ORDERS OF THE DAY
Hon. Jim Ernst (Government House Leader): I wonder, Madam Speaker, if I might have leave to revert to Presenting Reports by Standing and Special Committees.
Madam Speaker: Does the honourable government House leader have leave to revert to Presenting Reports by Standing and Special Committees? [agreed]
PRESENTING REPORTS BY
STANDING AND SPECIAL COMMITTEES
Special Committee of Seven Persons
First Report
Hon. Jim Ernst (Government House Leader): I beg to present, Madam Speaker, the First Report of the Special Committee of Seven Persons.
Mr. Clerk (William Remnant): Your Special Committee of Seven Persons, appointed to prepare a list of members of the standing committees ordered by the--
An Honourable Member: Dispense.
Madam Speaker: Dispense
--House, presents the following as its First Report.
Your committee prepared the following list of members to compose the standing committees ordered by the House:
Agriculture (11)
Hon. Mr. Derkach, Mr. Dyck, Hon. Mr. Enns, Messrs, Evans (Brandon East), Evans (Interlake), Hon. Mr. Findlay, Messrs. Penner, Struthers, Sveinson, Tweed, Ms. Wowchuk.
Economic Development (11)
Mr. Ashton, Hon. Mr. Driedger, Mr. Dyck, Hon. Messrs, Enns, Ernst, Findlay, Messrs, Lathlin, Newman, Radcliffe, Reid, Sale.
Industrial Relations (11)
Messrs. Ashton, Dyck, Ms. Friesen, Hon. Mr. Gilleshammer, Mr. Martindale, Ms. McGifford, Mr. Newman, Hon. Mr. Reimer, Mrs. Render, Mr. Sveinson, Hon. Mr. Toews.
Law Amendments (11)
Ms. Cerilli, Mr. Chomiak, Hon. Mr. Cummings, Messrs. Lathlin, Newman, Radcliffe, Reid, Rocan, Sveinson, Hon. Mr. Toews, Hon. Mrs. Vodrey.
Municipal Affairs (11)
Ms. Barrett, Hon. Mr. Derkach, Ms. Friesen, Messrs. Helwer, Jennissen, McAlpine, Ms. Mihychuk, Messrs. Penner, Pitura, Radcliffe, Hon. Mr. Reimer.
Private Bills (11)
Messrs. Dyck, Evans (Brandon East), Evans (Interlake), Helwer, Laurendeau, McAlpine, Pitura, Mrs. Render, Messrs. Robinson, Sveinson, Ms. Wowchuk.
Privileges and Elections (11)
Mr. Ashton, Ms. Barrett, Hon. Mr. Ernst, Messrs. Helwer, Martindale, Hon. Mrs. Mitchelson, Hon. Mr. Pallister, Messrs. Penner, Pitura, Hon. Mr. Praznik, Ms. Wowchuk.
Public Accounts (11)
Messrs. Dyck, Evans (Brandon East), Lamoureux, Laurendeau, Maloway, Penner, Hon. Mr. Reimer, Mr. Santos, Hon. Mr. Stefanson, Messrs. Sveinson, Tweed.
Public Utilities and Natural Resources (11)
Ms. Barrett, Hon. Mr. Ernst, Messrs. Evans (Brandon East), Kowalski, Laurendeau, Pitura, Hon. Mr. Praznik, Mr. Reid, Mrs. Render, Messrs, Rocan, Sveinson.
Rules of the House (12)
Mr. Ashton, Ms. Barrett, Hon. Mrs. Dacquay, Hon. Messrs. Downey, Ernst, Messrs. Hickes, Laurendeau, Martindale, Hon. Mr. McCrae, Hon. Mrs. McIntosh, Messrs. Penner, Rocan.
Statutory Regulations and Orders (11)
Hon. Mr. Derkach, Messrs. Dewar, Lathlin, Mackintosh, Hon. Mr. McCrae, Hon. Mrs. McIntosh, Hon. Mr. Praznik, Messrs. Radcliffe, Reid, Rocan, Tweed.
All of which is respectfully submitted.
Mr. Ernst: I move, seconded by the Minister of Education and Training (Mrs. McIntosh), that the report of the committee be received.
Motion agreed to.
House Business
Hon. Jim Ernst (Government House Leader): Madam Speaker, would you call for second reading Bill 10, followed by Bill 15?
SECOND READINGS
Bill 10--The Development Corporation Amendment Act
Hon. James Downey (Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism): Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the Minister of Finance (Mr. Stefanson), that Bill 10, The Development Corporation Amendment Act; Loi modifiant la Loi sur la Société de développement, be now read a second time and be referred to a committee of this House.
Motion presented.
Mr. Downey: Madam Speaker, I will take a few minutes to use my prepared notes, and then maybe we will have to further explain it a little more afterwards in the Arthur-Virden tradition.
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The proposed amendments set out in Bill 10, which I have just introduced, are aimed at providing a more efficient and effective board of directors for the corporation in the streamlining of the corporation's administrative responsibility to better reflect its current operations.
