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Oral
Questions
May 28, 2008
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| In the House | Question
Period
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, an Assistant
Deputy Minister of Health testified yesterday at the
Cameron inquiry that briefing notes she had prepared
were changed by others within the department without her
notification.
I ask the Premier today: Is
it an accepted practice within your government that
officials are permitted to change briefing notes without
advising or checking the accuracy of those changes with
the original author within those departments?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. WISEMAN: Mr.
Speaker, the person the member opposite is referring to
is an assistant deputy minister in my department,
responsible for board services, and she is testifying
before the Cameron inquiry. I think this is her second,
if not third, day that she is appearing before the
inquiry, and over the course of that period of testimony
she is providing her knowledge and insights in terms of
the knowledge she had around the issues surrounding the
ER-PR testing, the involvement she had on behalf of the
department, any functions she may have carried out,
whether it is the creation of briefing notes, providing
advice to the minister or providing advice to others,
and the interaction she may have had with the health
authority.
I say, Mr. Speaker, she
is on the stand as we speak, and I think she is due to
be there again this afternoon, I believe, Mr. Speaker. I
think it is important, while she is giving her
testimony, it is important to allow her that process, to
provide a full picture, a full picture –
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
I ask the hon. minister
to conclude his answer.
MR. WISEMAN: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
- and, in the spirit of
the member’s request from last week, allow the inquiry
to unfold. When her testimony is completed, then we will
have an opportunity to chat with her and others about
the information that they did have.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
The minister might note
that my questions have nothing to do with the individual
in question but have to do with a practice that is
ongoing within government departments. Mr. Speaker,
there were changes that were provided, that had
inaccurate information. That information was given to
the minister and, in its essence, provided in the House
of Assembly.
I ask the Premier today: What
actions are being taken within your government to
correct this problematic process and to ensure that
inaccurate information is not fed to the House of
Assembly on other occasions by your ministers?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. WISEMAN: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
I said a moment ago, Mr.
Speaker, it is inappropriate for me or anyone else in
this House to comment on testimony that is being made as
we speak, but I can comment on testimony that I gave,
personally, when I was there.
I had indicated very
clearly to the commissioner a process that has changed,
that changed since last year, I say, Mr. Speaker, the
manner in which we sign off on briefing notes.
Historically, briefing notes were prepared by officials
in the department and they may or may not ever come
across a minister’s desk.
We have a mechanism now
in place, Mr. Speaker, where briefing notes are
prepared, they are signed off by - and they may be
prepared by anyone in a particular department. They are
signed off by a senior official, and they make their way
through to the minister’s office, and the minister, in
fact, now signs off on briefing notes and dates them.
So that is a change we
have made as a result of insights we gained last year as
we discussed this total issue.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
We know the notes are
prepared, we know they are often changed without
authorization, and we also know that oftentimes they are
not read – but, Mr. Speaker, legislation introduced by
government to remove accountability and oversight
provisions of the Energy Corporation, including the
Access to Information Act, the Auditor General’s Act,
the Citizens’ Representative Act, and the Public
Tender Act, is very significant and unprecedented.
I ask the Premier: Did
the government consult with the Auditor General for his
input before this legislation was drafted?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr.
Speaker, what the government has done on this is
basically hired the best experts they can, involved the
best expertise, looked at jurisdictions throughout
Canada, looked at jurisdictions throughout the world,
and have developed the best model for the people of
Newfoundland and Labrador.
The intent here is to
have this Energy Corporation maximize its return,
maximize its profits, maximize its dividends, become a
very, very profitable asset, owned by the people of
Newfoundland and Labrador. That is our sole goal.
The restrictions which
the hon. Leader of the Opposition refers to are very,
very narrow restrictions, and that is to ensure that
this company can be successful, that it can operate in a
competitive environment, that it allows itself to enter
into partnerships with major corporations around the
world who would not enter into these partnerships if not
for these provisions.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
The legislation does
override important acts within the House that offer for
transparency and accountability.
I ask
the Premier if there was consultation with the Auditor
General before drafting this legislation. I also ask if
there was any consultation taken with the Citizens’
Representative as well.
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr.
Speaker, the Transparency and Accountability Act, in
fact, applies to this corporation. The Access to
Information applies to this corporation. The Auditor
General Act applies to this corporation. It cannot only
be audited by the Auditor General; it will be audited
privately. There will actually be an annual meeting
every year. There will be disclosure to the shareholders
at the annual meeting. It will operate no different than
any other public company on the stock exchange.
