[The Legislature rose on Friday, May 9, 1997 to meet again at the call of the Speaker.]

[The Sergeant-at-Arms bearing the Mace entered the House followed by the Chief Clerk of the House, Roderick MacArthur, Q.C. and the Acting Assistant Clerk, Arthur Fordham, Q.C.]

THE SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: Would the honourable members please be seated.

THE CLERK: Honourable members, I wish to table returns for the most recent by-elections held in this province. Each of the members, so declared elected, has taken the Oath and signed the Roll and therefore claims the right to take that member's seat in this place.

HON. WILLIAM GILLIS: Members of the House of Assembly, I have the honour to present to you the Honourable Russell MacLellan, Premier of Nova Scotia and member for the electoral district of Cape Breton North. (Standing Ovation)

[Hon. William Gillis and Mr. Joseph Casey escorted Hon. Russell MacLellan into the House.]

MR. ROBERT CHISHOLM: Members of the House of Assembly, I have the honour to present to you Ms. Helen MacDonald, member for the electoral district of Cape Breton The Lakes. (Standing Ovation)

[Mr. Robert Chisholm and Mr. John Holm escorted Ms. Helen MacDonald into the House.]

[Page 1688]

DR. JOHN HAMM: Members of the House of Assembly, I have the honour to present to you Mr. Ernest Fage, member for the electoral district of Cumberland North. (Standing Ovation)

[Dr. John Hamm and Mr. George Archibald escorted Mr. Ernest Fage into the House.]

HON. RUSSELL MACLELLAN, Q.C. (Premier): Members of the House of Assembly, I have the honour to present to you Dr. Edwin Kinley, member for the electoral district of Halifax Citadel. (Standing Ovation)

[The Premier and Hon. William Gillis escorted Dr. Edwin Kinley into the House.]

HON. ALAN MITCHELL: Mr. Clerk, as Provincial Secretary, I wish to report that I have received the resignation of the Honourable Wayne Gaudet as Speaker of this House and ask the House's permission to table the resignation on a future date.

THE PREMIER: I have a letter, Mr. Clerk, a commission has been issued by His Honour, the Honourable John James Kinley, the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia which reads as follows:

"TO: The Honourable Russell MacLellan, Q.C.

Premier of Nova Scotia

GREETING:

WHEREAS I have been informed that the Honourable Wayne Gaudet has resigned as Speaker of the present General Assembly;

AND INASMUCH as I cannot conveniently be present in the said Legislature until the Members of the House of Assembly have elected their Speaker;

NOW THEREFORE I have thought fit to require and command you, and do hereby require and command you, to convey and declare to the Members of the House of Assembly that I cannot conveniently be in the said Legislature until the House of Assembly has elected a Speaker who shall be presented in the said House for my approbation.

GIVEN under my Hand and Seal at Arms this twentieth day of November in the year of Our Lord one thousand nine hundred and ninety-seven and in the forty-sixth year of Her Majesty's reign.

John James Kinley, C.D., S.M., D.Eng., P.Eng., F.E.I.C.

Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia."

[Page 1689]

Mr. Clerk, I move that Gerald Fogarty, member for the electoral district of Halifax Bedford Basin, be appointed the Speaker of the Fifty-sixth General Assembly.

DR. JOHN HAMM: Mr. Clerk, I have the privilege of seconding the nomination of Gerald Fogarty as Speaker of the House of Assembly.

THE CLERK: Is the House ready for the question?

Would all those in favour of the motion please say Aye. Contrary minded, Nay.

The motion is carried.

[The Premier and Dr. John Hamm dragged Mr. Speaker to the Chair.]

MR. SPEAKER (Hon. Gerald Fogarty): Honourable Members of the House of Assembly, I thank the House for the honour it has bestowed upon me. I will do my best to uphold the prestige and high tradition of the Speaker's Office. I respectfully ask for the assistance and the cooperation of all honourable members. Thank you.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: His Honour, the Lieutenant Governor, is without.

[The Acting Sergeant-at-Arms followed by the Speaker and Clerks left the Chamber.]

[The Lieutenant Governor, the Honourable John James Kinley, preceded by his escort and aide and by Mr. Douglas Giles, Acting Sergeant-at-Arms, bearing the Mace, entered the House of Assembly Chamber. The Lieutenant Governor then took his seat on the Throne.]

[The Sergeant-at-Arms then departed and re-entered the Chamber followed by the Speaker, the Honourable Gerald Fogarty; the Chief Clerk of the House, Roderick MacArthur, Q.C.; and the Acting Assistant Clerk, Arthur Fordham, Q.C. ]

[The Speaker, with the Acting Sergeant-at-Arms on his right and the Clerks on either side, took up his position at the foot of the Speaker's Table.]

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS: It is the wish of His Honour that the ladies and gentlemen be seated.

THE PREMIER: May it please your Honour, the House of Assembly, agreeable to your Honour's command, has proceeded to the choice of a Speaker and has elected Gerald Fogarty member for the electoral district of Halifax Bedford Basin to that Office and by its direction I present him for the approbation of your Honour.

THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: I approve of the Speaker whom the House of Assembly has chosen.

