would like to talk about a few initiatives that have tremendous positive impact on my district, which is certainly a rural district in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Firstly, I would like to speak about health care. This year, in the Budget, our government announced $650,000 for a dialysis unit in Carbonear General Hospital. Mr. Speaker, this announcement was a very long time coming, certainly, despite all of the fears that were raised by the Opposition about this time last year. Mr. Speaker, this time last year a lot of people in my district were concerned, a lot of people in the surrounding area of Carbonear General Hospital were concerned, about speculation about closures to a floor of the hospital and closure to the obstetrics and gynecology department. In fact, Mr. Speaker, I have a news release here dated July 29 where the Member for Port de Grave says, "I am hearing from very good sources within government that a whole floor of the hospital in Carbonear may close." "...I am hearing that Obstetrics may close..."

Mr. Speaker, I would ask if any of that was done. Was obstetrics closed? No, Mr. Speaker, it wasn't. Gynecology is still there and that whole floor is still there. Instead of taking away things, as was suggested by the Opposition, we have added a tremendous amount of equipment to that hospital that will certainly be a positive impact to the people of my district.

For one, I mentioned the dialysis unit, $650,000 for that. In fact, I had the opportunity on Friday past to go to the grand official opening of the dialysis unit in Carbonear. Actually, one of my constituents was there at the time receiving dialysis treatment and I spoke with him and his wife. They were both very, very pleased with our government's initiative and, certainly, they are very relieved that they no longer have to travel to St. John's. Going into St. John's adds a lot of stress in terms of road conditions in the winter time, and the financial burden, the cost of going to St. John's. They were quite pleased.

Actually, there is a patient from the Trinity-Conception-Placentia area who has been traveling to St. John's since 1979. Twenty-six years he has been going to St. John's to receive dialysis, so you can imagine how pleased he was with our announcement.

The dialysis unit will accommodate about twenty-four people for now in our area. There are thirty-two people right now on the list to be treated, and it is very hopeful that the additional eight people, in time, will also be able to be treated.

Mr. Speaker, in addition to the dialysis unit, the $650,000 which will certainly go to salaries for nurses and some of the operational expenses, our government also announced $260,000 for new ultrasound equipment to replace some of the old equipment at Carbonear Hospital. This equipment is some of the most recent technology out there, so certainly has tremendous impact in helping to diagnose some of the problems that people may have. In fact, our government announced a total of $1.3 million for new ultrasound equipment, not only in Carbonear but also in Corner Brook, St. John's and Labrador City. This announcement of $1.3 million will have a significant impact on the wait times for the people to get an ultrasound. In fact, it is expected to reduce wait times by nearly one-half. When I was elected about eighteen months ago, one of the first calls I remember receiving is people complaining about the wait times for various services in the health-care industry, and we are very pleased that we have had a significant impact on reducing those wait times.

I would also like to take a few moments to speak about some of the initiatives that we have in the Department of Natural Resources. Certainly, any investments that we have in our natural resources will ultimately end up being investments in our human resources. There are a lot of exciting things going on in the Department of Natural Resources. For example, the announcement of $900,000 to develop a provincial Energy Plan. At a time in the world when there is consistent blackouts and power outages in major cities, our hydro potential here in this Province is certainly a gold mine for us.

We also have a lot of potential to develop wind energy initiatives, wind power initiatives. I am sure we will all agree here in this Province that we have no shortage of wind and, certainly, along with the development of wind energy, there is a potential for positive impact on the environment in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and whatnot.

Also, the Department of Natural Resources has continued to provide $7.3 million for silviculture initiatives. This goes towards replenishing the wood supply so that we can ensure that future generations, people who would like to harvest the wood supply in the future, that this resource will be there for them.

Of particular interest to me is investing $4 million for new agricultural initiatives. They are certainly to build upon initiatives that were already there. This morning I had the opportunity to attend the official opening of the Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurship Program, which is at St. Francis school in Harbour Grace and is partnered up with the Spruce Hill Farms organization. Our government is certainly a supporter of this. This project has a greenhouse at the school in St. Francis. So students at that school will learn hands-on agricultural techniques. They will learn the ins and outs of it. I watched a video today and the opportunities that even exist today, since I have been out of school twelve years ago, are just tremendous right now. I would suggest that it is probably a lot more fun planting seeds than history class was for me.

Also, as part of this project, students anywhere in the world can view the techniques of agriculture via the Internet. There are cameras set up there, so anywhere in the world students can learn these agricultural techniques. Mr. Speaker, I would say that youth agriculture and entrepreneurship is a very, very powerful combination and, certainly, youth are our future. I have no doubt that the youth in this Province will take advantage of this opportunity at St. Francis school and, hopefully, they will end up being employed or have their own business in the agricultural field some day.

