No.19/2003

House of Assembly

Monday, May 12th, 2003

(a) Statements by Members

(b) Statements by Ministers

(c) Oral Questions

(d) Presenting Reports by Standing and Special Committees

(e) Notices of Motion

(f) Answers to questions for which notice has been given

(g) Petitions

1. -- Address in Reply

2. -- Committee of Supply - Estimates - Consolidated Fund Services, Legislature and Executive Council.

3. -- Concurrence Motion --

(a) Social Services Committee

4. -- Second Reading of a Bill -- "An Act To Incorporate The Newfoundland and Labrador Centre For Health Information". (Bill No. 1)

5. -- Second Reading of a Bill -- "An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act". (Bill No. 5)

6. -- Second Reading of a Bill -- "An Act To Amend The Income Tax Act No. 2". (Bill No. 6)

7. -- Second Reading of a Bill -- "An Act To Amend The Health And Post-Secondary Education Tax Act". (Bill No. 7)

8. -- Second Reading of a Bill -- "An Act To Revise The Law About The Practice Of Optometry". (Bill No. 9)

9. -- Second Reading of a Bill -- "An Act To Amend The Emergency Measures Act". (Bill No. 8)

1. -- THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND PRESIDENT OF TREASURY BOARD -- To Move "That This House Approves in General the Budgetary Policy of the Government." (Budget Speech)

2. -- THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND PRESIDENT OF TREASURY BOARD -- To Move that the House Resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on Supply to Consider Certain Resolutions for the Granting of Supply to Her Majesty. (Bill No. 3 )

3. -- THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND PRESIDENT OF TREASURY BOARD -- To Move that the House Resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on Supply to Consider Certain Resolutions Respecting the Imposition of Taxes on Tobacco. (Bill No. 4)

4. -- THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND PRESIDENT OF TREASURY BOARD -- To ask leave to introduce a Bill entitled, "An Act To Create A Pension Plan For Provincial Court Judges". (Bill No. 13)

5. -- THE HONOURABLE 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 City Of St. John's Act, The Municipalities Act, 1999 And The Urban And Rural Planning Act, 2000". (Bill No. 12)

6. -- THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER OF GOVERNMENT SERVICES AND LANDS -- To ask leave to introduce a Bill entitled, "An Act To Amend The Petroleum Products Act". (Bill No. 11)

7. -- THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER OF GOVERNMENT SERVICES AND LANDS -- To ask leave to introduce a Bill entitled, "An Act To Amend The Corporations Act". (Bill No. 14)

8. -- THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER OF WORKS, SERVICES AND TRANSPORTATION -- To ask leave to introduce a Bill entitled, "An Act To Amend The Expropriation Act". (Bill No. 10)

9. -- THE HONOURABLE THE PREMIER -- To Move:

WHEREAS the seacoast fisheries of Newfoundland and Labrador were brought into this nation with Newfoundland and Labrador's accession to Canada;

AND WHEREAS the Government of the Dominion of Newfoundland held and exercised responsibility for the management of seacoast fisheries prior to Confederation;

AND WHEREAS the Constitution Act, 1867 vests in the Government of Canada exclusive authority over the fishery;

AND WHEREAS under current International Law an independent Newfoundland and Labrador would control its adjacent resources including the fishery;

AND WHEREAS federal management of seacoast fisheries since 1949 has failed to adequately protect or develop the principal fisheries adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador;

AND WHEREAS failed federal fisheries management has led to the complete collapse of the Northern Cod fishery and other ground fish stocks, the basis for Newfoundland's colonization and the mainstay of its economy for 500 years;

AND WHEREAS the federal government has failed to adopt a comprehensive plan for stock recovery since the groundfish moratoria were declared in the early 1990s;

AND WHEREAS it is recognized and accepted that the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has maintained and continues to exercise primary regulatory authority over the fish processing industry in this Province;

AND WHEREAS new fisheries for species such as crab and shrimp have developed in the wake of the collapse of ground fish stocks and solid, sustainable management practices are vital to the future of these fisheries;

AND WHEREAS it is accepted that the regulation of fish harvesting and processing should occur in a seamless and integrated way;

AND WHEREAS the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has consistently requested a greater say in fisheries management since 1949 and has identified this as a priority in Securing our Future: The Renewal Strategy for Jobs and Growth;

AND WHEREAS the fishery remains an economic mainstay and principal industry of Newfoundland and Labrador and the economic and social foundation of most of its rural communities;

AND WHEREAS federal management of fisheries adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador does not give due regard to local experience and considerations;

AND WHEREAS the advice of the Fisheries Resource Conservation Council (FRCC), which was established to integrate practical knowledge derived from local experience and scientific information on resources, has been largely ignored in the federal government's recent declaration of a moratorium for 4RS3Pn Gulf cod;

AND WHEREAS the recent decisions of the Government of Canada on 2J3KL Northern Cod and 4RS3Pn Gulf cod were undertaken without proper consultation with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the people who depend upon these resources and with disregard for the recommendations of the Fisheries Resource Conservation Council;

AND WHEREAS these decisions have further undermined the confidence of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in the effectiveness of federal fisheries management;

AND WHEREAS other provinces control their main resource industries;

AND WHEREAS significant and decisive action is required to address this concern;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT this House call on the Government of Canada and direct the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to begin negotiations leading to the establishment of a joint management regime over the fisheries adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador;

AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the principal elements of such a joint management regime include

(1) the establishment, through an amendment of the Terms of Union, of shared, equal, constitutional authority by the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador and Canada over the fisheries adjacent to the province;

(2) the establishment through an amendment of the Terms of Union of a joint fisheries management board and the delegation to that board by the governments of Newfoundland and Labrador and Canada of sufficient of their authority to permit that board to successfully implement this joint management regime.

(3) the development and implementation of a conservation and re-building plan aimed at the achievement of long-term sustainability of the fisheries in the waters adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador and in particular a plan that would achieve the recovery of the ground fish stocks;

(5) the establishment of programs in Newfoundland and Labrador to enhance knowledge and understanding of the ocean ecosystems adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador through the encouragement and support of scientific research and the utilization of customary and experiential knowledge of the fisheries possessed by fish harvesters.

10. -- THE HONOURABLE THE GOVERNMENT HOUSE LEADER -- To Move pursuant to Standing Order 11 that the House not adjourn at 5:30 o'clock p.m. on Monday, May 12^th, 2003.

11. -- THE HONOURABLE THE GOVERNMENT HOUSE LEADER -- To Move pursuant to Standing Order 11 that the House not adjourn at 10:00 o'clock p.m. on Monday, May 12^th, 2003.