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HALIFAX, TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2020

Sixty-third General Assembly

Second Session

9:00 A.M.

SPEAKER

Hon. Kevin Murphy

DEPUTY SPEAKERS

Suzanne Lohnes-Croft, Brendan Maguire

THE SPEAKER « » : Order, please. We'll begin the daily routine.

PRESENTING AND READING PETITIONS

PRESENTING REPORTS OF COMMITTEES

TABLING REPORTS, REGULATIONS AND OTHER PAPERS

STATEMENTS BY MINISTERS

GOVERNMENT NOTICES OF MOTION

RESOLUTION NO. 2034

HON. LEO GLAVINE « » : Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the honourable Premier, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas from February 25^th to February 29^th, our province witnessed the confidence, dedication, passion, and determination shown by the athletes who represented Team Nova Scotia at the 2020 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Thunder Bay, Ontario; and

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Whereas Special Olympians are true inspirations and role models who serve as examples of what can be accomplished when we set goals, work hard, and strive to be the very best despite any obstacles; and

Whereas we are tremendously proud of our 19 Team Nova Scotia medallists and their coaches for bringing home 37 medals in seven different Winter sports;

Therefore be it resolved that members of the House of Assembly join me in congratulating the Team Nova Scotia athletes who competed in the 2020 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games and thank the coaches, families, friends, sponsors, and volunteers for the role they play in supporting our athletes to be the very best.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

The honourable Minister of Community Services.

RESOLUTION NO. 2035

HON. KELLY REGAN « » : Mr. Speaker, some of my colleagues will have noticed that I have passed out some literature to them.

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Department of Community Services is invested in the future of Nova Scotia children and families and supporting initiatives that help break the cycle of poverty, including education; and

Whereas the federal government's Canada Learning Bond grant provides between $500 and $2,000 to eligible children for post-secondary education, paid into a Registered Education Savings Plan at no cost to families; and

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Whereas we are working with federal, provincial, and community partners to help people apply and are holding clinics across the province this month, with dates and locations listed at novascotiaclb.ca;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House commit to passing this valuable information on to their constituents to help children from low- and modest- income families access savings for post-secondary education with the help of the Canada Learning Bond.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

The honourable Deputy Premier.

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : I wish to do a notice of motion on behalf of the Government House Leader but, before I do, could I have permission to do an introduction?

THE SPEAKER « » : Permission granted.

KAREN CASEY « » : I would like to draw the members' attention to the Speaker's Gallery, where we have someone who is no stranger to any of us: David McDonald, the Legislative Librarian. You can see him working away quietly in the library doing all of the work that supports all of us here. Welcome again to the Speaker's Gallery, and I will be reading a resolution on your behalf.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Deputy Premier.

[9:15 a.m.]

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RESOLUTION NO. 2036

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the honourable Government House Leader, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Province House celebrated its 200^th anniversary in 2019 with the publication of a new book about the building entitled Nova Scotia's Province House; and

Whereas David McDonald, Legislative Librarian, and his dedicated team worked diligently to produce a marvelous new record of the history of our great legislative structure; and

Whereas the book has been distributed to school libraries across the province for students in Grades 9 through 12 so that they may learn about Canada's oldest legislative building;

Therefore be it resolved that members of the House of Assembly join me in congratulating David McDonald and the Legislative Library staff for their extensive efforts in researching, writing, and producing the book, entitled Nova Scotia's Province House, to ensure this building's history is preserved for future generations.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried. (Standing Ovation)

The honourable Minister of Community Services.

HON. KELLY REGAN « » : Mr. Speaker, I beg leave to make some introductions.

THE SPEAKER « » : Permission granted.

KELLY REGAN « » : For the information of the House, March is National Social Work Month, so today I would direct the members' attention to the East Gallery where we are joined by a group of Community Services social workers from across the province. I would ask them each to rise as I mention their names.

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Cindy Nemis is a disability support program coordinator from Sydney; Laura Kennedy, a child protection, long-term social worker from Port Hawkesbury; Melissa Blanch, a child welfare, permanent care, and custody social worker from Amherst; JoAnne Burns, an adoption social worker from New Glasgow; Kassandra Knight, a child welfare, long-term supervisor from Halifax; Kimberley Hankin, an intake supervisor from Halifax; and Julia Bremner, a children in care social worker from Halifax. I would ask the members to give them the warm welcome of the House. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Community Services.

RESOLUTION NO. 2037

HON. KELLY REGAN « » : Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas social work is the foundation of all social services in the province, both within communities and government, and social workers engage in work that makes a difference in the lives of Nova Scotians; and

Whereas building a strong province starts with strong families, and the services of our social workers provide support so that families can be their best and make positive contributions to their communities; and

Whereas March is National Social Work Month with the theme of United by Diversity, Strengthened by Inclusion and is a time to reflect upon the impact, services, and supports the social workers working within many sectors of our community provide;

Therefore be it resolved that the members of the House of Assembly join me in recognizing National Social Work Month 2020 and the social workers who work so hard in and for our communities.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

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The honourable Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.

HON. ZACH CHURCHILL « » : Mr. Speaker, I beg leave to make an introduction.

THE SPEAKER « » : Permission granted.

HON. ZACH CHURCHILL « » : In the government gallery, I would ask the members of the Principals and Vice-Principals Forum Standing Committee to stand as I introduce them.

Let me start with Chair Nora Vance Gray, Vice-principal of Pine Ridge Middle School in the Annapolis Valley. She is joined by other members of the Annapolis Valley Regional Centre for Education, including Isaac Schurman and Nancy Isley. There is from Cape Breton-Victoria Regional Centre for Education, Ruth Clarke and Danielle AuCoin; from Chignecto Central, we have Allison McNeil-Wilson, Heather Janes-Pederson, and Leanne Searle; from the CSAP we have Claudette d'Entremont and Carolyn Muise; from Halifax we have Huntley Reddick, Lee Anne Amaral, John Fry, and Sara Walker; from the Strait we have Glenn Austen and Carol Smith; from the South Shore we have Daphne Egilsson and Gordon Walters; and from the Tri-County Regional Centre for Education, two people I know very well, Ryan MacDonald and Raquel Thompson. Finally, from the Public School Administrators Association of Nova Scotia we have Tim Simony.

I ask members of the House to join me in welcoming members of the Principals Forum. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.

RESOLUTION NO. 2038

HON. ZACH CHURCHILL « » : Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Nova Scotia's Principals Forum is a network of principals and vice-principals from all school levels and all regions and the CSAP; and

Whereas the Principals Forum is a body that serves to advise and make recommendations to partners and stakeholders on policy, curriculum, and assessment, including key education reports and policies like the attendance policy, the inclusive education policy, and the provincial assessment policy, to name a few; and

Whereas the members of this forum are committed to achieving the highest possible outcomes for Nova Scotia students in all areas of the province and all areas of education;

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Therefore be it resolved that all members of this Legislature recognize the important role played by members of the Principals Forum and join me in thanking them for their service as educators in Nova Scotia.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried. (Applause)

The honourable Minister of Agriculture.

RESOLUTION NO. 2039

HON. KEITH COLWELL « » : Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas each year, Farm Safety Nova Scotia celebrates Canadian Agricultural Safety Week through campaigns, workshops, and events to reinforce a safer, more productive sector; and

Whereas the initiative serves as an opportunity to reflect on the importance of farm safety and provide producers with the resources needed to make their farms safer; and

Whereas Canadian Agricultural Safety Week takes place from March 15^th to March 21^st with the aim to build, grow, and lead the agriculture industry in safety and sustainability;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House recognize the efforts of Farm Safety Nova Scotia and the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association to make safety everyone's responsibility and to reinforce a path to a safer, more productive sector.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

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Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

The honourable Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.

RESOLUTION NO. 2040

HON. ZACH CHURCHILL « » : À une date ultérieure je demanderai l'adoption de la résolution suivante:

Attendu que la période du 9 au 13 mars 2020 est la 14^e édition de la Semaine de l'éducation francophone en Nouvelle-Écosse; et

Attendu que, cette année, le thè​​​me de la semaine est « L'éducation francophone à​​  l'è​​​re numérique »; et

Attendu que la Semaine de l'éducation francophone célè​​​bre le dynamisme, la vitalité, et la diversité de la communauté acadienne et francophone de la Nouvelle-Écosse;

Par conséquent, qu'il soit résolu que tous les membres de la présent Assemblée législative reconnaissent la période du 9 au 13 mars 2020 comme marquant la Semaine de l'éducation francophone en Nouvelle-Écosse.

Monsieur le Président, je demande l'adoption de cette motion sans préavis et sans débat.

Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas March 9-13, 2020, marks the 14^th annual French Education Week in Nova Scotia; and

Whereas this year the theme for the week is French Education in the Digital Age; and

Whereas French Education Week celebrates the vibrancy, vitality, and diversity of the Acadian and francophone community of Nova Scotia;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of the Legislature recognize March 9-13, 2020, as French Education Week in Nova Scotia.

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Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

The honourable Minister of Acadian Affairs and Francophonie.

RESOLUTION NO. 2041

HON. LENA METLEGE DIAB « » : Monsieur le Président, à​​  une date ultérieure je demanderai l'adoption de la résolution suivante:

Attendu que mars est le mois de la Francophone - Les Rendez-vous de la Francophonie - en Nouvelle-Écosse, un temps pour célébrer la culture, les traditions, et la diversité unique des francophones vivant à​​  travers de la province, le pays, et le monde; et

Attendu que la Nouvelle-Écosse compte des francophones depuis plus de 400 ans, y compris des descendants de colons européens, des Acadiens, et des nouveaux arrivants; et

Attendu qu'il y a plus de 34 000 Néo-Écossais qui ont le franç​​ais pour premiè​​​re langue et que plus de 100 000 Néo-Écossais parlent franç​​ais;

Par conséquent, il est résolu que les membres de l'Assemblée législative se joignent à​​  moi pour reconnaî​​tre le mois comme le mois de la Francophonie en Nouvelle-Écosse et pour encourager tous les Néo-Écossais à​​  participer aux divers événements des Rendez-vous de la Francophonie pour honorer les francophones de partout dans la province.

Monsieur le Président, je demande l'adoption de cette résolution sans préavis et sans débat.

Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas March is Francophonie month - Les Rendez-vous de la Francophonie - in Nova Scotia, a time to celebrate the culture, traditions and unique diversity of French speakers living across the province, country, and world; and

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Whereas Nova Scotia has been home to French speakers for over 400 years, including descendants from European settlers, Acadians, and newcomers; and

Whereas there are over 34,000 Nova Scotians who speak French as a first language and over 100,000 Nova Scotians who speak French;

Therefore be it resolved that members of the House of Assembly join me in recognizing March as Francophonie month - Les Rendez-vous de la Francophonie - in Nova Scotia and encourage all Nova Scotians to participate in the various events to honour our French speakers across the province.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

The honourable Minister of the Public Service Commission.

HON. TONY INCE « » : Mr. Speaker, may I make an introduction?

THE SPEAKER « » : Permission granted.

TONY INCE « » : Joining us in the East Gallery are members of the Public Service Commission: Hélè​​​ne Lemay, Kadeem Hinch, Terri Aker, Hector Diolola, Jacqueline Parker, Ken Oguzie, Rebecca Thomas, and Danielle Elias. I would like the House to please welcome these employees. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of the Public Service Commission.

RESOLUTION NO. 2042

HON. TONY INCE « » : Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Government of Nova Scotia believes meaningful action on diversity, inclusion, and equity is a priority in our public service and is working hard to make sure all feel welcome to show up as who they are in our workplaces; and

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Whereas our first diversity and inclusion strategy led solid groundwork on which we have built our new strategy, called All Together: An Action Plan for Diversity and Inclusion in the Public Service, which focuses on ensuring all leadership is accountable, developing our current and future leaders, identifying barriers and solutions, and measuring our progress; and

Whereas that's why, as part of the strategy, each department will set tangible goals to move us forward through action and accountability;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly please recognize and thank the government's diversity round table, employee networks, and all employees for their hard work and commitment to create an environment that is rich in diversity, culturally competent in its inclusion, and welcoming to all.

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

The honourable Government House Leader.

RESOLUTION NO. 2043

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas a long-serving staff member of the Nova Scotia Legislature has recently retired since the last sitting of the House; and

Whereas our former Manager of House of Assembly Operations, Peter Theriault, dedicated himself for many years to the successful operation of the House of Assembly; and

Whereas this professional civil servant has concluded his exemplary service to the House of Assembly for all of us and all of the province;

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Therefore be it resolved that the House of Assembly join me in congratulating Peter on his retirement from the Nova Scotia Legislature and the Province of Nova Scotia in recognition of his outstanding and dedicated service to the province. (Applause)

Mr. Speaker, I request waiver of notice and passage without debate.

THE SPEAKER « » : There has been a request for waiver.

Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried. (Applause)

[9:30 a.m.]

The honourable Government House Leader.

RESOLUTION NO. 2044

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Like Ron Burgundy from Anchorman, I just read the teleprompter, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I hereby request that the following motion be adopted without notice, pursuant to Rule 32(5) of the House of Assembly Rules and Forms of Procedure.

Be it resolved that all congratulatory motions deposited with the Clerk, pursuant to Rule 32(3) of the Rules and Forms of Procedure of the House of Assembly from February 20, 2020, to the rising of the House today that have not been otherwise considered by the House of Assembly be approved.

THE SPEAKER « » : Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

INTRODUCTION OF BILLS

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Bill No. 254 - Entitled an Act to Establish a Shelter Standards Advisory Committee. (Susan Leblanc)

Bill No. 255 - Entitled an Act Respecting Health-care for New and Expectant Mothers. (Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin)

Bill No. 256 - Entitled an Act to Amend Chapter 214 of the Revised Statutes of 1989. The Human Rights Act. (Alana Paon)

Bill No. 257 - Entitled an Act to Ensure Equity Among Members of the House of Assembly. (Alana Paon)

Bill No. 258 - Entitled an Act Respecting Nova Scotia Food Security and Self-sufficiency. (Alana Paon)

NOTICES OF MOTION

STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage.

PROVINCE HOUSE PAGES: SERV. TO THE HOUSE - RECOG.

BARBARA ADAMS « » : I rise today to bring recognition and thanks from the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia to all 14 Legislative Pages who have served us so well during this sitting of the House.

The Page program offers local students the opportunity to work in the political arena in the oldest legislative building in Canada. The Pages help the members of the Legislative Assembly to do their jobs efficiently and to facilitate the functioning of the House of Assembly.

I would like to recognize and thank our Nova Scotia Pages Ryley Peterson, Brianna Merritt, Jesse Lewis, Nathan Horne, Daniel Mallov, Jacob Burchell, Chidi Umahi, Brandon Julien, Aissa Barro, Jeff Crowell, Maria Baird, Sofia Reiner, Emilie Quinn and Kirsten Nicol. Mr. Speaker I ask all members of this Nova Scotia Legislature to join me in recognizing this outstanding group of students. (Standing Ovation)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth South.

Hussey, Joanne: NDP Candidate - Recog.

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CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : Mr. Speaker, while we don't know yet when the next general election will be, I can tell you that we in the NDP are hard at work recruiting intelligent and dedicated people to be candidates whenever that election is called. I'm happy to say that the NDP is the first Party to nominate a candidate for the next general election, and I'm proud that candidate is here with us in the gallery. That's Joanne Hussey, the NDP candidate for Fairview-Clayton Park.

Joanne is no stranger to the folks in this House; she's our caucus's deputy chief of staff. She does huge amounts of work behind the scenes to ensure that we're able to - it says here - "put forward solutions to challenges our province faces" - but also string two sentences together and sound like we know what we're talking about.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the time when I'm joined on the floor of this House by Joanne Hussey, and I ask everyone to join me in giving her a round of applause. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Lunenburg West.

Mullins, David: True Rotarian Award - Congrats.

HON. MARK FUREY « » : Mr. Speaker, David Mullins of Petite Riviè​​​re was selected by the Rotary Club of Bridgewater and District to receive the 2019 True Rotarian Award. David joined the Belleville, Ontario, club in 1990 and the Bridgewater and District club in 2013 after moving to Petite Riviè​​​re. He has played a vital role in the growth of the club, serving as both president and treasurer. He has also initiated and led several international and local projects, including improvements to the food bank and the addition of a shed at the Bridgewater Community Gardens. His pride and joy is the Dictionary Program, where every Grade 3 student in Lunenburg County is presented with their own dictionary and mini encyclopedia.

We applaud Dave Mullins for his commitment to his community and others around the world. I ask my colleagues in this House of Assembly to join me in congratulating Dave Mullins.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Victoria-The Lakes.

Spartans/Cabot High Girls Basketball:

Gold and Silver Medallists - Congrats.

KEITH BAIN « » : Mr. Speaker, the Cape Breton tradition of excellence in team sports was proudly displayed at the Highland Region middle school girls basketball playoffs this weekend in Glace Bay. Dr. T.L. Sullivan Spartans girls AA and Cabot Education Centre middle school girls AA are role models for their younger peers. Sportsmanship was at its finest this weekend when the teams played against each other and showed true sportsmanship during the gold-winning game. The Spartans girls finished out the playoffs with the gold-winning medal and Cabot came home with silver. Both teams played with their heart and soul.

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I ask all members of this House to join me in congratulating the Spartans Girls AA basketball team and coaches Stuart and Nathan Galpin on their gold medal, and Cabot Education Centre AA girls and coach Jolene Robar on their silver medal winnings in the Highland Region Middle School Girls basketball championship.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham.

LISA ROBERTS « » : I beg leave to make an introduction.

THE SPEAKER « » : Permission granted.

LISA ROBERTS « » : In the West Gallery, if they would rise, I'm joined today by Dennis Adams, a registered social worker with Leave Out Violence Nova Scotia, and by Sarah MacLaren, executive director of Leave Out Violence Nova Scotia. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham.

LOVE N.S.: Youth Advocacy and Support - Recog.

LISA ROBERTS « » : Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize an organization that has done amazing work with youth in Nova Scotia for the last 20 years. Leave Out Violence Nova Scotia, commonly known as LOVE, first began operating modestly in Halifax in January 2020, with one program and 15 youth involved. Today they have grown to serve more than 200 youth each year through eight programs in Halifax, Sipekne'katik and Membertou First Nation. LOVE works with youth aged 12 to 18, who are intelligent, caring and full of potential but who come to LOVE when they are disenfranchised, unhappy or hurt.

LOVE supports them through programs and healthy relationships that build emotional intelligence and help them find the right skills to overcome the challenges they face in their personal life. LOVE is also unique in that each youth has access to a youth worker and a registered social worker 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Furthermore, LOVE's program helps participants emerge with greater resilience, heightened skills, and confidence to be inspirational leaders in all aspects of their lives. Many of them remain involved in the program into their 20s, which is a testament to the success of its programs and workers.

I invite all members to recognize and applaud LOVE's work and accomplishment.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Clare-Digby.

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Thibodeau, Jody: Special Olympian - Congrats.

HON. GORDON WILSON « » : I would like to congratulate Jody Thibodeau for recently representing Nova Scotia at the Special Olympics in Thunder Bay.

Jody Thibodeau, a 38-year-old athlete from Clare, was so excited about the opportunity to go to the National Special Olympic Games. He has been involved in this organization's competitions for over 16 years, competing in both bowling and bocce, and competing in bowling at the National Games.

His participation in this and other competitions is possible only because of the support of his coaches and his family as well as the countless other volunteers involved in this movement. I love their commitment to enriching the lives of these special people in the hopes they realize the impact that this will have on their athletes - an impact not limited to training and support.

When discussing his upcoming trip to Thunder Bay, Jody was especially excited about becoming friends with his fellow team and Team Nova Scotia as well as athletes from across Canada. Though he did not return home with a medal, he returned home with great memories and many friendships formed with folks who were with him at the Games.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Pictou West.

Children, Jack and Chloe - Thanks

KARLA MACFARLANE « » : I have had the pleasure to stand in my place for seven years, and I have never taken an opportunity to use Member Statements to talk about my children.

When I divorced, they were 4 and 9; when I was elected, they were 9 and 14. Two weeks ago my son turned 18; today my daughter turns 22. She graduates from university this year, and my son starts in September, so I guess I will be an empty nester - footloose and fancy-free. (Laughter) Possibly.

This morning my colleague for Sydney River-Mira-Louisbourg showed me a video of his newborn baby and daughter, and his daughter is so sweet, kissing him good morning through Facetime. I'm reminded that now my children ask me, "When is my income tax done?" "I need my passport." "Can you renew this?" "Can you do that?"

I just want to give them a shout-out because they have never given me any difficulties - never. I'm not sure that their father and I deserve to have them, but I love them dearly and I thank them from the bottom of my heart for allowing me to do this job.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth North.

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Dalling Denture Clinic: Com. Serv. - Thanks

SUSAN LEBLANC « » : Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge the good work done by brothers Robert and David Dalling, who own the Dartmouth North famous Dalling Denture Clinic.

The Dalling brothers came by their life's work honestly. Their father Bob began making teeth in the 1950s in the basement of the taxi stand across the street from the clinic's current-day Wyse Road location. Bob, who learned how to make teeth while in the Army, made partial plates before it was legal for denturists to do so. His son Robert Dalling made his first pair of teeth in April 1977.

We all know how important strong, healthy teeth can be to a person's well-being, but the high cost of dental care puts it out of reach for many Nova Scotians. Bob Dalling provided low-cost teeth to people of limited means for over 25 years, and his sons have continued this legacy. There are countless stories about how the Dalling brothers have gone out of their way to make sure that low-income clients can afford their new teeth. On one occasion, the Dallings got wind that a resident of Dartmouth North had been badly beaten, severely damaging his teeth, and the brothers stepped in and made him new ones.

Mr. Speaker, the Dallings have been giving Nova Scotians and residents of Dartmouth North a reason to smile for over half a century now. I ask this House to join me in extending our deepest gratitude.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Bedford.

Ellis, Mona: 100^th Birthday - Best Wishes

HON. KELLY REGAN « » : I would just like to send a shout-out to Mona Ellis of Bedford.

I had the opportunity to visit with her on the weekend at the Veterans Hospital, where Mrs. Ellis, a former neighbour, was celebrating her 100^th birthday, Mr. Speaker. I just want the members to pause for a second and think about the changes Mrs. Ellis would have seen in things like transportation, communication, and the role of women in society.

She has seen a lot of life, and I would say there's a whole lot more left in her.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Preston-Dartmouth.

[9:45 a.m.]

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THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Preston-Dartmouth.

Skier, Donald - Pastor: Death of - Tribute

HON. KEITH COLWELL « » : I would like to posthumously recognize Reverend Donald Skier who had a long and distinguished career in the church serving as pastor in East Preston United Baptist Church, St. Thomas United Baptist Church, and the Cherry Brook United Baptist Church. He baptized 110 people at one time in the Partridge River, East Preston.

He taught many students during his teaching career in Nelson Whynder, Sir Robert Borden Junior High, and Bell Park Academic Centre schools. He was greatly respected by his many students for his encouragement and academic excellence.

He was educated at Bloomfield Elementary and Queen Elizabeth High School as well as Acadia and Dalhousie Universities, and was awarded an honorary doctorate from Acadia University.

He was, in addition to his work in the church and education, an unwavering advocate for human rights, which was recognized by a Certificate of Merit from the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission. He was named Newsmaker of the Week by the Chronicle Herald newspaper and received a Distinguished Service Award from the Canadian Red Cross Society.

I would like to recognize Reverend Donald Skier for his faithful service to the Preston communities and advocacy for human rights.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Kings North.

JOHN LOHR « » : I beg leave to make an introduction.

THE SPEAKER « » : Permission granted.

JOHN LOHR « » : In the East Gallery we have five members of the Nova Scotia Healthcare Crisis Facebook group which now has 9,400 members, and I'd ask them to stand as I say their names. We have Kathy Holmes, Scott Brown, Janie Andrews, and Paula Minnikin. Finally, the creator of the group, Leslie Tilley, who is one of 18,000 Annapolis Valley residents who lost their doctor last June 2019 and is really the founder of the group. Thank you all. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Sackville-Cobequid.

Sackville HS Students: Hungry Bowls Fundraiser - Thanks

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STEVE CRAIG « » : I rise today to congratulate and thank the students of Sackville High School in Lower Sackville.

On March 5, 2020, the students hosted Hungry Bowls, a fundraising event in support of Feed Nova Scotia. Students prepared a variety of gourmet soups and chili, along with biscuits and dessert, for their guests to enjoy. For weeks prior to this event, the students worked very hard to make one-of-a-kind, handmade pottery bowls. Their guests chose a bowl, which their soup or chili was served in, and at the end of the evening took the bowls home with them. My wife and I have two of those beautiful bowls.

I would like to ask all members of the House of Assembly to join me in congratulating the Sackville High School students for sharing their artistry and culinary skills at their sold-out Hungry Bowls event, and as a result, making a donation of $775 to Feed Nova Scotia.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham.

No-cost Tax Serv.: Com. Serv. - Thanks

LISA ROBERTS « » : Tax season is here, and I would like to acknowledge hundreds of local volunteers offering no-cost income tax services.

Each year, the Canada Revenue Agency partners with community organizations and volunteers to offer free income tax services to qualifying low-income individuals through the Community Volunteer Income Tax Program.

Jason Crawley, a constituent of Halifax Needham, is among these many volunteers. Jason has offered no-cost income tax services for 10 years to an average of 700 low-income individuals each year. His wife, Sharalene Crawley, volunteers as secretary to manage the large influx of clients.

His services are offered year-round. He supports his clients in filing taxes dating back a decade, and he also teaches people about how to file their own taxes. As someone with skills in this area, he does it as a labour of love in service to his community.

I want to thank the many volunteers, including Jason Crawley, for their efforts to make tax season less cumbersome for low-income community members.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Kings West.

Caelyn's Creations: Dedication to Hockey - Best Wishes

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HON. LEO GLAVINE « » : I'm pleased to speak about an outstanding 15-year-old constituent that I have known through those years.

Caelyn Parker excels in female hockey and also as a young businessperson. She loves to play hockey and was determined to find a way to play and pay her way at a highly competitive level.

Her business originated from a tree falling on her father's car, and she was struck with the idea of creating smoke heads from the wood.

Her business, called Caelyn's Creations, is often a hand-crafted gift for weddings and a variety of events. Her handicraft artwork has been sold throughout North America and beyond.

Caelyn is a defense player for the Station Six Fire hockey club, a midget AAA female team, where she went to nationals as an under-ager. Her goal in 2020 is to return to nationals and attend the Esso Cup in Saskatchewan.

Caelyn's hockey and business success has been supported by the Valley community and, above all, her parents, Heather and Shannon.

I ask all members of the Nova Scotia Legislature to join me in conveying best wishes as you follow your dreams.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth East.

MacDermott, Clare: New Cdn. Citizen - Congrats.

TIM HALMAN « » : Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Dartmouth East resident Clare MacDermott, a brand-new Canadian citizen. On January 15^th, I was honoured to attend her citizenship ceremony and speak with her and her family.

Clare moved to Halifax from Dublin, Ireland, seven and a half years ago to be with her husband, Dr. Jason Young. She knows that citizenship is not just something you have, but something you do. Clare shared her excitement that she can vote now and considers her new citizenship an honour and a privilege.

Mr. Speaker, I wish Clare all the best in her new beginning with Jason and their children, Ciaran and Roisin, and congratulations on her Canadian citizenship.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth North.

Pittman, Carla - Physician:

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100 Per Cent Fundraising Support - Thanks

SUSAN LEBLANC « » : Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Dr. Carla Pittman, a resident of Dartmouth North and doctor at the Dartmouth General Hospital. Dr. Pittman led a campaign that resulted in 100 per cent of full-time physicians at the Dartmouth General donating to the hospital foundation's fundraising campaign.

Dr. Pittman, a radiologist and co-chair of the foundation's Above and Beyond campaign, told the CBC's Carolyn Ray that at other hospitals across Canada, generally 18 per cent of physicians contribute to similar campaigns. At Dartmouth General, the 85 doctors - 100 per cent of them - have committed to contributing $660,000.

Upgrades to the hospital will include eight new operating rooms, allowing for 3,500 more surgeries per year, with two operating rooms dedicated to orthopaedic surgeries specifically. It's been wonderful to watch the progress of these much-needed updates and to be present for the opening of the new Neville J. Gilfoy Wing.

Mr. Speaker, I'm very grateful to the many Nova Scotians who work to provide Nova Scotians with lifesaving, quality health care. Today I ask all members of this House to join me in expressing our gratitude to Dr. Pittman and all the doctors at the Dartmouth General for going above and beyond.

THE SPEAKER « » : I'd just like to ask everybody to be respectful of your colleagues, please, and keep the chatter down, if you don't mind.

The honourable member for Guysborough-Eastern Shore-Tracadie.

Stirling, Marshall: Autism N.S. Fundraiser - Congrats.

HON. LLOYD HINES « » : Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a remarkable young constituent and his fundraising efforts for Autism Nova Scotia. In Spring last year, then 8-year-old Marshall Stirling of Boylston, Guysborough County, who is on the autism spectrum, published his first novel, The Novel of the Planets. Marshall's mom reached out to Bounty Print of Antigonish, who were more than happy to support this venture.

The book is a manifestation of his vivid imagination and, at that time, an obsession with the solar system, creating characters and graphics all on his own. Since first releasing the book for sale at their family store in Boylston, Marshall has received local, provincial, and national media coverage. With the demand, a second printing was needed. In total, Marshall sold 238 books that have reached around the globe - Germany, Switzerland, the U.K., the U.S., Argentina, Colombia - and across Canada.