That is all consistent
with the way corporations operate, and that is all
intended to make sure that it is an open and accountable
and transparent corporation, but at the same time it has
to have a chance. It has to have a chance to survive, it
has to have an opportunity to succeed, and I can tell
you quite clearly that if these provisions are not there
then the Hebron deal would go down, because the equity
provision that is in the Hebron deal would not take
place if corporations like ExxonMobil and Chevron and
Petro Canada and Norsk Hydro had to open their guts to
the world.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
I ask again, because the
legislation overrides other acts of the House of
Assembly that governs things like the Auditor General,
the Privacy Commissioner, and the Public Tender Act, I
ask again: Did government
consult with the Auditor General, with the Privacy
Commissioner, Mr. Speaker, with the Chief Purchasing
Agent who oversees these acts of legislation within the
Province?
MR. SPEAKER:
Order please!
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Mr.
Speaker, this act does not override the Transparency and
Accountability Act. It does not override the Auditor
General. It does not override our ATIPPA legislation.
What it does is constrain how commercially sensitive
information gets reported.
We are responsible for
transparency and accountability to the people of this
Province. It is in that matter that we undertook the
research that we needed to do to ensure that this
company had what it needed to succeed in the
marketplace, but at the same time that we were
accountable to the House of Assembly and to the people
of Newfoundland and Labrador, and here is where we are
going to have the consultation and the debate, Mr.
Speaker.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Mr.
Speaker, there was no consultation with any of these
individuals.
Let me ask the Premier
this question, because under the new legislation the
Auditor General’s responsibilities will be stifled and
he will not be permitted to publicly report certain
information related to the energy corporation.
I ask the Premier: Why
is it important to stifle the Auditor General and hide
information inside of this corporation that should be
exposed to the public?
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh,
oh!
MR. SPEAKER:
Order please!
I ask members for their
co-operation.
The hon. the Premier
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr.
Speaker, there is no attempt here whatsoever to stifle
the Auditor General. In fact, what is happening here is
the Auditor General can perform the duties that he or
she performs under the act under normal circumstances. A
complete audit can actually take place.
The only thing, the only
narrow issue on which the Auditor General is restricted
is on the release of commercially sensitive information.
For example, if ExxonMobil have some new technology that
allows them to drill 300 miles below the ocean that is
proprietary and no other company has it, if that was
disclosed in a partnership with us and the Auditor
General is aware of it, he is not allowed to disclose
that type of information. These are commercially,
competitive proprietary pieces of technology that are
not allowed to be disclosed. There is an example of the
type of situation, what it does not have.
If the Auditor General
though, finds that there is a problem and he has concern
during his audit, then what he can do is he can disclose
to the public that he has a concern, he can make that
report to the House of Assembly and then he can go to
Cabinet with the specific problem and it can be dealt
with at the Cabinet level. So the safeguards are
actually in place.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Mr.
Speaker, I guess it needs to be defined, the
commercially sensitive aspects of this, but the
reporting mechanism that is available to the Auditor
General under this legislation is not consistent with
the authority to report on every other government
department and agency, or Crown agency. Instead, Mr.
Speaker, as the Premier said, the information has to go
to the Cabinet. There is no saying the Cabinet can bury
this information for up to twenty years if they want to
or so choose.
So I ask you, Premier: Is
this an acceptable accountability regime under which
this energy corporation should operate?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: First
of all, this is not a Liberal Cabinet, this is a
Conservative Cabinet. So -
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: The
second distinction that is important here is that this
government is about no more giveaways, it is about
increasing the value of Newfoundland and Labrador’s
natural resources. It is making sure that we get the
best possible return from those resources and as a
result, we have taken it on the chin over the last few
years in attempting to get extra royalties and
attempting to get equity and a fairer shake from the oil
companies. We have fought it head on and we won. This is
now -
AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible).
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Yes,
sure. We signed a deal a few years ago or perhaps we
could have signed the Lower Churchill deal that the
crowd opposite wanted to sign, the big Grimes giveaway.
They were all party to that and they were all party to
Cabinet. So, what we are trying to do is enhance the
value of the people’s assets in this Province so that
the people can get a better return, and this is how we
are going to do it.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
I want to remind the
Premier that laws that are set in this House of Assembly
do not only apply to your government but also to
successive governments.
Mr. Speaker, the energy
corporation and its subsidiaries will also be exempt
from the Securities Act. The Securities Act governs
private companies, as the Premier will know, and
certainly the companies that are involved in
negotiations that they deal with.
