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Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of the Opposition): Madam Speaker, my question is to the Acting Premier. Today the government announced the appointment of a superboard for health care in the city of Winnipeg. Last year the former Minister of Health told us on October 16 that we would require a separate piece of legislation. In fact, the interventions before that committee from other participants, including nurses, stated that there would be separate pieces of legislation. On March 24 of this year, the present Minister of Health said there is a great deal of concern and reluctance about losing the local autonomy in our hospitals.

I would like to ask the Acting Premier: How can this government make the appointments to this new super health board in the city of Winnipeg prior to this government and this Legislature passing legislation to deal with the some $700 million in expenditures that will flow to this new superboard announced by this government today but not created by this Legislature?

Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, first of all, in a very similar fashion when we created the rural regional health authorities for rural and northern Manitoba, they were incorporated I believe under The Companies Act. As we prepared the legislative framework--and as the member for Concordia may or may not know, I believe sometime last fall or earlier this year a corporation was established as the Winnipeg Hospital Authority. In fact, my previous deputy minister, Dr. John Wade, was actually the first interim CEO.

Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of the Opposition): Yes, we are aware on January 6 the secret corporation was established, contrary to any legislative authority from this Legislature.

Madam Speaker, I would like to ask the government and the Acting Premier: In light of the fact that the government's own regional health board report and the MHO brief both recommend that the government not appoint representatives onto the boards by patronage appointee but rather allow for democratically elected individuals to be selected by the people for the people--[interjection] The issue of taxation is dealt with by the government's own reports. The government knows that issue. They state that the standards and revenue issue should be dealt with by the government, but the community input and community representation can take place in harmony with those responsibilities by having elected boards. Why did the government reject democratically elected board members, as recommended in their government's own reports?

Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition does it again. He exaggerates. He puts forward information in a manner which is never quite accurate. He refers to "secret corporation." There is no such thing as "secret corporation." It is part of a public registry. If it was secret, how did he know about it? Again, exaggeration.

As the member well knows, we have debated this issue about elected versus appointed boards. We have discussed it, about the need for a taxing authority, but I challenge the Leader of the Opposition to show me one of those existing facility boards that is democratically and universally elected today under the current system.

Mr. Doer: The minister did not answer the question of why they rejected the advice from their own regional board committee that dealt with taxation and why they rejected the advice of the MHO on democratically elected boards.

Mr. Gary Doer (Leader of the Opposition): Madam Speaker, last year at a time when nurses were being laid off and other medical staff were being laid off across many of the regions of Manitoba, the government spent, according to information we have, some $2.8 million on regional health care boards. I would like to ask the government: How much more will this new superboard cost in the city of Winnipeg, and I would like to ask specifically how much will the salary of the new CEO, Mr. Gordon Webster, a friend of the Premier (Mr. Filmon), be for the taxpayers of Manitoba?

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Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, here we see the Leader of the Opposition make a comment, "a friend of the Premier," in fact, as if it is a bad thing to know the Premier of Manitoba. There are thousands of people in this province who know the Premier. I am sure if the members asked him how he felt about the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Webster might call Mr. Doer his friend too. This is just irrelevant to the discussion.

Madam Speaker, with respect to the first part of the member's question where he asked about recommendations, let us remember that today in the city of Winnipeg, of the nine facilities, many of them have perpetuating boards, boards that nominate their own replacements. Surely to goodness that is not an appropriate system. Let us remember that the health care purchased on behalf of Manitobans is voted by this Legislative Assembly, and we are ultimately responsible for its expenditure and delivery. With respect--[interjection] I am answering the member's questions. They never want to have an answer.

Madam Speaker, with respect specifically to salary, that is in the process of completing negotiation. The new board should have an opportunity to see that, and it will become public as will all of the, I understand, remuneration for senior executives in the Winnipeg system currently.

Mr. Dave Chomiak (Kildonan): Madam Speaker, again the government totally misses the point of accountability. They establish a board, they set salaries, they set goals and purposes under The Corporations Act for this corporation that was set up in January, they appoint the board, and there is no legislation giving the power and the authority for the citizens of Manitoba to have any say or any input into this board. Does the minister not recognize the arrogance, does the minister not recognize the lack of accountability that is perpetuated by a government that appoints boards, sets up goals and objectives, gives out hundred-thousand-dollar salaries, is not accountable to anyone?

Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, where have members opposite been? Every day in this House, and members of the press will certainly attest to it, every single administrative decision on health care in the province of Manitoba comes back to this desk because we are responsible for it. I have yet to hear members opposite go and ask the CEO of St. Boniface Hospital or of Concordia or of Health Sciences Centre about those administrative matters. What we are talking about in this province is accountability. The accountability for health care is here in the Legislative Assembly. We are the ones who vote $1.8 billion a year, and we will ensure delivery of health care in this province.

Mr. Chomiak: Can the minister, who says we are totally accountable for the health expenditures, explain why we have no legislation regarding this board, why we do not know what the salaries are going to be paid to these people, why the government went and set up a corporation without consulting this Legislature and without any legislative authority even describing how those board members would be appointed? How can the minister explain that, Madam Speaker?

Mr. Praznik: If the member had been listening over the last year and a half, he would have heard the previous minister describe the process which we were getting into, Madam Speaker. It is the same process we followed rurally when we set up this period in transition.

Let us remember today how we deliver health care service. This Legislature votes $1.8 billion with the Ministry of Health, delivers under various agreements and arrangements with various boards. Many of those boards in Winnipeg, some of them are certainly going to become part of the system because we are the payers. Just yesterday the member for Kildonan was pointing out how as Minister of Health I should be able to demand reports and do a variety of things because I am the payer. We are ultimately the payer, we are also the provider. We will be responsible. This is the same process we followed last year with the creation of the rural health authorities and it has worked well.

Mr. Chomiak: My final supplementary to the minister, who said in his press release that representatives from some of the Winnipeg hospitals may be on the board upon conclusion of agreements with those facilities whether they become part of the Winnipeg Hospital Authority. Notwithstanding, Madam Speaker, we have no legislation, and we do not know on what basis this is being made.

Will the government be blackmailing these institutions as they did with rural Manitoba to say that you will only have your deficits paid by the government if you come on board this new authority that has absolutely no legislative sanction?

Mr. Praznik: Madam Speaker, members opposite cannot have it both ways. Every day in this Assembly they raise issues about the delivery of health care system that come back to the organization of how we administer and organize and fund our health care system. Members opposite have to make a choice. Are they going to stand by the current system which does not work, or are they going to move into the next century? This side is moving into the next century. We will deliver better-quality health care to Manitobans, and members opposite will be left behind as they always are on every important issue.

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Mr. Jim Maloway (Elmwood): My question is to the Deputy Premier (Mr. Downey) and concerns the ManGlobe project. Five months ago the Deputy Premier took as notice questions asking him what results he had to show for the half million dollars in tax money he gave to ManGlobe, a company with virtually no revenues from sales, virtually no liquid assets and a president who travels more than the Premier (Mr. Filmon).

Can the Deputy Premier today table his responses to these questions along with an explanation of what due diligence he took before approving the grant?

Hon. James Downey (Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism): If I had not tabled information which I had indicated previously, I will check into that and make sure that I get the information available to the member.

Mr. Maloway: How can this minister say that public funds are protected when today the firm, after spending more than a million dollars of public funds, has no liquid assets and debts of $600,000 and a board attempting to shelter new money from creditors? Is the minister not interested in where the money went and what the taxpayers got in return?

Mr. Downey: The program that the member refers to--or the enterprise that the member referred to--is operated by a young female entrepreneur who has been supported by the federal and provincial governments in the activities which she is carrying out as well as other corporate entities within our community. The member brings information to this House which I do not at this particular time find either helpful or not helpful. I do not know the point that he is trying to make. I have been told, and it has been indicated to me, Madam Speaker, that the operation is working on an ongoing basis. What he is trying to get, I cannot quite understand.

Mr. Maloway: I would like to ask the same minister: If the general manager, Karen Alcock, was paid $7,500 a month plus GST or $100,000 a year out of public funds, how much is the president of ManGlobe being paid?

Mr. Downey: Because it is a business that is operating in a competitive field, I do not believe that there is--there is some information that may not be able to be provided. Anything that is able to be provided that would not in any way damage the business or cause any problems to that business, I would be prepared to provide for the member.

Mr. Maloway: A new question to the same minister: Since the president of ManGlobe has already travelled to Italy, Germany, Japan and Rankin Inlet, among other places, at public expense, could the minister tell us how much the travel budget for the president will be for the upcoming year?