Another department I would like to touch on some of the initiatives, because certainly they have a tremendous impact to the District of Trinity-Bay de Verde, is the Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development and some of the initiatives there. In the District of Trinity-Bay de Verde there are a tremendous amount of active volunteers who put their heart and soul into the community and the community organizations. I will name a few. I know I am probably risking naming a few here because there are so many but some of the ones that are ongoing right now is the development of a proposal for Baccalieu Island. It is a very scenic and intriguing bird sanctuary, one known to be one of the best in North America. Also, the Winterton Boat Building Museum, there is a lot of good work going on there in that they are developing a lot of international partnerships, with Ireland for instance. That too - the intent of that is to be aired live over the Internet as well so people will actually see how to build a dory or a punt in Newfoundland and Labrador.

So, organizations such as these - again, I just named a few, there are many, many, others - will certainly be able to take advantage of the $5 million Diversification Fund that was announced in this year's Budget. That will go a long way in leveraging funds from other organizations so that we can see that some of this work is carried out. Certainly, as we all know, small and medium sized business is the backbone of rural Newfoundland and Labrador. Of course, the increased funding for loan and equity investment - bringing that up to an amount of $10 million - is certainly going to go a long way for rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

I also want to quickly touch on the Department of Municipal and Provincial Affairs. I have about a dozen municipalities in my district and they were very pleased with the minister of that department and certainly our government, with how quickly capital works projects came out this year; how quickly they were announced. In fact, there are already some tenders out. I have been receiving a lot of positive feedback on the fact that finally we have listened and this year the capital works projects are announced sooner.

Also in that department this year, again, we announced $4.25 million for the Community Enhancement Program. Some people know it as the job creation program. A lot of the feedback I have been getting back from organizations in my district is that this usually comes out too late in the year when they are trying to do tourism related projects or brush cutting, or trail development, whatnot. So, again, our government has listened and the minister and Cabinet made a decision that this would come out sooner this year. We expect that, hopefully by June of this year, applications can be sent in for that.

I cannot forget about the Department of Transportation and Works, Mr. Speaker. This year is one of the biggest road budgets ever. Certainly, there are a lot of roads in Trinity-Bay de Verde that need repaving. I want to assure the people of my district that I have met with the minister of that department and I am hopeful that some announcements will come soon.

Mr. Speaker, there are a lot more initiatives in the Budget, certainly in terms of tourism, culture and recreation. The people in my district are alive and well in terms of culture, music, arts and folk festivals and whatnot. So, the additional funding in terms of that department was certainly noticed and commented on very favourably. Also, again in terms of tourism, the additional $1 million that was committed every year until we get in-line with the other provinces, that goes a long way in terms of promoting what we have. We want to be able to attract people to this Province and when they come here, we want them to continue coming back. Certainly, this all ties in with the announcement for the biggest roads budget ever, as well.

Again, there are a lot more things that have been announced in this Budget. This past winter I had the opportunity to take a course at university in economics and some of the macro economic variables are a good indicator of where we are going as an economy, indicators such as the inflation rate and the employment rate and whatnot. I would just like to highlight a few of these. In 2004, the employment rate increased by 1.3 per cent. The unemployment rate fell at the same time to 15.6 per cent. The inflation rate is down from 2.9 per cent to only 1.8 per cent. Retail sales are expanding. We all know that residential construction is expanding. So I would suggest that all of these macro economic variables that are highlighted here are excellent indicators of where we are headed as a Province.

I would like to conclude by saying that there are a lot of exciting times ahead for this Province. When I speak with the Minister of Natural Resources and all the good things that are going on there in terms of oil and gas, the development of gas in the future, the wind energy potential, the Lower Churchill, the developments in agriculture, the potential for the development of nutraceuticals. There are all different exciting things going on in that department which, of course, are of particular interest to me because that is my background. Lots of great things going on in industry, trade and rural development, certainly tourism, culture and recreation, and of course, with roads.

I would like to say that there are a lot of exciting times ahead. There is a very bright future ahead for all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. I want to tell the people that I firmly believe we are on the right track as a government.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for St. Barbe.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. YOUNG: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to take a few moments to have an opportunity to speak to the Budget as well. It is certainly a pleasure this year to get up and speak to the achievements that this government has reached with cutting the deficit in half from what was projected. To go from $900 million down to $473 million is certainly an achievement.

