MR. SPEAKER: Order, please. I wish to advise the members that the winner of the Adjournment debate is the Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party. The resolution is as follows:
Therefore be it resolved that the Minister of Transportation and Public Works immediately advise this Legislature as to the priority the section of highway between Digby and Weymouth has in becoming connected to Nova Scotia's 100-Series Highway system.
That resolution will be debated at 6:00 o'clock.
PRESENTING AND READING PETITIONS
PRESENTING REPORTS OF COMMITTEES
TABLING REPORTS, REGULATIONS AND OTHER PAPERS
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Minister of Labour.
HON. RUSSELL MACKINNON: Mr. Speaker, I beg leave to table the Annual Reports for the Department of Labour for the respective fiscal years ended March 31, 1996, and March 31, 1997.
MR. SPEAKER: The annual reports are tabled.
STATEMENTS BY MINISTERS
GOVERNMENT NOTICES OF MOTION
INTRODUCTION OF BILLS
Bill No. 8 - Entitled an Act to Amend Chapter 28 of the Revised Statutes, 1989. The Auditor General Act, and an Act to Amend Chapter 365 of the Revised Statutes, 1989. The Provincial Finance Act. (Dr. John Hamm)
MR. SPEAKER: Before proceeding any further with that bill, I wish to advise the House that I have had the opportunity to examine this bill prior to today, as the Legislative Counsel is required to provide the Speaker with a copy of any Private Member's Bill that in his opinion appears to be a money bill.
This bill is a Private Member's Public Bill and as such should not be permitted to be proposed if it is a money bill. The difficulty in this Legislature is that we have had two rulings by two different Speakers, defining what is a money bill, and unfortunately they do not entirely agree.
On May 22, 1980, as Speaker, I ruled that a bill, namely Bill No. 100, The Venture Corporations Act, introduced by a member not of the Executive Council, not be proposed for first reading.
The basis for that ruling was that Bill No. 100 entailed the expenditures of monies from the consolidated fund of this province. All authorities agree that such bills may only be introduced by a member of the Executive Council, in that the provisions of the bill infringe upon the financial initiative of the Crown. Beauchesne, 6th Edition, Page 221, refers.
On March 13, 1981 - and this is the most recent ruling - Speaker Arthur Donahoe ruled that a bill was a money bill as defined by a Statute of the Parliament of Westminster, the British House of Commons. This definition casts a much wider net than that of my ruling of 1980, and the definition is as follows:
"A 'money bill' means a public bill which in the opinion of the Speaker of the House of Commons contains only provisions dealing with all or any of the following subjects, namely, the imposition, repeal,
remission, alteration, or regulation of taxation; the imposition for the payment of debt or other financial purposes of charges on the Consolidated Fund . . . or on money provided by Parliament or the variation or repeal of any such charges; Supply; the appropriation, receipt, custody, issue or audit of accounts of public money; the raising or guarantee of any loan or the repayment thereof; or subordinate matters incidental to those subjects or any of them.". In this subsection, ". . . the expressions 'taxation,' 'public money,' and 'loan' respectively do not include any taxation, money, or loan raised by local authorities or bodies for local purposes . . .".
That is the definition according to the British House of Commons. That definition would clearly include within its scope the bill that the Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party is proposing today.
I do not agree that the definition of a money bill as established by the British House of Commons should apply to bills introduced in this House. Sections 54 and 90 of the Constitution Act of 1867 very clearly define a money bill. My ruling is:
"A money bill is a bill that appropriates part of the public revenue and thus infringes upon the financial initiative of the Crown.".
The bill proposed by the Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party does not, and therefore is not a money bill. Any person who wishes to may have a copy of that ruling.
Bill No. 9 - Entitled an Act to Amend Chapter 28 of the Revised Statutes, 1989. The Auditor General Act. (Dr. John Hamm)
Bill No. 10 - Entitled an Act to Amend Chapter 9 of the Acts of 1995. The Queens Regional Municipality Act. (Mr. John Leefe)
MR. SPEAKER: Ordered that these bills be read a second time on a future day.
NOTICES OF MOTION
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Sackville-Cobequid.
MR. JOHN HOLM: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the Cobequid Multi-Service Centre has experienced a 10 per cent increase in the number of emergency cases it deals with since 1996; and
Whereas there has been a 22 per cent increase in lab work at this facility in the last year alone with similar increased demands for x-rays, physiotherapy, ultrasound and electrocardiograms, thereby creating tremendous new strains on a system already working on the edge; and
Whereas these increases are caused, in large part, because of cutbacks in services at other medical facilities that are resulting in doctors referring their patients to the walk-in Cobequid Clinic to avoid them having to wait for weeks, even months, at other health centres;
Therefore be it resolved that the House demand that the Minister of Health and his Central Regional Health Board immediately announce not only their good intentions but detailed plans to address the crisis in health care at the Cobequid Multi-Service Centre of this government's making.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party.
DR. JOHN HAMM: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas two world canoe championships have been held here in Nova Scotia and each was an overwhelming success, most recently the Canoe '97 event on Lake Banook; and
Whereas each brought an economic boost to the province, as well as first-class exposure on the world scene; and
Whereas the Nova Scotia Marathon Canoe Racing Association has been successful in its bid to host the World Marathon Canoe Championships here in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, in September 2000, these championships will again focus the attention of the world upon our outstanding recreational and sporting potential;
Therefore be it resolved that the Legislature and the Government of Nova Scotia express the most solid of support for this coming championship, its organizing committee and the Nova Scotia athletes fortunate enough to participate in yet another world championship canoeing event here in Nova Scotia.
Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable Minister of Labour.
HON. RUSSELL MACKINNON: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas residents of Louisbourg are awaiting the federal minister's announcement for the 1998 TAGS program; and
Whereas recently the federal socialist MP Michelle Dockrill convened a community meeting to discuss the TAGS program and related matters; and
Whereas this federal socialist MP preferred to encourage residents to "protest in front of the merchants' stores in Louisbourg and then go and protest in front of Russell MacLellan's office" rather than offer to contribute solutions to a serious situation;
Therefore be it resolved that this House condemn any such action which encourages civil unrest.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Cape Breton Centre.
MR. FRANK CORBETT: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas Nova Scotia voters are seeing for themselves whether the March 24th election results were enough to cure Liberal arrogance, Liberal broken promises and Liberal incompetence; and
Whereas only the governing Party has authority in this House to call a Private Member's Bill for debate and a vote on second reading; and
Whereas the Government House Leader told reporters yesterday that Private Members' Bills mean very little because, in his experience, Private Members' Bills are never called.
Therefore be it resolved that this House urge the Government House Leader to learn some new tricks, rather than relying on the experience he gained as the Liberals built the record that led them to the loss of most of their seats.
[2:15 p.m.]
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley.
MR. BROOKE TAYLOR: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas health facilities and community-based services are required to meet the emergency health needs of the community; and
Whereas over 600 people participated in consultations, sharing their feelings and beliefs regarding health issues, needs and possible solutions for the Eastern Shore-Musquodoboit Valley's comprehensive health plan; and
Whereas the fundamental challenge for the community and the community health board during the health plan process was to ensure equity so that rural residents in the Eastern Shore-Musquodoboit Valley area can have the same opportunity to access services as their urban neighbours;
Therefore be it resolved that the Minister of Health, who has general supervision and management of the Health Act, immediately authorize the placement of an ambulance at the Musquodoboit Valley Memorial Hospital as recommended in the plan over one year ago.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Guysborough-Port Hawkesbury.
MR. RAYMOND WHITE: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas, according to legend, Prince Henry Sinclair, in 1398, set sail from the Orkney Islands with 12 ships and 300 crew; and
Whereas on June 2, 1398, Prince Henry Sinclair and crew landed in Guysborough; and
Whereas this week, Sinclair Societies and Scottish clans are celebrating the arrival of Prince Henry in the New World;
Therefore be it resolved that this House extend congratulations to the Sinclair Society and wish them every success in their quest to authenticate the arrival of Prince Henry in North America.
Mr. Speaker, I request waiver.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable member for Halifax Citadel.
MR. PETER DELEFES: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas William Gibson of Halifax is one of the Canadian prisoners of war who was imprisoned in the Buchenwald concentration camp, contrary to the Geneva Convention; and
Whereas the federal government has known for decades that Canadian prisoners of war were imprisoned in Buchenwald, and that Germany pays reparations for these breaches of the Geneva Convention; and
Whereas now that Mr. Gibson has helped bring the government's lack of action on this issue to public attention, a federal minister has agreed to keep reviewing the file;
Therefore be it resolved that this House urge the federal government to immediately seek reparations for the Canadian prisoners of war imprisoned in the Buchenwald concentration camp, and to provide additional support for the surviving family members and surviving prisoners of war who were forced to endure this horrifying experience.
Mr. Speaker, I request waiver.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable member for Chester-St. Margaret's.
DR. HINRICH BITTER-SUERMANN: Mr. Speaker, my previous attempt at this resolution was deemed to be too long by you; this is my second attempt.
Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas fox furs are bartered for doctors appointments in post-Communist Russia; and
Whereas this practice would wipe out Nova Scotia's fox population, if adopted; and
Whereas the Premier wants me to focus on good health care news from the backwoods of rural Nova Scotia;
Therefore be it resolved that the woman who waited for eight weeks after 19 unsuccessfully long-distance phone calls by her GP got a date for a breast biopsy after only one phone call by me, which should please the Premier no end.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Sackville-Beaver Bank.
MS. ROSEMARY GODIN: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the need for a new school to alleviate overcrowding conditions at Hammonds Plains Elementary is acknowledged by government and Opposition Parties alike; and
Whereas students as young as six years old are suffering through temperatures in portables which could, and may already, have exceeded 30 degrees Celsius; and
Whereas parents are sending their children off to school under conditions that they claim are heartbreaking;
Therefore be it resolved that the government overcome the delays caused by its P3 process and move immediately to save those children from the unbearable and detrimental conditions under which they are expected to learn each and every day.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Cape Breton Nova.