Mr. Downey: I do not know where the member gets his information or how he can verify that the individual has travelled at public expense. There was support given to the company through a loan from the government through the communications program, but I am not aware of any public monies other than that that the individual may have travelled on.

Mr. Maloway: A supplementary to the same minister: Could the Deputy Premier then explain why this project which was supposed to have 175 employees at this time has roughly 10?

Mr. Downey: Madam Speaker, without accepting any of the accusations of the member and the maligning that he is doing of this woman and her company, I will get the information as to whether or not there are commitments that have to be lived up to or have not been lived up to. I will, in fact, get that information for the House.

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Mr. Maloway: Madam Speaker, my final supplementary to the same minister is this: Since the company had just 150 actual sales since getting funding from this government, just after the 1995 provincial election, I might add, how does the minister explain why a similar firm with no public funds has some 1,000 sales per month? How does he explain that?

Mr. Downey: Madam Speaker, it was a federal-provincial agreement which the person got support under. As it relates to the operations and the ongoing activity, I am prepared to review the activities of the corporation or the company and report back what I am able to to this Assembly.

Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Inkster): Madam Speaker, the Minister of Health challenged the NDP opposition in terms of naming some regional boards that have been elected. In the province of Quebec they have elections. In the province of Saskatchewan, I understand, they have elections. We want a commitment from this government that they are, in fact, going to go towards the election of the super health regional boards. This way representation from the grassroots, the recipients of our health care, is going to be able to have direct input.

My question to the Minister of Health is: Is this government prepared to make a commitment to the election of regional health care boards throughout the province of Manitoba?

Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, these decisions are not made in voids. I challenged members of the New Democrats. They were not able to provide me--and I would make the same challenge to the member for Inkster. Show me one of the current boards in Winnipeg governing the nine facilities in this city that is elected at a universal election by its citizens. None. Not one today.

Madam Speaker, in rural Manitoba we are not finding an election with universal suffrage to boards. In many cases we are finding self-perpetuating boards. We found in some communities, when we were in Dauphin, a board of governors where you pay $5 and you get to be a governor of a hospital--43 governors managing a hospital for 14,000 people.

Madam Speaker, that is what we have today. Yet, ultimately, virtually all of the funding for those facilities is voted by this Legislature, and we are held accountable and responsible for that expenditure. We have provided for the possibility of election of some boards in the future, and that will be considered if there is a taxing authority that goes with that.

Mr. Lamoureux: This government in the past has made a commitment to electing the regional health boards. My question to the Minister of Health is: Are we to assume today that this government is backing down and is not prepared to have elected regional boards?

Mr. Praznik: Madam Speaker, not at all. I am looking forward to seeing the Liberal Party make as a campaign pledge in the next general election that they will have elected boards with a taxing authority on Manitobans to be responsible for their decisions. I would like to see if the member will make that commitment today.

Mr. Lamoureux: Madam Speaker, is the Minister of Health trying to say that, unless the government is prepared to give the taxation rights to these boards, they are not prepared to entertain having elected boards? They have to have both. Is that what the Minister of Health is saying, because if that is what he is saying, the Minister of Health is wrong, and he should allow for an election coming this--

Madam Speaker: Order, please.

Mr. Praznik: Madam Speaker, after answering probably a half dozen questions from the member for Inkster, yes, he is absolutely right. If you are going to have an elected board to manage--and when I say elected, by a universal election of electors within a district and not at some public meeting but a universally elected board--they have to have some taxing authority to be responsible for the decisions.

We have seen in other provinces like Saskatchewan where that has not happened, that it has not been an effective means of governing their health care system, because the people elected to make the decisions are not responsible to the taxpayers whose money they spend. Surely to goodness, the Liberals are not suggesting that elected people should not be responsible for their decisions to their electors and the taxpayers whose money they are spending.

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Ms. Diane McGifford (Osborne): Madam Speaker, I am pleased to hear that the Minister of Health is a proactive man with a vision for the year 2000. I think my questions will make clear why this makes me so happy.

Today the Kali Shiva AIDS Society was presented with the mayor's volunteer award for human services. This group hitherto has been funded by the federal ACAP program, which will end in April 1989, actually the 31st of March. They have been told by this government, by the AIDS program co-ordinator of Public Health, that if they are not funded now, they never will be. I understand that actually the AIDS program co-ordinator funds only a phone line at the Village Clinic.

