PROVINCE OF NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY First Session Forty-Ninth General Assembly Proceedings of the Standing Committee on Resources October 8, 2020 - Issue 7 Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation Published under the authority of the Speaker of the House of Assembly Honourable Scott Reid, MHA RESOURCE COMMITTEE Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation Chair: Christopher Mitchelmore, MHA Vice-Chair: Jordan Brown, MHA Members: Paul Dinn, MHA Sherry Gambin-Walsh, MHA Carol Anne Haley, MHA Pam Parsons, MHA Chris Tibbs, MHA Perry Trimper, MHA Clerk of the Committee: Bobbi Russell Appearing: Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation Hon. Bernard Davis, MHA, Minister Jamie Chippett, Deputy Minister Kara Connors, Executive Assistant Debbie Marnell, Director of Communications Carmela Murphy, Assistant Deputy Minister, Tourism Bonnie Steele, Departmental Controller Renee Williams, Director, Corporate Services Also Present Glenn Littlejohn, Researcher, Official Opposition Office Scott Fleming, Researcher, Third Party Office October 8, 2020 RESOURCE COMMITTEE The Committee met at 9:02 a.m. CHAIR: Thank you, Minister Davis. CHAIR (Mitchelmore): Good morning, Before we get into your opening remarks, I’ll everyone. just get everybody else in the Committee to identify themselves. We would ask Mr. Tibbs to Welcome to the Estimates Committee meeting begin. of the Resource Committee for the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation. MR. TIBBS: Chris Tibbs, MHA for Grand Falls-Windsor - Buchans. I certainly welcome the Committee Members here this morning. I would like to welcome MR. LITTLEJOHN: Glenn Littlejohn, Minister Davis and his team to give you the Political Researcher. opportunity first, for the purposes of the meeting and recording, to introduce your team. MR. BROWN: Jordan Brown, MHA for Labrador West. I’ll hand it over to you, Minister Davis. CHAIR: I’ll go to Ms. Coffin’s desk. MR. DAVIS: Thank you, hon. Chair. MR. FLEMING: Scott Fleming, Researcher, I’m going to try to keep my remarks less than an NDP Caucus. hour and a half, so we can all be happy about that. MS. HALEY: Carol Anne Haley, MHA, Burin - Grand Bank. Good morning to my colleagues. Welcome to everyone here at the Estimates. Thank you for MS. GAMBIN-WALSH: Sherry Gambin- being so accommodating on trying to put it in Walsh, MHA for the beautiful District of here today so we can all get through with this Placentia - St. Mary’s. process and move on to the next phase. MR. TRIMPER: Perry Trimper for Lake I’m pleased to be joined here by some of the Melville. best people in all of government behind me that make my job that much easier. I’m going to MR. DAVIS: It’s a beautiful district as well. introduce them. When they hear their name, if they can put their hand up and then you’ll put a CHAIR: Thank you for that. name to the face of the people that do some great work for people of our province. Before we begin, if any participants will be moving about the Chamber, due to the COVID Jamie Chippett, Deputy Minister for TCAR. protocols, we ask that everybody wear a mask. We’ll prefer to call it TCAR at this point, just We will take a break halfway through this because it makes it a little easier. meeting at 10:30, if anybody needs to use a washroom or make a telephone call. But if Carmella Murphy, Assistant Deputy Minister for anybody has to get up in between, remember to Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation, and wear your mask. pretty much everything else. I’m going to hand things over to Minister Davis Bonnie Steele, Departmental Controller. to bring some opening remarks. After, I’ll ask the Clerk to call the subheads. Renee Williams, Director of Corporate Services. MR. DAVIS: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Debbie Marnell, Director of Communications. This is a newly formed department, as we know, Kara Connors, right behind me here, the driven by the commitments to contribute to the Executive Assistant to me. The brains behind the economic growth and well-being of a vibrant, operation, as I always say. creative and active province. This department is 317 October 8, 2020 RESOURCE COMMITTEE essential to ensuring a vibrant tourism and arts Through regular communication with sector, preserving our culture and advancing stakeholders and industry groups, there were opportunities in the sports and recreation sector. daily discussions with our federal counterparts across the country. Those daily discussions led The mandate of the department is as follows: To to the development of programs to meet targets market Newfoundland and Labrador as a and fill gaps to ensure the residents could pay tourism destination as well as support the bills, put food on the table and support their development of the entire industry; to