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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, earlier today the Minister of Health launched into another tirade against the Province’s doctors, even dismissing a letter from their association asking to get back to the negotiating table and to find a solution to the current impasse.

Mr. Speaker, adding comments like Mr. Ritter is publicly challenging the Premier. Mr. Speaker, we all know that Mr. Ritter is representing the doctors of this Province. The minister went on to say that Mr. Ritter is trying to show Danny who is boss.

Well, I say to the minister today: What kind of an attitude is this, and when are you going to discontinue with your unprofessional behaviour and start dealing with the doctors in this Province, work out a solution so that our patients can have good care?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I always welcome the opportunity from the Leader of the Opposition to allow me to put good news out there, and that is what I will do again today.

We currently, Mr. Speaker, have 1,075 physicians working in this Province, more than we have ever had in the past. In fact, Mr. Speaker, the number has increased significantly, at least by 18 per cent since 2003. Mr. Speaker, in the last year we have had now - the number has increased, for example, by thirty-three physicians in the last year. We have twenty-eight physicians coming into the next graduating class who will practice in this Province.

Mr. Speaker, we have heard that the shortage of psychiatrists – well, what we have seen since 2003 is that the psychiatrists have increased in this Province something from forty-five to sixty-eight. So, Mr. Speaker, there is a lot of good news out there, something that we are doing, it is working. We are recruiting and retaining physicians, Mr. Speaker. So with or without Mr. Ritter, we will continue to do the same.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister knows and the government opposite knows and they have said it on more than one occasion, we have to pay big dollars to get the best expertise, and that applies in the corporate world.

I say to you, Minister: Why doesn’t it apply in the world of health care in this Province where we need to keep doctors and we need to keep professional services? I ask you today, Minister: Will you stop the nonsense that you have been getting on with and settle this particular deal with the physicians in this Province?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I would say that if anyone knows about nonsense it should be that person over there, and there is no excuse for the way she gets on. We can see why she is at 6 per cent in the polls. I can only hope that she is around for the next election, so good luck to the Liberals when you elect your leader.

Mr. Speaker, in this Province right now we have a 24 per cent offer on the table, another $79 million. When you look at the salaries of our physicians, they range from up - there is one physician who makes as much as $1 million. We have physicians, Mr. Speaker, who makes $450,000 - I am looking at a list - $861,000.

So what we have, Mr. Speaker, is a situation where these individuals are well paid. We recognize that they have to be well paid, but, Mr. Speaker, let me put this to you, our recruitment and retention efforts are working and, despite the babbling of the Leader of the Opposition, we will continue to do the things we are doing and it is working.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

What the minister fails to point out is that there are many people in this Province without a family physician. There are many areas of the Province without psychiatric services. There are many people who are on a wait-list today, I say to you, Minister, to get diagnostic testing done in this Province, and what are you doing? You are the one who is babbling on in the public and in the media.

Mr. Speaker, this morning the minister indicated that Mr. Ritter, the CEO or the Executive Director of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association, would be even unable to reach a deal.

I ask the minister today: Are you suggesting that Mr. Ritter will have to go before you are prepared and your government is prepared to deal with the doctors in this Province? Is that what you are saying, Minister?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, what I am suggesting is quite simple. We have a 24 per cent offer on the table, but it is not quite as simple as 24 per cent across the board. What has to happen in order to attain Atlantic parity, some physicians may get 10 per cent or 12 per cent; some others may get 32 per cent. So, essentially, it is Mr. Ritter who will determine who is going to get what. All we are saying is that we have seen nothing to date with the attitude displayed by this individual, with his challenging ways, that he can reach a deal.

Now, I am pleased to say – Minister Marshall has just pointed out to me - that there will be a meeting between Minister Marshall and Dr. Lewis on Friday morning and we are hoping that we can get a deal. Mr. Speaker, we cannot forget what we have done. We have increased the size of the medical school from sixty to eighty seats. We are offering retention bonuses and recruitment incentives that are working. Mr. Speaker, what we are seeing are more doctors come to this Province and stay with a 72 per cent retention rate of doctors graduating from MUN (inaudible) -

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

MS JONES: Mr. Speaker, it is obvious from the Minister of Health that it is all about getting control for him and not about getting a deal. In fact, if the Minister of Finance is wise at all, Mr. Speaker, he will keep him away from the bargaining table and maybe they will be able to get a deal.

Mr. Speaker, at the press conference this morning, the Minister of Health again attacked the psychiatrists in our Province and instead of addressing the huge gaps that exist in our mental health services, the minister prefers to launch into insults and attacks on this particular group of overworked and under resourced professionals.