MR. PAUL MACEWAN: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the honourable member for Halifax Chebucto has stated that his Party, the socialist NDP Party, will not support the budget that is to be tabled by the Minister of Finance in this Chamber on Thursday; and
Whereas in stating that the socialist NDP Party will not support the budget, the honourable member alleges that the Liberal Government lost the provincial election on March 24th; and
Whereas the total number of votes cast for each political Party as provided by the Chief Electoral Officer in the election were as follows: Liberal, 158,819; NDP, 155,680; and Progressive Conservative, 133,903;
Therefore be it resolved that this House recommends that the would-be Minister of Finance, the honourable member for Halifax Chebucto, enrol in a course in basic arithmetic and learn about numbers, so that he can recognize that 158,000 is greater than 155,000.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Cumberland South. (Interruption) Order, please.
MR. MURRAY SCOTT: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas ineptitude would be but one description in the Justice Minister's handling of the two-day walkout by Crown Prosecutors across the Province of Nova Scotia; and
Whereas the Liberals had the gall, last week, to say they had made adequate arrangements to look after the administration of justice if job action was taken; and
Whereas because of the lack of planning, there was dismissal by Provincial Court judges of 11 criminal cases, including one against an individual charged with uttering death threats against a former wife and a Family Court judge, while another case of sexual assault was dismissed;
Therefore be it resolved that this part-time minister realize the seriousness of the strike action of public prosecutors and avoid possible continual strike action by negotiating with members of this vital service to ensure their needs are addressed.
Mr. Speaker, I would ask for waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
I hear several Noes.
The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Pictou West.
MR. CHARLES PARKER: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the Nova Scotia Rural Beautification Program contributes directly to community pride, quality of life, and tourism; and
Whereas Rural Beatification has been a financial boon to greenhouse growers, seed vendors, and has instilled pride in 4-H groups, Women's Institute groups, cemetery maintenance and more; and
Whereas the Salt Springs 4-H Club of Pictou County is encouraging the Department of Agriculture and Marketing to consider a substantial increase in funds for this program to $20,000;
Therefore be it resolved that this House fully supports the Salt Springs 4-H Club in their quest to restore additional funding for Rural Beautification in Nova Scotia.
Mr. Speaker, I would ask for waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
I hear a No.
The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Inverness.
MR. CHARLES MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas Cheticamp will host, from June 19th to June 23rd, the 1st Annual Cajun Festival; and
Whereas this festival will bring together the best in Acadian and Cajun artists; and
Whereas during the festival, Cheticamp's Acadian French will mingle with their Southern Louisiana Cajun cousins, featuring performing arts, cooking and craft work from both cultures;
Therefore be it resolved that this House extend congratulations to the organizers of the festival and wish all participants an enjoyable and rewarding get-together.
Mr. Speaker, I would ask for waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable member for Pictou East.
MR. JAMES DEWOLFE: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas a report by local educators, parents and students for the Chignecto-Central Regional School Board says Pictou County high schools are barely able to meet minimum educational standards because they are not getting enough money to meet either programs or operational requirements; and
Whereas the problem is expected to get worse with a projected drop in enrolment of 25 per cent by the year 2007; and
Whereas teachers are being spread very thinly to try to implement programs with a broader scope making it even harder to meet minimum standards;
Therefore be it resolved that the Minister of Education immediately recognize the serious concerns of the Pictou County parents, students and educators, that the minimum educational requirements from textbooks to maintenance be provided by the province and that he work with the board and its constituents in facing such a serious dilemma.
Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
I hear a No.
The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Yarmouth.
MR. JOHN DEVEAU: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas Premier Tobin of Newfoundland has written Members of Parliament to express his concern that Bill C-27 could limit Canada's powers under existing legislation to take unilateral action against a vessel engaged in overfishing in international waters; and
Whereas the House of Commons Fisheries Committee will this week consider whether Bill C-27 should be amended, including amendments necessary to keep strong Canadian legislation unless or until the United Nations agreement on overfishing takes effect and is enforced;
Therefore be it resolved that this House urge the House of Commons, and in particular the Standing Committee on Fisheries, to adopt all amendments necessary to maintain and improve Canada's laws against overfishing in international waters.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable Leader of the Opposition.
MR. ROBERT CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas one year ago today Nova Scotians used their democratic right to vote to ensure that their concerns, hopes and interests would be forcefully and effectively represented in the House of Commons; and
Whereas all 11 Nova Scotian Members of Parliament have done their part to bring Nova Scotians' issues onto the floor of the House of Commons, to ensure accountability and responsibility from the federal government; and
Whereas Nova Scotians take particular pride in the fact that a fellow citizen and MP from our province, sits in the House of Commons as a Party Leader for the first time in more than 20 years;
Therefore be it resolved that this House congratulate the 11 Nova Scotian MPs for their hard work and service on behalf of this province that they have demonstrated in the year since the historic federal election of June 2, 1997.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
I hear a multitude of Noes.
The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Truro-Bible Hill.
MR. JAMES MUIR: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas Highway No. 102 is the most heavily-travelled highway in the province; and
Whereas the highway and exits seem to be in a consistent state of disrepair; and
Whereas the condition of the road, bridge surface and shoulders is often such that damage is caused to vehicles and trying to avoid hazards is an impediment to highway safety;
Therefore be it resolved that the Minister of Transportation and Public Works instruct his department to ensure that every effort is made to keep the road, bridges and shoulders free from potholes, cracks and bumps.
Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
I hear a No.
The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Preston.
MS. YVONNE ATWELL: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the Speech from the Throne promised that this government will increase funding and harmonize financing for the province's women's centres; and
Whereas women's centres have now been informed that this means three centres will receive no additional support, despite the Premier's assurance of increased support; and
Whereas $68,700 will be divided among the three smaller centres so they receive the same budget as others, a budget that is still lower than the original provincial funding for women's centres;
Therefore be it resolved that this House urge the government to fulfil its Speech from the Throne promise of a place for everyone in Nova Scotia by providing adequate support for women's centres and the services they provide, instead of breaking that promise with another budget freeze for most centres.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Digby-Annapolis.
MR. GORDON BALSER: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas allowing limited tourism on Sable Island can make money which could be used to protect this island; and
Whereas members of the World Wildlife Fund have expressed worry over embracing ecotourism to the point of harming the island's sensitive ecology and wildlife; and
Whereas tourism development on Sable Island should proceed at a slow and careful pace;
Therefore be it resolved that the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism carry out public consultation to ensure that tourism development on Sable Island will not occur at the expense of the island's unique and fragile ecosystem.
[2:30 p.m.]
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage.
MR. KEVIN DEVEAUX: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the Liberal Government's refusal to provide decent wages or working conditions for its Crown Prosecutors has forced the Crowns to take job action; and
Whereas the failure of the Liberal Government to provide its prosecutors with the means to do their jobs has compromised the administration of justice in this province; and
Whereas the Liberal Government, which is tight-fisted in dealing with its own employees, had no hesitation in paying up to $200 an hour so that lawyers working for private firms with Liberal connections could show up in court to seek adjournment of cases;
Therefore be it resolved that this House condemns the Liberal Government for wasting resources on its political cronies and rent-a-Crowns that should have been used to improve the ability of Crowns to do their job.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Argyle.
RESOLUTION NO. 368
MR. NEIL LEBLANC: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas there have been attempts over the past 20 to 25 years to help remedy the severe problem of insufficient ice time available to the residents of Yarmouth County; and
Whereas competitive forces have prevented the area from working together until the efforts of Skate Yarmouth succeeded in breaking down the barriers that had held back a concerted effort; and
Whereas they were assured by the Premier prior to the election that an answer would be coming shortly;
Therefore be it resolved that the provincial government supports the efforts of the community by approving Skate Yarmouth's application for funding.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Cape Breton The Lakes.
MS. HELEN MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas some 300 lobster fishers on the eastern side of Cape Breton tied up their boats to protest unfair prices; and
Whereas prices are 40 cents a pound less for canners and $1.00 a pound less for market lobsters than they were last year; and
Whereas lobster fishers continue to have increased costs and do not have a mechanism to negotiate prices since boycotts cost them money;
Therefore be it resolved that this government act on behalf of lobster fishers by urging buyers to pay a fair price for lobsters.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Halifax Fairview.
MS. EILEEN O'CONNELL: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas senior officials from Education, Finance, Transportation and Public Works, the Auditor General's office and Justice met for one and one-half hours today with members of the Official Opposition and the Progressive Conservative caucus; and
Whereas a slide presentation took up the bulk of that time, leaving inadequate time for discussion and questions; and
Whereas most senior officials present uttered not a word;
Therefore be it resolved this House declares today's meeting to be not a consultation but a promotional session for P3 schools.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Queens.
MR. JOHN LEEFE: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas ecotourism writer Sheena Masson of Hubbards has gained a well-deserved reputation for expertise in ocean and inland waters kayaking; and
Whereas Miss Masson promotes kayaking as a spring through autumn sport which can be enjoyed by people of all ages; and
Whereas Miss Masson has made a particular study of kayaking opportunities in Queens and Lunenburg Counties;
Therefore be it resolved that the House of Assembly congratulates Sheena Masson on the publication of her book Paddle Lunenburg-Queens and commends her for promoting the ecotourism resources of Nova Scotia's waterways, both salt and fresh.
Mr. Speaker, I seek waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable Leader of the Opposition.
MR. ROBERT CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the Premier has told one and all that he is a most cooperative individual who will stop at nothing to demonstrate his openness and consultative approach to the voters' mandate; and
Whereas on April 29th, the Union of Nova Scotia Indians proposed that the 13 Mi'kmaq Chiefs meet the three political Party Leaders; and
Whereas although a meeting with the three Party Leaders took place during the Cameron and Savage Administrations, this precarious government has declined that request in the Premier's May 29th letter;
Therefore be it resolved that this House urge the Premier to recognize that he will not loosen his white-knuckled grip on power by agreeing to the request that all three Party Leaders meet the Mi'kmaq chiefs.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Truro-Bible Hill.
