Health Sciences Centre
Emergency Services
Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of the Opposition): My question is to the First Minister (Mr. Filmon).
On the first day of Question Period in this Chamber, we tabled with you a copy of a letter from Dr. Ludwig, head of the Emergency Department at the Health Sciences Centre. In that letter, a letter that he had written in June to the provincial government, Dr. Ludwig talked about the pending crisis at the Health Sciences Centre emergency ward. He quoted the fact that they were at their brink in terms of dealing with the crisis that they had and could no longer absorb another further cut from the government of some $19 million.
Dr. Ludwig went on to say, Madam Speaker, that five doctors would be leaving the Health Sciences Centre emergency ward, five out of 14 physicians who are hired in that facility. Today, it has been confirmed that three of those doctors are going to Duluth or are there already.
I would like to ask the Premier, what action has the government taken on the letter that we tabled in the House two weeks ago, or three weeks ago, a letter that was written to the government four months ago and a matter that had been raised with the government prior to the election of the spring of 1995?
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Hon. James McCrae (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, the problem raised by the honourable member has been accentuated in the last month or so when emergency doctors at community hospitals walked off the job, but they are back on the job. We have just been through an extremely busy, traditionally busy, weekend in emergency rooms, what with the Thanksgiving long weekend.
The issue of recruitment on the part of American health authorities is not new, although it has been on the upswing in recent months, Madam Speaker, and that is, of course, an unfortunate situation for us here, right across Canada, when the United States goes on a recruitment drive.
However, there are issues at Health Sciences Centre that need to be addressed in conjunction with a review of emergency services in Winnipeg and in moving towards an integrated system for the whole city of Winnipeg. We have made some moves in that direction, and senior department officials are meeting with the emergency doctors from Health Sciences Centre and St. Boniface to discuss that future integration of emergency services and their role in it.
Madam Speaker, that would include a discussion of the physician remuneration at those two centres and looking at alternative ways of remunerating which would make that part of the scenario perhaps more attractive to the physicians.
Mr. Doer: Madam Speaker, Dr. Blanchard qualified the emergency ward at the Health Sciences Centre in 1993 as being possibly the worst-condition emergency ward in Canada.
Madam Speaker, this government has had warnings after warnings after warnings about the quality of care and the standard of care at the emergency ward at the Health Sciences Centre. The government got that warning again in June of 1995 with the Ludwig letter that we tabled in this House long before the emergency ward doctors in the community hospitals withdrew their services.
Dr. Joel Carter, a doctor mentioned and leaving for Duluth today says, it is the issue of standard of care that we are not able to give here in the city. I think that is a big factor, he says.
He goes on to say that the limited beds--very often, when he starts his shift, there are no interim care beds for people. There are no cardiac beds; there are no medical beds. When you are just starting an eight- or 12-hour shift, what are going to do with these sick people?
These are the conditions, Madam Speaker, without the closure of the hospitals' emergency wards in the community hospitals.
I would like to know from the minister, when is he going to take some specific action, action to deal with the complaints that were raised in '93, in '94, in '95, that have been put in writing, that have been tabled with the Premier? When is this government going to take action on this issue so we can keep people in our communities?
Mr. McCrae: Madam Speaker, we are in the process of taking action to create an integrated, city-wide emergency services program. It is felt that such an integrated service with a better co-ordinated focus to patients who need emergency care will indeed result in improvements to emergency services in the city.
A key element of that is the paramedic and ambulance service that we have to have available for people in emergency situations, and all of those programs working together, Madam Speaker, are going to be very much improved over all of those programs working independently.
Mr. Doer: Madam Speaker, I would like to ask the Premier (Mr. Filmon), in light of the massive turnover rate--there are six community hospital emergency ward doctors who have resigned, we have been informed, and we have doctors now, up to five at the Health Sciences Centre--how is the government going to deal with this problem and this medical challenge for us in this community?
Madam Speaker, we have a situation now where the only action the government is taking to deal with this issue is to close five community hospitals that deal with 50 percent of the cardiac arrest cases, the serious cases, in the evening. They deal with 50 percent of the cases now that are high-risk cases according to government stats.
How are we going to effectively deal with this issue when it is going in the wrong direction, Madam Speaker, under this government?
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Mr. McCrae: Madam Speaker, the honourable Leader of the Opposition in his preamble did not state whether he was in agreement with a co-ordinated, integrated approach which includes bringing everyone to the table to plan and deliver emergency services. If indeed he had done that, then his position about the community hospitals and their hours of operation would not be consistent with his support for an integrated emergency system.