support families. and foster development of the arts; to further contribute to the capacity of the cultural entities; Considerable focus was given on how to to promote, protect and preserve the province’s alleviate the stress and burden that the pandemic heritage; to support and nurture the province’s has put on all of us. Once again, I cannot thank provincial park system; and to promote the the staff in the department enough for their importance of sport and recreation plays in continued effort and dedication as we navigate healthy well-being for each and every resident of through living with COVID, while we are all our province. striving to provide quality programs and services to the residents of Newfoundland and Labrador. The department is the province’s largest operator of tourism, culture and heritage At this time, if the Chair is willing, we can move facilities including the Arts and Culture Centres, on to take some questions on the line by line in the Provincial Historic Sites, Provincial Parks the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and and Visitor Information Centres. TCAR Recreation. encompasses three branches: tourism and parks, arts and culture and sports and recreation. I’d like to highlight the fact that this is the first time I’ve actually had the opportunity to say These branches are supported by two corporate Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation, which is divisions: Communications and Corporate an important thing that the government decided Services. TCAR has an extensive regional reach to put into the title here, which shows how with departmental staff located throughout the important the arts and culture in our province is. province at Visitor Information Centres, Historic Sites, parks, Arts and Culture Centres and So, Mr. Chair … various recreation and pool facilities throughout our province. CHAIR: Thank you, Minister Davis, for your opening remarks. I commend the staff, as I’ve done earlier, and will continue to do, especially during the I just remind the Committee if there are any COVID pandemic, for their collaborative effort officials that are asked to answer questions, to and continued commitment to fostering a culture state their name. If your light doesn’t come on, of innovation, productivity and creativity in wave your hand to be recognized. With that, I’ll Newfoundland and Labrador. ask the Clerk to call the first subhead. The initial days of COVID provided me with the CLERK (Russell): 1.1.01 to 1.2.02 inclusive. insight on the strength and versatility of the department. Faced with an unprecedented CHAIR: Shall 1.1.01 to 1.2.02 inclusive carry? situation, staff were well organized and functioned at a very, very high level. In the Mr. Tibbs. weeks following the March shutdown, officials worked hard to getting critical funding out the MR. TIBBS: First of all, I’d like to thank door to organizations and operations that needed everybody for being here. It’s definitely a new it most to help with the continuation of those department and it’s a very important department activities; funding which was pivotal for the to the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. communities and the residents of the province. I know the minister is a very hard worker and I’m sure he’ll do well with the department. 318 October 8, 2020 RESOURCE COMMITTEE I’d like to also compliment the Chair, who had MR. DAVIS: Jamie, do you want …? this department at one time. I think he did a great job with it at one time as well. MR. CHIPPETT: Four retirements in the last year. Moving along, I just have some general questions, if that’s okay, Minister. MR. TIBBS: I wish them well. MR. DAVIS: Yeah, absolutely. How many vacancies are not filled in the department right now? MR. TIBBS: First of all, can we obtain a copy of the minister’s briefing binder? MR. DAVIS: How many vacancies? MR. DAVIS: Absolutely, we’ll have that for all MR. TIBBS: Yes, Sir. of our colleagues on the other side, for sure. MR. DAVIS: I don’t know if there’s … MR. TIBBS: Excellent. Thank you very much, Sir. MR. CHIPPETT: Nineteen. My second question: Is the attrition plan still MR. TIBBS: Thank you, Mr. Chippett. being followed? If so, what are the changes for the last year and this year? Have any positions been eliminated and what would they be? MR. DAVIS: The answer to the question very quickly: Yes, it is. It’s different for each division MR. DAVIS: There have been some within the department. If you want to go through movements, obviously, when we changed line by line it’s addressed in the Salaries departments. There haven’t been any positions component, if you go through. So just when we eliminated, but there are going to be some do get to the salary questions on that, I do want changes to what you see in the Estimates book to say that most of the change that would be an as those heads.