LEGISLATIVE
ASSEMBLY OF
Friday,
April 30, 1993
The House met at 10 a.m.
PRAYERS
ROUTINE
PROCEEDINGS
PRESENTING
PETITIONS
Ms. Rosann Wowchuk (
Mr. Gregory Dewar
(Selkirk): Mr. Speaker, I beg to
present the petition of Cheryl Sinclair, Stacey Berry, Donna Krut and others,
requesting the Family Services minister (Mr. Gilleshammer) consider restoring
funding for friendship centres in
* * *
Ms. Jean Friesen
(Wolseley): Mr. Speaker, I beg to present the petition of
Glenn Hosea, Phyllis Tolsma, Grace McConkey and others, requesting the Minister
of Family Services (Mr. Gilleshammer) to consider restoring funding of the
Student Social Allowances Program.
Mr. Speaker: I have reviewed the petition of the
honourable member (Ms. Friesen). It
complies with the privileges and practices of the House and complies with the
rules. Is it the will of the House to
have the petition read? [agreed]
Mr. Clerk (William
Remnant): The petition of the undersigned citizens of
the
WHEREAS
WHEREAS over 1,000 young adults are
currently attempting to get off welfare and upgrade their education through the
Student Social Allowances Program; and
WHEREAS
WHEREAS the provincial government has
already changed social assistance rules resulting in increased welfare costs
for the City of
WHEREAS the provincial government is now
proposing to eliminate the Student Social Allowances Program; and
WHEREAS eliminating the Student Social
Allowances Program will result in more than a thousand young people being
forced onto city welfare with no means of getting further full‑time
education, resulting in more long‑term costs for city taxpayers.
WHEREFORE your petitioners humbly pray
that the Legislative Assembly of
* * *
Mr. Speaker: I have reviewed the petition of the
honourable member (Mr. Santos). It complies
with the privileges and the practices of the House and complies with the
rules. Is it the will of the House to
have the petition read? [agreed]
Mr. Clerk: The petition of the undersigned citizens of
the
WHEREAS the United Nations has declared
1993 the International Year of the World's Indigenous People with the theme,
"Indigenous People: a new
partnership"; and
WHEREAS the provincial government has
totally discontinued funding to all friendship centres; and
WHEREAS the provincial government has
stated that these cuts mirror the federal cuts; and
WHEREAS the elimination of all funding to
friendship centres will result in the loss of many jobs as well as the services
and programs provided, such as: assistance
to the elderly, the homeless, youth programming, the socially disadvantaged,
families in crisis, education, recreation and cultural programming, housing
relocation, fine options, counselling, court assistance, advocacy;
WHEREFORE your petitioners humbly pray
that the Legislative Assembly of
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
morning from the Van Walleghem Elementary School seventy Grade 5 students under
the direction of Kim Peppler. This
school is located in the constituency of the honourable First Minister (Mr.
Filmon).
On behalf of all honourable members, I
would like to welcome you here this morning.
ORAL
QUESTION PERIOD
Unitel
Hookup Costs
Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of
the Opposition): Mr. Speaker, in the Wall Street Journal,
there is an ad for AT&T which is now buying into
I would like to ask the Premier, in light
of his government's policies and the federal Conservative policies on
Americanizing the telephone system in
* (1005)
Hon. Gary Filmon
(Premier): Mr. Speaker,
We had, for instance, an issue that was
raised in this Legislature and in the media about I believe it was the Liver
Foundation which was doing fundraising out of
So if we do not ensure that we are competitive,
if we do not ensure that we are involved with the transition that is taking
place in terms of telecommunications competition throughout North
So it is not as simple as the member
opposite in his empty sloganeering would like to portray. It is a real matter of understanding what it
is going to take to build this economy and what it is going to take to ensure
that the telecommunications costs are competitive here because
telecommunications is one of the prime fields in which we can add jobs if we
continue to be competitive, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Doer: Mr. Speaker, excuse us for being a little concerned
about the discrepancy between the Premier's answer in this Chamber and the
Minister of Education's (Mrs. Vodrey) decisions at our community colleges to
cut sections dealing with telecommunications, but we have always known that the
Tory economic strategy does not include education and training. There is no co‑ordination between the
right hand and the other right hand of government.