MR. JAMES MUIR: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the Bible Hill Preschool Society celebrated its 25th Anniversary on May 29, 1998; and
Whereas the preschool operated by the society provides exemplary programming to more than 60 children each week; and
Whereas many of the preschool openings are booked until the year 2001;
Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House congratulate the Bible Hill Preschool Society, the pre-school director, Niki Hoyle, and the parent volunteers for providing outstanding education experiences to young children in the Bible Hill area.
Mr. Speaker, I ask for waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable member for Cape Breton Centre.
MR. FRANK CORBETT: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas one year ago today, Cape Bretoners elected Peter Mancini and Michelle Dockrill to represent them in the House of Commons; and
Whereas these MPs have brought forward key issues, including the massive cuts to health care and education, the future of Devco, the need for sustainable economic development in Cape Breton, securing Marine Atlantic jobs in North Sydney and the loss of federal services like air navigation; and
Whereas this is a welcome change from the silence and inactivity of the previous MPs whose record was condemned by Cape Breton voters;
Therefore be it resolved that this House congratulate Members of Parliament, Peter Mancini and Michelle Dockrill, for finally forcing the federal government to answer for the many harsh policies it has imposed on Cape Bretoners.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Cumberland North.
RESOLUTION NO. 375
MR. ERNEST FAGE: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas we are now only 577 days away from the beginning of a new millennium; and
Whereas the country's Deputy Prime Minister, who is chairing Canada's millennium initiative, has already extended an invitation to Canadians in every community across this country to find ways to participate in celebrating the beginning of the year 2000 by taking stock of our past and looking ahead to our future; and
Whereas communities such as the Town of Amherst have an active millennium project underway and are seeking ideas from individuals that will ensure the history of Amherst is enshrined in this province's history;
Therefore be it resolved that this present Liberal Government immediately begin looking at potential sources of funding that will enable Nova Scotia to actively participate in celebrating the commencement of the year 2000 and, in turn, assist communities with the start-up of various millennium projects.
Mr. Speaker, I ask for waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable member for Yarmouth.
MR. JOHN DEVEAU: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the survey school in Lawrencetown, now known as the College of Geographic Sciences, demonstrates the high quality training that can be provided through regional cooperation; and
Whereas the college's rural location provides significant local jobs and demonstrates that top quality public education need not be headquartered in urban areas; and
Whereas the Association of Nova Scotia Land Surveyors has expressed serious concern that the college's separate identity and world-wide renown are threatened by absorption into the community college system;
Therefore be it resolved that this House affirms its support for the continued separate identity of the College of Geographic Sciences in Lawrencetown, which has won great respect from Nova Scotia and strong professional support.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley.
MR. BROOKE TAYLOR: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas former Calgary Flames and Boston Bruin NHL player, Sheldon Kennedy, began his in-line skating trip across Canada last week in St. John's, Newfoundland; and
Whereas Mr. Kennedy arrived in Sydney on Sunday and is en route to Halifax with an expected arrival in Vancouver, British Columbia, on October 12th; and
Whereas the cross-Canada skate is designed to help young people understand child abuse while raising funds to help build a retreat in British Columbia for children and their families to deal with the first steps of recovery from child abuse;
Therefore be it resolved that all members of this Legislature extend a warm welcome to Sheldon Kennedy in his cross-Canada skate to assist and educate more young people on the dangers of child abuse.
Mr. Speaker, I would ask for waiver of notice.
MR. SPEAKER: There has been a request for waiver of notice.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.
The motion is carried.
The honourable member for Queens for an introduction.
MR. JOHN LEEFE: Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure this afternoon to introduce to you and to my colleagues in the House, 28 Grade 9 students from North Queens Rural High School who are seated in the east gallery, and I would ask them to stand. They are here with their teacher, Marie MacLeod, and with chaperones Marsha Lutz, Wendy Hawkes, and Elizabeth Wambolt. They live in an area which is well-known to my colleague, the Minister of Natural Resources, who has been very involved in having the Shubenacadie River made a heritage river in Nova Scotia, and also with the Tobeatic Wilderness and of course, Kejimkujik National Park falls on their doorstep as well. I would ask all members of the House to welcome them to the Legislature this afternoon. (Applause)
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage.
MR. KEVIN DEVEAUX: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the Minister of Justice's claim that no disruption in the justice system would result from the two-day walkout by Crown Prosecutors has proven to be false; and
Whereas the minister paid rent-a-Crowns up to $200 an hour to bring the wheels of justice to a halt with instructions to seek adjournments of cases; and
Whereas these adjournments wasted the time of the courts, inconvenienced witnesses, and led to the dismissal of serious charges;
Therefore be it resolved that this House condemn the Minister of Justice and the Liberal Government for its stubborn refusal to do the right thing and recognize the right of Crown Prosecutors to bargain collectively.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
The honourable member for Cape Breton The Lakes.
MS. HELEN MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:
Whereas the mission of Sydney Tar Ponds Clean-Up Inc. is to complete the clean-up of the tar ponds site in an environmentally safe and cost-efficient manner, while giving the highest priority to the health and safety of employees and community residents; and
Whereas after the expenditure of $53 million and 10 years on a clean-up that wasn't, a study has recommended the tar ponds incinerators be re-activated to treat hazardous waste from local contaminated sites; and
Whereas the Joint Action Group on Environmental Clean-Up (JAG) was established to initiate and carry out an open, transparent and inclusive process for community participation in the search for safe, practical solutions to health and environmental challenges;
Therefore be it resolved that this government direct that Sydney Environmental Resources Ltd., formerly Sydney Tar Ponds Inc., respect the collective decision-making power of JAG in relationship to their recommendations for the Sydney Tar Ponds.
MR. SPEAKER: The notice is tabled.
ORDERS OF THE DAY
ORAL QUESTIONS PUT BY MEMBERS
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Leader of the Opposition.
MR. ROBERT CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, I would like to refer my question, through you, to the Minister of Justice. I believe, about four years now, there was a review conducted established, known as the Ghiz-Archibald review of the problems in the prosecution services, primarily problems related to morale and resources. A problems that has been in evidence for many years and successive governments have failed to deal with the problem. The Ghiz report recommended four different types of mechanisms, structures to deal with the grievances, including wages. Four years has past, the government has decided, in its wisdom, to do nothing. We are now on day two of the two-day walk-out by Crown Prosecutors.
I want to ask the minister, if he would explain why it is that his government has put even one case, but certainly more than one case, at risk as a result of this walkout simply because they have failed to recognize the serious problems articulated by the Ghiz-Archibald report? They have failed to move and take action on those recommendations.
[2:45 p.m.]
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker, the cases at risk that the honourable member mentions are placed at risk by virtue of a strike being called by the Crown Attorneys. This government came forward with a financial package that was fair and just, and the door was not closed to the process of collective bargaining. The Ghiz-Archibald report that the honourable member quotes brought forward four possibilities, one of which was collective bargaining; that is still open and the Crown Attorneys of this province have been informed of that. That is the position of the government as we speak.
MR. CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, this is the kind of action, the kind of indecision, the kind of irresponsible activity that we have seen on behalf of this government in the past five years. They have pushed this situation to the point where the Crown Prosecutors have withdrawn their services in order to get the attention of this government, because they recognize their duty and responsibility to the people of Nova Scotia.
I will ask the minister in my first supplementary - one judge has noted that the government had at least four weeks to prepare, but clearly that did not happen, they did not get ready and at least in one case a person charged with a very serious crime has been released - I want to ask the minister if he would explain, why is it that his department did not prepare for an incident that they themselves precipitated?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, months have been used to prepare for this eventuality and, in fact, there were some plans by the previous Director of Public Prosecutions, whose responsibility it is to put this program in place. I am not aware of the honourable judge's comments relative to four weeks. When the strike is called, there is a limited time that the prosecutors could become aware of any cases; there is a transition period. There is bound to be some disruptions and lack of continuity; I think that is particularly normal. As far as the release of any serious matters, they are often in the early stages, as we all know, and certainly will be revisited to see if those can be appealed or brought forward on another day. That is the commitment and that will be the responsibility of the Acting Director of Public Prosecutions.
MR. CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, I think, if I may, in my final supplementary - Nova Scotians would agree that this minister and his government, their approach to this matter has not worked, they have pushed the Crown to the point where it felt that it had no other choice, they clearly decided to play brinkmanship here and they are costing many Nova Scotians some significant discomfort and they are further threatening the stability of the prosecution services in this province - I want to ask the minister, given the fact that his approach and his government's approach to dealing with this issue has been an obvious failure, will he agree, today, to go back to Cabinet and get their agreement that they will permit voluntary recognition and the establishment of collective bargaining for Crown Prosecutors in the Province of Nova Scotia?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, this is a very serious matter. We are talking about the administration of justice. If that honourable member decides to play politics with it, that is fine, and that is up to him, but I am telling you what we brought forward. We brought forward a very fair and just financial package that will put the Crown Attorneys of this province squarely in the average across this country. We have not closed the door on collective bargaining. We want to look at the options. We have to consult with the Nova Scotia Government Employees Union and other persons, and other groups that may well be impacted by any decision, not by bringing in a bill that is irresponsible and leaves the door wide open.
The Ghiz report did point out, Mr. Speaker, not everyone was happy with that approach, the Crown Attorneys, and I can refer you to the page and number that you can look at that report. So if you are going to quote reports, let us be comprehensive. We have made an offer and it is there and it stands today. (Applause)
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party.