I ask the minister: Why are you continuing to attack the very people who are trying to maintain stability in a system of health care that is filled with holes?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Mr. Speaker, I did not launch into an attack on psychiatrists. What I said today was that psychiatrists play a very important role in our society, but they are not the only way that we go about dealing with mental health. In fact, contrary to the information being put out by the Medical Association, we have seen an increase in our psychiatrists since 2003 from forty-three to sixty-eight.

Now, what I did indicate today that I think will be of significant interest to members of this House is that we recognize the difficulty with recruiting and retaining psychiatrists, for example, in Labrador and some of rural communities. So, we are going to aggressively pursue now a Telehealth and telepsychiatry project where we can look at having psychiatrists and counsellors provide Telehealth service and hopefully that will alleviate some of the concern, Mr. Speaker.

I have met recently with Dr. Ladha and Dr. Attwood. There is no launching of a tirade against the psychiatrists. What we are simply saying is that we recognize that there are still gaps, but we have gone a long way towards filling the holes.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister knows that there are gaps in psychiatry in whole regions of this Province. I say to you, Minister: At one point when there were actually psychiatrists in Northern Newfoundland and Labrador, Telehealth was the system they used to provide a lot of those services.

Mr. Speaker, in a new advertising campaign launched today by the government, they tout the fact that Newfoundland and Labrador spends approximately $4,500 per person annually for health care services; the most money spent of any Province on health care in the country.

Meanwhile, Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Consumer Health Index report also states that Newfoundland and Labrador’s per capita spending is perhaps the most glaring case of throwing good money after bad in Canadian health care. They indicate that Newfoundland and Labrador –

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS JONES: - Mr. Speaker, is at the bottom of the pack when it comes to providing –

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the hon. member if she has a question, if she would pose it now.

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

They indicate that Newfoundland and Labrador is at the bottom of the pack when it comes to providing quality care.

I ask the minister today: Why are you not prepared to do a full review of the health care system in this Province? Obviously, there is a problem.

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Mr. Speaker, this is a prime example of the Opposition Leader again speaking out of both sides of her mouth. On the one hand we are not spending enough money, give us a third airplane and spend money everywhere. On the other hand we are spending too much money.

Mr. Speaker, the statistics show that we are spending $1 billion more than when the Liberals were in power. Now, I will be the first to accept that we have to look at whether or not that $2.7 billion is being spent as effectively and as efficiently as possible. Mr. Speaker, let one thing be understood by the people of this Province, we are spending the money, we are trying our best and we will fix up this system.

Mr. Speaker, mental health and addictions is a prime example of the significant investment by this government where we are trying to get out there, not simply rely upon doctors but use community groups, use peer support groups and to help people help themselves; $300,000 out in the hands of those community groups goes a long way I am proud to say.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MS JONES: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The minister knows it is not about spending more money; it is about spending money properly. This is a government that has continued to do one-off deals in health care and not deal with the real issues and do the reviews that are required to provide a better service for the dollars that we are investing.

I say to you, Minister, at the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association information session this morning, doctors highlighted the major gaps that exist in the Province’s palliative care system. While there is some semblance of service in St. John’s, in rural areas - rural areas, once again I say to the minister - there is a significant disadvantage.

I ask the minister: With an aging population base and aging family doctors who administer this service, why has your government not developed a succession plan to address this particular crisis?

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

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Mr. Speaker, this is another example of the nonsense that comes out of the mouth of the Leader of the Opposition on a daily basis. On the one hand she is saying you are spending too much money, on the other hand you are not spending enough money; give the doctors everything they want. Well, we cannot do that without money.

The issue, Mr. Speaker, of health care in rural Newfoundland is one that we are addressing. We have an aggressive infrastructure budget and we are dealing with our infrastructure. For example, in all areas of this Province, be it Lab West, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Flower’s Cove, Corner Brook, Grand Falls-Windsor, Gander, the list goes on. Mr. Speaker, what we are also looking at is this whole issue of our aging demographic and how we are best going to serve the needs of these people. We will, as I have indicated in terms of our long-term care strategy, engage in a consultation process in the upcoming months and hear what people have to say.

We recognize, Mr. Speaker, that there have to be creative and innovative solutions to the problems, but the fearmongering and scare tactics of the Liberals will not work with us, Mr. Speaker. We will continue to do what we have to do to spend money wisely.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Minister of Education has indicated that he will be launching an external review of the $5 million mistake related to the College of the North Atlantic in Qatar. We have yet to hear anything about this review.

