LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA
Friday, November 24, 2017
Madam Speaker: O Eternal and Almighty God, from Whom all power and wisdom come, we are assembled here before Thee to frame such laws as may tend to the welfare and prosperity of our province. Grant, O merciful God, we pray Thee, that we may desire only that which is in accordance with Thy will, that we may seek it with wisdom and know it with certainty and accomplish it perfectly for the glory and honour of Thy name and for the welfare of all our people. Amen.
Please be seated.
Hon. Heather Stefanson (Minister of Justice and Attorney General): I move, seconded by the Minister of Finance (Mr. Friesen), that Bill 4, The Legislative Assembly Amendment Act (Member Changing Parties); Loi modifiant la Loi sur l'Assemblée législative (adhésion à un autre parti), be now read a first time.
Motion presented.
Mrs. Stefanson: The Legislative 'amendly'–Assembly Amendment Act will repeal section 52.3.1 of The Legislative Assembly Act, which bans floor crossing for members of the Assembly.
Madam Speaker: Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion? Agreed? [Agreed]
Committee reports?
Hon. Blaine Pedersen (Minister of Growth, Enterprise and Trade): Madam Speaker, I am pleased to table the Office of the Fire Commissioner 2016‑2017 Annual Report.
Hon. Heather Stefanson (Minister of Justice and Attorney General): I am pleased to table, pursuant to The Statutes and Regulations Act, a copy of each regulation registered under the–that act, up to the last regulation tabled in this House and more than 14 days before the commencement of this session.
Madam Speaker: Any further tabling of reports?
Mrs. Stefanson: I am pleased to table the Public Guardian and Trustee Annual Report for the Department of Justice for the fiscal year 2016‑2017.
Madam Speaker: Ministerial statements?
Mr. Andrew Micklefield (Rossmere): In 2005, a Pakistani‑born pharmacist, Hajra Mirza, moved to Canada to be with her Canadian husband. Seven years later, she moved to Winnipeg, and in 2016 she took a risk and started a new business by opening the Rossmere Pharmacy. She could have worked in any province, but she chose Manitoba. And I'm glad she did, as are many residents of Rossmere.
Not only does Rossmere Pharmacy dispense medicine, but Dr. Hajra holds regular clinics on skin care to address common conditions like eczema. I recently witnessed a diabetes workshop for seniors. But that's not all. Dr. Hajra works with patients on medication management, basic primary care and healthy families strategies.
Under Dr. Hajra's leadership, Rossmere Pharmacy is collaborating with nurse practitioners and dieticians to help people understand and manage their health, their weight and their diet.
Rossmere Pharmacy has partnered with Canadian mental health to hold depression and anxiety clinics. She's also held cardio clinics, obesity clinics and a stroke risk factor screening clinic.
As well as having a doctoral degree in pharmacology, Dr. Hajra has a family and patient care certificate, a smoking care certificate, in fact, so many other certificates I literally don't have time to list them all. She told me that she tries to get one new certification every year.
It's no surprise that Dr. Hajra recently received the Magnum Opus Award for pharmacists from the Manitoba Society of Pharmacists, nor is it any wonder that her patients have nominated her for a patient care award.
Madam Speaker, we often speak of outstanding Manitobans. I'd like to ask all members to join me in recognizing one here today. Could we please rise and welcome to the Manitoba Legislature, Dr. Hajra Mirza.
Mr. Len Isleifson (Brandon East): As I rise in the House today to present my final private member's statement of 2017, I want to use this opportunity to an–extend an invitation to each member of this House and to each resident of Manitoba to visit the constituency of Brandon East throughout the winter.
A quick visit to Crow's General Store is anything but ordinary. You can grab a hot chocolate in the parlour before exploring the scenic landscapes that showcases antiques and collector's items scattered throughout the grounds. Throughout these coming winter months you can use the snowshoe and cross‑country ski trails and then stop in for a warm treat in the parlour.
This scenic location is also home to the Treesblood Farm and Assiniboine Food Forest initiative. You can wander beneath the canopy of oak, ash and maple on the interpretive trail system and take part in an educational workshop and tour the many scientific, artistic and cultural themes.
Madam Speaker, I also encourage folks to visit The Riverbank Discovery Centre where they can reconnect with nature while exploring the trail systems, the interpretive pond or head inside the centre to learn about the wetlands and wildlife at their family activity space.
I also want to extend an invitation to stop by the Keystone Centre. This facility is one of the largest non-profit recreational complexes of its kind in North America. The Keystone Centre has hosted many major national hockey and curling championships such as the 2010 Memorial Cup, the 1995 worlds in curling, the first ever Olympic curling trials in '97, the 2003 Tournament of Hearts, continuing with legacy, in 2019 is the biggest national curling event in North America: the Brier.
So, as you can see, Madam Speaker, there's plenty to do in Brandon East, and I might add, once you think you've had the time of your life and you're tired, you can start all over again in Brandon West.
Along with my colleague, the member from Brandon West, we hope to see you all in Brandon over the winter months.
Thank you.
Mr. Tom Lindsey (Flin Flon): With winter in full effect, many families and seniors across the North are sharing their concerns with me over a variety of issues. The rail line to Churchill has not been reopened, and this has left many residents of both Churchill and a number of First Nations facing an extremely difficult winter.
With the provincial and federal governments failing to resolve the issue of either the rail line or the port before winter set in, many Manitobans are worried about the conditions that northerners are facing and doing what they can to improve the difficult situation.
With Christmas around the corner, Skylar Ferguson, a grade 11 student at Oak Park, has organized a food and toy drive where the proceeds donated will be sent to the people of Churchill. Her goal is to have all children in Churchill this Christmas receive gifts, and she is working with the cheer board in Churchill to make sure the neediest kids are helped first.
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Doing her research on the topic, Ferguson learned that since supplies could only make it to Churchill through the air, the cost of food has risen astronomically, and the Churchill food bank had run out of food several times, leaving families in deep need without support.
I would like to thank Skylar and everyone involved with her fundraising work for serving the people of Churchill in their time of need. If anyone wants to donate, there are several drop-off locations, such as Oak Park High school, Academy Lanes and more, and they will be collecting until December 10th.
I also urge this government to provide real action to assist Churchill this winter. Manitobans need a government to have the same heart that its people do, and work to quickly end the issue of the rail line and the port with all parties, as well as fill in the gap until the railway is built.
Thank you.
Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Madam Speaker, I call today, again, on the government to reverse its decision to close the emergency medical services station in Grandview. I table now an additional 500 signatures on petitions to support this call. Large numbers of people are concerned about the future of health care in Grandview. I hope the government will review and reverse its decision with the respect to the Grandview EMS station.
Madam Speaker, at our forum last Sunday, Judy Walker spoke passionately about her son with an intellectual disability. She spoke of her great concern that the Pallister government might reverse the decades‑long effort to enable people like her son to live in the community. She was passionate about the large benefits her son has had from living in the community and also expressed concern over 'plossible' government plans to offload some costs of care to families.
Shelley Kowalchuk, a physiotherapist and executive member of the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals, also spoke on the cuts to outpatient physiotherapy services. Large areas of need will now be left to individuals to seek private physiotherapy services. Ms. Kowalchuk reported that only 15 per cent of the clients currently served by outpatient services have insurance to cover private physiotherapy services, which means 85 per cent will likely not be able to receive the services because they can't afford it. The result will likely mean coming back into hospital and extra costs to taxpayers.
Will the government come to its senses and reverse its decision to cut outpatient physiotherapy services?
At the forum we also heard many other concerns, including those related to closing QuickCare clinics and the loss of jobs for nurse practitioners who run them.
Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Mr. Jon Reyes (St. Norbert): Madam Speaker, November is a month of remembrance. As the month near its end, both the military community and the Filipino community in Manitoba, and across Canada, have lost two very important individuals.
This month, we learned of the passing of Senator Tobias Enverga Jr., the first Filipino senator appointed in Canada and the first Conservative Filipino senator appointed by the former prime minister, the Right Honourable Stephen Harper.
Known as a man of the people, his wife describes him as a man with a heart for those who needed help. As senator, he was an advocate for immigrants, the poor and the vulnerable, especially those with special needs. I have had the pleasure of knowing him personally, and will miss him, his genuine, caring nature, having first met him a couple of years ago at the Manitoba Filipino Street Festival. It is with sadness that I offer my thoughts and prayers to his family, some of whom live in my constituency of St. Norbert, and to all who came to know and were impacted by Senator Enverga's kindness.
In addition to the loss of Senator Enverga, we have recently also learned of the death of Corporal Nathan [phonetic] Caribou.
As the military envoy for this province, I recognize the sacrifices made by our men, women in uniform every day. That is why I was so heartbroken to hear of the passing of Corporal Nolan Caribou at CFB Shilo last weekend.
Corporal Caribou was a valued member of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles of 38 Brigade Group and will be missed dearly by all who knew him.
Madam Speaker, I'd like to take this moment to offer my sincere condolences to his family and community as he is laid to rest later today. As we keep Corporal Caribou and his loved ones in our thoughts and prayers, we as members of the Manitoba Legislature extend our utmost gratitude to Corporal Caribou for serving proudly, protect the rights we enjoy every day.
Madam Speaker, on behalf of all Manitobans, I close by thanking these two individuals for their service to Canada.
Introduction of Guests
Madam Speaker: Prior to oral questions, we have some guests in the gallery that I would like to introduce to you.
Seated in the Speaker's Gallery, we have with us today Cynthia Reyes and Miguel Reyes, who are the wife and son of the honourable member for St. Norbert.
On behalf of all members here, we welcome you here to the Manitoba Legislature.
Funding Level Concerns
Mr. Wab Kinew (Leader of the Official Opposition): Madam Speaker, it's with a heavy heart that I rise to mourn the victims of the terror attack in Egypt today. More than 200 people were killed in a mosque near the Sinai coast. As this was a terror attack, there is no justification for the violence, and there is never a justification for the taking of innocent lives.
What's particularly disturbing about this is that this was a targeted attack designed to kill as many people as possible, to hurt as many people as possible, because we know that our Muslim relatives gather on Friday for Friday prayers, and that's when these people were struck down.
There's many Egyptians in Manitoba who will be mourning today. We want to express our sympathy and condolences. As our Muslim relatives say, inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi rajioon; to the Creator we belong and to the Creator we return.
That said, I'd like to ask the Minister of Health if his government is prepared to reverse the cuts to personal-care homes in Manitoba.
Hon. Kelvin Goertzen (Minister of Health, Seniors and Active Living): Madam Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for recognizing another atrocity in our world. And it seems almost daily we hear about terrorism around the globe in different parts of our world. And we can hardly comprehend the evil that is behind such acts of terror.
But every time there is an act of terror, we remark at people who have come together, who fight against that evil, who say they'll stand against that darkness, who say that they will counter the evil with love, that they will counter that evil with compassion, that they will counter that evil with giving. We see that over and over again. And, of course, we hope that the terrorism stops, but we hope that the compassion that we all show in humanity continues to grow, Madam Speaker.
Madam Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, on a supplementary question.
Mr. Kinew: The Premier (Mr. Pallister) is cutting the services that Manitoba families rely on, seniors in particular. After cutting a new CancerCare headquarters and shelving plans for new personal-care homes in Winnipeg and in Lac du Bonnet, we now learn that the Premier has ordered the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority to slash over $1 million from personal-care-home budgets to meet his demand for cuts.
Now, we know that the Premier is not listening to patients before making these decisions to cut services. But is he listening to the member for Transcona (Mr. Yakimoski) when he cut $17,000 from the Park Manor Personal Care Home? Is he listening to the member for Kildonan (Mr. Curry) when he cuts 20 grand from the Kildonan personal-care home? Is he listening to the member from River East when he cuts 20 grand from the River East Personal Care Home?
Will the Premier listen to what Manitobans are saying and reverse these cuts to personal-care homes in our province?