We would like to have his support for that because we know that of all of those 273,000 visits to the emergency rooms in the city of Winnipeg, 4 percent of them are classified as emergencies, and 43 percent of them are classified as urgent and requiring care within a reasonable period of time.
Madam Speaker, the honourable members opposite do not keep those facts in their minds when they raise questions about emergency services. They also forgot to mention that the 42 doctors who are returning to work are returning to work, and 14 pathologists, as well, are put back into the emergency services system. We were able, with difficulty, thanks to some very hard-working people, to manage during the strike without the services of 42 emergency physicians and 14 pathologists.
We have most of those people back at work now, Madam Speaker, and, working together, I believe we can have a better emergency system than we had before the strike.
Kenaston Underpass
Information Tabling Request
Mr. Leonard Evans (Brandon East): Madam Speaker, I have a question for the Minister of Finance responsible for the infrastructure program.
The biggest of all the infrastructure projects, Madam Speaker, was to be the proposed $29-million Kenaston underpass which was to be located in the Premier's (Mr. Filmon) Tuxedo riding. It was a priority of this government, and in the government's haste to proceed with it, $1.8 million was spent for design work and site preparation. The planning for this project was handled very sloppily and $1.8 million was virtually wasted, which could have been put to better use in other projects around the province, including northern Manitoba.
Will the Minister of Finance table in this Legislature the documents showing in detail where the $1.8 million was spent and wasted?
Hon. Eric Stefanson (Minister of Finance): Madam Speaker, I will certainly undertake to provide more details around the money that has been spent on the Kenaston underpass project.
I take exception to the member's comments that those costs are all wasted. I think a significant amount of those costs will ultimately be put to use when that facility, when that structure, is ultimately built here in Manitoba.
I think most acknowledge, and listening to the comments of Winnipeg City Council, that at some point in time there will still be a need for that underpass. One of the reasons it did not proceed was because of some of the lengthy negotiations that had to take place with Canadian National Railway and so on.
I think the view of Winnipeg City Council--in fact, when they provided to us a summary of their projects under the infrastructure program, Madam Speaker, a No. 1 project from the City of Winnipeg, in the letter from the Mayor of the City of Winnipeg, was the Kenaston underpass, so I think many of those costs will ultimately have benefit and value to the City of Winnipeg when that underpass is ultimately built here in Winnipeg.
Infrastructure Works Agreement
Selection Criteria
Mr. Leonard Evans (Brandon East): Madam Speaker, will this minister assure the House that in approving future projects under the infrastructure program, the government will base its decision on the level of unemployment in the area and not on easy access to cabinet?
Hon. Eric Stefanson (Minister of Finance): Madam Speaker, I really take exception to the tone of questioning from the member for Brandon East. He has done this before.
He is really calling into question, I think, the people who have represented Manitobans, people from the Union of Manitoba Municipalities, people from the Manitoba Association of Urban Municipalities, people from the City of Winnipeg Council who have made--[interjection] If the member for Thompson (Mr. Ashton) has a question, he certainly has an opportunity to ask that.
Madam Speaker, $120 million out of the $204 million has been allocated on the advice of those people, people like Jack Nicol and Larry Walker from the Union of Manitoba Municipalities, people from the Manitoba Association of Urban Municipalities, organizations that represent the municipally elected people.
Those are the people making recommendations. We have accepted each and every recommendation they have made here in Winnipeg and in rural Manitoba, and, Madam Speaker, the Rural Advisory Committee has distributed their $60 million for traditional programs on a per capita basis, trying to put in place equity in terms of distribution throughout our province.
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Mr. Leonard Evans: Well, the way the minister talks is that the province had no role to--
Madam Speaker: Order, please. I recognized the honourable member for Brandon East for a final supplementary question, for which no preamble, postamble or midamble is required.
Mr. Leonard Evans: Will the minister, in future project approvals under this federal-provincial infrastructure agreement, assure this House that priority will be given to needed basic infrastructure, instead of other projects which may be very interesting and perhaps useful but by no stretch of the imagination can be called basic infrastructure projects?
Mr. Stefanson: Madam Speaker, we have adopted an approach in Manitoba that has been utilized in many provinces across Canada that blends traditional municipal requirements with other opportunities for economic development here in Manitoba.
Some of the fundamental objectives of the infrastructure program, Madam Speaker, were to create employment and to create long-term economic opportunities for all of our communities.