Between sales and an additional donation, Marshall was able to send a gift of $2,500 to Autism Nova Scotia last month. Marshall, now 9-years-old and a fourth grader at Chedabucto Education Centre, has moved on from author to filmmaker, working on his latest stop-motion animation series, which he hopes to create as a YouTube channel if his mom will permit him.

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Please join me in congratulating Marshall on his amazing accomplishment.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Pictou Centre.

Wilson, John: Passion for Skilled Trades - Recog.

HON. PAT DUNN « » : Mr. Speaker, Nova Scotia is facing a skilled trades shortage. Over the next decade, we'll face the challenge of the retirement of more than 8,000 workers, or 28 per cent of the current labour force. The expectation of experts in the industry, based on the historical trends, believe the province's construction industry is expected to entice only an estimated 5,000 younger trade workers to fill the vacancies.

John Wilson from New Glasgow, a well-known skilled tradesperson in the plumbing business, is the first to admit he is concerned. Wilson is in his fourth decade in his unique trade and he has often stated that it takes years to develop skilled tradespeople, even after participating in an apprenticeship program. Over the decades, Wilson has been the beneficiary of, if you love your work and you're very good at it, the demand for your skills will be huge.

Often on a construction site, he'll be dealing with multiple trades at the same time. Communication and patience come into play; one worker's trade alters another. You are always thinking ten steps ahead to make sure the project will run smoothly. John Wilson has certainly brought his skills and passion to his work and the results speak for themselves.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Lunenburg.

Amelia's Farm Gate Eggs: From Happy Chickens - Recog.

SUZANNE LOHNES-CROFT « » : Mr. Speaker, March 21^st marks World Down Syndrome Day. I wish to recognize my neighbour, friend and egg lady, Amelia Ekings.

Amelia was born with Down syndrome and moved to Mahone Bay from England with her family, where she attended and blossomed at Bayview School where I worked and was the Home and School president. She is a graduate of Parkview Education Centre, Verge House, and now attends the Achieve program at NSCC Lunenburg campus.

Out of school, Amelia is supported by her father Mark, her mother Debbie, and brother Adam for her social enterprise, Amelia's Farm Gate Eggs - Healthy eggs from Happy Chickens. I credit much of my family's good health from eating her product.

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When not going to school or working at her social enterprise, Amelia may be found volunteering at the Mahone Nursing Home or the Mahone Bay Legion breakfast.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that members of this House of Assembly join me in recognizing Amelia on World Down Syndrome Day.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley.

Camp Kidston/Atlantic Gold:

The Joy of Camping - Commend

LARRY HARRISON « » : Mr. Speaker, Camp Kidston and St. Barbara's Atlantic Gold have been neighbours on the Moose River Road in Middle Musquodoboit for some time.

Last October, these neighbours chose to form a larger partnership. Atlantic Gold has agreed to support Camp Kidston with a $25,000 donation for its 2020 season. The two will further expand their relationship to include the creation of an environmental educational program, a trail network, and additional camping opportunities for those in need in the years ahead.

I wish to commend Camp Kidston and St. Barbara's Atlantic Gold on being such good neighbours and for partnering to provide children from across the province and Atlantic Canada with a positive and enjoyable camp experience.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Armdale.

Intl. Women's Day: Celebrating Daughters - Recog.

LENA METLEGE DIAB « » : Mr. Speaker, as we celebrated International Women's Day on March 8^th, I rise to recognize and celebrate my three brilliant daughters.

Marena, a full-time university science student and a teaching assistant, is a talented artist and baker whose drawings and birthday cakes are amazing. She always makes time to volunteer for community organizations.

Monica, a graduate with her B.Sc. in Chemistry, Environmental Engineering, a Sexton Scholar and an Academic All Canadian currently doing her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering conducting research in fire whirls. She's an athlete, coach, and a mentor, and on Monday her Premier Women's AAA soccer team was named Indoor Champions for 2020.

Stephanie, who has a mind for business, is a Commerce and MPA graduate, was offered a federal position in Ottawa upon graduation but would not leave her home of Nova Scotia. Today she's a financial advisor, has two beautiful children and a third on the way, whom I can't wait to meet.

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I want to pay tribute to them, along with their brother. They are my greatest fans and supporters, and I want them to know how proud I am of them.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Queens-Shelburne.

Santas for Seniors: Brightening Lives at Xmas - Thanks

KIM MASLAND « » : This past Christmas season, a group of Queens County women launched and facilitated a remarkable program called Santas for Seniors.

Kendra Shot, Susan Bristol, and Cindy MacLeod saw this as an opportunity to brighten the lives of seniors during the holiday season. DVL Publishing owner Chessity Allison Alison generously offered her business to serve as a donation drop-off location. Santas for Seniors joins senior care partners with local non-profit and community organizations to identify seniors who might not otherwise receive gifts at Christmas. In just 18 days, 197 seniors were adopted by caring community members throughout Queens.

Mr. Speaker, I take this opportunity to recognize and thank these incredibly kind- hearted ladies who gave so generously of themselves and their time to ensure that Christmas was made special for so many in need.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Hammonds Plains-Lucasville.

C.P. Allen Cheetahs: Victory - Congrats.

BEN JESSOME « » : Mr. Speaker, I'd like to recognize Matt Burden, Tyler Cook, Aaron McWilliams, Ciarin Murphy, Ben Bryant, Luke MacLean, Logan Callaghan, Joshua Drysdale, Zach Wilson, Brendan McQuad, Connor Stone, Patrick MacGillivray, Devon Saberi, Aidan Foster, Riley Tulloch, Hudson McGrath, Jack Humphrey, Tyler Thomas, Zach Nauss, and Pierre-Oliver Couture.

This weekend in Westville, the CP Allen Cheetahs became the Division No. 1 boy's hockey champions for the third year straight, defeating the Riverview Redmen 3-2.

[10:00 a.m.]

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ORDERS OF THE DAY

ORAL QUESTIONS PUT BY MEMBERS TO MINISTERS

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition.

PREM.: UNEMPLOYMENT NOS. - CONCERN

TIM HOUSTON « » : Mr. Speaker, the most recent jobs report for February shows that the unemployment rate in Nova Scotia rose to 7.8 per cent, that's 0.4 per cent higher than January and a full 1.4 per cent higher than February just last year. My question for: Is the Premier at all concerned with the latest unemployment numbers?

THE PREMIER « » : Mr. Speaker, I thank the honourable member for the question. The reality of it is there was a day when Nova Scotians could only dream of an unemployment rate of 7.8 per cent. We had an extraordinary one at 7.4 per cent, we've now actually had more people join the workforce. There are 3,000 more Nova Scotians working today under that stat than there were under the 7.4 per cent. We have actually grown the pool of employed in the province and we've heard from the private sector, they want to make sure that we continue to diversify but at the same time expand the pool of potential employees.

TIM HOUSTON « » : Mr. Speaker, there is a reality and the reality is that rural Nova Scotia is being particularly hard hit. Agriculture employment is down 11.9 per cent, year-over-year. The natural resources sector, which includes forestry, fishing, mining, and other industries, has seen a year-over-year decline of 14.3 per cent. These are just year-over-year numbers. That's 2,500 jobs lost in agriculture and the natural resources sector in just the last 12 months. The Premier can have his talking points, but the reality is we're losing jobs in those sectors. My question for the Premier is, what is the plan to revive the rural economy?

THE PREMIER « » : Mr. Speaker, the rural economy is thriving. The honourable member is ignoring the very fact that the sectors he's referring to have invested in innovation. They are continuing to drive economic opportunities in many of our rural communities. It wasn't all that long ago many second-generation farmers didn't see an opportunity to take over their farms. That's happening today; we're seeing a resurgence of young people wanting to be in the traditional sectors because we're driving innovation, providing them with new opportunities to diversify our economy in rural Nova Scotia.

The honourable member has stood in his place many times talking about immigration, saying it is only happening in HRM. Ten of our 18 counties have grown in population. There was a time when our province could only think about that. The population of Cape Breton Island has increased after decades of decline. We're continuing to invest in Nova Scotia in traditional sectors but also in new opportunities for young people.

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TIM HOUSTON « » : Mr. Speaker, I will say Dingwall is doing an incredible job in Cape Breton. Thank goodness. Western Nova Scotia now has an 8 per cent unemployment rate, eastern Nova Scotia has an unemployment rate of 13.1 per cent. When you layer on the wealth starvation from the lowest median take-home pay in the country, I think there's only one person who would say rural Nova Scotia is thriving and that's the Premier, who would do well to leave One Government Place once in a while and see what's happening.

This is why we say that the bottom-line economic numbers in this province are bad and no amount of polish from the Premier can put the shine back on. Will the Premier acknowledge that rural Nova Scotia is not thriving and that Nova Scotians continue to struggle to get ahead?

THE PREMIER « » : Mr. Speaker, constantly in this House I hear, "yeah, but." The population is at an all-time high - yeah, but. More young people are choosing to live in Nova Scotia - yeah, but. Unemployment is at an all-time low - yeah, but. We're seeing record investments in the private sector - yeah, but.

The reality of it is the honourable member should have more faith in Nova Scotians. I live in rural Nova Scotia, I invest in rural Nova Scotia, I continue to drive opportunities in rural Nova Scotia and unlike the honourable member, I'm optimistic about every corner of this province and so are Nova Scotians.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham.

PREM.: AQUACULTURE DEV. - OPPOSITION

LISA ROBERTS « » : Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. In Budget Estimates this session, when asked about the many coastal municipalities that have adopted resolutions explicitly denying social licence to the expansion of aquaculture development along their coast, the minister responsible dismissed those resolutions as irrelevant and not an indication of a lack of public trust.

Municipal government is the most direct form of democracy available to people in Nova Scotia. Does the Premier agree that the resolutions opposing expansion of open-pen fin fish aquaculture from Mahone Bay, Digby and Queens are irrelevant?

THE PREMIER « » : Mr. Speaker, they are one part of the broad consultation that will take place when it comes to aquaculture. We've heard from communities across the province. The members for Lunenburg and Lunenburg West have continued to express the views of the people in and around the Mahone Bay area. That information has come to the government. It will be part of the overall view.

There are certainly parts of our province where aquaculture will not be a part of the economic footprint of that region, but there are parts of our province where aquaculture will be an important economic part of that footprint. We will work with all of our stakeholders.

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LISA ROBERTS « » : A freedom of information request from our office shows that the government does not track implementation of the recommendations from the final report of the Independent Aquaculture Regulatory Review, also known as the Doelle-Lahey report. The principle of social licence was a key pillar of the report, but this government has cherry-picked from its findings and ignored many of the key recommendations.

Mr. Speaker, has the Premier authorized the abandonment of the implementation of the Doelle-Lahey report?

THE PREMIER « » : No.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition.

PREM.: PC POLICY STATEMENTS - RECONCILE

TIM HOUSTON « » : Over the last few years, Statistics Canada was pointing out that child poverty was increasing in this province and the Premier was saying, yeah, but. Yeah, but. Now he's saying, well, there's a problem with that. Now our unemployment rate is going up and the Premier's saying, yeah, but somebody please listen to all the stuff that makes me believe it's not happening.

Last week the Premier poked a little fun at a PC Party policy to expand health care from home. He scoffed at the idea that more and more people should have the ability to phone a doctor. Last week, around the same time that the Premier was making fun of that policy, the Chief Medical Officer for the province was saying that people should call 911 to find out the next steps if they're worried about the coronavirus. I can table that. (Interruption) 811. It will be 911 at the rate we're on, but it's 811 right now, Mr. Speaker.

The Premier was making fun of our policy at the same time Dr. Strang was saying that's a good idea. I want to have the Premier reconcile those two statements.

THE PREMIER « » : First of all, Mr. Speaker, I don't want anyone to be confused. He said to call 811, not 911.

If we talk to Dr. Strang, somehow I don't think he would equate accessing primary care and dealing with the coronavirus as the same. This is an issue of trying to keep this virus, if it ever comes to Nova Scotia, contained. The reality is that we don't want those Nova Scotians who may have come in contact with this virus going into our health care facilities. That's exactly what he said.

I don't think anyone believes it's a good idea to sit at home and wait for a call from a doctor to talk about primary care. That's what the honourable member was talking about. I'm really glad he's listening to the responses I've had because then maybe we'll get some public policy out of him.

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TIM HOUSTON « » : In fact, that's not at all what I was suggesting. Mr. Speaker, you yourself ruled just yesterday that the Premier had to apologize for things he said in this House. Maybe that's along the same vein again, because that's a complete misrepresentation of what we said.

The reality is that Dr. Strang talked about expanding the 811 service in the need of this situation, but there are lots of reasons to expand this. We could easily have a doctor quarantine. Doctors could maybe be phoning someone.

Does the Premier think that if a doctor happens to be quarantined, it's silly for them to call their patients? Is that really what the Premier's saying?

THE PREMIER « » : This is a huge stretch in Question Period. We've now tabled our fifth balanced budget with investments in young people across the province. We've continued to make investments in economic development. We continue to work. We've just announced 70 new nursing seats in the province, and the question I get from the Leader of the Opposition is some make-believe question that he has creating fear within the province.

This virus is not here. I want to thank Dr. Strang and all those who have continued to work hard to ensure that all the steps were in place if this virus arrives and for putting in protocols to protect our health care workers.

That's what Nova Scotians need to know: that we're continuing to prepare and we're continuing to be ready if this virus arrives in this province. We're continuing to ensure that not only do we protect the health of our citizens but the health of the workers who are providing care to us.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition.

PREM.: BALANCED BUDGET - SAFETY

TIM HOUSTON « » : Mr. Speaker, we haven't even made it to the start of the new fiscal year and that budget that the Premier's talking about is already looking a little shaky. Headwinds from the shutdown of Northern Pulp and the sputtering attempts to support the forestry sector move forward are threatening the revenue side. We know that. The economists confirmed that for us. The railroad blockade was a near miss. While there were layoffs for sure and certain Nova Scotians impacted, most Nova Scotian companies got by with only small setbacks.

The job numbers have turned in the wrong direction. We're facing a potential global economic upheaval in the face of the coronavirus. My question for the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board: How safe is this year's balanced budget?

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THE PREMIER « » : Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board and staff at the Department of Finance and Treasury Board continue to look at not only the trends that are happening internally but global trends. The honourable member referenced Northern Pulp, that is actually a part of putting together our budget. We'll continue to work with not only those inside of Nova Scotia but those outside. I'm very pleased today, the first planeload of lobster is on its way to China. It is a positive thing to continue to see that market open back up for our traditional sectors.

The argument the honourable member is making here is the argument he made last year. He was wrong then and he's going to be wrong again this year.

TIM HOUSTON « » : We'll see, Mr. Speaker, we will see.

The Minister of Finance and Treasury Board herself warned yesterday that the government may turn their gaze to programs that aren't fully utilized. I'd like to ask the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board: Which programs will this government use their majority to pass through today or tomorrow or whenever it comes, which programs will this government use their majority to push that they don't actually intend to use?

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : Mr. Speaker, I believe the member opposite probably read allNovaScotia because I did an interview yesterday. I spoke about the global trends that are having an impact, could have an impact, and our economists at the Department of Finance and Treasury Board and myself as the minister are monitoring those very closely. If there are any changes within our budget it will come in the forecast when we update.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Argyle-Barrington.

H&W - COVID-19: HEALTH CARE WORKERS - PLANS

COLTON LEBLANC « » : Mr. Speaker, we're fortunate that today there have been no cases of COVID-19 here at home, but the province's Chief Medical Officer said last week that it is probable there will be positive cases. In other jurisdictions like British Columbia and Washington State health care workers have tested positive for the virus. Given the high probability of contact with infected people, it is very possible some health care workers in Nova Scotia will unfortunately contract COVID-19.

My question for the Minister of Health and Wellness: What contingency plans are in place to ensure health care facilities are staffed appropriately if health care workers themselves contract COVID-19?

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for the question, which is certainly topical for many Nova Scotians in our communities but also the health care workers on the front lines.

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The status of the situation is that Public Health officials have been leading the preparations. They've guided their preparations based upon planning that was put in place post-H1N1 and SARS that really put us provincially, and indeed nationally, with our sister provinces and territories, and the federal government, at an extended amount of collaboration for this planning and preparation. We follow those clinical guidelines and the advice of Public Health officials to be prepared both for the general public and for our health care workers on the front line.

COLTON LEBLANC « » : Mr. Speaker, our province is plagued with emergency room closures due to lack of physicians and nurses, and it's becoming part of some regions' daily radio weather reports. COVID-19 has the potential to make the situation much worse. If we have fewer doctors and nurses, difficult decisions will have to be made about where those resources are deployed.

Will the minister inform the House which facilities will take priority in the event that doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals are quarantined because of COVID-19?

RANDY DELOREY « » : Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite. Again, I want to be clear, there are no cases in Nova Scotia. All of the tests have come back negative thus far. That said, certainly seeing the global spread, it is prudent for us as a province to be preparing for the eventual case that does show up in our province. That is the situation we are in presently.

We continue to prepare. As the spread globally increases, we also increase the threshold or the standard by which testing is being pursued, which means we're increasing the number of opportunities. That includes moving some of that testing outside of emergency departments, which was our starting point, to other locations to address the very concerns the member has raised.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth South.

PREM. - WOMEN IN THE BOARDROOM: MINIMAL TARGETS - NOT MET

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : My question is for the Premier. Research shows that companies run by a diverse board of directors, including those with at least 30 per cent women directors, deliver better results for shareholders. However, less than 20 per cent of the companies that have received government investment through the Crown corporation Innovacorp have any women on their boards, and zero meet the minimum industry standard of 30 per cent women directors.

[10:15 a.m.]

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Will the Premier explain why his government has exclusively invested in companies that fail to meet even these minimal targets for the participation of women in the boardroom.

THE PREMIER « » : I want to thank the honourable member for this really important question. I'm proud of the work that we have been doing inside of government. She would know and recognize that we now finally have gender parity on the provincial Family Court benches in this province. Not only gender - it's the most diverse bench this province has ever had. When we came into power, the ABCs, which her Party actually had an opportunity to correct, had 23 per cent women. Now over 40 per cent of our appointments are women because we made a direct effort.

I believe she's referencing an article that was talking about Innovacorp, Mr. Speaker. In some cases, there are no boards. Innovacorp is an investor in a particular entrepreneur or if there is a board, Innovacorp is one of many investors that gets to appoint one board member as every other investor gets to appoint board members. She would know Innovacorp is an arm's-length body from the province.

We'll continue to make the improvements that ensure that our daughters see themselves in boardrooms. On the boards that we have direct access to, Mr. Speaker, we're doing just that.

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : We are talking here about the boardroom, not the bench. With respect, putting women on ABCs is one thing - breaking the glass ceiling is what we're talking about here. In a 2018 meeting with the Maritime chapter of the Institute of Corporate Directors, the Premier was informed of how staggeringly few women are on the boards of companies in which the government holds equity. He ardently assured the chapter that he would take action to correct this issue in 2018.

What concrete measures has the Premier taken since that time to increase the number of investments in companies that meet the standard of 30 per cent women directors?

THE PREMIER « » : First of all, I completely disagree with the honourable member. I believe it's important that my daughter and women across this province see themselves on the Family Court bench in the province. When her Party had an opportunity, they appointed eight men, Mr. Speaker - eight men - to the provincial Family Court bench. I believe it is important that our daughters and women in this province see themselves reflected on that bench and that minorities see themselves reflected on that bench.

The honourable member is raising an important question when it comes to the private sector. We are one of a number of investors in many of the Innovacorp investments. We potentially get an opportunity to appoint one board member as every other investor does. Again, Mr. Speaker, they're investing in ideas that are creating jobs and creating economic opportunities in our province.

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We will continue to ensure that the boards that we have direct appointment to reflect the demographics of our province. We will continue to work with the private sector to make investments, drive job opportunities, drive job creation, and drive investments not only for our sons but for our daughters.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage.

H&W - COVID-19: LONG-TERM CARE RESIDENTS - SAFEGUARDS

BARBARA ADAMS « » : Mr. Speaker, there are media reports that there have been 16 deaths related to COVID-19 in a single nursing home in Washington State. Officials suspect a single member of the staff at the home may have been the source of the infection. Last week, British Columbia, where my son lives, reported an outbreak that was declared at a long-term care facility in North Vancouver. These cases are linked to a health care worker at the facility.

My question to the Minister of Health and Wellness is: How many health care workers have been tested in Nova Scotia? What safeguards are currently already in place to prevent health care workers from inadvertently exposing long-term care residents and other staff to COVID-19?

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : I thank the member for this very important and timely question. The fact is, we continue to follow the protocols that are being brought forward to us by Public Health officials, who are the clinical experts in the area of managing situations like this.

That work that our Public Health officials in Nova Scotia do is in collaboration with Public Health officials from across the country. We continue to follow their advice in terms of testing and reporting standards. As the situation evolves globally, nationally and here in the province, we continue, as the public knows, to adjust our approaches in the province. We communicate that to Nova Scotians as those changes occur.

BARBARA ADAMS « » : I thank the minister for his answer. As a health professional, I received a copy of a special bulletin from the Office of the Chief Medical Officer advising that, as per standard of care, individuals presenting with respiratory symptoms should don a surgical or procedural mask. I'll table that document.

The very risk of exposing elderly people to disease in long-term care is very concerning. Seniors are more likely to already have a serious disease, particularly those with chronic illness. Yesterday these protocols were put in place, but I know that the nursing home where I go has no masks.

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My question to the Minister of Health and Wellness is: Will the minister commit to ensuring that all health care workers in Nova Scotia have the recommended protection that they need to be safe and that they are given increased opportunities for screening before going to work in long-term care facilities?

RANDY DELOREY « » : I want to assure members of the Legislature, and indeed all Nova Scotians, that the work that started from the get-go, when the world became aware of this new virus in our midst, was that we established leads within our Public Health office. That collaborative effort nationally, regionally, and here in the province, and indeed across the world - they've all come together to share the information and establish the protocols to be put in place.

I'll continue to work with our clinical Public Health officials to ensure that we have the appropriate standards in place. That, of course, includes ensuring that we have the appropriate equipment, as well.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Kings North.

AGRIC. - TEMP. FOREIGN WORKERS: COVID-19 - ACCESS CONCERNS

JOHN LOHR « » : Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Agriculture. Nova Scotia businesses depend on the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to address labour market shortages. These jobs could be in tourism, agriculture, fisheries and hospitality, to name a few. Many companies, especially those located in rural communities, have tremendous difficulty in finding employees.

It's straightforward: if a business has no workers it has no products to sell, no services, and our economy takes a hit. With all the travel restrictions and isolations and quarantines, I'm concerned that access to temporary foreign workers might not be as available as in the past.

My question, Mr. Speaker, through you for the minister is: Has the minister been in contact with federal representatives to determine if Nova Scotia companies will be able to access the Temporary Foreign Worker Program in light of COVID-19 concerns?

HON. KEITH COLWELL « » : Yes.

JOHN LOHR « » : Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that typically brief answer.

Given the costs and complexities involved, the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program is not something Nova Scotia farmers take lightly. It's a program intended as a last resort, a short-term solution so farms can continue to grow. Many companies in agriculture rely on these workers because of the seasonal nature of the work and how hard the work is.

[Page 6114]

If there's a shortage of these workers, a crop could be left in the ground. My question for the minister is: Has the minister been in contact with the potentially affected farmers to make sure they have the proper number of employees to ensure their product can get to market?

KEITH COLWELL « » : It's very important, temporary foreign workers, to the agricultural economy in Nova Scotia. We bring in several thousand a year. It's very important.

The Leader of the Official Opposition said there's higher unemployment in the agriculture industry. It's the farthest thing from the truth in the whole province.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Sydney River-Mira-Louisbourg.

LAE - INTL. STUDENTS: COVID-19 - TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS

BRIAN COMER « » : Mr. Speaker, Nova Scotia has become a destination of choice for international students. Many of our post-secondary institutions have found great success attracting students from around the world.

Cape Breton University, for example, has seen incredible growth from international students, and it's reshaping the commercial and cultural landscape in Sydney.

As we are learning, however, the far-reaching potential impacts of COVID-19 are raising questions that hadn't been previously considered. Travel restrictions and flight cancellations may strand many of our international students here beyond the end of the school year.

My question to the Minister of Labour and Advanced Education: Have any plans been made to accommodate our thousands of international students should they be forced to stay in Nova Scotia beyond this academic year?

HON. LABI KOUSOULIS » : As we all know, there are no COVID-19 cases here in Nova Scotia at this point. The end of the school year is still months away, so I think it would be driving panic into students if we started talking about them not being able to go home at the end of the school year. At this point, we're not there.

BRIAN COMER « » : I know, typically, university years do end in April, so I think that is quite close.

Part of the benefits of our growth of international students is the additional tuition revenue they bring to our universities; this additional revenue has helped many Nova Scotian universities expand. This additional revenue also fights against upward pressure in tuition for Nova Scotia students, helping to keep university an expensive but attainable goal for many. These universities could find themselves in unexpected, difficult situations if these tuition streams are interrupted.

[Page 6115]

My question for the minister: Is he aware of any application statistics for international students, and has there been any weakening in demand in Nova Scotia?

LABI KOUSOULIS « » : I actually did not pick up the latter end of that question - the last two sentences. Could the member repeat it? His voice was quite low. Thank you.

BRIAN COMER « » : Is the minister aware of any application statistics for international students and has there been any weakening in demand?

LABI KOUSOULIS « » : No.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Kings North.

TIR - RIDE-HAILING ANNOUNCE.: CANCELLATION - REASON

JOHN LOHR « » : My question is to the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal.

Nova Scotians have been waiting for our province to embrace some of the amenities enjoyed by other Canadians and people around the world - and I'm speaking specifically of ride-hailing services. These services are proven to be a complementary service to traditional taxis in many cities around the world. If done properly, ride-sharing services can provide employment opportunities in all parts of our province and help to better serve those who are underserviced by current offerings.

My question for the minister is: There was a ride-hailing announcement set for February 19^th, why was it cancelled?

HON. LLOYD HINES « » : We're in constant contact with the major ride-hailing companies. We've met with both Uber and Lyft and are working through the process to determine just what our responsibilities are in a circumstance. In an initial review - most of the responsibility rests with the municipalities.

JOHN LOHR « » : There are many areas, particularly in suburban Halifax, where the current taxi offerings aren't serving the potential customers. It doesn't make economic sense for the taxis to operate there, and people don't bother to call because they've been dissatisfied with the service. Ride-hail could help.

In rural Nova Scotia, there are many communities without public transportation networks. A few ride-hail drivers could fill an important gap and provide a handful of jobs. It's simple supply and demand.

[Page 6116]

My question for the minister is, again: Why did he cancel the announcement on the 19^th and can he tell us when will we see this service?

LLOYD HINES « » : As I'm sure the House can appreciate, scheduling is always an issue when we try to get people together for activities. There is lots of runway ahead of us in terms of analyzing and making sure that the decisions that are made are in the best interest of Nova Scotians, all Nova Scotians, and to make sure that we are operating in a safe manner.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth North.

H&W: AMBULANCE COSTS - FAIRNESS

SUSAN LEBLANC « » : My question is for the Premier. While health care is a human right, ambulance service is not treated that way. Most Nova Scotians are charged $142 for the potentially life-saving transportation to the nearest health care services, while people without a provincial health card are charged $711 and non-Canadians or recent immigrants are charged over $1,000.

Does the Premier think that it is okay that people should have to pay for their life-saving ambulance services?

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : The ambulance services that are provided in the province are provided at a significant discount - that is, the Province covers the majority of the costs.

I hope all members of the Legislature are aware that there are programs to respond to low-income Nova Scotians. If they are unable to pay, there are proper protocols. If any of the members in the Legislature are unaware of how to engage EHS to request consideration of one's ability to pay those costs, if they come out, please let me know in my office. I will make sure you get the correct information to share with your constituents.

[10:30 a.m.]

SUSAN LEBLANC « » : Mr. Speaker, I do think that many Nova Scotians know about those programs. However, despite those programs, a cross-country survey commissioned by the CBC concluded that over one in five Maritimers say they avoid calling ambulances because of the cost, the upfront cost.

Does the Premier or the Minister of Health and Wellness believe that access to life-saving ambulance services should be based on a person's income?

[Page 6117]

RANDY DELOREY « » : I want to clarify, and I hope for all Nova Scotians there is no upfront cost. The fact is, when you call 911 an ambulance will respond, will come, and will bring you to the appropriate facility to provide the care that you need.

Once that occurs, the Province covers the majority of costs. If there are issues with paying for the portion that is invoiced, there is a protocol and a process in place to apply to have those fees waived.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Pictou Centre.

LAE: SLOW WCB TIMELINES - ADDRESS

HON. PAT DUNN « » : Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Labour and Advanced Education.

In a 2019 audit, the Auditor General revealed that the Workers' Compensation Board suffered from weaknesses, such as not being timely and having inadequate complaint and privacy processes. Approximately 50 per cent of the time workers did not receive written claim decisions within 30 days, and half of the workers tested did not receive communications about the calculation of their benefits.

If the WCB can't get the simple things right, it's hard to have confidence that they will get the complicated things right. My question for the minister is: Has he addressed this problem of slow timelines in order to improve the way claims are handled for Nova Scotians?

