MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the crab industry is on the brink of a collapse this season and there has been an impasse between the processors and the harvesters for a number of weeks now. We understand that they have been asking government to lead the charge to find a solution.

I ask the minister today: We understand that there are proposals that have been submitted to your department and we ask if you can tell us what is contained and if government is prepared to look at implementing some solutions to this impasse right now?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

There is one thing that is certain, that government cannot force harvesters to harvest nor can they force processors to process. One thing that we can do and one thing that we have done, is to encourage both parties to sit down at the table and come forward with a proposal.

It is about two weeks ago, Mr. Speaker, that I called together the representatives from the ASP and from the FFAW. For the very first time those parties sat down at a table to try and find some resolution here. They came forward last week and asked for meetings. One of the things that I did indicate to them is that I wanted something and I wanted it in writing. I did not see the point of meeting until they had something on paper that we could discuss and react to.

Mr. Speaker, as of 2:30 on Friday they submitted that proposal. We went back on Sunday morning with a series of questions and to that point we have not gotten a response, but, Mr. Speaker, I can inform the people here and the people watching that I intend to meet with both parties as of 2:30 today, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The last time I asked the minister questions in the House with regard to this industry he was on his way to meet with the groups involved and I think that meeting lasted about ten minutes, Mr. Speaker, and then he threw his hands up in the air and walked out of the room.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS JONES: So we will see what happens this afternoon.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, we understand that the questions that the minister had with regard to these proposals had to do with issues such as pricing in the marketplace, what the risk would be for government investment, what the accountability and transparency measures would be if there was to be some form of initiatives or programs allocated.

I ask the minister today: Why you are not engaging in face-to-face to find the answers to these questions -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MS JONES: - to find the answers to these questions as opposed to providing –

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the hon. member to pose her question.

MS JONES: Why has the minister been waiting since Friday, in the middle of a crisis knowing what this means to communities and families all across the Province and not responding to it?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, I do not know if she did not hear the last part of my response or not, but I said we are meeting at 2:30 p.m.

The other thing, Mr. Speaker, is it seems that she has substantial inside information as to what was in the proposal. I have no intentions, Mr. Speaker, of distributing that to the media. It seems that some of the discussions that she is having, she may want to disclose as to what is in there.

Mr. Speaker, I am meeting with the people as of 2:30 p.m. From Friday until today, Mr. Speaker, we have been in the office reacting and analyzing the proposal that has come forward. We are waiting for the response, and I assume, Mr. Speaker, that they will have a reply to some of the questions as of 2:30 p.m.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

What the minister has been doing is absolutely nothing only pushing paper and stall tactics in this industry, and waiting for all the parties to wear themselves out and hope that the industry will open at the end of the week. That is the kind of action that the minister has been taking.

I ask the government, Mr. Speaker: In light of the fact that many of these workers today, in this industry, are receiving their last cheque, the last bit of income that they will get for the rest of the season, what has your government done to look at the impact on communities as a result of this industry not opening? Because at the rate it is going now, Minister, you are not making a lot of progress to make that happen. What will be the impact on those communities, and how are you going to respond to it?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, her lead-in could not be better.

I spoke to an individual last week, a plant worker, who, the year before last, his bi-weekly income was $506. Last year, it was $367, Mr. Speaker.

Ask her to go and speak to some of the plant workers. One lady told me if you want to see how things are working in the plant, look at the lunch cans to see how many bottles of Tylenol are in them so that they can get through a day.

Mr. Speaker, we cannot continue with drivel like this, we have to see action, we have to see change, it is incumbent upon us, but is also incumbent upon the other two parties to make sure that they lay themselves open to make progress, Mr. Speaker. She can be a part of making that happen, instead of being continually criticizing.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I do not need that minister or any minister on the other side to tell me what the impact of this industry is, and what the income loss has been to plant workers and fishermen.

Mr. Speaker, what this minister needs to do is take some action. Your government has had six years to start dealing with the problems in the fishing industry in this Province, and you have raised your head above it and ignored it.

I ask you today, Minister: You are going to the meeting at 2:30 p.m., what are you bringing to the table? What investment is your government willing to put on the line for the fishing industry in this Province?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, I think if you check back through the years it is a bit naive to think that she can lay it at our feet. Mr. Speaker, I heard tell of licenses being passed out at the Glacier at one point. I can assure you we will not be at that.