Mr. Speaker, we had been involved in
establishing competition at the Cellular telephone line. We had set up a system where the two
retailers competed together, but they came onto the Manitoba Telephone System
line, and therefore the public that had paid for those lines got the benefit of
the competition and the revenue because the public had paid for those lines.
My question to the Premier is: How can he support a policy where Manitobans
are going to pay 70 percent of the hookup costs for Unitel which is now 20
percent American‑owned? How can he
support a policy which is not even just competition‑‑it is us
paying a private company to come in and take away business from our consumers?
* (1010)
Mr. Filmon: Mr. Speaker, the track record of the New
Democrats in entering into business arrangements with the Telephone System
leaves a lot to be desired‑‑$27 million lost in the sands of
He speaks of the arrangements that they
had made to get into the cellular communications field without telling us that
Manitobans have lost money in their efforts in cellular phones since the time
that his government got into it, that Manitoba Telephone System's Cellular has
not only not made a nickel but has lost millions of dollars by virtue of their
entry into that field.
Mr. Speaker, what he does not tell is that
Unitel has to pay 50 cents out of every dollar of revenue that they get from
their operations to the Manitoba Telephone System for the privilege of using
the Manitoba Telephone System infrastructure that he talks about. No other arrangement ever was given to any
supplier in this country on any basis where the first 50 cents out of every
dollar of revenue has to go to the Manitoba Telephone System to pay for that
infrastructure.
Those are all things that were taken into
account by the CRTC when they made these arrangements, when they analyzed them,
when they understood the ramifications, not like the kind of empty sloganeering
we are getting from the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Doer: Mr. Speaker, the Premier did not answer the
question about what will be the impact on the bottom line of us paying 70
percent of the hookup cost.
Telecommunications
Industry
Employment
Creation Strategy
Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of
the Opposition): I would like to ask the Premier a final
question. His own trend strategy dealing
with Education and Training includes a reduction of people in
telecommunications.
We see a reduction in the number of people
working at the northern Telecom plant.
Every month or so, unfortunately, we see a couple more layoffs, 20, 19,
45, Mr. Speaker. We see Unitel creating
400 jobs in
Mr. Speaker, what numbers should we
believe in terms of job creation are correct, the numbers coming out of the
Department of Education which show a reduction in employees and opportunities
in telecommunications in
Hon. Gary Filmon
(Premier): Mr. Speaker, the member is confusing a whole
series of things that are happening.
The Manitoba Telephone System, in order to
keep its own operations efficient and because of changing technologies that
allow things to be done with fewer people, Manitoba Telephone System was going
to have to move with the times. It was
happening in the '80s.
In fact, I have a paper that says that the
reason why the NDP government went into the Saudi Arabian operation was to avoid
the layoffs of several hundred people in the Manitoba Telephone System, and the
then‑chairman, Saul Miller, wrote to the minister responsible, the member
for Brandon East (Mr. Leonard Evans), and said, we can avoid these layoffs by
creating opportunities in a business in
The fact is, Manitoba Telephone System
will move with the times, but in addition to that, because we are competitive,
because we are doing the things that are necessary in order to be in the modern
world in telecommunications, we are having a setup here by Unitel with over 400
jobs. We are having a telephone service
centre here from Canada Post with over 100 jobs. We are having Canadian Pacific with over 200
jobs in telecommunications.
All of those things are coming in here and
more will follow, Mr. Speaker. None of
those firms are concerned with an availability of trained staff. They know that our colleges and universities
will produce the trained staff they need.
They have every confidence in it, and we have every confidence in it.