Mr. Goertzen: Madam Speaker, in this budget year for Winnipeg personal-care homes, there was an increase of $540,000 for their 'operashing.' There was an increase–more than a half-a-million-dollar increase to provide care for those who are in personal-care homes in Winnipeg.
The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority did ask personal-care homes to find a quarter of a per cent of reduction in administration costs. So there's an increase of over a half a million dollars for patient care, and they asked to find a quarter of a percentage reduction for administration. The MLAs that he named in his question, they're standing up for patient care. He's standing up for administration.
Madam Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, on a final supplementary.
Mr. Kinew: The cut that the Minister of Health now acknowledges was ordered by the Premier, will have a bigger impact.
What we know is that this was an in-year cut. So after personal-care homes had already been told what the level of funding they were supposed to have for this year was, this government then went to them and told them that, in fact, there would be tens of thousands of dollars less per site to aid our seniors and to help them. We know that these impacts will mean that there's less services for the health and well-being of residents in these homes. And like all of these government's cuts, it's about the money, it's not about the patient care.
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Now, we've established over and over again that these decisions are being made by the Premier, but when will he finally take the time to listen to Manitobans who want health care restored and start by reversing these in-year cuts to personal-care homes in Manitoba?
Mr. Goertzen: Madam Speaker, I recognize the Leader of the Opposition had written his question before he came in and he was determined to ask it no matter what the answer was.
I indicated to him in the response, in the second response, that there's more than a half-a-million-dollars increase for Winnipeg personal-care homes this year. There's a net increase of more than a half a million dollars. Every personal-care home is getting more money to operate to provide for care for those who are under their care in those personal-care homes.
There was an ask for a reduction of a quarter of a per cent for administration. There's more money, more net money, to provide care. That member wants that to be cut. He's asking us to reduce the budget by a half a million dollars. We won't do that.
We'll continue to stand up for seniors. He can stand up for administration, Madam Speaker.
Madam Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, on a new question.
Assistant Deputy Minister Position
Mr. Wab Kinew (Leader of the Official Opposition): Nous sommes toujours concernés à donner notre appui aux aînés dans notre société – et pas aux coupures du Premier ministre (M. Pallister).
Madame la présidente, pour des décennies, le Bureau de l'éducation française était le pilier au sein du gouvernement pour le service et l’éducation en français pour les Manitobains et Manitobaines. Mais on a appris tout récemment que, sans consultation avec la communauté franco-manitobaine, le Premier ministre a décidé de supprimer le poste du responsable. Pire, il apparaît que le gouvernement a ordonné des coupures à ce bureau – le Bureau de l'éducation française.
Le Premier ministre est obligé d'offrir une explication à la communauté franco-manitobaine – pourquoi il pense que l'éducation française n'a pas besoin de l’appui que l'adjoint offrait aux parents et au système d'éducation.
Pourquoi est-ce que le Premier ministre a coupé le sous-ministre adjoint consacré au Bureau de l'éducation française?
Translation
We are always concerned about giving our support to seniors in our society, and not to the cuts by the Premier (Mr. Pallister).
Madam Speaker, for decades, the Bureau de l’éducation française was a pillar within the government for French services and French education for all Manitobans. But we learned recently that, without any consultation with the Franco-Manitoban community, the Premier decided to cut the position of the person in charge. What is worse, it seems the government ordered cuts in that office–the Bureau de l'éducation française.
The Premier must provide an explanation to the Franco-Manitoban community–why he thinks that French education does not need the support that the assistant deputy minister was providing to parents and the education system.
Why did the Premier cut the position of assistant deputy minister that was dedicated to the Bureau de l’éducation française?
Hon. Ian Wishart (Minister of Education and Training): I thank the member for the question.
We are a very open and inclusive province and we are happy to work with the French community to make sure that their needs, both in education and other areas of training, are met. And we will continue to do so.
We have extended an invitation to come in and discuss their concerns, and they've certainly shown a positive sign in terms of responding to that. There is greater potential than just the K-to-12 system as we work to move forward to make sure that Manitobans are well trained in the future.
Madam Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, on a supplementary question.
Funding for Daycare Program
Mr. Wab Kinew (Leader of the Official Opposition): Bien, si le ministre veux parler du système postsecondaire, on a seulement à regarder au Discours du trône pour regarder que ses priorités ne marchent pas avec la communauté francophone.
Depuis longtemps, l'Université de Saint-Boniface a demandé du financement pour une garderie sur leur système d'éducation. Mais–et on sait aussi que l'éducation en français est essentielle pour le futur de la communauté française franco-manitobaine dans notre province.
Mais, pourquoi dans le Discours du trône est-ce que ce gouvernement n'a pas annoncé de financement pour la garderie à l'Université de Saint-Boniface?
Translation
Well, if the minister wants to speak about post-secondary education, we only have to look at the Throne Speech to see that his priorities do not match with that of the Francophone community.
For a long time, the Université de Saint-Boniface has been requesting funding for a daycare in its education system. But–and we also know that French education is paramount for the future of the French, Franco-Manitoban community in our province.
But why in the Throne Speech did this government not announce funding for the daycare at the Université de Saint-Boniface?
Hon. Ian Wishart (Minister of Education and Training): We continue to work in a productive way with post-secondaries, including the Université de Saint-Boniface.
And as to waiting lists for daycares, I would be shocked that the members opposite would want to make a point in that regard, because they certainly had a big hand in the 12,000-person waiting list that has been generated to this point.
Madam Speaker: The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition, on a final supplementary.
Assistant Deputy Minister Position
Mr. Wab Kinew (Leader of the Official Opposition): Il y a encore 5 000 places de plus sur cette liste à cause de ce gouvernement, maintenant.
Les familles et les organismes au Manitoba militent constamment pour garantir l'accès à l'éducation française dans notre province.
Nous savons que l'éducation, ça c'est le futur pour la communauté franco-manitobaine, pour la communauté métisse, pour les nouveaux arrivants de la Francophonie dans notre province. Non seulement pour conserver les acquis – cette communauté a constamment besoin de lutter pour garder ce que nous avons gagné dans le passé de notre province.
C'est très important que ce gouvernement consulte avec la communauté franco-manitobaine avant qu'il fait des coupures comme ce qu’il a fait au sous-ministre adjoint dans le Bureau de l'éducation française.
Est-ce que le Premier ministre (M. Pallister) est préparé de renverser cette décision et redonner l'appui d'avoir un francophone dans une position de sous-ministre adjoint pour le Bureau de l'éducation française?
Translation
There are 5,000 more spots on that list because of this government, now.
Families and organizations in Manitoba are constantly fighting to guarantee access to French education in our province. We know that education is the key to the future for the Franco-Manitoban community, for the Metis community and for the newcomers in our province from the French-speaking world. Not just to preserve what has been gained, this community has to fight all the time to keep what we have won in our province’s past.
It is very important that this government consult with the Franco-Manitoban community before making cuts like it has to the position of assistant deputy minister at the Bureau de l'éducation française.
Is the Premier (Mr. Pallister) prepared to reverse this decision and to restore the support provided by having a francophone in the position of assistant deputy minister at the Bureau de l'éducation française?
Hon. Ian Wishart (Minister of Education and Training): There has been growth in both French immersion and French education in full French classes through DSFM in Manitoba, and we have responded appropriately with increased funding and increased support in both of those areas.
It seems only the NDP measure success of a program by how many bureaucrats–[interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Wishart: –there are. Thank you. [interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Funding for Breakfast and Lunch Programs
Mrs. Bernadette Smith (Point Douglas): For too many children in Manitoba, a lack of fresh, healthy meals is a barrier to quality education. Research shows that students need a nutritious breakfast in the morning so that they can concentrate better in school. They also need a healthy lunch in the afternoon to keep their energy up. For low-income families in my constituency of Point Douglas, fresh, healthy food is just too expensive, so schools must step in to ensure that students get the nutrition they need.
Does the minister agree that schools need funding support to provide nutritious programs to help students be successful in class?
Hon. Ian Wishart (Minister of Education and Training): Our department works through the school divisions, and we do support programs that provide healthy breakfasts, healthy lunches, in various schools across the province. We work in conjunction with the local school division, who very often work with volunteers and businesses in the local community to support that. It has been successful in the past. There continues to be a growing need; we continue to support.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Point Douglas, on a supplementary question.
Mrs. Smith: Several schools in my constituency of Point Douglas struggle to provide breakfast and lunch programs with guaranteed funding from the school divisions. It's still not enough to feed the children in the schools. Many schools rely on parent volunteers to fund–to cover these gaps, and they need a dedicated staff person to make it sustainable.
Will the minister create a special funding strategy for schools to ensure that they can keep programs running?
Mr. Wishart: We continue to work all the time with school divisions across the province that have expressed concern in this area, and it is certainly a joint responsibility. We work with them; they work with the community to make sure that they meet the needs of the community.
It is a growing need; there is no question, and we are there to help support that.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Point Douglas, on a final supplementary.
Mrs. Smith: I've spoken with a few principals in Point Douglas that tell me that they need to scale back programs that they provide to students in order to provide the food that the kids need to learn. They have been forced to use food banks, meaning students are eating canned chili for breakfast.
This is unacceptable because it means that the students in Point Douglas are getting fewer opportunities to be successful in their education.
Will the minister commit to ensuring–[interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mrs. Smith: –thank you–ensuring inner-city schools get equitable access to breakfast and lunch programs?
Mr. Wishart: As I said before, we continue to work on an ongoing basis with the school divisions, both in the urban centre and across the province. We certainly want to take this time to thank the volunteers that put so much time and effort and the sponsors that help in the communities.
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The NDP stood quietly aside while we had–became the child-poverty capital of Canada and didn't actually deal with that problem. So I think that we certainly have a lot of work ahead of us, but I don't think they can say that they didn't have a hand in it.
Complaint Against OmniTRAX
Mr. Tom Lindsey (Flin Flon): This government has wasted every opportunity to help the people of Churchill. At every step of the way they've passed the buck, dithered, evaded, made no effort to solve the massive problems Churchill and surrounding communities are facing.
It's long past time OmniTRAX was held to account, made up to live up to its obligations. The fact this crisis dragged on for over a year–serious financial and emotional toll on the residents of Churchill. When this Premier (Mr. Pallister) and his government failed to act, we did. We filed a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency to hold OmniTRAX to its obligations.
Will this government at least join us in our complaint against OmniTRAX with the Canadian Transportation Agency?
Hon. Ron Schuler (Minister of Infrastructure): Well, Madam Speaker, our government has stood up for Churchill. Every step of the way we've provided what's within our jurisdiction, and we've done so publicly and openly.
I would like to point out to the House that in the alternative throne speech, on page 1, where they–oh, that's right, they don't mention Churchill. On page 4 of the–oh, it's not on page 4 either. But there's always page–no, it's not page 8 either. Well, maybe it's on page 11, Madam Speaker, the page they didn't print.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Flin Flon, on supplementary question.
Need for Economic Plan
Mr. Tom Lindsey (Flin Flon): Talk about a shameful answer; that's what we just heard.
Seems the Premier (Mr. Pallister) is looking for ways to avoid–
Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Lindsey: –the people in Churchill. He trots out made-up figures and numbers that are supposed to count as support. But when he's pressed, he refuses to provide any breakdown, any detail. He won't say what those numbers are. He refuses to be open with the people of Manitoba regarding his plans. That's because the support this Premier is offering is only paper thin.
It would be–not bear the scrutiny of northerners who know what the needs of their communities are.
If this government is actually going to come to the table, actually going to support the people of Churchill, then will it table its $500-million commitment–
Madam Speaker: The member's time has expired.
Hon. Ron Schuler (Minister of Infrastructure): Well, Madam Speaker, we have had ministers visiting Churchill, discussing the issues with members of the community. We are in constant consultation with Churchill. We are there. We are there all the time. My department is always available to give advice.