HON. LABI KOUSOULIS « » : Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for the question; it gives us an opportunity to talk about the many changes WCB has undertaken in the last two years.

In the last two years the WCB has gone through a transformation and moved into the digital age. Prior to this, everything was being done quite manually through faxes, through hands touching, and moving from one person to another. Now all the applications come through digitally, not only for applications but for payments as well. This has improved productivity as well as response times quite well.

PAT DUNN « » : Certainly that is not what I've been experiencing in dealing with people with WCB cases, Mr. Speaker.

Almost half of the Auditor General's test showed that employers inappropriately receive sensitive, private medical information that was not claim-related. The 2019 Auditor General's Report also showed that the WCB should be focusing on quality assurance and staff development: 65 per cent of WCB employees tested had no record to show crisis prevention training was taken, and performance management processes were not always completed. Faith in your caseworker leads to faith in the process, and if caseworkers are not being properly trained, it is hard for workers to have faith in them.

[Page 6118]

I would like to ask the minister: Can the minister say if there has been an improvement in the number of WCB workers who have received training?

LABI KOUSOULIS « » : Most definitely. When the report came from the Auditor General, WCB and the Department of Labour and Advanced Education accepted the report. We've been working very closely together to have those exact improvements, and we have seen improvements along the way.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth East.

TIR - BRAEMAR OVERPASS SIDEWALK: SAFETY CONCERNS - ADDRESS

TIM HALMAN « » : Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal.

The Braemar overpass is a well-known and well-used roadway in Dartmouth. My office has fielded a number of calls over the past few weeks in regard to the sidewalk on that overpass, which is much narrower than a typical sidewalk.

The walkway is used by many runners on a daily basis, and nearby paddling clubs send their athletes running over this overpass as part of their training. Runners are so close to the road they are regularly in danger of being hit by an oncoming vehicle, and the guardrail on the other side doesn't appear high enough to meet safety concerns.

I would like to ask the minister: As the overpass is scheduled for resurfacing this year, can the minister commit to looking into adjusting this sidewalk and guardrail so Dartmouth residents can walk on the overpass without fear of being hit by a vehicle?

HON. LLOYD HINES « » : Mr. Speaker, as we've said many times in the House, safety is our utmost consideration. I'd be more than happy to take a look at the situation there and see if that can be improved.

TIM HALMAN « » : Certainly, the residents of Dartmouth East appreciate that. While pedestrians are dealing with issues on the sidewalk, drivers at the moment are hard-pressed to do their part to keep safe. Vehicles are dodging potholes left and right, so this overpass is starting to resemble a game of Mario Kart.

I understand that the Braemar overpass is scheduled for work this summer. My question is: Will the minister also commit to placing some cold patches on the Braemar overpass to get us through the Winter and Spring?

[Page 6119]

LLOYD HINES « » : We will take a look at that. It is very unusual circumstances to see potholes around, but we'll make a special effort to look at that overpass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cape Breton-Richmond.

H&W - PANDEMIC PLAN: AG RPT. RECOMMEND. - IMPLEMENT

ALANA PAON « » : Mr. Speaker, in 2007, the Province launched a pandemic plan aimed at reducing the amount of sickness and death during a potential flu pandemic. That plan acknowledged a pandemic event would stress the health system, the economy, and society in general, and we were urged to prepare at that time. In fact, in 2009, the Auditor General made 33 recommendations to the government, and that's when we were under our regional health authorities.

My question to the minister is: Has our government implemented those 33 recommendations from 2009, and how is that manifesting now that we have one central health authority as opposed to regional health authorities?

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : As I've previously noted, the pandemic planning that really was not well established, particularly back for the H1N1 and the SARS outbreaks over about a decade ago, has certainly informed the pandemic planning process that was established then, and with lessons learned, informed the preparation for what would be an inevitable instance, which we're going through right now.

I believe our public health officials and our partners throughout the health authorities, and other agencies across the province and across the country, are coming together, having regular engagements to make sure we're following the best protocols, based on the information that we have.

ALANA PAON « » : If I read between the lines there, I think I heard that we're not really actually prepared. I feel like there's potentially a train wreck coming our way. We're on the track looking at it, and we're not doing anything about it.

We hear there are no COVID-19 cases here in the province now. That does not mean there will not be cases forthcoming. I have one of the highest percentages of seniors in my constituency, and it's my responsibility to stand in this House and represent their concerns.

I would ask the minister again: Do we actually have a pandemic plan in place in this province, or is it that we're looking at the Canadian Armed Forces to come in, parachute in with a MASH unit, if something does occur? That's my question to the minister.

[Page 6120]

RANDY DELOREY « » : I would encourage the member to perhaps not read between the lines. I've stood in my place since the start of this session. We have had public updates from the Chief Medical Officer of Health to keep Nova Scotians informed, and that information is very clear. We have pandemic plans guiding the steps we're implementing.

As noted, we've been very public about this. As the member noted, we do not have any cases, but we've also been very public saying that, based upon global and national trends, we anticipate there will be cases here in Nova Scotia. That's why we continue to step up with the planning and actions we take within the province and are guided by that plan, which was already in place. That is guiding the steps that we take.

I assure the member opposite that we do have a plan in place. We are executing according to that plan, guided by our public health officials. I would encourage her not to read between the lines, to suggest especially in terms of creating fear for those very constituents she has referenced.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth East.

EECD - RUSHTON, SEVEN: I.P.P. CONCERNS - INVESTIGATE

TIM HALMAN « » : Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development. With the permission of Seven Rushton's parents, which I will table, I have concerns with the assistance that Seven is receiving with respect to his individual program plan.

Seven has been diagnosed with Down's syndrome. Until this year, he had a personal education assistant who assisted him in his learning, and he was developing well. However, this year things changed. He no longer has an individual educational assistant but a shared educational assistant, and his development has shown a sudden drop-off.

My question to the minister is: Will the minister commit to investigating this situation that Seven and his family find themselves in?

HON. ZACH CHURCHILL « » : Mr. Speaker, as the member would know, there actually has been a review conducted, or one is in the process of being conducted, in relation to this specific case, as there is with any case where a parent or student does not believe they're getting the supports they need in the education system.

We bring in the department of student services as well as the program-planning unit in the regions to look at the individual case and review the information and the feedback that comes from the parents and make a determination.

I will say that inclusive education is paramount to the agenda of this government. That's why we've invested $15 million a year and why we've hired close to 1,500 new staff people in the system: to help deal with these specific cases as they occur so that every single student has the best learning experience possible.

[Page 6121]

TIM HALMAN « » : Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the minister for committing to look into this situation. I know at the end of the day we are all united by our desire to set our students up for success and help them find those pathways to success.

I still hear some concerns from parents throughout the province with respect to accessing those supports. We all know that accountability and measuring the outcomes outlined for inclusive education are absolutely essential in education.

My question to the minister is: What commitments can the minister be willing to provide for students like Seven that they are not going to be left behind and that extra funding and resources are available?

ZACH CHURCHILL « » : Mr. Speaker, the commitment I'll make here in the House, and the commitment this government has, is to invest in them and their future. We have had unprecedented investments and increased funding in education. We have unprecedented hires in teaching and non-teaching supports for our students with the intention of improving learning outcomes for our students, making them feel safer at school, and ensuring that we're taking care of their mental health and well-being.

The feedback we're getting is overwhelmingly positive so far for the investments that we've made. I want to tell the parents and the student that the member referenced, as well as every other parent and student in our education system, that more is coming once this budget passes.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Victoria-The Lakes.

TIR - C.B. RAILWAY LINE: SUBSIDIES - REVIEW

KEITH BAIN « » : Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal. For 15 years the Province has paid a hefty subsidy to CBNS and then Genesee and Wyoming Railroad for its cost not to abandon the railway line. Residents along the line have complained that the maintenance is substandard or even non-existent. Last year the subsidy was $800,000 according to the Public Accounts.

My question for the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal is: Does the minister believe the Province is getting its money's worth with this subsidy?

HON. LLOYD HINES « » : Mr. Speaker, I'm very pleased to review the fact that yesterday we introduced a new piece of legislation through the House that is now ready for proclamation. It will assist the government in better supervising the existence of the short-line railways in the province.

[Page 6122]

KEITH BAIN « » : Mr. Speaker, in addition to the subsidy, the railway company also charges crossing or construction fees for Cape Bretoners who need to cross the old rail line to install electricity or phones in dwellings and other buildings. These fees, which can be as high as $15,000 or $20,000, prevent development in a region of our province that dearly needs it. I understand the subsidy to railways will be reviewed this year.

My question to the minister is: Will the minister include the removal of crossing or construction fees in his review of the subsidy agreement with the railroad company?

LLOYD HINES « » : I would like to reiterate just how important all our railways are to the province, particularly the short line railways. I'm very proud that our government has maintained the opportunity for the revitalization of the line from St. Peter's to Glace Bay in the event that some of the great work that's being done in CBRM with regard to port development may materialize. We will have a very vital outlet for that particular product should their hard work come to fruition.

[10:45 a.m.]

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cumberland North.

H&W - MENTAL ILLNESS: LACK OF SERVICES - ADDRESS

ELIZABETH SMITH-MCCROSSIN « » : Mr. Speaker, illegal drug use and mental illness is a major problem in Cumberland North. Mentally unstable citizens are not getting the help they require, and families are in distress. Our emergency department at Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre does not have access to psychiatrists on call nor acute care beds for our mentally ill patients. Sometimes when they do call other regional hospitals for their acute care beds, they're refused, and our patients are often being discharged back into the community - homeless, addicted, and at risk.

My question to the Minister of Health and Wellness is: When will the minister and his department hire more psychiatrists and increase services for the mentally ill in Cumberland North?

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : I do appreciate the member bringing this question forward. In fact, in some of my previous visits to the region, in Amherst, I have had the privilege of meeting with the organization within the community made up of health care professionals, justice officials, volunteers from within the community and social workers. All who have been very active in the areas, particularly associated with addictions and addiction response within the community.

I had the privilege of meeting with them and hearing about the great work they have been doing. As part of our opioid action plan, we supported partnering them with other organizations that were more established within the province to help address some of those very concerns. We have been investing to support those very needs the member has raised.

[Page 6123]

ELIZABETH SMITH-MCCROSSIN « » : You may be investing, but it's not enough, and it's not effective.

Mentally unstable patients are being sent home without treatment. Sometimes they're in a psychosis, they're delusional, and they're being sent home back in the community without a place to live, without treatment, and families are having to deal with this and then support. They're calling my office looking for help.

My question to the Minister of Health and Wellness is: When will he improve access to specialists in mental health by hiring more psychiatrists and improving access to mental health services in Cumberland North.

RANDY DELOREY « » : This is a genuinely important topic within Cumberland North - within much of the province - Cape Breton another area, so the Northern Zone and Cape Breton in particular, where we know we have a shortage of psychiatrists. That's why, as part of the master agreement we have made significant increases in investments for our rural psychiatrists, to help with both the recruitment and the retention of those psychiatrists we have in place.

It's why in the last couple of years in my tenure here I have worked with our health authorities to ensure that they provide, in those regions that have more specialty services, to connect and support either through locum temporary placements and with telesupport with those clinicians, to support those professionals in other parts of the province. We take a number of initiatives and continue to invest to support those communities.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Northside-Westmount.

MURRAY RYAN « » : My question is to the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal. I have had multiple conversations with constituents about the potholes and most importantly about the visibility of lines on our highways.

Could the minister tell me: Now that we have settled on the colour of paint for Bar Harbor terminal, could he look at some better highway paints?

HON. LLOYD HINES « » : Mr. Speaker, the question of paint is an intriguing one right across North America . . . 

THE SPEAKER « » : Order, please. Glad to see we finished on a high note.

The honourable Government House Leader.

[Page 6124]

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that you do now leave the Chair and the House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole on Supply.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Queens-Shelburne.

KIM MASLAND « » : Mr. Speaker, I am happy to rise and speak. This is the third budget that has been presented by this government since I became the member for Queens-Shelburne. We have seen titles Stronger Services and Supports, Building on a Strong Foundation and, most recently, the 2020-21 budget entitled Better Together. Although I agree that working together is always the best approach, I am not completely convinced that this government understands the importance of working together.

We have witnessed time and time again from this government's unwillingness to listen, learn and work together for the betterment of those living in Nova Scotia. We have witnessed the heavy-handedness with our educators and education specialists in 2017, when they imposed a contract on the educators of this province, creating a massive disruption in our education system, one that never should have happened and has left a toxic relationship between our teachers and government. Even with the investment in inclusive education, which was extremely welcome, we are still hearing that many students are struggling to make it through the day and that classroom teachers find themselves filled with emotion because of the challenges they face on a daily basis.

We have witnessed the complex bureaucracy, the secrecy, since its inception - no public involvement, no published minutes, working in glass towers in Halifax - of the NSHA and their unwillingness to listen to those in the trenches, struggling to deliver health care in our province. For my constituents living in Shelburne County, I can assure you that they don't feel better together when they try to access the ER at Roseway Hospital and the doors are closed.

There has been a 60 per cent increase in ER closures across this province under this government. Actually, Mr. Speaker, they have tripled. For my constituents living in Queens County, I can assure you that they don't feel better together when pressure is being put on the health care professionals to meet the demands in the ER. It is overwhelming and exhausting and creating burnout of our doctors and nurses. While working a shift, ER doctors can see up to 50 patients a night, from all neighbouring communities. I'd be willing to bet that the number of patients that are being cared for through the ER doors at Queens General Hospital are very comparable to those in the neighbouring regional hospital.

In December, while being kept overnight in the ER, I witnessed first-hand the complete chaos they face. The ER waiting room was full, all examining rooms were full, and LifeFlight was on site. They literally were run off their feet. ER wait times at Queens General Hospital are nine to 12 hours long at times. Sadly, many rural Nova Scotians need to obtain their primary care in increasingly over-burdened emergency rooms simply because they don't have a doctor.

[Page 6125]

In 2013, the Premier of this province campaigned and promised every Nova Scotian would have a family doctor, but yet today we still have up to 100,000 people without a family doctor. In actual fact, Mr. Speaker, in the western region the wait-list grew by over 2 per cent, with 467 people adding their names to the list. There are 21,511 people on the Western Zone wait-list, meaning that 11 per cent of the population is without a family doctor, the highest rate in the province.

Too many times I'm hearing from seniors who say they are going to give up because they cannot bear to sit nine hours in an ER waiting room to get a prescription, or parents who need to take a day off work to sit with their sick child at the ER because of an ear infection. This is frustrating and it's a terrible struggle faced by thousands of Nova Scotians.

Platitudes and promises do not deliver the services needed by Nova Scotians, Mr. Speaker. We see a $5.3 million investment in this budget to enhance long-term care in the province and $1 million to help with repairs and maintenance. Well, with the years of chronic underfunding of nursing homes, I can assure you that with the repairs needed at homes in my constituency such as Roseway Manor, Queens Manor, Hillsview Acres, and North Queens Nursing Home, it would eat that budget up pretty quickly.

Long-term care facilities are seriously aging in my constituency. I have toured Roseway Manor. Each time I leave the doors my heart is heavy, knowing that the staff have to work to deliver exceptional care and provide varied programming but the building is not providing the residents with the environment they deserve. There are uneven hallways, which make it difficult for residents to walk without falling; buckets in the hallways from leaking pipes; black mould; 66 residents sharing two showers and a single bathtub. I could go on for days about the deficiencies at this manor.

In 2014, the then-Health and Wellness Minister stated the Liberal government would honour that commitment of the previous government and committed to beginning replacement for 2015. We're still waiting, Mr. Speaker. Queens Manor was built in 1981 and was designed to provide residents and care to primarily Level 1 residents. Now with the investment in home care, when the majority of residents reach the manor they require Level 2 nursing care - and about 85 per cent are confined to wheelchairs.

Presently the manor has 61 Level 2 residents. Currently, residential rooms at Queens Manor do not meet the long-term care facility requirements for square footage for both single and double occupancy bedrooms, which presents barriers to optimal residents' mental health, independence, space for visitation and, in case of double occupancy where the manor has a high percentage, disease control.

Hillsview Acres, which was built in the late 1800s, is a two-storey residential care facility providing Level 1 care to 29 residents. A replacement was promised in 2013. We're still waiting, Mr. Speaker.

[Page 6126]

This building fails dismally to meet the needs of the residents. Our long-term care facilities are chronically understaffed. Long-term care facilities in my constituency undeniably need more RNs and CCAs. Most have permanent advertisements looking to hire all the time.

Although I was pleased to learn in July that the government was relaunching the bursary program for continuing care assistants, it was allotted only to certain community college campuses - Shelburne and Lunenburg campuses were not included in that list.

In this budget, there is $692,000 to expand the number of nursing seats by 70 at Cape Breton University and Dalhousie Yarmouth campus. Just think if we would have had invested in those three years ago, Mr. Speaker, we'd have nurses who would be graduating.

Instead we hear constantly of persistent bed sores, one bath a week, one diaper change a day, and dangerously low staff-to-patient ratios in our long-term care facilities. Where is the updated plan on progress for implementing the recommendation of the expert advisory panel - whose recommendations came out over one year ago - in this budget? We have a serious crisis in long-term care. I am appalled by this government's unwillingness to improve the standard of living for our beloved elderly population. To me, this attitude is deeply disturbing, considering the demographic challenges that are facing our province.

Mental health is another serious concern for our province. Mental health services in this budget are only increasing $550,000. One-in-five Nova Scotians experience challenges with mental health, Mr. Speaker. This budget will work out to an extra 55 cents per Nova Scotian - that equates to about $2.75 per Nova Scotian who needs support. Sadly, we hear the cries from parents to help their children, and those who are suffering with mental illness reaching out for help but being sent home with pamphlets and wait-times, feeling helpless and hopeless. Improving access to mental health needs to be a priority.

Mr. Speaker, housing is connected to everything. I am delighted to see the investment of $18.1 million to deliver on year two of the three-year Canada Nova Scotia Housing Action Plan, providing initiatives to contract new affordable housing units and repair public housing units. Many of the existing public housing units in my constituency have not been adequately maintained and need to be completely renovated, if not replaced. We have a serious need for adequate affordable rentals.

We all know housing is one of the main issues in child poverty. For one-in-five households, it is impossible to afford both nutritious food and maintain a basic standard of living which includes adequate, affordable, safe housing. The budget for emergency repairs remains grossly underfunded with multiple-year backlogs of applications. Daily I am hearing from those who wish to remain in their homes and their communities but cannot afford to keep up with the maintenance. I have an aging population in my constituency and there have been no new public seniors' apartments since the 1980s.

[Page 6127]

[11:00 a.m.]

We see $85.3 million more for Nova Scotian roads, highways and bridges yet many roads in my constituency remain deplorable. The local TIR budget for our area has not increased in 14 years. How can this government expect TIR to maintain the same level of service when labour costs, material costs and equipment costs continue to rise but the budget doesn't reflect the increase?

It is great to have twinning projects on our highways but if we cannot maintain the roads we presently have, it seems unrealistic.

I look at the dangerous state of Highway No. 103 from Danesville to Exit 17A. Our secondary roads continue to decline. I look at Westville, Port L'Hebert, Harmony, Route No. 208, Trunk No. 3, Beech Hill, Shore Road, Exit 23, Upper Clyde, Northville, Medway River Road, Bangs Falls, Buckfield, Molega - I could go on for days. Some of these roads have not been repaved for three or four decades. Our roads require extensive ditching, and culvert replacement.

Child poverty continues to be a serious concern in our province. I am very glad to see money being invested to increase the Nova Scotia Child Benefit to help address child poverty. Nova Scotia has performed the worst compared to other provinces in Canada at reducing child poverty from the 1989 levels. Twenty years after the deadline, poverty in our province has decreased less than 1 per cent - 40,710 children live in homes below the poverty line; one in four children in Nova Scotia are food insecure. In Queens County, 29.3 per cent of the children are living in poverty. The number of those families living in poverty is disturbing. My fear is these numbers may increase in my constituency.

I remain extremely concerned for the families who make their modest living in the forest industry. These families are consumed with anxiety and uncertainty for their future. I watched our community take a kick to the knees when Bowater closed, but the forestry industry had Plan B at the time. We now have an industry that is in chaos. We have heard the closure of Northern Pulp is going to have a negative effect on the budget. I have said before in this House - think about what the closure will do to the budget of the families that relied on this to put food on the table.

Imagine what this closure is going to do to the landowner who lost 50 per cent of the value of their timber overnight. Imagine what it's going to do to the contractors who are trying to make payments and payroll. These are families who choose to live and work in rural communities, families who have created real wealth in this province.

The Premier talks about the lowest employment rates in the history of the province. That's success. But I hate to see the numbers when the hemorrhage begins from the turmoil created in our forestry industry, an industry that has helped build this province. I think we're starting to see that now.

[Page 6128]

What about our tourism industry? We have seen total mismanagement of the Yarmouth to Bar Harbor ferry. Hard-working taxpayers paid $24 million last year for a boat that didn't sail - not once Mr. Speaker. This hurt our tourism industry in the western part of the province desperately. We need this vital link and it is not too much to ask to have a reliable, consistent link that we all can be proud of. One that will bring people to our ocean playground.

We need to protect our tourism basket which is highly reliant on maintaining clean rural coastlines. Yet, saltwater inlets are under threat. I worry about Liverpool Bay. We have a minister appoint a tribunal board that is empowered to decide where open-pen fish farms can be permitted. We need to deal with this threat to Nova Scotia and to our tourism industry.

We have been told we'll be better together with the unveiling of Budget 2020-21. The government says we will see a surplus to the tune of $55 million with budget capital of just over $1 million.

While I am so very happy with the government's programs, supports and investment they have made in addressing some of the concerns we've brought forward, all of these concerns Nova Scotians have been dealing with now for several years. They're not new issues, they could have been addressed several years ago but they were not.

We have a health care crisis, poverty, housing crisis, and so much more. This would have been a good budget four years ago, Mr. Speaker, but it is sadly too little too late. Better together? I say don't ever believe we can't do better.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth North.

SUSAN LEBLANC « » : I am pleased to stand today to talk about an aspect of this budget that continues to shock and surprise me and that is the lack of a film tax credit and lack of investment in our film industry by way of an equity development fund or real investment in a sound stage.

In 2015, this government cancelled the important and successful Film Industry Tax Credit. This decision has been disastrous for the film industry in Nova Scotia. We are not able to take advantage of the Netflix boom or the Apple boom or all the other streaming services boom that other provinces are now benefiting from. Many skilled workers have left the province, and as a result of this decision it is now estimated that Nova Scotia is near the bottom of the list for productions choosing where in Canada to shoot.

In spite of real evidence to the contrary, the Minister of Business says that we are doing great when it comes to film. The reality is that a generous analysis of Nova Scotia's position would show that our industry has flatlined while other provinces have hitched on to an exponential online streaming boom.

[Page 6129]

Nova Scotia is the only province in the country where foreign location and service production - these are the frequently large foreign productions representing over half of the industry's value - have decreased. It has decreased to less than 1 per cent of the national share. We have missed the boat.

In response to a question last Fall, the minister said that his department had done extensive analysis on the economic impact of this decision, but when I asked about that analysis yesterday in Estimates, the minister could not produce it.

The minister has made it quite clear that this government will not be reinstating the Film Industry Tax Credit. We have heard that it was cumbersome, and that the investment is now the same as it was with the tax credit, but the evidence is clear. Large productions want a labour tax credit and when everything else is equal - and that is actually tough to have in Nova Scotia, but when that does happen - they will usually choose the location that offers a tax credit over the one that doesn't.

The minister says things are fine, but things are not fine, Mr. Speaker. We have missed the boat on a huge amount of work. Big service productions that would have put hundreds of people to work in good jobs are going elsewhere. We have young, vibrant, creative people who have left, and we are now down to two crews. Local productions, which the minister says he loves so much, are getting pushed down the road because there are simply not enough people to work on them.

The minister says we will never be BC, we will never be Ontario. Well, of course we're not going to be. How could we be? With leadership like we have seen on this issue, our film industry has spiralled. We have an industry that is doing its very best, despite this government's decisions, and making amazing work, I may say. The decision to cancel the Film Industry Tax Credit - even after the Premier promised to extend it, much like the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board has promised to extend the Digital Animation Tax Credit in the Financial Measures (2020) Act - was a bad one. We need the tax credit back and we need an equity development fund.

So, again, I will reiterate that the minister talks about how important our local film industry is. The local film industry has been asking for a reinstatement of the equity development fund since the fund was cancelled. It was a $2 million fund that was cut, and it has not been replaced.

The minister accuses me of being negative. Yeah, I know. It's not me. I am not negative. I am optimistic. What the people at home cannot see is that the minister is standing right next to me and trying to make me laugh, but this is not a laughing matter, Mr. Speaker. It is not a laughing matter.

[Page 6130]

I am not negative. I am optimistic and I see our incredible film industry. I see how incredible it is. I see the talent of the people who work here and who want to be working here. I see the writers, the directors, the camera operators, the costume and set and production designers. I see the performers, the production assistants, the accountants, the craft service people. I see the lighting and electrical technicians, the stunt performers, the producers. I see all the people who work in our film industry and who want it to flourish, who want to work all the time, and who could be working all the time right now if the government had left our tax credit alone; the tax credit that was proven to be putting $7 for every dollar spent into the economy, into people in our province and into businesses.

I am an optimist and that is why I will continue to advocate for our industry and continue to call for a reinstatement of the Film Industry Tax Credit. I call on the Minister of Business to sit down with all representatives of the industry - the producers, the labour unions, the training programs, and individuals - to get a real picture of what is at stake and what is actually possible.

As I said yesterday, it is befuddling to me that this government has dug its heels in so deeply on this issue. The Premier talks daily about the young people in our province and people returning home to work here. Mr. Speaker, the film industry is full of those young people. Many of them have left, and many of them want to come back.

I encourage this government to get over its bad decision, to be optimistic, to change its mind, to admit it was wrong, to reinstate the Film Industry Tax Credit, and to actually invest in our film industry in a real and important way.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham.

LISA ROBERTS « » : I am going to speak just for a short time as we enter into the last four hours of the Estimates process for this provincial budget. I just want to reflect on where we are now as opposed to where we were three or four months ago when we were in this Chamber.

When we started to sit, I believe it was on September 26^th, the next day there was a massive climate strike planned for the streets of Halifax. Indeed, on September 27^th we saw some 10,000 people take to the street, mobilizing to demand action and policy change from all levels of government that is commensurate with the challenge presented to us by the climate emergency.

As I have examined different parts of this budget, I have to say that I'm left with the feeling that we have not responded adequately or enough. When I think about how the government makes adjustments for the evidence that we need to be changing to a low-carbon economy as fast as possible, I often think about the way one steers a kayak. If anyone has ever been in a kayak, at least one on the ocean, there are two paddles underneath that your feet are on. To go left, you press on one paddle, and to go right, you press on the other paddle.

[Page 6131]

I thought of this analogy again this week when I happened to sit at the table during the Estimates for the Department of Energy and Mines. The minister talked about a bunch of different programs and investments in programs that he's excited and optimistic about and that we're spending money on and that relate to LNG and Alton Gas and gold and Donkin - those would be programs and expenses and investments related to the left-hand paddle - and also bikeways and efficiency and affordable rentals and solar homes, so those would be investments associated with the right-hand paddle. As a result of continuing to invest over here when we need to be changing over here, we're actually not changing direction fast enough.

In Iceland and in Scotland and in New Zealand, we're seeing bolder action. We're seeing an actual embrace of the need to turn the bow of the boat so we go somewhere different. People are calling that the well-being economy. They're embracing the idea that we actually have to focus and invest in and pay attention to what we want in our societies and what we want in our economies.

This budget once again falls for the trick of trickle-down economics. That is a lovely story, told for too many years and given too much credence, that we can benefit by focusing on those who already have in our very unequal economy, and that if we just prioritize their priorities, somehow it will trickle down to those who have not.

[11:15 a.m.]

The $70 million corporate tax cut in this budget is just evidence that this government has either fallen for that trick or, indeed, that they identify with the interests of those who will benefit from that. Really, the evidence is out there and clear and abundant that that story does not reflect the realities of our economy, of our society.

As I see the world adjust so quickly and do what was unthinkable last week or last month in response to the COVID-19 threat of a pandemic, I can't help but think that we could be reacting so much more quickly, given evidence that is just as overwhelming and in many ways, if not in more ways, just as dire as the impacts that are coming from rapid climate change.

The wonderful thing, in the case of reacting with boldness and courage to climate change, is that we would also be building a society that is more resilient, more equal, more joyful, that would include investment in bikeways and affordable rentals and solar homes and efficiency and all kinds of things that require us building basically a better society right now.

Certainly, I applaud and agree and accept that we must adjust quickly right now in response to COVID-19, but I hope that how we do that then leads us to conclude that we could actually make another bold change. We could change our plans. We could do things differently. We could also respond to the climate crisis with the same embrace of the need to show leadership, to show boldness, to show courage and to really make decisions on behalf of the well-being of all of us. Thank you very much.

[Page 6132]

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is carried.

The House will now recess for a couple of minutes while it resolves itself into the Committee of the Whole on Supply.

[11:17 a.m. The House resolved into a CW on Supply with Deputy Speaker Suzanne Lohnes-Croft in the Chair.]

[3:40 p.m. CW on Supply rose and the House reconvened. The Speaker, Hon. Kevin Murphy, resumed the Chair.]