So those kinds of opportunities are created by going beyond purely the traditional municipal requirements. We have struck a good blend. We have also been very inclusive. The member never listens to the answers or seems not to listen to the answers on occasion, because I have indicated to him the Province of Manitoba does have a role to play.
We are one element in the decision-making process. The federal government has a role to play. The Union of Manitoba Municipalities, the municipally elected people, the City of Winnipeg, they have a role to play, Madam Speaker, as do the private-sector and nonprofit organizations.
We have put in place a model, Madam Speaker, that has served Manitoba very well and is being followed in many provinces right across Canada.
First Nations Communities
Housing Shortages
Mr. Gerard Jennissen (Flin Flon): Madam Speaker, my questions are for the Premier.
The community of Pukatawagan, like most reserves in Manitoba, is facing a housing crisis. Some 2,500 people are living in just 177 houses. No houses have been built in the community for two years now. The much-touted infrastructure program has failed to deal with this pressing problem.
Is the Premier prepared to make the shortage of housing on reserves a priority issue when he and senior members of his cabinet meet with representatives of the federal government?
Hon. Gary Filmon (Premier): Madam Speaker, the member is correct in identifying that this is an issue with the federal government. It is under their jurisdiction.
I would suggest that he speak to the federal government directly and utilize his own influence with the member of Parliament for Churchill, make sure that he utilizes his influence as an elected representative to talk to the federal government. It is their issue.
Mr. Jennissen: Given that already over 50 families from Pukatawagan have had to move to Winnipeg, with more to come, will the Premier instruct his Minister of Housing (Mr. Reimer) to meet with the federal Minister of Housing, along with First Nations representatives, to negotiate a method which will make it possible for First Nations communities to obtain financing to build houses?
Mr. Filmon: Madam Speaker, certainly I am sympathetic to the needs of the people on our reserves, but I point out that even in the instance of negotiation of self-government agreements, the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs has indicated that this is sole federal jurisdiction, that its relationships, constitutional and fiduciary relationships, are directly with the federal government and therefore the issue is with the federal government.
He would probably have more impact and more influence and be able to represent his people better if he dealt directly with the federal government and understood those relationships.
Mr. Jennissen: Given that the people of Pukatawagan are also residents and citizens of Manitoba, given that the people of Pukatawagan, like residents of other reserves, want work, not handouts, can this Premier make it a priority of his government to have financing of projects on reserves made easier, so that these communities can take action on issues such as housing and infrastructure?
Mr. Filmon: Again, Madam Speaker, I point out that this is a federal issue, total federal jurisdiction. If he really wants to solve the problem rather than grandstand here in the House, he ought to approach the federal government.
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First Nations Communities
Social Assistance
Mr. Eric Robinson (Rupertsland): Madam Speaker, residents in Manitoba are still Manitobans whether they live in Winnipeg or First Nations communities.
For some time, regrettably, the rights and obligations of aboriginal people have been tossed back and forth between the federal and provincial government. This was true earlier this year in a dispute with the communities of South Indian Lake and Granville Lake.
Can the Premier tell Manitobans what is the status of negotiations over these communities, and in how many other communities is the jurisdiction also in dispute?
Hon. Gary Filmon (Premier): Madam Speaker, I will take that question as notice on behalf of the Minister of Family Services (Mrs. Mitchelson).
Housing Shortages
Mr. Eric Robinson (Rupertsland): Madam Speaker, we have roughly 165 homeless families in Pukatawagan, anywhere between 15 and 40 people living in one house.
Could this Premier today give his word to the people of the Mathias Colomb First Nation that he takes their situation seriously and will do everything reasonable to find a solution to their housing crisis, perhaps initiating a meeting with the federal Indian Affairs minister?
Hon. Gary Filmon (Premier): I take their situation seriously, and I recommend that the member for Rupertsland contact the federal government who are the key to solving the problem.
Mr. Robinson: Given the $5-million cut to CMHC in Manitoba, which is making matters worse, can the First Minister commit this government to making negotiations over public housing a priority and take a leadership role in addressing the situation with these people from Pukatawagan to meet with the federal government?
Mr. Filmon: The member has rightly pointed out that the cut was made by CMHC. Now that he has identified that, Madam Speaker, as the elected representative of these people, I recommend that he contact CMHC about it.
Health Care System
Nurse Practitioners
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Inkster): Madam Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health.
There is no doubt that there is a need for change in health care and health care services, and when we talk about health care reform, one can ultimately argue that health care reform can be a positive thing in which we see enhanced health care services brought to our No. 1 concern, that No. 1 concern being our patients.