We are pushing the federal government to live up to their constitutional obligation, which–something finally the NDP has realized: it is a federal constitutional obligation.
I would like to point out they had one opportunity to address issues in Churchill, and they neglected to do it by not even mentioning Churchill once in their alternative throne speech.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Flin Flon, on a final supplementary.
Mr. Lindsey: This government's entire Throne Speech, the government didn't mention the town of Churchill once. It didn't mention the surrounding communities that depend on the Bay Line once. According to this government, the crisis facing the town and surrounding communities, not a major priority that merits mention. It's a crisis that is not even on the radar of this government.
Combined with the government's own estimates of up to 1,500 job losses for northern Manitoba in the coming years, this Premier is truly asleep at the switch when it comes to the North.
Will the Premier take concrete action today by tabling a jobs plan or any real supports for northern Manitoba?
Mr. Schuler: Madam Speaker, when you look at the alternative throne speech, I guess you could say too much Tesla, not enough Churchill, and I would point out that all the pages that are speaking about Teslas is small comfort to the people of Churchill.
We have been up there talking about food subsidies. We've been talking about different ways to get product up to Churchill. We've ensured that there are flights to make sure that there's enough fuel up there.
We have made all the assurances to the community that we are there for them, unlike the NDP, who had the opportunity to even mention it once. By the member's own words, it's not a priority for him. They didn't even mention Churchill once in their alternative throne speech.
Government Funding Intention
Ms. Nahanni Fontaine (St. Johns): Well, Madam Speaker, we have seen a dismal track record from this Premier in respect of supports for low-income women.
First, they cut $120,000 from the North Point Douglas Women's Centre; then they cut $30,000 from the North End women's resource centre, then another $50,000 from the Centre Flavie-Laurent in St. Boniface.
On top of this, they've hiked up rent for women living in Manitoba Housing, cut Rent Assist, while freezing the minimum wage, all of which disproportionately impacts on women.
Why is the Premier (Mr. Pallister) attacking the most vulnerable and marginalized women of Manitoba?
Hon. Cameron Friesen (Minister of Finance): I thank the member for the question and the opportunity to talk about the importance of understanding history. Now, the NDP widened the retail sales tax, disproportionately affecting low-income houses in 2012, but then they raised the PST in 2013. The Leader of the Opposition party, at a different time in his life, even reflected and said, that is tremendously hard on the poor.
They raised $500 million on the backs of those who could least afford it. Where was their concern for the working poor then?
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for St. Johns, on a supplementary question.
Ms. Fontaine: If we could actually just focus on my question, and my question is about the west central women's centre–
Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.
Madam Speaker: Order.
Ms. Fontaine: –has not had one, but three grant applications denied. These applications were denied after the centre was stuck with a $10,000 bill when their water main break flooded their facilities earlier this year. The flood drastically reduced the availability to provide services for women in the community.
In fact, Madam Speaker, they went from serving more than 600 women down to just 77 because of this financial constraint. Those grants directly translated into front-line services that kept inner-city women safe, healthy and supported.
The Premier says that he supports low-income women, but then denies grants to community organizations–
Madam Speaker: The member's time has expired.
Mr. Friesen: Well, the member is wrong. Investments are up, not down, by this government.
But let us be clear: debt service cost is the charge on an annual basis to sustain the government's debt obligations. Two years ago, that obligation was $855 million. It is careening dangerously close to $1 billion because the NDP did not keep their eye on this. [interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Friesen: So, Madam Speaker, for that group to now express a concern about affordability, when they ignored every warning and have led us to this point, is highly disingenuous.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for St. Johns, on a final supplementary.
Ms. Fontaine: The minister is so far off track, I can't even get him focused that we're talking about the west women's centre and about the lack of funding that they've gotten that has reduced the number of women and children that they are able to support.
Will this government get through all of their ridiculous rhetoric and actually get down to supporting Manitoba women that are in need of supports to ensure that they have the best possible opportunities for themselves and for their children?
* (10:40)
Mr. Friesen: So, Madam Speaker, let us understand clearly that this government has expressed to all Manitobans that we care about affordability, we care about keeping taxes low, we care about allowing Manitobans to keep more of their hard-earned money, and that member's response is that that is ridiculous rhetoric. Shame.
Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.
Mr. Friesen: And now they cheer about it. Madam Speaker–[interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Friesen: The–[interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Friesen: Madam Speaker, the OECD just commented yesterday on the warning of rising debt risk, primarily among Canadians. They said for those who've failed to heed the warnings, there are storm clouds gathering.
The NDP ignored the warnings. We will not. We remain committed to increasing affordability for all Manitoba families.
Training and Recruitment
Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Madam Speaker, I welcome Ashley Pylypowich, chair of the Nurse Practitioner Association of Manitoba, who's in the gallery today.
Nurse practitioners are a very critical part of Manitoba's health-care team. David Peachey, in his report, recognized this, and, indeed, his report calls for a dramatic increase in the number of nurse practitioners in Manitoba, possibly as many as 500 more nurse practitioners than there are today.
What is the government's plan with respect to nurse practitioners, including the plan to train and recruit the additional nurse practitioners who will be needed for our province?
Hon. Kelvin Goertzen (Minister of Health, Seniors and Active Living): We certainly value and appreciate the work of nurse practitioners. I agree they are certainly an important part of the professionals within our health-care system.
I'm a little confused by the member for River Heights. He has spent the last many months trying to distance himself from Dr. Peachey's report, saying that it wasn't what he would do. Well, of course, that's what he said one day, and then he said he would do it, and then he said he wouldn't do it.
So I'm not quite sure. Does he support Dr Peachey's report, or does he not support Dr. Peachey's report, Madam Speaker?
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for River Heights, on a supplementary question.
Mr. Gerrard: In a problematic report, there are some things which are worth looking at. Nurse practitioners are a really critical part–
Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Gerrard: –of our health-care system. And yet the minister has failed thus far either to meet with members of the Nurse Practitioner Association of Manitoba or to include members in decision-making committees like that for the shared services Manitoba clinical teams or even in ongoing discussions on the future of health care in our province.
When will the minister realize how critical nurse practitioners are and include them in his plans for the future of health care in Manitoba?
Mr. Goertzen: Well, Madam Speaker, now I think we get a bit of a sense of what a true Liberal is: not quite sure from day to day what they're actually standing for.
The–Dr. Peachey's report is an overall clinical plan. Now, it's true that it can't all be done at one time; it has to be staged, perhaps over many years, Madam Speaker, the different parts of it, and that is fine. But it's not a buffet where you take a little bit here or you take a little bit there and leave the rest of it over there. Dr. Peachey's plan is an overall comprehensive plan.
Yes, nurse practitioners are an important part of that. We continue to value them. We will continue to value them. But I think he should come on-board with looking at the overall plan and not just picking and choosing so he can have a question one day in question period, Madam Speaker. [interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order. Order.
The honourable member for River Heights, on a final supplementary.
Mr. Gerrard: Madam Speaker, nurse practitioners run the quick 'clare' 'kinic'–click–QuickCare clinics in Winnipeg. The minister is cutting four of these. Chop.
Nurse practitioners are critical to collaborative-care teams like the Corydon Primary Care Clinic and the Hospital Home Team. The minister is cutting these. Chop.
When we all know nurse practitioners will be critical in future health care and the Peachey report is recommending more nurse practitioners and a greater role for nurse practitioners, why is the minister cutting these nurse practitioners petitions–positions? Chop.
Mr. Goertzen: Madam Speaker, the QuickCare clinics' resources are going to the ACCESS centre. The hours will be expanded, so there'll actually be more services.
But it is important, since the member brought it up, that we did go to Ottawa over the last year and we begged the federal Liberal government to be a real partner in health care. We said, would you please come to the table and help us provide health care? And you know what they said? Chop.
They reduced the funding, Madam Speaker. We went to–we said, but there are people in Manitoba who need support for mental health care. You know what they said? Chop.
We went and we asked and we said there are people who need more support when it comes to acute care. Will you help us? You know what the federal Liberal government said? Chop.
And you know what that member said? Nothing, Madam Speaker.
Offender Reintegration Program
Mr. Scott Johnston (St. James): That's a hard act to follow.
Madam Speaker, our government is taking bold action to reduce crime by responsibly integrating offenders back into the community. As a government, we know how important it is that offenders leaving custody can find a job and a healthy path forward.
Can the Minister of Justice tell this House about an announcement she made with the Minister of Education yesterday to help reduce crime in our province?
Hon. Heather Stefanson (Minister of Justice and Attorney General): I want to thank the member for that excellent question on justice.
Madam Speaker, I was proud yesterday to join the Minister of Education–an announcement that we made for $900,000 in investment in the Momentum Centre reintegration program, which will help reduce crime by reintegrating offenders from our correctional facilities back into the community.
Madam Speaker, we are–we invest in programs that make a real difference in our communities, and the Momentum Centre is one of them. They are making our community safer by helping inmates deal with addictions problems, finding them a job, breaking the cycles of crime and self-destruction that are far too common in our province.
I want to thank all of those people who work and volunteer at the Momentum Centre. They truly–
Madam Speaker: The member's time has expired.
Meeting with Minister
Mr. Rob Altemeyer (Wolseley): A quick administrative item before my question.
I'd like to table three copies of page 7 of our alternative throne speech, which does indeed specifically mention the town of–[interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Altemeyer: –Churchill. The Minister for Infrastructure earlier said there was no reference. It does occur under the environment section. That might explain how he and the entire Tory caucus and the entire Tory staff machine missed it.
Now for my question.
On a more hopeful note, Madam Speaker, Agape Table is facing a really difficult situation according to recent media reports. Will the minister commit to meeting with representatives within the next two weeks?
Hon. Scott Fielding (Minister of Families): I understand there has been a meeting request for my office, and absolutely we'll meet with them.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Wolseley, on a supplementary question.
Resources for Relocation
Mr. Altemeyer: I appreciate the minister's response. The timelines for Agape are very, very tight. I do hope he's able to meet with them in the next two weeks. Through no fault of their own, and through no fault of the church where they are currently located, Agape Table will have to leave their current location by the end of February when their space becomes a construction zone.
* (10:50)
This organization currently feeds up to 450 vulnerable people every single day.
Will the minister commit staff time from his department to help Agape Table find an alternative location in the West Broadway neighbourhood with every resource possible?
Mr. Fielding: Well, I did answer the question. We will meet with Agape Table and their representatives. There's an individual that came to me a few days ago and asked about that, and I understand there has been a letter.
So, again, to answer the member's question, I've committed to meeting with them, and of course we want to look at all solutions for all stakeholders. We have a number of dollars that are on the table with the federal government with housing and housing-related items, and so, of course, we want to find solutions. But without meeting with them or 'wout'–finding out more about their project, I can't commit right now in the House to anything. But we will meet with them.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Wolseley, on a final supplementary.
Mr. Altemeyer: Again, I want to thank the minister for the tone of his response. I and other members of my caucus, many members of the Conservative caucus, go to Agape Table on a regular basis each year to help out in special events and to serve food to people who are facing hard times.
What Agape Table will eventually need once they have a location is financial support so they can transition from their current location to a new one.
I would ask the minister to commit to Agape Table today that he will give all possible consideration to any funding requests that Agape Table will make once they have an alternative location identified.
Mr. Fielding: Madam Speaker, our government values the need. I've actually volunteered three or four times at Agape Table. I know yesterday there was members of our government that was at Siloam Mission that volunteered yesterday.