Mr. Speaker, what we are going to start to do, if the other parties will engage, this MOU process has the opportunity to make significant changes within this industry; and that is what all of this process is about, it is about ensuring that those parties sit with us to make changes. We cannot snap the fingers and change it. It has not happened for the past 500 years, but we are more than willing to sit with all parties to see what it is we can do.

I am hoping, Mr. Speaker, that both sides will come forward with something as of 2:30 p.m., because, as I have said before, up until about two weeks ago these two important parties has not even sat at a table.

One thing that we can say that we have achieved is that over the past week, or week-and-a-half, they have sat pretty regularly, and I hope that they come forward with a good offer, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister talks about what the other groups are bringing to the table. They have been pushing paper through your office for weeks, proposal after proposal, and initiative after initiative.

The question to you, Minister, is: What are you bringing to the table today?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, I can tell you one thing that I am not going to put to the table - I said it on Friday - and I have said to both of the parties: I am not interested in bringing forward to this government or the people of this Province a huge sum of money that will open a fishery for this year and that we find ourselves back in the same situation next year. We have done that for year after year after year, but, Mr. Speaker, what has it accomplished? It accomplishes that every spring we are back in the same situation, so something has to be done different.

Hopefully, the both sides that I am going to meet with at 2:30 p.m. will sit with us and that we can find a way forward, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Maybe if the minister and his government had done something year after year we would not be in the situation we are in today either, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the government commissioned two studies this year: one that was done by Deloitte & Touche for the harvesting sector to look at cost structures, and the other one by Grant Thornton to look at the processing sector and cost structures.

I ask the minister: Why are these documents not being released to people in the public and in the industry so that there can be engaged a full public debate about what this industry is all about? You have the information; why are you not releasing it?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. JACKMAN: Mr. Speaker, more importantly than that I have the information, it is equally as important that the harvesters and the processors, those being the ASP and the FFAW, have the information.

Mr. Speaker, at this particular point, I am not ready to release that, and on some advice, that we not do that. The most important thing in both of these reports, Mr. Speaker, shows that the viability of plants and harvesters are not sustainable and they are not viable under the current environment. Mr. Speaker, that is what the MOU process is all about. We have to do things differently.

This information will direct us and as such, at some point, maybe the people that she is speaking to might want to advise her if she is getting some of that information, but at this point, Mr. Speaker, I am not ready to release that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Seven weeks ago, the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association submitted a written proposal to government outlining their position as it relates to contract negotiations. At the time, the Minister of Finance stated that a written response would be forthcoming. Seven weeks have passed. We understand nothing has been received.

I ask the minister: When will you respond to the offer by the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MARSHALL: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Just to correct the premise of the hon. the Leader of the Opposition’s question, there was a letter dated March 3, but the letter contained a number of requests for further discussions. So the letter could not be responded to until the further discussions took place. One of those discussions was set for late March; that meeting was cancelled. When Treasury Board tried to reschedule the meeting, we were told that they wanted a written response to the letter, and that response goes out today, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, over the past two weeks, the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association has held a number of information services regarding the workload and staffing challenges that are facing internists, emergency room doctors, and family medicine physicians in the Province. They are claiming that we are reaching a crisis stage unless there is some recognition and action from government to look at these problems.

So I ask you, Minister: In your response today, will you be coming forward to meet some of the demands of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MARSHALL: Mr. Speaker, as I said, the letter goes out today. The letter will respond to the proposal the doctors prepared, dated March 3.

Out of courtesy to the doctors, I would like them to see the letter before I state what is in it, out of courtesy to them, but I think it is fair to say that the offer the government is making is in the range of the $80 million that the doctors had announced they were seeking at their recent press conference. That is in the range of Atlantic parity, and I will ask the doctors to return to the table so that we can continue discussions to complete an agreement that is fair and reasonable -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. MARSHALL: - to the doctors and recognizes concerns they have raised, but at the same time, is fair to the taxpayers of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, in the absence that negotiations between the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association and the government is not concluded in a timely manner, under the Canada Health Act it allows for provinces to settle negotiations with physicians through binding arbitration. This is something that the government to date has refused to look at in dealing with physicians in our own Province.