I ask the minister: Has a consultant been hired, what are the terms of reference of this review, and when will it be completed?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

As the member opposite is fully aware, we announced about seven or eight days ago we would do an external review, and I do not have the name of a consultant to announce today. I will have that in a couple of days, and I will have a term of reference and more information I can share.

I can tell the member opposite and members of the House that we are engaged in discussions with the Qatari officials. Officials from my department, officials from the college, and other government officials have been engaged, and we have started collecting information and data that will be used to inform and to facilitate the external review. At this point in time, Mr. Speaker, I do not have all the information the member is asking, but at such a time that I do, I will certainly provide it here to the House.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

There is significant confusion taking place related to the $5 million overpayment at the college in Qatar. The more the minister speaks, the more he seems to contradict himself. As reported in Qatar’s Gulf Times, Enid Strickland, the President of the College of the North Atlantic campus in Qatar, she says the errors originated in this Province. Yet, as reported today, Mr. Terry Styles, the Chair of the College of the North Atlantic, hand-picked by this government, could not answer specific questions related to the problems.

I ask the minister, as stated by Ms Strickland: Is the lack of oversight here in Newfoundland and Labrador what caused the problem in this case?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of members of the House, I am having difficulty understanding the conclusion drawn by the member opposite that comments made by Ms Strickland and Mr. Styles can be attributed to me not knowing what I am talking about. I did not make the comments by either of those two individuals. I have been very clear from day one in this House that the action this government has taken has been very proactive.

I think the member opposite is fully aware as well by the press release issued yesterday by the college, Mr. Speaker, that the college themselves acknowledge it was their mistake. It was not a government mistake. They also acknowledge, Mr. Speaker, that the action being taken by this Administration is the appropriate action to try and determine exactly why the errors were made, and more importantly, Mr. Speaker, what has to be done to correct the problem.

Now I say to the member opposite, if he wants to spend his time reading newspapers in other parts of the world: Go ahead, fill your boots. In this part of the Province, Mr. Speaker, we spend our time focusing on local issues that matter here in this Province.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

There is no doubt the reason for the confusion. We have Mr. Styles, the Chair of CNA saying one thing, we have Ms Strickland the Chair over in Qatar saying one thing, and we have the minister out saying something else. Yet, the only person who knows the truth and is not allowed to speak is Ms Madill, because she is muzzled by the government. So there is no reason, minister, why there is some confusion out there.

Mr. Speaker, in his press release announcing that problems had been found the minister stated, "I want to assure employees of the Qatar campus that they will continue to receive their current salary for the remainder of their contract." Meanwhile, Ms Strickland stated in the Gulf Times that new contracts had been signed with the affected staff and the situation had been addressed.

I ask the minister: Which version of events is factual, your statements or Ms Strickland’s?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Mr. Speaker, let me remind the member opposite and members of this House why exactly employees who have senior positions in government and in the private sector, why exactly there is a confidentiality clause in contracts, Mr. Speaker. It is because of the kinds of information that individuals deal with. It is the kinds of personal and private information, Mr. Speaker, that individuals deal with.

In the college system, for example, that employee will be dealing with sensitive information around student information, family information, challenges and issues that come before them on a daily basis. They would be charged, Mr. Speaker, with securing all of this information in the performance of their duty for the organization. They come about the information because they are under the employ of the organization. That is why the confidentiality clause is there, Mr. Speaker.

I say to the member opposite, he had no trouble in 2003, Mr. Speaker, when the Minister of Fisheries and the Minister of Justice of the day had contracts with confidentiality clauses in them for their senior officials.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I see we got a long ways there with that answer, figuring out who is telling the truth, him or Ms Strickland. Anyway, we will leave that for another day.

Mr. Speaker, on Thursday the minister indicated that he may, may - he said first he would not, but he said on Thursday in the scrum last week, he said: We may look for repayment of monies that should not have been paid to staff in Qatar. The Chair of the College of the North Atlantic, Mr. Terry Styles, says: no action is likely to recover the cash.

Now I ask the minister: Why is Mr. Styles saying one thing and he saying the opposite? Will we be attempting to recover the money that should not have been paid or not?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: Mr. Speaker, it is becoming very redundant to provide the same answers to this House when the member opposite obviously has no interest in what is happening with the College of the North Atlantic and has no interest in protecting that college from what is happening here right now. The member is more interested in going on and on and on and fabricating things.

Mr. Speaker, I have been very clear from day one, and what I have said is if individuals have signed contracts and the contracts have been honoured then we will honour those contracts. If individuals have been paid monies that they have not been entitled to by contract, then they can expect that we will look for repayment, Mr. Speaker, the same as we would do in any instance in this Province.

