Latest news with #TonyWakeham
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Opposition urges government to pause Churchill Falls negotiations ahead of first ministers' meeting
The leader of Newfoundland and Labrador's Official Opposition wants the province to put the brakes on Churchill Falls negotiations. PC Leader Tony Wakeham says the world has changed since the memorandum of understanding was first introduced in December, and he wants the governing Liberals to focus on developing a potential "national energy corridor" that has come up in recent months. "We need to slow down and take an opportunity to evaluate what that might look like," Wakeham told CBC News on Tuesday. Before the federal election, Prime Minster Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre both pledged to create an energy corridor. While it's uncertain what that could look like, a post on the federal Liberal party's website says that Carney intends to fast-track "projects of national interest." The prime minister will meet with leaders from each province and territory, at a first ministers' meeting on Monday in Saskatoon. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Premier John Hogan said he feels that the meeting will be a good opportunity to discuss the province's priorities. "[Carney is] focused on nation building projects," said Hogan. "And those are the discussions that we're going to be having; about what that means, what the projects will be and what sort of assistance the federal government is looking at providing to the provinces to help develop those national building projects." At the same time, Hogan says he's committed to moving forward with the Churchill Falls deal while exploring "additional opportunities" with the federal government, according to a statement from the premier's office sent on Tuesday. The new Churchill Falls deal, which Newfoundland and Labrador and Quebec hope to finalize by next year, would bring an average of $1 billion to the province's coffers each year until 2041. Four combined projects outlined in the deal could generate 5,000 direct jobs. Wakeham insists Newfoundland and Labrador is rushing that deal. Meanwhile, NDP Leader Jim Dinn says any pause would "spell the end" for Labrador West. Dinn was a staunch advocate for independent oversight and still questions some parts of the proposed deal, but still doesn't want to see it put on hold. "It's actually injected a sense of hope and prosperity," he told reporters this week. "Why would you basically sound the death knell, then, to Labrador West by saying 'let's pause it' and 'let's wait and see what happens. The damage is going to be done." Download our free CBC News app to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Click here to visit our landing page.
CBC
3 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Opposition urges government to pause Churchill Falls negotiations ahead of first ministers' meeting
The leader of Newfoundland and Labrador's Official Opposition wants the province to put the brakes on Churchill Falls negotiations. PC Leader Tony Wakeham says the world has changed since the memorandum of understanding was first introduced in December, and he wants the governing Liberals to focus on developing a potential "national energy corridor" that has come up in recent months. "We need to slow down and take an opportunity to evaluate what that might look like," Wakeham told CBC News on Tuesday. Before the federal election, Prime Minster Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre both pledged to create an energy corridor. While it's uncertain what that could look like, a post on the federal Liberal party's website says that Carney intends to fast-track "projects of national interest." The prime minister will meet with leaders from each province and territory, at a first ministers' meeting on Monday in Saskatoon. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Premier John Hogan said he feels that the meeting will be a good opportunity to discuss the province's priorities. "[Carney is] focused on nation building projects," said Hogan. "And those are the discussions that we're going to be having; about what that means, what the projects will be and what sort of assistance the federal government is looking at providing to the provinces to help develop those national building projects." At the same time, Hogan says he's committed to moving forward with the Churchill Falls deal while exploring "additional opportunities" with the federal government, according to a statement from the premier's office sent on Tuesday. The new Churchill Falls deal, which Newfoundland and Labrador and Quebec hope to finalize by next year, would bring an average of $1 billion to the province's coffers each year until 2041. Four combined projects outlined in the deal could generate 5,000 direct jobs. Wakeham insists Newfoundland and Labrador is rushing that deal. Meanwhile, NDP Leader Jim Dinn says any pause would "spell the end" for Labrador West. Dinn was a staunch advocate for independent oversight and still questions some parts of the proposed deal, but still doesn't want to see it put on hold. "It's actually injected a sense of hope and prosperity," he told reporters this week. "Why would you basically sound the death knell, then, to Labrador West by saying 'let's pause it' and 'let's wait and see what happens. The damage is going to be done."
CBC
6 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Health authority CEO says alternative care patient increase comes as no surprise
The number of patients waiting in hospital beds for an alternate level of care (ALC) in Newfoundland and Labrador has more than doubled in the last five months, and the CEO of the province's health authority says he is not surprised. "The fact is, the need for hospital beds is driven by people getting old and fragile," Pat Parfrey said in a recent meeting with reporters. "We have an aging population, and we've gone up by 25 per cent in the last decade of seniors, and we're going to go up by 25 per cent in the next decade." According to an access-to-information request filed by the Progressive Conservatives, which CBC News has reviewed, there are 327 people waiting in ALC beds as of May 2025. This includes seniors requiring long-term care. That's an increase of 181 people since December 2024. "That's a full hospital. That's not good enough," PC Leader Tony Wakeham told reporters on Thursday. Shortage an old issue But Parfrey questions the numbers. In central and western Newfoundland, a shortage of ALC beds is not a new issue. "We've had ALC levels of 30 and 40 per cent in central and western for years, and it's directly related to not having the places that frail elderly people can go into," he said. In St. John's, Parfrey said the number of ALC patients is less than 10 per cent at the Health Sciences Centre and less than 20 percent at St. Clare's Mercy Hospital. In the meantime, he said, the province's health-care facilities have maintained the same number of ALC beds for two decades. "It's not in the slightest bit surprising that we're running into problems," he said. The health authority is developing a plan to address the shortage of beds, which Parfrey said involves getting more acute care beds in St. John's. To do so, he said, NLHS must provide more beds for transitional care, which it currently provides at Chancellor Park in St. John's. "We would need to provide other places more beds for restorative care. We're going to open beds at the Miller Centre for restorative care and we need more long-term care facilities," Parfrey said. Gridlocked hospitals Health Minister Krista Lynn Howell told reporters on Thursday the province's hospitals get caught in a cycle when beds are not available. "We do realize that it's a cycle where the beds are not available in our acute care system because there are a number of people waiting to be placed in whatever appropriate venue," Howell said. Parfrey compared the cycle to a gridlock. "The ambulances come along and there's no place to put the patient, and you get offload delay, and that leads to inefficiencies. And because you don't have enough beds or they're occupied by people who need a different level of care, the emergency rooms are getting blocked up, and people are in corridors," he said. "You get gridlock." Parfrey said NLHS will offer the province a plan that outlines short, medium, and long-term approaches to solve the overcapacity problem within the next few weeks. When asked by CBC News if the plan should have been made previously, given the knowledge of the province's aging population, Parfrey said, "maybe that's true."
