LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF MANITOBA Friday, 30 April, 1982 Time -10:00 a.m. constituency of the Honourable First Minister. On behalf of all the honourable members of the OPENING PRAVER by Mr. Speaker. Legislature. I welcome you here this morning. MR. SPEAKER, Hon. D. James Walding {St. Vital): ORAL QUESTIONS Presenting Petitions ... Reading and Receiving Petitions ... MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Leader of the Opposition. PRESENTING REPORTS BY STANDING AND SPECIAL COMMITTEES HON. STERLING L VON {Charleswood): Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the Attorney-General. Yester­ MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Member for Flin day's news reports carried a number of stories con­ Flon. cerning the federal prosecution of carpet store opera­ tors in about three provinces who were allegedly MR. JERRY T. STORIE {Flin Flon): Mr. Speaker, the advertising floor covering, carpets, in imperial mea­ Committee of Supply has adopted certain Resolu­ sure and in square yards as well as in metric. tions. directs me to report same and asks leave to sit My question to the Attorney-General. Mr. Speaker, again. is this, will he make immediate contact with his federal I move, seconded by the Honourable Member for counterpart, the Minister of Justice, on behalf of Dauphin, that the report of the Committee be received. Manitoba business people to ensure that no business people in Manitoba will be harassed or capriciously MOTION presented and carried. prosecuted for advertisements which while possibly technically in breach of the metric legislation, are MINISTERIAL STATEMENTS otherwise quite harmless and are in furtherance of AND TABLING OF REPORTS common sense merchandising and represent the will of the majority of the people of this country? MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Minister of Education. MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Attorney-General. HON. MAUREEN HEMPHILL (Logan): Mr. Speaker, I HON. ROLAND PENNER {Fort Rouge): Mr. Speaker, ask for leave to table the Annual Report of the Public I would have thought that it would be my duty, and I Schools' Finance Board Province of Manitoba for the intend to make it my duty not to interfere with the due year ending December 31st. 1981. administration of justice. Not so long ago in this House. I was asked by the former Attorney-General MR. SPEAKER: Notices of Motion about what I might do in the event that anyone attempted to open up a freestanding abortion clinic in INTRODUCTION OF BILLS Manitoba. I said then and my answer now is analo­ gous to that. I would not interfere with the due admin­ MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Member for Tuxedo. istration of justice. If rightly or wrongly, Mr. Speaker, the federal MR. GARY FILMON {Tuxedo) introdu ced Bill No. 25, authorities acting within their jurisdiction launched.a an Act to Incorporate the Winnipeg Humane Society prosecution, that is for them. And for me. even before Foundation. that has happened, to get on the blower to the Federal Minister of Justice and say: "Hey. don't enforce your INTRODUCTION OF GUESTS laws," would not only be wrong, it would be impudent and I don't intend to that, nor should I be asked to. MR. SPEAKER: Before we reach Oral Questions, may I direct the attention of honourable members to MR. LYON: Mr. Speaker, the Attorney-General has the gallery. where we have 52 students of Grade 5 had some experience in the administration of justice; standing from the Maple Leaf School. These students I've had some experience in it; the former Attorney­ are under the direction of Mr. Bourbonniere. This General has; and I can tell him that it's not unusual for school is in the constituency of the Honourable Attorneys-General to make submissions to their fed­ Member for River East. eral counterparts when they see something that is We also have 60 students of Grade 6 standing from utterly foolish going on. There is a section, Mr. the West Park School under the direction of Mr. Ken Speaker, - and I frame my question to the Attorney­ Doell. General in these terms -there is a section in the new There are 50 students of Grade 9 standing from the Charter of Rights, a document that appears to be Laverene Ray School under the direction of Mr. Wilk­ favoured by the current Attorney-General which while berg. This school is in the constituency of the Hon­ dealing with evidential matters uses the words of put­ ourable Member for Portage la Prairie. ting the administration of justice into disrepute.I sug­ There are 40 students of Grade 11 standing from the gestto him, Sir, that the Minister of Justice. by permit­ Lord Selkirk Regional Comprehensive School under ting these nonsensical prosecutions to proceed. is the direction of Mr. Wishnowski. This