My question to the Minister of Health is, given what has happened in terms of the closing down of the five community emergency health care services, would the minister today make a commitment to looking at the possibility of having an expanded role for our nurses, in particular the concept of a nurse practitioner, in order to ensure that that community-based emergency health care service can, in fact, still be delivered through that sort of a venue?
Hon. James McCrae (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, you can certainly see the contrast between the approach taken by the two parties opposite in the questions raised today by the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. Doer) and the very helpful approach being taken at this time by the honourable member for Inkster in the way that he has put his question respecting the contribution nurses can and do make to our health care system.
It is interesting he should ask the question today, because it was only this morning that I was being briefed by representatives of the Youville Clinic who have been conducting a needs assessment in the St. Boniface-St. Vital area of the city, and they have identified a number of areas where their new satellite nurse-managed care centre should be looking in devising their strategies and policies for the use that will be made of the satellite nurse resource centre.
So I appreciate the honourable member's question and will take the suggestions very, very seriously as we develop a strategy for the use that nurses will be making of the services of nurses in the future in health delivery in Manitoba.
Mr. Lamoureux: Yes, Madam Speaker, I am wondering if the Minister of Health can indicate what sort of a time frame we would see something coming from the government regarding nurse practitioners, given that in an earlier response he talks about the 4 percent who attend emergency services are actually emergency, and these nurse practitioners could, in fact, resolve this particular problem.
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Mr. McCrae: Well, the honourable member will know that at our community health centres, we have nursing professionals at work, and we want to maximize and make the best use of those community health centres, and as I mentioned the nurse resource centre with respect to the Youville Clinic, that there are other options, as well, and we will continue to pursue those options to ensure that we maximize the use that we make of the health system.
All of those 53 percent of people who present at emergency rooms who are not either emergent or urgent in nature, their concerns, could well be presenting to their family doctor in the doctor's office which presently exists, the walk-in clinic which presently exists, the community health centre, and there are one or two other options that we are looking at as well to make sure that we have the best variety of services available at the times that they are needed.
Role of Nursing Profession
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Inkster): Madam Speaker, I would ask the Minister of Health, does he have a committee that would be prepared to look at the issue of underutilization, in particular of registered nurses, but other nurses? For example, of course, for a registered nurse to give a Tylenol aspirin, for example, they need to get a doctor's permission in order to do something of that nature.
Does the minister have a committee which could address this particular issue of the expansion of roles for our nurses that would be able to report back to the Legislature in the not-too-distant future?
Hon. James McCrae (Minister of Health): Yes, we do, Madam Speaker. The honourable member for Kildonan (Mr. Chomiak) will no doubt back me up on this. We have numerous committees to assist us in the planning and implementation of health services in the province of Manitoba.
Certainly, a very key committee is the nurse-managed care implementation committee headed by Helen Glass, Madam Speaker, to whom I will pass on the honourable member's suggestions.
First Nations Communities
Housing Shortages
Ms. Marianne Cerilli (Radisson): My questions are for the Minister responsible for Federal-Provincial Relations, and I would hope if he will not answer these questions out of a sense of common decency and concern for people in aboriginal communities in the North, we could have him answer based on an appeal under financial considerations.
I would ask the minister to confirm that Manitoba spends at least $60 million annually for Status Indians living off-reserve in communities like Winnipeg and if it is not in the interest of the provincial government to ensure the federal government fulfills its obligation to provide adequate housing assistance on northern reserves in Manitoba.
Hon. Gary Filmon (Minister of Federal-Provincial Relations): Madam Speaker, if the member for Radisson had been paying attention over the last few years, she would know that is an issue that has been raised by this government time and time and time again. In fact, it has been raised by me personally at every single First Ministers' meeting I have attended, and, indeed, the federal government has not co-operated, has not recognized its obligation and has done absolutely nothing to address the issue.
The issue, since the changes were made some three or four years ago, has cost the Province of Manitoba $86 million to this point and will cost us an additional amount of something in the range of $23 million to $25 million each and every year.
We are well aware of it, and we raise it every single time that I meet, that the Minister of Family Services (Mrs. Mitchelson) meets, that any of our ministers meet in federal-provincial meetings, Madam Speaker.
Ms. Cerilli: Will the Minister responsible for Federal-Provincial Relations raise it again and work co-operatively with the chief and council from Pukatawagan, as well as others interested in ensuring that the federal government does not offload its responsibility for financial assistance to northern housing and force northern Manitobans to move to Winnipeg so they can find adequate housing?