WALKOUT - CASE RESPONSIBILITY
DR. JOHN HAMM: Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Justice. The Minister of Justice did admit to knowledge of the Ghiz-Archibald report, which was tabled on August 31, 1994. In that report, which cost the taxpayers of this province $90,000, were resolutions to the situation that has resulted in the Crown being inappropriately represented in the courts of Nova Scotia yesterday and resulted in criminal cases being dropped simply because this minister and this government failed in its responsibility to adequately provide a justice system in this province that protects the people of this province.
Is the minister prepared to accept responsibility for what happened yesterday in the courts of this province because he and his government, for four years, have failed to respond to the Ghiz-Archibald report?
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker, by their own words, the Crown Attorneys have cited problems of major issues going back nine and one-half or 10 years. I think that honourable member knows which government was in power during that time.
We have come forward. The Ghiz report is comprehensive. It wasn't a waste of money. Much has been accomplished and more has been accomplished in the last few weeks. The computer system is coming on and is making great strides. I must say on the issue of computers and all the other talk, if you want to go up to the Maritime Centre, we will arrange a tour there for you, Mr. Speaker, or anybody else . . .
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please. The minister is wandering from the reply.
DR. SMITH: . . . in the House who wants to see some of the progress that is taking place on this.
DR. HAMM: Mr. Speaker, I will continue with the Minister of Justice. The Minister of Justice has known for some weeks that the courts of this province on June 1st and June 2nd would not have regular Crown Prosecutors in place. I would ask this minister, in the carrying out of his duties as protector of the justice system in this province, what actions had he taken over the last four weeks to ensure that the Crown was adequately represented in the courts of Nova Scotia yesterday and what steps has he taken now that he realizes that what he provided yesterday was inappropriate and didn't work, what steps has he taken that will result in the Crown being represented today in the courts of Nova Scotia?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, the responsibility of the program in place, which was done very effectively, is that of the Acting Director of Public Prosecution Services. I have had communications with the director and I am satisfied that everything has been done to put in place proper prosecution services.
Mr. Speaker, the transition period, those prosecuting lawyers would not have access to information of cases prior to a particular set period of time. They would not have weeks and days even to prepare. So any transition period is difficult. (Interruption)
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please.
DR. SMITH: The honourable member asked me, Mr. Speaker, do I accept responsibility? Yes, we all accept responsibility, that's why we are here, we are accountable. But I will tell you the responsibility of this strike rests on the head of the Crown Attorneys of this province, not the Government of Nova Scotia. (Interruptions) And we have made more headway in the last short while than over the last several years and that is a fact.
DR. HAMM: Mr. Speaker, the minister in his reply to me said that he was satisfied with the arrangements that are made. The minister said that he is satisfied that someone charged with sexual abuse, the case has been discharged; that someone who was charged with uttering death threats, the case has been discharged; and he is satisfied that a case that resulted in a failed plea for restitution has gone by the board and the taxpayers will pay for that; and this minister says he is satisfied. The minister should not be satisfied.
My final question to the minister is, will he commit, and commit here today, that he will start implementing the recommendations of the Ghiz-Archibald report that have resulted in the debacle that we have seen in the courts of this province yesterday and today and that he will accept his responsibility of Minister of Justice as being the one responsible for what is happening here in Nova Scotia in our court system today?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, one cannot be satisfied with a strike. A strike by definition is disruption of a system. We have a good system of justice in Nova Scotia that works. This government has already implemented many of the recommendations of the Ghiz-Archibald report and the four we are talking about are open. We have not closed the door to collective bargaining.
The four options in the Ghiz-Archibald report are there and we are prepared to discuss them. That is a commitment and that is well known.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage.
WALKOUT - REPLACEMENT TENDERS
MR. KEVIN DEVEAUX: Mr. Speaker, my question through you is to the Minister of Justice as well. The minister has had knowledge of the potential Crown strike for over one month and the government decided to hire private lawyers at $200 per hour to seek adjournments yesterday and presumably, today as well. As we all know, these law firms all have fine Liberal pedigrees, Boyne Clarke, Sampson McDougall, Cox Downie, and Daley, Black and Moreria. My question to the Minister of Justice is quite simple, how were these firms selected to do the replacement Crown work?
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker, I hesitate to answer a question such as that. The innuendo to me and I don't know your ruling, Mr. Speaker, but it is just my experience that the law profession has been very adept at balancing political persuasions, maybe not so strong on the New Democratic Party some days and maybe that is what has his nose out of joint a little bit.
The Acting Director of Public Prosecution Service, whose responsibility it was to put a program of replacement in place, carried out his duties. There were proposals received, there were selections made and there were meetings with ongoing liaison with those particular companies. I feel very strongly that a lawyer, while he may not be specialized, has a high degree of professionalism and I think that is what we are seeing happening today.
MR. KEVIN DEVEAUX: Mr. Speaker, again my question is for the Minister of Justice. I want to start by tendering a document which our office received from the Public Tenders Office, basically identifying and I know the Minister of Justice spoke of a proposal that was sent out, so I wanted to tender a document identifying the firms that did actually put forward the tender. Just for the record then, those are Patterson Palmer Hunt and Murphy, Cox Downie, Daley Black and Moreira and Boyne Clarke were the four firms that submitted proposals for the actual job of the Crown replacements.
My question to the minister is quite simple, that Sampson McDougall did not actually provide a proposal to the government to provide the replacement Crown work, so the question is, why did a firm from Sydney that has an exceptional Liberal pedigree get the work to do the Crown replacement without ever having to put in a tendered proposal?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, the Acting Director, Martin Herschorn, who I have every confidence in, who has been devoting every hour of his waking day to this initiative, I have utmost faith in. If the member has some problems with that particular issue, I suggest that he contact the Acting Director of the service. In the event that he doesn't choose to do that I could get a reply. There is no question that this was an open process. To imply that one firm is over another, the ones that you mentioned on the eastern side of the harbour here, it is an issue that I am not prepared really to address, I think it is so transparent, it has been a transparent system. I have every confidence in the Acting Director of the Public Prosecution Service.
MR. KEVIN DEVEAUX: Mr. Speaker, my question again is to the Minister of Justice. My concern with this is twofold. First of all, I think we can duly note that the Minister of Justice did not answer my question as to why a firm that didn't actually put in a proposal was actually selected. The second issue with regard to this is the fact that the Public Prosecution Service was originally created to be independent, that was its purpose. My question to the Minister of Justice is this, why is he breaching the independence by directing the Director of Public Prosecution to hire specific firms with Liberal connections that did not put in proposals for tender?
[3:00 p.m.]
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, if that honourable member has some evidence he is a lawyer, he should understand that a directive has to be publicized and it has to be public in the Royal Gazette. I have in no way directed the Acting Director of Public Prosecutions to do anything of the nature and I really resent that comment. (Interruptions) That is gutter politics and that is stooping pretty low with the criticism of that person who is responsible for that program.
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please.
The honourable member for Cumberland South.
WALKOUT - CASES CONTINUANCE
MR. MURRAY SCOTT: Mr. Speaker, my question is also to the Minister of Justice. The Minister of Justice has indicated here today that cases, because of a transitional period, were dismissed. Is the Minister of Justice suggesting to us today that someone charged in a
separate hearing, once the strike date was known, the cases were still allowed to go ahead? If they were, why did that happen? Why were those cases allowed to proceed today if he knew the strike was going to happen?
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker, I heard a couple of questions there. I am not too sure, but the first part was something about the transition period, why something would be allowed to go ahead. I learned that there were some changes made in the caseloads and how they were delegated, but I am in no position to comment or interfere in any way. It has already been mentioned that this is arm's length, the Public Prosecution Service in this province, and they would have done what they would have seen best. Why a judge would have made a decision to dismiss, that of course is the judgment of the particular honourable judge, of which I will not question.
MR. SCOTT: Mr. Speaker, the proof is on the streets of Halifax: highly trained Crown Attorneys forced to picket to bring to the attention of Nova Scotians the failure of this government to support them in their quest to bring criminals to justice. Will the minister commit, here today, that no cases in the criminal court system in Nova Scotia will be dismissed because of his inaction?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, not being a lawyer, I probably will never become a judge, so I will never be able to guarantee that they will not be dismissed. I want to be fair with the honourable member, as I think he was sincere in the question, but the decision of dismissal or not will be that of a judge, which I have no right at all to interfere with and neither does anyone else here.
MR. SCOTT: My third question is to the Premier. Mr. Premier, your part-time Justice Minister is too busy to deal with the justice system in this province. Will you reassign the Justice portfolio to someone who has the time to deal with it? (Applause)
HON. RUSSELL MACLELLAN, Q.C. (The Premier): Mr. Speaker, I think the justice of this province is in very good hands. (Applause)
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Halifax Fairview.
MS. EILEEN O'CONNELL: Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Education. As the House knows, we had a session this morning with senior officials to discuss the P3 process in schools and, as the House also knows, it was not what we had hoped it would be because there was a great deal of presenting and not an awful lot of discussion. One thing, however, was confirmed and this is what I want to ask the minister about.
One thing that was absolutely and finally confirmed for us was that the government did ignore the Auditor General's recommendation for a comprehensive and objective cost-benefit analysis before and during the P3 process. So I want to ask the Minister of Education, why did the government choose to ignore the Auditor General's explicit recommendation?
HON. ROBERT HARRISON: Mr. Speaker, we have dealt with this question often and we are committed on this side of the House to high-quality schools for children. Before each and every lease is signed, a cost-benefit analysis is done to ensure that the taxpayers get full value for the dollars spent and the children get the finest schools in Canada.
MS. O'CONNELL: Mr. Speaker, we have heard the answer before as well. It seems that the Auditor General, like our Party, does not find that a satisfactory answer, so I am going to ask the Minister of Education, will the government do now what it should have done before and subject this process to a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis for the benefit of the taxpayers and children of Nova Scotia?
MR. HARRISON: We are well aware and familiar with the recommendations the Auditor General made in his last report concerning the process. We have taken steps to implement every single one of those recommendations, including rigorous cost-benefit analysis before every lease is signed.