Poverty
Rate
Government
Reduction Strategy
Ms. Judy Wasylycia‑Leis
(
I would like to ask the Premier (Mr.
Filmon) if he is now finally prepared to recognize the serious nature of this
problem and tell us what plan of action he has for attacking poverty in this
province.
* (1015)
Hon. Harold Gilleshammer
(Minister of Family Services): Mr. Speaker,
we have had a discussion of this during the Estimates process with the other
critics from the New Democratic Party where we have looked at the rates, and
We have looked at the manner in which
Statistics Canada gathers their statistics and bases that particular poverty
line on the cost of living in cities like
Ms. Wasylycia‑Leis: Mr. Speaker, all statistics show that there has
been a marked increase in poverty in
I want to ask this government if it is now
prepared to take steps to reduce poverty in this province, or is it prepared to
play the game of the federal government by trying to make the problem go away
by redefining the definition of‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. The honourable member has put her question.
Mr. Gilleshammer: Mr. Speaker, one of the most important things
we do is review those rates on an annual basis, and we have had the opportunity
to raise those rates according to the cost of living, but at the same time have
brought in a number of other reforms that we have had the opportunity in the
last few days to talk about with the critic from the New Democratic Party,
about the number of enhancements we have made to the system.
Again, we have also had a good discussion
of how those statistics are generated and that those statistics reflect the
cost of living in cities like
Student
Social Allowances
Program
Reinstatement
Ms. Judy Wasylycia-Leis
(
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. I remind the honourable member this is not a
time for debate.
The honourable member for
Ms. Wasylycia-Leis: Will this government, at least as a very
minimum, Mr. Speaker, reconsider some of its devastating budgetary decisions
like the elimination of the Student Social Allowances Program which will only
add to poverty in this province and perpetuate the cycle of poverty? Will it at least reinstate‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. The honourable member has put her question.
Hon. Harold Gilleshammer
(Minister of Family Services): Mr.
Speaker, I would invite the member to come to the Estimates process where we
have had a chance to talk about raising the liquid asset rates, creating new
programs for the disabled, to letting certain people who are accessing social
allowance keep their health card as they move to employment.
All of these enhancements are over and
above the increase in the rates that we have annually increased to reflect the
cost of living in
Mandate
Mr. Paul Edwards (St.
James): Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier.
The Premier talks about MTS having to
compete in a global economy and having to move with the times. The problem is that the companies that the
Premier is asking MTS to compete with have a fundamentally different
mandate. The mandate of AT&T and
Unitel is to make a profit. The mandate
of MTS is not only to be fiscally responsible, but to serve remote areas in
this province and rural Manitobans with affordable telephone services,
something that AT&T and Unitel do not have as part of their mandate.
My question for the Premier: How does he expect MTS with its mandate,
which is a social mandate for this province and in particular for rural and
northern Manitobans, to compete with international companies whose only mandate
is profit?
* (1020)
Hon. Gary Filmon
(Premier): Mr. Speaker, I wonder whether or not the
member opposite is being consistent in the position that he is taking on
issues. As a candidate for the
leadership of the Liberal Party, he is quoted in an article recently that says‑‑I
think you will be interested in this.
You may be able to use this on the stump, as well.
He was being questioned at a public
meeting that he held recently with respect to his leadership by a former member
of this House, Lem Shuttleworth, who said and I quote: Shuttleworth suggested that if elected
leader, Edwards could possibly win a provincial election if he leaned more to
the left, to which Edwards replied, quote, I do not intend to sell my soul even
to win an election.
Now, having reconsidered that position,
the member asks the question that implies that because it is publicly owned,
the Manitoba Telephone System should be inefficient and uncompetitive in order
to serve the people of
If we allowed that to happen, of course,
all of us would pay higher rates. All of
us would simply do what the New Democrats did and that is create jobs in
Mr. Edwards: Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Premier for
reading some of my better quotes in the House.