Mr. Speaker, a good part of this achievement has come from the Atlantic Accord, and the negotiating abilities of our Leader, Danny Williams, have certainly been significant in achieving this. I am very pleased, indeed, to be able to get up and say that the Atlantic Accord has not only achieved the financial situation for this Province, but has also brought a lot of pride to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Myself, as I think many people in the district, felt as if we were second-class citizens in this great country, but today, with the pride we have in seeing that we can go out there and if we put the right people forward - under the leadership of Danny Williams we have certainly gone out there and brought our case to this country. In doing it in an appropriate way, then we will be viewed in a different way than what we were. It is all depending on our approach, I guess, is what I am trying to say here.

The Atlantic Accord, the deal that happened there, how it was handled, how we had stayed the course and had not wavered away with the naysayers who said that we could not go out there and achieve such a deal, where we would get 100 per cent of our provincial monies, because it was double dipping - they came up with quite a number of reasons as to why we couldn't do it. Our Premier certainly stayed the course and what he had done was he saw a vision and knew what it would take to have the ability to reach that vision. Certainly, we had to have the finances to be able to do that.

With the achievement of the Atlantic Accord and the financial situation and the pride, I certainly feel that this Province is different today because of it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. YOUNG: Mr. Speaker, when I went back to the district after Budget 2005 it was quite a different reception than when I went back after the 2004, because after taking office the financial situation was in such a state that a lot of fees had gone up and had affected everybody in the district. I had gone from group to group and everybody was disgruntled with the stand we had taken.

One thing that proves is the commitment, and that the key principle of this leadership and this government is that we are going to share the burden, when there is a burden to be shared. As we see today, in the things out there and how we manage our resource, we are going to go out there and share the wealth as well. It is those key principles that are the basis of this government. Everything that has been done since we came into power has been in that direction, has led you to believe that, and we have not strayed from the course. It has been the policy out there, it has been very straightforward, it has not been unpredictable or whatever. If you sit down and see the management style of this government, it is that we are going to go out there and we are going to share the responsibility for what is happening in this Province.

Mr. Speaker, the Atlantic Accord is something that has made a great difference. It is the offshore, and the offshore is going to continue to play an important role in the economy of this Province. This government is going to invest $900,000 into having an energy plan and having Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro to be out there, an arm of this government, to make sure that we have our finger on the pulse of that industry and any opportunities that are out there, that we are going to bring the maximum benefits to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. We are not going to sit back and let other people take control of our industries and be able to take more than a fair share for development. We will bring the benefits back to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, being the member for a district like St. Barbe, which is very far from the center of activity when it comes to the oil, you do not get the direct spinoffs. When we go out there and we have to increase our taxes or we have to increase our fees, it is because we have to balance a budget or we have to try and balance a budget. The way I see it, the further you are away from this center, the harder that burden is, because it is easier to cut things that are further away, and you pay the price because you have to bring yourself in.

The difficulties that we have been going through or being accused of, as a government, that are not good for rural Newfoundland - it is to be able to bring yourself back in to make the proper investment in the rural communities, and that is something that we have been doing. It is difficult to understand when you are in the initial stages of changing your priorities and having a base for rural Newfoundland. Even though the oil industry is based here in St. John's, on the Northeast Avalon, and that is where the direct jobs and benefits come from, it is the spinoffs through taxation or whatever that reach the District of St. Barbe, where the burdens are felt most.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak a bit about the forest industry, something that is very much key to my district. I guess I have three main industries. I have, first and foremost, the fishery, which is in all rural districts, and I guess even more than rural districts, it is all parts of this Province. I have the forest industry, which is very key, and then the new industry is tourism. I guess tourism has always been with us, but we have not gone out there and it has not overcome forestry or fishery in my district, but it has certainly become one of the main three.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak a bit about forestry and the fact that we have $7.3 million invested in silviculture. Forestry is a renewable resource and in Newfoundland and Labrador, from what I understand, regeneration is very good. There is not a lot of need of planting involved. What happens in a natural way can be encouraged along, or can be helped along. We are making investments in silviculture to make sure that we are bringing that product to a harvestable size at an earlier time. That investment is certainly key. Right now we have Abitibi Price, which is out there and is (inaudible) too many towns in this Province. We have Kruger in Corner Brook and the Northern Peninsula that has certainly played a role in the wood supply for Corner Brook. That has been stable, but what has also been happening is in the value added and the secondary processing.

I have Mike Sinnicks in Hawkes Bay who has gone into the hardwood processing with the value added. Hawkes Bay, as most people would know in the forest industry, was known as one of, I suppose, two key towns on the Northern Peninsula in the forest industry. Hawkes Bay had not faired well, I suppose, with the distance it was from Corner Brook. It just became a wood supply for the mill and nothing else had happened. The town had, sort of, petered out a little bit with changes in technology that would come in the forest industry. With the development in hardwoods, the energy and the opportunities in Hawkes Bay have turned around. It is becoming a forestry town again and there is a sense of pride. It is a forestry town because of the work that this particular individual has done and the support he has gotten from all levels of government.

