Hon. Jim Ernst (Government House Leader): Madam Speaker, I wonder if I might have leave prior to Orders of the Day for a matter of House business?

Madam Speaker: Does the honourable government House leader have leave on a matter of House business? [agreed]

Mr. Ernst: Madam Speaker, I wonder if there might be leave to sit a committee of the House concurrently with the House this afternoon?

Madam Speaker: Is there leave of the House to sit in standing committee concurrently with Orders of the Day? Leave? Is there leave of the House to sit in standing committee concurrently with the House in Orders of the Day? [agreed]

Mr. Ernst: In that case, Madam Speaker, the committee on Public Utilities and Natural Resources currently considering clause by clause of Bill 67 will sit again at 2:45 p.m. until 5:30 p.m.

Madam Speaker: The Standing Committee on Public Utilities and Natural Resources will commence at 2:45 this afternoon until 5:30 p.m. to continue to consider the clause-by-clause consideration of Bill 67.

Mr. Mike Radcliffe (River Heights): Madam Speaker, yesterday, the second annual Invest Manitoba forum was held in Winnipeg. It is an event that matches entrepreneurs with investors. Invest Manitoba is one of a handful of developments that have taken place in Manitoba over the past several years that have created a better environment in which small- and medium-sized businesses can grow and access capital.

The president of Infohighway Onramp Centre Incorporated was one of 14 entrepreneurs who made pitches for up to $1 million in capital to a group of potential investors. He told the forum that he plans to someday issue initial public offering and list the company's shares on the Winnipeg Stock Exchange.

Tom Waitt, the chairman of the Winnipeg Stock Exchange, also spoke at the event. Actually, just last Friday, the Winnipeg Stock Exchange executed its first electronic trade on its newly installed computerized trading system. Mr. Waitt was speaking to the forum about the new opportunities the revitalized Winnipeg Stock Exchange holds for the kind of business people who were at the forum.

* (1430)

Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.

Madam Speaker: Order, please. I am experiencing difficulty hearing the honourable member for River Heights, and I would remind all members that this is private Members' Statements.

Mr. Radcliffe: I would not want any of my colleagues on the other side of the House to miss a syllable, so I will attempt to enunciate with clarity. Our government has just passed legislation that will revise several regulatory items handled by the Manitoba Securities Commission. The legislation will effectively make it easier and less expensive for Manitoba companies to undertake either public or private placements of capital. This is good news for our entrepreneurs. In fact, in the past five years manufacturing capital investment was up 135 percent, the best in the country. Madam Speaker, thank you for this opportunity.

Mr. Steve Ashton (Thompson): Earlier today I raised the concern of many Manitobans about the illegitimacy of the sale of MTS and particularly Manitobans who are saying that we should buy back MTS. I want to read into the record a resolution that should be noted. The resolution was passed by the New Democratic Party, and its conventions should be noted in the prospectus.

The operative sections are: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED the New Democratic Party commit itself to maintaining the public ownership of the Manitoba Telephone System; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that if the Conservative government sells off the Manitoba Telephone System or any other Crown corporation without the agreement of the people of Manitoba that the next New Democratic Party government will take back our public assets by repurchasing the company at a price no higher than that paid by the purchasers; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED in taking back any shares which may be issued by the present government in MTS or its successor companies, the next NDP government shall reduce or deny compensation to shareholders by the extent to which they have and without limiting the generality of the expression; and

It shall consider shareholders to have privateered where there are reasonable grounds to believe that:

(a) shares have been tendered to the public for a price below the net asset value of MTS or its successors; or

(b) assets in the privatized company have been sold in a manner detrimental to the future operation of MTS or its successors; or

(c) service rates have been raised more than was warranted by the investment needs of MTS or its successors; or

(d) profits have been realized through wage reductions, layoffs or unfair labour practice; or

(e) profits have been realized through rate rebalancing or other measures with the effect of limiting service to rural areas of the province; or

(f) profits have been distributed to shareholders by dividend or other means in a manner detrimental to the future operations of MTS or its successors; or

(g) direct payments, assumptions of corporate debt or other government subsidies to MTS or its successors have been used to benefit shareholders rather than being reinvested or used in the public interest; or

(h) corporate funds or assets distributed to shareholders have been obtained through borrowings or asset sales detrimental to the future of MTS or its successor.