The proposed amendments are as follows: Firstly, under existing legislation, the board of directors of the corporation must be comprised of seven to 12 members, all of whom, except one, must be dealing at arm's length with the government.
Since 1977, the Manitoba Development Corporation has been acting solely as an agent for the government, and all its activities have been at the approval and direction of the government through Orders-in-Council. For these reasons, a board of this size and constitution is no longer considered necessary. Therefore, this bill proposes that the board of directors be reduced in size to a minimum of three members and a maximum of five members with no restrictions in its make-up, except for the exclusion of elected officials of this House or members of the Senate or House of Commons of Canada.
It is also proposed that the act be amended to reduce the corporation's loan committee to three members of the board of directors and that the act be simplified to reflect that a majority of directors constitutes a quorum for both the board of directors and the loan committee.
Secondly, existing legislation permits the same individual to be both the chairperson of the board of directors and the general manager of the corporation and provides specific rules for dealing with a vacancy in the position of chairperson. The current practice of the corporation is such that the positions of chairperson of the board of directors and general manager are held by separate individuals, and it is proposed that the act be amended to reflect this practice. In addition, it is proposed that the legislation be simplified as to which members of the board of directors may sit as chairperson when the person is absent or the position becomes vacant.
Thirdly, existing legislation contemplates the corporation employing its own staff who are not members of the civil service of the government of Manitoba.
Since 1992, for efficiency reasons, the corporation has used the services of employees of the Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism. It is therefore proposed that the act be amended so that as to not restrict employees of the government from acting as officers of, or performing services for, the corporation.
Lastly, this bill provides that the routine operation of approving by-laws of the corporation be changed from Order-in-Council to the minister responsible for this act.
The amendments presented within this bill will allow the Manitoba Development Corporation to operate more efficiently and effectively on behalf of the Province of Manitoba. I commend them to the House, and I hope the House sees it fit to support this bill and moves it forward in an expeditious manner.
Madam Speaker, I thank you very much for the opportunity to move this bill forward.
Mr. Steve Ashton (Thompson): I move, seconded by the member for Broadway (Mr. Santos), that debate be adjourned.
Motion agreed to.
Bill 15--The Agricultural Producers' Organization Funding Amendment Act
Hon. Harry Enns (Minister of Agriculture): Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism (Mr. Downey), that Bill 15, The Agricultural Producers' Organization Funding Amendment Act; Loi modifiant la Loi sur le financement d'organismes de producteurs agricoles, be now read a second time and be referred to a committee of the House.
Motion presented.
Mr. Enns: Madam Speaker, I am delighted to reintroduce this particular amendment to The Agricultural Producers' Organization Funding Act. I say reintroduce because it was my privilege to have presented it at an earlier occasion prior to the last election to this House. It was important then and is important today.
Allow me simply, in the tradition of second reading of the House, to deal in essence with the principle of the bill and not in its detail. That is why it is being referred to the committee where honourable members will have that opportunity to deal with the details of the bill questioning members of staff or call on members of the public to comment on the advisability, suitability or indeed any amendments that may be thought advisable for this particular piece of legislation.
Madam Speaker, the principle motivation behind this bill, and one that I strongly support, is that perhaps even with greater urgency now than when I first introduced this bill in this, what I call, the post-WGTA era it is extremely important that we give our agricultural organizations the wherewithal so they can organize themselves, they can present themselves, they can promote their specific agricultural commodity to the markets of the world. To do so it is my contention that they need to, like any other organization, have the ability to modestly contribute to their own organization and provide for that kind of fiscal stability to that organization. That is the essence of Bill 15, and amendments brought to it, at this particular time.
Madam Speaker, I appreciate the bill in itself is difficult to read unless you have it in the context of the bill that it is amending, the parent bill, Bill 15. What it really does is it tidies up and tightens up, I suppose if you want to take a critical point of view on it, the method of the collection of the fee or levy that the agency that is established by the original act that determines which organizations should be able to come under the purview of this act.
Madam Speaker, an important feature of this bill, one that quite frankly I recommend to my colleague the Minister of Labour (Mr. Toews) that he might want to look at, there is a highly visible democratic aspect to this bill. Anybody that chooses not to contribute or to belong to the organization need only write a letter once a year and demand a full refund of any of the membership dues that may be collected. It is still very much a voluntary participation on the part of the effected members of any agricultural community that are involved.
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We were advised and we acknowledge that by leaving it in a very loose way it created problems within the industry. For instance, the different elevator companies, the different grain companies, they have said to us, look, government we do not mind knocking off this levy or this check-off for you then to use and to apply and send to the agricultural producer group that is duly credited to receive it but, he said, make it uniform.
What was happening on the landscape is some farmers would exercise the privilege they had under the old act to indicate at delivery point that they did not want to contribute to the check-off, others did not indicate that. There were differences between grain companies. The grain companies in consultation with us this past summer have said, you know, we are neutral to this situation. It is easier for them, particularly in this modern day and age where they do all their billing, all their invoicing, all their costs associated with that point of sale on computers. They just lock in the computer the very small percentage point of the total sale of any given delivery that automatically is checked off, the payment to that farmer, and then forward it on to the appropriate agency that then distributes these funds according to the regulations that have been established.