Will he raise this again and work with the chief and council in an all-party, co-operative way? [applause]
Madam Speaker: Order, please. I note that we have an unusually large number of visitors in the public gallery today; therefore I believe it would be in order to mention the practices of this House which apply to members of the public while in the galleries.
They are not to participate in any way in the proceedings of the House, either by applauding, criticizing or commenting on the remarks of members. They are not to display signs or placards nor throw articles onto the floor of the House.
In short, they are not to interfere in any way in the proceedings of the House.
Mr. Filmon: Madam Speaker, I can assure the member for Radisson that I will continue to raise it, as will all members of Executive Council when they have opportunities with their federal counterparts, not because of her political grandstanding but because of the fact that it is an issue of fairness and an issue of constitutional responsibility in which the federal government does have the responsibility for these costs.
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Health Care System
Emergency Services
Mr. Dave Chomiak (Kildonan): Madam Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Health.
Madam Speaker, what the minister seems to forget is, arising out of the strike, the government has not expanded anything. The government has not done anything other than to close five of the seven emergency wards at nighttime in the city of Winnipeg.
I would like the minister to explain to the members of the House today what justification he has for the closing of those wards in light of the fact that the Lerner report did not recommend it. The interim report by a group of people during the course of the strike did not recommend it. It is only the minister's dictum and his deputy minister that recommended the closing.
What justification does he have to close those five emergency wards overnight?
Hon. James McCrae (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, the honourable member's question states correctly that nothing has really been added to the system except that he forgets again to acknowledge that there was a capacity in our emergency services system in Winnipeg for which there was not a corresponding need.
Now the statistics very, very clearly demonstrate that. The honourable member and his colleagues continue to push for an oversupply in this area, an oversupply in that area. Never mind what the needs are, Madam Speaker, only work on the supply side equation of health care delivery in our province.
That is what got us into all this trouble in the first place, Madam Speaker, the kind of thinking of honourable members opposite that allowed them and their friends to engage in spending in health care without any corresponding outcome to match. We should be demanding an outcome for every dollar spent on health care, a positive outcome, and that is exactly the direction we are going in.
Mr. Chomiak: Madam Speaker, how does the minister reconcile the political rhetoric he just delivered? How does he reconcile that with the fact that a doctor said today that beds are a problem?
You have closed 500 beds in hospitals in the province of Manitoba since 1992. You are closing emergency wards at night when emergencies most often occur. How does the minister explain that, in light of the fact that doctors are leaving and that doctors state that conditions are the worst in Canada in our own emergency rooms?
Mr. McCrae: Madam Speaker, we have taken a far more evolutionary approach to health reform here in Manitoba than the revolutionary approach we have seen in other provinces, notably NDP provinces. Long before Mike Harris showed up as Premier of the Province of Ontario, the Bob Rae government closed 10,000 hospital beds under the leadership of Michael Decter, who used to sit around the table with his colleagues in the cabinet room.
The honourable member does not look to the west of us, where in Saskatchewan they have closed or changed in a very radical way 52 rural hospitals, and we can go further west to NDP B.C., where the Harcourt government shut down the Shaughnessy Hospital in downtown Vancouver, a tertiary hospital they shut down there, Madam Speaker.
So let us put things in a little bit of context as we discuss health reform in this province and start to demand outcomes that you can somehow match up to the supply that you are making available to Manitoba taxpayers and consumers of health services.
Mr. Chomiak: Madam Speaker, can the minister table in the House the statistics that he gathered during the strike that justify the closure of the community-based emergency rooms where physicians see patients--20 to 25 each year are seen by physicians at community hospitals where they have heart attacks and they have no pulse and they must receive care within four to six minutes--table the statistics that justify closure of those community hospitals as a result of the minister's decision? Can you table those stats?
Mr. McCrae: Madam Speaker, the honourable member knows very well that in a cardiac arrest situation, the most appropriate place for any patient to be is in the hands of the highest trained and best equipped doctors and hospitals that there are. Those are the Health Sciences Centre and the St. Boniface Hospital.
Despite all of the good service done every day and that remains to be done during 14 hours of each day in our community hospitals, Madam Speaker, in a cardiac situation, the best friend that you have is a well-staffed and equipped paramedic prehospital system and trauma centres of the kind we have at Health Sciences Centre and St. Boniface Hospital.
We know the performance of the community hospitals, as well as the tertiary hospitals during the strike, Madam Speaker, and I will be making information available to the honourable member.