I want to ask the minister how he can justify standing by and doing nothing while this publicly recognized volunteer organization with a wonderful reputation and especially when the numbers of cases of AIDS increases in Manitoba, especially the cases involving women and children--I wonder how he can stand by and do absolutely nothing.

Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, first of all, I think the member was referring to 1999 as opposed to '89.

I would like to clarify for the member that AIDS is not a disease of just women and children; it is a disease of all citizens, and I think it is important to make that point.

Madam Speaker, if there is truly an official in the Ministry of Health who has said to any group that they will not be funded, they should not be so presumptuous, because those are decisions that are made by Executive Council and by this Legislative Assembly. The great difficulty today, of course, is the federal government withdraws from these issues; they are leaving great voids that have to be filled. Our ability is limited, the need is great and I recognize that. I would think, as we enter this period of a federal election campaign, we all need to make a concerted effort to have our Liberal colleagues renew their commitment to funding this area before we know exactly to the extent of dollars that have to be replaced.

Ms. Diane McGifford (Osborne): I thought the delivery of health services was a provincial responsibility.

Since the minister has refused to make a commitment regarding an AIDS hospice and now refuses to fund respected and necessary services like Kali Shiva, is it not time to admit that this government's so-called AIDS strategy is only an opportunistic political ploy, that people in the AIDS community have once again been taken advantage of?

Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): If the member for Osborne wishes to have a long career in public life, I would sincerely advise her not to put words into other members' mouths. No one has denied a commitment. The member knows we have discussed this in this House with respect to an AIDS hospice. That is a project that is worthy of consideration. It does not happen overnight.

Madam Speaker, I have listened to members of the New Democratic Party, with respect to provincial and federal responsibility, make the argument on many occasions about the federal responsibility in funding health care, reductions in transfer payments in that role, so we as a provincial Legislature in voting those dollars for health care have relied on a diminishing amount of commitment from the federal government. In these areas where federal government has made specific funding to organizations in areas of research or illness, I would like to see them continue those needed ones as opposed to withdrawing them. Now that they are facing the electors, now is the time to put the question to them in the Liberal Party about whether or not they are going to renew that commitment.

Ms. Diane McGifford (Osborne): Madam Speaker, on a new question. I understand this morning that the Minister of Health presented a draft of the health privacy act to a group of individuals involved in SmartHealth and also various other representatives. I wonder if the minister could tell us how this draft was received and what, if any, were the criticisms of this draft legislation.

Hon. Darren Praznik (Minister of Health): Madam Speaker, the member is somewhat mistaken in her comments about to whom this draft was discussed. These were the stakeholders' groups that included, in fact, Peter Olfert representing the association of health care unions--was part of that group this morning. It was the commitment that we made in developing privacy legislation, the commitment that the previous minister made in having a privacy committee, having other stakeholders' groups. They provided a host of advice on how this should be structured. We had our policy people work with it, our drafting people. We wanted to share the legal drafting of what they had advised us, because before I work through and bring a bill to this House, I want to ensure that it is representative of the advice that stakeholders are giving, and that is part of the process that we are using to do that.

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Mr. Gord Mackintosh (St. Johns): Madam Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Justice.

There is only one aboriginal halfway house for young offenders in Winnipeg, and the operators, the Roulettes, Joe and Monique, on Magnus, wrote to the minister in February expressing frustration that repeated requests for attention to issues raised by them have gone unanswered by the department in asking for the minister's help.

My question to the minister is: Could the minister possibly explain my understanding from the Roulettes, who are now very upset, why the response has been to stop placing youth with the Roulettes until matters are dealt with, with no time lines and no protocol? Is this a form of retaliation?

Hon. Vic Toews (Minister of Justice and Attorney General): Madam Speaker, I do not mind getting back to the member with the answer to that kind of question but to impute that type of motive, I think, is totally inappropriate. Why would I possibly want to retaliate? I think that is uncalled for, and the member should withdraw that type of remark.

Mr. Mackintosh: Would the minister not admit that it is the government's policy that, when a complaint about shortcomings in the department is raised at the political level by people who contract with the department, the reaction is not to deal with the issues but to silence the concerned or shut them down, as the Roulettes now believe?