As a government, what you have to do is to recognize the people who are doing the right things, and to go out there and take away the roadblocks that you would have to hinder the growth. There are many people who go out there and start something, and they have the skills and the ability to get something started, but then it comes to a point where there needs to be help. This government has certainly recognized that. I have certainly recognized it in the last four years that I have worked very closely with Mr. Sinnicks in developing his product. He has gone out there and developed from flooring, to guitars to cabinets. One of his great difficulties was that a good deal of his birch was mix, which was of a lower grade, a lower value, than the solid whites or the solid reds.

Through the business networking group, a group that is supported by this government, a group that brings entrepreneurs together to pull on their strengths and to be able to bring in people to help them get into the exporting market, they have taken a trip to Atlantic Canada and to the Northeastern United seaboard and they had gone to this particular plant where he had seen, through a steaming process, that he could turn his mix into solid reds. In doing that, instead of having a large percentage of his hardwoods going into the lower valued hardwood flooring, he can now put it all into cabinets. It increased the viability of his business considerably. His future had just changed with that, by the support that he had gotten through a business networking group.

Mr. Speaker, that has been phenomenal, in how you go out there. It is a great example of where government can do what government should do in order to support this business. Actually, today I am on a red tape committee that is out there to look at the different regulations and barriers, I suppose, to developing business. This group is focusing on exporting. All of the industries that we have in the district, primarily are exporting. We have our fishery, we ship, our forestry we export through paper out of Corner Brook or whatever, and through the hardwoods as well that we are doing there.

One of the things that I see as a great possibility for the future in all of the industries on the Northern Peninsula is that we are looking at having a shipping link out of St. Anthony. This government is supporting, have supported, both levels (inaudible). There has been a considerable amount of development in that harbour when it comes to the offshore, but the shipping link would be key to bringing it all together. That would bring the benefits, as they would come in, because of the fishing industry and the volume we have there. It would give an opportunity to justify the venture, making this venture very serious. Then we can look at our forestry industry and what we could be exporting. If we could be exporting our hardwoods into Europe or Iceland and Greenland, which this shipping link would give us, the industry and what it could be built on would be phenomenal.

What Mike is doing in Hawke's Bay, we could have someone else in Hawke's Bay or some other community that could be actually building and creating more work in building furniture or whatever you would be able to do, to build what the market would demand. In doing that our industry would become (inaudible), manufacturing would become a big part, and that would be where we would get our year round employment. This is the thing that I see encouraging with the people that I know who are in the business networking group, that their success will depend on if we have year round employment in a place like the Northern Peninsula. Through those people, and through the possibility of a shipping link coming through St. Anthony, the future on the Northern Peninsula is considerable with or without, and I am certainly doing everything I can to encourage this to happen in any part that I can play, and I know this is extremely important.

Mr. Speaker, the fishing industry, as I said, is the number one industry and that is why we settled in all the places we did around here, other than a few places because of the forests, but primarily in my district we settled in because of the fishery. Right now, the biggest fishery in my district is the shrimp fishery and it had some negative impacts. One of the things that has gone out, and I have seen more shrimp processed on the Northern Peninsula, is this government's support for raw material shares, and this government's support for rural Newfoundland by having resources being developed closest to where they are caught because it makes the most sense. You are going to have a better quality product and you are going to have it at less cost, and those two things are critical. We cannot go out there and ignore those forces and say that we are going to do as we see fit because it is best politically for this or for that. We have to treat our resources as what they are. It is an opportunity to create wealth for all the people in this Province, and when those opportunities are there we can live wherever those opportunities are. We just do not have to let the political will dictate how we go out and shape it.

Mr. Speaker, I see that as the greatest sign of a commitment to rural Newfoundland and Labrador that this government has shown, when we go out there with raw material shares, that we are going to take the fish resource, which has been why we live here and that is the base of our economy, that we are going to go out there and, from that base, then other things are possible. The example I used of an opportunity for hardwood flooring being manufactured here and shipped to Europe can only be possible because we are going to utilize our fish resource to be the basis for the shipping link, and when those things all take place one thing builds on the other, but if we take a resource like our fishery and let it politically be manipulated to go where it is not going to be able to best be received on the marketplace, then we are not going to be able to take advantage of that.

We have to build an economy that is strong. We are a very small part of this world and we have to build on our strengths, and when we build on our strengths then we can have an economy that is sound and we can plan for the future and we can go out and, as I always said, a lot of times it does not look very good to be out there getting a twenty-year mortgage if you are doing something that is not sound. I think that is the case for many things, and that is why we have not built stronger places in rural Newfoundland than what we have, because of that very reason.