I ask the minister today: Is there any particular reason why the provisions of the Canada Health Act are not being considered or implemented in the absence of an unsuccessful negotiation?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, government has already indicated that it is not prepared to consider binding arbitration. We worked very hard on a counter proposal now, which the minister has indicated will be ready this afternoon. There is now an information process going on with the NLMA whereby they are bringing out doctors and showing some of the hardship, and we are very sympathetic to the hardships that are being demonstrated and we are doing whatever we can to alleviate them.

I want to let the hon. members know that not everything is well within the NLMA. I had an e-mail from a doctor, representing a group of doctors, who has indicated "… not all physicians working in this province agree with the statements made by the NLMA…We have been legislated to be members of the NLMA hence are forced to accept their decisions whether we are in agreement or not...we are subjected to what is essentially mob politics, being outvoted in any decision which we object to."

So these things need to be sorted out within the NLMA, between themselves, among the doctors, among the executive, to make sure that they are onside. When they get a uniform position and they are united in their position, it will be much easier for us to come up with a resolution. In the meantime, in the absence of that we will certainly be proceeding and that letter will go out today.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The fact that government did settle with certain groups of doctors outside of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association is probably no wonder why there is some conflict within their own organization, Mr. Speaker.

My next questions are for the Minister of Natural Resources. I ask the minister: If she can confirm for me today that the Province, through Nalcor, does own a King Air aircraft located in Labrador?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Natural Resources and Deputy Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS DUNDERDALE: The answer to the question, Mr. Speaker, is yes, they do.

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Maybe the minister could tell me what that aircraft is used for, what the purpose of it is, and how many hours are logged on it in flying time throughout the year?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Natural Resource and Deputy Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS DUNDERDALE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to think that I am pretty good at my job but there is certain information I do not have at my fingertips. The King Air is used for the business of Nalcor in the Province and sometimes outside of the Province, that I do know, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, in terms of the other questions that she has put in terms of flying hours, I will get that information and provide it to her.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is our understanding that this aircraft has been used for air medevac services out of the Churchill Falls region in the past. I would like to ask the Minister of Health and Community Services, in reviewing air ambulance services and being able to provide for approved services in the whole Province, especially in Labrador, I ask the minister: If any consideration was ever given to using this aircraft, which is already owned by the Province, to have it based in Labrador as a third air medevac for Newfoundland and Labrador?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In a letter today to the Leader of the Opposition, I outlined or attached statistics for the last number of years in relation to the use of planes in this Province in air ambulance. I have seen - and these are statistics compiled by our department. It shows search and rescue, The Commander was the previous plane in St. Anthony. The King Air in St. John’s, the King Air in St. Anthony, helicopter and charter wing fixed aircraft which were provided by private companies. I see no reference nor do I have any reason to believe that the Nalcor plane which belongs to Nalcor was utilized for air ambulance. It is certainly not on this list but I can tell from the question that she has obviously been speaking to some of the people of Lab Grenfell, so they will probably answer the question for her.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I feel that the aircraft is owned by the people of the Province through Nalcor.

I ask the minister: Why was this plane not taken into consideration when looking at the reconfiguration of air ambulance services? It was based in Labrador. It was able to be used, and why was that not part of the consultants review in improving the services to the people of the Province?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Last week, or the last couple of weeks, I forget when exactly, I met with the provincial director of the air ambulance service and I met with both the medical director and the paramedic in charge of air ambulance service, and I discussed with them how many planes do we need for this Province. The indication given, Mr. Speaker, and the premise upon which the report was prepared was that we need two air ambulances in this Province, based on statistics we now have with the numbers. We need the Twin Otter located in Labrador, to go to the Coast of Labrador, particularly the North Coast, and, Mr. Speaker, we need to have charter companies available to do both in-province transfers and out-of-province transfers. For example, Mr. Speaker, over the last number of years there has been contracts with both Provincial Airlines and EVAS Air.

So the short answer to the question, Mr. Speaker, is that air ambulance as configured right now, in terms of the numbers, require two dedicated aircraft, the King Airs, it requires a Twin Otter and the availability of charter services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Will the minister admit that the truth of the matter here is that this review of air ambulance services was done ad hoc? It left out whole areas of terms of reference. It did not look at all of the options within the Province to be able to provide for a better service.

I ask you, Minister, will you not go back and consider all of these particular options before you implement any movement towards air ambulance?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Yes, Mr. Speaker, over the last period of time I have met with the Town of St. Anthony on three occasions, as late as last week. They were difficult meetings, Mr. Speaker. I indicated to the Town of St. Anthony at that time that we would not be reviewing this decision. I met with the MHA for The Straits & White Bay North prior to coming into the House today, and again, I indicated that the decision was made and we would not be reviewing the decision.

