November 28, 1996
(Mines and Energy)

Dr. Rex Gibbons, Minister of Mines and Energy, today expressed dismay at the opposition's lack of support for a bill presented in the House of Assembly backing the government and its efforts to change the contract with Hydro-Quebec to maximize the financial benefits the Upper Churchill.

The House of Assembly passed the resolution brought forward by Perry Canning, member for Labrador West. Government members unanimously supported Mr. Canning's private member's bill while all nine members of the official opposition voted against the resolution. The bill was also supported by Jack Harris, member for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi and by Yvonne Jones, member for Cartwright-L'anse au Clair.

"I'm shocked that the official Opposition chose not to support this resolution," says Dr. Gibbons. "It is very important that the people of Newfoundland and Labrador join together and present a united front and support the government's attempts to get a fair share of the resource revenue from Upper Churchill."

The private sector acknowledges the need for the contract to be amended. In fact, Jacques Lamarre, president and chief executive officer of the Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., Canada's largest engineering firm, is quoted in today's Globe and Mail urging that the governments of Newfoundland and Labrador and Quebec get together to solve their differences in order to move ahead with economic developments in Labrador.

Dr. Gibbons added" "On average, Hydro-Quebec received 96 per cent of the profits between 1976 and 1995, which amounted to approximately $600 million per year. On the other hand, the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and in turn the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, only received about four per cent of the revenues from our own resource or about $23 million per year. This is a time for all members of the House of Assembly to join forces and work together for the good of the people of this province to get the contract with Hydro-Quebec re-negotiated."

Contact: Tara Laing, Assistant Director of Communications, (709) 729-4890.