Mr. Speaker, one of the other industries that I spoke to was tourism, and our commitment to one part of that - or our commitment to all of it, but I will speak first to our commitment to the salmon and the salmon rivers, and the fact that we went out and we saw uncontrollable poaching happening to our rivers. We did not sit back and say this is a federal responsibility, just say so and walk away from it. We saw it as being too important to Newfoundland and Labrador, to this Province, to its economy.

On the Northern Peninsula, in the District of St. Barbe, I can claim some of the better salmon rivers in this Province, or some of them that are the top rivers in this Province. I do not want to go out and make claims in a competitive way, but I want to go out and say that it is very significant to our economy that we have there. This government not only went out there and said we will take on the pouching in this Province, but this government went out and saw the merits of what we were trying to do in Hawke's Bay. There has been a fish ladder in Hawke's Bay for the last twenty-odd years and it had to be replaced. We could not get the interpretation centre, the final piece of that, without a commitment from this government. This government, even in its transition of finding its base, and where to go and how we were going to tackle it, found a way so that we could put our share, as a provincial government, into that centre so that we had this initiative, and not let it go by, and we did not lose another year. While the money was there, we were certainly standing up to the plate and putting our share in.

The reason, I say to the people in my district, why we chose that project versus another one, it was sound, sensible planning. It was a sound, sensible idea. It was one that would not only benefit the Torrent River or not only benefit Hawk's Bay, but would give an opportunity for anybody who might have a slight interest in the salmon to go out and see and watch the salmon swim by. It may encourage them to be into sports fishing, or it may encourage them not to be. They would know when they go out there; they would have an appreciation for rivers and the things that we value very highly, which are our salmon rivers and our outdoors.

When we said that this was a great investment, it was also for our students, to have the hands-on experience, to be able to go out there, leave your school and go into a fish ladder and watch the salmon go by. For our students, at that point in their lives, to be able to do that, they have a truer sense of what a salmon is, and the value that this wildlife has, and that they are not isolated from their surroundings, that they are part of it and they have to take care of it. I think it is our generation that have just come to realize that we just cannot take for granted what is around us, that we have to see that it is a part of our lives and that we always have to plan for it and to make sure that it is there for our children and our grandchildren. It is just not going to happen unless we are very aware of it. So, for us to pass this on and have children be able to come out in a place like the Torrent River and watch a salmon go by, and see the value of it, is certainly critical.

As I said, there is more than one way that we are committed to tourism, and seeing how important it is, and that was the investment of $1 million into marketing. That commitment that we would, every year, invest $1 million until we came to the Atlantic Canada level is certainly very important.

My family is in the hospitality industry and I certainly know that we have not been able to go out in the marketplace and we have not had the supports to go hand in hand with the industry. Not only that, we have to do it as a Province. We just cannot leave it to the bigger companies, the multinationals, to come in and do it for us, because that is not going to take tourism to the coves and bays and whatever. We have to do it as a Province, as a whole, because that is a commitment to us all. We can take advantage of that wherever we live, and that is what people want to do. They want to come to places that are very unique, and we have many unique places in this Province. This is certainly a key investment and a strategic growth area. It affects every part of this Province. It is rural Newfoundland and Labrador that is benefitting from the investment into tourism. You can have a bed and breakfast at the end of any road and you can go out there and benefit from that investment, so that is a very sound investment in rural Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, in that industry, one of the other faults that we have always had is the visitor centres. They close down too early. We have predetermined that our tourism season is going to last from here to here, and if you come within that time span we will take care of you, but if you are going to come outside that, you are kind of on your own.

Now, we have been out there and I have attended meeting after meeting when government has told us, as an industry, that we should expand the tourism season because that is what we have to do - it is good for us, it is good for the economy, it is good for all - but government was never there. Mr. Speaker, today this government is here, because we know and understand the tourism industry. We know the potential is there, and we are going to be out there to take advantage of what it has to offer. We are not going to sit down and say that the tourism season starts July 1 and ends on Labour Day weekend. That is not what we are about. We see the opportunities are much greater than that, and we will be there to nurture the growth. We will not expect the business community to go out there on its own and be without us. We will certainly be there with them all of the way.

