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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Back in 2008 we advocated for better mental health programs and services in the Province. At that time, Mr. Speaker, in questioning in the House of Assembly I received a lecture from the minister of the day as he told the people of the Province that we had a range of mental health services and this Province was second to none. Today, we look at the report from the Child Advocate and we see a very different picture. It is typical of this government to say one thing, Mr. Speaker, while the facts show something very different.

I ask the minister today: Will he commit to finally make child and adolescent mental health a budget priority for his government and to ensure a consistent and therapeutic approach to patient care as was recommended by the advocate?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I can only indicate that as a government we are certainly committed to the youth of our Province, as indicated by the theme in this year’s Budget. As a minister, Mr. Speaker, I have stated on numerous occasions that mental health and addictions is a priority area for me to deal with as Minister of Health.

As for the comments made by the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Speaker, she seems to forget that in last year’s Budget, we announced that there would be a youth addictions centre in Grand Falls-Windsor and that there would be a centre for youth with complex mental health issues in St. John’s. In this year’s Budget, we announced $4.4 million toward the continued planning and construction of these two centres for youth. In this year’s Budget, we announced $2 million for the construction of an adult residential addictions treatment centre.

So, Mr. Speaker, we certainly take this issue of mental health very seriously. Not only will we implement and study the recommendations by the Child and Youth Advocate, we are a long way towards that already, and Eastern Health has started that process.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We remember the announcement on the pre-detention centre, too, for Goose Bay, I say to the minister. So two years of announcements and no delivery on services or infrastructure is hardly fixing a problem at this stage.

The report clearly outlines, Mr. Speaker, the necessity to address program gaps and acknowledge that more psychologists were needed to expand and improve these services. It has come to our attention that the only psychologist that was providing therapy to children in the Province, both on psychiatry at the Janeway and through the Janeway outpatient services, has been suspended from their duties with no plan to ensure that mental health services will continue for those children that need it.

I ask the minister today if he can confirm for me that this is true, and tell us why the mental health needs of the children in the Province are once again being ignored and this position has not been filled.

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I had the pleasure in March of announcing project funding of approximately $432,000 for various groups involved in mental health and addictions. For example, one of the projects was for the Eating Disorder Foundation to get into rural Newfoundland and Labrador and to educate people in those areas of our Province. Secondly, Mr. Speaker, there was an $80,000 project to the Canadian Mental Health Association to put forward an anti-stigma project in schools to educate our children and our youth as to the issues of mental health.

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to announce that in June of this year, Senator Michael Kirby, the author of Out of the Shadows at Last, will be attending this Province. We will have a full day seminar, and Senator Kirby will be speaking the night before to the people of our Province.

Mr. Speaker, mental health is not simply about seeing a psychiatrist or taking a pill. There has to be an approach, we have to look at issues such as poverty, homelessness, lack of education, peer support. So these are the issues, Mr. Speaker, we are exploring, and our children do come first.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I ask the minister again, the only psychologist who was providing therapy to children in our Province, both at psychiatry in the Janeway and in outpatients, have they been removed from their job, I ask you, Minister.

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Mr. Speaker, in this year’s Budget as we have indicated, our theme was our children, our youth. In this Budget, in terms of the enhancement of the Janeway psychiatry services we announced, over a two-year period, an infusion of $1.1 million. In 2009-2010 there was $620,000 toward enhancing child psychiatry services and another $482,900 approved in this Budget.

Mr. Speaker, I can also state that I met with officials in my department today and we will have a mental health consultant who will be assigned specifically to dealing with youth and children issues, just as we will have a consultant who will deal with seniors’ issues.

What we are doing, as a government, we are looking at the issues that we have out there; we are very cognizant of expanding our programs into rural Newfoundland and Labrador. We will continue, Mr. Speaker, to provide counselling, to provide monies for psychologists and psychiatrists and to address the problems that are out there.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister stands up, he tells us that their focus is children and their Budget is all about children.

The only psychologist in the Province providing those services to children has been removed from their job, Minister. Can you confirm that and can you tell us who is providing that service today?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Mr. Speaker, if you read the report prepared by the Child and Youth Advocate in terms of what happened in the Janeway, you will see that the Advocate points out that there is a contextual analysis that has to be engaged in. You have to look at the full picture of the provision of services to our children and youth.

