LEGISLATIVE
ASSEMBLY OF
Tuesday,
March 3, 1992
The House met at 1:30
p.m.
PRAYERS
ROUTINE
PROCEEDINGS
PRESENTING
PETITIONS
Ms. Becky Barrett (
Mr. Daryl Reid
(Transcona): Mr. Speaker, I beg to present the petition of
Karen Kulik, Natalie Monkman, Servillena Beltran and others requesting the
government show its strong commitment to dealing with child abuse by restoring
the Fight Back Against Child Abuse campaign.
Mr. Dave Chomiak
(Kildonan): Mr. Speaker, I beg to present the petition of
Steven Hay, Randy Maxwell, George Williams and others requesting the government
show its strong commitment to dealing with child abuse by restoring the Fight
Back Against Child Abuse campaign.
INTRODUCTION
OF BILLS
Bill 18‑The
Franchises Act
Mr. Jim Maloway
(Elmwood): Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the member
for Concordia (Mr. Doer), that Bill 18, The Franchises Act; Loi sur les
concessions, be introduced and the same be now received and read a first time.
Motion presented.
Mr. Maloway: Mr. Speaker, Manitobans have lost large
amounts of money buying franchises in various companies over the last few
years, everything from $5,000 for alarm franchises to $8,000 for computer
franchises up to $100,000 for travel franchises.
This bill will do several things. One, it will require the franchise companies
to file a prospectus with the province.
It will require that monies paid up front by franchise buyers will be
kept in trust until all the promises of the franchise company are made good on,
such as advertising and other things. It
will provide that franchises would have a protected area, a consistent
contract, because that is a major problem in the business. With the consistent contract, there would be
consistent requirements for cash investments, guarantees in terms of their
equipment, fixtures, royalties, fees and other conditions. It is hoped that this bill will address a
growing problem in
Motion agreed to.
Introduction
of Guests
Mr. Speaker: Prior to Oral Questions, may I direct the
attention of honourable members to the gallery, where we have with us this
afternoon, from the
On behalf of all honourable members, I
welcome you here this afternoon.
*
(1335)
ORAL
QUESTION PERIOD
Ducks Unlimited
Headquarters
Impact
Tourism
Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of
the Opposition): Mr. Speaker, recently I was listening to a
Manitoban who was stating that he and his family, when they were down at the
Minnesota State Fair, received a number of pamphlets and material opposing the
Ducks Unlimited complex in Oak Hammock Marsh.
It appears to me that, when one starts to
look at the list of organizations across
I would ask the Acting Premier: What impact will this growing negative international
fight against the Ducks Unlimited complex have?
What impact will it have on the thousands of people who rely on tourism
in
Hon. Glen Cummings
(Acting Premier): Mr. Speaker, actually I think the Leader of
the Opposition has overlooked the fact that this facility will very likely
become a tourist attraction.
Certainly he is overlooking the fact that
this marsh has been expanded, that the facility being built there is to provide
education, education being one of the key reasons that we can bring people from
other areas, people from within the province to look first‑hand at the
opportunities to, close‑up, see the action that is being taken in that
marsh and gain an appreciation for the real attributes that we have in that
marsh.
Mr. Doer: Mr. Speaker, it sounds like the same kind of
answers we had on chlorine bleach a couple of months ago from members opposite,
total inability to predict the future and therefore to predict the future
markets. That is what we see from
members opposite in terms of dealing with issues in front of them.
Funding
Withdrawal
Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of
the Opposition): My question is to the Acting Premier. Given the fact that organizations right across
Hon. Glen Cummings
(Acting Premier): Mr. Speaker, again the Leader of the
Opposition is wrong. He is trying to
spread fear and innuendo regarding this project in the jewel of the marshes of
this country. It is pretty obvious to me
that he has no appreciation for the fact that people want to be able to have
access to view the activities that are going on there. He is overlooking the fact that some 80,000
people per annum visit that marsh today.
He is overlooking the fact that this will become a major attraction, a
major educational centre. I think that
the type of comments that are coming from the Leader of the Opposition are the
very type of comments that drive people away from this province.
Mr. Doer: Mr. Speaker, the members opposite told us we
were fearmongering when we said that we should not proceed with chlorine
bleach. Let the records show who was
right and who was wrong on predicting the future in this province. It is not the members opposite. If you look at the list, The Manitoba
Naturalists Society, the conservation federation of
Federal
Environmental Assessment
Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of
the Opposition): A further question to the minister, the Acting
Premier.