Madam Speaker, I commend this bill for some very specific reasons. As I have said, now more than ever, partly because of the budgetary pressures on all governments, including provincial and federal, which we are very keenly aware of and not just affecting agriculture, it is important to provide these organizations with the kind of necessary fiscal means that they themselves can do some of the things that perhaps in past times the Department of Agriculture carried on as a normal part of its support for various agricultural endeavours in the province.
Madam Speaker, the honourable member spent the last part of her examinations and her critical comment of me directly as Minister of Agriculture during the course of the examinations of the Estimates of the Department of Agriculture decrying the fact that sufficient attention was not being paid to the important aspect of research in agriculture. The honourable member should be aware--all members should be aware--that is it very often hindering our agricultural organizations and commodity groups from taking advantage of research dollars that are there, because in most cases they are there on a matching basis. If the organization that is asking for the research can put up $10,000, $20,000 or $30,000 of their own monies, then the federal government and/or other agencies will match those kinds of dollars and a research project is underway.
This is particularly the case with the new research monies available through the federal government through Agriculture Canada. They have provided, for instance, a $35-million fund available to various agricultural commodity groups for research. Those organizations that have the ability to raise the money are getting the advantage of this research and tying into these research dollars.
Let me be more specific, Madam Speaker. We, in Manitoba, can take some special pride in the research that led to the development of what truly has become the Cinderella crop on the Prairies. I am referring to canola. Quite frankly, without canola, we would have seen a far different scene on the landscape in these last few years, particularly in some of those more difficult years where traditional wheats and feed grains have been priced far too low.
Our province, Madam Speaker, our research, more specifically research done at the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Manitoba, can take a tremendous measure of pride in having made that contribution to western Canadian agriculture in the development of the canola crop as we know it today.
Look at what is happening, Madam Speaker. The canola growers in Alberta, the canola growers in Saskatchewan, the canola growers in Ontario all have the benefit of the kind of legislation that I am proposing to this House--except the Manitoba canola growers.
The Manitoba canola growers have come to me on a most urgent basis, and I know they have visited the offices of members of the opposition. They have asked--and I have and I can read into the record the most recent letter dated June 5, 1995, from the canola growers, a letter that I know that the honourable member for Swan River (Ms. Wowchuk) has also received--stating that, without this check-off we are in jeopardy of losing several things, No. 1, the very existence, because canola was born in Manitoba, we are pleased and proud to house the Canola institute of Canada in Manitoba, in Winnipeg.
Let us not fool ourselves, greater acreages of canola are being grown in Saskatchewan and Alberta. They are providing more money and support because they have the check-off legislation in place. Our canola growers in Manitoba feel themselves to be poor cousins, and they feel themselves embarrassed that they cannot contribute in the same way.
Furthermore, the canola crop, unlike other crops, moves in bulk, 60 percent of it is forward contracting. Canola does not move like wheat or barley or other things that move throughout the year, and I know the honourable member for Swan River is aware of this.
Madam Speaker, I believe very strongly that for us to be able to support our agricultural groups we look at this piece of legislation and we look at it expeditiously. I know the honourable members may wish to drag it out and not deal with it till the fall session, but let it be clearly understood--and I want to put this on the record--there may well be millions of dollars of research lost to the province of Manitoba if the opposition takes that attitude. We may well lose the Canola institute and have it move to Saskatoon if the opposition takes that attitude, and that is hypocrisy.
The Leader of Her Majesty's opposition talked about his concern about the Canadian Wheat Board today. Madam Speaker, here is an opportunity for his party to act responsibly and move this bill onto committee and pass it so the Canola institute, the canola people can have their check-off. I commend it to the House.
Mr. Steve Ashton (Thompson): I move, seconded by the member for Swan River (Ms. Wowchuk), that debate be adjourned.
Motion agreed to.
House Business
Hon. Jim Ernst (Government House Leader): Madam Speaker, on a matter of House business, I would advise that Bill 3, The Maintenance Enforcement (Various Acts Amendment) Act and Bill 7, The City of Winnipeg Amendment Act are both referred to the Committee on Law Amendments which will meet on Tuesday, June 20, at 7 p.m.
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Mr. Ernst: I move, seconded by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism (Mr. Downey), that Madam Speaker do now leave the Chair and the House resolve itself into a committee to consider of the Supply to be granted to Her Majesty.
Motion agreed to, and the House resolved itself into a committee to consider of the Supply to be granted to Her Majesty, with the honourable member for La Verendrye (Mr. Sveinson) in the Chair for the Department of Family Services; the honourable member for Sturgeon Creek (Mr. McAlpine) in the Chair for the Department of Education and Training; and the honourable member for St. Norbert (Mr. Laurendeau) in the Chair for the Department of Health.