So we, as a Progressive Conservative government, very much value supporting vulnerable Manitobans. That's why we supported the Siloam Mission, where we're investing over $3 million to help create space for beds for upwards of 50 women that are homeless. We truly think that it's an important endeavour to do, as such, and any time we have an opportunity to look at projects, there's not all the money in the world to do these things because of what your government did and the shape that you left our finances in, but we're going to prioritize our government to support vulnerable Manitobans when we can. [interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Funding Support Concerns
Mr. Matt Wiebe (Concordia): Earlier this year, families were told that supports for their children with special needs would be cut. After protests, families came together and made some noise, and the Minister of Families was forced to back away from his plan to freeze the funding for inclusion supports in daycares.
Yet now we've learned that the minister no longer will allow the portability of these supports, so if a parent moves closer to a job, they have to sit many more months potentially on a long wait list 'cauning'–causing significant stress not only on the family, but also effects on the children.
I ask the minister: Why is he continuing to cut the supports for those most vulnerable in our society?
Hon. Scott Fielding (Minister of Families): Our government is committed and we are willing to listen–good example of that–and to support 'vulnerban' Manitobans.
We know that the NDP, the red tape and the inefficiency of that system that was created under the NDP, is something that we need to contribute and we need to make sure that we have solutions to. That's why we're 'reviewning' the inclusion support program as we speak and we want to make sure that it's a more holistic program that can support vulnerable Manitobans. We hope that that is a part of the federal government's priorities when we work with them on a partnership in terms of a child-care plan that we'll be announcing over the next coming weeks.
Madam Speaker: The honourable member for Concordia, on a supplementary question.
Mr. Wiebe: Well, the minister was forced to back down, but now the Province has also cut emergency supports for children with emerging issues.
One centre told us that–of a child with a serious emerging behavioural issue. They were told that the Province would no longer provide those emergency supports even though they have provided that in the past. As a result, this child was asked to leave the child-care centre because the centre wasn't able to provide the appropriate support.
So I ask the minister again: Is he listening to those parents and those families, and why is he turning his back on those children who need our support the most?
Madam Speaker: Prior to recognizing the minister, I would just like to indicate that when questions are asked and answers given that they be done through the third party and that there be no direct reference to either the minister or the person that is asking or answering and that the word you not be used, that it go directly, third party, through the Speaker.
Mr. Fielding: Again, our government very much supports vulnerable Manitobans. I had indicated that there was a review that's going on. We anticipate supports with the federal government, that's a part of this.
But I think what's important for the members opposite to recognize and, potentially, to look themselves in the mirror to find out about the inclusion support project if you were surprised to know that the inclusion support program has been underfunded. The NDP refused to fund this program effectively as they should since 2007.
What we want to do is come in, and we want to fix the mess to ensure that we support vulnerable Manitobans. And that's exactly what we're going to get to do.
Madam Speaker: And just a reminder, again, that in responding to questions or answers that it be directed in a third party manner through the Chair. And I would appreciate everybody's co-operation in that.
The time for oral questions has expired.
Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Madam Speaker, I wish to present the following petition to the Legislative Assembly.
These are the reasons for this petition:
The current patients of the River Heights Corydon Primary Care Clinic, located at 1001 Corydon Avenue, and local residents are very concerned and dismayed with the plans to move and merge this incredibly important, centrally located clinic to Plaza Drive in St. Vital.
This clinic is valued for its accessibility, superb staff and quality service. Removing the clinic from this area will have a negative impact with serious, far-reaching, negative repercussions which would outweigh any theoretical monetary savings that may result from its relocation.
This clinic is on a major bus route, within walking distance for area residents and is easily accessible for the elderly, as there are many non‑congested routes for Handi-Transit, care workers and taxi services to pick up and drop off patients.
The proposed Plaza Drive location in St. Vital has a lack of any direct or consistent access by public transportation, is typically compounded by massive, ever-present traffic congestion and will result in the payment of costly taxi fees for people on limited resources.
This move, combined with the closure of central Misericordia Urgent Care, which serviced the needs of downtown, Wolseley, River Heights, Fort Rouge, Spence neighbourhood and Polo Park, extremely downgrades access to the health-care system in areas populated by many seniors and others with limited income.
We petition the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba as follows:
To urge the provincial government to cancel plans to close the Corydon primary 'clare' clinic.
To urge the provincial government to reopen the Misericordia Urgent Care Centre.
Signed by Heather Howdle, Gloria DeNeve, Judy Walker and many, many others.
Madam Speaker: In accordance with our rule 133(6), when petitions are read they are deemed to be received by the House.
Hon. Cliff Cullen (Government House Leader): Madam Speaker, can we resume debate on the Throne Speech?
Madam Speaker: Resuming debate on the motion of the member for Seine River (Ms. Morley-Lecomte) and the amendment and subamendment thereto, standing in the name of the honourable member for Fort Garry-Riverview, who has 19 minutes remaining.
Mr. James Allum (Fort Garry-Riverview): I'm honoured to be able to get back up, especially on a Friday morning.
And I meant to say yesterday, and I didn't properly say it, and, of course, the Leader of the Opposition did say it, but just toward the end of our last session, we were here all night. And so I wanted to give credit to you, of course, to our table officers, who did a incredible job that night, to our friends from Hansard–and I was talking to them recently and the work that they've done to repair the system since–the pages, who stayed up all night. I think it's worth just remembering the colossal amount of work that goes into supporting our efforts. So if I could just say, again, to all those folks, thank you so very, very much.
* (11:00)
Now, I had the opportunity to follow my friend from Riding Mountain yesterday, and, as I didn't have much time to speak, I was saying that while I have great appreciation for him and have come to like him very much in his short time here in the House, I was disappointed to see that he was sticking to the same old, tired script, the same old, tired talking points that are written by the brain trust in the Premier's (Mr. Pallister) office, then circulated across to members opposite on the government side. And then they're required to stand up and recite them point by point by point, as though they themselves have no responsibilities here in this House, that they have no obligations in this House, that they do not in fact speak for the people who elected them, but in fact that they dance to the tune provided by the Premier of Manitoba.
And I can tell you that that script–as I said in my concluding one minute yesterday before 5 o'clock, that script is bad news for the people of Manitoba. And it's going to continue to be bad news as it goes further and further down in a–in this relentless quest to cut the services that Manitobans rely on and then take the jobs away from public servants who provide them.
And so I say to the members opposite, as I've said to them many times, that they have a responsibility to their constituents, because they may be the only ones who can put the blinders, put some limitations, put some borders, around what has become a very reckless Premier who has taken to the job of cutting and slashing with great enthusiasm, and so that they–they–are the only ones who may actually have the ability to suggest to him that the path that government is following down, the path that they're heading toward, the path that they're careening toward is, in fact, going to do significant damage to the people of Manitoba going forward.
And so, we stand up every day and say, well, don't do that. We beg you, please, please don't go in that direction. You're hurting people. You're hurting neighbourhoods. You're hurting communities. You're hurting the cities of Manitoba–in Manitoba, and you're hurting the province as a result. We don't want to see that happen.
That's why we continually provide constructive criticism–but always constructive–criticism, yes, but always constructive–in trying to help them to see past their very narrow, ideological worldview and to see a bigger, brighter, more comprehensive world that is inclusive of every single Manitoban and not just the–their friends smoking stogies down at the Manitoba Club.
Now, I say this to them because–I say this to the members of the backbench in particular because I know this is not why they got into politics, and I know this is why–they didn't enter this world to do–I am assuming, to do something better, something better than what's being offered by the Finance Minister when he cuts the budgets, something better when he–than the Health Minister who cuts the services, something better than the Education Minister who cuts access to education, something better than the Minister of Growth, Enterprise and Trade (Mr. Pedersen) who noticed there's no jobs in that job description because he has no plan for jobs. And yet, he needs to.
We look over at the Minister of Justice (Mrs. Stefanson), who talks about prevention and yet doesn't really act upon it. We are in the midst of Restorative Justice Week. Yes, we had the one ministerial statement, but we've no–seen no concrete action.
But what I want to say to the members opposite is that they went out in the last campaign, made a solemn promise to their constituents as they knocked on their doors, and they said, you know, we're going to protect front-line workers, and we're going to protect front-line services.
An Honourable Member: Not so much.
Mr. Allum: Yes, my friend from Flin Flon has that right: not so much. Didn't happen. In fact, it's the exact opposite of what should be going on. Front-line services are being cut, are being lost, are being slashed, and the front-line workers who provide them are simply out of luck and soon to be out of work.
We know already, Madam Speaker, that 1,500, 2,000 jobs have been lost in the North because the government simply doesn't care about northern Manitoba. They have this thing called Look North, but they never actually go north, nor do they spend time working with the very communities up north, and my friend from Flin Flon made the point very directly in question period today that we're actually doing the work of the government here in opposition on taking the case of Churchill to Transport Canada and the people of Canada. We're doing their job.
An Honourable Member: It's unbelievable.
Mr. Allum: It is. My friend from Concordia has that right. That's unbelievable. We're still mystified how that particular Cabinet minister gets a paycheque every week, because he's certainly not doing anything valuable–
An Honourable Member: He got a raise.
Mr. Allum: –and, in fact, he got a raise, as my friend from Concordia just reminded me.
But they went out on the doorsteps of Manitobans, and I know that they don't really support the direction of the government. I know that backbenchers don't believe in that. I know that they want to do well by their constituents. I know that they want to build healthy, productive neighbourhoods within their communities, and yet they must know that the direction being followed by the government is going to only send those communities and those neighbourhoods and those families in a downward spiral upon which it will take years to get us out of, and that's exactly what happened in the 1990s, I have to say.
This is exactly Tory government 1.0 being duplicated all over again: an enormous degree of distortion about the circumstances relating to the Manitoba economy, an incredible amount of distortion about the effectiveness of the programs that were in place, an effective amount of distortion about the programs that are being cut and not being upright and honest about the very significant damage that's being done. And I need to look no further, Madam Speaker, because we only have so little time and yet there's so much to talk about.
But it's worth talking about transit just a little bit here in Winnipeg and also the Finance Minister's decision to repeal 1 per cent of the PST that would go directly to municipalities to support infrastructure. Now, those are items that he ought to have–and he knows this, he ought to have announced in the budget. He gets up every day, the Minister of Health gets up every day, the Premier (Mr. Pallister) gets up every day, talks about how courageous it is. There's nothing courageous about burying those kinds of policy decisions in the budget implementation bill, which should have been announced in the budget. I dare say, Madam Speaker, that that was one of the least courageous actions I've seen in my short time here in the House, and I think that the Finance Minister in particular should have a hard time going to sleep every night when he operates in that kind of fashion, to be less than accountable, less than transparent and unable to come clean with the people of Manitoba on issues that directly affect their day‑to‑day lives.
Now, we've seen already the budget for the City of Winnipeg come out in the last week, and what takes a beating in there? Well, transit routes are being cut and fares are skyrocketing, and yet the government seems immune to understanding the enormous impact that those cuts are going to have on the day‑to‑day lives of Winnipeggers and, in fact, across Manitoba and on their families. I've received any number of letters and emails and phone calls complaining about this very action taken by the government, because they know, in fact, that this is really not a City of Winnipeg matter, but it's a Province of Manitoba matter.
It's the Finance Minister who's the architect of this sleight of hand, of this deception, and it's the Finance Minister who's responsible for send bus fares upward by 25 cents and it's the Finance Minister that's responsible for cuts in services and it's the Finance Minister who's ultimately responsible for not having the courage to stand up and say that he was going to–taking that path but in fact buried it in the budget implementation bill and it took researchers and our staff to find it, to advise the media and advise the people of Manitoba, because he, the Finance Minister, didn't have the courage to do it in the first place.
* (11:10)
So don't ever have these guys get up and lecture us about courage, Madam Speaker, because that was the least courageous action I've seen in the short period of time that I've been in the House. [interjection]
And, 'ach,' well, the member for Lac du Bonnet (Mr. Ewasko), who's not really–never got a chance to be on the front bench, I'd recognize that voice anywhere, Madam Speaker. He's feeling bad about that he's been sort of cast aside even though he was here last time, and yet he had a personal-care home on the books to be built in his constituency and he didn't have the courage to stand up to the Finance Minister, the Minister of Health or the Premier on behalf of his constituents. So I'll take no lectures from him on courage either.