We have seen the recent decision on the
I would ask the minister, will this
project now require, under the
*
(1340)
Hon. Glen Cummings
(Acting Premier): Mr. Speaker, as is his
wont, the member will look at the
*
(1340)
Conawapa
Dam Project
Public
Utilities Board Referral
Ms. Marianne Cerilli
(Radisson): I have a report commissioned by Hydro on the
long‑range, demand‑side management plans which demonstrate its
ability to conserve more than twice as much power as originally thought before
the PUB hearings. The demand‑side
projections help explain why the need for Conawapa in the projections was off
by some 12 years and why the government must re‑examine the plans for
Conawapa, as it has with Repap.
I would ask the Minister of Environment,
has he received and reviewed this report which would recommend from an
environmental point of view that they would update Hydro's conservation plans
and refer the Conawapa project back to the PUB?
Hon. Glen Cummings
(Minister of Environment): Well, Mr. Speaker,
the member totally overlooks the range of figures that were provided in front
of the Public Utilities Board. As the
ultimate regulator responsible for licensing, I suggest it would be
inappropriate for me to comment much beyond that.
Ms. Cerilli: Can the Minister of Environment explain why
this report, which was tabled on November 2, 1991, was not part of the PUB
hearings and why this demand‑side management study was not done before
those hearings, which would have been the environmentally responsible thing to
do?
Mr. Cummings: Mr. Speaker, the corporation is constantly
upgrading its demand, its load and dealing with the conservation side of its
responsibilities. As I have said
earlier, I will take the details of the question as notice for the minister
responsible.
Conawapa
Dam Project
Public
Utilities Board Referral
Ms. Marianne Cerilli
(Radisson): In keeping with the
government's constant queries for suggestions, I would like to ask the minister
if he will recommend, based on this report that the demand‑side
management projections give, to develop an incentive program for the senior
officials with Hydro so that we can see the implementation of some of the
demand‑side management programs which will fulfill these projections.
Hon. Clayton Manness
(Minister of Finance): Well, Mr. Speaker, I
think the members opposite will have an opportunity, once The Loan Act is
tabled in this House, to ask certain questions with respect to the conservation
programs associated with Manitoba Hydro and indeed their programming over the
next year. There is a component,
significant component, I might add, that will be directed toward incentives and
rebates, and indeed to the development of the plan.
As a matter of fact, today in Treasury
board, I had an opportunity to see the global funding that is going to be
directed toward conservation efforts. It
is significant, and I can assure the member that she will be happy with that
information once it is tabled.
Constitutional
Issues
Bilateral
Negotiations‑Quebec
Mrs. Sharon Carstairs
(Leader of the Second Opposition): Mr.
Speaker, my question is to the minister responsible for the Constitution.
Yesterday, the Premier (Mr. Filmon)
indicated that
Will the minister tell this House if this
government is in favour of bilateral negotiations between
Hon. James McCrae
(Minister responsible for Constitutional Affairs): Mr. Speaker, the honourable member will recall
the responses made by the Premier to her questions yesterday in regard to
this. She will recall the Premier indeed
made the point that
Among those, of course, is the position
*
(1345)
Mrs. Carstairs: I can only assume, therefore, that this
government is quite happy with a bilateral negotiation between
Mr. McCrae: Of course, it would be our wish that
I do not take the honourable member's
preamble as she would put it, in the sense that I believe firmly that
Aboriginal
Representation
Mrs. Sharon Carstairs
(Leader of the Second Opposition): I think
the principle is that we should all be treated equally, and we are not if we
enter into bilateral negotiations between the Government of
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the aboriginal
community indicated their pleasure and their delight at the recognition of the
inherent right to self‑government in the Dobbie‑Beaudoin report.
They also raised a very serious concern, and that concern is that there is now
going to be discussions about the devolution of powers, that powers will be
moving from the provinces to the federal government and from the federal
government to the provinces.
Will the constitutional minister tell me
if
Hon. James McCrae
(Minister responsible for Constitutional Affairs): I think that
Of course, with respect to aboriginal
issues, aboriginal issues affecting aboriginal people in this country, it is
going to be important to receive the input of aboriginal leadership and
ordinary, if I can use that word, aboriginal people across this country.