Mr. Speaker, what we are going to do, we will continue to improve the provision of these services, but when we are dealing with our children and youth we also have to educate them. We have to get out into the schools with our drug awareness programs, with our programs such as the anti-stigma program provided by the Canadian Mental Health Association. We have the support groups such as CHANNAL who offer peer support. We have to offer peer support.

We have to help people, Mr. Speaker, help themselves. That is what, as a government, we are trying to do. We are investing enormous sums of money in mental health services, but we operate on the basic premise that people will help themselves and they will help each other. That is what makes Newfoundland and Labrador a unique and wonderful place.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I ask the minister: Yes or no, has this individual been removed from their job?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I can remember when I met with the Eating Disorder Foundation and I heard the wonderful work that was being done by Vince Withers and his foundation and their plans to get out into the Province.

Mr. Speaker, a psychologist we provided this year was for the Eating Disorder Foundation to help them. What we have are groups of people like the Eating Disorder Foundation, we have groups of people like the Consumers’ Health Awareness group, we have people like the Canadian Mental Health Association, and we have Stella Burry. These people are all working with us to provide the services that are needed.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Mr. Speaker, what I say to the Leader of the Opposition: You ask those groups what they think of how our government is approaching things, and the story you will hear will be nothing but positive reinforcement that we are doing the right thing and we are looking after the people of our Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

While the minister stands up here today and makes speeches, the system is crumbling right under him and he does not even know what is going on in his own department. When you have gaps like this in the system, Mr. Speaker, you can all of the groups you want but these kids need speciality services as well.

Mr. Speaker, the report states that there were more mental health programming ten years ago in this Province than there is today. It also states that in the last three years much of the money that went into mental health went into adult services. While urban areas suffer from a lack of programming and services, rural areas suffer even more and are at a greater disadvantage.

I ask the minister: Will his government, today, commit to developing a strategy to addressing the gaps in community wraparound services so that all of our children can receive the proper mental services regardless of where they live in Newfoundland and Labrador?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Yes, Mr. Speaker, over the period of time I have been Minister of Health I have had the opportunity to meet with a lot of the groups who provide mental health services on the ground, to meet with councillors, to meet with groups who provide peer support to each other.

What these groups tell me, Mr. Speaker, is that what our government is doing is the right thing. We are helping people help themselves. We are helping the groups out there in the community to address the issues of homelessness, of lack of education, of lack of self-esteem, of loneliness, of isolation and fear. That is how we are approaching the mental health issues.

Mr. Speaker, we are aware of the issues in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. If I remember correctly – and I am sure the Leader of the Opposition will correct me if I am wrong - last year we announced that there would be a youth residential addiction treatment centre in Grand Falls-Windsor and the Leader of the Opposition stood up and questioned: What we were doing putting something in rural Newfoundland and Labrador? Now, that is my recollection of that.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would not eat the cake on any of those announcements yet. I would wait and see what is going to happen, Mr. Speaker.

In December of 2008, the Psychiatry Unit at the Janeway closed due to a human resource issue, meanwhile these issues had been brought to the administration of Eastern Health five months prior.

I ask the minister: Why didn’t Eastern Health or the Department of Health intervene to correct the staffing conflicts as opposed to shutting down the Janeway unit and transporting these children in handcuffs to the Waterford Hospital where some of them still are today without services?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: There seems to be about six questions in one, but again, Mr. Speaker, if I could start with the report itself. The Child and Youth Advocate, Mr. Speaker, has reviewed the situation. He has looked at it, he has made recommendations. We will look at the recommendations, Mr. Speaker. We will implement and make changes, but I really do not think it is fair for the Leader of the Opposition to criticize these professionals who were working in a very stressful and tough environment at the time, Mr. Speaker. If you read the report, you get the flavour for what was going on at that time and what leads to the unfortunate incident that took place in December.