But, the point is, is that when the government's Throne Speech gets up, and we know throne speeches are aspirational, but this aspiration to take Manitoba backward into the 1990s is really a great mistake. It doesn't reflect the real face of Manitoba going forward and it doesn't reflect the kinds of investments we need to make in order to ensure we have a fairer, more just, more inclusive, more sustainable Manitoba and Canada–and a globe, for that matter–and to do our part. In fact, it's quite the opposite, and the transit fare goes to the heart of the government's half-baked green plan, where on the one hand they're saying, oh, we're going to be as green as green can be, and then the very thing that is at the core of a robust green plan, a public–healthy and robust public transit system, is being cut by the Finance Minister.
Now, he maybe never got on the bus. I rode the bus to City Hall for 15 years when I worked there. I bid my wife goodbye yesterday morning and she hopped on the bus to head down to the children's health research centre down at the Health Sciences where she works. My kid got on the bus to head off to her job in the downtown area. The transit system's still critical in core to even my own family; but it's not that, it's every other family that I represent that matters. And yet the Finance Minister, the Premier (Mr. Pallister) seem utterly immune and utterly insensitive and utterly unable to grasp the significant damage that he's doing every day to the lives of Manitobans, both here in Winnipeg and across the province.
Now, I want to say that this would be–this was be egregious in its own right were it not that it takes a particular pleasure in making life much, much more difficult for those who have the least and for those who are most vulnerable. So you put a 25 per cent transit increase against a minimum wage increase that was alleged to be 15 cents, but we know because it was frozen for a year it's actually only 7‑and-a-half-cent increase year over year.
And so on the one hand, the Finance Minister has no problem saying to commuters, to families, to students, to seniors, to those who take the bus to get to work every single day, you're going to have pay 25 cents more to get on that, almost $3 higher, as we saw in the media today, than most cities. But, at the same time, if you're making minimum wage, we can't afford you. We can't afford to see you get an increase of more than 7 and a half cents a year. And yet those folks work so hard on behalf of their family every single day. They deserve a raise. Finance Minister, in his very first budget, made sure he got a raise, made sure the Premier got a huge raise, and yet he says to others, you can't have that raise, and by–at the same token, we're also going to make life significantly harder for you by raising bus fares by 25 cents, almost $3 per ride.
But it's more–it's more than just that, even. It's the–it compounds itself, Madam Speaker, in the Throne Speech, because the government has no–given no indication that they intend to provide an investment plan or a jobs plan to ensure that there are opportunities for young people going forward, ensure stable employment for women going forward, ensuring stable family circumstances.
The government talks and they–relentlessly about this, about they're going to get results, and they're going to get outcomes, something like that, right. Do you ever hear them talk about people? Do you ever hear them talk about real families? Oh, no. What we get instead is this nonsensical thing about outcomes. They never identified what one of those outcomes might be. And, in any case, outcomes are going to happen 10, 15, 20 years down the road. We're never going to see it from this government.
And they talk about results, but they can't articulate one result they're hoping to get. And, at the same time, they talk about outcomes and results in which they don't define and then, at the same time, never talk about the people who are impacted and affected by the very decisions being made by a Finance Minister who is cavalier in his attitude toward working families in this province. It's cavalier to the plight of those suffering from low income. This cavalier to those most vulnerable in our society.
I would invite him to aim higher and do better and start doing the kind of work on behalf of the people of Manitoba, instead of some nonsensical thing about results and outcomes that they have never, ever once defined. Not one time.
So, Madam Speaker, as my time grows short–[interjection]–yes, I'm happy about that too. I'm not feeling all that great this morning, so that–I'm happy to only have a few minutes left.
But this is a government, at the end of the day, who promised to protect front-line workers and then froze the wages and then cut their jobs. We heard earlier this week that more people are going to be put out of work, and that's going to be done in the most arbitrary fashion. And then we know that the Conference Board predicts that growth will only increase by a little over 1 per cent next year. That–the Conference Board will only–says that we are–our economy will only grow by 1 per cent–a little more.
Right now, this government dines off the investments made by our government. Over four elections, re-elected four times by the people of Manitoba, by the way. A–dining off our investments. But what the Conference Board of Canada has made crystal clear is that if those investments come to their–end of their natural cycle, there's bad news for Manitobans and dark clouds ahead for Manitobans. And yet this government, in this Throne Speech, offered no plan for the future, no plan to ensure that Manitobans live in a 'stafe'–stable, safe and sustainable environment, and made sure that every family has the opportunity to grow and prosper. What we want for ourselves, we want for everybody else. That's the New Democratic way of thinking. That's what we're going to hold this government to account to.
The Finance Minister, the Premier (Mr. Pallister) and every member of that Cabinet should start to do better. But I ask the members of the opposition backbenches: start doing their job. Rein in this Premier before too much damage is done.
Hon. Cameron Friesen (Minister of Finance): It's my pleasure to rise and express support for the measures of the Speech from the Throne by Her Honour the Lieutenant Governor earlier this week.
And, Madam Speaker, this is probably my sixth response to a throne. And I was thinking about the member for Seine River (Ms. Morley-Lecomte), who stood and spoke to the Speech from the Throne and gave her address in that way to lead off this discussion and to lead off this important dialogue among Manitobans. And it brought me back to 2011 in the fall, when I gave that speech. And I was reflecting on how, at that time, I remember the–you know, being new in this Chamber, and I remember the preparation and I remember the–you know, the angst about what to say and in what form. And it was great to hear that member speak and to put words on the record about her constituency, about her commitment to this place.
It's now making me think about Larry Maguire, now the MP but a former seat mate of mine, who said–at one time, he said he can recall being in his first year in this House. And he says that he would sit in the back row and all of a sudden, the House leader would point to him and just signal and say: Speak. And he said, at times, he didn't even know what the topic was. And he whispered to someone and said: What's the topic? And they said: It doesn't matter. Speak.
So, in this place, we sometimes have the luxury of some preparation. Sometimes we don't have the luxury of preparation. From the words that the member for Fort Garry-Riverview (Mr. Allum) put on the record this morning, it's obvious that he didn't have the luxury of preparation; otherwise, he would not have put onto the record such inaccuracies as he did.
* (11:20)
I do not have the time allotted to me sufficient to correct the record fully, but let me say this for all Manitobans, those who are reading that account that the fort–member for Fort Garry‑Riverview just made, in perpetuity, for posterity: consider the source. That same member, in the lead up to the 2016 election, went to his constituency, he said publicly that every nurse and every teacher would lose their job in the province of Manitoba–
Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.
Mr. Friesen: –a fiction that he spun that still hangs somewhere over Fort Garry‑Riverview, an inaccuracy that should be a shameful remembrance to him. [interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order.
Mr. Friesen: But, Madam Speaker, so we say, consider the source. [interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order. Order.
I would ask that members please show some respect for the person that is actually trying to debate. Everybody is going to get their turn in here to put their comments on the record, and I think, you know, as a show of respect for the guests that we do have in the gallery, that we demonstrate some decorum in here and allow people respectfully to debate the issues.
Mr. Friesen: Thank you, Madam Speaker.
That member lands on fear every time. In the absence of good ideas, in the absence of substantial policy, he chooses to land on fear every time, and that's fine. We can't seek to rewire the thinking of the member for Fort Garry‑Riverview. When he was a minister, he also landed on fear each time.
We take a different view. The Throne Speech developed and conveyed to Manitobans a powerful message of hope and change and improvement based on hard work, hitting talents–hitting targets, innovating, using the talent of our civil service and insisting on better service to those that we have the honour to serve, which is Manitobans. Madam Speaker, it is there where we will continue to put our focus. So let that member spin the litany of inaccuracies that he will, and we will not stop him. He has to answer for his constituents in just a few years. We will continue to put our efforts into making success happen.
That member spoke a lot about what he said was the absence of courage, but I would submit, Madam Speaker, that the absence of courage was evident for 17 years in this province because the NDP government was warned again and again that they had to make changes or they would suffer the consequences of additional debt service cost, of a debt that would continue to go up, of a deficit that would not go back down. What is the result of any of those things? Why does it matter? Why does it matter that the NDP did not heed the warning of the credit rating agencies? Why is it matter that they did not hit their own targets for deficit reduction even though they said they would do better every year?
Madam Speaker, it matters because there's two numbers that I keep in my mind all the time. The number–one number, the first one, is $855 million. The second number is $992 million. The first being the debt service charge that we paid in this province just two years ago. That newest number is the debt service charge budgeted figure for this year. It is almost $150 million up from just two years ago. Why? Because of deficit spending, unsustainable capital expenditure and a failure to hit the targets by the NDP.
Why does that matter? Because the $150 million represents the difference, the investment that we cannot make in all the areas of focus now that the NDP says we should invest in. We heard the member for St. Johns (Ms. Fontaine) say, we need more money for non‑profit groups, but they took that money away. We hear the member for Concordia (Mr. Wiebe) say, we need more money for the Concordia Hospital, but they took that money away. We hear the member for Flin Flon (Mr. Lindsey) say, we need more money for economic development in that community, but they took that money away. They removed the capacity of this province to make that investment, and even today, even for this whole fall session, what is missing from the narrative of the official opposition party is a recognition of context: how did we get here? How did we get here? That context is the context of NDP waste and mismanagement.
Madam Speaker, it may not sound exciting to talk about hitting targets. It may not sound exciting to talk about strengthening the challenge function in the Treasury Board Secretariat. It may not sound exciting to talk about things like program review or a focus on outcomes instead of outputs. But what will shake out of this approach that we've described, an approach that is focused on innovation, change, doing better, being accountable, leading by example. What will shake out of that is that shift that will take place if we keep our eye on the ball, if we keep describing to Manitobans what we're doing and why we're doing it to get better results, to keep more money in the pockets of Manitobans because they are hard working, to focus our energies and helping those who can least help themselves by making good investments in schools, personal-care homes, hospitals, roads, bridges, affordable housing. You do not do that over time by mismanaging the system.
So what you do–[interjection]–and in answer to the member who's chirping there from Flin Flon, what you do is you make good year-over-year increases to programs in a sustainable manner. What it–[interjection] So when your year-over-year health-care expenditure goes up by 8 or 9 per cent, that may look very, in a short-term view, as a very significant investment. There is a difference between spend and invest. And while spending it up on an average basis, in a nine-year period, spending up on average by the NDP by 4.4 per cent, in the same period of time, that was expenditure growth, revenue growth up by 3.3 per cent. Madam Speaker, it's unsustainable. It puts the very system at risk. It puts the investment at risk that they claim to want to support.
But let us understand that the one thing the NDP knows well is that the only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. The NDP learned nothing from their history, and they paid the price to Manitobans. They were arrogant, they were unaccountable, they did not hit their targets and they now sit on that side of the Legislature.
Madam Speaker, we take our responsibility to Manitobans very, very serious. The Leader of the Opposition gets up on a daily basis and says that ours is a focus that is not listening. Nothing could be further from the truth. In just two budgetary cycles, we have had more than 60,000 unique interactions with Manitobans. I am looking across this Legislature, and I see MLAs–every MLA on the government side hosting their own prebudget consultation meeting. We went to The Pas. We went to Dauphin. We went to Brandon. We went to the Interlake. We went to Thompson. We went to Brandon again. We went to Winnipeg four times. We went to Ste. Anne, Manitoba. We went from one corner of this province to the other, and we listened.
