Government of Newfoundland News

Office of the Auditor General

In his report to the House of Assembly on Performance Audits of Departments and Crown Agencies tabled in the House of Assembly today in St. John’s, Auditor General, Terry Paddon, reports on 7 reviews completed on Government departments and Crown agencies. The report contains 65 recommendations, directed to Government and the Crown agencies, aimed at strengthening financial and operational processes and controls. In addition, the report contains 186 findings which arose during the reviews.

Natural Resources

Today, the Honourable Siobhan Coady, Minister of Natural Resources, announced that significant exploration opportunity exists in the province's offshore as evidenced by the results of Call for Bids in the Eastern Newfoundland Region and in the Jeanne d'Arc Region, both located in the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Area.

Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development

Colin Holloway, Parliamentary Secretary to the Honourable Christopher Mitchelmore, Minister of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development, will speak at a special unveiling ceremony in honour of 26 individuals who served during the First World War tomorrow (Thursday, November 10). The event is being held by the Southwest Arm Historical Society at Southwest Arm Academy, beginning at 11:00 a.m.

Executive Council

Today, the Honourable Dwight Ball, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, launched "The Way Forward: A Vision for Sustainability and Growth in Newfoundland and Labrador." The Vision will guide Provincial Government actions to achieve greater efficiency, strengthen the province’s economic foundation, enhance services, and improve outcomes to promote a healthy and prosperous province. The document is available online at www.gov.nl.ca/pdf/the_way_forward.pdf.

Office of the Auditor General

Terry Paddon, Auditor General of Newfoundland and Labrador, will hold a news conference at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow (Thursday, November 10) at the Office of the Auditor General, 7 Pippy Place, St. John’s, following the tabling of his Report on Performance Audits of Departments and Crown Agencies in the House of Assembly.

Natural Resources

The Honourable Siobhan Coady, Minister of Natural Resources, will provide the welcoming address at an oil and gas seminar tomorrow (Thursday, November 10). The seminar is being hosted by INTSOK – Norwegian Oil and Gas Partners, in cooperation with the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Ottawa and Innovation Norway. The event takes place at the Delta Hotel in St. John’s starting at 8:45 a.m. and Minister Coady will begin her remarks at 9:15 a.m.

Executive Council

The Honourable Dwight Ball, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, will officially launch the Provincial Government’s vision document today (Wednesday, November 9). The launch will take place at 2:00 p.m. in the Media Centre, East Block, Confederation Building.

Executive Council
Transportation and Works

The Honourable Dwight Ball, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, today announced that the portion of the Trans-Canada Highway between Peacekeepers Way and the Veterans Memorial Highway on the Avalon Peninsula will officially be named the Highway of Heroes. The naming is in partnership with the 2nd Canadian Army Veteran Motorcycle Units, Newfoundland and Labrador Chapter.

Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development

The Honourable Christopher Mitchelmore, Minister of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development, will speak at the Enactus World Cup Celebration today (Wednesday, November 9).

Executive Council

The Honourable Dwight Ball, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Honourable Al Hawkins, Minister of Transportation and Works, will join veterans tomorrow (Wednesday, November 9) to officially designate a section of the Trans-Canada highway the “Highway of Heroes”. The portion of the highway to be named is between Peacekeepers Way and the Veterans Memorial Highway on the CBS Bypass. The event will take place at the Canadian Forces Station, 115 The Boulevard, St. John’s at 10:00 a.m.

Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development

The Honourable Christopher Mitchelmore, Minister of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development, will speak at the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador’s 43rd Annual Christmas Craft Fair tomorrow (Wednesday, November 9), beginning at 3:30 p.m. This year’s fair takes place at Jack Byrne Arena in Torbay from Wednesday, November 9 to Sunday, November 13.

Executive Council
Education and Early Childhood Development

Today, the Honourable Dwight Ball, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, announced the appointment of four individuals to the Premier’s Task Force on Improving Educational Outcomes.

Advanced Education, Skills and Labour

The Honourable Gerry Byrne, Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Labour joined Gudie Hutchings, Member of Parliament for Long Range Mountains at College of the North Atlantic in Corner Brook today to announce more than $4.3 million for the college’s Centre for Energy and Thermal Systems and campus upgrades.

Office of the Auditor General

“The Province is forecasting significant deficits from 2016-17 to 2022-23. During this period, the Province’s expected deficit as a percentage of GDP is forecast to be up to 10 times higher than the average of all other provinces – well beyond what would be considered sustainable. Measures to reduce the significant deficits expected over the next seven years will impact services throughout the Province and will affect every resident of Newfoundland and Labrador.”

Children, Seniors and Social Development

The Provincial Government has created a new Intra-Provincial Sport Travel Subsidy Program to reduce costs and enhance opportunities for over 2,500 school-based athletes in all regions of the province, to participate in provincial school sport championships delivered by School Sports NL.

Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner

The Information and Privacy Commissioner, Donovan Molloy, has released his Report PH-2016-001 under authority of the Personal Health Information Act (PHIA). A summary of the Report is included below.

Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development

Frontier, a Canadian-American historical drama television series chronicling the North American fur trade of the 1700s, made its debut last night (Sunday, November 6) on Discovery Canada. Frontier is a Newfoundland and Labrador/Ontario co-production. The series was created by Rob and Peter Blackie and produced by Take the Shot Productions which also produced Republic of Doyle. The show was largely shot in Newfoundland and Labrador and has already been renewed for a second season by Discovery Canada and Netflix‎.

Executive Council

The Honourable Dwight Ball, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, will announce the appointments to the Task Force on Improving Educational Outcomes tomorrow (Tuesday, November 8). The event will take place at 11:30 a.m. at Elizabeth Park Elementary School, 80 Ellesmere Avenue, Paradise.

Advanced Education, Skills and Labour

The Honourable Gerry Byrne, Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Labour, will be joined by Long Range Mountains MP Gudie Hutchings, on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and Robin Walters, Vice-President, Industry and Community Engagement, College of the North Atlantic, to announce a provincial and federal investment in College of the North Atlantic infrastructure at the Corner Brook Campus.

Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development

The Honourable Christopher Mitchelmore, Minister of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development, will attend a plaque unveiling to recognize the national historic significance of Thomas Nangle tomorrow (Tuesday, November 8). The event will take place at Canadian Forces Station, 115 The Boulevard, St. John’s, beginning at 10:00 a.m.