MS. O'CONNELL: Mr. Speaker, my second supplementary is again to the Minister of Education. After all these months of going around and around with it, there is only one conclusion left that people can come to. I want to ask the Minister of Education why the government is more interested in getting good deals for their friends than in the responsible financing of schools?
MR. HARRISON: It is an interesting projection on a government that is committed to young people.
The honourable member will know, the Education Critic will know, that the members of the selection committee who decide on the successful consortia for this province are members of the very communities in which those schools are to be built. They are members of school boards. They are various staff and department officials and they are the ones who recommend the successful proponents for these schools in Nova Scotia. I trust the member opposite is not maligning all of those school board members, all of those community members and all of those people who make those decisions on those companies that earned the right to build the finest schools in Canada for our children.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Lunenburg.
MR. MICHAEL BAKER: Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Justice. We have a system in this province of per diem Crown Attorneys. Those are Crown Attorneys who are in private practice in this province who are prepared to volunteer their time at very little pay to ensure that cases are prosecuted that cannot be otherwise dealt with by the Public Prosecution Service.
Can the Minister of Justice tell this House why those Crown Attorneys did not prosecute the matters and if it is because they feel that this Minister of Justice and his department have failed to adequately dealt with their brethren, can he tell this House why this House should have any confidence in his ability to run his department?
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker, it is a long convoluted question and it has to do with brethren, but I would believe there are sisters involved as well. I have every confidence that those hired by the Director of Public Prosecution are competent. The program is a special program that was put in place for the eventuality of a strike. I have every faith in the director of that service and I am sure that he explored any area that was feasible of putting a program in place. I am not sure of all the work time allotments or the commitments that the per diems that the honourable member mentions could have made, but I know that things were done right and they were done properly and they were done with sensitivity to the issue with respect to the justice system in this province.
MR. BAKER: Is the Minister of Justice suggesting to this House that you had to go outside to high-priced law firms to ask for an adjournment? We knew the strike date. The Minister of Justice buried his head in the sand. Will the Minister of Justice tell us why there was not a request for adjournment made in those cases before the cases came to court?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, the process of justice was protected in this province. It was protected in a fair and responsible and equitable way. I will stand by that. The government did not call the strike. The Crown Attorneys called the strike and the responsibility for what happens following is theirs.
There was much progress made, Mr. Speaker, both on the wage package and the collective agreement, but if they choose to strike and they had their minds set in that direction. They chose to do that and the responsibility is theirs and you can ask them.
MR. BAKER: Will the Minister of Justice tell the House why, if he is not prepared to grant collective bargaining to the Crown Attorneys, at least will he suggest that this matter be referred to arbitration so that the matters can be dealt with and we will have no further work stoppages that will throw cases out of our courts?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, either I have not been making it clear, and I guess that is what it is, or that honourable member has not been listening. I said that we have not closed the door on collective bargaining. This is part of the Ghiz-Archibald report (Interruption)
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please.
DR. SMITH: Any other way that we can move into a process of dealing with the situation, the working conditions, and the financial package that we brought forward is fair and just. We are prepared to do that. We are open, we have not closed the door to collective bargaining.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Yarmouth.
MR. JOHN DEVEAU: Mr. Speaker, my question through you is to the Minister of Health. I quote from the Speech from the Throne, "While other jurisdictions continue to suffer a doctor exodus, Nova Scotia is turning the tide and attracting qualified physicians to under-served communities.". My question then is what is the government's, or what is the minister's definition of an under-serviced community?
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker there is a physician resource program being developed for the province. There is no specific definition to my knowledge on an under-serviced area. We are moving in the regional system with specialist funding. We are dealing with issues particular to the rural communities. We have done more in the last while, in the last year or two that has been done for many, many years in these initiatives. There has been a net gain of 95 physicians in the province for 1997 over 1996. We are one of the few provinces in Canada that has stopped the out-migration of physicians from all of those provinces.
MR. JOHN DEVEAU: Mr. Speaker, my supplementary will be to the Minister of Health. The Minister of Health is quick to make mention of how many doctors have come to Nova Scotia but he does not make reflection on the statistics of the number of doctors that have left Nova Scotia.
Mr. Speaker, my question is this. The Yarmouth area has 6,000 people who are without the services of a doctor. Is the Minister of Health, today, prepared to designate Yarmouth as an under-serviced area?
DR. SMITH: Yes, Mr. Speaker, and I think that is a fair question. Yarmouth is a unique community but it is designated already. It is along with Amherst, the Port Hawkesbury areas, and there are some areas, no question, that we have really addressed quite well. I think our staff has within the last while, along with the communities, and the communities are key to
this, the medical community and the whole community, but Yarmouth is well known as an area that is difficult to retain physicians. Many people come there, spend a period of time, and go away. That is a real concern, that relocation, but we will certainly work with the hospital, the people in the community, the physicians, to do anything that we can. It is very important. It is a very isolated community. It is a good regional centre and we want to help and support that. I thank the honourable member for his question.
MR. JOHN DEVEAU: I appreciate the comments by the Minister of Health but what he needs to understand is that Yarmouth is not designated as an under-serviced area and knowing that there are 6,000 people in the Yarmouth area without a doctor, my question then, Mr. Speaker, is for the Minister of Health. Why is your department only advertising for one-third of the doctors needed to address the doctor shortage crisis in the Yarmouth area?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, our program is not a cure all. We need help from the communities. Communities have to recruit their own physicians. We can do what we can and we have been very successful, 95 new doctors in 1997 over the previous year. That is net. I mean we have turned the tide but I think we have to acknowledge that we are living in a global community and no profession is more mobile than physicians. As I met with someone today, a physician of long-standing in this province, said this has not changed over 20 years. I mean basically it has been happening but there is no question we will work with the community. I think the issue is primary care. It is an area . . .
MR. SPEAKER: I think the minister has adequately answered the question.
DR. SMITH: . . . that we may want to look at putting out pilot project in a community like Yarmouth.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party.
DR. JOHN HAMM: Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the Minister of Health. I would like to table two sheets here. One is a sheet from the 1992 report of the Provincial Medical Board and the other is a sheet from the 1997 Report of the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Nova Scotia. My question is to the Minister of Health. The Minister of Health has, on many occasions recently, indicated in the last year that the province witnessed a net increase of 100 new doctors. Would the minister indicate if he is referring to fully registered doctors?
[3:15 p.m.]
HON. JAMES SMITH: The number 95, that I mentioned in 1997, was both defined and temporary registrations, and that is the response to the question.
DR. HAMM: I would hope that the minister would take a minute and have a look at the sheets that I just tabled, because it very clearly, in black and white, points out that the minister's answer is incorrect.
I would like to continue with the Minister of Health. In fact, the net increase in fully registered physicians in Nova Scotia last year was four, would the minister confirm that from December 31, 1992, to December 31, 1997, during the period of time in which this government was in power, that Nova Scotia experienced a net loss of 180 fully registered physicians?
DR. SMITH: The figure I was quoting - and I don't know that we can solve this in a numbers game today here - but I was quoting the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia as year ends, 1997. There was a net of 95 physicians. I can only go with the information that I have, it was collected by a responsible person. The list, at any one time, if you take statistics from MSI, from College of Physicians and Surgeons, and all the others, it is very difficult. What we do know is that we have areas with shortages of physicians, rural and otherwise, and we have addressed them, and we have made great progress. Areas like Canso now have physicians, and that has been for a long period of time.
DR. HAMM: I would hold this up for the minister to see, because I am quoting from the 1997 Report of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia, the same document that the minister purports to be using for his information and, clearly, the information in my report is very different from what the minister has been reporting publicly.
My final supplementary to the minister. Now that he has had an opportunity to look at the 1992 figures and realizes that we have some 180 fewer full-time, fully registered physicians here in Nova Scotia, would the minister now recognize that the loss of 180 fully registered physicians in Nova Scotia since 1992 has had a disastrous effect on health care delivery in Nova Scotia and, in fact, is the reason why so many Nova Scotians are having difficulty in accessing a primary care physician and also specialist's services in this province?
DR. SMITH: Our main problem is our location. We speak in terms of paediatricians, 60 being in the urban area here around the university, and yet very difficult to place. This is really the issue. Now there are people who have come in that don't have full licenses, and the honourable member is quoting types of licensing, but, as he knows, there has been, as recent as last week, changes at the national level in how this is determined and who will qualify, and there are some numbers here being quoted that are a little bit out of context as to who is available to see patients. The honourable member quite well knows that.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Cape Breton The Lakes.
PLEBISCITE - POSITION (PREMIER)
MS. HELEN MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. In August, 1997, Premier MacLellan said he was prepared to accept the results of the Kings County Plebiscite on VLTs, and of course we know that he was never forced to do that since the duly lobbied Kings County Council turned down the request to have the issue put on the ballot during the municipal elections. My question for the Premier. Does he stand by his earlier commitment to remove VLTs in accordance with a plebiscite?
THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker, as the honourable member said, the Kings County Council did not pass such a motion. The whole question of VLTs is being looked at at the present time and, hopefully, we will have something to report further.
MS. HELEN MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, my question was whether or not he was standing by the stand he took prior to and during his campaign that he would, in fact, remove VLTs in accordance with a plebiscite? I did not get an answer to that question.
THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker, we realize that there are many people in Nova Scotia who are concerned about the increasing numbers of VLTs and this is something which we are very interested in in the government. We realize that this question needs consideration and we are giving it consideration.
MS. HELEN MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, I guess one way that we could see some concrete action on this very issue would be to support changes to the Municipal Act so that municipal councils can't, just simply by a majority vote, decide not to have this issue on a plebiscite. I guess I would ask the Premier whether or not he and his government would support those changes to the Municipal Act?
THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker, to my knowledge we have not received any such request.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Cumberland North.