Mr. Speaker, in a letter written to the Premier some time ago the Leader of the Opposition referred to a diminished service in the rest of this Province, or the Island portion of the Province, as a result of moving of the air ambulance to Labrador. Mr. Speaker, in 2009, approximately 61 per cent of the air ambulance flights in the Island portion of the Province, not including St. Anthony, were done out of St. John’s, and 13 per cent were serviced by charter aircraft. So, 74 per cent, Mr. Speaker, of that 603 other, referred to by the member opposite at one point, were done out of St. John’s and will continue to be done that way.

Most importantly, Mr. Speaker, now all areas of this Province, including Lab West, will be within sixty minutes of an air ambulance service; something that did not happen, Mr. Speaker, when the plane was located in St. Anthony.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of The Straits & White Bay North.

MR. DEAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, according to briefing notes prepared for the Minister of Health back in September, a committee was formed to review all air ambulance services in the Province, including air ambulance. This committee consisted of senior employees of the Department of Health, Department of Transportation and Works, Eastern Health, Labrador-Grenfell Health and other key stakeholders.

So, my question to the minister is: Why was the work of this provincial committee put aside and instead an independent consultant hired to review one aspect of that overall service?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Yes, Mr. Speaker, that committee that is being referred to was put together as a result of incidents that have occurred in Lab West, I think, around July 15, and then subsequently in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

It dealt with, Mr. Speaker, how the services were delegated, not how they were provided by aircrafts. For example, Mr. Speaker, if a referring facility needed an air ambulance they would call the medical communication centre at Eastern Health. The medical communication centre would then deal with Government Air Services over the Department of Transportation and Works. So, we had these various agencies: We had the referring hospital, Labrador-Grenfell, Eastern Health, Government Air Services, this committee was put together to study whether or not – as Mr. Drodge indicated in his report, and he did recommend that they should be under one umbrella. Mr. Speaker, that committee was not put together, nor were they asked to look at the issue of where the location of the airplane should be. When you look at the recommendations of Mr. Drodge, they outline, Mr. Speaker, the location of the airplanes, but also other avenues for improving the delivery of air ambulance services in this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of The Straits & White Bay North.

MR. DEAN: Mr. Speaker, will the minister confirm that the Terms of Reference in the scope for this provincial committee was much broader than given to the consultant and will he also confirm that a preliminary report has been completed by that committee?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

One of the issues we are still looking at is how to best organize the air ambulance service in terms of the placement of calls, whether or not it should be done through Eastern Health in terms of the dispatch. I am not aware of any report having been completed by that committee, Mr. Speaker. However, I am aware, from discussions with the Eastern Health personnel, that they feel the best way to deal with the air ambulance would be to have a medical decision made, especially when it comes to the utilization of charter services because there is one plane that is faster than the other.

Mr. Speaker, what we have is a committee that was an intergovernmental, interdepartmental, interagency committee that was looking at the question of how air ambulance should be dispatched.

Mr. Speaker, that is something that Recommendation 6 of the Drodge report, he states, "The air ambulance service should be organized as a single program with a single administrative structure." That is something we are certainly looking at.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of The Straits & White Bay North.

MR. DEAN: Mr. Speaker, in the October 13 edition of the Northern Pen, the minister, just taking over the department at the time, stated that a lack of consultation on the proposed cuts to the Flower’s Cove Health Care Facility was a problem and he promised to consultant more of the people of the region.

So I ask the minister today: If you are truly going to live up to this commitment, why was there so little consultation with stakeholders on the Northern Peninsula as it relates to this service that you are taking away today?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

If the member remembers correctly, on December 15, 2009, the Leader of the Opposition presented a petition to this hon. House with 3,000 names asking to have the air ambulance service moved to Labrador.

So, in light of the incidents that have occurred, Mr. Speaker, my meetings in Lab West and Happy Valley-Goose Bay on November 27, then debated in this House of Assembly on December 15 and 16, we had to have this matter reviewed, as I indicated I would, on December 14, 2009.