CBC
23-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
More and more people are waiting for alternate care in N.L.'s hospital beds
The number of patients waiting in hospital beds for an alternate level of care (ALC) in Newfoundland and Labrador has more than doubled in the last five months. According to an access-to-information request filed by the Progressive Conservatives, which CBC News has reviewed, Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services said 327 people are waiting in ALC beds as of May 2025. This includes seniors requiring long-term care. That's a jump of 181 people since December 2024. "That's a full hospital. That's not good enough," PC Leader Tony Wakeham told reporters on Thursday. During question period in the House of Assembly on Thursday, Wakeham said his party filed a similar request in December. At the time, 146 people were waiting for alternate levels of care. "That number is now 327 people. That's double," Wakeham said in the house. Health Minister Krista Lynn Howell says her department recognizes the problem. "We do realize that it's a cycle where the beds are not available in our acute care system because there are a number of people waiting to be placed in whatever appropriate venue," Howell said. She added not everyone in an ALC bed requires long-term care placement. "On a case-by-case basis, the care teams will evaluate these individuals and see what the most appropriate course of action is." Wakeham believes patients waiting in a hospital bed can be detrimental to their well-being. "Your health care will go downhill. You're not getting the physiotherapy that you probably need. You're not getting the occupational therapy you probably need, and the other services are available in other facilities," he said. "The stimulation — you're not getting it." CBC has reached out to NLHS for comment. Regional breakdown The access-to-information-request breaks down where the 327 people are across the province's five health care zones. The majority of patients, totalling 103 individuals, are waiting for care in the western zone, with 78 of them at Western Memorial Regional Hospital in Corner Brook. An additional 91 patients are located in the central zone, with 54 of them waiting at Central Newfoundland Regional Hospital in Grand Falls-Windsor. In the eastern-rural zone there are a total of 31 patients waiting, with 13 of them waiting at Dr. G.B. Cross Memorial Hospital in Clarenville. In St. John's, within the eastern-urban zone, 38 people are waiting in the Health Sciences Centre and 37 are waiting at St. Clare's Mercy Hospital. One patient is at the Janeway. In the Labrador-Grenfell zone there are 26 patients waiting for alternate care, with the majority of them at the Labrador Health Centre in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
CBC
22-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Price of sugary beverages to drop within weeks, says N.L. Finance Minister
Two-litre bottles of Pepsi and other sugar-sweetened beverages for sale in Newfoundland and Labrador will become cheaper for consumers within weeks, according to Finance Minister Siobhan Coady. Premier John Hogan announced on May 12 the province would axe its controversial sugar tax, implemented by former Premier Andrew Furey in 2022 as an incentive to encourage consumers to make healthier beverage choices. Hogan repealed the tax in response to public concerns about affordability, but legislation has yet to come forward in the House of Assembly to have the tax officially eliminated. On Thursday, the legislature concluded its spring session a week early. In the meantime, Coady says the province would remove the tax through regulations by Hogan's cabinet instead of legislation, similar to the federal government's removal of the carbon tax. "We're talking to the retailers and wholesalers to make sure we do this properly and correctly," she said. "We're making sure there's no inventory in the process." PC Leader Tony Wakeham is disappointed the legislation to remove the tax wasn't put forward in the House of Assembly this spring. While the province says the tax will be removed, Wakeham says it won't be eliminated until legislative change takes place in the House. "They're going to do it through regulations, not through the legislature, so it allows the cabinet to actually go back, bring it down to zero and bring it back up again if they so choose," he said, adding that if the House wasn't closing early they would have had time to eliminate the tax entirely. "Bringing in the legislation and eliminating the sugar tax can be done next week," Wakeham said. "Let's bring in the legislation and get it done." The provincial government has taken in more than $35.5 million through the sugar-sweetened beverage tax since its inception in 2022. Coady believes the tax served its purpose to push consumers to pick healthier non-taxed options like diet drinks, some juices and water. "The older demographic continues to drink sugar-sweetened beverages, but the younger demographic certainly has gotten the message," Coady said. She says programs funded by the tax, such as school lunches and supplies for diabetics, will be funded through tightening budgets within some government departments.