The bottom line with this resolution and the views of many Manitobans, Madam Speaker, is the sale of MTS is not legitimate. The government did not promise it; they do not have support for it. They should warn anybody who buys shares that that is the position of many Manitobans, that it is not legitimate to sell, and we should try and buy it back. Thank you.

Mr. Gary Kowalski (The Maples): Madam Speaker, this session of the Legislature, as it draws to a close, I think we have to recognize that it has been a heavy legislative agenda and sometimes we take for granted many of the people who work in this building and assist us, whether it is everyone from the security staff here that have had trying days during this session, to the staff in Hansard, to the Pages, we should appreciate them all.

Of special note are the people that have stayed until late in the evening, assisting the committees to function, and I think all members would join in recognizing Judy White, Patricia Chaychuk, the Sergeant-at-Arms Dennis Gray, Deputy Sergeant-at-Arms Garry Clark, gallery attendant Mark Pittet, and message room attendant Denise Abgrall who have put in many long hours here, staying here sometimes until two, two-thirty in the morning and are here bright and early the next day. I think all members of this Chamber should be thankful to the staff for all the efforts they put to allow us to do our job here as legislators.

Mr. Eric Robinson (Rupertsland): Madam Speaker, this week, under immense public pressure from Grand Chiefs Ovide Mercredi, Phil Fontaine, and many other First Nations leaders from across Manitoba, along with more than 250 northern Manitobans, the provincial government finally acknowledged that there are many ways in which the justice system is failing aboriginal people. The marchers came here asking not just for justice for the family of Dorothy Martin, they came asking for justice for aboriginal people across this province.

Aboriginal people have been waiting for justice for many years. The AJI was commissioned by the former NDP government because it acknowledged that the system was not working. The murders of Helen Betty Osborne, J.J. Harper and the incarceration rates of aboriginal people amongst many other issues are all pointed out as the need for change. The AJI report was released in August of 1991 after listening to more than a thousand presenters at some 30 communities in Manitoba. The recommendations were widely praised across the country which were promptly put on a shelf and forgotten by two successive ministers of this government.

Today, more than five years later, the government, in duress, has now made commitments that should have occurred more than five years ago. These commitments are a step forward. The government says it will now work with the AMC on justice issues, from TAs to youth gangs, aboriginal policing and violence against women, amongst other issues. We welcome this new policy position of this government and will do everything we can to ensure that, unlike the many other broken promises of this government, the commitments made today to the aboriginal people of this province will be upheld. Thank you.

Mr. David Newman (Riel): Madam Speaker, I did not intend to speak today, but in light of the honourable member for Thompson's (Mr. Ashton) statement and reading into the record a resolution, I felt constrained to do so. You know, we have spent now, since 1988, in this province, in an effort to overcome the ideology which governed this province for far too long, to gain respect in the national and international community and amongst Manitobans, in the sort of environment we create for private sector enterprise, and for people to run their own lives as they deem appropriate within the values, the general guidelines of the laws.

Today, we have heard a statement that would send a chill to any self-responsible entrepreneur in this province, in this country and in this world. It is like a threat that they are going to expropriate this private sector MTS when it begins to operate, and for less then fair market value maybe. It is quite a statement. It is a statement which should be broadcast far and wide because that is the warning to anyone that expects to continue to do business in this province and to do business in the province in the future. It causes me grave concern. However, I have one comfort and that is that that sort of message is no longer respected in the province of Manitoba as generally as the opposition party seems to think.

Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Point Douglas, with committee changes.

Mr. George Hickes (Point Douglas): I move, seconded by the member for Broadway (Mr. Santos), that the composition of the Standing Committee on Public Utilities and Natural Resources be amended as follows: Thompson (Mr. Ashton) for Flin Flon (Mr. Jennissen) for Thursday, November 7, 1996, for 2:45 p.m.

Motion agreed to.

* (1440)