So I
ask, Mr. Speaker, why is it that the energy corporation
and its subsidiaries will be exempt from the Securities
Act while other private corporations have to comply?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr.
Speaker, the precedents that we are using here - we have
gone all around the world and we have looked at success
stories, and we just have to go a little bit west and we
go to Quebec and we see the success of Quebec Hydro.
Now, you know, part of their success has been done on
our backs and, hopefully, over time we will be able to
correct that and remedy that and straighten it out.
We have also gone to -
looked at Manitoba Hydro. We have gone to Denmark, we
have gone to Norway. We are even looking at corporations
like Petrobras and Statoil, of course, in Norway. So
what we have done is, we have looked at all of these
regimes and we want to make sure that we put the best
regime in place here that safeguards the interests of
the people of Newfoundland and Labrador but allows us to
build one of the best corporations in the world. That is
really what our goal is here, to make sure that the new
energy company, which has yet to have a new name or a
new brand, is the very best that it can be so that it
brings the very best possible returns to the people of
Newfoundland and Labrador and becomes an asset and
becomes a corporation that we can be truly -
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
I ask the hon. the
Premier to conclude his answer.
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
It becomes an asset that
we, as people of Newfoundland and Labrador, can be truly
proud of.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, the new
energy corporation and its subsidiary companies will
also be exempt from the Public Tender Act.
I want
to ask the Premier today, if he can tell me what is in
the Public Tender Act that actually prevents the energy
corporation from carrying out its goals of contracting
for services and developments in this Province?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, this
government is very supportive of the Public Tender Act.
In fact, until we came to power, Mr. Speaker,
Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro did not have to - we
brought the Public Tender Act to Newfoundland and
Labrador Hydro. In terms of the nature of the work that
the energy corporation will be undertaking, they will
all be very large projects. We are talking about oil and
gas developments. We are talking about the Lower
Churchill. We are talking about big wind development. In
these cases, Mr. Speaker, the Public Tender Act does not
give us what we need in overall value of the project,
ensuring that we have the overall value and the best
interest of the development project taken care of. We
need to do that.
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
I ask the hon. minister
to conclude her answer.
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
There are also principles
of adjacency that we need to apply, that we will not be
able to apply using the Public Tender Act.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
It is so funny because I
would say to the members opposite, they like to support
the Public Tender Act when it suits their need because
they certainly did not use it when they did the fibre
optic deal as well.
Mr. Speaker, the Public
Tender Act has several clauses that allows for exemption
under certain circumstances.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh,
oh!
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
MS JONES: I
ask the Premier today: Where do
you feel that the Public Tender Act is deficient in
terms of not being able to meet the business needs of
this new energy corporation?
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
The hon. the Minister of
Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
When we are planning to
develop a project, the one thing that we have to be
absolutely sure of, before we let a contract, is that we
have overall value, that the expertise is there, that
all of the benchmarks that we require are going to be
set and be able to be met by the people who are doing
the work. All of that work has to be done beforehand,
before we let a contract; not developed after the fact,
because that is when we lose control.
In terms of the Public
Tender Act, yes, we could apply for exemptions but they
are time-consuming. Project after project that we are
considering within this Energy Corporation are very
large contracts, and if we have to take time to work
through exemptions we will cause delays. Delays will
cost us millions and millions, if not billions of
dollars.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Mr.
Speaker, the legislation not only applies to the Energy
Corp when it comes to the tendering act, but all of the
subsidiary companies will also be exempt. These are
companies that have not yet been set up and, Minister,
you are asking us to give them carte blanche the
opportunity to go out and purchase whatever services and
contracts they want without going to public tender.
I ask the Premier: Do
you feel it is acceptable that we would give this
authority to subsidiary companies that do not even exist
at this stage in the Province?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
We understand the scope
of work that is going to be undertaken by the
subsidiary. In terms of Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro,
we are more than happy for the Public Tender Act to
apply. It makes sense in terms of the regular work, the
regulated work of that utility, that the Public Tender
Act apply.
In terms of what we are
doing in our subsidiaries, Mr. Speaker, they are all
very large projects. As I said, it is going to be oil
and gas development. It is going to be wind development.
It is going to be the Lower Churchill development. These
are projects costing in the hundreds of millions of
dollars, if not billions of dollars, where timelines are
extremely important.
We need the overall
value, so we need to know who is going to do the work,
we have to be assured that they are going to be able to
deliver, and all of this has to be done in a timely
manner.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: I
say they should all be accountable to the public, too,
Minister.