I recall a flip-flop flimsy attempt at consultation in my constituency by the former NDP government. They came there after years of me telling them they should show up at places other than their strongholds, and the minister of Finance–now I can't remember which one it was because there were many in short succession. I think it went from a Wowchuk–not this one, but a Rosann Wowchuk, to a Mr. Struthers, and then it went to a Ms. Howard, and then it went to a Mr. Doer. But when they finally came to the city of Morden, I remember it distinctly because the number of government staffers at the consultation meeting outnumbered those constituents who availed themselves of the opportunity. Why would that happen, Madam Speaker? Because it was clear that the NDP wasn't listening anyways. Why would anyone waste their time?
Mr. Doyle Piwniuk, Deputy Speaker, in the Chair
I tell the members of this House that I keep open the enormous binder of responses of Manitobans with their anecdotal comments to us on finance. And every day, I'm reading those comments, some in support of our approach, some who say we're working–we're moving too fast to balance the budget, some who say we're not going fast enough to balance the budget, but many who say this; many–I hear this theme. And the theme is this: Well, you had to do something, because the status quo was unsupportable.
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So, Madam–Mr. Acting Deputy Speaker, we are acting. And we are acting on behalf of Manitobans.
Winston Churchill famously said this, he said: "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts."
When that member for Fort Garry-Riverview (Mr. Allum) says that we lack courage, well, I'll tell you, he can disagree with our approach. But one thing is for certain: Their approach lacked courage; it lacked the courage to act. And every day that those members stand up and say that we lack courage, I will say, a government that cares enough will have the courage to act.
The fundamental test of a government, we think, should be its ability to recognize an act in the face of the most significant challenge of its time and, in the context of that challenge, we are acting. Think of the historic transformation that we are bringing in health. It wouldn't be necessary if our predecessors had hit their targets, but we are left with the longest wait times in the country for ER, for OR procedures, for diagnostic treatments. We are acting. We're doing transformative things and hitting our targets, and, in this last Public Accounts, we indicated that we reduced the deficit by $150 million.
Where is the member for Fort Garry-Riverview on any question pertaining to reduction of the deficit? He doesn't want to answer that question. He doesn't want to answer that question. When it comes to the consultation process, he doesn't want to ask that question. He doesn't want to hear that we have heard from Manitobans.
When it comes to the economic data emerging–listen, we haven't solved every problem. There is going to be a long road to recovery, but we are fixing the finances. He got up there and quoted this morning incorrect data from the Conference Board of Canada. He claimed that they were stating that the Manitoba economy would grow by a dismal amount. He failed to see that only a week ago, the Conference Board of Canada renewed and republished their amounts and quadrupled the rate by which Manitoba economy will grow in '18-19, and the member for Fort Garry-Riverview put incorrect information on the record. It will be my delight and honour to correct him every time.
Mr. Acting Deputy Speaker, I want to say this before my time is done, because I'm always told don't forget to talk about your constituency. And I remember something else, and I remember when the member for Seine River (Ms. Morley-Lecomte) stood a few days ago and spoke. I remember my very first speech in this House, on that side of the House, in the third row sitting right there–oh, I can't make allusion to the presence or absence of members, so I won't tell you where I sat in this House–but sitting on the other side, I remember my very first speech, as nervous as I was, and I spoke about the province, and I spoke about the vision that our party had for growth and change in a different direction, a direction focused on results.
And I remember I believe I had the support of the members, and I had my colleagues clapping for me, and then I made the fundamental error towards the end of my speech. And I will make it again today, and that was to say this: I represent the best constituency in this entire province. It was at that moment–it was at that moment–that I was heckled for the very first time by the members of my own caucus. And I believe that that commitment to heckle me remains in place by my colleagues to this day.
But, Mr. Acting Deputy Speaker, I do represent an incredible area of this province. Some of my most rewarding work, and I think I speak for all of us in this House, is done in that constituency office. It's done in the context of those day-to-day interchanges and exchanges we have with our constituents, who take the time to contact us by email, by phone, by fax, by Facebook, iMessage. I mean, the ways they contact us are limitless. And we learn in this role that we are not the arbiters of all wisdom, but we can make that commitment to these people who come to see us and say: I can help you with that. We try not to overpromise. We learn very quickly if we overpromise that that creates a challenge.
I remember receiving some advice by someone who worked as a constituency assistant for the federal government who said to me very early: Do not overpromise. But, if you make a humble commitment to help a constituent, in many cases, it is that willingness to help that will be met with sincerity. And we're trying to make that commitment every day. We don't know all the issues, but we seek to help them.
I represent a community where–that has some of the highest growth in the province of–in all of Canada. Right now, the city of Winkler has just cracked the top 10 in terms of highest percentage of growth of any city, at No. 10, beating out Steinbach, I should say, by about five places.
We know that Decor Cabinets and more just passed their 40‑year threshold. They don't have loans outstanding by the government. They are adding to our local economy. They have given a million dollars back to non‑profit organizations in our community.
Philipp Ens of Winkler just received the Order of the Buffalo, the highest order that is given in the province of Manitoba, for his work both in philanthropy and building a business in the city of Winnipeg.
Dr. Bob Menzies from Morden was just awarded the Morden Area Foundation's Citizen of Distinction for 2017, and that individual is just one who has made such a tremendous contribution to our community. I'm thinking right now on–about his work to bring a residency program to Boundary Trails hospital.
The Winkler Cricket Club just–the Winkler Cricket Club. Did you ever think that the member for Morden‑Winkler would be talking about the Winkler Cricket Club? And we have a growing Muslim community in our area and they are teaching me a lot about cricket that I did not know. I don't want to be on that field–or, I should say the pitch, because I've learned that–because it looks very dangerous and it's very high-paced, but they just won the T20 tournament in Winnipeg.
The Morden Thunder soccer team just won the provincial championship for the first time ever.
Icon Technologies, a plastics manufacturer, is set to double in this year, opening a new plant of 105,000 square feet and doubling their workforce.
The list goes on and on about this special area of the province where there is a commitment to family, a commitment to each other, a commitment to helping those who most need the help and who are most vulnerable. I wish I had more time to speak about those commitments.
Let me say this about our Throne Speech: we know that we're making, over time, those good investments in our economy to build the province of Manitoba. We must do it sustainably. System sustainability matters greatly. If we do not pay attention to this, if the government makes the same mistakes as the NDP, we will threaten all those things that we seek to protect. We are bringing legislation to help us on this path to sustainability; a red tape bill, a bill that prescribes a period of recovery in which all hands need to be on deck. We are bringing greater measures to insist on accountability.
We are leading by example. That member for Fort Garry‑Riverview (Mr. Allum) does himself a disservice to try to suggest that we are not. This government has taken voluntarily a pay cut for the remainder of this entire session. We challenge the opposition members to take that pay cut. I hope that every one of them are doing that to lead by example. We need to do that in order to get this commitment by all Manitobans.
Madam Speaker, I'm looking forward to the comments that others continue to make. How do we know we're going in the right direction? Manufacturing is increasing; home starts are on the rise; 16,000 new jobs year over year; the lowest unemployment rate in Canada. There is much evidence that we're going in the right direction, but, as the Finance Minister, I must stop on this. Where the previous government said that the–that it could all be done through revenue generation, we take a different view: leaving money in the pockets of Manitobans who worked hard to earn that money. That is what we will continue to stand up for, for the poor, for working families, for seniors, for students.
Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Madam–or, Mr. Speaker, I would start by saying that River Heights, to me, is the best constituency in Manitoba. [interjection] I'm glad I get some support from the member for Morden‑Winkler (Mr. Friesen).
I am proud to represent the people of River Heights. I want to thank them for my support–for their support and to just echo that I will continue, as I do day in and day out, to work for and with people in River Heights to improve things for people in River Heights but also to improve things for people around the province and to work with people around the province, because we are a province.
* (11:40)
There are several concerns that I would raise. There is currently still uncertainty about the future of the Kelvin High School gym, which is very important to people in River Heights, and I raise that so the Minister of Education will be aware on a continuing basis that this is important to people.
I will raise, for the Minister of Health, that the concerns over the cutbacks to the Misericordia Urgent Care Centre and the Corydon Primary Care Clinic, having both been cut back servicing people in River Heights and Fort Rouge and Wolseley and adjacent areas. This is a significant concern in terms of access to urgent care which people now have to go to Victoria hospital, some distance away, access to a primary care clinic and people also have to go now to–near Bishop Grandin if they want to go to the centre which has provided primary care for people in River Heights and in Fort Rouge.
So that–those concerns on the table, I will also mention the need to move forward with the dual arena project near the Grant Park High School. This is going to be important for people to have the opportunities for recreation as we move forward and for people to stay healthy, as well as young people to grow up with the opportunities to play hockey and to participate in other events which are held at the arena.
I want now to move to talk briefly about the overall direction of this government. This is a government which has clearly decided to focus primarily on cuts. They've asked the KPMG essentially where can we cut back. They have put forward a Peachey report, much of which is sort of a bean counting in the sense of the numbers of people of different types of practitioners and where people are geographically, but it doesn't have the sort of vision that we would expect for the future of health care in Manitoba. It doesn't have the understanding that we should have of the critical aspects which are needed if we are going to move forward.
It's a failure to ask fundamental questions: How do we improve the system? How do we keep people healthy? Where is the health-care system going? Let me raise one issue: One of the things that it has been known for many, many years that we have been lacking, which all other provinces have, and that is a dedicated stroke unit, and dedicated stroke unit have been proven time and time again in many carefully done studies over many, many years to be–provide enhanced care and enhanced effective care and better results for people who have strokes and can provide, at the same time, a centre for the delivery of information about strokes and stroke care throughout the province.
And, yet, Manitoba doesn't have such a dedicated stroke unit. Not once, not 10 times, but hundreds of times the Conservative government now, when they were in opposition, raised their–the concern that Manitobans have about a dedicated stroke unit. And, yet, in–now, going on, coming up to two years of being in government, not a word about a dedicated stroke unit, one of the most important things in a change in terms of how we operate and what we do here, being just quietly slipped under the table and forgotten by this government in their crashing ahead to make changes in health care.
Why they are doing that is unknown, but why they have forgotten about a dedicated stroke unit, which we need and which is so important to make sure that we have more people recovering fully from strokes, that we have a centre of excellence which will help people around the province, that we have the sort of facility which other provinces have had and some have had for 20 or 30 years. Amazing, really, that we have been so far behind. And I think that most–in looking at what's happened in other provinces, would say we're probably, when it comes to a dedicated stroke unit, about 20 years behind the times. And it's sad that we've been left 20 years behind the times by NDP and Conservative governments who failed to act when there was a clear need and a clear direction that we should be going.
There is, as I said, a failure to understand how important it is to move to keep people healthy. I remember when I–back in the days when I was running to be leader of the Liberal Party, in 1998, that I met with people in the health-care system. And they said, if you do one thing that is more important, critically, right now, to act, that is to make sure that you don't think of a health-care system as just a health-care system which is going to deliver more dialysis, more kidney transplantation, more heart transplantation, that you think about how you prevent conditions like diabetes, a condition which we know is preventable, a condition which, up until 1940, was essentially not present in indigenous people in Manitoba. And now we have had, since 1996, an epidemic of diabetes.
And there was not the focus–effort under–for many years in order to address this. There wasn't a provincial effort that was focused provincially with the kind of resources that were needed, with the kind of approach that was needed. Indeed–in fact, there were some good ideas put forward, in the 1990s, in a diabetes strategy. But they were never followed through, and we are now–we have moved from, in the late 1990s, when there was about 50,000 people with diabetes in Manitoba, to a situation where we more–have more than 100,000.
This for a preventable disease, a lack of action. In fact, the diabetes secretariat was dismantled under the previous government. And this government has made no move to look at this, to have a focused area in this effort. It has not been mentioned to any significant extent by the current Minister of Health or the current Premier (Mr. Pallister). And, clearly, we don't have the kind of focused effort which will get us to where we need to be, which is preventing diabetes so that we can reduce health-care costs.