THE SPEAKER « » : Order, please. The Chair of the Committee of the Whole on Supply will now report:

THE CLERK » : That the Committee of the Whole on Supply has met and has come to agreement on 48 Estimate resolutions, including votes on business plans and on capital. The Chair has been instructed to recommend these Estimates to the favourable consideration of the House, each without amendment.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is that the House concur in the report of the Committee of the Whole on Supply.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, would you please call the order of business, Introduction of Bills.

INTRODUCTION OF BILLS

Bill No. 259 - Entitled an Act to Provide for Defraying Certain Charges and Expenses of the Public Service of the Province. (Hon. Karen Casey)

[PUBLIC BILLS FOR SECOND READING]

[Page 6133]

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Finance and Treasury Board.

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill No. 259, the Appropriations Act, 2020, be now read a second time.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for second reading of Bill No. 259. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

[PUBLIC BILLS FOR THIRD READING]

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Finance and Treasury Board.

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill No. 259, the Appropriations Act, 2020, be now read a third time and do pass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 259. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

Ordered that this bill do pass. Ordered that the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that you do now leave the Chair and House resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole House on Bills.

THE SPEAKER « » : The House will now recess for a couple of minutes while it resolves itself into a Committee of the Whole House on Bills.

[3:44 p.m. The House resolved into a CWH on Bills with Deputy Speaker Brendan Maguire in the Chair.]

[3:45 p.m. CWH on Bills rose and the House reconvened. The Speaker, Hon. Kevin Murphy, resumed the Chair.]

THE SPEAKER « » : Order, please. The Chair of the Committee of the Whole House on Bills reports:

THE CLERK « » : That the Committee of the Whole House on Bills has met and considered the following bill:

[Page 6134]

Bill No. 245 - Brookside Cemetery Commission Dissolution Act.

without amendment and the Chair has been instructed to recommend this bill to the favourable consideration of the House.

THE SPEAKER « » : Ordered that this bill be read a third time on a future day.

GOVERNMENT BUSINESS

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, would you please call the order of business, Public Bills for Third Reading.

PUBLIC BILLS FOR THIRD READING

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, would you please call Bill No. 243.

Bill No. 243 - Financial Measures (2020) Act.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Finance and Treasury Board.

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill No. 243 be now read a third time and do pass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Northside-Westmount.

MURRAY RYAN « » : Mr. Speaker, during this session we've spent long hours vetting this government's budget, department ministers, and finally the Financial Measures (2020) Act, the Act formally implementing those aspects of the budget related to taxes, corporate taxes, the film tax credit extension, and establishing rules and regulations and licensing requirements surrounding the growing vaping industry in this province.

As we have seen, the Financial Measures (2020) Act also included measures aimed at protecting the Province, gaming authorities at Atlantic Lottery, and casino operators from class action lawsuits, and finally, the repeal of the Crown attorneys legislation.

The budget in the Financial Measures (2020) Act laid the groundwork for the upcoming 2020-21 year, projecting a $55 million surplus on $11.6 billion in total. We see increases in virtually every single department from a variety of programs and initiatives. We see a capital plan for the coming year in excess of $1 billion. In fact, current estimates are projecting surpluses in excess of $200 million through the years 2023-24, but these are just that: estimates.

[Page 6135]

Effective budgeting and forecasting requires a full comprehensive capture of all variables: fixed, variable, controllable, uncontrollable, known, and recognition of unknown, and allowances for them. I have full confidence in our civil servants and those who worked diligently on the budget and the supporting numbers and metrics, but forecasting is as much about looking at the past as it is towards the future. The Department of Finance and Treasury Board staff would have been preparing this budget for several months now.

The closure of Northern Pulp will have significant impact on the province's economy. The question that begs answering is, how much is that impact? The government attributes the 0.4 per cent GDP to being, to a large extent, the result of this closure. During the budget process, even the Department of Finance and Treasury Board staff admitted they had not modelled for the closure of Northern Pulp prior to the announcement on December 20^th. As such, how thorough is this forecasting? In the course of a few short weeks after December 20^th, given how Northern Pulp permeates so many aspects of the provincial economy, is the impact truly captured?

Unfortunately, since this budget was introduced just a few short weeks ago, the world has literally turned on its head. The spreading growth of the number of cases of COVID-19 virus has cast a cloud over global economics, nations, and even Nova Scotia. It is only a matter of time before the virus makes land.

After two weeks of promoting their new budget and of the Minister of Health and Wellness saying there are no cases of COVID-19, yesterday the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board acknowledged the potential impacts to our province's budgetary surplus. The issue, no one knows how much of an impact current conditions will have. A $55 million surplus is truly not that much in comparison to a budget of $11.6 billion; the margin for error is razor thin at 0.5 per cent. In layman's terms, if one was to go to the grocery store and buy $100 worth of groceries, this budget surplus would amount to 47 cents on that $100. Not much needs to change to eliminate this surplus.

The Minister of Finance and Treasury Board told CBC yesterday, "We can maybe move things around, we can maybe look at programs that are not fully utilized." Perhaps the ever-mysterious restructuring costs of $341 million holds the path to surplus safety.

The minister stated that the coronavirus is beyond our control; this is correct. They have this contingency plan that they believe may help us through, that we have some flexibility. But I would put forward that what we've seen in the past two weeks, with the spread of the virus, oil prices suffering the biggest single day drop since 1991, stocks seeing their biggest drops since 1987 - Brian Lilley in the Toronto Sun spoke today of the impact of the growing crisis. I can table this - that the fiscal assumptions for all finance ministers, federal and provincial alike, have been thrown out the window as a result of this world-wide coronavirus epidemic. The effects are real.

[Page 6136]

Closer to home, Mr. Speaker, I am concerned about Cape Breton and Nova Scotia. How will this play out here? The May lobster season is soon approaching in Cape Breton, and yes, while lobster exports seem to be resuming, how long, how much has been lost already, what dangers and threats exist?

Soon we'll be heading into Spring, then Summer. Tourism is a continually growing and expanding industry in our province. We've recognized this, and businesses across the province are devoted solely to this sector. The season is short, and the capital costs are large.

The CAT is due to re-enter service in June. The government projects it will carry 60,000 passengers this year, costing the province $16 million. Truly lofty numbers given it is essentially rebooted, having missed a year, and is now leaving from a new port.

When you have the Vice President of the United States advising people to avoid cruises, when you hear the stories of those who have been stranded on ships, how safe is this 60,000-passenger number? What steps might the U.S. government take in relation to the ferries?

Much like cruise ships, imagine the boatload heading to Bar Harbor and being declined permission to dock. What would this do to the season?

I think of the Port of Sydney. It's projecting a record number of cruise ships this coming season - the result of a second pier being added - 117 visits with over 300,000 passengers and crew. The cruise industry has become a key aspect of Summer tourism dollars in Cape Breton, one that is still untapped in many ways.

But what would be the impact of this virus? Yes, it is three months away, but we're only three months into this virus and it is showing no signs of slowing down. What will be the psychological impact even if the virus does wane? What will be the impact, not just to businesses, but to the government's bottom line?

At the end of the day, the impact of the virus is not just a health concern, it is also an economic one for many businesses, small and large; for the employees, seasonal and full-time; and ultimately the government whose tax revenues go hand-in-hand.

When we look at our health care system, I see one in crisis. We have shortages of doctors, staff, beds. I fear what happens when you layer a health crisis on top of a system in crisis. In China in late January, the Chinese government's response? To break ground on a 1,000-bed hospital that they completed within a week. That's the benefit of having a billion people.

[Page 6137]

While I don't, for a moment, put forward that that is something that we would be doing here in Nova Scotia, it illustrates a significance of the impact that this virus can have. I am concerned how we will be able to respond in this situation if similar numbers happen here. I worry about our seniors, those confined to long-term care facilities. We see this virus is now in facilities elsewhere in the country. We don't have enough beds now for our sick, how would we handle this?

Mr. Speaker, one in three children in Cape Breton live below the poverty line. This is truly a dire statistic. This budget aims to provide some additional services to address child poverty. Virus or not, these are some of our most vulnerable citizens. But what of our budget surplus? What if there must be cost reductions - what programs will be safe and what ones will not?

I would like to assume all government programs have some level of utility, but the minister said that there are some that are under-utilized where those funds could be reallocated in the case that the budget surplus was under threat. If there are under-utilized funds, then why put the money there? Why not put these funds to better use such as towards child poverty?

Mr. Speaker, I am also concerned about our education system. We have capacity issues surrounding the expanded rollout of the pre-Primary program, challenges in relation to the provision of teacher assistants, and parents who feel left out of the loop. The elimination of local school boards replaced by Regional Education Centres has left a void of control and leadership.

Mr. Speaker, last week many, if not all of us, read or saw the vicious assault at the high school in this province. I am sure the authorities involved will do a complete and thorough investigation, but the fact that this occurred in the first place - in a school, nonetheless - is highly troubling.

We have a province that has great potential and many untapped opportunities. Recently some of my colleagues and I had the opportunity to meet with several of the OHV Associations in Sydney. The OHV community is making amazing progress, not only growing their activities but also growing tourism opportunities. But like many organizations they need the government to work with them on regulations surrounding what areas and roads the OHV users are permitted on or travel along from one trail to another. Personnel from different departments seem to be rowing in opposite directions in relation to the OHV organizations and have created lost opportunities that are serving to constrain the potential growth and opportunity in this sector.

In Newfoundland and Labrador OHV riders are welcome visitors. The province embraces these economic impacts that this industry brings via tourism, but we lag far behind in Nova Scotia. This is truly an opportunity we are missing out on. Indeed, we are truly a province that has great potential and also one that needs this potential unlocked.

[Page 6138]

This budget and the Financial Measures (2020) Act are in peril just two short weeks after their introduction. The government's unwillingness or inability to recognize we are in a health crisis, to acknowledge that there are problems with growth in rural and non-Halifax areas, and to say the CBRM is on the road to recovery citing a population growth for the first time in years - which, by the way, is a direct result of the doubling of international students at Cape Breton University - are all examples of a government that relies on one or two indicators as talking points, ignoring more significant measures and metrics.

As such, given the current climate of weaknesses and threats to Nova Scotia that it is facing, I am somewhat skeptical about this year's budget and FMA. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth South.

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise in my place and respond to the Financial Measures (2020) Act.

We've all spent a great deal of time discussing and commenting on Budget 2020-21 over the past couple of weeks through Budget Estimates, debates into those Estimates, and most recently in the Committee of the Whole House on Bills. We've discussed it in the context of the $70 million corporate tax cut - a cut with no discernible impact on the economy other than the vague assurance of reinvestment and increased attractiveness of jurisdiction to major corporations whose profits are elsewhere.

The increase in the Nova Scotia Child Benefit and other program investments for vulnerable Nova Scotians are insufficient. The investments we've been advocating for are the ones that we know pay dividends in the lives of Nova Scotians, Mr. Speaker. They help us to meet the social determinants of health. Investments in programs like the Nova Scotia Child Benefit can keep people healthy and well-fed and potentially out of hospital.

Modest investments in housing will mean a few dozen more Nova Scotians will have a roof over their heads. Imagine what we could do with more investments in this budget that have positive and demonstrable outcomes in the lives of Nova Scotians.

We support the small business tax cut, Mr. Speaker. Again, this is an investment with a clear return. These business owners often live in the communities where their businesses are located; certainly that is the case in Dartmouth South. They employ folks in the community and they spend in the community.

[4:00 p.m.]

[Page 6139]

The context of this budget, when it was presented, was not great. By the government's admission, growth would be minimal but the need, of course, is great. We still have the lowest median income, the second-highest poverty rate in Canada, the highest rate in food insecurity, and are above the national average for household spending of over 30 per cent of income on rent and utilities. Across this province, 23,645 households are spending over 50 per cent of their income on rent and utilities. That context looks bleaker by the day. The closure of Northern Pulp will be a hit to the economy, but more important or as important, to the workers, the woodlot owners, and the businesses that depended on the mill.

The global uncertainty swirling around COVID-19 and its impact on the markets and our key trading partners will also be a hit - not just to the economy but to Nova Scotians, particularly to our seniors and to our health care workers across the province.

Against this backdrop, it is our position that investments in social programs, income assistance, health care, and all the other areas we have been stressing is more important now than ever - more important than a $70 million corporate giveaway. Every $1 of corporate tax cut generates 10 cents of private investment. Corporate tax cuts are a bad deal for the province, particularly now.

Moving on to a couple of other areas of the Financial Measures (2020) Act that weren't debated in the budget, I want to take the opportunity to thank the minister for the repeal of the Crown Attorneys' Labour Relations Act. As we said repeatedly during debates on that bill, it was unnecessary from the start. There was never a need to debate the details of labour relations on the floor of this Legislature. Once introduced, there was never a need to advance the legislation beyond first reading, and as I said in Committee of the Whole House on Bills, as the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board was laying out the reasons for the passage of this Act on the third reading of that bill in this Chamber, the Minister of Labour Relations was negotiating a move back to the bargaining table at the very same time in this very same building. It was announced minutes after the passage of the bill.

It's clear, Mr. Speaker, that this bill was intended as a sword hanging over the negotiating table. I'm very pleased it has been repealed as promised, and I sincerely hope we will see less of this type of legislation in the future and more good-faith negotiation.

Amendment of the Gaming Control Act - providing a shield from liability for the province, the ministers responsible for the Act, the Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation, the Atlantic Lottery Corporation and casino operators, retroactive to 1991 - is another feature of this bill that we have not had time to debate. Here is a proposal that merits more discussion than it has gotten. I'll leave a few questions on the table.

Why? Why now? Are we facing legal action? If so, if there is, for example, a class action lawsuit against a casino owner in the province, do we want to be the ones to ensure that it cannot go forward? At a time when this government has failed to update the mental health and addictions strategy, has cancelled the My-Play program, and otherwise has a long way to go on ensuring that if we are going to be in the business of gambling, we're doing it with Nova Scotians' health and safety at the forefront of our concerns, why now would we introduce a bill of this kind?

[Page 6140]

This provision also stands in stark opposition to another bill on the order paper, which will certainly pass this evening: the Opioid Damages and Health-care Costs Recovery Act. This is an Act that paves the way for this government to join lawsuits against the manufacturers and distributors of opioids. It goes without saying that what's good for the goose in this scenario is not good for the gander. We can collect for harms faced by Nova Scotians, as we should be able to, but we are unwilling to have the difficult conversations about our government's involvement with a revenue-generating activity that we know can be very harmful to its participants.

Mr. Speaker, the present moment calls for solutions to a number of complex problems. They are complex but not impossible, and our caucus has been putting forward solution after solution. We have called upon the government to invest in jobs for the sustainable economy, jobs like child care, home energy retrofits, sustainable forestry, arts and culture, and the list goes on. We have called upon this government to address the issue of low wages so that working Nova Scotians are able to afford the things they need: healthy food, accessible homes, and cell and internet service. We have called upon this government to address the inequities in access to health care services, where those who can afford to pay access timely mental health service and those who cannot afford to pay have to wait.

We have called upon this government to prioritize the climate and the future of the coming generations of Nova Scotians. To meet the challenges of the coming year and of the coming decades, we need to build community, we need to build resilience, and we need to build a shared prosperity, one that does not trickle down but is built and shared by all. We need to attend to and prioritize people and places, we need to diversify our economy while we protect and prioritize the sustainable fishers and foresters who have formed its backbone for generations.

We are all in this together, Mr. Speaker. Unfortunately, this budget still prioritizes the few at the expense of the many. We, in the NDP caucus, will keep pushing for a different kind of prosperity, one that is truly shared.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Kings North on an introduction.

JOHN LOHR « » : Mr. Speaker, I want to draw the attention of the House to the West Gallery where we have - and I'll ask them to stand as I mention their names - Judy Ulman, with her two daughters Ester and Kathlene, who are from Torbrook Mines in Annapolis County, and Jan Rowe from Greenwood. They are here today as part of a home-school trip to see what's happening in the Legislature.

[Page 6141]

I ask the House to give them a warm welcome. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition.

TIM HOUSTON « » : Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise and speak to the FMA today. I think I want to start with when I think about the finances of the Province, we think about health care, the $4.8 billion budget for health care. Under the term of this government they have invested somewhere in the range of $30 billion in health care and look at how health care is performing in this province.

We have a Premier who, last session, was asked who is responsible for the delivery of health care in this province, and he did everything to maneuver it around so that he would not acknowledge that he, as the Premier, was responsible for the delivery of health care. He didn't want to take responsibility, and no wonder. When you look at the state of health care, he probably should be a little embarrassed at how health care is. Instead, what we hear is a series of talking points about the biggest health care infrastructure investments in the VG and the biggest in the CBRM.

Mr. Speaker, this is a government that at this stage still believes that the solution to hallway medicine is better hallways. Nova Scotians know better than that. They know there are more modern ways to deliver health care. That's why we've been talking about health care from home, different ways that Nova Scotians can access their health care professionals and get the support and guidance they need.

Look at what's happening now with the way the world is, with the coronavirus and all the talk of, are we prepared? If we had a robust 811-like system in this province where people could call in and immediately be transferred to a doctor or a pharmacist or a health care professional, paramedic, whatever the case may be, imagine how useful that would be. Imagine how useful that would be for people who are quarantined, especially health care professionals who are quarantined, they can still perform a number of their functions.

This is what we've been talking about: modernizing the delivery of health care for this province. Instead, we have a government that scoffs at that idea because when you ask, where is the elected leadership, where is the elected leadership in the delivery of health care, the Premier doesn't want to take responsibility for it. There's no leadership coming from the Premier. Instead, if we dig deeper, we see that this is the government of sound bites: a doctor for every Nova Scotian - yeah, but; one health care authority will reduce administration costs - yeah, but; one health authority will improve the efficiency of the delivery of health care in the province - yeah, but.

This is the government of yeahs and buts. That's why the Premier is so conscious of that. The biggest health care infrastructure investment that this government heralds - let's think about that for a second. We will see somewhere in the range of $2 billion invested in new health care infrastructure - $2 billion.

[Page 6142]

Mr. Speaker, who invests that kind of money in infrastructure without actually having a health services plan, without actually understanding what it is they are trying to deliver? They believe that if they build a big shiny building - it's a great talking point for an election, it's right up there with a doctor for every Nova Scotian - it just rolls off the tongue because, if you don't really intend on delivering better health care, you can let whatever you want roll off your tongue. That's what we've seen with this government.

Where is the full health services plan? Where is the explanations of: this is the number of services that are provided now; this is the number of operations that are provided; this is the number of people who visited the hospital now, today; this is what we expect in 20 years, that's why we're building this. Where is that type of analysis?

If anyone was doing this with their own money, they'd do the analysis. But when it's somebody else's money, you just roll off your little sound bite as to how it goes. There are no details on how this project will actually improve the delivery of health care in this province.

The Premier says, if you build it, they will come. If you build it, the health care professionals will come; that's his explanation for how it will improve health care in this province. But the type of person who says that is the same person who says, we will improve the wait-list time for hips and knees to the national average. We'll bring Nova Scotia to the national average. That was the promise from this government.

Yeah, but, when you think about it, there's not a lot of follow through on the things that come from this government. What we see is just a hidden report that the government won't release to the taxpayers of the province. They don't want Nova Scotians to know; they are doing everything they can to hide this report. Moving buildings around for the sake of moving buildings around, and then when the lights go on a little bit and Nova Scotians get just a little bit of a glimpse as to what's going on, guess what? It might be an issue with the parkade.

This is the government that, when they make these types of decisions, they do it in the backrooms - they do it in isolation - and Nova Scotians don't benefit from those types of decisions.

The province needs a modern way of delivering health care. That is very clear to Nova Scotians. It's also very clear to those Nova Scotians who are trying to access mental health services.

Mr. Speaker, they used to say that it was one in five Canadians that were impacted by mental health issues in their lifetime, but that has now increased to one in three. Yet, in the budget that is before us today, only $550,000 more in this budget for an investment in mental health services, $550,000. Yet the wait-lists across the province continue to grow. In Cape Breton, 300 days for access to mental health services. No one wants to be accountable on the government's side. The mere suggestion of making somebody accountable is deemed as more bureaucracy and is laughed off by this government.

[Page 6143]

The reality is that if this government would take the initiative to make somebody accountable for the delivery of mental health services in this province - a minister of addictions and mental health - there would be somebody accountable. There could be somebody at the highest levels of government who actually feels a sense of responsibility to make sure that people can access the services they need. Instead, we don't have that. We have it buried inside a larger department that is fraught with issues already.

There are modern ways to deliver health care, to deliver mental health services to Nova Scotians. Those are the things the Province should be investing in. Those are the initiatives that they should be taking. If they can take place in a new building, well wouldn't that be nice. But first off, let's make sure we're delivering services and holding people accountable.

[4:15 p.m.]

I do notice in the Financial Measures (2020) Bill a little bit of a do-over around the whole film industry stuff. People who have been in this House for a while will remember what happened to the film industry in this province. Back in 2014 the Province had invested somewhere in the range of $25 million in our film industry, which was a growing, vibrant industry. That industry was really - let's call it - sideswiped by this government's change out of the blue. It really set them back. The $25-million investment had economic impact somewhere in the range of $100 million - maybe $120 million or maybe $140 million.

It was clear to me at the time that the government understood the costs, but they didn't understand the benefit. They never really did the analysis of what the benefit is. They didn't want to know the benefit because they were so focused on the cost. Changes were made to the incentive fund and the industry has gone through a lot of turmoil. A lot of people have left.

This past year, this government will have invested somewhere in the range of $25 million in that industry - pretty much right where it started. The economic impact of return, the benefit from that investment, is somewhere in the range of $80 million to $85 million. This government caused five or six years of complete turmoil. Now they're back to where they were, but the industry is just a shell of what it was. That is a shame. That is bad government.

We've seen that time and time again with this government. We've seen it with the deplorable actions of this government around the treatment of our Crown attorneys. The level of disrespect towards our Crown attorneys was pretty remarkable. In fact, the Minister of Justice took to the media and basically said that our Crown attorneys are greedy people who put their own paycheque ahead of service to Nova Scotians.

[Page 6144]

That was a shockingly sad statement from the Minister of Justice with the history of not understanding the justice system. He eventually had to walk back those comments a little bit because they were so far out of order that even the Premier could see they were out of order. They were slightly walked back. These are the types of misguided decisions we see time and time again from this government.

Last year, the Province spent somewhere in the range of $20 million on the ferry. They spent somewhere in the range of $20 million on tourism. Add that all up, you've got about $40 million kind of under the banner of tourism. That was something that the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal, the Premier, the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development said time and time again: the ferry will sail in 2019. Yeah, but it turns out it's really expensive to not sail a ferry: $20 million for the year.

The real shame of it is that between our film industry and the beauty of our province, we have incredible opportunities in tourism. If this government would embrace our film industry as a tourism opportunity, then we could see it.

I know that down the coast, The Curse of Oak Island - an amazingly popular show there - they do a certain number of visits in the run of the year. It's a limited number. The day they put those tickets on sale last year, they completely sold out. There were over 100,000 people who tried to get tickets to come to Nova Scotia to visit Oak Island - the minister has a book there - because they had seen the show on TV.

That's the way you grow tourism, Mr. Speaker. To make those changes that they made to the film industry showed a total lack of understanding of our economy. It showed a total lack of understanding of how tourism can fit into our overall economy.

A successful ferry operation can yield tremendous benefits for this province, but it needs to leave the dock, Mr. Speaker. That's the first criteria for success. It has to be one that takes transport; that's part of the criteria for success. It has to be one that is stable, that people can rely on. Those are the criteria for a success.

Until you have a government that is willing to be held accountable, is willing to invest the time and energy and properly managing a file, it will be difficult to have a successful operation there. Until you have a government that understands that holding the operators accountable and making sure they're delivering the service Nova Scotians are paying for, until you have those types of things it is very difficult to see what success looks like in the eyes of this government. I know what they look like in our eyes.

[Page 6145]

All that is said and done, we have a government that is being taken to court to find out what the management fee is after the privacy commissioner ruled that information should be disclosed to Nova Scotians.

We have a government that said theirs would be the most open and transparent government in history. Mr. Speaker, this is not an open and transparent government, and in fact this is one that fights so hard to keep information from Nova Scotians. Governments should be focused on finding ways to successfully grow our tourism industry, bring people to this province. That's where the focus should be.

We have a beautiful province. We have tremendous opportunities for our traditional industries of agriculture, fisheries and forestry, we have tremendous opportunities.

We know our economy is at risk right now through our forestry situation for sure. The future of forestry and its impact on the province is an issue that has many people tossing and turning at night. We were on this. We started a year ago, we introduced a bill in this House - let's have a transition team in place to think about what our forestry industry could look like going into the future. We were told at the time that that transition team was in place, that the smartest minds in government were working on it.

Then December 20^th came along and sometime around Christmas the Premier got around to establishing a transition team, the one he had indicated was started the year before. When we asked for the work of that transition team that he had indicated had been in place for a year, we got well, yeah, but they never really looked at it.

That's a failure of government to not understand the risks that are facing the province. As Nova Scotian, we need to demand a higher level of accountability from this government. We need to demand more from this government as Nova Scotians. There is lots of opportunity for this government to do better and to treat Nova Scotians with more respect. What we're seeing right now is a government that has really lost touch with Nova Scotian values.

We see that certainly in the case of Alex Cameron, a well-respected lawyer who went through all the right channels of approval. He had an argument he was going to raise on behalf of the taxpayers of the province, he went through all the right channels for approval for that, asked does anyone have any issues with the argument we're making? And nobody did, it was approval all the way through.

The affidavits are clear. Even up to the last minute when he was going into court on a Monday morning he received a call from a senior deputy minister that said, I've had a chat with the very tall man - we know the government code name for the Premier - and he was okay to proceed with that, until the media cried foul. Then it was a case of well, maybe, he didn't - a rogue actor in the eyes of the government at this time. He did have all the approvals, but if the Premier doesn't like it then you're probably going to get thrown under the bus. That's what happens.

[Page 6146]

Of course, we know during this session we've talked about what happens when the Premier's chief of staff comes into information that clearly identifies a public safety risk and chooses not to act until the media finds out. We heard a number of different stories about that. Of course, last week we had the chair of the Law Amendments Committee completely and clearly ignoring the advice of Legislative Counsel when he wouldn't allow me to stop and introduce an amendment.

Mr. Speaker, you ruled on that case. You found that the government was wrong. You found out the government was wrong in that case and then you asked what their punishment should be. Well, then they decided that there shouldn't be any punishment for that because the reality is that actions do speak louder than words. Every time this government has had a chance to act in the name of what is right, their actions have been slanted toward protecting their brand to the detriment of Nova Scotians. Teachers know that, Crown attorneys know that, and Nova Scotians know that they're the ones who will suffer the consequences of the Liberal-first attitude.

What I would say, as this session comes down to a close and people start to turn their minds towards a provincial election - fixed election dates are something that are on the minds of Nova Scotians, too. That is something that the Premier supported and campaigned on in Opposition, but when he has the chance to do it, it's yeah but maybe not, right?

As we look at how we are governed in this province, there is a lot of room for improvement. Nova Scotians are looking for a government that can earn back their faith because it's been lost, and no wonder when you look at the moral character of the government. No wonder trust has been lost in the government process. Nova Scotians want somebody who will listen to health care professionals, who will listen to patients and work towards a real health care services delivery plan, not just band-aids. They want somebody who can bring back a vibrant film industry and support a growing forestry industry, and at the same time find the way that environmental concerns and industry can be balanced. The people can work together.

That is what Nova Scotians are looking for, Mr. Speaker. They won't see it in the actions of this government and they probably won't see it in the budget that is before us today - a budget which, oddly, before its passage, the Minster of Finance and Treasury Board has already said will have to be changed. And yet, they will all stand in their place and get in line and vote as their Premier instructs them to do without any concern for what has been put before them. Nothing can change that except an election, and I hope it's soon. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth North.

[Page 6147]

SUSAN LEBLANC « » : I really appreciate the applause, thank you so much. I am also happy to rise and speak to this bill today. I would like to give my comments a working title: If I Had $70 Million. If anyone would like to hear me sing, which is actually a pleasant experience, I will sing it outside the Chamber - and one day that rule will change, Mr. Speaker. There will be singing allowed in this House.

The largest single item in this budget is the corporate tax cut, costing $70.5 million. For some reason, the government believes that the result of this corporate tax cut will be the benefit of it trickling down to the workers in those large corporations and therefore have a direct impact on Nova Scotians. This is a lovely, fairy-tale-ish idea. In the absence of any sound economic argument to prove it, I will suggest that a large corporate tax cut is not the best way this government could spend $70 million, and in the absence of ideas of how the government could spend $70 million, I have laid out some ideas.

While I certainly appreciate the increase that has been made to the Nova Scotia Child Benefit - and I sincerely do appreciate that increase - it is only $18 million and it is insufficient to address the depth of poverty that families in Nova Scotia face. A family with two children, which receives the most assistance, is still short by more than $10,000 a year to afford a basic basket of goods. With $70 million the Nova Scotia Child Benefit could have been indexed to the rate of inflation, as was done federally with the Canada child benefit, but this government didn't choose to do that. Instead, it gave $70 million to large corporations.

[4:30 p.m.]