Mr. Speaker, what we are doing are providing the services to Eastern Health to provide the services to the public. Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition talks about, what are we doing? Well, what are we doing; $2.7 billion we are investing in health this year, Mr. Speaker, more than a billion dollars since ten years ago.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: What I would like to say to the Leader of the Opposition is: What did you do when you were there?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I want to ask the minister - because I just cannot believe the fact that he is sidestepping this issue. This is a situation, Mr. Speaker, in which children were taken out of the Janeway mental health facility and placed in the Waterford Hospital because of a staffing conflict in that facility that Eastern Health knew about for five months. Now, minister, do you think it is acceptable in this Province to close down units for children, hospitalize them in adult facilities because staff has a conflict?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Mr. Speaker, when I look at pages 36 and 37 of the report that is not what the Acting Child and Youth Advocate found. There were certainly issues with the staffing but it is very unfair and it is inaccurate to state that these individuals were transported because of staff problems.

Mr. Speaker, what happened was the Mental Health Act required for the transfer of patients into the secure centre. Unfortunately, the police at that time felt the only way it could be done was by transporting in handcuffs. The Child and Youth Advocate has made suggestions as to how that can be avoided in the future and we will certainly look at that.

Mr. Speaker, also the Leader of the Opposition should know that we have taken all necessary steps to provide the services required for the two young people involved in this situation. Mr. Speaker, money, I can assure you, has not been an impediment in providing the services required.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Unfortunately, as we wait for the construction of our new centre for youth with complex needs, sometimes we will have to send people out of the Province and other times, Mr. Speaker, we will have to take them to the Waterford Hospital, unfortunately.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister also knows that these children were certified in order to be taken out in handcuffs. So there were other options, I say to you minister. In addition to that, I ask you to look at the rest of the report and if your interpretation of it is different than mine, maybe it is time that we got Judge Rorke out and started to explain his findings.

I ask the minister today: Is he prepared to do that?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Justice and the Attorney General.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. COLLINS: Mr. Speaker, the Child and Youth Advocate Act clearly sets out the role and duties of the Child and Youth Advocate. He is an Officer of the House of Assembly. He reports directly to the House of Assembly, to the Speaker. He has no authority or no jurisdiction to report to any individual members of this House, whether it is the Premier, the Opposition, the Minister of Justice, or anybody else. His duties, Mr. Speaker, were to do an investigation in this case and make the recommendations. He has done his job, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Minister of Justice has just indicated that Justice Rorke is an Officer of the House of Assembly. The Minister of Health indicated it yesterday. Mr. Speaker, I will submit a letter to the Management Commission of the House requesting that Judge Rorke come before a public session of the Management Commission to explain the findings of his report.

I ask the Minister of Health today: As a member of that committee, will you support that?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

Before I recognize the hon. minister, I say to the hon. Leader of the Opposition, it is certainly unparliamentary to ask a member who is occupying a seat here as a minister, to ask him direct questions as it relates to the committee that he sits on in the House of Assembly committee. Those questions should be brought forward to the House of Assembly Commission, discussed and debated at that time.

The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I will have to look up that section of the act, because I was not aware of it.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, last week we questioned the government on recent court decisions with regard to Abitibi and their ability to pay the environmental liabilities.

In the Environmental Protection Act case, in section 191, the judge states that, "Interestingly, in this case, the third party consultants (CRA) who issued the reports that formed the basis of the EPA Orders were retained not by the Minister in the exercise of her statutory duties, but by the Toronto litigation Counsel…in the NAFTA proceedings."

I ask the minister today: Can you explain to the House of Assembly why you did not initiate these orders yourself as part of the due diligence process and why it came under criticism by the judge in this case?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we take the issues of the environment seriously. That is why we, as a government, asked that this piece of work be done. Now, Mr. Speaker, the member opposite asked for the reports, I have provided a copy of the reports for her, for her review. I do not know if she wants them or if she does not want them, but they are certainly there for you to read. You can see why we commissioned those, because we have a concern. We wanted to know the issues that are out there in the environment.

That is also why we took it a step further, Mr. Speaker. When we saw that there were health and safety issues in the area of Buchans that is why this government stepped up to the plate and put $9 million into Buchans, to take care of the health and safety issues there.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Although the minister committed in this House of Assembly to do a thorough inventory of all the environmental issues, Mr. Speaker, we understand that there has been no costing done around those particular issues.