Policing
Services
Municipal
Costs
Ms. Rosann Wowchuk (
The most important issue facing towns and
municipalities as they prepare their budget for the upcoming year is policing
costs. A committee of urban and rural
councillors has been struck to discuss this issue, and they have completed
their report in which they made five recommendations of how the issue should be
addressed. The minister has had this
report since January but has not taken a position.
Can the minister provide us with a copy of
the report and tell us when he is going to take some action and make some
decision on these recommendations?
Hon. Leonard Derkach
(Minister of Rural Development): Mr.
Speaker, I thank the critic for her question.
I would like to say that I received the Charlie Hill report about a week
after I was appointed Minister of Rural Development. At that point in time, the report came to me
without the signatures of the participating MAUM or UMM officials, which raises
some concerns about whether or not they had completely endorsed the
report. As a result, I thought it was
only fair that municipalities throughout the province would have some idea as
to what was contained in the report.
We have now circulated an executive
summary of the report to municipalities, and we have asked for their responses
to the options and the recommendations that have been made by the committee
that was put together to study policing costs in this province. Once those recommendations or responses are
in, Mr. Speaker, we will be in a position then to move forward in terms of
implementing some of the report's recommendations.
Ms. Wowchuk: Mr. Speaker, one of the difficulties people in
rural municipalities and towns face is that this government changes their
Minister of Rural Development every session and then‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
*
(1350)
Ms. Wowchuk: I would like to ask the minister, if he is
not going to take action on this report, will he meet with the committee and
councillors and give them some assurance that he is not going to change his
mind after they prepare their budgets, which they are doing right now? They do not want to face the same thing they
did‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. The question has been put.
Mr. Derkach: Mr. Speaker, I have met with both executive
groups, both UMM and MAUM. We have
discussed this issue, and I think the critic of Rural Development was at a
meeting in
Ms. Wowchuk: Mr. Speaker, I was at that meeting, and the
people were certainly disappointed. If
they cannot take steps on this report, how can this government proceed with a
proposal to change policing boundaries?
They say they have to consult on one, but they have not consulted with
municipalities on changing the boundaries.
Have you told municipalities what the impact is going to be? Are they going to have‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
The question has been put.
Mr. Derkach: Mr. Speaker, I think the member is just
alluding to some of the difficulties that we face out in
Post-Secondary
Education
Accessibility
Ms. Jean Friesen
(Wolseley): Mr. Speaker, the
concrete results of this government's funding of post‑secondary education
are that the doors are closing for young Manitobans. In just one faculty at the
My question for the Minister of Education
and Training is: What programs or plans does she have in place for those
students across the province who will now be denied access to university?
Hon. Rosemary Vodrey
(Minister of Education and Training): Mr.
Speaker, the issue of a university education for Manitobans is of great concern
to this government. I will remind the
honourable member that we as a government have had to set priorities. We have asked school divisions to set
priorities. Universities have also had
to set priorities in line with what can be offered within the financial limits.
Ms. Friesen: Mr. Speaker, what action has the minister
taken to deal with the additional 20 percent increase in student fees anticipated
at
Mrs. Vodrey: Mr. Speaker, as the member said in her
statement, it is anticipated. We do not
yet know the results of the budgets, and we have not tabled our budget in this
House at this time.
Community
Colleges
Funding
Restoration
Ms. Jean Friesen
(Wolseley): Mr. Speaker, will the minister make the
commitment today that she refused to make last week, to restore the more than
10 percent that her government cut from community colleges last year and to
reopen at least those opportunities for
Hon. Rosemary Vodrey
(Minister of Education and Training): Mr.
Speaker, as I said last week in response to the question, the range of training
opportunities and educational opportunities for Manitobans are very important
to this government, but we will have to wait until our budget is tabled in this
House to make any commitments.
*
(1355)
Health
Care System
Licensed Practical
Nurses' Role
Mr. Gulzar Cheema (The
Maples): Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister
of Health.
Last week I asked the Minister of Health
some questions regarding the future of LPNs in
Last week the minister indicated that the
unemployment rate for the graduating class of LPNs at St. Boniface was 19
percent. Mr. Speaker, according to the association, there is an unemployment
rate of only 1 percent for this particular class.
