Third Session – Forty-Second Legislature of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba DEBATES and PROCEEDINGS Official Report (Hansard) Published under the authority of The Honourable Myrna Driedger Speaker Vol. LXXV No. 24B - 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, December 1, 2020 ISSN 0542-5492 MANITOBA LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY Forty-Second Legislature Member Constituency Political Affiliation ADAMS, Danielle Thompson NDP ALTOMARE, Nello Transcona NDP ASAGWARA, Uzoma Union Station NDP BRAR, Diljeet Burrows NDP BUSHIE, Ian Keewatinook NDP CLARKE, Eileen, Hon. Agassiz PC COX, Cathy, Hon. Kildonan-River East PC CULLEN, Cliff, Hon. Spruce Woods PC DRIEDGER, Myrna, Hon. Roblin PC EICHLER, Ralph, Hon. Lakeside PC EWASKO, Wayne Lac du Bonnet PC FIELDING, Scott, Hon. Kirkfield Park PC FONTAINE, Nahanni St. Johns NDP FRIESEN, Cameron, Hon. Morden-Winkler PC GERRARD, Jon, Hon. River Heights Lib. GOERTZEN, Kelvin, Hon. Steinbach PC GORDON, Audrey Southdale PC GUENTER, Josh Borderland PC GUILLEMARD, Sarah, Hon. Fort Richmond PC HELWER, Reg, Hon. Brandon West PC ISLEIFSON, Len Brandon East PC JOHNSON, Derek Interlake-Gimli PC JOHNSTON, Scott Assiniboia PC KINEW, Wab Fort Rouge NDP LAGASSÉ, Bob Dawson Trail PC LAGIMODIERE, Alan Selkirk PC LAMONT, Dougald St. Boniface Lib. LAMOUREUX, Cindy Tyndall Park Lib. LATHLIN, Amanda The Pas-Kameesak NDP LINDSEY, Tom Flin Flon NDP MALOWAY, Jim Elmwood NDP MARCELINO, Malaya Notre Dame NDP MARTIN, Shannon McPhillips PC MICHALESKI, Brad Dauphin PC MICKLEFIELD, Andrew Rossmere PC MORLEY-LECOMTE, Janice Seine River PC MOSES, Jamie St. Vital NDP NAYLOR, Lisa Wolseley NDP NESBITT, Greg Riding Mountain PC PALLISTER, Brian, Hon. Fort Whyte PC PEDERSEN, Blaine, Hon. Midland PC PIWNIUK, Doyle Turtle Mountain PC REYES, Jon Waverley PC SALA, Adrien St. James NDP SANDHU, Mintu The Maples NDP SCHULER, Ron, Hon. Springfield-Ritchot PC SMITH, Andrew Lagimodière PC SMITH, Bernadette Point Douglas NDP SMOOK, Dennis La Vérendrye PC SQUIRES, Rochelle, Hon. Riel PC STEFANSON, Heather, Hon. Tuxedo PC TEITSMA, James Radisson PC WASYLIW, Mark Fort Garry NDP WHARTON, Jeff, Hon. Red River North PC WIEBE, Matt Concordia NDP WISHART, Ian Portage la Prairie PC WOWCHUK, Rick Swan River PC 1171 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA Tuesday, December 1, 2020 The House met at 1:30 p.m. Your Standing Committee on Justice presents the following as its First Report. Madam Speaker: Good afternoon, everybody. Meetings Please be seated. Your Committee met on November 30, 2020 at ROUTINE PROCEEDINGS 5:30 p.m. in Room 255 of the Legislative Building. INTRODUCTION OF BILLS Matters under Consideration Bill 219–The Health Care Accountability • Bill (No. 9) – The Opioid Damages and Health and Timely Access Act Care Costs Recovery Act/Loi sur le recouvrement (The Health Care Act and Amendments du montant des dommages-intérêts et du coût des to The Health Services Insurance Act) soins de santé imputables aux opioïdes Hon. Jon Gerrard (River Heights): Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the MLA for Tyndall Committee Membership Park, that Bill 219, The Health Care Accountability • Hon. Mr. CULLEN and Timely Access Act (The Health Care Act and • Ms. FONTAINE Amendments to The Health Services Insurance Act); • Ms. GORDON Loi sur l'accès à des soins de santé dans des délais • Mr. MICKLEFIELD raisonnable et le principe de l'imputabilité (Loi sur les • Mrs. SMITH (Point Douglas) soins de santé et modification de la Loi sur • Hon. Mrs. STEFANSON l'assurance-maladie), be now read a first time. Your Committee elected Mr. MICKLEFIELD as the Motion presented. Chairperson. Mr. Gerrard: Madam Speaker, this bill establishes Your Committee elected Ms. GORDON as the the health care act and amends The Health Services Vice-Chairperson. Insurance Act. It acts the–adds the fundamental prin- ciple of accountability as a principle, which will be As per the Sessional Order passed by the House on taken into account in the delivery of health care. October 7, 2020, Rule 83(2) was waived for the In addition, all Manitobans are provided the right to November 30, 2020 meeting, reducing the timely access to quality health care based on the best membership to six Members (4 Government and scientific evidence, and also they are given the right 2 Official Opposition). to be fully informed about their medical situation. Bills Considered and Reported Thank you. • Bill (No. 9) – The Opioid Damages and Health Madam Speaker: Is it the pleasure of the House to Care Costs Recovery Act/Loi sur le recouvrement adopt the motion? Agreed? [Agreed] du montant des dommages-intérêts et du coût des soins de santé imputables aux opioïdes COMMITTEE REPORTS Standing Committee on Justice Your Committee agreed to report this Bill without First Report amendment. Mr. Andrew Micklefield (Chairperson): Madam Mr. Micklefield: Madam Speaker, I move, seconded Speaker, I wish to present the first report of the by the honourable member for Southdale Standing Committee on Justice. (Ms. Gordon), that the report of the committee be received. Clerk (Ms. Patricia Chaychuk): Your Standing Committee on Justice– Motion agreed to. An Honourable Member: Dispense. TABLING OF REPORTS Madam Speaker: Dispense. Madam Speaker: And I do have a report to table. 