Mr. Toews: Madam Speaker, that is not correct; that is not true.

Mr. Mackintosh: Would the minister also explain why this custody home is being starved for placements and has been operating at less than full capacity and, in fact, will be vacant in three weeks, threatening the viability of this valuable resource, when there is so much need for a greater range of options, particularly for aboriginal youth in Corrections?

Mr. Toews: Madam Speaker, that is an appropriate question. I will get back to the member with the details. I will take that as notice.

Mr. Tim Sale (Crescentwood): Madam Speaker, will the minister responsible for tourism explain to the House how come in the last calendar year for which statistics have just become available Manitoba's tourism growth was a paltry 0.9 percent, while other provinces such as Saskatchewan, our neighbour province, 6.6 percent; Alberta, 10 percent; P.E.I., 21 percent; Canada as a whole, almost three times Manitoba's growth.

What is this minister doing to have such a sorry tourism record?

Hon. James Downey (Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism): Madam Speaker, as negative as the member wants to be, I am pleased that there is an increase year over year for Manitoba tourism. [interjection] As my colleague has indicated, it could be that a lot of people are coming and staying, becoming permanent residents. In fact, the out-migration last year, over 10 years ago, we are virtually on balance.

Madam Speaker, we have some tremendous opportunities coming to the province of Manitoba with the World Junior Hockey coming here in 1999 and the Pan American Games in 1999.

I am very optimistic about the tourism industry in Manitoba and proud to be part of it.

Mr. Sale: Madam Speaker, will the minister, who seems to be the minister of tomorrow and next year and not the minister of the real world in the last 10 years, then explain why, under his government stewardship, Manitoba has seen a drop of 14 percent in its tourism since 1987 while Canada has seen a growth of 15 percent, virtually a 30 percent difference between the nation and the province?

Mr. Downey: Madam Speaker, I can assure the member that one of our objectives as a province and as a government is to make sure that we do in fact increase tourism. A lot of our efforts are put into that. I can assure him, as I have referred to the major events that are coming up in 1999 with the World Junior Hockey and the Pan American Games--

An Honourable Member: Canada Games this summer.

Mr. Downey: --and Canada Games in Brandon this summer, that we are embarked upon tremendous opportunities in the tourism industry and will continue to work very hard to accomplish new goals in that field.

Mr. Tim Sale (Crescentwood): Madam Speaker, will the minister, under whose stewardship we were seventh this year and ninth over the last nine years in Canada, tell the House whether or not the contract for promoting tourism in Manitoba has been retendered in the last year? If it has, who received the contract? If it has not been tendered, why not?

Hon. James Downey (Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism): Madam Speaker, I would ask the member to clarify what he is talking about in the tourism contract that he is referring to so that I could get him the information.

Mr. Sale: The major contract awarded to a firm to oversee the overall promotion strategy of Manitoba, Madam Speaker.

Mr. Downey: Madam Speaker, the contract has been let, and I can get any additional information for the member when I get further details.

Ms. Jean Friesen (Wolseley): Madam Speaker, the Minister of Education has not had a happy time with public inquiries if we think of the Render-Dyck inquiry or the Manitoba school boundaries review when the public turned out by the hundreds to oppose government policy. So it is understandable that she is reluctant to hold public meetings on the special needs review. I want to remind the government and the minister that the government was elected on a promise of having a public and independent review.

I would like to ask the minister why in a recent radio interview she refused to make a commitment to public hearings for the special needs review.

Hon. Linda McIntosh (Minister of Education and Training): Madam Speaker, I do not recall having been asked to have public hearings on the radio show that she is referencing. I also indicate that the public hearings that we had on the two topics she referenced were not public hearings to reflect government policy. They were public hearings to receive input.

Similarly, on the special needs review, we have asked the steering committee to do, choose proposals for the best way to gather information, based on proposals submitted with plans outlining how that would occur, and they are doing that. In addition, depending on the topic--and this one I think is important to note--there are many people who would have things they would share with that committee who would be really, really reluctant to provide those details in a public hearing.

Ms. Friesen: Madam Speaker, could the minister explain to the House and to the parents, teachers and trustees, who have been promised a public review since 1994 of special needs education, would she tell us what forums--and, as the minister has said, there are a number of forums of public participation--will she tell us now what forums she is committed to and what forums she is going to promise to those parents, trustees and teachers?

