"Insurance reform is a very important issue in this province today," said Mr. Sweeney. "This government has already implemented a lackluster auto insurance package that will not result in any meaningful savings for consumers. The public was not consulted in the drafting of that legislation and as a result we have an auto insurance package that provides minimal decreases in insurance costs in the province.

"Minister Whalen has committed to public consultations this fall to ensure that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have a say in future reforms. I hope the minister is serious about this commitment and initiates these consultations in the very near future. I hope it is an open and accountable process that will provide an opportunity to everyone who wishes to participate.

"I was disappointed to notice that government received this report in April and it has taken four months to release it publicly. It is important to have all information available to the public and it should have been released when it was received. Unfortunately, there was no mention of this report when we were debating the ill-thought out auto insurance reforms.

"If this government is truly serious about effective insurance reform in the province they must be open and accountable to the people, something that has been lacking over the past ten months on this issue. The people do not want any further unilateral government decisions that will result in little savings. Now is the time to do these reforms in a correct and consultative manner."