Mr. Speaker, one of the other things that comes from tourism is that summer tourism is not enough to make it work in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. We have to find another way, and I really believe we found that way through the snowmobiling industry. When you can take a business and make it viable in January, February and March, anywhere in this Province, it is certainly important. Snowmobiling is the only thing, that I could think of, that I invested my time in to try to develop, to do, and we worked at this for quite some time. It has gone on without commitment, half-hearted commitment, because the government did not see and understand the importance of it. They did not understand that we cannot have summer tourism unless we can make the circle meet. We have to reinvest into our properties. We have to reinvest into our infrastructure. We have to invest into the people. You cannot do that in eight weeks, and we understand that, that you have to have more time than that to be in the tourism industry. This one, in the snowmobiling, you can be at the end of the same road in the summer as you can in the winter. That investment is a sound investment, and that we can encourage someone who will grow a business anywhere in this Province where snowmobiling can take them as well as in the summer. So, that $250,000 in product development is a significant investment. It is a sign of a direction and commitment, and I am very pleased to have this happening here.

Mr. Speaker, the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council is very key in my district as well. As I said, I have three main industries in my district. As I talk about tourism, you would think that it would be number one, but it is certainly out there. It is certainly growing. One of the places that I see a significant reason to believe the potential that tourism has is that I am seeing it. Of course, part of my district takes in Gros Morne Park. One of the fortunate districts that I share with my colleague from Humber Valley is Gros Morne and, to me, it is a phenomenal place in the world and many people share that with me. But the part that I see is Gros Morne Theatre. You have a theatre group -

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. member's time has expired.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

AN HON. MEMBER: By leave.

MR. SPEAKER: Leave has been granted.

MR. YOUNG: Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to finish up with the fact that Gros Morne Theatre is out there and it is certainly a fine example of tourism working for us. I see a community today that is out there, which has gone through the cod moratorium and was devastated, but through the commitment of an entrepreneur in Cow Head and the town, and the willingness of Theatre Newfoundland and Labrador to come to a great place in this Province and set up shop. With all of those commitments coming together, we have seen Gros Morne Theatre now for ten years performing in Cow Head.

Mr. Speaker, if you go to Cow Head today in the summertime, there is as much energy, I would think, as it was in the summertime when the fishery was in full bloom in Cow Head. That place is alive. There is a small piece of real estate there that you would think you were in some small city when you see the people who are coming and going and the activity that is there. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to say that I have been there in the last number of years and I have done what I can to support because it is a base for tourism. We have to take our winners and we have to nurture it within the business community and that is what government's job is, to see any opportunity that we have to make those opportunities work for us and we have to build on them. That is happening, and that is successful today because it was good planning, it was good commitment and it was the right thing to do and the right place. Mr. Speaker, for me and the role that I have taken on, that I go out and support that. I think as that grows into what it can be and what it will be, it will bring stability to our communities and we will see that this is a Province which will be good to raise a family and grow up and to go on.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Is the House ready for the question?

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes.

MR. SPEAKER: The motion is that this House approves in general the budgetary policy of the government.

All those in agreement, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

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

The motion is carried.

On motion, budgetary policy carried.

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

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

Order 3, concurrence motion dealing with the Resource Committee and the report today by the Chair of the Government Services Committee.

MR. SPEAKER: Is the House Leader calling the Resource Committee first?

MR. E. BYRNE: Yes.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved that the Resource Committee report be concurred by this House.

Are we ready for the question?

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes.

MR. SPEAKER: All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

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

The motion is carried.

On motion, Report of Resource Committee, carried.

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

MR. E. BYRNE: Mr. Speaker, by leave, we are going to move - the Chair of the Committee of Government Services moved as well. I want to move that we move to adopt and concur with the report of the Government Services Committee.

MR. SPEAKER: Leave has been asked for the presentation of the Government Services Committee. Leave has been granted.

It is moved that the Government Services Committee report be concurred in by the House.

Are we ready for the question?

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes.

MR. SPEAKER: All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

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

Carried.

On motion, Report of Government Services Committee, carried

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

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

Order 2, Committee of Supply.

I move that the House resolve itself into a Committee of Supply to consider certain heads, I believe the Executive Council, Legislature and the Consolidated Fund Service.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved that I do now leave the Chair and the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on Supply.

Is it the pleasure of the House that I do now leave the Chair for the House to resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on Supply?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

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

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): The Committee of the Whole is now ready to hear submissions and enter into debate on the Executive Council. We will start with the Lieutenant-Governor's Establishment.

The hon. the Government House Leader.

MR. E. BYRNE: Mr. Chair, may I make a suggestion, that we carry subheads 1.1.01 through to 4.1.02?

CHAIR: The suggestion is that the House move subheadings 1.1.01 to subheading 4.1.02, inclusive.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Carried.

CHAIR: Executive Council, from subhead 1.1.01 to 4.1.02 is carried.

On motion, subheads 1.1.01 through 4.1.02 carried.

CLERK: The total of the Estimate. Shall the total carry?

CHAIR: Shall the total carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The total is carried.

On motion, Department of Executive Council, total heads, carried.

CHAIR: The next item is Consolidated Fund Services.