As he has once said, I do not have time to read my quotes, but I am glad
he does.
Now, Mr. Speaker, the Premier says it is
publicly owned and that is correct. That
means it has a public mandate. It is not
privately owned. Its only mandate is not
to shareholders in
My question for the Premier: What effect is having Unitel and AT&T in
this economy forcing MTS to compete in a global marketplace‑‑what
effect is that going to have on their public mandate to offer affordable
telephone services, in particular, to people in remote, northern and rural
areas of this province, Mr. Speaker?
Mr. Filmon: Mr. Speaker, interestingly enough, by being
competitive and offering competitive rates, what will happen to the Manitoba
Telephone System is that all of these other organizations, such as Unitel, such
as others who are coming in here as potential resellers of long‑distance
capacity, trunk capacity, will bring in businesses which will use greater
volumes of long‑distance service in
In fact, when you bring in a telephone
service centre such as Unitel has, such as Canadian Pacific, such as Canada
Post, such as others are going to set up here, you will have tremendous volumes
of long distance being utilized in this province which are not presently here,
which will add to the total volume of usage of the Manitoba Telephone System,
which will help to keep the overall rates down.
So the additional volume not only produces
jobs in
Mr. Edwards: Mr. Speaker, this is this pie in the sky, it
is all coming up roses tomorrow, do not worry, we will be okay. The fact is, MTS relies on those long‑distance
rates to pay for affordable telephones around this province.
Mr. Speaker, my question for the
Premier: How many years or decades down
the road does he expect his prediction to come true, that we are actually going
to be able to pay for all the telephone services to people outside the city of
Mr. Speaker: Order, please.
Mr. Filmon: Mr. Speaker, we continue to be able to pay
for all of the northern and remote users of the Telephone System at low rates.
If you listen to the people from the
Manitoba Telephone System, they expect that they will continue to make profits
while keeping the rates low and reasonable for Manitobans, and, if you look at
the doom and gloom that was predicted by New Democrats and Liberals when, as a
result of a CRTC decision our long‑distance rates were reduced, I
believe, it was 40 percent overnight, what happened was that the total long‑distance
revenue of the Telephone System went up 20 percent because of that. Overall it
went up 20 percent, despite a 40 percent reduction in rates.
That, Mr. Speaker, is what happens when
there is greater volume, greater usage and more competitive rates. It happens and it happens regularly, and I
hope that the member opposite will do a little bit of studying on these issues
before he comes to the Legislature with these questions in the future.
* (1025)
Poverty
Rate
Government
Reduction Strategy
Mr. Doug Martindale
(Burrows): Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Family Services
would like to redefine the poverty line in order to make himself and his
government look better in the eyes of the public.
In the meantime, the standards are defined
by the National Council of Welfare in their most recent Winter 1993 Report of
Poverty Profile Updates from 1991. So we
know that 17.1 percent of all families in
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. The honourable member, with your question,
please.
Mr. Martindale: Mr. Speaker, my question to the Minister of
Family Services is: What decisions has
he made and what decisions has his government made in their most recent budget
that puts more money into the pockets of poor Manitobans?
We do not want to hear about the benefits
in terms of liquid asset exemptions, which we have already heard about, but
what is giving people more money in order‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. The honourable member has put his question.
Hon. Harold Gilleshammer
(Minister of Family Services): Mr.
Speaker, as I have indicated to his colleague in an earlier question, we
annually look at the rates and increase them at the level of the cost of
living.
We do that at a point in time when
government revenue is very low relative to what it was in the '70s and '80s,
back when that member's fellow travellers were in government, when government
revenue was increasing in double‑digit numbers. They simply did not increase the rates at
that time. At the present time now, they
are asking us to increase the rates above the level of the cost of living.
Social
Assistance
Rate
Adjustments
Mr. Doug Martindale
(Burrows): The minister talks about the rate increases on
January 1.