LEASE - AUD. GEN. EXAMINE
MR. ERNEST FAGE: Mr. Speaker, my question through you today will be to the Minister of Education. As we have known for the last three or four years, the alternative to financing schools that has been proposed by this government has been the P3 process. The P3 process has brought forward four school constructions, none of those school constructions
having a lease signed upfront. My question today is after the election, the public debate about lack of accountability, competitiveness to the minister, is there a request going to the Auditor General for an analysis on the P3 partnership on the Porters Lake school?
HON. ROBERT HARRISON: Mr. Speaker, there is a request going forward to the Auditor General and I will be meeting with him.
MR. FAGE: Mr. Speaker, that is indeed good news. It is a recognition that public accountability and good value for taxpayers' dollars must be ensured in school construction. We all know and accept that schools must be built in a timely fashion. It is absolutely imperative that schools are built for communities in Nova Scotia that desperately need their schools. A school that comes to mind is Lantz. At a parents' meeting earlier this month a number of people in this House attended, myself included, and those parents wanted to know when their school was going to be built, was it going to be started before June 15th? My question, first supplementary, to the minister is do we have a school construction by June 15th?
MR. HARRISON: Mr. Speaker, in answering the first question that he asked, would we ask the Auditor General to review the leases to date, including Porters Lake, the answer is yes, we are doing that, providing the Auditor General with any and all information. We are doing everything we can to meet that June 15th deadline. I would suggest that the member opposite, whose Party has just introduced a resolution which would ensure that the people of Lantz do not get a school in a timely manner might, in fact, consider the dilemma that he is, in a sense, suggesting here. One is that we review and have public accountability, and we fully intend to do that. Secondly, will we get on with the job of building quality schools? We intend to do that as well.
MR. FAGE: Mr. Speaker, it is reassuring that this minister and this government have taken six months to ask for accountability in the process and try to blame accountability for the public good on another political Party. My question on the second supplementary now involves a meeting that took place this morning. The meeting was to inform the two Opposition Parties of the P3 process.
Mr. Speaker, through you to the minister, certainly it was a beginning, but the meeting was a little too short and it created more questions than it did answers. I believe to provide the comfort to the members of this House and to the people of Nova Scotia, certainly more questions have to be answered. Will the minister ensure that more questions are answered on the P3 partnerships so this process can move ahead? This process is government driven, not Opposition held up.
MR. HARRISON: We have agreed to undertake a review with the Auditor General as is the practice of this government through all these leases. The members opposite asked earlier if there were cost-benefit analyses. Every bit of information that we have in the
creation of a lease is exchanged with the Auditor General so that they are fully informed of all the leases to date and those that are about to be signed.
Do we intend to provide more information for the Opposition Parties, Mr. Speaker? We would be more than pleased to provide more opportunities for more discussion and to characterize this morning's meeting as simply a one-way discussion, I know from having met with two of the four deputies that there were questions and exchanges. Was there enough time? Perhaps not. Will we create more time for the Opposition Parties? We certainly would do that. But we intend not only to review the accountability factor of these leases but we also intend to get on with needed construction.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Preston.
MS. YVONNE ATWELL: Mr. Speaker, I would like to direct my question through you to the honourable Minister Responsible for the Status of Women. In the Throne Speech the government talked about funding for women's centres. I quote, it mentions, ". . . a place for everyone in Nova Scotia. We must break down the barriers that keep too many on the margins of society.".
My question is, Mr. Speaker, why then did your government only fund half of the six women's centres in this province?
HON. FRANCENE COSMAN: I thank the honourable member for her question. We heard many times last year in this House issues raised around the equity issue of funding for women's centres. I met with women's centres and transition house representatives as well and gave a commitment to try to bring the funding of the three lower funded centres up to an equity basis with the three other centres and this we are doing.
MS. ATWELL: I thank the honourable minister for her response; however, the six women's centres are all underfunded. They are short staffed. They have part-time staff. They need money for finances for a crisis intervention worker. Once again, why did this minister only choose to bring the lower funded up to the other three centres that are already underfunded? I would like her to explain that.
MRS. COSMAN: I thank the honourable member for her second question. The whole issue of funding for women's centres and transition houses is one that we all, I am sure, share concern around because there is always more to be done in all the service areas that these groups provide. Certainly, I have senior staff working with the representatives of women's centres trying to look at a business plan that they have been asked to provide around the question of another level of funding for their service. That is an evolving process, honourable member, and I am certainly sure that my staff will work with them to identify the key issues
around the question of increasing, again, support for the centres' financial needs and identifying some of the core services that would be encompassed in such a plan.
MS. ATWELL: Once again, I would like to say that I have been at the centres and you have been at the centres and we know the work that the women's centres are doing. They are always in crisis because they are thoroughly underfunded. You yourself, the honourable member, have been part of the Status of Woman and understand these issues very well. I guess your answer to me is quite unacceptable. In the Throne Speech this government did commit to funding for women's centres. I ask you again, will this government keep its commitment to the women of Nova Scotia?
MRS. COSMAN: I think I have already answered the question, both the first question and the second question. I have addressed the concern that the honourable member is raising.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Leader of the Opposition.
MR. ROBERT CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, I would like to direct my question through you to the Minister of Justice. We referred earlier to the second day of the dispute involving the Crown Prosecutors withdrawing their services as a result of inaction on behalf of the Minister of Justice and this government. I want to ask the minister if he would explain to Nova Scotians why it is that it appears to be appropriate for the independence of judges to have binding arbitration to deal with issues of establishing levels of remuneration and working conditions, but it is not also appropriate for Crown Prosecutors to have a similar set-up of binding arbitration to deal with issues of salaries and working conditions?
[3:30 p.m.]
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker, as I have said before, what we brought back to the Crown Attorneys of this province was a twofold issue: one, regarding a fair and just financial package; and the other, an alternative to setting up a process that collective bargaining would be an option and various options we would explore across this country and see what would be most appropriate. The door is open and, in answer to the question, we have not dismissed using a system such as the honourable member has mentioned in his question.
MR. CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Justice says the door is open. Four years ago, Ghiz-Archibald made a recommendation that if there is not some structure set up to establish the independence of these Crown Prosecutors, that there will be an erosion of its operational independence and the minister has the nerve to say that the door is open. I want to ask the minister, why is it that he has not moved before now to establish an independent process such as collective bargaining and will he do that before today's sitting is over?
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, I don't want to give the answer that the reason I didn't move on it is that I wasn't Minister of Justice, but it certainly has occupied a reasonable amount of my time. I have met with the Crown Attorneys of this province, I have tried to be as open and frank and as fair with them as I can be, and we brought a package forward that addresses the concerns that the honourable member mentions and it impacts, also, on the recommendations of the Ghiz-Archibald report. I cannot say any more than that. The system, how it would look in the times ahead, I am not sure. It certainly isn't working any better in other parts of Canada than here if you want to look at the issue as we speak, including those provinces with collective bargaining.
MR. CHISHOLM: Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about Nova Scotians, the Nova Scotia justice system and the Crowns here in Nova Scotia on what this Nova Scotia Government is going to do.
MR. SPEAKER: Well, this is Question Period.
MR. CHISHOLM: I want to direct my question through you to the Premier. I want to ask the Premier, the former Premier and Liberal Government requested the Ghiz-Archibald team come together and review the prosecution services in the Province of Nova Scotia and make recommendations because of the problems that were brewing in that service. They were very clear that there needed to be the establishment . . .
MR. SPEAKER: Put your question, please. Order, please.
MR. CHISHOLM: . . . of some independent structure to establish wages and working conditions. I want to ask the Premier, Mr. Speaker, given the fact that the Crowns have taken the unprecedented action of going on strike for the past two days, will he commit his government here today, to finding a resolve to this very serious situation affecting the very stability of the justice system in Nova Scotia before this week is out?
THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition likes to refer to this time last year, the federal election. Well, I would like to refer to this time last year with respect to the labour outlook for the following year. There was a great deal of concern about over 50,000 public employees coming up for contract renewals as of November 1st. Well, I will tell you, all of those public servants had their contracts renewed without losing one day of work in this province, not one day. (Applause)
We have Crown Prosecutors who are not members of a collective bargaining unit. We have made them an offer, they have said they don't want that offer. We have said we are going to look at the Ghiz-Archibald report and we are going to consider the Ghiz-Archibald report (Interruptions) but we want the time to do it. We want the time to talk to them about this.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Kings North.
PETROCHEMICAL IND. - STUDY
MR. GEORGE ARCHIBALD: Mr. Speaker, my question, through you, is to the Premier, who is in charge of offshore natural gas. The Nova Scotia Petroleum Directorate recently let out a contract to examine the feasibility of extracting ethane from natural gas. The Province of Nova Scotia has already agreed with Mobil and Shell to export the ethane, which is the building block of the petrochemical industry. The Province of Nova Scotia has already agreed to allow the export of ethane in the natural gas as it leaves our borders.
Could the Premier tell me, please, after he has already agreed to allow the ethane to be exported, why is he suddenly now doing a study to see whether we can have a petrochemical industry or not?
THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker, we don't need a study to tell us if we can have a petrochemical industry. We already know we can. The question is how much ethane, how much product do we need to justify the petrochemical industry. What we have said is that we are prepared to allow the ethane to flow with the natural gas until we have the quantity sufficient to have someone make a proposal to us to process the ethane here in Nova Scotia. We can stop the ethane when that time arrives and we will. We are committed to a petrochemical industry in Nova Scotia.
MR. ARCHIBALD: Mr. Speaker, in December, the Premier agreed that if the province does in fact tell Mobil and Shell that they want to stop the ethane from leaving Nova Scotia, that the taxpayers are going to have to pay Mobil and Shell. Could he tell us why the taxpayers are going to be paying for the ethane?
THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker, it is not a question of paying for the ethane. It is a question of natural gas flowing to a customer with a particular BTU requirement. That BTU requirement is enhanced because of ethane. That can also be enhanced with the use of propane. So the ethane can be taken from the natural gas and propane injected to keep that BTU content up, or the value of the natural gas per cubic litre can decline. This is something which is a very reasonable consideration and one which we understand, but we are not, and I want to repeat, we are not going to allow the ethane to leave this province at the expense of a petrochemical industry for Nova Scotia.
MR. ARCHIBALD: Mr. Speaker, it seems as though you have already allowed it to leave at the expense of an industry. Could the minister in charge indicate then why he has agreed that when the ethane is stripped at Goldboro, the taxpayers of Nova Scotia are going to be responsible for the cost of upgrading the plant that isn't even built? Why would the Premier agree to do that? Why didn't the Premier insist that the plant be built so that ethane
could be extracted from the beginning and why did you obligate the taxpayers to some future construction problem that is going to result from the ethane that should be in Nova Scotia? The future minister in charge of the offshore will demand that it be here because that is where the jobs are. For the Premier to first say they can have the ethane . . .
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please. Would the honourable member please put his question.
MR. ARCHIBALD: The minister in charge said they could have the ethane. If Nova Scotians want it for an industry, we are going to have to pay to get it back. Now we find the Premier also agreed. Could he tell us why he has obligated the taxpayers of Nova Scotia . . .
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please.
THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker, we have not committed the people of Nova Scotia to pay for any stripping plant. The stripping plant must be at the cost of the company who wants to process the ethane. I can assure the people of Nova Scotia that no added cost for a stripping plant has been factored into the transportation of natural gas.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Dartmouth-Cole Harbour.
MR. DARRELL DEXTER: Mr. Speaker, my question this afternoon is for the Minister of Transportation. As you know, New Jersey is investing some $30 billion to improve its infrastructure in pursuit of the post-Panamax shipping traffic, while Baltimore, Boston, Norfolk and New York are aggressively pursuing this contractual arrangement with Sealand Maersk.
Could the Minister of Transportation tell the House what efforts, financial and otherwise, are being made to support Nova Scotia ports in their bids?
HON. CLIFFORD HUSKILSON: Thank you, honourable member. The Province of Nova Scotia is very concerned about the Port of Halifax, which generates over 7,000 jobs and there is over $3 million in direct and indirect spending here in the Port of Halifax. We certainly would like to push ahead with this project and we certainly stand behind it.
MR. DEXTER: Well, I guess, the follow-up to that response is, is it only the bid of the Port of Halifax that the Department of Transportation is supporting?
MR. HUSKILSON: The Department of Transportation and Public Works would like to look at several bids. Certainly, we are not just going to look at one, there are several. We want to be fair and even across the board. So we will certainly look at all bids.
MR. DEXTER: Can the minister tell the House when he last met with the bidders and when their proposals will be going forward?
MR. HUSKILSON: I had an opportunity to meet with the Halifax Port Development Commission and that was approximately, I can certainly get back to you on that, but that was probably about two weeks ago.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley.
MR. BROOKE TAYLOR: Mr. Speaker, I would like to direct my question to the honourable Minister of Justice. It was confirmed a little earlier today in Question Period that the lawyers who are substituting, if you will, for the Crown Prosecutors come from well-connected and well-attached Liberal law firms. Would the minister not agree that $300 per hour is just a little too steep and a little too pricey for the poor beleaguered taxpayers of Nova Scotia?
HON. JAMES SMITH: Mr. Speaker, I will try to answer very briefly, and I know you will appreciate that, the two questions from the honourable member. Number one about well connected, again, I just will (Interruption) I will give no answer to that. I don't think that really will get an answer even that it deserves.
The hypothetical question of $300 an hour, I expect he is referring to the per diems. That is not the amount, Mr. Speaker, that is a misrepresentation of that. That is an amount determined by the acting director. Although it was predicted that the entire strike would cost $250,000 or something of that nature, I suspect we would be looking at far less than that. So I can't really in all fairness react to that $300 an hour. Yes, it would be a lot if that was the average but that is not so.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley, you have 40 seconds.
MR. TAYLOR: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Anyway you cut it, this strike by the Crown Prosecutors is going to impact the Public Accounts of this province. Will the minister stand up in his place today and tell all of Nova Scotia what he is paying the lawyers and their law firms, those well-connected Liberals? How much an hour are you paying per lawyer?
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Minister of Justice, you have 14 seconds.
DR. SMITH: Mr. Speaker, I fail to respond to the well-connected Liberal comment again. It is just a misrepresentation and also the other part of his question as well. The arrangements have been made by the Acting Director of the Public Prosecution Service and he . . .
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please. The time allotted for the Oral Question Period has expired.
The honourable Government House Leader.
HON. MANNING MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, would you please revert to the order of business, Notices of Motion.
MR. SPEAKER: Is it agreed?
Did I hear a No?
Order, please. We have had a request to revert to the order of business, Notices of Motion.
Is it agreed?
It is agreed.
MR. GERALD FOGARTY: Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Earlier this afternoon, the honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage tabled a resolution which deals with the Crown Prosecutors dispute ongoing here in the Province of Nova Scotia. Just yesterday, the same member brought in a bill for first reading on that same subject matter . . .
[3:45 p.m.]
MR. SPEAKER: I don't want to interrupt the honourable member, but you're up on your feet for a point of order, is that correct?
MR. FOGARTY: A point of order, yes.
MR. SPEAKER: Well, it's not a notice of motion.
MR. FOGARTY: On a point of order, I'm referring to or going back to a notice of motion that was brought forward earlier this afternoon. Yesterday, if I might continue, the same member from Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage introduced a bill for first reading on the same subject matter, the Crown Prosecutors dispute and with respect, Mr. Speaker, I submit
that the resolution should have been declared out of order. I draw attention to the section in Beauchesne dealing with notices of motion, on Page 175, Clause 566.(7), and I quote. "A motion dealing with the same subject-matter as a bill, standing on the Order Paper for second reading, cannot be considered.".
I would ask you to revisit your decision, with respect, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage, do you wish to respond to the point of order?
MR. KEVIN DEVEAUX: No, that's okay.
MR. SPEAKER: I will take the matter under advisement.
GOVERNMENT BUSINESS
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Government House Leader.
HON. MANNING MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, would you please call the order of business, Government Motions.
GOVERNMENT MOTIONS
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable Government House Leader.
HON. MANNING MACDONALD: Mr. Speaker, I move that the adjourned debate on the Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne be now resumed.
MR. SPEAKER: The honourable member for Cape Breton Centre.
You have approximately 52 minutes remaining.
MR. FRANK CORBETT: I was driving somewhere along the Gardiner highway, so . . .
AN HON. MEMBER: You got a speeding ticket.
MR. CORBETT: Well, I don't know if I got a speeding ticket. There are good people out there, you drive nice and slow so you can see all the houses and see all the good New Democratic voters out there.
I would like to just move over a little bit to the Town of Dominion and its great people. (Interruption)
MR. SPEAKER: Order, please. There is too much noise in the Chamber.
MR. CORBETT: Thank you. This small town - as I so often said in my speech in the first few minutes - another area that certainly grew up around coal mining and its effects. It's a great little town and we - Brenda MacDonald and I - during the election campaign, had much fun there, standing outside the post office, talking to voters and asking them for support which was certainly forthcoming on my behalf and I appreciate that.
The good people of Dominion, every summer, have a festival I would like to talk about. It's called Seaside Days, and for those who have been in around the area, they should certainly see that it is one of the loveliest natural sandbars in all this province. They have this as their centrepiece for the Seaside Days Festival and it acts as a come home, if you will, for a lot of the former residents who had to go away to find work because of government's inaction on the job front in Cape Breton. These people come home and they get to enjoy a week of fun and activity and meet friends and relatives and it is a great time. I urge any members in the House, if they are available at that time of year, in August, to please come down and enjoy the Seaside Days in Dominion and certainly enjoy the company of the great people of Dominion.
We'll skip over a bit, we will go to the area of River Ryan, which I'm sure the member for Cape Breton The Lakes has a great affinity for. These are people who belong in the former Municipality of the County of Cape Breton, which was taken under the auspices of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. I don't really know what government enacted that, maybe the member for Cape Breton West can enlighten me. These people are living in this area, basically, you would think it was Third World conditions, with the lack of sewer and water. We have attended a few meetings out in that area with those community residents, and we certainly will be petitioning this government, and probably bring it to public light through this speech, that these people will be looking for sewer and water in that area. If the proper department would look into it, I'm sure that it's something that's due and certainly feasible.
The area of New Waterford. Now, I grew up in the Town of New Waterford. It's a great place. You know, I grew up on No. 12 Hill, and I was fortunate when I was going around during my campaigning to be followed one day by the Parliamentary channel, the CPAC cameras. I happened to go into St. Agnes Convent where I met a number of the sisters. They are the Sisters of Charity, they are out here at Mount Saint Vincent, fine women.
Part of the thing, as in most places, they are no different than a lot of the other homes, their convent was under disrepair. They were trying to basically put some money together to effect some repairs for their convent and wished me to bring that forward to this body, that if I was so elected that we would ask, through any of the ministries here, if we could effect some money for the improvements in their convent and I put that forward now.
This Town of New Waterford has been devastated many times. When I was growing up there were three active mines in this town and now we are down to one. What we had done through a lot of citizens' hard work is establish what was called Colliery Lands Park which was basically taking the old workings of two former mines, No. 12 Mine, one which my father worked in for many years and No. 16, another mine that my father toiled in for many years. He was a proud UMW member and he was the former President of Local 1888 of the United Mine Workers of America.
They took this land, reconfigured it and made a great park for all the citizens of New Waterford to enjoy and participate in. People have picnics there, they have a band shell there, they have all these amenities there and it is through the hard work of the people of the Town of New Waterford and some of the former councillors before that town was amalgamated. I take this time to salute the hard work of the mayor and the former councillors of the Town of New Waterford.