Shall headings 1.1.01 to 2.1.05 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Subheadings 1.1.01 to 2.1.05 are carried.

On motion, subheads 1.1.01 through 2.1.05 carried.

CLERK: The total of the Consolidated Fund Services.

CHAIR: Shall the total of the Consolidated Fund Services carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

Consolidated Fund Services, carried.

On motion, Department of Consolidated Fund Services, total heads, carried.

CHAIR: The next department is the Legislature.

CLERK: Subheads 1.1.01 to, and including, 6.1.01.

CHAIR: Shall subheads 1.1.01 to 6.1.01 carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The Legislature subheads are carried.

On motion, subheads 1.1.01 through 6.1.01 carried.

CHAIR: Shall the total carry?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

CHAIR: All those against, ‘nay'.

The total is carried.

On motion, Department of the Legislature, total heads, carried.

CHAIR: The hon. the Government House Leader.

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

I move that the Committee rise.

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 the Chair.

MR. SPEAKER (Hodder): 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 passed the legislative heads of Consolidated Fund Services, Executive Council and Legislature, without amendment, and ask leave to sit again.

MR. SPEAKER: The Chairperson of the Committee of the Whole reports that the Committee have considered the matters to them referred and reports that they have passed the heads without amendment.

When shall the report be received?

MR. E. BYRNE: Now, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Now.

On motion, report received and adopted. Committee ordered to sit again on tomorrow.

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

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

I want to move some first readings, some motions. I will begin, if I may, I will read them all. Maybe we will do them one at a time; it would be better for posterity sake, I would think.

Motion 3, in the name of the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board, to move that the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole to Consider Certain Resolutions Respecting the Imposition of Taxes on Tobacco. (Bill 5)

I am sorry, I do not need to do that one. I apologize. Motion 4 is the first one I need to do. I apologize, Mr. Speaker.

Motion 4, the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Executive Council Act. (Bill 7)

Motion 5, the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act, 2000. (Bill 8)

Motion 6, the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Public Service Pensions Act, 1991, Teachers' Pensions Act And Uniformed Services Pensions Act, 1991. (Bill 9)

Motion 7, the hon. the Minister of Government Services, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Establish A Financial Services Appeal Board. (Bill 11)

Motion 8, the hon. the Minister of Government Services, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Repeal The Investment Contracts Act. (Bill 12)

Motion 9, the hon. the Minister of Government Services, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Services Charges Act. (Bill 10)

Motion 10, under the name of the hon. the Minister of Education, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Repeal The Literacy Development Council Act. (Bill 6)

Motion 11, the hon. the Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs, to ask leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The City Of Corner Brook Act, The City Of Mount Pearl Act, The Municipalities Act, 1999 And The St. John's Assessment Act. (Bill 15)

Motion 12, Mr. Speaker, the hon. the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation to ask leave to introduce a bill, An Act Respecting The Rooms Corporation, Bill 17.

Motion 13, Mr. Speaker, I will not move today nor will I move motion 14, but I want to give notice today for Monday, our next sitting day, according to Standing Order 11, to move that the House not adjourn at 5:30 p.m. or that the House not adjourn at 10:00 p.m.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled - sorry! It is moved that the House resolve itself into the Committee of the Whole To Consider Resolutions Respecting the Imposition of Taxes on Tobacco -

CLERK: (Inaudible)

MR. SPEAKER: I apologize. I do believe the Government House Leader and I made the same error.

Motion 4. It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board shall have leave to introduced a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Executive Council Act, Bill 7.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the hon. the 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 Finance and President of Treasury Board to introduce a bill, "An Act To Amend The Executive Council Act." (Bill 7)

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded the said bill be now read a first time. Is it the pleasure of the House 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 To Amend The Executive Council Act, Bill 7.

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time?

MR. E. BYRNE: On tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 7 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act, 2000, Bill 8.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board 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 and President of Treasury Board to introduce a bill, "An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act, 2000" carried. (Bill 8)

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 To Amend The Income Tax Act, 2000, Bill 8.

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time?

MR. E. BYRNE: On tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 8 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board shall have leave introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Public Service Pensions Act, 1991, Teachers' Pensions Act And Uniformed Services Pensions Act, 1991. (Bill 9)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the minister 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 and President of Treasury Board to introduce a bill, " An Act To Amend The Public Service Pensions Act, 1991, Teachers' Pensions Act And Uniformed Services Pensions Act, 1991," carried. ( Bill 9)

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'.

CLERK: A bill, An Act to Amend The Public Service Pensions Act, 1991, Teachers' Pensions Act And Uniformed Services Pensions Act, 1991. (Bill 9)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time?