1172 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA December 1, 2020 I am pleased to table the following report: Last Friday, I spoke with Jim Bell, the CEO of A Proposal to Modify the Voting Process Under Siloam Mission, and he wishes the best to all of our Section 28.1(1) of The Elections Act, titled members of the Manitoba Legislative Assembly. Vote Anywhere in your Electoral Division on In closing, I wish all of you a safe and blessed Election Day, dated November 2020. Christmas and a Happy New Year. Ministerial statements? Premier's Leadership Record During Pandemic MEMBERS' STATEMENTS Ms. Nahanni Fontaine (St. Johns): In times of crisis, who a person truly is and how they choose to lead is Siloam Mission laid bare for all to see. Mr. Andrew Smith (Lagimodière): As a very So let's continue our review of how the Premier challenging year winds down to a close, the Christmas (Mr. Pallister) has responded in the time of COVID: season is upon us. With the struggles we are currently cut inclusion supports for students; interfered, again, facing as a society, most of us can turn to our families with the U of M collective bargaining; knowingly for love, comfort and solace. There are many in our gave out thousands of expired masks to child-care communities, however, who do not have that stability centres, nurses, correctional centres, PCHs and and not only face loneliness and lack of supports, but schools; told child-care centres they had to prove that also poverty. the masks were expired; hoarding $85 million in Thankfully, there are a number of compassionate, federal funding for schools; hasn't hired enough goodwill organizations in our city who exist solely to teachers and EAs despite educators being exhausted– help those desperately in need. Siloam Mission is one [interjection] such organization whose mission, as a Christian Madam Speaker: Order. humanitarian organization, is to assist those affected by poverty and homelessness, and help them through Ms. Fontaine:–cut home-care supports; closed the their most difficult times by giving them opportunities Grandville hospital; closed the Roblin ER; closing the that they could never have found on their own. Those IV clinic–[interjection] with nowhere else to turn find themselves in a place Madam Speaker: Order. that gives them hope, starting with a warm meal and includes clothing and shelter. Ms. Fontaine: –in Transcona; refuses to take over the Maples Personal Care Home and the–Parkview Place, Siloam Mission, and similar organizations, rely despite rising deaths still; closing Concordia on donations in order to exist. These donations are CancerCare this week; cut five senior health-care crucial, to assist them in maintaining their daily positions from the Southern Health region; shames operations and giving them the ability to expand their small businesses while turning a blind eye to a church services. Donations of clothing provide their guests blatantly breaking code red restrictions; leaves out with essentials to keep them clothed and warm, photographers, DJs and other wedding businesses especially in the most bitterly cold winter months here from the Bridge Grant and refuses to include them; in Manitoba. Food donations are the lifeblood that asks volunteers to do their contact tracing; today, feed those in daily need of nourishment. raises Manitoba Hydro rates for all Manitobans; blames Rosemary Barton. I have volunteered for Siloam in the past by delivering donations of food and clothing, as well as Madam Speaker–[interjection] serving food to their guests. This year, more than ever, Madam Speaker: Order. I urge you to do your part to help those in need. In order to assist this in our community, I have partnered Ms. Fontaine:–my message to Manitobans is that, with Siloam Mission and have set up a food-clothing when somebody shows you who they are, believe donation bin–an accessible location. them, because this is who the Premier of Manitoba is. We'll be accepting new canned, boxed and Miigwech. packaged non-perishable items, as well as winter Divya Sharma clothing items such as coats, sweaters and blankets. Your contribution is one that will help many this Mr. Jon Reyes (Waverley): Today, I have the great Christmas season, and beyond. pleasure of delivering a private member's statement December 1, 2020 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA 1173 to honour grade 11 student and Waverley constituent Westman Families of Addicts Ms. Divya Sharma for her positive work in the Mrs. Bernadette Smith (Point Douglas): Watching community. a loved one battle addiction is one of the hardest things When Manitoba schools went into lockdown that a family can go through. Madam Speaker, during the onset of the pandemic, it became a time of 23-year-old Tyler Lalonde lived with addiction for reflection for Divya, a 16-year-old Fort Richmond more than four years.