Another area and I will probably be addressing it a bit more in my speech but it is the hard work of the citizens of New Waterford in working to help their town hospital to survive. There are many people on the other side of the floor who act as the apologists for the people of the Cape Breton Regional Hospital, the management, as their official apologists. If we go out and we try to protect the jobs, the people who work there and protect the patients that are served there, we are seen as the mongrels, if you will and these people are out there and no matter what the management side of the Cape Breton Regional Hospital have to say, these people will doggedly support them to the behest of the people of New Waterford.
I am not going to spend too much more time the rest of the day in talking about the whole idea of what my area looks like and what it is but I would probably like to move in and make some comments about the content of the Speech from the Throne. I would like to start my comments by quoting the late John F. Kennedy, who said, the real enemy of truth is not lies but myths. That is truly what the problem is with this document, it is full of myths.
I use, probably, the hospital example as the greatest one. We had the Minister of Health telling us, oh boy, we are on the threshold of a great hospital situation here. Well, I beg to differ. They do these things that are called in the news business, viewer friendly or listener friendly, we will give you a name, we will throw it out and we will say, oh, isn't that nice, warm and cuddly. I will tell you something, I am going to give you some names and incidents that makes this whole hospital charade not so warm and not so cuddly.
I will start with less than two years ago, my elderly father-in-law, 88 years old. He brought up a family of 12, he and his wife worked hard all their lives. Tom MacPherson was born on Rocky Ridge in Inverness County just outside of Port Hood. He worked from there right down to Newport Beach in California, worked hard all of his life. He raised his family, raised a good, strong Cape Breton family. At 88 years old, the man becomes ill and is taken to the New Waterford Hospital by his daughter, my wife. He spends three days on a gurney
in the outpatients. Is that the dignity to be shown to a man of 88 years old who worked, produced and gave his heart and soul to this province? I say shame. For this government to tell us we have turned the corner, well, mister, it is an ugly corner. It is a very ugly corner.
It was through understaffing, through bed cutbacks, that this happened. Now, my wife's family stood beside this man's bed for approximately three weeks until his demise and it was a sad demise. It was not easy for my family and the rest of my wife's family. If they had not stood there and done the basic things they would not have gotten done because of understaffing. I will say this, the ones who are remaining in the hospitals as the workers, God love them, because they work their hearts and souls out for little or no recognition.
The only thing that is recognized by the management of the Cape Breton Regional Hospital is the fact that these people will be facing a nurse shortage, a crisis as they say, in four years. That is using their words, a crisis. They manage this mess.
The honourable members across the way can say, you know, that is history, that is two years ago. Let's bring something up to this December and we will personalize it so the Liberals can understand it.
My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. She went in for chemotherapy. The whole idea is to get them in and get them out. One of my sisters took her home. Little or no education to my sister. She takes her home. It is a couple of weeks before Christmas. Nobody tells her that as part of this treatment you must give them lots of fluids to get this out of their system. Nobody tells them that. So in the middle of the night my mother gets up to use the washroom. She is disoriented and falls down a flight of stairs. Where was our hospital system then?
Our family takes her off to the hospital where we wait for four hours. One, two, three, four. Count them. Too bad the minister is not in the House now as we make this fabulous turn. We go there and after four hours of waiting, finally we get a doctor to see her and have to plead to him to do something to stitch a four inch gash in her head. My mother, many of you may not know, she brought 15 children into this world, 72 years old. Certainly deserved more than that.
I will tell you what, Mr. Speaker, this government does not have to worry about her costing their precious health care system anymore. Because of their cost-cutting, their meanness, she passed away on April 7th. They do not have to worry about people like my mother anymore. That is what their health care reform did and if they can look at themselves in the mirror, great. Just great.
I do not want to belabour the health care issue too much longer. If they think this is working, they should go and talk to the pregnant women in around Glace Bay who are going full term without getting to see a doctor. Or talk to the people who are living out at Lingan, Phelan Mine or at Lingan Generating Station who say, if we are in the two biggest industrial complexes in the area, if we are faced here with any kind of disaster on the worksite, are there going to be enough people up there to treat us at the hospital? We asked this of the management at Cape Breton Regional Hospital and they said, don't know. We are paying a guy there to stay all night. I can tell you, one doctor does not do it. One doctor certainly does not do it.
We will move off the health care issue for a few minutes and I would like to talk about education. We have grave problems in our education and I won't even go on to articulate some of the problems with P3. It is certainly that during the election there were many partisans - I am going to call them partisans because they were not partisans on our side. They were supporters of that Party across the way who called the P3 public private patronage. That is what it is. People come to us and say I know the Sherwood Park School is an inferior building in construction and design. Yet these folks won't see it.
Or they will tell you about when those computer systems are down, they are down for two weeks because they cannot be fixed in Nova Scotia. They have to be shipped somewhere in the United States. This whole P3 fiasco is just a joke.
I won't spend too much time on that because I would like to spend a few minutes talking about the University College of Cape Breton. Now for those members who are not from Cape Breton, they may not be aware of the uniqueness of this facility; certainly by its own definition it is a university and a college. It offers a trades component that is not to be found anywhere else and, obviously, it has a university's degree-granting status.
[4:00 p.m.]
Mr. Speaker, for years and years this has been underfunded and unrecognized by this government. For some reason they do not want to take the bull by the proverbial horns and say look, this is a problem, we have to get out there. They tell us in a very superficial way that look, we have to do something about the job problem in Cape Breton. Well, do something, help us train our young people, help us educate them. Don't put roadblocks in front of us. But, when it comes to doing it, it is oops. The only thing they like to do at UCCB is build walls and buildings as monuments to themselves and then, when they walk away from it, you say well, excuse me, we need some soap and water to clean the building with. Oh, that wasn't part of the deal, we wanted Mr. MP's name on this, see you later, and it is gone. They don't care anymore. So we are left there holding the proverbial bag again.
When it comes to even stuff like bringing professors from Cape Breton to Halifax, these grants are not considered, the cost of bringing them up. It is just thrown in their general costs. We have to be recognized for that. We still, per square feet, have one of the smallest areas for teaching students, even with these new mausoleums.
Mr. Speaker, this government has to realize the uniqueness of the University College of Cape Breton and spend accordingly. We are not asking to throw money at it, as they often say. All we want is a fair share and a recognition of the uniqueness and a recognition that by educating our children in Cape Breton they will stay in Cape Breton, they will create jobs which, in turn, will create wealth and we will all be the better for it. It is not that hard.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to change gears a bit and talk about my critic area, which is Labour. I am extremely proud that I come from a trade union background, I am proud that I have involved myself in the trade union movement and I am proud of my sisters and brothers who supported me in my election campaign. When we talk in terms of the Trade Union Act here in this province, again something that wasn't mentioned by this government in its Speech from the Throne, things that in other provinces are considered a way of course.
One of those, by way of highlight, would be automatic recognition. Now, for the uninitiated, all that is is if you can show that you sign up a majority of the workers in a certain area, you are automatically certified. No more of this hearing stuff that causes all kinds of acrimony on the work floor and is just another way for employers to drive wedges and it is another way to put a rub against unions and management. I think we should use a nice, clean process.
Another one would be, as it is often referred to, anti-scab legislation, and it is one which would certainly be embraced by most employers. It is only fear of the unknown when people say, oh no, that is the way it goes, you need this stuff. I can assure you that if this government would look at the areas where anti-scab legislation was legislated, you will find that you have strikes of shorter duration, you have less picket line violence and less hooliganism all around because there is no need for it, there is a respect for each other's locations. I think those are two of the issues.
You know, Mr. Speaker, there is another issue I would like to speak about for a short while in the labour movement, and that is the first collective agreement. Another one that I think would go a long way to getting rid of the useless acrimony that is put in place by the adversarial roles of first-time collective agreements. There are the ones where both parties are new to each other at the table. If we were to have this again, it would get rid of a lot of wasted tugging at one another during the collective bargaining process. We could get it out, get them together and they would spend a year with each other, so to speak, and they would certainly find out that they are not the bogeymen that they think each other are.
One of the other items I would like to talk about right now, Mr. Speaker, is about jobs and job creation. It is just so baffling when this government talks in terms of that and when they beat their chest about any kind of economic growth or any kind of job policy. I drive up here just about every weekend. When I drive through my riding to leave, it is shameful with the amount of unemployment. There are people on that side of the floor who are apt to say, we won't be happy until everybody who wants a job gets a job. Well, if they are going to keep this attitude, they are going to be a long time before they are happy. There is nothing creative.
We go to Cape Breton. They go to create jobs. Do they do it in a honest and transparent way? No way. They go and they take their little cartel and they meet and they say, oh, which guy do we cherry-pick from this week? They say, okay, you are the guy that is going to operate this position and you are going to operate that position. So what you have, in effect, is a feudal system that would make the 1800's look tame. Here you are, you work for us or you don't work on Cape Breton Island.
Whether it is their indifference to the coal industry or its their headlong rush into appeasing the people on the Sable project or it is the selling, the giving away of our ports in Cape Breton with the possibility of the Laurentian oilfield/gasfield taking off, basically giving it away to the private sector, after being told by various community groups and, indeed, the municipality, that that is needed for job creation. Yet, this government just wants to saddle up to its federal cousins and take off willy-nilly with it, Mr. Speaker.
It is abysmal when their own government created the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. This government did. They have to take the oil companies to court, and with no support from that government, because they made a sidebar deal with their friends in the offshore. It is pretty pathetic, Mr. Speaker. We are out there. All we want is our fair share. Yet, they are making us, as taxpayers of the Regional Municipality of Cape Breton, spend money we don't have just because they are out there to please the oil companies. It is shameful. It would be funny if it wasn't so serious.
I am not going to speak much longer, Mr. Speaker, but if there is one plea I suppose I could make to this government in its Throne Speech, it would be that they would have to saddle up and do some real job infrastructure. Jobs aren't there. They are not trying to create them in any meaningful way. They do a little hit here and a little hit there, yet they are not doing an