With $70 million the government could have addressed the high cost of child care fees. Child care costs are increasing at more than the rate of inflation and fees for infant care in Halifax are now close to $1,000 a month. This is actually one of the reasons that child poverty in Nova Scotia is the most severe for children ages 0 to 2, as parents are unable to work due to the cost of child care for this age group and parental leave benefits are often far less than earned wages. This government didn't do that either; it gave $70 million to large corporations instead.

We see nothing in this budget to address the fact that Nova Scotia has some of the highest tuition fees in the country - $70 million could have been invested to completely eliminate tuition fees for all NSCC students. Provincial taxpayers receive a rate of return of 6.2 per cent on their investment in NSCC, far better than the corporate tax cuts, which generate only 10 cents of public investment for every dollar. But this government didn't do that either; it gave $70 million to large corporations instead.

The government could have invested in a world-class sound stage for our film industry in Nova Scotia. It could have also established a much-needed and much-called-for film equity fund of $2 million, which would allow local filmmakers to leverage funds from other levels of government and private foundations. This would have cost a fraction of the $70 million corporate tax cut, but it would have made a huge difference to an industry that is functioning in spite of the government's cutting of the Film Industry Tax Credit.

[Page 6148]

While we are on the subject, an investment in the sustained operating budgets of our arts and culture organizations - let's say $1 million - would have made game-changing differences to around 30 or 40 arts and culture organizations. An investment of $70 million to bolster our already-good energy efficiency programs would do so much to help us meet our greenhouse gas emissions goals. Heck, it might even have helped us make those goals stronger, Mr. Speaker, and help us meet the stronger goals, the ones we need to do our part to ensure that the Earth stays within the all-important 1.5 degrees of warming.

Of course, we cannot forget that for $70 million the government could have built many more new, accessible, affordable housing units, more than the 39 included in this budget. Of course, we know that the 39 is great, but when we have 5,000 people on a waiting list for affordable housing, that $70 million could have put a little dent in the issue. Mr. Speaker, the lack of safe, affordable housing is one of the biggest issues facing Nova Scotians all over the province, but the government decided that instead of seriously addressing this issue it would offer a $70 million tax cut for large corporations instead.

While I am talking about housing, I can't help but point out that the government could have re-established rent control in Nova Scotia to help thousands of people across the province who are being squeezed out of housing by rent increases in the hundreds of dollars and the price tag for that, Mr. Speaker? Zero dollars. Zero.

Back to the $70 million; $70 million could have also provided access to healthy school food programs for every single student in this province; $70 million could have done so much, but no. Instead, the government has chosen to invest in a discredited economic theory that leaves Nova Scotians waiting for a trickle-down that will never come.

Mr. Speaker, I said earlier in the day that I am an optimist. I am not a naysayer, not a Debbie Downer. I am an optimist. I am optimistic that this government will listen to reason and rethink this budget. I am hopeful the government will see that the value of the $70 million corporate tax cut could do so much more good with measurable economic benefits, if spent elsewhere, so I encourage the government to listen to reason and to take a few days to think about this budget.

We don't have to go anywhere, Mr. Speaker. I'm happy to stay here for a few more days while the government mulls this over and makes some important changes to the budget. I leave it there, but with these hopeful, optimistic and constructive words, I will now take my seat. Thank you.

THE SPEAKER « » : If I recognize the minister it will be to close the debate.

The honourable Minister of Finance and Treasury Board.

[Page 6149]

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill No. 243, the Financial Measures (2020) Act, be now read a third time and do pass.

The Financial Measures (2020) Act provides legislative authority to implement measures in budget 2020-21 and other legislative measures which have financial implications.

Budget 2020-21 was a message of hope, gratitude, optimism, and confidence. A Better Together includes our business leaders, private sector, community partners, and government. This budget is built on the strong economy, it's built on our high employment, and it is built on our low unemployment. Mr. Speaker, this budget demonstrates good fiscal management since 2013, and we have built into this budget capacity, flexibility, and sustainability in our complete fiscal plan. It is our fifth consecutive balanced budget.

Budget 2020-21 creates opportunities and pathways for Nova Scotians with a focus on those less fortunate. It includes significant investments to make their lives better. No child should live in poverty and that is why we are expanding the Nova Scotia Child Benefit, so that more families and their children can benefit.

This budget contains changes for the standard household rate so that there's an improvement in the monthly income of those recipients. This is why we are funding the fiscal rollout of our pre-Primary - the final rollout of our pre-Primary, including transportation, Mr. Speaker, so all 4-year-olds, regardless of their socio-economic circumstances, can have an opportunity for early learning.

Mr. Speaker, this budget has a focus on child, youth, and family support programs. We have expanded support for our community partners such as the Boys and Girls Club, Big Brothers Big Sisters, family resource centres, Phoenix House, to name a few. These organizations include many volunteers who implement our programs on the ground. Investments to support adults and children with disabilities are identified and are priorities in this budget through the Disability Support Program.

Budget 2020-21 includes social enterprise investments, and these investments will improve the facilities for clients and staff, expand programming for the clients who attend, and provide employment opportunities for those clients. The budget also includes investments in affordable housing, and these will have positive impacts on thousands of households through the Urban Native Housing, through community housing, through rent supplements, and through the affordable renters program.

Investments to address homelessness for our most vulnerable are included in this budget and, in fact, Budget 2020-21 has the largest single investment by any government to support a strategy to address this harsh reality.

Women and children seeking a safe shelter from domestic violence will have protection through this budget. Down payment assistance programs so more young people can buy their first home are in this budget. A minimum wage increase for minimum wage workers and their families is in this budget. Mr. Speaker, Budget 2020-21 also invests in the transformation of health care. This includes doctor recruitment. It has been successful, and it will be ongoing.

[Page 6150]

Mr. Speaker, we are proud that Nova Scotia ranks fourth nationally for patient attachment to a primary health care provider, but more work has to be done and we will do it. This budget contains the financial implications for a new contract with doctors which gives many of those specialists the highest pay in Atlantic Canada.

We are training more doctors and more nurses at both Dalhousie University and Cape Breton University, and we are fast-tracking the immigration stream for doctors to come to Nova Scotia - all contained and supported with this budget. We are increasing the collaborative care centres because this is how health care workers have told us they want to work.

We are investing in research for ovarian cancer, the first province in Canada to do that. Our mothers, our daughters, our sisters and our friends will be impacted by the positive results of this research. Budget 2020-21 is an investment to address human trafficking and sexual exploitation - sadly, the fastest growing crime in Canada, with devastating effects on victims and their families. Our budget will support that work.

There are also investments to sustain and expand supports for those suffering from mental health addictions. Also, to protect our youth, provisions within this budget for vaping and smoking. The research tells us that lung disease from both is prevalent and may even lead to death. Our Chief Medical Officer of Health and his counterparts across Canada have expressed significant concern about the amount of youth vaping. We will address that in this budget. The research shows us that not only the nicotine content is harmful but there are other ingredients, chemicals in the liquid, that medical research identifies as dangerous to one's health.

Budget 2020-21 supports both small and large businesses. These are the businesses that drive our economy. They employ thousands of Nova Scotians. They are keeping our employment high; they are keeping our unemployment low. They want Nova Scotia to be competitive and we are supporting their initiatives.

We are showing support in this budget for the workers in the forest sector. We are investing in programs that will help the self-employed contractors, the foresters, the truckers, the sawmill owners and operators, the woodlot owners, and all those involved in the sector. Those provisions are in this budget.

In our capital budget for 2020-21, we have a major focus on infrastructure. These are facilities that are needed in all our communities across the province. Whether it's health care, education or highways, they support a healthy domestic economy. They will serve Nova Scotians for decades. The professionals working there, and the patients or students using the facility will have a new modern facility in which to work, live, and learn.

[Page 6151]

We are also improving the safety on our highways with our capital plan, our twinning projects. Mr. Speaker, we recognize the need and we have responded. We are also, in Budget 2020-21, investing and showing our confidence in our youth, in our next generation. For example, Hope Blooms is a great facility for mentoring in entrepreneurships and life skills. We are providing and producing a highly motivated, skilled, and educated workforce. Graduate to Opportunity connects our young people to an employer. They could be small or large businesses. Our co-operative programs, our bursaries, loan forgiveness program, and forgiving the loan for NSCC students, all in this 2020-21 budget.

Mr. Speaker, these investments speak to just a few of the programs to support Nova Scotians whose lives will be made better because of this budget. It includes those most in need. They will benefit directly or indirectly from our investments. I've heard Opposition members who have been very critical of this budget and who suggest that they cannot or will not support it. But what are they actually saying?

Are they saying no to our support for children living in poverty? Are they saying no to low income families benefitting from more money in their pockets? Are they saying no to...

THE SPEAKER « » : Order please. The honourable Minister of Finance and Treasury Board has the floor.

HON. KAREN CASEY « » : Are they saying no to those four-year-olds and their parents who can benefit from a free pre-Primary program? Are they saying no to children and youth who benefit greatly through child youth and family support programs like Big Brothers Big Sisters? Are they saying no to adults and children with disabilities? Are they saying no to adults who have intellectual challenges, who benefit from social enterprise groups?

Are they saying no to families in need of affordable housing and affordable renters' program supports? Are they saying no to the homeless who are sleeping on our streets with no place to call home? Are they saying no to women and children seeking safety and shelter from domestic abuse? Are they saying no to a minimum wage for workers and their families? Are they saying no to women, mothers, daughters, sisters, and friends impacted by ovarian cancer? Are they saying no to young girls exploited by human trafficking?

[4:45 p.m.]

[Page 6152]

Mr. Speaker, I could go on. These are the Nova Scotians who will benefit from Budget 2020-21. These are the Nova Scotians who are supported by this side of the House. It remains to be seen if there will be unanimous support in this House to support a budget that speaks to those Nova Scotians in need. We as a government will continue to do the right thing. We will continue to be better together.

Mr. Speaker, I now move to close debate on third reading of Bill No. 243. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 243, the Financial Measures (2020) Act. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye.

There has been a call for a recorded vote. We will ring the bells until the Whips are satisfied.

[4:47 p.m.]

[The Division bells were rung.]

THE SPEAKER « » : Order, please. Just before we proceed with the recorded vote on Bill No. 243, I would like to remind all members to remain completely silent while the Clerks record your vote. When your name is called, please stand tall and state a simple "Yea" or "Nay."

[The Clerk calls the roll.]

[4:56 p.m.]

YEAS	NAYS
Mr. Churchill	Mr. Dunn
Mr. Furey	Mr. Bain
Ms. Regan	Ms. Masland
Mr. MacLellan	Ms. MacFarlane
Mr. McNeil	Mr. Houston
Ms. Casey	Ms. Chender
Mr. Wilson	Ms. Roberts
Mr. Delorey	Ms. Susan Leblanc
Mr. Colwell	Ms. Adams
Mr. Glavine	Mr. Lohr
Mr. Kousoulis	Mr. Halman
Ms. Miller	Mr. Rushton
Mr. Porter	Mr. Craig

[Page 6153]

Mr. Hines	Ms. Smith-McCrossin
Ms. Metlege Diab	Mr. Johns
Mr. Ince	Mr. Comer
Mr. Rankin	Mr. Colton LeBlanc
Mr. Mombourquette	Mr. Ryan
Ms. Arab	Mr. Harrison
Mr. Horne
Mr. Jessome
Mr. Maguire
Ms. Lohnes-Croft
Ms. DiCostanzo
Mr. Irving
Ms. Paon

THE CLERK « » : For, 26. Against, 19.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is carried.

Ordered that this bill do pass. Ordered that the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

[5:00 p.m.]

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, would you please call Bill No. 233.

Bill No. 233 - Smoke-free Places Act and Tobacco Access Act.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Health and Wellness.

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill No. 233, the Smoke-free Places Act and Tobacco Access Act, be now read a third time and do pass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Sackville-Beaver Bank.

BRAD JOHNS « » : Mr. Speaker, I would be remiss if I did not take an opportunity to stand up and speak on this very quickly. It is very disappointing and disheartening that the Progressive Conservative caucus, as well as the NDP caucus, brought forward very well-thought-out amendments that would have strengthened this bill, that would have helped to address the concerns of youth vaping in this province. They were amendments that, in consultation with the industry, would have addressed the concerns of the vapers and would have addressed the concerns of the industry. Most importantly, they would have addressed the rate of youth vaping in Nova Scotia. It was a compromise position that would have addressed that issue of youth vaping.

[Page 6154]

Unfortunately, however, they were all turned down. We will not be supporting this bill at this time for that reason. Hopefully at some point in the future the government will see that they probably should have passed those.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham.

LISA ROBERTS « » : I am going to speak a little bit to my personal sense of great frustration at the rushed nature of this legislative session, largely as a result of this issue. This is an issue that really matters. It's an issue where government action or lack of adequate action has an effect on the health outcomes of young Nova Scotians.

It is an issue that came on my radar when I picked up my son from a playdate and ended up having a bit of a conversation with two other parents who were talking about how some young kids from the junior high nearby had been coming into this neighbourhood and vaping in this greenspace where my son and his friend were playing.

I literally was not just gobsmacked - I was completely befuddled. I did not know what we were talking about. That's the benefit of being a mom of kids who are just a little bit too little to get into certain kinds of trouble.

That happened right at around the same time that Dr. Monika Dutt, whoM some of you may know - she has run for the NDP before, but she has also been a Medical Officer of Health - shared on her personal Facebook - because we are friends - that she had been at the playground with her son. There was some garbage that she picked up, and she said, oh, somebody lost their USB. Her son said, no, Mom, that's a JUUL. She was like, what's a JUUL?

She shared this and I was curious. She shared a TED Talk by a doctor in the United States who has done a lot of research on how JUUL, in particular, IS marketed - and, in fact, now they are being investigated in the United States - targeting youth with these very small devices that are very easy to hide, that don't produce smoke, so you can use them in bathrooms. It's extremely difficult for principals, vice-principals, or teachers to know that it's happening.

I got very concerned about this because it's such an obvious example of how a destructive industry aimed at profit is basically disrupting advances that were made over so many decades with public health. I still remember when my weekly chores involved emptying ashtrays; I remember there were multiple ones in my house, there were multiple ones in my grandparents' house. I remember when a family dinner would end with five adults around the table smoking. There's been a tremendous change in my lifetime, and that a company would be seeking to undo that progress for me is really alarming and, really, a clarion call for government to act effectively in a way that addresses that threat.

[Page 6155]

Shortly after those couple of events, shortly after my awareness, shortly after I became aware of this issue, I brought it up at the caucus table. Sure enough, there were several people who had experiences of being former smokers who vaped. Also there was an experience of a mom of a teenager and she had discovered that this was something that he had experimented with. I was like, oh my gosh, not only was I not aware of it, I really should have been aware of it because this is happening right now.

My former colleague, Tammy Martin, and I met with Dr. Robert Strang. He shared with me that the medical officers of health, last April, had already issued a statement. All the medical officers of health across the country had come together and raised alarms about this and said that, ". . . governments at all levels need to continue to create environments that prevent youth vaping by strengthening regulatory frameworks and policies that restrict access and availability and reduce the appeal of vaping products to youth."

That's just a part of it. It also said, ". . . we recognize that for adult smokers, switching completely to vaping is a less harmful alternative to smoking. That said, vaping exposes users to harmful chemicals and the long-term health effects are unknown." So, the medical officers of health said act, and also there's a balance to be struck.

I guess for me, the challenge of our rushed legislative sitting is that I am leaving feeling uncertain that this government - and when I speak in that way, I actually do include all of us - that we are participating in as legislators is responding adequately to the context and to the challenge that is before us.

Many things are available for this government to do through changes to regulation. The changes that it announced in December banning flavours is, it is able to do that - it is able to do that now under regulations - and this particular bill is largely just tweaking the legislative framework under which the government can make regulations. We could be going further.

We could be going further, and it really angers me, frankly, that the response of the government at this point really seems to leave untouched those JUULs - those small devices that are easy to sell, that are easy to buy at gas stations and convenience stores, that don't produce smoke that you can use in a junior high school bathroom - that are extremely high in nicotine.

I think part of being a good legislator has to be having some humility. You have to be able to learn and absorb information from other perspectives and let it land with you and get curious about it, and figure out how you maybe adjust plans or how one might adjust plans to respond to that learning.

So, to go back to the beginning of my comment, I resent that this legislative session has been so rushed because it has made it impossible - and not just for us on this side where frankly we do not have a lot of power as long as you have more numbers than we do. It makes it impossible for the government to even have the opportunity to find humility and to learn and to adjust its course to accept that when Nova Scotians show up, that some of them - or maybe many of them - are showing up wanting to share their experience, their knowledge, and wanting the government to genuinely listen.

[Page 6156]

It's been said before that the Committee on Law Amendments process is unusual, it's kind of unique to Nova Scotia. I was having dinner with my folks on Sunday night - my folks who are feeding my kids supper tonight. M dad, who is not the most radically progressive man ever, and I was describing to him the hours that we were sitting, the hours that we expected we would be sitting this week before we passed the last pieces of legislation. He's like, it's like they're making a mockery of democracy. And I was like, exactly. We're not even engaging with good conscience and intent, fulsomely, in processes that we have arrived at because it enables us to do a better job as legislators.

I've been reading this book by David Moscrop, Too Dumb for Democracy, and one of the sections I was just reading is that oftentimes we're not going to agree on the outcomes. Obviously, there are reasons that we are in different Parties and different caucuses - it's because we don't share the same priorities, we don't have the same ideas. But part of democracy is actually agreeing on the process. The process in this House is that there is a first reading, there is a second reading, and there is a Committee on Law Amendments. After the Committee on Law Amendments, there is a Committee of the Whole House.

We can bring amendments into the Committee on Law Amendments. The public can suggest amendments in the Committee on Law Amendments. We can bring those back to the Committee of the Whole House and then we get to decide. I have not yet seen a substantive engagement with that process to the benefit of Nova Scotians. Frankly, at the pace at which this legislative session has gone, I can't cognitively engage in the information and in learning adequately so that I would even know how to suggest that we might do so.

We will support this piece of legislation because it is enabling the government to exercise regulatory powers which befit it. But on this issue, which this bill is speaking to, I feel like we have missed an opportunity, and that is making a mockery of democracy.

THE SPEAKER « » : If I recognize the minister it will be to close the debate.

The honourable Minister of Health and Wellness.

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : Mr. Speaker, as the members would know, this particular piece of legislation does respond to concerns which I think have been expressed by the other Parties, and that is the rapid growth of vaping. To the members' concerns about whether or not this government adjusts or takes information that's presented to us as we move legislation forward, in fact we do.

[Page 6157]

The last time these pieces of legislation were amended in 2014-15, we were banning and bringing in the first-time legislative and regulatory authority over vaping products and e-cigarettes in the province of Nova Scotia. At the same time, I believe, we became the first jurisdiction in North America to ban flavours in traditional tobacco products. While we were doing that, the intent was to actually keep e-cigarettes treated the same as tobacco products. At that time we listened to Nova Scotians, we listened to members of the Opposition, and we stepped back from the banning of flavours for e-cigarettes, vaping products.

What did we get for it? We end up where we are today. So we continue to move forward. Just to put the member's mind at ease as to whether or not this government listens and the public has the opportunity to inform and influence, in fact, they do. We as government have a responsibility to the people of Nova Scotia to assess what the outcomes of our legislation are and to adapt and adjust accordingly. That is why this legislation is back before us as legislators just a couple of years later, to address that gap. We listen to people and so we've made those changes.

[5:15 p.m.]

We are going to address the availability and the access, not through this legislation but through the Financial Measures (2020) Act that we passed earlier today, which brings the requirement to license as well as the taxation of these products to the Province of Nova Scotia. The commitment is that we will continue to monitor and assess, and if further adjustments or restrictions are necessary I believe governments will continue to do it.

I think the Smoke-free Places Act and the Tobacco Access Act are some of the most frequently amended legislation because all of us in this Legislature and all Nova Scotians recognize the importance of us keeping our public, and in particular our youth, safe.

We have learned a lot - not just our government but governments across the board - from past practices, lobbying, advertising, and so forth, and perhaps from inaccurate claims being brought forward to health officials and governments from industry, in particular in the tobacco space. We keep that in mind as we continue to adjust.

We already have restricted - and that will go into effect on April 1^st through regulations - flavours in e-cigarette products. We are putting controls in place to reduce the nicotine concentration. That will be enforced through regulation, and that gives us the ability to adjust on the fly. We don't have to come back to the Legislature to further restrict as new information and evidence comes in, which is why we were able to move a little quicker with the flavours, because back in 2014-15 we gave ourselves that authority.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I appreciate everyone's feedback and support for this legislation as we move it through the process. I move to close third reading on Bill No. 233, the Smoke-free Places Act and the Tobacco Access Act.

[Page 6158]

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 233. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

Ordered that this bill do pass. Ordered that the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, would you please call Bill No. 240.

Bill No. 240 - Life Partners in Long-term Care Act.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Health and Wellness.

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill No. 240 be now read for a third time and do pass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage.

BARBARA ADAMS « » : Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to stand and speak in favour of this bill. We in the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia are in favour of a great many things, especially good governance and wise spending of money, but when it comes to our most valued members of society - our seniors - we certainly are in favour of anything that makes their lives better.

I would like to restate that this bill does not go quite far enough. It does not ensure that veterans and spouses are united in the same facility. We have missed an opportunity, and hopefully the next time around, when it does come back before the Legislature, we will have an opportunity to do so.

With those few words, I will take my seat.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth North.

SUSAN LEBLANC « » : Mr. Speaker, I am happy to stand and speak to this bill. We in the New Democratic Party support this legislation. We believe that allowing couples to stay together while receiving long-term care is both sensible and humane. I repeat, we support this legislation.

Long-term care patients, their partners, and those who manage care facilities should be empowered to exercise good judgment and make choices that will enhance patients' quality of life.

[Page 6159]

Clarifying a definition of "life partnership" that clearly includes non- heteronormative couples is also a very welcome update. All couples in this province deserve to be recognized and treated with dignity and we understand this as an important part of health and well-being.

Parts of this Act are both progressive and practical, and we appreciate the ways in which this legislation intends to improve the lives of couples placed in long-term care, but it is my job as an Opposition member to point out a few other things.

I want to ask, what about the many Nova Scotians who need long-term care and are not getting it? About 20 per cent of acute-care beds in this province are occupied by patients who are awaiting long-term care placement. Hundreds of people are being hospitalized or are hospitalized who do not need hospital treatment. This misuse of resources is simply not acceptable.

We need more long-term care beds. We need to address staffing shortages and give facilities more support. Until we do, facilities will be compromised in their ability to provide quality care that seniors deserve.

Once again, we must stress that the Liberals have known about these problems for a long time. The advocates for the care of the elderly declared that long-term care was in crisis as early as 2013. The government received a recommendation to appoint an expert panel on the issue in 2017. It took them 18 months just to strike a committee. Long-term care is in crisis, and the government's response has consistently been inadequate and glacial.

We support the important change to how couples are treated in long-term care facilities proposed by this bill - absolutely we do - but we are still waiting for this government to treat the issue of long-term care with the urgency it merits.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cape Breton-Richmond.

ALANA PAON « » : I just want to say a few words to Bill No. 240, Life Partners in Long-term Care. I would reiterate some of the words, actually, just spoken by the two other members here on this side of the floor.

We are very fortunate in Cape Breton-Richmond to have a veterans' wing in the St. Anne Nursing Home. I know many of the veterans who are in there; they are part of my community. I agree with the member for Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage that we should be doing everything we can to ensure that those members who have served in the Canadian Armed Forces are assured that they do not have to be separated from their life partners nearing the end of their lives. It's the most humane step that we can take to ensure that people who have not only served their country, but also have been a part of our province - some of them all of their lives - have the care and the support that they need, both partners.

[Page 6160]

I would also say that we do have an extreme shortage of long-term care in my constituency as well. It's the same thing all across Nova Scotia.

As much as this bill is certainly a step in the right direction and I'm fully supportive of it, I would also like to see steps taken to make certain that we do have the long-term care beds available so that there's not such a backlog in our regional hospitals and our local hospitals, such as the Strait-Richmond Hospital. We have acute care beds that are being utilized as holding, basically, for long-term care beds until they become available.

With those few words, Mr. Speaker, I'll take my seat.

THE SPEAKER « » : If I recognize the minister it will be to close the debate.

The honourable Minister of Health and Wellness.

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : I thank my colleagues for their remarks and their fundamental support for the principles and this piece of legislation.

Just briefly to the concerns that were raised, I believe these were discussed in second reading, but with respect to the application to veterans, as I've previously stated, we view this as something that applies to all Nova Scotians. We do not control the definitions as defined by Veterans Affairs Canada, but we are certainly engaged in those conversations to ensure that we find a path forward that supports the implementation of this in such a way that it meets both the veterans and the spouses, or partners of the veterans, in moving forward to ensure that this gets implemented equitably across the province. Again, I think to address that side.

To the other side, about the availability of long-term beds within the province, as the members would know, we've already announced over 160 long-term care beds throughout the province, the first 30 of which are expected to come on stream within the first quarter of this coming fiscal year here in the Central Zone.

The NDP member's reference of an outdated piece of data was clarified during Estimates Debate earlier this sitting. It is about 8 per cent - still too high - and that's about 190 people in Nova Scotia waiting for a long-term care facility in a hospital setting. As I said, with 160 new beds already announced, it is a significant contribution and commitment to move towards addressing the hospital, in particular, but broader wait-lists for long-term care.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I move to close third reading on Bill No. 240, Life Partners in Long-term Care Act.

[Page 6161]

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 240. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

Ordered that this bill do pass. Ordered that the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker would you please call Bill No. 246.

Bill No. 246 - Opioid Damages and Health-care Costs Recovery Act.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Minister of Health and Wellness.

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill No. 246, the Opioid Damages and Health-care Costs Recovery Act, now be read for a third time and do pass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Kings North.

JOHN LOHR « » : Mr. Speaker, we in the PC caucus certainly support this bill. We realize that it is an attempt - and it remains to be seen whether it will be successful or not - to join with other provinces' lawsuits against big pharmaceuticals, that the evidence is in that they knew that the opiates were very addictive and did not reveal that to doctors.

If there is an opportunity to recoup any of the costs associated with that, that have occurred in this province, we are certainly in favour of that.

I will say - and I know the government would agree - that no amount of money will ever account for the human cost of lives lost, damaged, and altered because of the opioid crisis. I want to recognize that. We know that many people in the province have had their families, their lives, altered or lost, which is a tragedy. If anything can be recouped, even if it's simply money, we are certainly in favour of that.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham

LISA ROBERTS « » : Mr. Speaker, we in the NDP caucus certainly understand that opioid addiction is a serious issue in our province. Opioids including fentanyl and pain relievers such as OxyContin and Vicodin, among others, are essentially prescription heroin. They are notoriously addictive and have become a significant health concern.

We support the legal right of the government to seek recovery of health care costs incurred from opioid-related disease, illness, and injury, particularly when the product does not include sufficient warning or knowledge of possible risks.

[Page 6162]

While this Act highlights the opioid crisis and health issues associated with it, it's also important to note that it is in direct opposition to the Financial Measures Act in which it is asserted that the government cannot be sued for damages incurred for gambling-related problems.

We agree that the government should be able to sue to recover health care costs associated with opioids through legal action against companies and manufacturers. Similarly, we feel that Nova Scotians should be able to sue the government for losses and personal devastation associated with gambling, another dangerous addiction.

Investing in support for all those living with addiction is crucial for our province's health care, health, and well-being. I feel like we've spoken a lot about addiction in this session of the Legislature: we've spoken about alcohol; we've spoken about gambling; we've spoken about e-cigarettes; and we've spoken about opioids. I feel like a whole part of the conversation has been missing, perhaps because it's not particularly relevant to the legislation, the specific pieces of legislation, or the particular political issues that have presented themselves.

I feel like I'd like to remind us all that, like almost every other health issue and health manifestation, addiction is very much influenced by the social determinants of health, particularly freedom from discrimination and violence; social inclusion; and access to economic resources. All are really relevant social determinants of health when it comes to addiction.

As well, 50 per cent of people who experience addiction also have a mental illness. It's been said that the opposite of addiction is connection, and I hope that, not necessarily through this specific piece of legislation but through our budgets and through our policy proposals and through our general leadership in this province, we can work towards reducing some of the factors that drive addiction as well as responding to it. Thank you.

[5:30 p.m.]

THE SPEAKER « » : If I recognize the minister it will be to close the debate.

The honourable Minister of Health and Wellness.

HON. RANDY DELOREY « » : Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for their remarks supporting this piece of legislation. I appreciate the insights.

To the last member's comments, we as a government, as the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board outlined earlier this evening, do believe in investing to support those Nova Scotians most in need and in working to address and invest in addressing many of those social determinants of health such as housing affordability and availability, as well as the income needs of Nova Scotians. That was addressed in debate through the Financial Measures (2020) Act as well as much of this session, which was dedicated to debating the budget through Estimates and Supply. I share those concerns on this side of the House as well.

[Page 6163]

With those few words, Mr. Speaker, I move that third reading of Bill No. 246, the Opioid Damages and Health-care Costs Recovery Act, now be closed.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 246. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

Ordered that this bill do pass. Ordered that the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : At this point, I'd like to ask the House for unanimous consent to move Bill No. 245 from the Committee of the Whole House on Bills into third reading immediately. The member for Lunenburg West will be happy to speak to the bill.

