Sandy Lee

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is also about the impending closure of the day care in Fort Smith. Mr. Speaker, I realize that the Premier is not involved in the day-to-day management of the file, but I would appreciate it if the Premier would take this question. My question is, given the fact that there are so few days left -- this day care is up for closure within a week or so, within a couple of weeks -- it appears from listening to the answers that the Premier gave to the Member for Monfwi, that there are some documents or records that the government is looking for to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize someone who has already been recognized, but in doing so, I may have to let out a personal secret, or whatever.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that we report progress.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I don’t think it’s as clear as the Minister says. I agree with the purpose of this legislation in including and widening the group of people who will be subject to the protection of privacy requirements, because we know that governments gather a lot of information; and their agents, and their contractors, casual employees and students that government hires and government agents hire, if they come across personal information that’s sensitive, I think it’s only right that we require them to not reveal that. They should be advised of that. That makes sense to me.

I...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have a couple of questions to put on record of some of the concerns and questions of clarifications that came up during our committee process. One is, I would like to ask the Minister and his staff if they could give one example or situation that symbolizes the need for having this legislation. Why was there a need to include volunteers and students in the definition of employee? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A short final supplementary. My riding of Range Lake was a great beneficiary of George Jones' concert. We had lots of people from all of the communities at Tim Hortons. Even without any prodding, I have had people from Tuktoyaktuk and Paulatuk telling me, "We don’t want any trailers in my home town." They have already heard about this. There is nothing confidential about the 1,400 Novel trailers. If the Minister is not going to give us this information, I want to know when he is prepared to ask the Joe Punches of Trout Lake and all the people in Tuktoyaktuk and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have to tell you that this proposal was received without a lot of…It was not very well received, let me just say. There were just lots of questions that the Minister has not been able to answer at the committee level.

Instead of providing the information that Members need to make good sound judgment about such a mega project, he has taken the initiative to invite anybody who wants to come and see this trailer in Calgary. I have to tell you, Mr. Speaker, there are some really nice trailers in my riding. I know what a trailer looks like. I don’t need to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to set aside the whole issue about getting money from the federal government. That is totally another issue, and it doesn't really matter how much money we get, it is how we fund our programs. Let me tell you, in this House, all the people that work for us, they still get paid if Members don't show up, if one of us don't show up. Why is it then okay for day care not to be paid if a child doesn't show up? That makes no sense. Overhead costs are exactly the same. I would like to ask the Premier to look at questions like that, about are we being fair in our...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my understanding is that this issue has been going on and there have been problems expressed to the Minister, difficulties that the society has been experiencing for the last year. I don't know why it has taken until the midnight hour to figure this out.

Could I ask the Premier, if the director provides the government with the information, would the Premier work with the Minister of ECE to do all that the government can do to keep that facility open, and give them the reasonable assistance that they need to get through? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In 1978, when I came to Canada and spoke no English whatsoever, my first best friend who taught me English was from Newfoundland, and her name was Rhonda Rodgers. Denny Rodgers is Rhonda Rodgers’ little brother who was in grade school. Now he is here as a chair of WCB, and his daughter here is paging. That really makes you think about how life runs its course as it should. It is a great pleasure for me to recognize Mr. Rogers in the gallery. Thank you.

---Applause