I would like to ask the Minister of Family
Services if he will acknowledge that provincial social assistance recipients in
their cheques this week are receiving less money and if the minister could
explain why they are getting less money in their cheques this week.
Hon. Harold Gilleshammer
(Minister of Family Services): Mr.
Speaker, I have indicated that we have annually increased the rates on January
1. The
There are some adjustments in the cheques
this week because of the decisions made regarding the tax credits.
Poverty
Rate
Government
Reduction Strategy
Mr. Doug Martindale
(Burrows): The minister is unwilling to admit that they
have reduced the supplementary benefit and that is why people are getting less
money.
I would like to ask the minister what‑‑
Point of
Order
Hon. Clayton Manness
(Government House Leader): Mr. Speaker, the
minister in his response clearly said it was a result of the budgetary moves
dealing with an equivalent to the property tax credit, which everybody would
know is direct reference to the supplementary credit.
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. The honourable government House leader does
not have a point of order. There is no
point of order.
The honourable member for Burrows, with
your question, please.
* * *
Mr. Martindale: I would like to ask the Minister of Family
Services what he or his government is going to do to ensure that poor people in
Hon. Harold Gilleshammer
(Minister of Family Services): Mr. Speaker, I would
reiterate, because obviously the member did not hear it. I said clearly, those differences in the
cheques were a result of the changes made to the tax credits, which in effect
is the supplementary benefit which he congratulated the government on last year
when we took that step. We will continue
to address the rates on an annual basis.
Again, I point out to the member that we
have the third lowest incidence of citizens on social allowance, and our rates
are comparable to those of other provinces.
Emergency
Room Physicians
Contingency
Plans
Mr. Dave Chomiak
(Kildonan): Mr. Speaker, we are going into the weekend
with a good deal of uncertainty respecting the emergency ward situation at the
community hospitals. I would like the
minister to have the opportunity to clarify the situation going into the
weekend.
I would like to ask the minister, can he
assure the House that if the strike is not settled today‑‑and I
understand there is a meeting this afternoon‑‑that both St.
Boniface Hospital and Health Sciences Centre can handle the obvious increased
level of activity at the emergency wards this weekend?
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, let me
indicate to my honourable friend that the meeting this afternoon at two o'clock
is with the ministry and the respective facilities, urban hospitals and the two
teaching hospitals which are trying to manage emergency care during this strike
period.
Mr. Speaker, reports overnight have
indicated, yes, an increase in activity, but that the system is still able to
manage. This afternoon at two o'clock,
we hope to be able to further assure that the system, should the strike
continue over the weekend, would be able to cope with emergency services.
If I have any further communication as a
result of that meeting this afternoon at two o'clock, I will make same
available to the public at large.
* (1030)
Mr. Chomiak: Mr. Speaker, a supplementary to that: Can the minister advise this House that
contingency beds will be available at Health Sciences and St. Boniface?‑‑because
we know that at Health Sciences, for example, in the last three weeks the
emergency ward was shut down due to lack of beds at least on one occasion. Can the minister assure the House that
contingencies will be available for beds to be made available in that instance?
Mr. Orchard: Mr. Speaker, my honourable friend might have
missed or not remembered the answer I gave, I believe it was on Tuesday or
possibly Wednesday.
The process that is in place and the
arrangement between the two teaching hospitals which are operating 24 hours,
seven‑days‑a‑week emergency services‑‑the
arrangement is this with the community hospitals, that should an individual
present at either St. Boniface or Health Sciences Centre in an emergency
circumstance and be stabilized, the arrangements are made for admission of that
individual to the appropriate community hospital which would be the normal
geographic area‑‑if that is the way to put it‑‑that
this individual would come from.
So the necessity of admission will be
accomplished already with an arrangement that has been in place since Tuesday
of this week with the urban hospitals and the two teaching hospitals.
Negotiations
Mr. Dave Chomiak
(Kildonan): Mr. Speaker, this is my final supplementary
to the minister.