Mr. Speaker, we moved forward. There was consultation in terms of reviews with the Towns of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, St. Anthony, and Lab West, but when it comes to making government decisions, Mr. Speaker, we hired a consultant. The purpose of the consultant’s report was to ensure that the recommendations were objective and reflected what was necessary and best for the people of this Province, but more particularly the people of Northern Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mr. Speaker, the numbers speak for themselves. We did not make these up. We have been accused of playing politics. The numbers indicate that there are twice as many flights out of Labrador as there are out of St. Anthony, Mr. Speaker, and the population in Labrador is approximately twice that of the St. Anthony–Port au Choix region.

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.

Mr. Speaker, earlier in Question Period, the Premier stood in this House and quoted an individual doctor saying that he or she is not pleased with the NLMA. This action is not unlike the kind of divisive actions taken by the Premier and the former Health Minister in 2008, Mr. Speaker.

I am going to ask the Premier: When will he stop playing these kinds of games and grandstanding and deal with the issue, which is a crisis in our health care system because of their lack of coming to an agreement with the doctors?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, if this e-mail ended up in the hands of the Leader of the Opposition, she would question me on it and then would ask me why we were not being open and accountable and transparent.

The reason for disclosing this is to indicate that the NLMA does not have its act together, that they are not united among themselves. It is very difficult, and I do not know if you have had any involvement or any experience in negotiation, but it is very difficult to negotiate with an executive who does not know what it is doing. If it does not have a strong mandate from its own people, then how in the heck do we possibly, as a government, try to come to terms with them?

So, I have a letter from a doctor, representing a group of doctors, who said that he does not agree with the statements that are being made by the NLMA. He is also making a suggestion here that there is mob rule in the NLMA. This is internal; this is not something I am making up. This is something the public needs to know. We want to get this finalized, we want to get this negotiation settled and we want to bring peace to this whole situation, but for you to try and allege that I am doing something wrong....

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Member for the District of Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL: I hope for his sake, Mr. Speaker, the day does not come when the Premier has somebody from his backbenchers saying something against him and his executive, because he will say it is not the individual you have to listen to, it is the executive you have to listen to.

I saw and heard the Premier pull exactly the same kind of grandstanding up against the nurses, yet eventually he had to bow down and they had to come to an agreement. He pulled the same tactics.

Is the Premier going to stop grandstanding and deal with the issue of negotiating with the elected representatives of the doctors through their NLMA?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Thank you for the Sermon on the Mount. That was lovely; I really appreciated it. I do not need a lecture from you or anybody else, I can tell you that much.

We are trying to get this resolved. There is a letter that is going out this afternoon that is putting $79 million of public money on the table and offering close to Atlantic parity which is exactly what the doctors have been looking for. What more do you want?

You are just trying to grandstand, you are trying to make small-p politics out of it, you are trying to make us look bad and everything else, when we are trying to do the best thing, we are trying to protect the public purse. All the social things that we have done in this Province, whether it is in health care, it is on the municipal side, it is on the education side, it is in human resources and poverty reduction, it is never enough for you! There is never enough money around because all you want to do is criticize; get on the bandwagon!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Member for the District of Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

When it comes to the issue of the impasse that the government is in with the doctors at this moment and based on public comments the Premier has made, I do not have to do anything to make him look bad because the public sees the things that he has said. He has done it himself, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, during this –

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the hon. member to pose her question.

MS MICHAEL: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, during the last seven weeks at least one thing has happened, we have had doctors speak out about what they are experiencing; the difficulties they are experiencing as family physicians, as ER doctors, as internists. The stories have been out in the media; they are telling us what they are going through.

When will this government stop dealing with things piecemeal and acknowledge that we have major problems in our health care system and need an external review of this system, Mr. Speaker, I ask the Premier?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, what did we do when the ER-PR situation came up? What did we do when the oncologists wanted to meet? What did we do when they wanted to have a raise? We acted immediately. We gave them a significant raise which virtually put them close to Ontario parity. So we stepped up immediately.

What have we done as a government? We are now up to, I guess, close to $2.6 billion or $2.7 billion. That is what we have done; we have dramatically increased it. We have put money into information technology. We have put money into equipment. We have put money into long-term care facilities. We have put money into nurses.

AN HON. MEMBER: (Inaudible) nurses.

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Yes, we have settled the nurses. Are you trying to get my goat because we bowed down? I will bow down to anybody if we want to get an agreement. This is about getting an agreement and bringing good health care to the people of the Province; not playing cheap, dirty politics like you do. Holier than thou, the Member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!