AN HON. MEMBER: On tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 9 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the Minister of Government Services shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Establish A Financial Services Appeal Board. (Bill 11)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the Minister of Government Services 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 Government Services to introduce a bill, " An Act To Establish A Financial Services Appeal Board," carried. ( Bill 11)

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

Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

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

Carried.

CLERK: A bill, An Act To Establish A Financial Services Appeal Board. (Bill 11)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time?

AN HON. MEMBER: On tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 11 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the Minister of Government Services shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Repeal the Investment Contracts Act. ( Bill 12)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the Minister of Government Services 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 Government Services to introduce a bill, "An Act To Repeal The Investment Contracts Act," carried. ( Bill 12)

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the bill be now read a first time. Is it the pleasure of the House that the 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 To Repeal The Investment Contracts Act. ( Bill 12)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time?

AN HON. MEMBER: On tomorrow, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 12 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Government Services shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The Services Charges Act. (Bill 10)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the hon. Minister of Government 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 Government Services to introduce a bill, "An Act To Amend The Services Charges Act," carried. (Bill 10)

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 To Amend The Services Charges Act. (Bill 10)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time? On tomorrow?

MR. E. BYRNE: On tomorrow, Mr. Speaker..

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 10 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Education shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Repeal The Literacy Development Council Act. (Bill 6)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the hon. the Minister of Education 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 Education to introduce a bill, "An Act To Repeal The Literacy Development Council Act," carried. (Bill 6)

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 To Repeal The Literacy Development Council Act. (Bill 6)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time?

MR. E. BYRNE: On tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 6 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon the Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act To Amend The City Of Corner Brook Act, The City of Mount Pearl Act, The Municipalities Act, 1999 And The St. John's Assessment Act. (Bill 15)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the said minister shall have leave to introduce Bill 15?

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

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

Carried.

Motion, the hon. the Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs to introduce a bill, "An Act To Amend The City Of Corner Brook Act, The City Of Mount Pearl Act, The Municipalities Act, 1999 And The St. John's Assessment Act," carried. (Bill 15)

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 To Amend The City Of Corner Brook Act, The City Of Mount Pearl Act, The Municipalities Act, 1999 And The St. John's Assessment Act. (Bill 15)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time? On tomorrow?

MR. E. BYRNE: On tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 15 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved and seconded that the hon. the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, and Minister Responsible for Labrador Affairs, shall have leave to introduce a bill entitled, An Act Respecting The Rooms Corporation. (Bill 17)

Is it the pleasure of the House that the hon. the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, and Minister Responsible for Labrador Affairs, 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 Tourism, Culture and Recreation, and Minister Responsible for Labrador Affairs, to introduce a bill, "An Act Respecting The Rooms Corporation," carried. (Bill 17)

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 Respecting The Rooms Corporation. (Bill 17)

MR. SPEAKER: This bill has now been read a first time. When shall the said bill be read a second time? On tomorrow?

AN HON. MEMBER: On tomorrow.

MR. SPEAKER: On tomorrow.

On motion, Bill 17 read a first time, ordered read a second time on tomorrow.

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

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

Before I move the motion to adjourn, I do not know if there is any other business that our members have.

Sorry, Mr. Speaker.

MR. SPEAKER: Before the adjournment motion is placed, the Speaker would like to make a statement to the House.

The Speaker wishes to make a statement relative to attendance in the public galleries. Unfortunately, the Speaker found it necessary to close the public galleries on Tuesday afternoon, April 26, due to disturbances that occurred in each sitting day for the two previous weeks. This Speaker is very committed to keeping the public galleries open, and took the steps he did on Tuesday, April 26, as a last resort. Repeated requests by the Speaker, and by the Sergeant-at-Arms, for more co-operation from visitors in the public galleries were not successful in maintaining appropriate order and decorum in the House.

The Speaker wishes to inform the House that on Monday, May 2, the public galleries will again be open for visitors.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: In consultation with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and the Sergeant-at-Arms, I am satisfied that reasonable security measures will be in place that should, with the co-operation of all visitors, permit the House to function in an acceptable manner.

I thank all members for their consultation and co-operation over the past several days. I trust that the Speaker will not find it necessary to close the public galleries in the future.

The hon. the Government House Leader.

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

With that, I do now put the adjournment motion that the House do now adjourn until Monday, May 2, at 1:30 p.m.

MR. SPEAKER: It is moved that the House do now adjourn until Monday, May 2, at 1:30 of the clock.

All those in favour, ‘aye'.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Aye.

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

Carried.

This House now stands adjourned until Monday, May 2, at 1:30 of the clock in the afternoon.

On motion, the House at its rising adjourned until tomorrow, Monday, at 1:30 p.m.