It's very innocuous. It's a cemetery bill - we've done many of these - that basically takes a 100-year-old piece of legislation and regulation and moves the responsibility from a commission that's long defunct to a particular town. In this case, it's Bridgewater.

With the indulgence of the House, we would go to unanimous consent to have that third reading at this point.

THE SPEAKER « » : Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

[PRIVATE AND LOCAL BILLS FOR THIRD READING]

Bill No. 245 - Brookside Cemetery Commission Dissolution Act.

THE SPEAKER « » : We'll now turn it over to the honourable Minister of Justice, the member for Lunenburg West, for third reading of Bill No. 245.

The honourable member for Lunenburg West.

[Page 6164]

HON. MARK FUREY « » : The Government House Leader articulated the very circumstances of the bill. This is a request of the town.

With those few comments, I move that Bill No. 245, the Brookside Cemetery Commission Dissolution Act, be now read a third time and do pass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 245. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

Ordered that this bill do pass. Ordered that the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Would you please call the order of business, Private Members' Public Bills for Third Reading.

PRIVATE MEMBERS' PUBLIC BILLS FOR THIRD READING

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, would you please call Bill No. 241.

Bill No. 241 - Change of Name Act.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Queens-Shelburne.

KIM MASLAND « » : I move that Bill No. 241, Change of Name Act, be now read a third time and do pass.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth South.

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : I'm pleased to rise and just say a couple of words about this bill. We in the NDP caucus are pleased to support this bill. We are also pleased, despite some of our other comments this evening, to see the government's willingness to take suggestions from this side of the House for legislation, both the PC caucus' and our own legislation. We're happy to see that co-operation and to see these bills moving forward. We would love more chance to debate these bills, as we have said, but in this case, I want to congratulate my colleague and support her on this bill.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cape Breton-Richmond.

[Page 6165]

ALANA PAON « » : I just want to say a couple of things about Bill No. 241, the Change of Name bill. I am glad to see that this piece of legislation was put forward by my colleague in the PC caucus.

We need to do as much as we can in this province to protect those people who obviously are most vulnerable. This is, again, what I call a no-brainer in being able to pass something like this. To think about having someone in our community who would have changed their name to try to avoid being known, obviously, and would be on the National Sex Offender Registry is really terrifying. Again, I commend my colleague on the PC caucus and I commend all members of this House, obviously including the government side, in being in favour of a bill that really is to the betterment of protection of all Nova Scotians. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 241. Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried. (Applause)

Ordered that this bill do pass. Ordered that the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, would you please call Bill No. 242.

Bill No. 242 - Protecting Access to Reproductive Health Care Act.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Dartmouth South.

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise and speak to Bill No. 242, and I hope the House will indulge me with just a few comments.

We've heard a great deal about this bill. We've heard a great deal of support and some opposition.

I move that this bill be read a third time and do pass, and I'd like to make some comments. I'm new at this.

I want to talk a little bit about what's in this bill. Simply put, this bill prevents anyone from besetting, interfering with, attempting to persuade, filming, or photographing anyone attempting to access abortion services in a prescribed access zone, often referred to as a bubble zone, of around 50 metres, around what is defined in this Act as a facility. This could include a hospital, clinic, physician's office, pharmacy, or other premises prescribed by the regulations, which could be the home of a physician, for instance.

[Page 6166]

This bill brings us in line with several other Canadian provinces and the hope is that it will open an ongoing conversation about other actions that need to be taken to ensure that women have full autonomy over their own bodies, and appropriate and even access to reproductive health care.

I want to be clear, Mr. Speaker. This bill is not a response to real or perceived threat of violence right now. Luckily, we haven't seen any violence related to the provision of abortion services here in Nova Scotia. It is possible to access abortion services around this province, often without interruption or harassment. We, especially in the NDP caucus, often talk about upstream efforts and if you like, this could be seen as one of those. We want to ensure the safety of women accessing reproductive health care and of abortion providers. We want to ensure that people are free of harassment, specifically harassment related to the services they are attempting to access.

The question will be raised, Mr. Speaker, is this really necessary? The genesis of this bill here in Nova Scotia, in addition to coming into line with other provinces, was the experience of Megan Boudreau and others who witnessed women walking past protesters at the Women's Choice Clinic here in Halifax, who empathized with women who may experience harassment when attempting to access reproductive health care, and who decided to act. Similar legislation is in force in five other Canadian provinces - British Columbia, Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and Quebec.

The first bill of this kind, the Access to Abortion Services Act, was passed in British Columbia in 1995 after years of heavy and aggressive protesting at two B.C. abortion clinics and the shooting of reproductive health care provider Dr. Gary Romalis in November of that year. In each of these jurisdictions the legislation was debated and passed with a majority of legislative support, with the exception of Alberta, where Opposition Parties refused to debate or even vote on the bill, which passed into law regardless.

Against this backdrop, Mr. Speaker, I am particularly pleased that we seem to have the support of the majority of MLAs in this Legislature, as it should be. Beyond that, I am pleased that we are able to debate it together, even those who have issues. That's what this is for.

I respect my colleagues for coming forward with arguments and opinions, whatever they may be. The legislation in all these other provinces has been passed into law but the question has been asked and will continue to be asked: Is it constitutional? According to the courts in British Columbia and the highest court of the land, yes, it is. It is a justifiable infringement on our freedom of expression under Section 1 of the Charter because the restriction is narrow, and the objective of that restriction is to protect the right to safety, dignity, and privacy of patients and providers.

Access to reproductive health care has been a right guaranteed to women for decades but for decades the availability has been uneven, and access has been difficult. Those two issues - availability and access - are linked. Abortion services are ensured in all provinces and territories, however, access to these services varies. Despite this and, although it did not come easily, the good news is that access to reproductive health care in Nova Scotia is better than it has been.

[Page 6167]

I say this because I know it to be true and important and because I have been asked by clinicians and advocates who want to be sure that the debate and passage of this legislation doesn't mistakenly scare women into thinking that they will encounter difficulty in that access. Women can self-refer in Nova Scotia due to strong advocacy and to action by the Department of Health and Wellness. Mifegymiso, what's known as medical abortion - two pills that can be prescribed by a physician and taken at home - is now widely available. There are 24 prescribers in the Women's Choice Clinic, plus more family doctors not in the network.

But there are gaps. There's currently no access to surgical abortion on Cape Breton Island. That means that for whatever reason - for preference, for medical reasons, for reasons related to trauma or otherwise - a woman on Cape Breton Island seeking an abortion after nine weeks of gestation must travel to Halifax to receive services. Similarly, St. Martha's Hospital in Antigonish has a long-standing policy against providing medical abortion, leaving women in that community at a similar disadvantage.

Access to abortion care is still mostly provided in large, urban centres. Women in smaller communities or in rural areas without doctors who will prescribe Mifegymiso and without hospitals who will perform surgical abortions still have to travel to the major centres that provide care. Women can access these procedures currently at the QEII, the South Shore Regional, the Valley Regional and the Colchester-East Hants Health Centre. Four sites in our whole province. That is uneven access.

Reproductive health care is about more than access to abortion services, and we have farther to go. Here's one example, we know there are women in Nova Scotia who have had more than one surgical abortion. We don't know why, statistically, and to be honest it's none of our business. Here's what we do know. Many of these women request an intrauterine device, or IUD, when they undergo the procedure. Maybe they can't take the birth control pill for medical reasons, maybe their partner won't let them or refuses to wear a condom - there could be many reasons.

The Women's Choice Clinic is often unable to comply with these requests. Why? Because the cost of an IUD is $400 and is not covered by MSI. But here's the kicker: some Nova Scotians without private insurance do have access to IUDs with just a $5 co-pay. Who? Income assistance recipients. Why? We cover abortion services, but we don't cover the birth control that would render it unnecessary in some cases.

I hope the Minister of Health and Wellness will consider providing a remedy for this inconsistency and cover IUDs, just as the decision was made by his department in 2017 to cover Mifegymiso.

[Page 6168]

We heard so many moving presentations at the Committee on Law Amendments, and I would be remiss if I didn't share some of the reflections we heard in this Chamber. We heard about the volunteers, usually university students who show up where these protests take place and walk women to their appointment safely. Compellingly, we heard from Dr. Melissa Brooks, co-director of the Women's Choice Clinic at the QEII in Halifax, who spoke about working with Dr. Gary Romalis, the B.C. physician I mentioned earlier whose experiences with being violently attacked for his provision of abortion services were the genesis of the first legislation of this kind.

Dr. Brooks spoke of her initial fear of coming forward on this topic and of how this bill would serve the dual purpose of making her feel safer, her patients feel safer and thereby increase the visibility and the availability of reproductive health services for women. In particular, her focus is on convincing clinicians in rural areas to provide medical abortions in their offices.

[5:45 p.m.]

We heard from three people who spoke in opposition to this bill, Mr. Speaker. Although their language framed the issue in Constitutional terms, mainly freedom of expression, their actual issue appeared to be around abortion as a moral wrong and as a procedure that should not be performed. As discussed earlier, this bill does not limit people's freedom of expression. People are still very free to peacefully protest this service.

We are protecting women's access to reproductive health care free from harassment, and clinicians' ability to provide these services free from fear. We support choice, Mr. Speaker. In the opposition to this bill that I have heard, both in committee and in this Chamber, what I heard expressed was the desire for choice and autonomy, ironically, for people to possess and express their anti-abortion views.

We support that, Mr. Speaker. In fact, we disagree with any position that would have the net effect of reducing women's autonomy around health care decisions impacting them. We respect differing viewpoints and people's right to hold them. In this case, I respectfully disagree with the assertion that there are two sides to the issue of whether or not women should face harassment when attempting to access reproductive health care. If there are, then I have not heard a good argument about why women should be harassed.

There are people who oppose a woman's right to autonomy over her body and health care decisions, but that is not the subject of this bill, Mr. Speaker. To those people, I can only say that we vigorously disagree and that our position is in accord with international law, federal law, provincial law, common law, and Supreme Court of Canada precedent. Women's autonomy over their own bodies is no longer a subject for debate. We have so much further to go than this bill to ensure that this is and remains the case.

[Page 6169]

Much of the discussion around abortion, Mr. Speaker, focuses on trauma. There is an assumption that abortion is a traumatic event. Certainly being made to experience shame and harassment is traumatic. As the Minister responsible for the Advisory Council on the Status of Women pointed out in her comments at second reading, it is not always the case. It can be a health care decision, a family decision. In the end it is a decision, one that is a woman's to make.

Thank you to the government for moving this bill forward without amendments and to all members in this Chamber who support the passage of this bill. It was very moving to hear so many of my colleagues - the women of this Chamber, in particular - speak in support of this bill and share some of their own stories. So many people have remarked on how unusual the tenor of this room was on that evening, Mr. Speaker. It was because we were speaking about our own experiences and the experiences of our friends, of our mothers, and of our grandmothers. We were speaking truth.

I know there are other opinions held here too, and there is no requirement that we all think alike. The debate changes significantly when we speak from the heart about the issues that impact us directly. While many men do not need to consider access to basic health care, most women do. This Chamber is still predominantly male. We often hear legislation discussed that we have no direct experience of. So often, the legislation that impacts women is discussed in terms of our wives and our daughters, but not this one. As we heard at second reading, this one is about us. You know what? The rest of it is about us too.

With this proposal and with all actions that seek to increase the ability of women to access health care free from harassment, we are keenly aware that harassment and impediment can be experienced differently by different women, especially those who are already vulnerable. Some women seeking access to abortion services may be well versed in their health and in their rights to access it, and some may be scared, may not be properly informed, and may feel shame and fear. It is for those women, who are doubly disadvantaged, that we seek to make these changes.

I have implied with these words that most men do not need to be concerned about access to health care. There is, of course, a qualification: disabled men, trans men, and racialized men certainly have differential access. At the heart of this bill is the idea that we should all, each of us, have autonomy over our own bodies and the ability to access timely medical care free of intimidation and harassment. It seems simple, but for so long, so many of us have not had that autonomy.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud of my colleagues for standing today in support of this bill which takes us one step further. I want to acknowledge that the choice to support this bill may be difficult for some. For some it may take courage. For those whose faith makes it difficult to acknowledge that women have the right to access legal health care, for some who may prefer not to discuss this issue at all, it is not comfortable, not in here and not most places.

[Page 6170]

As my colleague, the member for Clayton Park West pointed out, it is somewhat astonishing the time we have spent in this Chamber talking about periods and abortions and tampons, but, Mr. Speaker, that is as it should be. I don't need to remind anyone in here that women make up half of the population and that women's issues are all of our issues.

In closing, I'd like to thank my colleagues for their courage in considering, debating and hopefully in passing this bill. In the words of Maya Angelou, "I am convinced that courage is the most important of all virtues. Because without courage, you cannot practice any other virtue consistently."

We make laws in this Chamber; we make them for everyone. Thank you to my colleagues for the courage to consider this issue, and to the government for moving this legislation forward. Thank you most of all to the doctors, nurses, clinicians, activists, feminists, men, women and people who continue to advocate for a woman's right to make decisions over their own health care and to access that health care free from interference. Thank you. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Premier.

THE PREMIER « » : Mr. Speaker, first of all I want to thank all those who have participated in this debate with their passion. I am always very proud of the men and women who I serve with, particularly the women whom I serve with in this caucus who show so much strength, but this debate, quite frankly, demonstrated the strength of so many people here.

If the honourable member doesn't mind, I would like to actually just associate myself with her words. I think you eloquently and gracefully demonstrated why this bill is so important and why it should be supported by all members of this House, regardless of our gender.

I really want to thank you for your passionate expression of what happened. I want to tell you, as we listened to you and the issues that you highlighted that are still a problem, with the IUDs in places, I will tell you that I will commit to you in this House today that we will go back to our government to look at whether regulations can deal with that issue, because this is about health and safety and this is about ensuring for choice.

On behalf of our government, on behalf of this side of the House, I am honoured to stand and support your bill. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable Leader of the Official Opposition.

[Page 6171]

TIM HOUSTON « » : Mr. Speaker, I also want to thank the member for bringing this forward. Nobody in this province who is accessing or delivering health care should have to approach a facility in fear. Nobody should worry that somebody is going to protest their right to receive a medical service or their right to deliver a medical service and women should certainly not be subjected to intimidation, harassment or interference.

For me this bill ensures specifically that women are able to access health care in Nova Scotia without fearing for their safety. That is a good thing, Mr. Speaker, and for that reason we will also be supporting the bill. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Clayton Park West.

RAFAH DICOSTANZO « » : Mr. Speaker, I just want to thank my colleague from Dartmouth South for the most eloquent command of language for something that is so emotional that my skin is just like this. I just wanted to add one little thing: all the women that I have helped and been with while they are having their abortion, it is one of their hardest decisions and it lasts a lifetime with them. Nobody decides to abort easily or for no reason. These are hard decisions and we need to make them easier for them.

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cape Breton-Richmond.

ALANA PAON « » : Mr. Speaker, thank you for the few moments to speak to this bill. It is encouraging to me, as a woman and as a member of this Legislative Assembly to see, first of all, the eloquent speech made by the member from the NDP caucus. This is a really difficult issue and I understand that it is an issue that can potentially divide a lot of people with regard to the decision to move forward in whether or not to have an abortion, to keep a child, even to put a child up for adoption. There are many different options.

I had spoken on this bill previously. I will be supporting this bill without any reservation. It's so important that we move forward in this province and in our country in understanding that no one has the right to make a decision with what a woman should be doing with her own body. No one has the right to touch or influence a woman's body in any way, as well.

I shared a bit of my own experience with this House the last time that I spoke. I can only imagine the pain that goes through a woman's mind as she is trying to make the decision of whether or not to carry a child to full gestation. It is a massive responsibility to give birth and to bring up a child. Those of us who are parents in this House can understand that. But I am sure that we can all understand as well that some people decide, and they should always be able to decide. Women should always be able to decide whether or not it is the right time for them to be able to go forward with a pregnancy or not.

I also find it extraordinary that any person in Nova Scotia, woman or a man, would have to feel as though they were threatened in any way or harassed in trying to access any type of health care, whether it be reproductive or any other kind of medical health.

[Page 6172]

I truly believe that this is a bill that's a long time in coming. There are more women who sit in this House now than have ever before. Perhaps the member is correct, there are a lot more issues that come forward that deal directly with women's issues. That's a good thing, Mr. Speaker. Its an excellent thing. As much as perhaps it is difficult for some of us in this House to move forward with the entirety of this bill, I am extremely pleased and will be extremely pleased to see this bill go forward with unanimous consent. (Applause)

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Halifax Needham.

LISA ROBERTS « » : Mr. Speaker, I want to rise mostly to express my appreciation for my caucus colleague, the member for Dartmouth South, who has championed this bill through the Legislature as our House Leader - the first female House Leader in the history of this Legislature (Applause) and express again that I deeply appreciate what I learned in the Law Amendments Committee about this bill. I also had been contacted by a constituent who had witnessed the protests, which she found harassing, near the Women's Choice Clinic.

I thought I appreciated why this legislative proposal was a good idea, but in listening to the various witnesses at committee, I appreciated it much more and differently - both the effect on health care providers which I had not truly contemplated, which is kind of silly and foolish really, because it's not so long ago or so far away that health care providers have experienced great personal peril and even lost their lives as a result of providing reproductive health care services, but also the effect on women.

One of the presenters referred to it as an assertion of social control on women, which I appreciate as a framing. I was raised super-duper Catholic, though I realize now that there are yet more super-duper forms of Catholicism than that which I was raised in. Literally, as a young girl I thought that the single worst thing that could befall me was to find myself pregnant out of wedlock. Little did I know that I would grow up to be 35 and very happily have my first child out of wedlock; and now I have two, and I raise them both with my partner, to whom I am not married.

[6:00 p.m.]

But hearing that framing of the social control of women in that debate made me remember what it felt like to be walking through the world as I was, very much so in my teens and into my twenties, not quite being in my own body but constantly bumping up against social expectations and moral judgments that I had not arrived at on my own or through a libertarian environment.

Also I appreciated - and I think it was Dr. Brooks who brought it into the committee room - the contemplation of where we are right now, not just here in Nova Scotia but across the Western world. Really, every gain that we have made towards anyone's freedom and anyone's right to be not harassed in their seeking of human flourishing, by their own definition, actually needs to be constantly defended.

[Page 6173]

We are doing that with this piece of legislation and we will need to do it again and again. No battle that is worth fighting for the general advance of humanity is ever actually won. We have to keep winning it.

THE SPEAKER « » : If I recognize the member it will be to close the debate.

The honourable member for Dartmouth South.

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : I move that we close debate on Bill No. 242.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is for third reading of Bill No. 242.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

Ordered that this bill do pass and the title be as read by the Clerk. Ordered that the bill be engrossed.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, that concludes the government business. (Interruption) Oh, wow, great catch. Great job by the member for Cumberland South on that save. That very member had identified that to his House Leader, the NDP House Leader, and myself this morning that they had a petition coming this way and they wanted to make sure we got it on the record before the House wrapped for the evening.

With the unanimous consent of the House, we would like to revert back for Presenting and Reading Petitions.

THE SPEAKER « » : Is it agreed?

It is agreed.

PRESENTING AND READING PETITIONS

THE SPEAKER « » : The honourable member for Cumberland South.

TORY RUSHTON « » : Mr. Speaker, I beg leave to present a petition. The operative clause reads as follows:

[Page 6174]

"We the undersigned ask the government of Nova Scotia to pave Ramshead River Road towards and including Yorke Road" in the area of Diligent River.

I thank the government and the House - because of logistics and the short sitting, it was late getting here.

THE SPEAKER « » : The petition is tabled.

The honourable Government House Leader.

HON. GEOFF MACLELLAN « » : Mr. Speaker, that concludes the government's business. I move that the House now recesses, to await the arrival of the Lieutenant Governor.

THE SPEAKER « » : The House will now recess for a few minutes while it awaits the arrival of His Honour.

[6:05 p.m. The House recessed.]

[6:27 p.m. The House reconvened.]

THE SPEAKER « » : Order, please.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: His Honour the Lieutenant Governor is without.

THE SPEAKER « » : Let His Honour the Lieutenant Governor be admitted.

[The Speaker and the Clerks left the Chamber.]

The Lieutenant Governor, the Honourable Arthur J. LeBlanc, preceded by his Private Secretary and by Mr. David Fraser, Sergeant-at-Arms, bearing the Mace, entered the House of Assembly Chamber. The Lieutenant Governor then took his seat on the Throne.

The Sergeant-at-Arms then departed and re-entered the Chamber, followed by the Speaker, the Honourable Kevin Murphy; the Acting Chief Clerk of the House, Annette Boucher; and the Assistant Clerk, Nicole Arsenault.

The Speaker, with the Acting Clerk on his left and the Sergeant-at-Arms and Assistant Clerk on his right, took up his position at the foot of the Table of the House.]

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: It is the wish of His Honour the Lieutenant Governor that the ladies and gentlemen be seated.

[Page 6175]

THE SPEAKER « » : May it please Your Honour, the General Assembly of the Province has, in its present session, passed certain bills to which, in the name and on behalf of the General Assembly, I respectfully request Your Honour's Assent.

[6:30 p.m.]

THE ASSISTANT CLERK « » :

Bill No. 220 - Labour Standards Code.

Bill No. 221 - Labour Standards Code.

Bill No. 223 - University Foundations Act.

Bill No. 225 - Elections Act.

Bill No. 226 - Companies Act.

Bill No. 227 - Legal Aid Act.

Bill No. 228 - Housing Nova Scotia Act.

Bill No. 230 - Municipal Government Act and Halifax Regional Municipality Charter.

Bill No. 232 - Electricity Act.

Bill No. 233 - Smoke-free Places Act and Tobacco Access Act.

Bill No. 234 - House of Assembly Act.

Bill No. 236 - Railways Act.

Bill No. 238 - Insurance Act.

Bill No. 240 - Life Partners in Long-term Care Act.

Bill No. 241 - Change of Name Act.

Bill No. 242 - Protecting Access to Reproductive Health Care Act.

Bill No. 243 - Financial Measures (2020) Act.

[Page 6176]

Bill No. 245 - Brookside Cemetery Commission Dissolution Act.

Bill No. 246 - Opioid Damages and Health-care Costs Recovery Act.

THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR:

In Her Majesty's name, I assent to these bills.

THE SPEAKER « » : Your Honour, having been graciously pleased to give your Assent to the Bills passed during the present session, it becomes my agreeable duty on behalf of Her Majesty's dutiful and loyal subjects, her faithful Commons of Nova Scotia, to present to Your Honour a Bill for the Appropriation of Supply granted in the present session for the support of the Public Service and to request your Honour's Assent thereto.

THE CLERK « » :

Bill No. 259 - Appropriations Act, 2020.

THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR:

In Her Majesty's name, I thank Her loyal subjects, I accept their benevolence, and I assent to this Bill.

[The Speaker and the Clerks left the Chamber.]

[The Lieutenant Governor left the Chamber.]

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: His Honour, the Speaker.

[The Speaker took the Chair.]

THE SPEAKER « » : I would ask the members to please rise and join me in the singing of our national anthem.

[The national anthem was sung by the members.]

THE SPEAKER « » : Please be seated.

The honourable Premier.

THE PREMIER « » : Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Before I ask to adjourn, I would ask all members of the House to join with me in thanking a number of people who made this session possible.

[Page 6177]

First of all, I want to recognize the Pages who are here. All of these guys get paid to be here late hours, but you guys were here with us. The smiles that I see on your faces showed up at late hours of the night, and we want to express our appreciation to you. I say this each and every time I get a chance to do this: you are exactly why we have so much confidence in the future of this province. (Applause)

Mr. Speaker, there are a number of people who keep this facility running. I want to recognize Legislative Television, the Office of the Legislative Counsel, the Clerks - both of you - I want to say thank you to both of you for your work. I think the fact that we had two women running the show is why we are out of here in 13 days. Thank you, Nicole, and thank you, Annette, both of you. (Applause)

The Hansard team, thank you very much. The Legislative Library, the House operations staff - Peter, your first session, thank you. The Committees Office, the Sergeant-at-Arms - David, great, thank you. The commissionaires - thanks very much for all the work that you do. As I said a few minutes ago to the Pages, I just want to express my appreciation to the commissionaires in this building who pleasantly go about doing their work all the time. We are grateful that you're here supporting us. So thank you very much. (Applause)

Halifax Regional Police, the RCMP - they come in handy once in a while. Staff in all caucus offices, constituency assistants, and, of course, the Public Service. I especially want to recognize the men and women who work on behalf of all of us. Those who work for me, many of them do not expect to have their name put on the floor of the Legislature as part of the debate.

I do want to recognize my chief of staff, who has had an extraordinary career outside of this province and came home to make a difference in this province, to help us as a government to implement our policy. She has done this with high integrity and Nova Scotians have recognized that. We're grateful that people who have that level of integrity, who have a work ethic, show up every day to ensure that they improve the lives of the Legislature. They don't deserve to have their names brought to the floor of the Legislature, but I want to thank them for everything they do on behalf of us. (Applause)

Mr. Speaker and members of the House of Assembly, I move that the General Assembly be adjourned and meet again at your call.

THE SPEAKER « » : The motion is that the House now adjourn to meet again at the call of the Speaker.

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

[Page 6178]

The motion is carried.

[The House rose at 6:41 p.m.]