Is the minister going to stand behind his
information, or is he going to correct his record and tell the people of
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, my
honourable friend raises a very important issue. The information that I provided to the House
last week, when this question on the future of LPNs came up, was information
that I had about the employment status at graduation from the St. Boniface
General
Subsequent to that, I have been informed
that the association has tracked some 19 of the 22 graduates from the March
1991 graduating class of Practical Nursing at St. Boniface. All 19 of those are employed whether it be full
time, part time or casual. The three that they cannot locate to complete the 22
graduates may well be out of province.
Both pieces of information appear to be correct.
Mr. Cheema: Mr. Speaker, can the minister tell us why he
stated that he had no knowledge of the recommendation of the board of the St.
Boniface Hospital that they close the LPN program when, according to LPN
Association, the deputy minister of the Department of Health was present at the
meeting of the 27th of November '91? At
that time, the hospital director stated that he will be making their
recommendation.
Mr. Orchard: Mr. Speaker, I have never said that I was
unaware of that being an issue for discussion at St. Boniface, including at the
board level. I have never made that statement. My honourable friend better be a little more
accurate. What I have said, though, and
this is‑‑[interjection] I
have never said to my honourable friend in answer to any question that I was
not aware of the discussion being at St. Boniface. As a matter of fact, yesterday, in answer to
the question of the official opposition critic, I said, I know the issue has
been discussed at St. Boniface, so do not try to confuse the issue.
What has not been presented, Mr. Speaker,
to myself and to my deputy minister is any request to close the school, and
until they do, I cannot comment around whether they will in fact ask for that
to happen or not. Until I have that
request from a hospital, I surely cannot be expected to react to a hypothetical
question.
Mr. Cheema: Mr. Speaker, can the minister tell this House
when the decision regarding the moratorium on LPN training at Red
Mr. Orchard: I would hope that kind of information can be
made available and the moratorium issue at
The purpose, Mr. Speaker, is to exactly
remove the uncertainty around moratoriums at
Rent
Regulations
Rollbacks
Mr. Doug Martindale
(Burrows): Tenants in
What is the minister responsible for the
Rent Regulation Bureau doing to ensure that increases which cannot be justified
are rolled back and the savings passed on to the tenants?
*
(1400)
Hon. Linda McIntosh
(Minister of Consumer and Corporate Affairs):
Mr. Speaker, the way in which the policy works is this: The landlord gets an approval of, say, 5
percent because he has had a tax increase.
The tenant can appeal that. The
bureau can approve that. If the tenant
feels it is too high, the tenant can appeal.
If, during the course of that appeal, the landlord has his taxes
reassessed and put down, then the department at that time has the right to move
the rent increase back to the appropriate level. Once the appeal is made, that is it. However, it is picked up again in the next
year when the rent application considers the fact that the previous year he got
money back from taxes.
Mr. Martindale: Will the minister direct her staff in the Rent
Regulation Bureau to enforce the act when subsequent applications are made,
instead of having the director say, we are thinking about it and worrying about
it? What direction will this minister
give so this does not happen again?
Mrs. McIntosh: Mr. Speaker, our policy is as I have
outlined. If there was a refund or a change in the tax assessment as the result
of appeal on tax reassessment, it is picked up the next year and the adjustment
made the next year.
Education
System
Special
Needs Funding
Mr. Dave Chomiak
(Kildonan): Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister
of Education. The problems with
government chronic underfunding of education is not helped by the government's
publication of inaccurate information.
Can the minister clarify why the
department and herself persist in stating that special needs has increased by
42 percent this year when this is impossible, since special needs funding
totalled $51 million last year and the increase of 42 percent would equal $22
million, which is beyond what the government is giving to the total public
education system of the province of
Hon. Rosemary Vodrey
(Minister of Education and Training): Mr.
Speaker, there is most certainly an increase in the area of special education
funding. The figure of 42 percent is
very important because it signals money that is available very specifically for
the area of special education, and it signals this government's commitment to
that special need.
Mr. Chomiak: It is a pity the figure is wrong. It is not 42 percent.
I am asking the minister my
supplementary. When will this government
live up to its promised commitment of funding 80 percent of the costs of
special needs rather than the less than 50 percent that it is funding today?
Mrs. Vodrey: Mr. Speaker, we are attempting to meet
commitments to all Manitobans within the amount of money that Manitobans
presently have and can afford to pay for education.