Clean Environment Commission
Solid Waste Management Recommendations
Ms. Becky Barrett (Wellington): Madam Speaker, on March 24, the Minister of Environment wrote to the chair of the City of Winnipeg's committee on works and operations, stating that the city had raised some very important and broad issues dealing with solid waste management in the capital region that should be heard and addressed prior to final decisions regarding any significant new solid waste facility for the region. To that end, the Clean Environment Commission hearings were held in Winnipeg in mid-August under very broad and sweeping terms of reference. We now have that report which includes four recommendations.
My first question for the Minister of Environment is, which of those four Clean Environment Commission recommendations provides a comprehensive waste management plan, as you stated in your March 24 letter they were going to do, that looks at, and I quote again from yourself, the economic and environmental impacts of having competitive sites for receiving waste?
Hon. Glen Cummings (Minister of Environment): Madam Speaker, as I said from the start of the discussion of this issue, it is one that has not only environmental aspects but certainly broader planning issues that are associated and, obviously, part of the question, but in reviewing the presentations that were made and looking at the same report that the member is referring to, it seems to be pretty apparent that the commission is saying that these decisions need primarily to be made on an environmental basis and that the jurisdictions involved should, as well, make sure that they, with the leadership of the province and working with the province, look towards larger and broader planning in the area.
Ms. Barrett: Madam Speaker, which of the four Clean Environment Commission recommendations--which, according to your own words, Mr. Minister, were to provide specifics for ownership and control of solid waste in the capital region and advantages and disadvantages of having regional or multimunicipality waste management--which of those four recommendations deals with those issues that you said would be dealt with in this series of hearings?
Mr. Cummings: Madam Speaker, this reminds me vaguely of my years in junior high.
The question that the member would like me to extrapolate an answer for, which one of the four recommendations answer the concerns that were put forward, the fact is the Clean Environment Commission, reviewing the information that was put in front of them, came to the conclusion that flow control did not provide an overarching issue in this case and that the decisions should be made on the basis of environmental concerns. That is what I take from all four of the recommendations.
Ms. Barrett: Will the minister now postpone the Clean Environment Commission hearings scheduled for next week as requested by the City of Winnipeg, because those recommendations from the August Clean Environment Commission hearings have not, as you said they would, identified solutions to solid waste management problems in the capital region under which the specific BFI proposal could be judged, as you stated not only in your letter of March 24, but as were stated in the Clean Environment Commission August terms of reference?
Will you now postpone those specific hearings until we do have a framework under which those guidelines can be addressed?
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Mr. Cummings: Madam Speaker, during those hearings where the commission was seeking information into the policy matter that surrounds whether or not there should be a second large landfill located within the capital region, the arguments were made about flow control, which is basically that the City of Winnipeg was asking for a monopoly over all of the waste within its boundaries. That is flow control.
That issue was presented and I would take from the recommendations that the commission made that they are saying that flow control was not an issue they were seized with and that they decided their recommendations should reference environmental responsibility and decision making.
I have always said that, going beyond that, the city and the surrounding municipalities have an opportunity, not a problem. They have an opportunity to work together to look at solving the problems.
If the member thinks that it is only related to this one issue, she should look at the broader issue which is what we have been trying to do through the capital region's meetings, to make it a much wider gathering of information, so that they can decision make on a joint basis what is good for the capital region.
Access Program
Status Report
Ms. Jean Friesen (Wolseley): Madam Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Education.
Madam Speaker, on the one hand, the private schools indicated they might take their case to court. They did not, but they found the Tory government eager to negotiate a long-term agreement which funnelled millions of dollars into private schools.
On the other hand, Madam Speaker, we have Access students from the inner city, from the North, many of them severely disadvantaged, but who did take a case to court and received a judgment which confirmed that this government had broken a commitment with them. The minister's response in this case was to threaten to cut the entire program.
Madam Speaker, I want to ask the minister to tell us what is the ethical basis for what appears to be a double standard in education.
Hon. Linda McIntosh (Minister of Education and Training): In no way did I threaten to cut the program, and I really resent the implication--not the implication, the bald statement that the member has just made.
We have worked very hard as government to do everything possible that we could do to save this program after the federal government completely withdrew all its funding. The big difference with this situation, Madam Speaker, is that this was a program that was funded by the federal government, a good program.
The federal government completely withdrew its funding. We moved in on very short notice to try and backfill, altered the program so that we could continue to deliver to those students who most required the help, and, indeed, that help is there. The program is stable.