NOTICES OF MOTION UNDER RULE 32(3)

[Page 6179]

RESOLUTION NO. 2045

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Irene Sampson of Richmond Villa/Louisdale deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Irene Sampson having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2046

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Ann Doiron of Arichat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Ann Doiron having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2047

[Page 6180]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Leah Alvina Bond of Petit de Grat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Leah Alvina Bond having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2048

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Karen Marie Anderson of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Karen Marie Anderson having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2049

[Page 6181]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Michael Joseph MacDonald of Red Islands deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Michael Joseph MacDonald having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2050

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marie Jeanette Petitpas of Port Hawkesbury, formerly of Poulamon, deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marie Jeanette Petitpas having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2051

[Page 6182]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Michael Jaochim "Mike" Owens of St. Peters, formerly of River Bourgeois, deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Michael Jaochim "Mike" Owens having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2052

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Flora Gillis MacDonald of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Flora Gillis MacDonald having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2053

[Page 6183]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Sylvia Fillis of L'Ardoise deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Sylvia Fillis having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2054

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Michael Alexander LeRue of River Bourgeois deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Michael Alexander LeRue having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2055

[Page 6184]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Michael Francis Isaac of Potlotek deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Michael Francis Isaac having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2056

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Margaret (Babe) MacLean of West Bay Road deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Margaret "Babe" MacLean having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2057

[Page 6185]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marlene (MacKay) (Malcolm) LeBlanc, formerly of Grantville, deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marlene (MacKay) (Malcolm) LeBlanc having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2058

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marie Hortense Landry, formerly of Louisdale, deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marie Hortense Landry having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2059

[Page 6186]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Lydia Anne MacDonald of West Bay Road deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Lydia Anne MacDonald having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2060

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary (Yvonne) MacDonald of Hureauville deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary (Yvonne) MacDonald having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2061

[Page 6187]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Lola Haines MacAskill of Grand River deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Lola Haines MacAskill having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2062

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Margaret Jean Pottie of St. Peter's formerly of River Bourgeois deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Margaret Jean Pottie having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2063

[Page 6188]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Malcolm Leonard Harris (Mackie) MacLean of Dundee deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Malcolm Leonard Harris (Mackie) MacLean having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2064

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Lillian Ann Martel (Burke) of Bedford, formerly of L'Ardoise, deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Lillian Ann Martel (Burke) having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2065

[Page 6189]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Elizabeth "Beth/Betty" Cooper of Kempt Road deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Elizabeth "Beth/Betty" Cooper having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2066

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Catherine Gerrior of St. Peter's deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Catherine Gerrior having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2067

[Page 6190]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Rita Landry of Arichat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Rita Landry having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2068

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mila Anita MacDonald of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mila Anita MacDonald having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2069

[Page 6191]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marjorie Roseine Sleep of Evanston deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marjorie Roseine Sleep having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2070

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marie Loretta Joyce of Louisdale deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marie Loretta Joyce having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2071

[Page 6192]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Catherine Landry Cook of River Bourgeois deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Catherine Landry Cook having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2072

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Christine "Chris" Chiavari of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Christine "Chris" Chiavari having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2073

[Page 6193]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Louise Muriel Paon of St. Peters deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Louise Muriel Paon having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2074

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marie Langley of Point Tupper deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marie Langley having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2075

[Page 6194]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Margaret "Peggy" Adams of St. Peters deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Margaret "Peggy" Adams having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2076

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Lorraine Winnifred (Stuart) Westlake of L'Ardoise deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Lorraine Winnifred (Stuart) Westlake having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2077

[Page 6195]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marjorie Margaret Britten of Lochside Road deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marjorie Margaret Britten having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2078

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Marina Elizabeth Molaison of Arichat/Pondville deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Marina Elizabeth Molaison having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2079

[Page 6196]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Margaret Mary White of Louisdale deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Margaret Mary White having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2080

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Dorothy Morrison of Arichat/Little Anse deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Dorothy Morrison having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2081

[Page 6197]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Margaret Bourgeois of West Arichat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Margaret Bourgeois having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2082

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary H. "Mildred" Boudreau of Pondville deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary H. "Mildred" Boudreau having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2083

[Page 6198]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Mary Edna George of Janvrin's Island deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Mary Edna George having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2084

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Monica Mary (Boyd) Hamnes formerly of River Bourgeois deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Monica Mary (Boyd) Hamnes having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2085

[Page 6199]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Kenneth Murry George of Janvrin's Island deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Kenneth Murry George having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2086

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Lauchlin "Lauchie" Gerard MacDougall of West Bay Road deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Lauchlin "Lauchie" Gerard MacDougall having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2087

[Page 6200]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Michael Thomas Kehoe of Rocky Bay deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Michael Thomas Kehoe having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2088

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Linda LeBlanc of Petit de Grat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Linda LeBlanc, having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2089

[Page 6201]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Robert Francis "Bobby" Pollard of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Robert Francis "Bobby" Pollard having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2090

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Renée Celeste Panek-Repko of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Renée Celeste Panek-Repko having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2091

[Page 6202]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Phyllis May Dixon Hamilton of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Phyllis May Dixon Hamilton having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2092

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Rosalie Margaret Hann of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Rosalie Margaret Hann having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2093

[Page 6203]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Rose Delima Weissent formerly of Little Anse deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Rose Delima Weissent having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2094

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Norman Henry Price of Louisdale deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Norman Henry Price having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2095

[Page 6204]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Ruth Catherine Embree of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Ruth Catherine Embree having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2096

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Pauline Baran of Arichat/Cape LaRonde deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Pauline Baran having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2097

[Page 6205]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Rosalie Sabine Sampson of Lower L'Ardoise deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Rosalie Sabine Sampson having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2098

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Perry Dean Carrigan of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Perry Dean Carrigan having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2099

[Page 6206]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Nancy Patricia Marchand Warner of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Nancy Patricia Marchand Warner having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2100

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Peter Carroll Gerard King of Evanston deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Peter Carroll Gerard King having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2101

[Page 6207]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Priscilla Marie Sampson of Louisdale deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Priscilla Marie Sampson having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2102

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Rose Marie Keoughan of Arichat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Rose Marie Keoughan having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2103

[Page 6208]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Phylis Marie Tremblay Francis of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Phylis Marie Tremblay Francis having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2104

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Ruby June MacIntosh of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Ruby June MacIntosh having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2105

[Page 6209]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Ovide Samson of Petit de Grat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Ovide Samson having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2106

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Ronola Pearl Stone of St. Peters deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Ronola Pearl Stone having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2107

[Page 6210]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Richard Frederick Bona of L'Ardoise deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Richard Frederick Bona having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2108

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Phillip Ernest Resch of Louisdale deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Phillip Ernest Resch having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2109

[Page 6211]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Peter Ernest Embree of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Peter Ernest Embree having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2110

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Roger Alexander Chandler of Grand Anse deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Roger Alexander Chandler having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2111

[Page 6212]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Vernon Joseph Samson of Petit de Grat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Vernon Joseph Samson having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2112

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Sheila Viola Burns of MacIntyre Lake deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Sheila Viola Burns having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2113

[Page 6213]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Stephen Gerald Marshall of Potlotek deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Stephen Gerald Marshall having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2114

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Terrence Alexander Richard of Evanston deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Terrence Alexander Richard having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2115

[Page 6214]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Viola Adelia Parsons of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Viola Adelia Parsons having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2116

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Walter Albin (Wally) Magdy of St. Peter's deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Walter Albin (Wally) Magdy having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2117

[Page 6215]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas William Claude Timmons of Arichat, formerly of Little Anse deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of William Claude Timmons having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2118

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Wanda Elizabeth Burke of River Bourgeois deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Wanda Elizabeth Burke having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2119

[Page 6216]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Sarah Margaret (McInnis) McNamara of Evanston deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Sarah Margaret (McInnis) McNamara having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2120

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas William "Bill" Percival Adie of West Arichat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of William "Bill" Percival Adie having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2121

[Page 6217]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Shirley Ann Cavanagh-LeRue of Louisdale deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Shirley Ann Cavanagh-LeRue having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2122

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Verna Patricia Strachan Phelan of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Verna Patricia Strachan Phelan having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2123

[Page 6218]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Sarah Marie (Sally) MacIsaac O'Brien of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Sarah Marie (Sally) MacIsaac O'Brien having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2124

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Sarah Jeannie MacDonald Etok of D'Escousse deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Sarah Jeannie MacDonald Etok having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2125

[Page 6219]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Shirley Ann Martell of Arichat deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on her family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Shirley Ann Martell having her name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2126

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Walter Francis Gould of Port Hawkesbury deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Walter Francis Gould having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2127

[Page 6220]

By: Alana Paon (Cape Breton-Richmond)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas any loss of life is tragic and imparts upon family and friends feelings of emptiness and loneliness; and

Whereas Stephen Gerard Howlett formerly of West Bay Road deserves all the respect and honour we have to give for a life that touched so many people and left a lasting impression on his family and community; and

Whereas as we mourn, we celebrate the contributions to life, love and our memories from current or former deceased residents of Cape Breton-Richmond;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honour and commemorate the life of Stephen Gerard Howlett having his name forever written as historical record in the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

RESOLUTION NO. 2128

By: Karla MacFarlane (Pictou West)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas I wish to congratulate Jenna MacLeod of Pictou for her outstanding performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships that were recently held in Antigonish; and

Whereas Jenna won six gold medals in the 100-metre and 200-metre freestyle races, the 200-metre butterfly, the 200-metre and the 400-metre freestyle relay, and the 4x100-metre medley relay; and

Whereas this is Jenna's ninth season competing with the Pictou County Mariners Swim Club, and she enjoys swimming and acknowledges the time commitment required to compete at a competitive level;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Jenna on her impressive performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships and wish her much future success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2129

[Page 6221]

By: Karla MacFarlane (Pictou West)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas I wish to congratulate Blayse Stevenson for his outstanding performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships that were recently held in Antigonish; and

Whereas Blayse won gold medals in all nine races he competed in - the 50- metre, 100-metre, and 200-metre freestyle races, the 50-metre and 200-metre breaststroke, 4x100-metre and a 4x50-metre freestyle relay, and a 4x100-metre medley relay; and

Whereas this is Blayse' third season competing with the Pictou County Mariners Swim Club;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Blayse on his impressive performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships and wish him much future success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2130

By: Karla MacFarlane (Pictou West)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas I wish to applaud Kyle Sutherland for winning the gold medal in the senior division at a recent judo invitational meet that took place at Northumberland Regional High School; and

Whereas he won the gold medal after winning three matches, two by throw-down; and

Whereas Kyle has been practising judo for eighteen years and is a member of the Kanokai Judo Club;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize Kyle for his gold medal win, and I wish him good luck in future matches.

RESOLUTION NO. 2131

[Page 6222]

By: Karla MacFarlane (Pictou West)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas I wish to commend Luke MacLean for his outstanding performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships that were recently held in Antigonish; and

Whereas Luke won five gold medals in the 400-metre freestyle, the 400-metre individual medley, and the 200-metre butterfly, the 50-metre and 200-metre breaststroke, the 4x100-metre, the 4x50-metre, and the 4x100-metre freestyle relays, and he won bronze medals in the 4x100-metre relay and the 50-metre butterfly races; and

Whereas Luke, who is 11, is in his third season competing with the Pictou County Mariners Swim Club;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize Luke for his impressive performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships and wish him much future success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2132

By: Karla MacFarlane (Pictou West)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas I wish to applaud Owen Chabassol for his outstanding performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships that were recently held in Antigonish; and

Whereas Owen won gold medals in the 50-metre, 100-metre, and 200-metre butterfly, he won silver medals in the 100-metre backstroke and the 200-metre individual medley, and rounded out his medal cache with a bronze medal in the 200-metre freestyle; and

Whereas Owen, who is 14, also won age group aggregate honours;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize Owen for his impressive performance at the Swim Nova Scotia AA Championships and wish him much future success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2133

[Page 6223]

By: Hon. Zach Churchill (Yarmouth)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Yarmouth's Jim Grattan was a familiar voice on the radio airwaves throughout the tri-counties for 29 years; and

Whereas Jim Grattan was the program director/midday announcer at Y95 - CJLS for 29 years; and

Whereas Jim Grattan recently retired from Y95-CJLS;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Yarmouth's Jim Grattan on a well-deserved retirement, thank him for almost three decades of professionalism and being a reliable and comforting presence on the radio in our homes and cars, and send him best wishes for health and happiness.

RESOLUTION NO. 2134

By: John Lohr (Kings North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Kinsmen Club of Canada is the only 100 per cent Canadian service club and is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year; and

Whereas the Kentville Kinsmen fundraising projects locally include the Christmas Miracle fundraiser, bursaries to local students, donations to local food banks, supporting local sports teams, and giving a hand-up to those in need; and

Whereas nationally Kinsmen Canada contributes to Muscular Dystrophy, Cystic Fibrosis. Multiple Sclerosis, and the Hal Roger's Fund;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Kinsmen Club of Kentville directors - President Johnny Gasgill, Vice-President Lloyd LeBlanc, Secretary Duane Gould, Treasurer Jim Kinsmen, Registrar Mike Websterand, and Past President Darren Manson - on their contribution to the betterment of our community and the 100th anniversary of the Kinsmen Club of Canada.

RESOLUTION NO. 2135

[Page 6224]

By: Suzanne Lohnes-Croft (Lunenburg)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Emily Latta of Oakhill, Lunenburg County, has been chosen to compete with Team Nova Scotia at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Thunder Bay, Ontario; and

Whereas this will be Emily's fifth National games and has been with the Special Olympics Program fifteen years; and

Whereas Emily has trained hard and will participate in bowling, swimming and snowshoeing;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly that all Nova Scotians and members of the Legislature cheer and support the forty-six athletes, thirteen coaches and six mission staff at the 2020 Canada Winter Games.

RESOLUTION NO. 2136

By: Suzanne Lohnes-Croft (Lunenburg)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the 10^th Annual Gift from the Heart Radiothon took place February 14th, 2020; and

Whereas $200,274.64 was raised to purchase 25 ceiling lifts for the South Shore Regional Hospital; and

Whereas lifts allow patients to be more mobile, decrease incidents of bed sores and improve all around mental health;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly, that CKBW and Country 100.7, the Health Services Foundation of the South Shore, all volunteers, and donors be congratulated for their contribution to another successful Radiothon.

RESOLUTION NO. 2137

[Page 6225]

By: Suzanne Lohnes-Croft (Lunenburg)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Lunenburg Folk Harbour Society purchased the Lunenburg Opera House in April 2019, carrying a mortgage of $300,000; and

Whereas donations from a GoFundMe campaign and the Fordi Family Foundation have made it possible to pay off its mortgage in full in January 2020; and

Whereas this generosity will allow the Lunenburg Folk Harbour Society to continue to preserve and showcase traditional folk music from a range of cultures and regions;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank all donors, members of the executive, and the Lunenburg Folk Harbour Society for keeping this much loved building which celebrates heritage, arts and music alive.

RESOLUTION NO. 2138

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Tourism Industry Association of Nova Scotia presents an annual award named the Tourism Championship Award; and

Whereas the award recognizes the individual or organization who has excelled in efforts to develop tourism on a provincial, national or international basis, and whose activities have made a major impact on tourism and culture in Nova Scotia; and

Whereas Donna Hachey-Hatt of Danesville, Queens County is the 2019 recipient award;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate and thank Donna Hachey-Hatt for her incredible efforts to raise the profile of Nova Scotia on the world stage.

RESOLUTION NO. 2139

[Page 6226]

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas volunteer fire departments are often the first line of defence for Nova Scotians in protecting them against loss of property and life from fire; and

Whereas Greenfield and District Volunteer Fire Department and Auxiliary not only selflessly risk their lives for their community, but give of their time tirelessly to sustain the Department; and

Whereas on December 28th of 2019, I had the privilege of working alongside these volunteers as they fed 180 people at their annual Holiday Home Cooked Breakfast, the funds raised from which are used for vital fire hall repairs;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly applaud these men and women for their ongoing and selfless efforts on behalf of and service to the people of Greenfield and Queens County.

RESOLUTION NO. 2140

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance confers annual honours, named the Prestige Awards, upon deserving organizing committees of sporting events; and

Whereas these awards are in recognition of the overall success of an outstanding international sport event in Canada; and

Whereas the Liverpool Championship Host Society has been nominated as one of three finalists for 2019 in the category of International Sports Event of the Year for organizing and hosting the 2019 World Junior Curling Championships;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate the Liverpool Championship Host Society on both their incredibly successful event and their spirit of volunteerism that facilitated its success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2141

[Page 6227]

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Tim McDonald is a Queens County local historian and published author of the series "Remembering Queens County, Nova Scotia"; and

Whereas Tim was imbued with his passion for local history by his grandmother, who often recounted stories about history, family and youth, inspiring him to put pen to paper; and

Whereas he has recently launched his fourth book in the series;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Tim for his impressive literary accomplishment, and thank him for his dedication toward preserving in print pieces of the history of Queens County and Nova Scotia.

RESOLUTION NO. 2142

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Nova Scotia International Student Program facilitates an annual event in Mexico entitled Camp Campeche, in which three students are selected annually from Nova Scotia; and

Whereas Camp Campeche is an esteemed leadership program in which students are billeted with Mexican families, learn Spanish, attend leadership classes and visit a variety of organizations, and subsequently share their experience with their fellow students at home; and

Whereas Kiera Blackadar is one of the three Nova Scotia students selected this year from Nova Scotia;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Kiera on receiving this tremendous honour, which is a reflection of her commitment to academic excellence and demonstrated leadership abilities, and wish her every success in her future endeavours.

RESOLUTION NO. 2143

[Page 6228]

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the 2019 Albacore International Championship Regatta was hosted by Shelburne in late August; and

Whereas Henry Pedro and his team of volunteers, in conjunction with the Canadian Albacore Association, Shelburne Yacht Club and the Shelburne Sailing Academy facilitated the Regatta after lobbying for, and planning the event for more than a year; and

Whereas Sail Nova Scotia recognized the event as the province's Regatta of the Year;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate and thank Henry Pedro and his team of volunteers for their commitment and perseverance in bringing this world class event to Shelburne.

RESOLUTION NO. 2144

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Myranda Roy was selected to attend the Youth Leadership Workshop at the RCMP Depot in Regina, Saskatchewan, departing on January 6 for six days; and

Whereas only seventeen aboriginal youth are selected from across Canada and Myranda represented Nova Scotia; and

Whereas Myranda, in the company of an RCMP officer and as part of the program, chose to develop an action plan to address human trafficking and drug abuse;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Myranda for her leadership and determination to succeed, and thank her for her commitment to make a difference in the lives of others.

RESOLUTION NO. 2145

[Page 6229]

By: Kim Masland (Queens-Shelburne)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Liverpool Regional High School, has recently implemented a sports program called the Unified Basketball Warriors composed of student leaders and students who would qualify for the Special Olympics; and

Whereas Play Unified is a program dedicated to promoting social inclusion through shared sports training and competition experiences; and

Whereas organizer Amanda Fisher, assisted by Alanna Gordon and Erin Sheehy, have organized the team and are coaching weekly with the assistance of Matt Quinn of Special Olympics Nova Scotia;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulates and thanks Amanda, Alanna, Erin and Special Olympics Nova Scotia for their dedication toward making Liverpool Regional High School a more inclusive environment for all.

RESOLUTION NO. 2146

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas every Tuesday, Erica DeCoste volunteers her time at the Antigonish Health and Wellness Centre; and

Whereas she provides a great service directing patients, families, and visitors in the building as they find their way to appointments; and

Whereas she is known for her cheerful greetings and warm smiles while providing assistance to those who may need some brightness in their day;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank Erica DeCoste for her dedication and volunteerism.

RESOLUTION NO. 2147

[Page 6230]

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Brook Ridge Farm in Antigonish County was honoured as the 2019 Producer of the Year from the Sheep Producers Association of Nova Scotia; and

Whereas since its establishment in 1998, Brook Ridge Farm has been expanding their commercial flock which is now over 200 purebred and commercial crosses; and

Whereas in 2017, Brook Ridge Farm became the first sheep farm in Canada to be certified under The Canadian Verified Sheep Program;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ian and Rhona McCarron on receiving this well-deserved award.

RESOLUTION NO. 2148

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas on Saturday, February 8, 2020, 13-year-old goalie Kieran Walker faced a monumental challenge; and

Whereas Kieran faced 103 shots in that single game and made a tremendous 98 saves; and

Whereas although his team lost 5-0, Kieran's effort between the pipes made provincial headlines;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Kieran Walker on his remarkable performance, spectacular determination, and concentration.

RESOLUTION NO. 2149

[Page 6231]

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas since September 1969, George Baxter has been a school bus driver in Antigonish County; and

Whereas after over 50 years behind the wheel, he retired in February 2020; and

Whereas George has left a lasting impression on more than just one child and has watched generations grow up and move through the school system;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize George Baxter on his long and memorable career and congratulate him on his retirement and say thank you for all he has done for our students.

RESOLUTION NO. 2150

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas at the annual Inspired Gala in Halifax, athletes from across the province come together to celebrate their talent and dedication; and

Whereas on January 22, 2020, at this year's 26^th annual Inspired Gala, Antigonish's own, Nicole Roberts was presented the Dr. Hayden Award from Special Olympics Nova Scotia; and

Whereas this award is presented to "an athlete who has best exemplified the spirit, philosophy, and goals of the Special Olympics movements over the course of their career";

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Nicole Roberts on receiving this special award.

RESOLUTION NO. 2151

[Page 6232]

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas for 40 years L'Arche Antigonish has been in operation providing important programs and homes for those with intellectual disabilities; and

Whereas L'Arche prides itself on providing family-like settings within its five homes and daily activities including vocational opportunities to encourage greater inclusion into the community; and

Whereas the residents are wonderful, the staff compassionate, and together they are changing the world, one heart at time;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate L'Arche Antigonish on celebrating it's 40th anniversary.

RESOLUTION NO. 2152

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Marcel Desmond is a Grade 12 student at Dr. John Hugh Gillis Regional High School and was one of 88 finalists out of 5,194 candidates for the prestigious Loran Award; and

Whereas he was selected as a finalist based on his "evidence of character, commitment to service in the community, and leadership potential"; and

Whereas he was one of three finalists from Nova Scotia who received a $5,000 finalist award;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Marcel Desmond for being selected as a Loran Award finalist and commend him for not only his outstanding academic record but for his commitment to the community and desire to help others while creating positive change.

RESOLUTION NO. 2153

[Page 6233]

By: Hon. Randy Delorey (Antigonish)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Lucille Harper retired after over 30 impressive years at the helm of the Antigonish Women's Resource Centre and Sexual Assault Services; and

Whereas Lucille was honoured at an open house on December 12, 2018, for her many years of service and commitment to the Antigonish community and women's heath; and

Whereas Lucille has long been an advocate and mentor and is known for her compassion, integrity, and activism;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Lucille on her retirement and thank her for her dedication and her voice for those who have needed her.

RESOLUTION NO. 2154

By: Hon. Iain Rankin (Timberlea-Prospect)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Prospect Road Communities Minor Baseball Association (PRCMBA) is built on a foundation designed to provide the best conditions for players and coaches to development a love of baseball; and

Whereas the Prospect Road Communities Minor Baseball Association promotes discipline, teamwork, sportsmanship, honesty and integrity; and

Whereas the players of this league become ambassadors of the game and develop respect for the game through hard work and determination while having a great time;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking the board members - Jill Slaunwhite, Kevin Buchan, Amanda Peters, Melissa Bowes McLeod, Angela Burke, Angelica Negreira, Stuart Burke, Kerry Fraser, Matt White, Jason Nickerson, Kim Landry and Amanda Nickerson - for their teamwork, dedication, and collaboration to organize and run this successful minor league baseball association in our community.

RESOLUTION NO. 2155

[Page 6234]

By: Hon. Iain Rankin (Timberlea-Prospect)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Councillor Steve Adams was first elected to Halifax City Council in 1991, and was elected as Deputy Mayor of Halifax in 1994, becoming the youngest deputy mayor to serve in the history of the city; and

Whereas Councillor Adams was recognized for his work to finalize the Shaw Wilderness Park agreement to preserve and protect 380 acres of urban forests, wetlands, habitat, and nature-based recreation 5 kilometers from downtown Halifax; and

Whereas Councillor Adams worked with MLA Iain Rankin to enact the sign bylaw to remove sign pollution and improve the overall aesthetics of the drive through the Prospect Road communities, including the beautification project designed to diminish the industrial appearance and enhance the beauty along Prospect Road.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank Councillor Steve Adams for his outstanding service and dedication to the residents of District 11 and the citizens of Halifax, and wish him nothing but the best in his retirement from public life in Fall 2020.

RESOLUTION NO. 2156

By: Hon. Iain Rankin (Timberlea-Prospect)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Special Olympics Halifax Titans Soccer team traveled to the Yukon to compete in a soccer tournament; and

Whereas the team gained new skills, learned about the importance of team work and following a healthy lifestyle and benefited from the opportunities a trip like this provides for socialization and leadership.

Whereas the team played well, displayed an incredible level of sportsmanship, and experienced a trip of a lifetime;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Trevor Hodge, Liam Johnston, Josh Lebelle, Colin Wright, Justin Clarke, Heather McNamara, Kari Giles, Caela Noon-Ward, Luc Desrosiers, Spyros Angelopoulos, Cameron Frittenburg, and Matt Walsh; and coaches Justin Eweka, Brittany Armsworthy, Alyssa Walsh, Corey Morrison (support/assistant), Dimitra Tsimklis (support/assistant), Kennedy Quigley (support/assistant), and Mikailee Vincent (support/assistant) for their hard work and dedication to the sport they love and the success they achieved.

[Page 6235]

RESOLUTION NO. 2157

By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab (Halifax Armdale)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Cadum Root, a Grade 5 student at Chebucto Heights Elementary who has autism, participated in the 2020 African Nova Scotian History Challenge; and

Whereas Cadum knew immediately that he wanted his project to consist of an interview with Quentrel Provo, the founder of local anti-violence organization Stop the Violence, Spread the Love, a personal hero of his; and

Whereas Cadum's interview request was accepted, and following the interview Quentrel shared that he thinks that Cadum has got a special light inside him, one that would serve him well in his dream role as a future weatherman;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in applauding Cadum Root and his support worker Andrea Fennell for inspiring all of us to learn more about the contributions of African Nova Scotians.

RESOLUTION NO. 2158

By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab (Halifax Armdale)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas community leader and Armdale resident Reverend Canon Neale Bennet, an Anglican priest and alumni of the Atlantic School of Theology, has been serving as the school's president for the past five years; and

Whereas prior to his appointment, Rev. Bennet had a successful career in marketing and communications, and served as director of organizational learning at Nova Scotia Community College and as director of organizational development and transformation at Capital Health, while also volunteering on the boards of the Maritime Conservatory of Music, the Metropolitan Non-Profit Housing Association, L'Arche Halifax, and the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Public Affairs; and

[Page 6236]

Whereas under Rev. Bennet's leadership, the AST has growing enrolment and, for the first time, has students in their summer distance Master of Divinity program in every single province;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in congratulating Rev. Bennet for his many contributions to our community.

RESOLUTION NO. 2159

By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab (Halifax Armdale)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Haligonians and visitors alike have, since 1982, enjoyed the unique and delicious dining experience at Athens Restaurant, a family-owned business that values fresh and local ingredients, from-scratch cooking, and original recipes; and

Whereas the Quinpool Road restaurant's enduring popularity is due to the quality and authenticity of their tasty Greek fare, and the fact that patrons are treated like family; and

Whereas Athens accommodates their customers for brunch, family dinners, special events, and much more;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in recognizing the love and hard work that the Panopalis family of Halifax Armdale - Sam, Areti, and Evangelos - and their entire team have put in over the decades to turn Athens from a restaurant into a successful institution.

RESOLUTION NO. 2160

By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab (Halifax Armdale)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas in January 2020, at the Halifax Chamber of Commerce's annual business awards, our city's Canadian Premier League club, the HFX Wanderers, took home the coveted Best New Business of the Year Award; and

Whereas the team had stiff competition, besting other notable local businesses including Greywave Senior Care, Ring Rescue, threesixfive, and Bar Kismet; and

[Page 6237]

Whereas Wanderers president and owner Derek Martin of Armdale accepted the honour on the team's behalf, highlighting the success and enthusiasm of the team's inaugural season in Halifax and noting that the team and their many supporters represent the best of the new Halifax;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in congratulating the HFX Wanderers and their many supporters on this prestigious award.

RESOLUTION NO. 2161

By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab (Halifax Armdale)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas pharmacists are a crucial part of our health care teams in Nova Scotia, providing quality care in a growing number of ways to patients every day; and

Whereas Curtis and Jennifer Chafe of Halifax Armdale are both successful pharmacists serving patients in Halifax, and Curtis additionally serves his profession as the current Chair of the Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia; and

Whereas the Chafes also step up for their school community at Springvale Elementary, having hosted two pop-up flu shot clinics in the Fall for community members, and having donated a banner, hot chocolate, and cider for the school's Jingle Bell Run;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking the Chafes for their community contributions and service to patients.

RESOLUTION NO. 2162

By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab (Halifax Armdale)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Nova Scotia Soccer League's 2019-20 Indoor Championships for U13 A/B - U18 A/B and Senior Men's and Women's AAA were contested on March 7 and 8, 2020; and

Whereas the Dunbrack Premier Women AAA team beat out the Valley United Soccer Club Premier Women's team in the semi finals 1-0; and

[Page 6238]

Whereas the Dunbrack Premier Women AAA team went on to win a 5-1 match in the finals against the United DFC Women AAA team, becoming the NSSL Indoor Champions for 2020;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in congratulating the Dunbrack Premier Women's AAA team players Rachelle Lalande, Kim Hardy, Michelle Yates, Kaitlyn MacIsaac, Adelle Goodfellow, Meagan McKenna, Monica Diab, Grace Morrison, Ashley Blank, Lianna Dekoe, and Sarah Taylor on their tremendous success in the 2020 Indoor Championships.

RESOLUTION NO. 2163

By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab (Halifax Armdale)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas in the Fall, the Special Olympics Halifax Titans Soccer team was selected to participate at the Special Olympics Yukon Invitational Soccer Tournament, offering an exciting opportunity to team members to compete on the pitch, represent Nova Scotia, and for many players to travel outside our province for the first time; and

Whereas the Titans' group of 12 players, and seven coaches and assistants recently returned from the Yukon, where they played hard and honourably and made memories that will last a lifetime; and

Whereas soccer is a wonderful sport that brings people together, fosters relationships, and helps players grow into their best selves;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in congratulating Trevor, Liam, Josh, Colin, Kari, Caela, Luc, Spyros, Cameron, and Matt, and giving a special mention to team member Heather McNamara and coach Dimitra Tsimiklis for representing Armdale and our province well.

RESOLUTION NO. 2164

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Ozzy and Niko Clair are two fishermen who we rise to remember, and they are mourned by all who knew them; and

[Page 6239]

Whereas to the people who were lucky enough to work with them and who have memories with them, we offer our deepest condolences; and

Whereas the hospital and emergency staff who cared for them deserve our thanks and Lenora Prosper who had her own recovery while mourning;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly honor the lives of Ozzy and Niko, knowing there are no words to heal the hurt that is felt by the loss.

RESOLUTION NO. 2165

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Claire Corkum-Timmons is the first female corporal in the history of New Glasgow Regional Police; and

Whereas she was recognized at the New Glasgow town meeting for this historical promotion; and

Whereas Corporal Corkum-Timmons is a great example of the dedicated men and women who work in our communities to create a safer environment to live in;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Claire on her new position.

RESOLUTION NO. 2166

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Margie Grant Walsh, Executive Director of Big Brother Big Sisters, has had so much success working with Chief Andrea Paul who was awarded honorary chairperson this year; and

Whereas the official kick off for the 39^th Bowl for Kids fundraiser was held on February 9, 2019, offering sign-up lists and pledge sheets for donations; and

[Page 6240]

Whereas volunteers always take part in youth mentorship programs and are matched with youth ages 6 to 18;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Chief Andrea Paul on being Big Brother Big Sisters of Pictou County's honorary chairperson this year and wish them success during the event.

RESOLUTION NO. 2167

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Bright Smiles has an amazing new project in Pictou county providing dental care for 20 people suffering with mental illness; and

Whereas more than 10 local dentists and hygienists have helped make the program successful; and

Whereas this program earned the Ed Bowden Community Wellness Award for doubling its original goal and helping 50 people;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate everyone who participated in Bright Smiles for bringing the smiles back to some of our most vulnerable local residents.

RESOLUTION NO. 2168

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas an outstanding member of New Glasgow Regional Police, Darryl Parris, became the first African Canadian sergeant in their history; and

Whereas we admire those who put their lives on the line to protect our communities and families; and

Whereas New Glasgow Regional Police feel lucky to have Darryl as one of their own as he embarks on this new challenge;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Sergeant Paris on his well-earned promotion.

[Page 6241]

RESOLUTION NO. 2169

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Dave Browning has utilized an abandoned church in French River and is working towards it becoming a community center; and

Whereas this has improved community involvement as they come together for a common goal to convert the church to a multi-use facility with modernization; and

Whereas, keeping with the integrity and heritage of the building, they also manage the adjoining cemetery;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly extend best wishes to the community moving forward.