[Page 1690]

MR. SPEAKER: Your Honour's ready approval of the choice, with which I have been honoured by the House, having constituted me in due form the Speaker of the House of Assembly, it has now become my duty, in the name of the representatives of Her Majesty's loyal subjects, the people of this Province, respectfully to demand all their accustomed rights and privileges, and that they shall have freedom of speech in their debates, that they may be free from arrest during their attendance in Parliament, and that I, as their Speaker, may have free access to your Honour's person.

THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: I most cheerfully grant your request.

Mr. Speaker and Members of the House of Assembly, in closing this the Fifth Session of the Fifty-sixth General Assembly convened in the province, I wish to thank you for the attention and consideration you have given to the measures which have come before you.

New and important legislative measures were passed, including:

[11:15 a.m.]

An Act Respecting the Delivery and Sale of Natural Gas in the Province.

An Act to Amend Chapter 300 of the Revised Statutes, 1989, the Municipal Elections Act.

An Act to Amend Chapter 401 of the Revised Statutes, 1989, the Residential Tenancies Act.

In addition, the Financial Measures (1997) Act enacted amendments to the Equity Tax Credit Act, extending the equity tax credit program through 2001, and amended the Provincial Finance Act to provide that not less than one-half of Nova Scotia's net gas royalties received from the Sable Offshore Energy Project will be paid into the Public Debt Retirement Fund to reduce the province's public debt.

Private and Local Bills respecting a number of matters received the approval of the House.

I thank you for the ample provision you have made for the Public Service and I assure you that the utmost care will be taken to see that the amounts voted are expended in an economical manner and in the best interests of the province.

I now bid you farewell and tender you my best wishes for your personal prosperity and happiness throughout the year.

[Page 1691]

THE PREMIER: Mr. Speaker and Members of the House of Assembly, it is the will and pleasure of His Honour the Lieutenant Governor that this the Fifth Session of the Fifty-sixth General Assembly be prorogued, and this session is accordingly prorogued and that the Sixth Session of the said General Assembly meet at 2:00 o'clock in the afternoon on this day for the dispatch of business.

[The Speaker and Clerks left the Chamber.]

[The Lieutenant Governor left the Chamber.]

[The House rose at 11:18 a.m.]

QUESTION NO. 8

By: Mr. Ronald Russell (Hants West)

To: Hon. John Savage (Premier)

The Cornwallis Park Development Agency has recently entered into an agreement with a British Columbia based real estate marketing firm A.J. Galbraith and Associates to sell off the vacant Private Married Quarters (PMQs) at Cornwallis Park in Clementsport, Nova Scotia.

(1) Who currently has title to the PMQs?

(2) Who sits on the Board of Directors of A.J. Galbraith and Associates?

(3) Was this deal tendered?

(4) How will the profits of the sale of the PMQs be distributed?

QUESTION NO. 9

By: Mr. Ronald Russell (Hants West)

To: Hon. Richard Mann (Minister of Economic Development and Tourism)

Recently, Citizens on Patrol criticized the performance of the Cornwallis Park Development Agency for its lack of success in attracting new businesses and creating new jobs at the former military base in Clementsport, Nova Scotia.

(1) Has the Province of Nova Scotia provided any financial assistance to Cornwallis Park to assist the Cornwallis Park Development Agency or any group associated with it?

(2) Has the Province of Nova Scotia provided any other assistance to the Cornwallis Park Development Agency, e.g. marketing assistance, et cetera?

(3) Has the provincial government any plans to provide any aid to the Cornwallis Park Development Agency, and if so, what are they?

QUESTION NO. 35

By: Mr. George Archibald (Kings North)

To: Hon. Robert Harrison (Minister of Education and Culture)

(1) The province is now involved with several consortiums in the building of our new schools and promises to continue with these leasing agreements. Can the minister explain how, and he can take the Sherwood Park Educational Centre as an example, the funding is arranged for construction?

(2) Does the department only start paying once the leasing agreement is signed and the school is built?

(3) Will the minister confirm what public monies, if any, have been invested into the new Sherwood Park Educational Centre to date?

(4) Will the minister explain what benchmarking was done before this institution was built? The minister tabled the information comparing Basinview Elementary and the new school for Porters Lake. Was a similar benchmarking initiative undertaken before the first privately built school was agreed to and the contract for the leasing arrangement signed?

QUESTION NO. 36

By: Mr. Ronald Russell (Hants West)

To: Hon. Alan Mitchell (Minister of Justice)

This question concerns the treatment of sexual assault victims.

(1) It is my understanding that the Victims Compensation Division has a list of counsellors it offers to victims who require counselling services. If a victim has a reputable counsellor in whom they have already confided the details of their sexual assault, is it possible that the government could exempt the victim from the official list in favour of the qualified counsellor, not on the list, but understanding of the victim's traumatic experience? This would see that the victim was not forced to, once again, retell her story to a stranger. Would the minister make a commitment to reviewing this policy?

[Page 1694]

QUESTION NO. 37

By: Mr. Ronald Russell (Hants West)

To: Hon. Alan Mitchell (Minister of Justice)

(1) The Victims Compensation Division was reportedly looking into an initiative which would assist the victim of a sexual assault who is suddenly faced with having to defend themselves upon the filing by the lawyer of the accused of what is known as an "O'Connor application". I was recently told that this was being looked into but that it has been dropped. Would the minister check into what may have been done and what will be done to ensure that the victim does not become the victim again during the court process for an individual who has been sexually assaulted?