If we had had that effort starting in the late 1990s, we could have–be turning this diabetes epidemic around. We could be reducing health-costs and we could be increasing the health of people in Manitoba. And, sadly, it has not happened. And so we have a government which has not really set the direction–the sort of things that need to be done if we're going to transform and move our system forward so it is a system which, in fact, makes sure that more people are healthy. It is a system which uses what we have in emerging.
There's an exciting time right now to be in health care with a transformation in knowledge and understanding and technology, the ability to do things at a distance which were unbelievable all that–not long ago, the ability to empower people. Strikingly, for example, one can use iPhones, and iPhones now can be equipped with the leads and with the apps so that people can do their own electrocardiograms. And so we now have elsewhere, not here, people not only doing their own electrocardiograms to monitor how their heart is doing, but also using an app to interpret it. And so elsewhere, not here, we have people calling up their cardiologists and saying, doc, I'm in atrial fibrillation. What do I do now?
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Can't you imagine what it would be like if we had moving forward in adapting and using what is now present as good and helpful and new technology to help keep people healthier, to help empower our citizens to be able to do more?
I give you one example that has been brought up time and time again in this Legislature, which has been brought up recently, and that is the use of insulin pumps for diabetes. And we don't currently support the public sector and public system, the insulin pumps for adults with diabetes. And these are primarily, of course, people with type 1 diabetes almost exclusively. And these insulin pumps are giving people their control back over their lives. It's giving them a reduced blood sugar level on average, reduced hemoglobin A1C, which tracks glucose over time. And here we are in a situation where we could be improving the health of adults who have type 1 diabetes to the extent that we decrease their complications, we help keep them out of emergency rooms and hospitals and keep them healthier. And, yet, this government is disregarding the evidence, is not proceeding with the support of such a critical technology. And, as a result, we will have higher costs because we are not supporting these changes because these changes are keeping people healthier, and keeping people healthier is a good way to help our population and to save health-care dollars because the use of hospitals is expensive. And we would prefer to be able to make sure that we keep people healthier and we save dollars and save lives at the same time.
It is sad that the government is not building on what is already excellent, like the mature women's health centre building on the Misericordia Urgent Care, which was the best of the urgent care and emergency rooms in the city. And it's not just physical locations; it's people teams, which make a big difference. And there are a number of instances cutting back on outpatient physiotherapy is breaking up collaborative care teams. And collaborative care teams are where we need to be going. It is the direction that steadily and increasingly is happening elsewhere, has started to happen here, but we are now moving backwards instead of forwards when it comes to many collaborative health-care teams. And it's very sad. And it's having an impact in terms of mature women's health, not just on the health of women, but I predict we will have an increase in hysterectomies now, an increase in surgical costs, and the result will be increased costs instead of decreased costs which the government is supposedly looking for.
The cuts to audiology, outpatient, to recreational therapy services also will impact the ability to have effective, collaborative care teams. The government, as I've said, is not doing what needs to be done in employing collaborative teams to the best possible effect in stroke care, with a dedicated stroke unit, diabetes provincially in terms of a provincial plan.
There has also been a lack of action on mental and brain health. Now, the Liberal Party, with our resources, which are much more limited, very tiny compared with the government, produced an extensive report in a few months. This government, in more than a year and a half, still hasn't produced a report on mental health care. This has to be one of the slowest, most languid governments imaginable when it comes to mental health care and brain health care. And there clearly is a meth, an opioid crisis at the moment, which is not being adequately addressed, and this has come up recently, significantly in Brandon. There is a major concern, and we have known this for years about suicide, and we had the–James Bolton, who's a doctor in charge of the Crisis Response Centre, in Winnipeg, and he was saying suicide care–suicide prevention is really what he's talking about–is abysmal in Winnipeg and Manitoba. He said there isn't any. And that is the fault of this government. This government has had time.
We are now into the third Throne Speech. This government is long on the tooth but short on ideas. They should have got to work when they were first elected instead of stalling and stalling and stalling. And, when it comes to mental and brain health, we don't expect the report even until the end of the year, and it is likely going to be much longer than that before it's actually implemented. If they were going to strike a–and get a report, they should've had a mechanism to start acting much quicker, as the need arose, instead of stumbling and stalling around.
We had, just on the day that the Throne Speech was launched, a report card on poverty. Sadly, Manitoba has the highest child poverty rate of all provinces. Under NDP and now Conservative governments, what has happened is that we have normalized the unconscionable. We have a normal situation of high poverty rates in Manitoba. This is atrocious. This is not acceptable. And yet there is no plan. The government has said, the Premier (Mr. Pallister) has said, this is one of our top priorities. Well, to have a top priority and then do nothing in a year and a half, this is ridiculous.
The Premier has said that there would be a plan by the end of the year, again, stalling, delaying, delaying, delaying on things which are really important. This is not adequate. This is not appropriate, and this is fad. And that's one of the reasons why we in the Liberal Party will be voting against this Throne Speech.
There's been a failure to act adequately on the environment, to protect Lake Winnipeg. There has been a failure in the climate change plan. Can you imagine a climate change plan, which neglected one third of all emissions; it was emissions from agriculture, and the previous government, again, neglected agriculture, and what happened was that agricultural emissions went up many–by 40 and 50–40, even 50 per cent. And because of that, we were never able to meet the targets. And this government is following in the footsteps of the NDP and in neglecting agriculture, which is so important. They should do better.
There are many areas where they should be doing better for students. They should be doing better in terms of child care. They should be doing better in making sure that the child–Children's Special Allowances was not clawed back.
Mr. Speaker, this Throne Speech was not good enough.
Thank you, merci, miigwech.
Mrs. Sarah Guillemard (Fort Richmond): Mr. Deputy Speaker, Manitoba is the home of hope. This was a–
Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.
Mrs. Guillemard: Hope is what we all cling to when faced with challenges, because without hope, despair takes over, and we stop making progress towards our goals.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, no Manitoban deserves to have their hopes taken from them with tactics of fear based on partisan intentions. It is both unfair and unproductive for members of any party to set aside their own responsibility and hand in creating this mess just to pursue their own selfish agenda.
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Manitobans know about the mess that we are all in, and they also know that it will take sacrifice and grit to get through the tough cleanup. But, in the end, we all will benefit from the efforts.
No one likes to be the responsible parent, always having to think ahead and plan for possible needs. Yet, when there is no one to keep the home running, it is the children who suffer the most. I use the analogy, Mr. Deputy Speaker, because that is what I know. It is my lived experience, and that of many other Manitobans, keeping the home fires burning, being the responsible parent, making tough decisions for the benefit of the entire family. Tough decisions are not made to upset our children or to bring them harm. In fact, they are made so that our children learn accountability, responsibility and independence. There are many decisions made by parents based on available resources, and this can sometimes mean seeking activities that don't cost money. There should always be room for fun, but that should be within your means to afford it.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, my family–early on in our marriage and when we had young children in the home, we lived on one income, and it was not a large income. There were decisions we had to make based on whether or not we could afford to do–whether it's activities or whether it's sort of a little more expensive food that we buy, or whether we had a week of macaroni and cheese. My children did not complain about the macaroni and cheese, but I knew that that was probably not the healthiest of choices, but, at the time, it's what we could afford to feed our children.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we couldn't afford to have our children in sporting activities, but that did not mean that they did not get exercise. We turned our lack of resources into an opportunity to explore our wonderful neighbourhood of Fort Richmond. I can remember when I had four young children. The oldest could do some walking, my second probably could do a little bit of walking, but would complain halfway through our excursions. I had an infant in a backpack carrier. I had a toddler who would sit in the wagon along with a packed bag full of little snacks that we'd have. I remember fruit to go's we'd bring along and juice boxes. We'd have some fruit set aside. And, Mr. Deputy Speaker, we would set off on our adventure.
And they would be given a task; a task of a list that I would help them read because at that age they could not yet read. And it was a scavenger hunt list, Mr. Deputy Speaker. They would be tasked with looking for a white-coloured bark from a tree on our excursions. They would have to find a white rock. They would have to find something that's shiny. And in any neighbourhood, you know that someone's going to drop probably a dime or a nickel that could shine, or some other kind of item that might be shiny. And they would be given a little bag. So this would keep them engaged.
But, in addition to that, I would tell them to look for landmarks. As we would pass the big house with the red door, they would start to learn their neighbourhood, because, at some point, if they ever found themselves lost and they couldn't locate me, they knew how to get their way home.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, I've fond memories of organizing and getting the children ready, putting them in the proper clothing for that day and the weather that was going to ensue. And off we would head. Inevitably, there would be one child who did not want to go on a walk that day. Why do we have to walk so–I'm tired, I'd rather just stay at home. But it was important that they got that fresh air. It was important that, as the responsible parent, I got them outside and active and familiar with their surroundings, and it had multiple effects and benefits for the children and the family. It certainly kept me sane in those days where I was holed up in my home with four young kids, all demanding of me, and me feeling–really lacking in my own energy levels.
So off we would head, and we would walk through–down Kilkenny, which, at the time, had a dirt little path that we would follow. And the kids would be picking up all their little trinkets they would find, putting it in their little Ziploc bag, excited to find the next thing on the list. And we would make different stops at key points. We'd have a discussion about what we had seen thus far in our journeys, and we would continue on. And I also knew the wise wisdom that was passed down, from my mother, to always have a key goal and a little bit of a nugget for them. And we would walk all the way to the Slurpee stores, what they called it; it was the 7-Eleven on Killarney Avenue, and they would look forward to a small little Slurpee.
That was five kilometres into our walk, and that was our halfway point, and we celebrated making it to our halfway point, enjoyed our Slurpees as we continued the next five kilometres, and finding out what was all involved in that adventure that day.
And I tell you what, Mr. Deputy Speaker, it was hard work for those little legs to be walking that far distance. And although I had a wagon, it only sat two children at a time and I had four with me, so each of them had to do their own level of activity and walking and participation–and not one complaint when we got home. It was a celebration of a long day, but well worth the effort.
This is the experience of many of the families who live in Fort Richmond today, with young families looking for activities that don't cost a lot out of pocket, because their resources go to what is needed: bills to be paid in the house, repairs to older homes.
Our neighbourhood is built–was built in the '60s and '70s, and although they were great homes and well built, they need to be maintained. And there are decisions you have to make that sometimes means that you don't get those extra luxuries of extra toys and shiny instruments to add to your collection. You have to pay for those repairs; you have to pay for your heating costs, your electricity and your groceries. And it's a lot to balance in these families who are just trying to make the best decisions on what they have. And they expect the government to reflect in our choices that we are making wise decisions even if it's not buying shiny, new toys for everyone.
They know that our decisions will benefit all Manitobans, in the end, and that is what a good government does. It's not always the fun parent; it is the responsible parent that actually has long-lasting benefits for everyone around them.
We are living in a society, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that views debt as an inevitable burden, yet has no concept of proper plans to pay it off. This is, in part, due to the lack of financial literacy, but also a factor of not experiencing delayed gratification in their formative years.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, I was raised in a home that emphasized the joy of hard work that leads to earned spending money. When you earn your money, you become a little more careful in how you spend it, because you know the efforts it took to attain it.
I didn't always spend my money wisely, Mr. Deputy Speaker, but there were lessons within those experiences too. I, at a very young age, began babysitting. I was known in the neighbourhood of Fort Richmond as the baby whisperer. I loved young children. I loved connecting with them. I loved to play their little games with them. I loved rocking them to sleep at night and being satisfied that these ornery children, as their parents might call them, they actually relaxed in my arms and went to bed on time and slept through the night. That was a little skill that I had, and I looked forward to one day having my own children, which I certainly enjoy that experience.
The money that I would raise doing what I loved at the time was spent on porcelain dolls, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and I would spend an enormous amount of money. In fact, I remember buying one porcelain doll through the mail, and it cost me $211. But this was something that I had saved up my money to afford, and I was so proud when they arrived in the mail that it was my money from my efforts that I invested in it.