Mr. Chomiak: My final supplementary to the minister
is: While she reviews these commitments,
I wonder if the minister could undertake to inform me why she is going to 64
percent of the funding of private schools and special needs remains at 50
percent or less?
Mrs. Vodrey: Mr. Speaker, the funding for independent
schools has not yet been announced, but I would like to remind my honourable
friend that any funding for independent schools is for operational only and
does not include capital.
Taxicab
Industry
Luxury Cab
Proposal
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
Does the honourable member have a question? Kindly put your question.
Mr. Lamoureux: My question to the minister is: Does this government endorse the decision
made by the Taxi Board to increase the number of taxis on the road?
Hon. Albert Driedger
(Minister of Highways and Transportation): Mr. Speaker, I want to indicate to the
member that we have a Taxicab Board which has been appointed, and it is a quasi‑judicial
board. That Taxicab Board has the right
to make all kinds of decisions. They
have gone through a very difficult two years of having hearings and trying to
address some of the concerns within the taxicab industry. They have made some decisions, and it is
within their jurisdiction to make those decisions.
Mr. Lamoureux: Why did the government not indicate that we should
have upgraded, if they want luxury cabs, 40 of the current cabs to luxury? Mr. Speaker, we do not deny that the public
want‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
The question has been put.
Mr. Driedger: I think many people will take exception to the
statement that the Taxicab Board has shafted the industry. Let me just indicate, Mr. Speaker, that I
think it is approximately 40 years that we have had 400 licences within the
province, and it has never changed. In
the hearings that the Taxicab Board undertook, they felt by the response that
came in that there was a demand for a special upgraded cab within the industry
within the city.
When you consider the increase in
population from the time that we had 400 licences there to the population that
we have right now, the Taxicab Board felt, based on representation made to
them, that there was a requirement for an elite cab.
There were 32 elite cabs, and eight are
for specially handicapped people.
Mr. Lamoureux: Mr. Speaker, my final supplementary: Why is this government undercutting the
market price of a taxi licence by selling the permits for only $100 when the
licence holders can sell their very same licences today for between $45,000 to
$50,000, turning a quick profit over to whom?
Mr. Driedger: I find it interesting that the member raises
the questions here. If he has had
concern on the taxicab industry, he should have maybe appeared at the hearings
and put his views forward at that time.
That is what the hearings were all about.
Mr. Speaker, I made a mistake three years
ago when I personally got involved with the taxicab industry. It was not within my jurisdiction to do so,
and that has been corrected. The Taxicab Board has their jurisdiction. They have had their hearings, made their
decisions, and I support that.
Health
Care System
Licensed
Practical Nurses' Role
Ms. Judy Wasylycia-Leis
(
I would like to ask‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
Point of
Order
Hon. Clayton Manness
(Government House Leader): Mr. Speaker, I would
ask you to ask the honourable member to withdraw that statement. We are all honourable members; at least
Beauchesne says we are, and we are to be treated in that fashion. I think that that statement was most unkind to
the Minister of Health, and I would ask that the member withdraw that.
Ms. Wasylycia-Leis: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I will withdraw that
word. It was just in my memory, so
recently planted there by the Minister of Health yesterday.
Mr. Speaker: I would like to thank the honourable member
for
* * *
Ms. Wasylycia-Leis: Let me just ask a straightforward question. What
is the policy of this government when it comes to the profession called
licensed practical nurse? Does this
government support the notion of a mix of nursing professionals, including the
RN, the LPN and the aide, or is this government moving in a direction that is
counter to every other province in this country?
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): No, Mr. Speaker, and yes.
*
(1410)
Ms. Wasylycia-Leis: I am beginning to regret withdrawing the word
obfuscation‑‑[interjection]
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
Ms. Wasylycia-Leis: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Considering that the decision, with respect
to the school at St. Boniface General Hospital, is being made as a result of a
budgetary squeeze being placed on the hospital by this government's budget‑reduction
exercise, would this minister convey to the St. Boniface General Hospital that
there is some flexibility in the $19‑million‑budget‑reduction
exercise of this current year and the $20‑million‑budget‑reduction
exercise of this coming fiscal year so that they can make decisions‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
Mr. Orchard: Mr. Speaker, on careful reflection to my
previous answer, I may have had to reverse the order or else the questions.
