Mr. Edward Helwer (Gimli): I would like today to pay tribute to a Gimli resident, Dr. Leo Kristjanson, who was honoured last Friday, October 25, for the important role that he played in the development of one of Canada's premier research and development centres at the University of Saskatchewan. More specifically, he was honoured for his contribution to the establishment of the $90-million Innovation Place, an 80-acre research park on the university campus. Dr. Kristjanson has done more than most Canadians to advance the causes of agriculture and rural development of science and higher education. He has held the positions of both president and vice-president of the University of Saskatchewan in the 1970s and '80s, and he was the driving force behind new initiatives that put the university and scientific resources at the service of citizens in rural areas. Innovation Place has become one of Canada's prime centres for research and development in biotechnology. New varieties of plants and new products to aid farmers and consumers throughout the world are developed at this research site.

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Dr. Kristjanson began heavy lobbying for this development in the late '70s when he held the position of vice-president of the University of Saskatchewan. For Dr. Kristjanson, the most notable benefit of this project is how it will benefit the people of the community. Despite the fact that he was forced to retire from his administrative work at the University of Saskatchewan due to being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, it is wonderful to see how much of a leadership role Dr. Kristjanson has taken within his community. I would like to applaud Dr. Kristjanson's efforts and the initiatives he has taken in the area of research and development at the University of Saskatchewan. Thank you.

Mr. Daryl Reid (Transcona): Madam Speaker, prior to 1988, professional firefighting forces of this province had protection under The Workers Compensation Act of Manitoba that would provide protection for those firefighters for diseases that they may encounter as a result of the performance of their duties, and we are talking about diseases of the internal organs: the heart, the lungs and the brain.

In 1988, Justice Lyon struck down the regulation under The Workers Compensation Act that would have continued to provide that protection for firefighters. Since that time, members of the New Democratic Party have introduced seven private members' bills to this Chamber to reinstate that protection for firefighters, even though the former Minister of Labour refused to endorse that protection for firefighters in this province.

Since that time, we are advised that the current Minister of Labour (Mr. Toews), as he advised firefighters yesterday, is developing a protocol that would put in place protection for firefighters to be notified when they come in contact with infectious diseases and that the firefighters would be given the information to allow themselves to take the necessary precautions to not infect others, including their family members. What the minister is doing here is, I believe, delaying, since we already have a communicable disease protocol in the province of Ontario which could quite readily be adopted for the province of Manitoba and would have put in place the necessary protection for firefighters. In addition, the Minister of Labour should look at reinstating the protection for firefighters under the heart, lung and internal organs provisions under the private member's bill which we have tabled before this Chamber.

So we hope that the Minister of Labour will take the necessary steps to provide that protection for firefighters whom everyone in our community, in all of our communities, relies on so heavily and for which there is little protection for those professional people in our province today.

Mr. Gerry McAlpine (Sturgeon Creek): Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise today and relay the glowing report that the city of Winnipeg received in a recent article. It states that historically Winnipeg has been defined in several ways: trading post, grain capital, transportation centre. Today, the city remains an important regional trading centre. Despite some reductions in the importance of the railways, Winnipeg is still an important centre of transportation, thanks mainly to the growing trucking industry and the promise of an expanded role for the Winnipeg International Airport.

The grain business headquartered here remains a mainstay of the provincial economy bolstered by diversification into crops such as canola and the expansion of the livestock industry. Over the last century, this city has developed the most diversified economy. In addition to its traditional strengths, this city is now the largest aerospace centre in western Canada, the largest maker of software and computer equipment in the West and the largest centre for health research in manufacturing activities outside Ontario and Quebec.

Winnipeg has a window on every important industry on the continent and the development that provides the community with a chance for steady economic growth and opportunities for young people to pursue almost every line of work imaginable. Confirmation of Winnipeg's potential of its ability to adapt to new technology and shifting trade patterns is visible everywhere.

I would encourage all Manitobans to take the time to review the Free Press publication devoted to telling the story of how Winnipeggers are meeting the challenges of the 1990s. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr. Gerard Jennissen (Flin Flon): Today, there are more than 130 people registered to speak in committee on Bill 67, the privatization of MTS. At least a quarter of those people are from outside Winnipeg. In the past week alone, we have received resolutions from the Town of Grandview, the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet and the Rural Municipality of Brokenhead urging this government not to sell MTS without public consultation and further urging this government to hold committee hearings on Bill 67 throughout Manitoba.

Since the sparsely populated areas of rural and northern Manitoba can expect to suffer most under the proposed privatization of MTS, it is only fair that the citizens of rural and northern Manitoba be given the opportunity to have easier access to the legislative committee hearings on Bill 67. The government should cancel immediately the $400,000 advertising campaign promoting the sale of MTS and dedicate some of that money to holding committee hearings in northern and rural Manitoba.

MTS has already requested increasing residential rates of telephone subscribers living in northern and rural Manitoba by as much as 80 percent by 1998. Such huge increases will inevitably mean that some people in Manitoba will not be able to afford telephone service, all of this on top of MTS job cuts in northern and rural Manitoba.

In view of the fact that the committee on Bill 67 is swamped with submissions, the government should hold two or three committee meetings in rural and northern Manitoba. Many of the members on this side of the House have criss-crossed this province and have attended numerous meetings at which ordinary Manitobans discussed the future of MTS. In fact, there will be such a meeting this Saturday in Flin Flon. Why can this government not be equally accommodating to the people of Manitoba? This government should make some effort to listen to the voices of all of its citizens, not just the Winnipeg citizens.

Once again, I strongly urge the government to hold two or three legislative committee hearings on Bill 67 in rural and northern Manitoba.

Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Inkster): Madam Speaker, as no doubt other MLAs have had opportunity--I had an opportunity this morning to meet with a couple of members from the fire department--in expressing the concerns, as the member for Transcona (Mr. Reid) alluded to, I think there are a couple of things that should be noted. First and foremost, the infectious disease being passed on through emergency response teams such as firefighters is something which should be addressed and can be addressed virtually immediately. I look to the Minister of Health (Mr. McCrae) because they had indicated that they did pass on some correspondence.

Ultimately, I believe that as we look, whether it is across Canada or even down south, that these protocols are in fact being implemented, it is only a question of time before it is done in the province of Manitoba, no doubt. I think that there is a sense of urgency and that the Minister of Health in particular should act as quickly as possible to ensure that the communication and the protocol is done in such a fashion in which the future safety concerns when dealing with this particular issue can be addressed as quickly as possible, knowing full well, of course, that there is no reason why it cannot be dealt with in the next 30 days.

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The other issue of workers compensation, which is something I was very sympathetic to and had indicated that I was prepared to do additional research into it, I know there have been amendments in the past, private members' bills in the past dealing with issues with respect to firemen--particularly with workers' compensation and infectious disease--from both parties, the New Democrats and the Liberals. But the workers compensation is something which has been in the air for a number of years, and again we would ask the minister responsible for Workers Compensation to make some sort of a decision on it or at least to do some consulting within the fire departments, because it is an issue that does need to be addressed and should be addressed in as quick a fashion as possible and, as I have indicated, is something which I believe we have supported in the past and are very sympathetic towards today. Thank you.