The loan/bursary formula has meant that we are able to service those most in need, and those with high incomes are able to fund the program. Those who need money are given a straight gift over and above the loan of up to $25,000, $27,000 a year if they need it, if their needs require it. It is not repayable in any way to the Province of Manitoba.
So far from killing the program, we have done everything possible to try and save it, and we will continue to do that.
Ms. Friesen: Will the minister then undertake to table information in the House laying out the financial history of this program since 1988, so that we may all see the extent of the federal cuts and the level of continuous cuts that her government has made and continues to make every year to these highly successful programs?
Mrs. McIntosh: The member should know, if she does not already, because I understand she has been following this program or at least had alleged she was following the program and knows the federal government withdrew 60 percent of the total funding, some $4 million per year, to this program, knows, as well, that the number of people in Access has stabilized at about 750 people, knows, as well, that we give free gifts or bursaries or grants, whatever the terminology the member cares to use, to people up to an unlimited, nonrepayable loan. Many of the students receiving $25,000, $27,000 a year, it does not have to be repaid because their needs require it.
All we are saying is in order to keep this program going, in order not to lose it after the federal government abdicated its responsibility, we went to the loan/bursary program, so that it would not have to die. We are very conscious that every time money is taken out of education because of federal lack of commitment, it leaves less money to deliver what we need to deliver.
We are supportive of this, Madam Speaker. I think we have done a very, very good job of keeping Access accessible for people.
Madam Speaker: Time for Oral Questions has expired.
MINISTERIAL STATEMENTS
Canola-Crushing Facility--Ste. Agathe
Hon. James Downey (Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism): Madam Speaker, I wonder if I would have leave to revert back to Ministerial Statements.
Madam Speaker: Does the honourable Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism have leave to revert back to Ministerial Statements? [agreed]
Mr. Downey: First of all, Madam Speaker, I would like to thank members for granting me leave to make this statement.
Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I congratulate Mr. Lorne Hepworth and the management team of Canadian Agra Corporation for their decision and announcement today to build a new canola-crushing facility in Ste. Agathe, Manitoba.
This project will mean an investment of $55 million in the Manitoba Interlink Industrial Park, the creation of as many as 45 jobs when fully operational, plus an additional 300 person years of employment during the construction phase. It will pave the way for future related industrial development in this industrial park.
Madam Speaker, this project has been made possible in part by the leadership and vision of this government in creating an economic environment, policies and procedures that allowed Canadian Agra to move quickly and with certainty with their decision to establish a plant here in Manitoba.
Madam Speaker, Canadian Agra will provide increased opportunities for Manitoba canola growers by processing 2,000 metric tonnes per day when fully operational. The plant will produce a pristine canola oil and high-grade canola cake that the market research has shown to be in high demand by consumers not only in Canada but around the world.
This project brings even more opportunities for Manitoba to diversify our agriculture sector and adds to our efforts to increase value of the Manitoba raw products. The establishment of a canola-crushing facility in Manitoba is a major step in that direction.
The announcement today, together with the announcement last week which was brought to this House by the Minister of Agriculture (Mr. Enns) of the J.M. Schneider company to construct a state-of-the-art pork processing plant, and recent announcement of a major expansion by McCain of Portage la Prairie, and, of course, Ayerst in Brandon and Nestlé at Carnation, is obviously good news for Manitoba's agricultural community and indeed for all Manitobans.
Madam Speaker, I am encouraged by the level of co-operation and partnership among Canadian Agra, many departments of this government and the Rural Municipality of Ritchot in making this project possible. This co-operation made it possible for the development of the necessary infrastructure for the Manitoba Interlink Industrial Park.
Madam Speaker, on behalf of this government, I would like to express my sincere thanks to the management of Canadian Agra Corporation for the confidence they have shown in Manitoba producers, workers and this government with this exciting announcement today. Thank you.
* (1420)
Ms. Rosann Wowchuk (Swan River): Madam Speaker, on behalf of members on this side of the House, I would like extend our congratulations to Mr. Lorne Hepworth and the management team from Canadian Agra Corporation on their decision to come to Manitoba.
It is certainly a welcome decision, since we have long been awaiting jobs coming to this province and particularly with the changes that we have seen in the agriculture industry and the changes that have been made by the federal government with respect to the change to the transportation payments. We have to have some support, and we certainly have to have jobs for the people in rural Manitoba to go to.
As I say, they have been long awaited, and I wish them every success. We look forward to seeing the additional jobs, as we do with all the others.