Mr. Speaker, I can take it from the
minister's response that negotiations are not ongoing with the doctors. Can the minister please advise this House as
to what the status is of negotiations with respect to the doctors in an effort
to resolve this dispute?
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, the two
sides will meet to recommence negotiations Monday. We are hopeful that there will be an
opportunity to resolve the issue very expeditiously after that, providing we
can agree to a settlement, Sir.
Health
Prevention
Children's
Dental Health Program
Mr. Paul Edwards (St.
James): Mr. Speaker, one of the keystones of this minister's
and this government's health reform package was to prevent illness and not have
the expense of dealing with illness prematurely. This minister and this government cut the
Children's Dental Health Program in rural
My question for the Minister of Health
is: What could be more in the interest
of prevention, Mr. Speaker, than a program which sought to prevent dental
problems in children around this province?
What could have been more in the interest of prevention?
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, I
certainly welcome my honourable friend's question, because possibly he might
listen very attentively so that he can better understand the role of education
and prevention.
My honourable friend, if I detected from
his preamble, said that a cornerstone of health reform is prevention and
education to prevent disease. Mr.
Speaker, that is exactly what we have maintained in the Children's Dental
Health Program, the education of children and the prevention of dental disease.
Mr. Speaker, the treatment portion, yes,
has been removed from the program as of June 30. I want my honourable friend to understand
that the part he so desires will remain intact as a prevention‑education
component of children's health in
Mr. Edwards: Mr. Speaker, the distinction between
prevention and treatment is a false one.
The minister seeks to derive that distinction.
Mr. Speaker, my question for the minister
is: Those principles, prevention and
education, were the principles before the cuts.
How does he intend to do the job when there are only five out of 49 staff
people left doing the same work for 60,000 children in rural
Mr. Orchard: Mr. Speaker, my honourable friend might well
be aware that part of prevention in the school system is fluoride rinse. That is a very significant component and that
will be maintained.
My honourable friend might also know‑‑and
he might visit communities in his newfound interest outside of the city of
Winnipeg‑‑that while this government has been elected, a number of
those communities outside of
Children's
Dental Health Program
Meeting
Request
Mr. Paul Edwards (St.
James): My final question is for the Minister of
Health, and I am hoping that he will have a newfound interest in rural
Mr. Speaker: Question, please.
Mr. Edwards: Mr. Speaker, my question for the
minister: I assume, and I would like him
to confirm, that he will be attending the meeting which is organized for the
evening of May 11 in Minnedosa to discuss this very issue, to discuss the child
dental health care program. Will the
minister be attending‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Order, please. The honourable member for St. James has put
his question.
Hon. Donald Orchard
(Minister of Health): Mr. Speaker, I am not
aware of an invitation to that meeting, but I know my honourable friend will
want to be in Minnedosa so he can tell the folks of Minnedosa that under his
leadership, the Liberal Party would not close the hospital in Minnedosa and not
build hospitals in rural
Central
Child and Family Services
Statistics
Ms. Marianne Cerilli
(Radisson): Mr. Speaker, we have had confirmed that even
though there is an increase in child poverty, even though there is an increase
in violence among young people and numbers of children living on the streets,
that the Streets Kids and Youth program will be closing. This program received most of its funding
through the Core Area Initiative, but now the more than 6,000 kids who were
serviced through that organization will have to look elsewhere for food, shelter
and some safety.
My question is for the Minister of Family
Services. Of the approximately 1,700
young people under the care of the Central Child and Family Services as wards
of the state, how many of those children are not accounted for in group homes
or foster homes?
Hon. Harold Gilleshammer
(Minister of Family Services): Mr.
Speaker, the member is asking for some statistical information that I do not
have with me today, but I would invite her to attend the Estimates process
along with her colleagues. A number of
them have been there. We are just about
to launch into that area of the department.
I would say that I met with a group of
people from the Downtown BIZ organization yesterday to discuss the SKY program.
