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Past Liberal groundwork led to good
mining environment in Newfoundland and Labrador
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Kelvin Parsons, MHA for the District of Burgeo & La Poile and Opposition Critic for Natural Resources, says this administration is trying to take credit for increased interest in Newfoundland and Labrador by mining companies and prospectors when, in fact, they have done very little to grow the industry. "If you listened to Kathy Dunderdale on VOCM Open Line yesterday, you would have heard a verbal propaganda campaign claiming that a great increase in exploration and mining activity was started by the Tories,@ said Parsons. A In fact, the Liberal Party initiated most of the programming to grow the industry and make exploration worthwhile, which has led the industry to where it is today. It is evident that the minister was trying to mislead the voters in the Labrador West by‑election. "The Liberal Government introduced several new mineral exploration and marketing initiatives in 1999. Three incentive programs were started to promote mining and exploration in this province. The Dimension Stone Incentive Program(DSIP), Prospectors Assistance Program (PAP), and Junior Exploration Company Assistance programs (JCEAP) were all started to place Newfoundland and Labrador back on the world map. Unfortunately, the minister forgot to mention that the current government cut funding to this program in the 2004 budget. "Newfoundland and Labrador has a world class staff at Natural Resources and that, in partnership with the programming undertaken by our administration, have produced fantastic results for our industry, of which every Newfoundlander and Labradorian should be proud."
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