I want to tell my honourable friend that,
when she is talking about flexibility around the budget, that is exactly the
process that has been in place for some 15 years, including when my honourable
friend sat around the cabinet table making hospital decisions. That flexibility, Mr. Speaker, demands of the
hospital administrators that they manage within their budgets, as allocated by
government, and without deficits, as I explained to the member for Brandon East
(Mr. Leonard Evans), and I will explain for the critic for the New Democratic
Party, because she was at the cabinet table when the Pawley administration made
that decision. I tell you, we agree with
it.
Now, Mr. Speaker, in terms of dealing with
the issues of staffing complements and the mix of staffing on the various wards
of hospitals throughout the province, we have said that that is a management
decision that the administrators must make to assure quality patient care. I would hope that within those management
decisions, there should and ought to be room for all disciplines of trained
nurses in the province of Manitoba, because I think then one can accomplish
both the budgetary exercise as well as the patient care that all Manitobans
want to see continue.
Bed
Closures
Ms. Judy Wasylycia-Leis (St.
Johns): Mr. Speaker, is the action being considered at
St. Boniface hospital to close the School of Practical Nursing and to lay off
LPNs related at all to the difficult situation the hospital has been placed in
by this government who has directed the St. Boniface hospital and the Health
Sciences Centre to consider the impact of closing 250 beds?
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, the hospitals are being asked to
manage within budgets, budgets which have increased year over year, in last
year's case, not by the $19 million that was requested in addition to the
increased funding we provided. What we
are attempting to do with the Urban Hospital Council, with individual
hospitals, is to develop care for the patient.
There are examples, as is tabled in the Centre for Health Policy and
Evaluation report, which clearly indicate that there is a more appropriate
regime of care for the patient not dependent on institution, that it may well
be in community. That is what my honourable friend has been urging me to do.
Northern
Health Care
Transportation
Fee
Mr. Steve Ashton
(Thompson): Mr. Speaker, of all the unfair and
insensitive actions this government has taken, one of the most insensitive has
been the application of the $50 user fee for Northern Patient Transportation,
particularly as it affects remote northern communities such as Ilford, Thicket
Portage, Pikwitonei and Wabowden.
Since those communities are now asking the
government to have physician services provided since many individuals in those
communities cannot afford the three‑days‑a‑week train service
to travel to Thompson, stay overnight for a couple of days, be faced with
hundreds of dollars of bills just to have access to a general practitioner,
will the minister now withdraw the $50 user fee and provide fairness to all
northerners?
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, I realize my honourable friend
has raised this issue time and time again. Let me background the decision by government
around the $50 consumer contribution toward transportation. Everybody in
My honourable friend from his seat says
not to pay accommodation. Is he asking
the taxpayers to do something he did not do and pick up accommodation? Of course, he is not, because all Manitobans,
if they have to stay overnight, must pay the accommodation themselves whether
it is in
Mr. Speaker: Time for Oral Questions has expired.
NONPOLITICAL
STATEMENTS
Ms. Becky Barrett (
Mr. Speaker: Does the honourable member have leave to make
a nonpolitical statement? Leave? It is agreed.
Ms. Barrett: Mr. Speaker, today is the second day of the
second annual National Social Work Week.
As a social worker myself, I am pleased to rise today to pay tribute to
the thousands of men and women in Manitoba and across this country who have
found themselves in a wide range of occupations and jobs under the general
heading of social work.
For over 100 years, these men and women
have been providing assistance to individuals, families and communities in
need. The names and the job descriptions
may have changed over time, but the basic value that everyone in our society
has the right to the best life they can lead has framed social work as a
practice, and I as a member of that profession take a great deal of honour and
respect in that basic value.
Today, social workers are found in
virtually every town, region and city in our province working in a wide‑ranging
number of organizations, providing services to Manitobans literally from cradle
to grave, both in their work time and in their volunteer time after their
working hours.
I would like to put on the record just a
few of the agencies and the organizations and the areas in which social workers
provide service to our citizens of
Finally, I would like to congratulate
again the thousands of social workers in
Thank you.
*
(1420)
Mr. Reg Alcock
(Osborne): Mr. Speaker, might I have leave to make a
nonpolitical statement?
Mr. Speaker: Does the honourable member have leave to make
a nonpolitical statement? Leave? It is agreed.
Mr. Alcock: Mr. Speaker, I would like to join with the
member for