The representatives of the business community that are involved in the SKY
program presented information on their funding and the problems they are having
with their funding for the coming year, and those matters will continue to be
discussed.
Ms. Cerilli: Mr. Speaker, my concern is that this
government does not want to know the serious statistics of children in need in
this province.
Education
System
Enrollment
Statistics
Ms. Marianne Cerilli
(Radisson): My second question is for the Minister of
Education.
Can the minister tell us what was the
number of young people enrolled in school in
Hon. Rosemary Vodrey
(Minister of Education and Training): Mr.
Speaker, again, some of the details around school enrollment I will be happy to
discuss during the Estimates process.
As the member may know, the time in which
enrollments are taken is in the fall, and I am happy to give her that
information. She may also know that
there has also been some discussion around when enrollments should be taken in
schools so that we have the most accurate count of young people who are
attending school.
* (1040)
Student
Completion Statistics
Ms. Marianne Cerilli
(Radisson): Mr. Speaker, I would also appreciate that the
minister would bring me the number of students or young people who completed
school in
Hon. Rosemary Vodrey
(Minister of Education and Training): I believe
the member asked if I would provide that information during the Estimates
process, and, yes, I will see that this information is available, because in
Reserves
Mr. Jerry Storie (Flin
Flon): Mr. Speaker, a couple of days ago, I asked the
Minister of Energy and Mines whether in fact he had done any consultation with
the mining industry or the mining partners of Manitoba Mineral Resources before
he raided the kitty of some $16 million to make the Minister of Finance (Mr.
Manness) look good by reducing his deficit.
The minister in his response said that he had consulted with the chair
of the board.
My question to the Minister of Energy and
Mines is: Can he share with this House
or with myself any objective analysis of the potential impact of withdrawing
that $16 million on the obligations of MMR to share in capital improvement
projects should that be required within the next six to 12 months?
Hon. James Downey
(Minister of Energy and Mines): Mr.
Speaker, that indicates the priority which that opposition party and that
member places on the mineral sector in this province. I think it was almost a week ago that he asked
his first question and did not get an opportunity to ask two supplementaries
until today. So it is not a very high priority on the agenda of the members
opposite. [interjection]
I answered the question, Mr. Speaker, for
the member for Dauphin (Mr. Plohman), and the answer is that the monies were
taken from MMR after consultation was carried out with the chairman of
MMR. To my knowledge at this particular
time, it will not impair the operations of MMR.
Trout
Capital
Funding
Mr. Jerry Storie (Flin
Flon): Mr. Speaker, the people of Flin Flon and the
people who rely on HBM&S, which was a joint‑venture partner with MMR,
are not going to be satisfied with the minister's consultations with his
political appointee.
My question is: Can the minister assure the people of Flin
Flon and HBM&S that should additional investment be required in Trout
Hon. James Downey
(Minister of Energy and Mines): Mr.
Speaker, I can assure the people of Flin Flon and that area of the province
that this government had a commitment of $55 million to upgrade a smelter that
he could not get his colleagues to support, which created employment, which
improved the environmental emissions that were coming out of that plant.
It was this government that did the $55‑million
input, not his operation.
Reserves
Mr. Jerry Storie (Flin
Flon): The Minister of Energy and Mines keeps
referring to a deal that they bungled.
It took three years too long‑‑
Mr. Speaker: Question, please.
Mr. Storie: Mr. Speaker, my question is a serious
question. Will the minister please indicate now whether Manitoba Mineral
Resources will have the capital available to them to complete necessary joint‑venture
projects in Flin Flon, Leaf Rapids and
Hon. James Downey
(Minister of Energy and Mines): Mr.
Speaker, my answer is a very serious one to the member for Flin Flon.
This government's commitment to the mining
industry in
As far as the operations of MMR, Mr.
Speaker, at this time, it is my understanding that the changes that have taken
place with the capital fund that was in MMR have not impaired or changed the
operations of MMR for this year.