I read the press release, Mr. Speaker. I have it right in front of me, and Mr. Styles has said nothing different. He said in the press release, I could quote it if you want me to: that the individuals who have contracts, and the contracts were honoured by the college, will continue to be honoured. Mr. Speaker, nothing different than I have been saying all along.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I say to the minister, the only thing we are interested in pursuing is the truth and trying to get the facts out here rather than leaving the situation muddled and fuddled as this minister continues to do.

Now, Mr. Speaker, last Tuesday the minister stated: It is only about a month and a half ago when the former President of the College decided, without the proper authority and authorization, to sign a one year extension to the current contract in Qatar.

I ask the minister: What is the nature of this extension that you referenced? When did you first find out about it, and what actions did you take as minister once you were made aware of it?

Let’s see if we can get some straight answers on this –

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Education.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KING: I say to the member opposite, if he would mind to sit back and listen to what I am trying to say, Mr. Speaker, you will get straight answers. The problem is not with the straight answers, it is getting straight questions that are relevant to the issue at hand, I say to the member opposite.

Mr. Speaker, I made the statement in this House that in the context of discussing the employment relationship and our relationship with the College of the North Atlantic. I made the statement to demonstrate – the question was asked at that time about the relationship between this government and the College of the North Atlantic and the kind of support, or lack of as the member opposite suggested, that we have been providing.

Mr. Speaker, I talked about that issue in the context of demonstrating that even in the face of adversarial or potentially adversarial situations, we have been there to work with the College of the North Atlantic. I am pleased to say to the member opposite – I am sure he is not going to be pleased to hear this - I met with the College of the North Atlantic board of directors only two nights ago, and they reaffirmed their commitment and support for the actions that this government has taken in support of the college.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. DEAN: Mr. Speaker, the Premier recently received a letter from St. Anthony Mayor Ernest Simms outlining concerns about Health Minister Jerome Kennedy’s behaviour at a recent meeting involving the Town of St. Anthony and the request of the air ambulance decision.

In the letter Mayor Simms stated: Council members were completely taken aback by the callous remarks and insinuations put forward by the minister, and we felt threatened. One of our councillors actually broke down and cried.

I ask the Premier: Is this the kind of behaviour you condone in dealing with people in this Province who disagree with your policy decisions?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

MR. KENNEDY: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I was present at the meeting with the mayor of St. Anthony and town councillors. There were, in fact, three different meetings; one that took place I think two weeks before the other.

Mr. Speaker, I indicated in an e-mail to the mayor after the first meeting that the decision was made, that we would not be changing that decision. They came in two weeks later, they had a report from Labrador-Grenfell employees that they wanted to provide to us.

Mr. Speaker, I was probing as to what the numbers meant. It turned out that the numbers being provided by the Labrador-Grenfell employees were not accurate. The numbers - that is all I said to the individuals there - they have to be accurate. In fact, Mr. Speaker, at the end of the meeting I complimented the mayor and the town councillors of St. Anthony for their passion and their commitment to the town and indicated that despite that decision, it would not change.

Whatever, Mr. Speaker, the perception might have been of the mayor, I cannot change that, but that is not what happened that day.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

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

MR. DEAN: Mr. Speaker, that is a totally different version of events than what the mayor has said in his letter. I have a copy there; I would be willing to table it so that each person can read it.

Also, the chief air ambulance pilot from the Province was a part of that delegation from Labrador-Grenfell. Mayor Simms states that this individual was contacted by the CEO of Labrador-Grenfell Health before the meeting took place and attempted to intimidate him. He also states that the Minister of Health attacked his delegation during the meetings and asked the pilot if he was willing to put his job on the line for his beliefs.

I ask the Premier again: Why is your minister threatening public servants in this Province for simply telling you that a mistake is being made in a policy decision?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, I am sick and tired of the tactics of the hon. members opposite. There is nothing further from the truth. I spoke with the minister before he went to that meeting. I spoke to him after he went to that meeting. Obviously, emotions are running high in that particular area; I understand that. The callous remarks – if you want to talk about callous remarks, we can talk about the remarks that were made by people in the lobby out there.

Those remarks were said and we just said fine, we will take them with a grain of salt, as difficult as they are. The remarks that were made, of course, by the NDP candidate up there on Facebook or whatever the heck she was on were despicable. The Leader of the New Democratic Party did not even stand in this House and separate herself from those remarks or withdraw those remarks or penalize the candidate, but those things went on.

I can tell you, categorically, under no circumstances did my minister behave in the way that you are alleging and that is not correct.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask members to direct their remarks to the Chair.