Mrs. McIntosh: Madam Speaker, I would think the member for Wolseley should be happy that we are having this special needs review. It is a particular interest of mine personally, of this government's. It is a very high need, something that they never did when they were in government. It is something that, when I was president of MAST, I used to ask their government to do, and they never got around to even thinking about doing it.

We are now embarking upon it. We are embarking upon it by having asked a steering committee of people selected by the Manitoba Teachers' Society, special interests groups that had clear concerns about the issue. We asked them to examine calls for proposal and decide how they could best and most effectively achieve input, and I will not interfere with that process. My goal is to have the best input come, and that may not come in a public setting where people are forced to talk about their children in front of cameras.

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Ms. Jean Friesen (Wolseley): Madam Speaker, would the minister be prepared to make a minimal commitment? The minister talks about my happiness, and frankly I would be a lot happier if the government had begun this review in 1993 when they promised it. This is the longest delay of any review of this government.

Some Honourable Members: Oh, oh.

Madam Speaker: Order, please. Would the honourable member for Wolseley please pose her final supplementary question.

Ms. Friesen: Madam Speaker, I would like the minister to make a minimum commitment to the House today for the timetable that she has proposed for the special needs review.

Hon. Linda McIntosh (Minister of Education and Training): Madam Speaker, I hate to belabour the issue, but this side has done more to advance understandings and meeting needs in special needs education than they could even have begun to dream of when they were in government, and that is clear. You only need to look at the funding has increased, the funding has increased for special needs--

Madam Speaker: Order, please. The honourable member for Wolseley, on a point of order.

Ms. Friesen: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I would like you to direct the minister to answer the question which was short and specific and asked for a timetable.

Mrs. McIntosh: Madam Speaker, on the same point of order, members opposite could perhaps be consistent in either asking me to provide ample detail in response to both the preamble and the question, which is what I am doing now, or give short, succinct answers, which I attempted to do yesterday. Which do they wish, detailed response to the preamble or the yeses and noes they say they give me when I give the answer?

Madam Speaker: On the point of order raised by the honourable member for Wolseley, I would ask that the honourable Minister of Education please respond to the question asked.

Ms. Marianne Cerilli (Radisson): Madam Speaker, south Transcona is a unique part of the city of Winnipeg. It every spring receives flood waters from the rural municipality of Springfield and through ditches must flow that water to the Winnipeg sewer system. They receive as much flood water annually as any house this year will receive which is on riverbank property. Yet the City of Winnipeg's policy is to not deliver sandbags to the homes in south Transcona, only to riverbank homes.

I want to ask the Minister of Urban Affairs or the Minister of Natural Resources (Mr. Cummings) if they were aware of this situation, and will they undertake to have discussions with the city to support them providing sandbags to those homes in south Transcona, many where there are seniors who cannot truck hundreds of sandbags to their homes.

Hon. Jack Reimer (Minister of Urban Affairs): Madam Speaker, the member is alluding to a situation I guess that everybody is very, very concerned about, and that is the tremendous flood water that possibly we may experience in various sectors here in Manitoba and possibly even in Winnipeg. I am not aware that there is a restriction in regard to delivering of sandbags into the south Transcona area. I can take the question as notice and try to find out exactly the reasoning behind that and try to get back to the member as soon as possible.

Ms. Cerilli: Will the minister also agree to have discussions with the city as well as his cabinet colleagues, Emergency Measures operation, Department of Natural Resources to ensure that south Transcona residents that require sandbags delivered to their home will have that service provided as will other residents who have a similar kind of emergency situation along the riverbanks?

Mr. Reimer: I can give the assurance to the member that all departments, whether it is Natural Resources or with Government Services and Emergency Measures Organization, have been very, very well briefed, well informed as to what the conditions are. It is an ongoing approach to keep an update to all sectors regarding the flooding, including the City of Winnipeg.

I must commend the City of Winnipeg and all volunteers that are involved with the sandbagging efforts that are going on in all parts of the city, whether it is in south Transcona or in the St. Norbert area. These are some of the things that I believe that the more information that is available and that is presented by the various levels of government to the people affected so that there is an adequate time to respond, is something that we as a government will endeavour to be on top of at all times, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: The time for Oral Questions has expired.