RESOLUTION NO. 2170

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas district one residents set a goal of 56,000 kilometres of activity to keep Pictou County residents active during the winter; and

Whereas 140 people participated in a variety of ways such as walking and swimming to reach the goal; and

Whereas they have been admired by other communities which have decided to use their example to start their own challenge;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly acknowledge that, with a lot of motivation and determination, people are capable of big things.

RESOLUTION NO. 2171

[Page 6242]

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Kim and Dawn Fraser are an important part of growing and harvesting blueberries, keeping our local tradition alive; and

Whereas Dawn has seen many changes over the years in harvesting, from raking blueberries as a child to the use of a harvester now; and

Whereas it is important to grow and eat local products;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize that the Frasers have made a priority to harvest and grow blueberries, despite having outside jobs, so people like us can enjoy the fruits of their labour.

RESOLUTION NO. 2172

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Jody Holley gave so much time and effort organizing a fund raiser for Dr. W.A. MacLeod Music program in Riverton; and

Whereas their goal was to be able to support 100 students, which included two bands and two choirs; and

Whereas they achieved that goal with their mid-Winter mixer, raising $3000;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly acknowledge Jody Holley for her paramount success in this event.

RESOLUTION NO. 2173

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Lismore had its 22^nd Wintertime review, which was a sell-out success; and

[Page 6243]

Whereas Kippy Macdonald has always been a huge part of this event, which brings in people from all over Pictou County; and

Whereas the entertainment, which Kippy leads, ranges from song to serious discussion, and the skit is always a way to lighten the communities spirit;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Kippy on this event and look forward to many more years of laughter.

RESOLUTION NO. 2174

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas President of LORDA Park, Dave Leese, and many other volunteers tap round 500 trees for maple syrup; and

Whereas the LORDA sweet maple brand travels great distances with sales online and by tourists; and

Whereas the proceeds support this non-profit organization that allows disabled people and senior citizens the opportunity to enjoy nature;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly acknowledge the wonderful impact LORDA Park and its volunteers have on the community and wish them sweet success in 2020.

RESOLUTION NO. 2175

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas 12-year-old dirt bike driver Luke Penny from Westville has earned 42 qualifying positions; and

Whereas with the help of many sponsors he and hundreds of races have the opportunity to pursue their lifelong dream; and

Whereas now Luke has the opportunity to participate at the TransCan amateur Grand National Championship;

[Page 6244]

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Luke for getting this opportunity and wish him luck to bring home a trophy and make Pictou County proud.

RESOLUTION NO. 2176

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Pictou County resident Bill MacEachern set a record, doing his 20^th polar swim at Melmerby beach; and

Whereas the weather was nastier than usual, assaulting the swimmers with windblown snow as they raced to the water; and

Whereas Bill made a point of totally immersing himself where others were happy to reach waist-deep water before retreating;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Bill on this milestone, taking part in this community event 20 years running.

RESOLUTION NO. 2177

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Pictou County holds an annual walk for Roots for Youth to support homeless youth in their community; and

Whereas the community came out in large numbers for this event, with 38 teams, 300 people, raising $48,247.85; and

Whereas Pictou County Roots for Youth is a not-for-profit organization that helps youth age 16 to 24 to end their homelessness;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize and thank all the volunteers and participants who helped make this walk a success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2178

[Page 6245]

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Shelia Munro and Dan Munro are local residents in Pictou County and are walking proof miracles can happen; and

Whereas Dan had recently arrived home from surgery, but his wife had a feeling she should be ready for complications which came as a hemorrhage, and he was losing blood fast; and

Whereas he had to be airlifted to Halifax for a life-saving surgery where the doctors credit the excellent care of the doctors at the Aberdeen for saving his life as well as Shelia's quick action;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly that not all heroes wear capes and thank everyone for their heroic efforts.

RESOLUTION NO. 2179

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas on January 19, 2019, the Pictou county Snow-Riders Snowmobile Club gathered at their new clubhouse; and

Whereas the new clubhouse has a map on the wall revealing the immense network of trails, and the club has two groomers who maintain the trail system; and

Whereas the club encourages whole families to join in the sport and use the trails year round;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate the executive on the new clubhouse. Happy trails.

RESOLUTION NO. 2180

[Page 6246]

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Sobeys has implemented a new program that will make shopping easier for Nova Scotians with sensitivities to lights and sounds; and

Whereas will take steps dimming the lights, turning off music and all sound from scanners every second Sunday from 6:00 p.m. 7:00 p.m. in Pictou County; and

Whereas feedback from this program has been positive and makes shopping more accessible for individuals on the autism spectrum;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank Sobeys for being a business strongly rooted in our community and for this innovative program.

RESOLUTION NO. 2181

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Vincent Joyce was recognized with a Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers in recognition of his contributions starting and managing the Pictou County Military Museum; and

Whereas there are only 40 people in Canada who receive this award each year; and

Whereas Vincent was recognized at a presentation ceremony at the Westville Civic Building where his dedication and hard work put into the museum have not gone unnoticed;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Vincent Joyce and thank him for all his hard work over the years.

RESOLUTION NO. 2182

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Westville Fire Department worked so hard to bring joy to kids on Canada Day; and

[Page 6247]

Whereas each year Mother Nature has better ideas and tries hard to turn the smiles upside down; and

Whereas before July 2019, the fire department spent many hours dealing with the drainage issues which have caused some wet and muddy times;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Westville Fire Department for all the hard work so this park can continue to be used by so many Nova Scotians for so many years to come.

RESOLUTION NO. 2183

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Don Butler was the committee chairman for East Pictou Together Forever; and

Whereas Don and others worked hard to make an everlasting event for the graduates of East Pictou; and

Whereas I am proud of all the hard work that was put into organizing such a huge event that people came from far and wide to be part of those last walks though the halls;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Don Butler and all those on the committee for helping the Together Forever feeling live on.

RESOLUTION NO. 2184

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Bonnie MacLean is the president of the Little Harbour Walking and Bicycling Trail Society; and

Whereas, along with others, Bonnie found different grants that allowed them to put a sign at the new lookoff at Roy's Island; and

[Page 6248]

Whereas Bonnie says that the trail and the lookoff are the best little gem in Pictou East with lots of wild animals to see and even a bench to rest at;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Bonnie MacLean, who works hard to try to better our community and help us keep active.

RESOLUTION NO. 2185

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Thorburn Pictou County has the pleasure of hosting the very best high school girls hockey teams in Nova Scotia at the 2018-19 NSSAF Championship; and

Whereas these young woman have all participated in regional zone competitions to determine the best teams from across Nova Scotia; and

Whereas I want to take the time to acknowledge the dedication of all parents, coaches and managers involved and also compliment the staff at the rink in Thorburn;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate not only the folks of Thorburn for being incredible hosts, but also the C.P. Allen Cheetahs of their championship victory.

RESOLUTION NO. 2186

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Women's Institute is alive and well in Pictou County, and there are several branches in Pictou East; and

Whereas the WI motto is "For Home and Country," and this organization has been active since 1913; and

Whereas the Women's Institute of Nova Scotia makes our communities stronger by providing opportunities to enhance the quality of life through education and personal development;

[Page 6249]

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Lynn MacLean and all members of the Women's Institute in Pictou County and thank them for all they do for our community.

RESOLUTION NO. 2187

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Connor Janes recently had the opportunity to travel to Europe; and

Whereas it may have been a simple online gaming event that raised money for a local charity in Sweden; and

Whereas Connor was mostly a spectator, but also volunteered to help in this event;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Connor on the many stories he has to share about his time there and the positive impact he had and hope that next time he can compete.

RESOLUTION NO. 2188

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Howie Dunbar, Westville's new police chief, has served the town of Westville as a police officer for 39 years; and

Whereas he also served in the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve for 41 years and retired as Chief Warrant Officer, and Dunbar's expertise and compassion will ensure his success as the new chief; and

Whereas Chief Dunbar knows the people of Westville and has been proudly working with them, and his philosophy is that no police officer can be truly successful without the support of the community;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly wish Chief Dunbar success in this well-deserved role.

[Page 6250]

RESOLUTION NO. 2189

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Marie-Claire Chartrand, owner of Greywave Senior Care Consulting, devoted her life to others, first by earning a degree in social development studies then in her careers in social work and continuing care; and

Whereas her commitment earned her a Wise 50 over 50 Award, and recently she was a finalist for New Business of the Year at the Halifax Business Awards; and

Whereas Greywave Senior Care Consulting helps seniors navigate the services and funding available through government programs, community resources, and private companies, as well as helping family members cope with dementia or cognitive decline, among other services;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank Marie-Claire Chartrand for all her many contributions and congratulate her for being recognized by the Halifax Business Awards.

RESOLUTION NO. 2190

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Roger MacKay has served the residents of Westville for many years, first on council and then for the past 12 years as the town's 27^th mayor; and

Whereas at the January meeting, Roger was recognized with a plaque by the current mayor of Westville, Lennie White, and was also presented with an appreciation plaque from the Town of New Glasgow mayor, Nancy Dicks; and

Whereas Roger's picture was also placed alongside the other 26 mayors on a collage that honors the previous mayors;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank Roger for his many years of dedication to the Town of Westville.

[Page 6251]

RESOLUTION NO. 2191

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas for the eighth year, East River Valley has hosted the Winter Wobble; and

Whereas young and old bring their snowshoes to enjoy the Winter weather on a trail off Marshdale Road; and

Whereas the event was well attended this year, and everyone was rewarded with a meal prepared by Arlene MacGregor and Donna Kennedy;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly extend a special thank you to Arlene and Donna for preparing the meal and working so hard to make the Winter Wobble a success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2192

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Aaron Kinch, the head coach of the Westville Boxing Club and former professional boxer, built the boxing club from the ground up; and

Whereas his primary focus has always been to find a place for young people to come to learn about the sport; and

Whereas he is very excited that three of his boxers and two coaches will represent Westville Boxing Club at the 2020 Brampton Cup;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank Aaron for employing his expertise in boxing to shape the lives of these young adults.

RESOLUTION NO. 2193

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

[Page 6252]

Whereas local business owners Andre and Rhonda Cougais run Acropole, a successful pizza business in Westville; and

Whereas when they found out Westville Fire Department located their old 1948 LaFrance model pumper but simply could not afford to bring it home, this couple did the unimaginable; and

Whereas they paid for the truck and had it brought back home to Westville where it belongs;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly thank Andre and Rhonda Cougais for their generosity and commitment to their community.

RESOLUTION NO. 2194

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Bill MacEachern received a certificate from Warden Robert Parker, recognizing his community spirit and dedication to the cultural heritage of Pictou County; and

Whereas Bill has been an avid runner with a group called the Bare Belly Runners, a group of men who run Spring, Summer, Fall and yes, Winter too, with no shirts on; and

Whereas Bill is also involved in the polar bear dip that happens annually at Melmerby Beach;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize Bill today for his dedication to his community, shirt or no shirt.

RESOLUTION NO. 2195

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Gamal A. Bin Eshaq started G.M. Applied Technologies Canada, choosing Halifax because the location makes it an obvious choice for overseas exports; and

[Page 6253]

Whereas Gamal's passion for business, extending over 32 years, has led G.M. Applied Technologies Canada to win many awards; and

Whereas in 2016, G.M. Applied Technologies was a finalist for International Business of the Year, and most recently, the company was a 2020 finalist in Export Business of the Year for the Halifax Business;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Gamal A. Bin Eshaq on his nomination for 2020 Export Business of the year and wish him many more years of success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2196

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Angus Latter on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2197

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6254]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ashley Taylor on their contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2198

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ashton Lake on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2199

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6255]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ben Harrington on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2200

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Jonah Mosher on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2201

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6256]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Kyree Thompson on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2202

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Lance Sparks on their contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2203

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6257]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Logan Raftus on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2204

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ma-kel Vincent on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2205

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6258]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Matt Thompson on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2206

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Nacari Smith on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2207

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6259]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Naijaun David on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2208

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Romie Smith on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2209

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6260]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Shadan Hansen on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2210

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Travolta Beals-Flint on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2211

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

[Page 6261]

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ty Murnaghan on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2212

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team, coached by Lance Sparks, was named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's Division 1 boys basketball provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas this is the second year in a row that the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team has won the provincial championship; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Vantez Beals on his contributions to the Dartmouth High School boys varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season and being named provincial champions two years in a row.

RESOLUTION NO. 2213

By: Tim Houston (Pictou East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Dr. Brad MacDougall is a believer that physical activity is the best medicine; and

Whereas Dr. MacDougall, along with Active Pictou County, will walk twice a month; and

[Page 6262]

Whereas all ages and abilities are welcome, and at each walk there will be a brief 10-minute talk on a health-related issue following this community walk;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate the Westville Medical Clinic and Dr. Brad MacDougall for helping Pictou County Residents learn to walk towards good health.

RESOLUTION NO. 2214

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Doug Poulton, who died recently, was an integral member of the Hammonds Plains Business community; and

Whereas last year, I presented him with the citizen of the year award in commemoration of his many services in the community; and

Whereas he helped form the St. Margaret's Bay Seniors Association and was involved with many other committees in the area;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly remember Doug Poulton and all of his incredible work dedicated to making the community of Hammonds Plains and Tantallon area a better place.

RESOLUTION NO. 2215

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Erin Stright is a member of the Nova Scotia girls cheer team, which has been selected to represent Team Canada at the World Cheer Championship; and

Whereas this is the first time that the honour of being Team Canada has gone to the Nova Scotia provincial team; and

Whereas high school girls from across the province came together to form this team and are very excited to represent their country on the world stage;

[Page 6263]

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Erin Stright and her teammates on their honourable achievement and wish them all the best at the World Cheer Championship.

RESOLUTION NO. 2216

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Gina Jones-Wilson, the President of the Upper Hammonds Plains Development Community Association, has been nominated as one of L'Oréal Canada's 10 Women of worth; and

Whereas she has dedicated the past 40 years to serving her community in numerous ways, in running mentorship programs for youth and serving as a volunteer fire fighter; and

Whereas she is also continuing to work on her community's behalf through serving as liaison between them, the Halifax Regional Municipality, and the provincial government;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Gina Jones-Wilson on her achievement and commend and thank her for her decades of valued community service.

RESOLUTION NO. 2217

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Kaitlin Morley is a member of the Nova Scotia girls cheer team, which has been selected to represent Team Canada at the World Cheer Championship; and

Whereas this is the first time that the honour of being Team Canada has gone to the Nova Scotia provincial team; and

Whereas high school girls from across the province came together to form this team and are very excited to represent their country on the world stage;

[Page 6264]

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Kaitlin Morley and her teammates on their honourable achievement and wish them all the best at the World Cheer Championship.

RESOLUTION NO. 2218

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Mackenzie Joy, a constituent of Hammonds Plains, has done extraordinary work doing extensive fundraising for the IWK; and

Whereas she has done this through taking pictures, creating cards with them, and selling them at craft markets; and

Whereas Mackenzie Joy lives with ADHD and epilepsy, and she and her parents are now applying for a service dog and working hard to raise the large sum of money needed in order for them to receive the dog;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly recognize Mackenzie Joy for all of her wonderful work giving back to the community and wish her and her family all the best in their journey to getting a service dog.

RESOLUTION NO. 2219

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Nikki Davidson is a member of the Nova Scotia girls cheer team, which has been selected to represent Team Canada at the World Cheer Championship; and

Whereas this is the first time that the honour of being Team Canada has gone to the Nova Scotia provincial team; and

Whereas high school girls from across the province came together to form this team and are very excited to represent their country on the world stage;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Nikki Davidson and her teammates on their honourable achievement and wish them all the best at the World Cheer Championship.

[Page 6265]

RESOLUTION NO. 2220

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Nova Scotia girls Cheer team has been selected to represent Team Canada at the World Cheer Championship; and

Whereas this is the first time that the honour of being Team Canada has gone to the Nova Scotia provincial team; and

Whereas high school girls from across the province came together to form this team and are very excited to represent their country on the world stage;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate the team on their honourable achievement and wish them all the best at the World Cheer Championship.

RESOLUTION NO. 2221

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Upper Hammonds Plains Community Development Association is organizing a youth trip to Washington, D.C., in partnership with the Upper Hammonds Plains Emmanuel Baptist Church; and

Whereas the association has been supporting and hosting African Nova Scotian heritage events throughout the past fifty years; and

Whereas this trip will be devoted to allowing an opportunity for African Nova Scotian youth to learn more about their heritage and culture;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly wish the Upper Hammonds Plains Community Development Association the best with their upcoming Washington, D.C., trip and all of their future endeavours in shedding light on the important history of African Nova Scotians.

[Page 6266]

RESOLUTION NO. 2222

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Zoe Carisle is a member of the Nova Scotia girls cheer team, which has been selected to represent Team Canada at the World Cheer Championship; and

Whereas this is the first time that the honour of being Team Canada has gone to the Nova Scotia provincial team; and

Whereas high school girls from across the province came together to form this team and are very excited to represent their country on the world stage;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Zoe Carilse and her teammates on their honourable achievement and wish them all the best at the World Cheer Championship.

RESOLUTION NO. 2223

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Aaron McWilliams is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Aaron McWilliams on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2224

[Page 6267]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Aidan Foster is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Aidan Foster on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2225

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Ben Bryant is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ben Bryant on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2226

[Page 6268]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Brendan McQuaid is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Brendan McQuaid on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2227

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Ciaran Murphy is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ciaran Murphy on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2228

[Page 6269]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Connor Stone is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Connor Stone on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2229

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Devon Saberi is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Devon Saberi on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2230

[Page 6270]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Hudson McGrath is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Hudson McGrath on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2231

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Jack Humphrey is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Jack Humphrey on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2232

[Page 6271]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Joshua Drysdale is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Joshua Drysdale on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2233

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Logan Callaghan is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Logan Callaghan on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2234

[Page 6272]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Luke MacLean is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Luke MacLean on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2235

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Matt Burden is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Matt Burden on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2236

[Page 6273]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Patrick MacGillivray is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Patrick MacGillivray on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2237

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Pierre-Olivier Couture is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Pierre-Olivier Couture on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2238

[Page 6274]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Riley Tulloch is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Riley Tulloch on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2239

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Tyler Cook is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Tyler Cook on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2240

[Page 6275]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Tyler Thomas is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Tyler Thomas on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2241

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Zack Nauss is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Zack Nauss on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2242

[Page 6276]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Zack Wilson is a valued member of the Charles P. Allen High School Cheetahs hockey team; and

Whereas the Cheetahs hockey team recently won their third consecutive provincial title; and

Whereas he displayed notable talent, hard work, and sportsmanship throughout the season;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Zack Wilson on the Cheetahs winning the provincial title and wish him and his team all the best in the future.

RESOLUTION NO. 2243

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Martha Healey is a shining example of the joy that others can bring to people through music; and

Whereas Martha was a founder of the East Hants Choral Society, which has 87 choir members who have performed all over, including a performance at Carnegie Hall in New York; and

Whereas Martha also heads up the children's choir which partakes in the Halifax International Tattoo;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking Martha for sharing her musical talent with so many and spreading the joy of music with all of us.

RESOLUTION NO. 2244

[Page 6277]

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas in 2006, Leslie Wilbur realized her entrepreneurial dreams and opened Strides Health and Fitness Club; and

Whereas Leslie is a highly motivated individual who has a desire to deliver exceptional and professional services for those in her community; and

Whereas Strides has been a beautifully well-kept establishment in the heart of Elmsdale for the past 14 years and has been a huge benefactor for many organizations in our area;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in applauding Leslie for her entrepreneurship, which has positively affected our community.

RESOLUTION NO. 2245

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas new retail establishments greatly enhance their communities and offer new experiences for consumers; and

Whereas 2 U Like New Consignment Shop has opened its doors in the Elmsdale area offering a wonderful selection of clothing for all occasions; and

Whereas Sherry Hannam's 25 years of experience will help make this business endeavor a success;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in welcoming 2 U Like New Consignment Shop to our area and wishing Sherry much success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2246

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

[Page 6278]

Whereas the Canadian U17 hockey roster is comprised of the most talented players across our nation; and

Whereas it takes an extraordinary mix of talent, hard work, and athleticism to achieve the highest level in sports; and

Whereas Riley Kidney was rostered with the Canadian White U17 team with 5 points in 6 games;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in congratulating Riley Kidney on his phenomenal accomplishment and achieving a life-long dream of playing for Canada.

RESOLUTION NO. 2247

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas a commitment to bettering our communities is by ensuring the safety of our children, staff, and visitors in our schools; and

Whereas an initiative has been created to put an AED unit into every school in our province; and

Whereas Bryan Gillis hosted a boot camp to help generate funds for this important endeavor, raising over $2,800;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in congratulating Bryan on his tremendous effort to help secure AEDs for our schools.

RESOLUTION NO. 2248

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas a commitment to bettering our communities is by ensuring the safety of our children, staff, and visitors in our schools; and

Whereas an initiative has been created to put an AED unit into every one of our schools in the province;

[Page 6279]

Whereas John Macdonald generously offered to give to this cause by donating an AED unit for a school in need;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking John for his never-ending compassion and generosity for his community.

RESOLUTION NO. 2249

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas a commitment to bettering our communities is by ensuring the safety of our children, staff, and visitors in our schools; and

Whereas an initiative has been created to put an AED unit into every one of our schools in the province;

Whereas Mark Stevenson and Ryson Construction generously offered to give to this cause by donating an AED unit for a school in need;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking Mark Stevenson and Ryson Construction for their generous donation in the quest to bring AED unit to all schools.

RESOLUTION NO. 2250

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas a commitment to bettering our communities is by ensuring the safety of our children, staff, and visitors in our schools; and

Whereas an initiative has been created to put an AED unit into every one of our schools in the province;

Whereas Haedyn and Merrick Fotheringham took it upon themselves to fundraise for this worthy cause and gathered enough funds for the purchase of an AED;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in commending the efforts of these two young children to help make our schools a safer place.

[Page 6280]

RESOLUTION NO. 2251

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas a commitment to bettering our communities is by ensuring the safety of our children, staff, and visitors in our schools; and

Whereas an initiative has been created to put an AED unit into every one of our schools in the province;

Whereas Turning Pages for Charity generously donated $1,200 for this initiative;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking Stephanie Isenor, the founder of Turning Pages for Charity, for her thoughtful donation to making our schools a safer place.

RESOLUTION NO. 2252

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas East Hants Chamber of Commerce hosted a tremendously successful trivia night in support of the Caring and Sharing Food Bank; and

Whereas such events are not possible without the hard work and time offered by selfless volunteers; and

Whereas the success of the event was a true indication of the effort put forth by volunteers, who helped raise over $10,000 for the Food Bank;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly kindly thank Amy Wardrope for her involvement with the trivia night and ensuring it was a success.

RESOLUTION NO. 2253

[Page 6281]

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Municipality of East Hants recently said good bye to one of its long-time, dedicated employees; and

Whereas after 33 years of service to the municipality, in the role of Chief Administrative Officer, Connie Nolan has retired; and

Whereas Connie was a pivotal role model during her career as a strategist and trusted advisor, ensuring the best interest of our municipality was always the number one priority;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking Connie Nolan for all her years of dedicated service to our municipality, and may she enjoy the next chapter in her life.

RESOLUTION NO. 2254

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Kaleigh Cormier is no stranger to lending a hand and volunteering when there is a need as it's her nature to put others first; and

Whereas Kaleigh is hearing impaired and has audio processing disorder, but she does not let this stop her and immerses herself into all she participates in; and

Whereas Kaleigh has also overcome many adversities in school and last year was an honor student and the recipient of the Verna Award from APSEA;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in celebrating this exceptional young lady's strength of character and wishing her much success in her future endeavors.

RESOLUTION NO. 2255

[Page 6282]

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Hockey Nova Scotia launched the female Indigenous hockey program to help promote hockey and offer skill sessions in an environment the girls could enjoy amongst themselves; and

Whereas Kailey Julian is a tremendous hockey talent who is an excellent role model and instructor for this program; and

Whereas Kailey has so much to offer these young ladies as she herself has many accolades in her hockey career, which include SEDMHA champion, Midget AA provincial champion, and many MVPs;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in thanking Kailey for volunteering and wanting to help other young athletes excel in the sport of hockey.

RESOLUTION NO. 2256

By: Hon. Margaret Miller (Hants East)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the heroic actions of 14 year-year-old John Fraser saved his family's farm and animals on December 23, 2019, when he was home alone; and

Whereas John jumped to action, first driving to his neighbours to call 911, then returning to his home, where he began setting the animals free; and

Whereas with no regard to his personal safety, he ensured the safety of all dogs and horses and tried to salvage what he could until the fire department arrived;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly join me in commending John on his act of terrific bravery and in offering our gratitude for him being unharmed during his act of heroism.

RESOLUTION NO. 2257

[Page 6283]

By: Ben Jessome (Hammonds Plains-Lucasville)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Scott Burke, a constituent of Hammonds Plains-Lucasville and the legislative assistant to the Speaker, has written a book titled Presiding by Desire; and

Whereas this book details the career of former Lieutenant Governor MacCallum Grant, from Summerville, Hants County, who served in office from 1916 to 1925, and the manuscript will be going to print in March 2020; and

Whereas Scott Burke has dedicated himself to this ongoing project over the past six years, and the book will be a good source of reference for the history of the job of Lieutenant Governor of the early 20^th century;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Scott Burke on his hard work and achievement in completing his first book and wish him well in future endeavours.

RESOLUTION NO. 2258

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Alicia Sovey is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Alicia Sovey on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2259

[Page 6284]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Amie Copp is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Amie Copp on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2260

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Carys McMurray is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Carys McMurray on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2261

[Page 6285]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Charlotte Poirier is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Charlotte Poirier on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2262

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Chelsea Ansems is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Chelsea Ansems on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2263

[Page 6286]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Emily Johnston is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Emily Johnston on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2264

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Emma McInnis is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Emma McInnis on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2265

[Page 6287]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Hannah McMurray is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Hannah McMurray on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2266

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Jade Curwin is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Jade Curwin on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2267

[Page 6288]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Jade Guimond is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Jade Guimond on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2268

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Katie Locke is the assistant coach of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Katie Locke on their successful coaching of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2269

[Page 6289]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Lily Baert is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Lily Baert on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2270

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Madisen Jennex is the assistant coach of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Madisen Jennex on their successful coaching of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2271

[Page 6290]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Makiah Glasgow is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Makiah Glasgow on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2272

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Meredith Patterson is the head coach of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Meredith Patterson on their successful coaching of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2273

[Page 6291]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Natalie DesRoches is the manager of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Natalie DesRoches on their successful management of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2274

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Sophie Liberatore is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Sophie Liberatore on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2275

[Page 6292]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Taniya Francis is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Taniya Francis on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2276

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Tracey Shannon is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Tracey Shannon on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2277

[Page 6293]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas Ty'kiah States is a valued member of the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team was named both regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School but Dartmouth North as a whole;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Ty'kiah States on her participation in the Dartmouth High Spartans junior varsity girls basketball team and being named regional and provincial champions for the 2019-20 season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2278

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas on December 12, 13, and 14, 2019, Halifax Regional Arts presented Elf Jr. The Musical, directed by Rebecca Wolfe with musical direction by Rachel O'Brien, at Dartmouth High School; and

Whereas the production featured students in Grades 9 to 12 from 16 different Halifax Regional Centre for Education schools, including within Dartmouth North; and

Whereas Elf Jr. was a joyful, funny, and skilled production that was fun for kids and adults of all ages;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Rob Wigle on the beautiful sets and the successful and joyful production of Elf Jr.

RESOLUTION NO. 2279

[Page 6294]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas on December 12, 13, and 14, 2019, Halifax Regional Arts presented Elf Jr. The Musical, directed by Rebecca Wolfe with musical direction by Rachel O'Brien, at Dartmouth High School; and

Whereas the production featured students in Grades 9 to 12 from 16 different Halifax Regional Centre for Education schools, including within Dartmouth North; and

Whereas Elf Jr. was a joyful, funny, and skilled production that was fun for kids and adults of all ages;

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly congratulate Director Rebecca Wolfe on a successful and joyful production of Elf Jr.

RESOLUTION NO. 2280

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Aaliyah Johnson on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2281

[Page 6295]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Assistant Coach Madisen Jennex on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2282

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Cierrah Smith on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2283

[Page 6296]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Head Coach Marika Williams on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2284

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Cali Cordeau on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2285

[Page 6297]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Kiera Grady on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2286

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Makaiah Vincent on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2287

[Page 6298]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Sami Russell on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2288

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Assistant Coach Jenny Fraser on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2289

[Page 6299]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Denezz Beals on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2290

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Jana Peachey on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2291

[Page 6300]

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Keanna Davies on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2292

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Lilly Langille on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions, and completing a perfect season.

RESOLUTION NO. 2293

By: Susan Leblanc (Dartmouth North)

I hereby give notice that on a future day I shall move the adoption of the following resolution:

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team, coached by Marika Williams, closed the 2018-2019 season with 30 wins and zero loses; and

Whereas the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team were also named the Nova Scotia School Athletic Association's division one girls basketball provincial champions; and

Whereas these talented young athletes not only bring pride to Dartmouth High School, but Dartmouth North as a whole.

Therefore be it resolved that all members of this House of Assembly therefore be it resolved that all members of the House of Assembly congratulate Paris Melanson on her contributions to the Dartmouth High School girls varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season, being named provincial champions

[Page 6301]