school is in the putting the administration of justice in this country 2059 Friday, 30 April, 1982 into disrepute. Will not that cause the Attorney­ behalf of the Government of Manitoba, as owner of General of Manitoba to make representations on ManFor, and any other private sector company, could behalf of the business community and the people of he bring us up to date as to the status of those negotia­ this province against this silly metric prosecution tions at the present time? business. MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Minister of Energy MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Attorney-General. and Mines. MR. PENNER: Well. Mr. Speaker, in the citation of HON. WILSON PARASIUK (Transcona): Yes, Mr. rules. which I understand you distributed to the Speaker, we've had discussions with one company members - I have a copy of them - one of the things that the previous government had discussions with that is enjoined is the asking of hypothetical ques­ before. Those discussions are continuing. We are tions; that is, one would have to deal with a hypothesis talking to a couple of other companies just to see what and I don't intend to deal with a hypothesis. As of now. the options might be. I'm not aware c� anyone in Manitoba being prose­ Mr. Speaker. what we've done, we've launched a cuted under that Act. Should that arise and should joint set of engineering studies with the Federal Gov­ representations be made to me. I will deal with it then. ernment to ensure that we can get the maximum but I have given to the Honourable the Leader of the amount of federal contributions to any type of devel­ Opposition a statement of general policy which I opment in The Pas. I am sure the Leader of the Oppo­ intend to follow. Federal prosecutors may. as Crown sition will remember the difficulty that was expe­ prosecutors do here from time to time. stay charges rienced in trying to get any type of firm commitment where indeed, a situation arises where to pursue the of federal monies to any type of development at The matter might indeed - and I think the phrase is Pas. There's a belief of this government that type of appropriate - bring the administration of justice into contribution of federal money, which has been made disrepute. to forestry improvements. pulp and paper improve­ One cannot. I think. hypothetically deal with whether ments, sawmill improvements, in eastern Canada. or not a given situation does or does not do that. We should apply equally as well to Manitoba because we leave a great deal of discretion at the prosecutorial have a forestry resource here, Mr. Speaker, that con­ level relying on the common sense and we have rea­ tributes greatly to Manitoba's gross domestic product son to believe that works well of the Crown prosecu­ and we feel strongly that the Federal Government tors or the federal prosecutors acting within their should contribute. We've had meetings at the ministe­ jurisdiction. rial level with the Federal Government. The response The section of the Charter. to which my learned was favourable in a general manner and now we want friend the Honourable the Leader of the Opposition to firm it up through some very detailed studies. refers. deals with evidentiary matters but I'm content We have informed the companies of what we are to use the phrase in its broader application as he has. doing with the Federal Government and we are bring­ and hope. indeed. that in any given situation, whether ing them along as we proceed with the technical stu­ within our jurisdiction or the federal jurisdiction. the dies to ensure that when those technical and engi­ law is not so enforced that it does bring the adminis­ neering studies are completed we could make a tration of justice into disrepute. There we have a decision. not only with respect to federal contribu­ common view. tions, but with respect to some possible joint venture with other parties. MR. LYON: A final supplem entary then. Mr. Speaker, working on the age-old axiomatic premise that a MR. LYON: Mr. Speaker, I thank the Minister for his stitch in time saves nine, would the Attorney-General answer. To be somewhat more explicit I wonder if he not agree that to make such representations before could advise the House, Sir, if one of the companies. any silly prosecutions begin in Manitoba would not be and the name has been in the public forum before, helpful to Manitoba business; in words that I don't with whom he is maintaining an active stance of nego­ mind if he appropriates, tell the Federal Government tiation is the Repap Company, which was one com­ to keep their carpet snoopers and carpetbaggers out pany that had moved along the furthest in negotia­ of Manitoba on metric prosecutions. tions with the previous government and in negotiations with the Federal Government.