Any subsidiary companies
of this Energy Corporation that may be created will not
be set up as Crown agents is what I understand, and
therefore will be subject to the guidelines that govern
private corporations.
I ask the Premier: If
these corporations are supposed to exist to benefit the
people of the Province, where is the public control on
behalf of the people?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr.
Speaker, as I said, the controls are in place. You have
to remember that these are all subsidiary companies that
will have some overlap on the board of directors. There
will be some different control aboard the board of
directors from the energy company, the parent company,
down to the subsidiary companies. So, the controls are
in place to make sure that at the end of the day the top
of this pyramid is Ener Co. It is a new corporation, and
it has oversight of all those assets, so hopefully there
will be a very profitable wind corporation, there will
be a very, very profitable Lower Churchill Development
Corporation, there will be A, B, C, D and E very
profitable oil corporations, there may be E, F, G, H, I,
J gas corporations, and then there will be Newfoundland
and Labrador Hydro which is already a very successful
corporation.
So, it is intended to
sort of spread our subsidiary corporations, to spread
out the risk as well, but to make sure that there is
general oversight in Ener Co., and the shareholder of
Ener Co., the Energy Corporation, are the people of
Newfoundland and Labrador.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Mr.
Speaker, we know that government appoints the board of
directors for the Energy Corporation. Maybe the Premier
can tell me who will appoint the board of directors for
each of the subsidiary companies.
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr.
Speaker, that will be done in conjunction with the
advice of Cabinet, and as well in discussions with the
CEO of the Energy Corporation, because in these
corporations we want to make sure that we can get the
best possible people in the world, if possible.
Now, surely we would
certainly like to have them 100 per cent Newfoundlanders
and Labradorians, and if that is the case, and they
happen to be the experts in those areas, it will be 100
per cent Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
We are able to draw on
expertise, though, from people who are international
experts in their field, and they may be sprinkled on
these boards to give us the kind of expertise and the
kind of knowledge that we need to do the best possible
job and get the best possible return at the end of the
day.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
Back in the early 1990s -
and everyone in this Province will remember this - the
former Administration considered the idea of privatizing
Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro but significant public
debate, as you will know, stopped that particular idea.
I ask the Premier today: With
the secrecy and lack of accountability that will
surround the new Energy Corporation, what protection is
there that information will be made to the public should
a future government decide to sell off or privatize
sections of that corporation, such as one of the
subsidiaries or shares that subsidiary might hold?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Premier.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
PREMIER WILLIAMS: I
cannot predict what could happen if John Efford was the
subsequent Leader of the Liberal Party and eventually
took over a government after he ousted the Leader of the
Opposition, and I cannot predict what might happen if he
appoints Danny Dumaresque as Chair of Hydro at the end
of the day. I cannot predict any of that; but, having
said that, I can assure the Leader of the Opposition
that these corporations are in good hands. This is being
done in a proper manner. It is being done to the best of
our ability. The safeguards are in place to make sure
that the public interest is protected; but, as well, we
also have to balance that with the fact that these
corporations have to be very, very competitive and have
to be in a position whereby they can maximize their
returns to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, and
that is what we are doing.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
Our concern is that there
is public investment dollars within the new energy
corporation and we know that some of that money is going
to be used to purchase shares in the Hebron deal, if
that is a successful negotiation.
Mr. Speaker, we want to
ensure that there are accountability measures if some
aspect of shares in that subsidiary is being sold off
and done so without full public disclosure, and I ask:
What provisions are provided for in the legislation to
ensure that that does not happen without full public
disclosure?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
There is one shareholder
to this company, and it is the people of Newfoundland
and Labrador. This company is answerable to the people
of Newfoundland and Labrador.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: In
terms of transparency and accountability, the Auditor
General is in there. We will have consolidated annual
reports. We will have consolidated annual, audited
statements. We will have a public annual general
meeting.
Mr. Speaker, in terms of
our consideration, given what the Premier just said, we
are building in every safeguard we can, just in going to
the ends of our imagination and even considering the
fact that John Efford could be Premier and Danny
Dumaresque could be CEO, we are making sure that this
company is in good shape and (inaudible).
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
The hon. the Leader of
the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
My next question is for
the Minister of Natural Resources as well, and it is on
the insurance of water rights on the Lower Churchill
River being transferred to the Energy Corporation. I
guess my question is that bill extinguishes the rights
of individuals or groups on the Lower Churchill River
and its tributaries from any compensation or recourse
within the courts, is what I understand.