Now, today, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that same porcelain doll that I spent $211 on is only worth about $75. It doesn't have the monetary value and it certainly didn't grow, but, to me, it has a sentimental value and it's a reminder of my hard work, dedication and the reward at the end of that hard work.
* (12:10)
This is how I choose to raise my own children along with my husband. We were both blessed to have parents who understood responsible financial management, but we were also able to freely share what they had learned through their own mistakes. Learning from mistakes is key to future successes.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we have most definitely learned from the mistakes of the previous government when it comes to approaches to deficit and overspending. The sad part is that it is Manitobans that pay the price for poor planning and avoiding difficult decisions. When you attempt to make everybody happy with shiny promises that you will never be able to afford, you not only hurt the people that you make promises to but also the next generation who has to pay for failed policy.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we all have to make mature decisions when managing our own finances. Mature decisions are the ones that are not fun to make but necessary to keep the home running. We need to pay our bills. We need to make repairs when there are damages to our houses that we live in or damages to our spending habits. We need to make those repairs to not continue in the mistakes but to improve our situations. There will always be items and goods that we would rather spend our money on, and there are people who are in a position to do both.
But when you are on a tight budget, as my husband and I were on with four young children, one of them deals with medical needs, you spend time prioritizing what is best for the family so that one day you will be in a position to have some extras.
This is called delayed gratification, a point I had alluded to earlier. It is a concept that is so important to learn especially as we tackle a mess here in Manitoba. We are doing the necessary tough decisions now in order to enjoy the benefits down the road. Our government is setting the tone of responsible and accountable management of the public's trust with their tax dollars, which is the purpose and role of government.
There have been many comments made in this Chamber that accuse our government of being all about the money. Mr. Deputy Speaker, we are following 17 years of an attitude where money is no issue, and this has led to almost a billion dollars going towards just managing a debt. There are times when spending money that you do not have is wise, but only when coupled with a plan to pay off that loan.
A repayment plan was sorely lacking with the previous government. In fact, they had plans to grow the debt instead of return it to balance, almost $900 million. That is such a gross and large amount of taxpayer dollars that doesn't go back into programming. We don't benefit from this spent money. It goes back to managing a debt that should never have become as large as it got.
This number has the potential to really put a damper on the hope that we continue to offer for a brighter future. When a government spends money irresponsibly because it does not want to face disappointment that is a sign of a weak government and no longer is focused on the needs of these they serve.
And I would like to take a moment, Mr. Deputy Speaker, to correct a few points put on the record by the member for River Heights (Mr. Gerrard).
As he was speaking about the epidemic of diabetes, it is very important that we clarify that not all situations of diabetes or all diabetes cases are preventable. And I personally feel that it's very important to put on the record that there are many types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2. And it also can be created by tumours that can grow on your adrenal glands, and it can put you into a diabetic state.
Now type 1 diabetes is not preventable. It is an autoimmune disease, Mr. Deputy Speaker. There is nothing that these children or these individuals who are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, is nothing that they have eaten. It is nothing that they have done wrong in their life. It is not due to poor parenting. This is an autoimmune disease they had no control over the onset of.
Type 2 diabetes, although lifestyle can absolutely contribute to you developing type 2 diabetes, there are many cases of type 2 diabetes, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that is not preventable. There is a hereditary component that you can do everything right in this life, lead the most healthy lifestyle, but you can still be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. And although diet and exercise play an absolute role in helping to manage diabetes in all cases, it will not cure you of type 1 diabetes or certain types of type 2 diabetes.
And I feel that it is my duty as a parent of a type 1 diabetic to put on the record that we as a society need to stop to–looking at what is to blame and to start walking alongside our fellow citizens, encouraging them into a healthy lifestyle, not demanding that they do so. I want the public to become educated, including members of this House, because there is an element of shame that is put on anyone who is diagnosed with a chronic illness, that somehow that they contributed or that they made this happen. Mr. Deputy Speaker, that is such a wrong avenue to go down. It will not lead us to a cure. It will not lead us to better health outcomes.
We need to come together as a group to support all who deal with chronic illness to let them know that we are not coming with judgment, that we are coming with solutions to help them: to help them manage those who have already been diagnosed, to help to educate those who might be at risk for developing type 2 diabetes and to actually appreciate and acknowledge all of those who have been diagnosed, are dealing from day to day with these chronic illnesses. They are the heroes in this society who put up with and deal with more than any of us could ever imagine, and they deserve that recognition, honour and respect from each of us, and they deserve to be at that table to tell us the best route forward.
So, Mr. Deputy Speaker, it is time to bring hope back into our comments, bring hope back into our actions, bring hope to all of those who contribute to making this a better province, and each of us have a role to play. Our government will not let this province down. We will clean up the mess that has been created and we are going to leave a better province than how we found it.
Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
Mr. Tom Lindsey (Flin Flon): It truly is my pleasure to stand up today–[interjection]
Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order.
Mr. Lindsey: –and put a few words on the record. [interjection]
Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order.
Mr. Lindsey: I haven't even started yet and already the hecklers have begun, which tells me that, really, Mr. Deputy Speaker, they're concerned about hearing the truth. That's why they try and black me out or holler me down. But I'll persist, and they'll hear what I have to say one way or another.
You know, we listened to the Throne Speech; we've seen this government now in action for way too long, or I guess when it comes to the North, we've seen this government in a lack of action for way too long, because they continue to ignore us. They continue to pretend we don't exist in the North. Maybe that's a good thing. Maybe they haven't begun the chop in the North. We've seen what this government has done to health care in Winnipeg, but what we haven't seen yet is what this government's plan for the chop in health care in the North.
* (12:20)
What we've seen is that they've said the Northern Health Region has to cut six–or perhaps the rumour is now $7 million from the budget. We heard some rumblings early on with some memos that the Northern Health Region put out about where some of those cuts were going to come. We've already heard–at least, we on this side have heard–I'm sure the members opposite have not heard because they haven't really listened to anybody in the North–we've heard about our parents, our grandparents, in seniors homes in Flin Flon, for example, who get fed breakfast now at dinnertime because this government said you need to cut. So we don't call people in for overtime when they're short-staffed, and, Mr. Deputy Speaker, they're short-staffed every day of the week, particularly on weekends.
I'm sure that each and every one of these members opposite would like their parents to be cared for properly in a care home. And I know I certainly would, and I know everybody in the Northern Health Region would. But that is not what we are seeing today. What we're seeing is people not getting breakfast 'til dinnertime. What we're seeing is seniors left to sit in a wheelchair all day long because there's not enough staff to get them in and out of bed. What we've seen is seniors, the most vulnerable people that we have, the people that built this province, we see them going for days and days without even being bathed because there is not enough staff, and this government is responsible for that, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
The way this government continues to attack the most vulnerable people is–province, they should be ashamed of themselves.
We are always concerned about their ongoing review of everything. Our government talked about rebuilding the seniors' care home on Hemlock Drive in Flin Flon. This government didn't say they wouldn't build it. Several times now, we've asked this government, do they plan to build it? As late as September of this year, fully two years into their mandate, we get the answer: well, it's under review.
They talk about courage, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and they don't have that courage to at least tell the people of Flin Flon that, no, we're not building your care home. No, they just keep saying it's under review. You'll have to wait. You'll have to wait; it's under review. Well, I guess they'll have to wait for another two years until the government changes, and then their care home will get built.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we look at so many things in the North that this government has ignored. Their Throne Speech had no mention of a jobs plan for the North. Fully, their government recognizes, by their own task force that's been developed to form a plan to have a plan about a plan, the Look North plan to have a plan, has recognized that upwards of 1,500 jobs are going to disappear in northern Manitoba in the next couple of years.
So what's the government's plan? Well, they don't have one. That's the courage this government displays, is to not have a plan. That way they can't be held to account for not living up to their plan because they just don't have one.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we know that a lot of these jobs are going to disappear. We know that mining companies are cyclical in their very nature. But we know that part of the problem is not the fault of this particular government. We know that part of the problem is free trade deals that this government, of course, is fully in favour of. We know that when the Premier (Mr. Pallister) was a member of a federal government, they were fully in favour of free trade agreements that allow our raw materials to be shipped offshore and processed by workers somewhere else. And that's what's happening with our resources. Ore being mined in this country is now processed somewhere else because, well, free trade says it can be done cheaper.
So let's talk a little bit about this government's blind commitment to the Canadian free trade, to the blind commitment to the New West Partnership. Governments should have responsibility to look after their citizens.
Premier Brad Wall in Saskatchewan thought perhaps it would be a good idea to protect some workers in his province, even though he is also a proponent of free trade and actually signed on to this New West boondoggle much earlier than what Manitoba did.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, right now, Manitoba Hydro employs many northern Manitobans. They have agreements with First Nations communities and have a large contingent of First Nations employees. They have a training program. Certainly, when I go to Nelson House and talk to people there, they've got some really excellent programs in place that are really lifting people in those communities out of poverty and giving them hope that some members opposite keep talking about.
But now this government comes along and says, well, we're not going to protect any jobs. We're not going to protect any workers. We're going to allow, I don't know, workers from Newfoundland to come in and undercut. We're going to allow our resources to be always given to the lowest bidder, which will give nothing to the people in Manitoba and certainly nothing to the people in the North. Because things like community benefit agreements will now go by the wayside with this government. Project labour agreements, this government has already said they're going to do away with because they don't want to protect Manitoba workers. They don't want to protect common Manitoba people. They only want to look after their business elite–[interjection]
Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order.
Mr. Lindsey: –friends.
Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.
Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order.
Mr. Lindsey: They want to make sure that the 1 per cent get even more money, they want to make sure their friends are protected and they don't care about the rest of Manitobans, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
Let's answer a question that the Minister of Finance (Mr. Friesen) brought up about my friend from Fort Garry-Riverview, that he said that the member always brings up fear, lives in a land of fear; it's always about fear. Well, let me just explain to the members opposite why we talk so much about that which we're afraid will happen under this government. Because every time Manitoba votes for a Progressive Conservative government, the very things that we're afraid might happen in fact do happen.
We talked in an election about cuts to front-line services that would happen with this government. The Premier and all his people, they went door to door, said, no, no, we're going to protect front-line services. There'll be no cuts. Well, what do we see from this government? We see cuts. We see workers at Manitoba Hydro being laid off. We see cuts to front-line health care. We see nurses losing their jobs. We hear about x-ray technicians that are going to lose their jobs. We hear about front-line workers that this government promised to protect–[interjection]
Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order.
Mr. Lindsey: –we hear them being cut. This government wonders why we're afraid about what they're going to do. We're afraid about what they're going to do because they keep doing–[interjection]
Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order, order. It's getting impossible to hear the person who is actually speaking today, so if we can quiet down. It's–I know it's Friday, but we want to hear what the person has to say.
Mr. Lindsey: Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker. I'm going to keep speaking. I don't care how loud the chirping gets in the back because what we have to say on this side of the House is important because we're talking about Manitobans. We're talking about workers in this province. We're talking about seniors. We're talking about people–people that live in Flin Flon. People that live in Lynn Lake. We're talking about those people. We're talking about their hope for the future that this government continues to ignore.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we will keep speaking up for our people in this province. We will continue–
Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order.
When the–this matter is before the House, the honourable member for Flin Flon (Mr. Lindsey) has eight minutes remaining.
The hour being 12:30 p.m., the House is adjourned and stands adjourned until 1:30 p.m. on Monday.
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA
Friday, November 24, 2017
CONTENTS
Bill 4–The Legislative Assembly Amendment Act (Member Changing Parties)
Assistance to Churchill Residents
EMS Station Closure in Grandview
Tobias Enverga Jr. and Nolan Caribou
Bureau de l'éducation française
Bureau de l'éducation française
Low-Income Students in Point Douglas
Corydon Primary Care Clinic and Misericordia Urgent Care Centre