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

MR. DEAN: Mr. Speaker, I am assuming that is suggesting that our mayor and councillors and people who were in that meeting were lying because the letter very clearly states the tone and the tactics of the minister that day. I just accept it as it is suggested.

The Minister of Health and the Premier continually state that the Town of St. Anthony was consulted during this review. In actual fact, the mayor says a consultant and an official from the Health Department simply dropped by for a chat, as he put it in the letter, again, because he had a bit of spare time between flights from a meeting in Flower’s Cove and going on to Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

My question again is: Why is this type of coffee break meeting – why is it sufficient consultation to be listed in the report by Wes Drodge?

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Minister of Health and Community Services.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. KENNEDY: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the one thing I do know is that the hon. Member for The Straits did not request a meeting prior to the report being prepared. I did not hear any submissions nor did I see anything in writing from the Member for The Straits & White Bay North. So that is one thing we do know for a fact.

Mr. Speaker, in relation to the meeting, there was a –

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MR. KENNEDY: We spent five or six hours in the meeting.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask the hon. minister to conclude his remarks.

MR. KENNEDY: Yes, Mr. Speaker, there were other officials present at this meeting. We have received a lot of e-mails that have been very emotional from the people of St. Anthony. I certainly have not replied to any one in a way that is disrespectful. Mr. Speaker, on that particular day we certainly questioned and probed the numbers that were being put forward. Do you know what, Mr. Speaker? At the end of the day they accepted that the numbers (inaudible).

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

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

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

Mr. Speaker, the Premier said on Monday in response to questions about the current environmental assessment disaster in the Gulf of Mexico that he wants to –

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

I ask members to my –

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The Chair has recognized the hon. the Member for the District of Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi and the hon. member has four minutes to ask questions and receive answers here in this House. I ask members not to interrupt and allow the hon. member for the time that she has been allotted.

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

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

I was talking about a comment made by the Premier with regard to his belief in best practices and the fact that he is in constant contact with his C-NLOPB about what is happening in the Gulf of Mexico.

Mr. Speaker, being in constant contact with the C-NLOPB is not the same as questioning whether the C-NLOPB can do its job when it comes to safety and the environment. The Province’s ownership stake in the offshore which I agree with, I agree with having an ownership stake, places this government in a conflict of interest when it comes to protection of workers and environment in the offshore.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh, oh!

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

MS MICHAEL: Mr. Speaker, I ask the Premier: Will he promote the establishment of an independent agency to protect our workers and environment in the offshore?

MR. SPEAKER: Order, please!

The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question.

I just want to clarify that I said the government was in contact with the C-NLOPB; I did not say myself personally. As I understand, I think some of the senior officials right now are in Houston.

From a perspective of monitoring this, we are monitoring it very, very closely. As a matter of fact just before I came to the House today, I was in a discussion, a conference call with senior officials to get an update as to exactly where we are, what our response protocol was, what we would do in the event of an oil spill. As I was going through that process, I was considering to myself it would not hurt to have someone independent, whether on a contractual basis or whatever, right now to look and see exactly where we stand vis-à-vis best practices, where we are in our own offshore here in Newfoundland and Labrador and to monitor exactly what is going on in the Gulf of Mexico. So, I share your concerns generally as to what degree we go, but I do not think it hurts sometimes to have an objective analysis of exactly what is going on.

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, as I have mentioned in this House before, Norway set up an independent petroleum safety agency whose job is to protect workers and the environment, and it is separate from their petroleum board. One of the reasons they did that was to have a group that was objective with the companies they are working with. Because the petroleum board there, just as here, works to promote the offshore oil development through land sales and at the same time, being responsible for environment puts them a bit in conflict.

So, I ask the Premier: If the Premier would recognize that kind of an independent agency as a group that would be more objective with regard to working with environment issues and safety issues?

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Premier.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, I cannot react on the fly to that because there are some significant constitutional issues. For example, Norway is a country, and our country is Canada, we have the Accord issues, we have the constitutional issues that are there in the offshore. So what our jurisdiction would be to set up any kind of an independent board when it comes to issues such as safety, which are now governed by the C-NLOPB, we may be restrained. It is certainly something - I would certainly have a look at that model to see if, in fact, it works in any manner whatsoever.

However, what we can do within our authority as a provincial government - and as I said before, I would certainly like to have somebody now just exactly monitor what is going on to make sure that at the end of the day what we do here in Newfoundland and Labrador is as good or better than anywhere else in the world.

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

MR. SPEAKER: The time allotted for questions and answers has expired.