I ask the minister today: Why would you complete an inventory on environmental liabilities but not cost that inventory, instead be waiting for Abitibi to provide those figures to you?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Mr. Speaker, by virtue of her very question, it goes to show she does not understand environmental site assessments, Mr. Speaker. I provided her with the opportunity, or her staff, to come over and look at the work that is being done. Those were Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments, Mr. Speaker. That is why we issued the orders to Abitibi to do the next phase which involves risk assessment. When you do risk assessment that is when you know what the cost will be. We asked Abitibi to do that. In the absence of that, the consultants did tell us that there was a health and safety concern in Buchans. That is why we went ahead and did the work in Buchans to the tune of $9 million, Mr. Speaker. I would suggest to the member that the people of Buchans are very happy with this government, that we did that today.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister says she provided us with a copy. She invited us to come and view documents in her office which we have started to do this morning, I would say to the minister. She knows we are going to continue to do that until Friday.

My question to the minister is this, Mr. Speaker: Why are they not costing the inventory? They say they do not trust Abitibi, yet they are putting all of their trust in Abitibi in providing them with the cost of remediation on this project. Minister, why are you not providing those numbers yourself?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Mr. Speaker, I have explained this several times over and over, and somebody said to me on the weekend, they wonder who the Leader of the Opposition works for: Is it the Quebec government or is it Abitibi? They could not figure it out.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MS JOHNSON: Her question certainly speaks to why that person asked me that.

I have explained time and time again, that is why we issued the orders, to get the next phase of the environmental site assessment done, which is a Phase III. It looks at risk assessment. It is up to Abitibi to submit a remediation plan to us. We sign off on that remediation plan and only then will the cost be known because the cost is the responsibility of Abitibi. That is why we are taking it through the court process, Mr. Speaker.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is typical of the government opposite, questioning your patriotism in this Province, Mr. Speaker. How dare you speak against us? How dare you challenge us? Well, Mr. Speaker, if the Minister of Environment was doing her job no one in this Province would have to ask her a question.

I ask her again, Mr. Speaker: Why did she not provide the information for the courts? Why did she not do her statutory duty as a minister and why did they have to get that information from a legal firm in Toronto?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition just does not get it. The reason why we hired somebody to get this work is because we are concerned about the environment. Abitibi had started a piece of work, we asked for this to get a full scope of the environmental issues. There were issues in Botwood, Stephenville, Grand Falls-Windsor, Buchans and some logging camps, Mr. Speaker, and as a result of that piece of work that was being done, we discovered that there was an immediate potential health and safety concern in Buchans. What did we do, Mr. Speaker? We acted immediately. We went out there - twice we went out, the Minister of Health and myself, and spoke to the residents of Buchans. There were exposed tailings; we dealt with that head on. In fact, tenders will go out very soon and work is going to start there in the spring of this year, Mr. Speaker. That is what we did, we take it very seriously.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

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

MR. DEAN: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, residents of St. Anthony have invited our Premier to meetings on the Northern Peninsula and they have travelled to St. John’s, and travelled to Corner Brook yesterday in an attempt to meet with him face to face, and sent dozens of letters and e-mails and phone calls, yet he has refused every opportunity to discuss the issue of the air ambulance with them.

I ask the Premier today: Why has he refused to talk to the people of St. Anthony, and what does it take to get a meeting on such an important issue?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, the representatives in St. Anthony, including yourself, after you were basically shamed into going to visit the Minister of Health because you had not bothered to find out before, decided to go in and see the minister and talk about the air ambulance. The Town of St. Anthony was invited in, and they came in and they talked to the minister about the air ambulance. The minister is handling that particular matter, that particular file. The decision has been made. The decision is final. The decision stands. That air ambulance has to move, thanks to the Leader of the Opposition who raised this in the first place and brought it up and wanted to have this air ambulance moved to Labrador.

As a result of that exercise we undertook a study, and that study has not only proven that St. John’s is the primary site, that Happy Valley-Goose Bay is the secondary site, but in fact now Deer Lake is the third site. So even if, in fact, somewhere down the road there was in fact even a third plane, it would have to go to Deer Lake. So she has basically, completely, ostracized the people on the Northern Peninsula and the people in St. Anthony, but when it comes to meeting, I am not afraid to meet with anybody. I am prepared to meet with anybody, but there is no point in me sitting down with a group of residents from St. Anthony and telling them exactly what the minister has told them and exactly what they have said publicly, and exactly what I said publicly today, that the decision stands.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. DEAN: Mr. Speaker, there has been so much information put forth that discredits the process in the report of Drodge since the decision was handed down by the minister that if this Premier and this government was willing to, and really wanted to do what was in the best interests of the people of the Province, he would have met, he would have reconsidered, and by this time we would have a decision changed.