I also see that there is infrastructure money. The government is very interested in expanding infrastructure, and I look forward to announcements by this government that we will see the infrastructure in other parts of the province expanded so that people throughout the province can have the opportunity to take advantage of the value-added jobs, that we see it throughout in all areas, not in the southern part of the province.
Infrastructure is very important, and we are well aware that without infrastructure, there is very little opportunity to have the value-added jobs coming to our region.
With any jobs, Madam Speaker, that are coming into the area, when we are using, whether it is agriculture crops or natural resources products, we would hope that the government would always be very conscientious that these jobs are sustainable, they are long term and that they have a positive effect on the communities and a positive effect on the environment so that it can all be long term.
Again, I extend my congratulations. We welcome the jobs, long-awaited jobs here in Manitoba considering the level of unemployment we have here. We look forward to the jobs and look to the value-added and look for other announcements in other parts of the province so that people throughout the province can have the opportunity to take advantage of value-added jobs.
NONPOLITICAL STATEMENTS
Tree Planting Program--General Byng School
Mr. Tim Sale (Crescentwood): Do I have leave to make a nonpolitical statement, Madam Speaker?
Madam Speaker: Does the honourable member for Crescentwood have leave to make a nonpolitical statement? [agreed]
Mr. Sale: Madam Speaker, I rise to pay a particular tribute to the students, parents and staff of General Byng School, kindergarten to Grade 9, junior high and elementary school in my riding.
These students, last spring, undertook to develop a planting program for their schoolyard in which they, through infrastructure programs and through other government programs and through their own fundraising, managed to gather enough resources to buy good quality nursery stock. The children took the trees home over the summer, provided care for them.
Last week, in company with a number of other elected officials, including the honourable Minister of Justice (Mrs. Vodrey), who shares the catchment area of that school with me, we saw the very effective planting of the trees, a wonderful presentation by students themselves who chaired and carried out the whole afternoon and I think were a great credit to our public school system.
I want to pay tribute to them and to their staff for organizing, carrying out and now carrying through a very useful program of environmental improvement at the same time that they themselves as students learn a great deal about the environment they are going to inherit. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Hon. Rosemary Vodrey (Minister of Justice and Attorney General): Madam Speaker, may I have leave for a nonpolitical statement also?
Madam Speaker: Does the honourable Minister of Justice have leave to make a nonpolitical statement? [agreed]
Mrs. Vodrey: Madam Speaker, I would like to extend my congratulations to the students and--[interjection]
Madam Speaker: Order, please. I am experiencing great difficulty hearing the honourable minister.
Mrs. Vodrey: I would like to extend my congratulations to the students and the parents and the teachers of General Byng School for their project Growing Better Together. Their project is an environmental project in which students have planted trees. They are looking at the sustainability of this environmental project, but they are also looking at the nurturing that Growing Better Together requires and have undertaken a project that is important now and will be important in some years to come in our community.
This school, Madam Speaker, certainly has undertaken a number of projects to better the community as they grow better together in terms of painting away graffiti from walls within the community.
I congratulate them on this project. The honourable member for Crescentwood (Mr. Sale) and I were honoured to have been present that day to be part of that project as it continues on in the years to come. Thanks very much, Madam Speaker.
Swan River Historical Society--25th Anniversary
Ms. Rosann Wowchuk (Swan River): May I have leave to make a nonpolitical statement?
Madam Speaker: Does the honourable member for Swan River have leave to make a nonpolitical statement? [agreed]
Ms. Wowchuk: Madam Speaker, I would like to take a moment to recognize the Swan River Historical Society who last Sunday celebrated their 25th anniversary.
I had an opportunity to attend their dinner and got a very good overview of the many stumbling blocks that were put in the way of the people who were attempting to start this society 25 years ago. As a result of their work, we now have a very good history of the Swan River Valley and an excellent museum where we have a large amount of machinery preserved. That museum committee historical society is responsible for a couple of very important events in the community where young people have the opportunity to have an understanding of how agriculture began and how it was carried out in the early days.
A person by the name of Gwen Palmer gave an overview of the history of the society and the lack of vision and lack of support that they had from the community when they first began. It was very interesting to see that in the early days nobody believed that this could become a reality, but as a result of their work and perseverance we now do have, as I say, a record of the history. We have a very nice museum in the area.
I invite members from across the way to come out to the Swan River area and view the museum and see the work that these people have done. It is very important that we have a history recorded and as a result of the work that was done by this committee, the Swan Valley Historical Society, we have a very rich history now compiled at the museum and I would like to congratulate them on their efforts.