I ask the minister today:
How does that impact on those
who have traditional rights and historic rights and
attachment in and around that river and the tributaries
that lead into it?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I can only
assume that the Leader of the Opposition is referring to
Aboriginal rights, and there is no legislation that we
have, that we can pass in this House, that extinguishes
Aboriginal rights. The only way that Aboriginal rights
can be extinguished is by voluntary surrender or by an
amendment to the Constitution of Canada. This
legislation does not impact at all anyone who has
Aboriginal rights with regard to the Churchill River.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.
MS JONES: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
My question was not just
restricted to Aboriginal groups but to other traditional
users or people that would occupy and use that
particular river.
I guess my next question
to the minister would be: Has
there been any consultation with Aboriginal groups or
other groups within the Labrador region that would have
been traditional users or continued users of those
rivers?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Mr.
Speaker, this legislation provides us with a tool, a
mechanism to award water rights. That is all it does.
Right now, in terms of
all other rivers in this Province, they are governed
under the Water Resources Act through the Department of
Environment. There is only one exception to that, and
that is the Churchill River. The Lower Churchill
Development Act gives us the mechanism to award those
rights to LCDC, the Lower Churchill Development
Corporation Limited, but that is all we can do. We are
restricted in that piece.
We have decided that our
Energy Corp. is going to provide the lead on the
development of the Lower Churchill, therefore we need a
mechanism to award them the water rights. All this
legislation does is give us the mechanism, the tool to
do that.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for the District of Signal Hill-Quidi
Vidi.
MS MICHAEL: Thank
you very much, Mr. Speaker.
I actually have a
question that will follow up directly to the answer that
the minister just gave. I recognize that rights cannot
be taken away, especially Aboriginal and Treaty rights
because they are affirmed in section 35 of the
Constitution Act, 1982. However, I think any piece of
legislation we have should be very clear about that
recognition.
So I ask the minister:
Would she be open to making amendments to this act,
making it clear that that section is honoured by this
piece of legislation?
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Mr.
Speaker, we have had this discussion. It is not
necessary to amend this legislation for protection of
Aboriginal rights. The only way that Aboriginal rights
can be extinguished is by voluntary surrender or by a
change to the federal Constitution. That is the only
way, Mr. Speaker. Amendments are not required.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER:
The hon. the Member for the District of Signal Hill-Quidi
Vidi.
MS MICHAEL: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
I think I differ with the minister but I am going to
wait until the bills come to the floor and we have full
discussion. I think there are questions to be asked and
I think that the Aboriginal peoples are asking those
questions as well.
I would like to come back
then to another issue that the minister has already
given some answers to, and it has to do with the Public
Tender Act. The minister has confirmed what we were told
this morning by people from her department and by
Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro about the act not being
flexible enough to deal with mega-projects, and I
understand that.
I ask the minister: Was
any thought given to mending the Public Tender Act, so
that our Public Tender Act could deal with large
projects and give the flexibility so that we do not
have, even if exemptions have to happen, that we don’t
have to have costly delays - could amendments be made to
the act itself?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
Yes, Mr. Speaker, we
considered that. We looked very closely at the Public
Tender Act. Our government has as its hallmark, openness
and accountability and transparency.
The Public Tender Act
means something to this government, and so we look for
ways to apply it. There are even some pieces of the
Public Tender Act now that allow for exemptions. We have
looked to see if they would apply, if they could
facilitate the kind of work that the Energy Corp. is
going to be undertaking, and it cannot, Mr. Speaker.
So we need to have this
exemption for this company to function properly and do
the work on behalf of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians,
and ensure that it is done using best possible practices
which get the best return for the people of the
Province.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Member for the District of Signal Hill-Quidi
Vidi.
MS MICHAEL: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
In the briefing that we
were given this morning, we had quite a bit of
discussion about the Public Tender Act. The officials
there did point out to us that our act is in conflict
with some other important things, like our energy plan,
like the Atlantic Accord, and things such as adjacency,
local benefits, full and fair opportunity, and first
consideration for employment and business do not get
covered under the Public Tender Act.
So I ask the minister:
Isn’t it time to bring the Public Tender Act into line
with the goals of government for developing our economy
according to these principles?
MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Minister of Natural Resources.
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear!
MS DUNDERDALE: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
I am happy to report that
a review of the Public Tender Act has already taken
place, by my colleague in the Department of Government
Services. |