Mr. Speaker, we know there is a CF(L)Co plane stationed in Churchill Falls that has been used as a medevac over the past couple of years. We have officials of Nalcor who have provided the dates the plane was used in 2008 and 2009 for medical emergencies.

I ask the minister: If the consultant’s report was so thorough, why didn’t the consultant know of the existence of the plane and why could it not have been used in Labrador?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

If I remember correctly, the CF(L)Co plane was used on three occasions in 2008 and 2009, twice to transport residents of Churchill Falls in medical emergencies, and a third time in relation to another resident.

One interesting thing that has come out of this exercise, Mr. Speaker, is we have looked at the staffing at the St. Anthony hospital and it is interesting to note that medical emergency services are meant for emergencies for the airplane to transport people. We have a hospital staff in St. Anthony, as pointed out by the member opposite on numerous occasions, it is very well staffed.

I will say that there are four anaesthetists in St. Anthony for 14,665 people and only five in Corner Brook for 56,000 people. There are more general surgeons, Mr. Speaker, in St. Anthony for 14,665 people than there are in either Grand Falls-Windsor or Gander. The statistics, Mr. Speaker, we have two obstetrics and gynaecology physicians in St. Anthony, none in Labrador…

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The time for answering the question has expired.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, across the country municipalities and governments are making moves to ban bottled water, based on studies that suggest the use of bottled water has negative social and environmental impacts. The City of St. John’s has banned bottled water and so has Memorial University on its campuses across the Province. They are taking a leadership role in sustainable practices. The Minister of Environment and Conservation said this week in Estimates meetings that she is unable to look at a similar policy across government departments in our Province.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the minister: Why can’t the department take a leadership role in relationship to other departments?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Mr. Speaker, I would like for her to table the information where I said that. What I said was, in fact it is not something that I have considered to this point. The question was asked me and it is seriously not something that we have considered at this point.

In the Department of Environment and Conservation, Mr. Speaker, we do not buy bottled water. We use our own plates, our own mugs. We use reusable cloths rather than paper towels, Mr. Speaker. I never said I would not go out to the other departments. I said it was not something that I was considering at this point.

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 will be very happy when we have the copy of Hansard -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS MICHAEL: - to get the copy of Hansard for the minister, Mr. Speaker, so she can see what she said in the meeting.

Mr. Speaker, we were informed yesterday in the meeting that the Department of Environment and Conservation has banned the use of small water bottles and is encouraging the use of the larger water coolers and also encouraging staff to use mugs, but only in one department, Mr. Speaker, and only small water bottles. That is not enough. There are many reasons to reduce the use of bottled water. Bottled water generates tonnes of plastic that goes into the landfill. There are also questions of sustainability of some water sources.

Mr. Speaker, government should be supporting the well run municipal water systems in the Province and inform the public that you can get –

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair is having difficulty hearing the hon. member, but I ask the hon. member to pose their question now.

MS MICHAEL: Yes, Mr. Speaker.

Knowing that turning on the tap gives people cheap, excellent water in this Province, I ask the minister: Why is banning bottled water not on government’s agenda?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MS JOHNSON: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I have to say I am absolutely shocked. We are dealing with an oil spill in Louisiana. We have all kinds of fishery issues that have been before the House. There are health issues, there are other issues in environment and I am getting asked questions about banning bottled water in government -

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS JOHNSON: Mr. Speaker, not to say we do not take –

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Environment and Conservation.

MS JOHNSON: It is not to say that we do not take the issue seriously, Mr. Speaker, but I would certainly suggest that there are a lot of other issues, particularly in the environment that we can address.

Mr. Speaker, I just had a scan around government the other day. There are offices where meetings are held –

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS JOHNSON: - in government that there are no sinks. So, what is she proposing that we do not have anything to drink?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The time allotted for questions and answers has expired.